‘Dark, Melancholic, Reflective’: The Behaviour new album transcends the gothic post rock atmosphere

The Behaviour is excited to announce the release of the album, A Sin Dance. The album is available worldwide on all streaming platforms. Recorded throughout 2022, this album features seven new tracks entirely written, arranged, and performed by Der Baron M. Kilpatric.

These songs are the first to showcase Kilpatric’s unique songwriting style and wide ranging musical abilities. Culled from a wealth of material written over the past few years, these were specifically selected for their dynamic, eclectic, and diverse nature to give but a taste of what is to come.

“A Sin Dance”: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5k3qljEKjAZ86y9vwUrYPS

The Behaviour is a gothic inspired post-alternative rock group created by Der Baron M. Kilpatric in 2020. The album was entirely written, arranged, and performed by Kilpatric himself. While currently located in New England, this album culminated from his time residing in Colorado and the Midwest while marinating in the sounds of Jeff Buckley, Soundgarden, Slint, Killing Joke, Pink Floyd, Leonard Cohen, my bloody valentine, David Bowie, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, and countless others.

The Behaviour as a perfect and effective representation of the sounds, melodies, and noises heard in his head and ringing in his ears for quite some time. While being a catharsis, purging, and execution of shadow work in its purest form of expression, this record is merely a prologue.

The music is dark and melancholic on the surface, yet underneath the richly textured layers are introspective messages of redemption, healing, and renewal found through experienced loss and traumas.

In this interview, we talked with The Behaviour about his musical influences, future plans, trajectory, among other curiosities. Check it out!

What can you say about this new release? This album was many years in the making. I started writing it in 2020, and began the recording process in 2022. It came about by a combination of things – separation, loneliness, the pandemic, loss, trauma, longing, sobriety, and became a healing process in doing so. Shadow work in its purest form. After being the drummer in a number of groups on many different levels over many, many years, I thought it was time to step up and out from behind the kit and take the reins completely. I wanted to prove, to myself more than anyone, that it could be done. To create something that was pure and organic, with many aural and lyrical textures, meanings, and layers. I aimed to utilize the universal language to truly exemplify what drives me, what makes me who I am, for all to see and hear out on display in sheer vulnerability. It is definitely introspective and emotional, as well as giving glimpses of perspectives faced outwards. I hope that is conveyed.

How was the recording process of the album? Since being written while residing in the shadow of the majestic Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I chose to record it in the Midwest with the invaluable assistance and expertise of a very talented recording engineer, Scott Mackey, who has been a dear friend of mine for decades. Due to logistical reasons, we recorded over the weekends for several months throughout the summer and fall of 2022. It was very laid back, allowing us to spend more time than what would be normally allowed in a formal recording studio under limited budget and time constraints. This opened up many more possibilities to explore, such as the deep layering and textures that make this album so unique, and try different experimental techniques and approaches. There were some additional things I did at home and in various locations to add some touches that make this album best listened to loud and/or on a very good stereo system or headphones, which is the way I like to hear my favorite records that have influenced me.

If you had to pick one song, which one would you pick? “Strangelic”.

What’s your favourite band? It is always very difficult to pick just one, but in the scope and totality of the vastness of their catalogue, I would choose Pink Floyd.

Who or what inspires you to write songs? I am inspired by personal experiences, things I have endured, reflections on things occurring around me, thoughts toward the future. Hoping to find healing and transformation into a better human being by and through the notes, frequencies, rhythms, and melodies I hear in my head and hopefully thereby transmitting and transmutating them to and for the listener as well. It is an innate natural occurrence to do these things, not really having a conscious choice in the matter. It is who I am.

Whom would you like to feature with? Like your dream collaboration? For those still living, it would be a dream to collaborate with David Gilmour, Nick Cave, Jaz Coleman (Killing Joke), Michael Gira (Swans), David Eugene Edwards (Wovenhand), Ken Andrews (Failure), Hope Sandoval (Mazzy Star), Diamond Galas. For those now passed, it would have been Jeff Buckley, David Bowie, Chris Cornell, Leonard Cohen, Mark Lanegan.

How is the independent and underground scene in your country? From what I can tell, here in the US it is very much thriving and possible to be an independent and/or underground artist now more than ever, with so many resources and tools widely available to do so. Touring can be difficult, as traveling across the US entails large fuel, lodging, and food costs, and if you are trying to do so on your own, starting from scratch to build a fanbase, your guarantees can be smaller and make this difficult. There are also “buy-on” options for opening slots with more established acts, and this can even further your expenses. Another caveat for independent artists is that the more equal playing field of streaming and exposure has created a flooding of the “market,” making it inundated with so many artists that it has become more difficult to stand out and be heard above or even as much as others. It comes down to how well your resources are, and the usual typical “right place/right time”, with regards to your music being heard by and resonating with the right person to help spread your art/message. I think this is not just limited to my country. Certain algorithms in this streaming age should help make this more possible as well, but again you are always up against the major labels and artists with a far more vast amount of influence and resources.

What are your plans for the future? Writing and releasing more music! As I said, there is an arsenal of songs waiting to be more explored, as well as a few covers I want to interpret to put out there. Continuing to reach a new audience in any way is never ending, and perhaps I would like to bring The Behaviour to a new dynamic by presenting it live at some point. I do not desire to tour as I once did, being on the road for months at a time. The climate of that environment has changed drastically since I last did it, and it is far more difficult to make a living at it now with costs and expenses, while also being away from your loved ones and trying to have stability and security. But we’ll see. I am definitely not opposed to doing one-off dates, like festivals or something of that nature.