Planning For Burial is one phenomenal man named Thom Wasluck. His resent album, 2017’s Below The House on Flenser’s Records, has been captivating fans of drone metal mixed with its eerily beautiful lullaby style instrumentation. Recently, I had the fortunate opportunity to sit down with Thom and discuss his song writing process.
POW!: So Thom, your music has always, to me, been an exhausting amount of passion being expelled until there’s absolutely nothing left. Was this your intention or did you have something else in mind?
Thom Wasluck: The best way I can describe it is that I never had an intention for anything. It’s just what I needed to do. There’s no real idea. It’s just I needed to work on. It’s just what happens.
POW!: What drives you to incorporate lush instrumentation into, occasional, harsh vocals onto your rexcords?
Thom Wasluck: It comes from being in my mid-thirties and going to record stores my entire life. And just being into so much stuff. I like really pretty, full sounding instruments. And I just want to yell sometimes.
POW!: Who doesn’t?
Thom Wasluck: That all it comes down to.
POW!: You’ve mentioned in the past you’ve grown less fond of your second album Desideratum. Is this because you feel you’ve honed your craft more? Or are you in a different head space now or something else entirely?
Thom Wasluck: It’s probably a different headspace. And before I even recorded the album I was playing those songs live for almost three years. It is what it is now. (laughs) I tell people I puked the album out. I didn’t spend much time recording it. I didn’t spend much time on production. It just is what it is now. My friend was talking to me. He told me my vocals sound really hazy on it. I was on a lot of drugs. I was drinking a lot. So, I didn’t spend a lot of time on it. And that’s fine. It’s a true testament to how messed up I was at the time. And now I look back and I think, well, I could have made those songs a bit better.
POW!: I, for one, love it. I mean, I could say that until I’m blue in the face.
Thom Wasluck: And that’s fine. I’ve actually been touring with a newer version of “August 29th“. It has more peaks and valleys. And, I don’t know, maybe one day I’ll record a new version of it.
POW!: I’ve heard the new version. I love it.
Thom Wasluck: You’ve heard it? The Version I made with the Have A Nice Life?
POW!: It’s so good.
POW: You take on a lot of themes of depression on your albums. Has anyone ever approached you telling you ‘this has really helped me through a dark patch of my life’”?
Thom Wasluck: Yeah, I get that all the time.
POW: That’s awesome!
Thom Wasluck: I mean, I thank them. I appreciate that. But, I don’t know what else to do. I’m glad the music is there to help them like it always was for me.
POW!: What is youre song writing process? Does it come to you naturally? Or do you go in with a particular idea in mind and let whatever happens happen?
Thom Wasluck: Sometimes I’ll be at work and I’ll think of something. Then I go home and try to figure it out. But, it might turn into something else. I’ll work on a riff forever. I haven’t recorded anything this year. But I’ll be playing on an acoustic guitar around my house and that might turn into something.
POW!: Who were some of your influences when you were growing up?
Thom Wasluck: I would say Marilyn Manson and Trent Reznor. I’m a 90’s goth kid at heart.
POW!: Your new album Below The House is doing really well. I read somewhere it was recorded in secret. You put it away from some time and has really captured everyone’s attention.
Thom Wasluck: “I sat on it for a couple months. Three or four months after recorded I decided it was time for mastering and I love it.”
POW!: You just performed with Have A Nice Life. Both of your bands have been labeled as ‘doomgaze’ or even ‘gloomgaze’. Do you enjoy those labels or are they topic of frustration?
Thom Wasluck: If that’s the label they choose to use. Then that’s what they choose.
POW!: The Flenser is probably my favorite record label. What drew you to signing with them?
Thom Wasluck: I was friends with a lot of the people there. It was around 2013. I was performing with Wreck and Reference and Deafheaven. One of the managers heard I was recording. I was told to send them the demos. And I was, like, okay.
