If there is one thing that the man behind the progressive-death metal band Æthereal has never lacked, its vision; “there are so many bands that just don’t have a vision of what they’re really working for, you know? So many well-intentioned bands that are fairly talented but can never cut it. I’ve seen that so many times and even experienced it once where it was just so tough to pull everyone together: that’s when I said ‘never again, I’ll do it myself if I have to’.” Pulling that vision together has been a little more time-consuming than he initially thought it would be, however; “yeah, well, writing everything yourself is tough. I’m no drummer! Drum tracks have been the most challenging thing to work on, but I think they’ve panned out nicely.”

In August of 2006, Phil C.—the man behind the music and vision—began working on two songs that had been kicking around since he split with his first band, the well-respected Wisconsin death metal band Dumah. “Well, I’d been writing some acoustic stuff and going to school and had really checked out of music for a while,” he reflects, “but one can only stay away for so long, you know? Metal is in the blood. Even when you’re old and ‘sold out’ and working for the man everyone who’s really into it is still going to break out their Iron Maiden records. For me, I can’t imagine a time when I won’t be listening to Opeth or Vintersorg, these bands that changed my life musically. They opened my eyes to so many possibilities.” It’s that lineage that inspired Phil to begin re-writing these songs and to start working forward with his own vision.

Over time, and with plenty of interruptions due to his academic career, Phil pieced together eight tracks for his as-of-yet untitled demo which is slated to be ready by August. “Well, I initially wanted to do a four track demo—but I kept writing so, you know, what’s the point of not recording everything you’ve got? Plus, there’s a concept involved here, so I don’t really want to record half of it and then record the rest later.” But the real culprit here is aspiration: “I want people to get the whole story and to sort of see the extent of my vision; if this is what I’m doing when I’ve got no record label and no permanent band what am I capable of doing when those fortunes are turned?”

It’s now June of one year later and his vision is coming, finally, into focus: “Well, I’m excited about working with Matt [Lee, producer and session guitarist--ex-Mirror Black], it’s going to be great. He’s such a great guitar player and he takes music so seriously that it’ll definitely make a difference here.” Not only that but things are taking shape in other areas as well, “I’ve hardly put the word out that I’m working on new material and I’ve already had a discussion with someone who might help press the demo on their label. I’ve had an interview and other forms of interest as well! It’s exciting given that all I’ve had until now are midi demos to show people and its generating excitement.” But most exciting for Phil is getting involved in music again: “Well, it’s great to be back at it. I’ve missed playing a lot. I’ve itched to go into the studio and definitely to play live. I haven’t gotten the playing live back yet, but I’m definitely excited to record again.” And playing live is only a matter of time according to him, “there’s no way I’m not going to piece a band together. It’s all about finding the right people and the right places. I’m hoping when I’m in Sweden next year I can put something together and see what happens. It’s not often that you can walk into a place and say ‘hey guys, I’ve got a demo and everything ready to go to play live. So, let’s play out.’ I think it’ll go over well.”

Finally, while vision and desire to play drive him, the expression is what’s behind the band. “In the end, Æthereal is about doing whatever I want to do. It’s about playing metal without being bound down to one specific genre or anything. If I had named the band "Fetus Hockey" or "Coat Hanger Abortion" or something, there’s only so many places to go. But Æthereal is exactly that: ever-changing and amorphous. It gives room for progression and experimentation and that’s what I want. The best metal bands never slow down—they’re always experimenting, changing and growing. That’s what I want. That’s my vision.”