With their roots in metal and a sound that now resonates with the cinematic depth of instrumental post-rock, Polish band Yenisei are paving the way in the music landscape. Their latest album, Home, is the next step in the band’s evolution. Originally a metal band, the departure of their vocalist steered them toward an instrumental direction, sparking a journey that has allowed them to experiment freely while preserving elements from their heavier past.
From the emotional introspection of “Reflections”—written in the isolating era of the pandemic—to the hopeful, complex themes in Home, Yenisei continues to draw listeners into soundscapes that speak to universal experiences. In this interview, the band shares insights into the creative process behind Home, the significance of “home” as both a physical and emotional sanctuary, and their ongoing pursuit of musical discovery.
Yenisei started as a metal band before transitioning to instrumental post-rock. Can you share what prompted this shift in your musical direction and how it has shaped your sound?
This shift was prompted by departure of vocalist from our previous project. We tried to continue this band and we were looking for replacement for quite a while. During that time we also started to do some instrumental songs just to keep our creativity alive. Instead of finding good replacement for vocalist to our heavy metal project we found Rafał, our current keyboardist who joined Yenisei and this is when we decided to go further only with instrumental band. Some aspects from previous project are definitely there in Yenisei and the one that is the most obvious are distorted heavy guitar riffs which are present on all Yenisei albums.
Your debut album, The Last Cruise, received significant attention in the post-rock community. What were your expectations for the album when you released it, and how did the reception match those expectations?
We totally had no expectations when our debut album was released. Maybe just a bit of curiosity what people would think about it, as we knew we liked those songs very much. We definitely were overwhelmed with the feedback for this album and it gave us a lot of confidence that choosing instrumental project was right for us.
The pandemic posed many challenges for musicians. How did Yenisei adapt to the lockdown, and what was the process of creating your second album, Reflections, during that time?
We couldn’t promote our debut album live because of that. We played only one release show in Kraków together with Transmission Zero. Still, at the end of 2019 we wrote a demo for “Waves” in our rehearsal room, but in March 2020 when everything stopped and all the lockdown restrictions were established, we started working on our song ideas remotely, exchanging new ideas online. We can easily say that half of the record was done online when the rest was finished when we could meet again face to face in late 2020. We were very creative during this time as we put on the shelf around 10 more song ideas which did not make the final album. This record can be described as written in hybrid mode.
“Reflections” explores a wide array of emotions and internal dilemmas. Can you elaborate on the themes and experiences that influenced the songwriting and composition of this album?
Main theme of the album is looking back at the past, at memories. There is an omnipresent vibe of nostalgia throughout the whole album. That is quite obvious that pandemic led us quite a bit onto that subject for the album. We all saw the World changing in front of our eyes and we were thinking and asking: “will we ever go back to what we had before?”. There was for sure a longing present in our minds for the times that passed and that were so distant for us in these moments.
You mentioned that “Reflections” represents both maturity and brevity compared to your debut. What does maturity mean to you in the context of your music, and how is it reflected in this album?
When we are looking back at our debut album, it seems that most of the songs are based on a similar pattern. There is a calm, clean part followed by a heavy part with distorted riffs and tremolo guitar layer on top. That was our way of creating post-rock songs in that period. For “Reflections” we tried to be more creative. It’s no longer a rule that heavy riffs need to be present in the song. In some cases we tried to intensify song parts with heavy synths as an example. We experimented more with electronics, guitar layers and harmonies. This album is definitely more diverse than “The Last Cruise”.
With the release of your third album, Home, released on October 25, 2024, what new elements and styles can listeners expect to hear that distinguish it from your previous work?
There is quite a lot of that present on the new album. Starting with shoegaze guitars and synths in “Crickets”. “This Place Was A Shelter”, packed with gloomy synths. It becomes very heavy in the middle part and all is crowned with tapping guitar just to change to a bit “depeche mode” like electronic ending. “We are saved” contains the heaviest riff in Yenisei’s discography, but the biggest surprise is vocal feature in “Insecure”. Track has a lot of alternative rock vibes and addition of vocals gives it some sort of U2 feel to it. Final track on the album contains vocoder parts which are also new in our catalogue. We experimented also a lot with guitar and key sounds during writing and recording process. This record reaches without restraint to elements outside of post-rock genre and blends them into Yenisei‘s music with ease.
Your music has been described as transporting listeners to alternate realms of existence. How do you go about creating that immersive soundscape in your compositions?
What we consider as our trademark and the most important thing when the songs are written are very good and memorable melodies. Fortunately, it comes easily for us and our melody choices create this catchy and emotional motives at the same time. Soundscapes are everything that is underneath the main melody, so synth pads, guitar layers, guitar drones… Our songs are rich in arrangements, so it is always recommended to listen to it with good headphones.
The song “Insecure” on Home features vocals written and recorded by Maciej Kowalski. What inspired the decision to include vocals this time, and how do you feel it complements your established sound?
We wrote music to “Insecure” and even played this song live in its instrumental form. After the concert we talked that this track is a bit repetitive and has some kind of traditional songwriting structure (verse/chorus). This is when we decided that maybe we should try to include vocal feature for this track to make this song more exciting and interesting. Maciej’s voice and melodies are the missing element that instrumental version of the song lacked. You will have possibility to check it as we will release instrumental version of the song as well.
Your latest album also incorporates elements of electronic music, shoegaze, and alternative rock. How do you approach blending these diverse influences into a cohesive musical identity?
These elements are something that excites us and gives us as a creator certainty that our new songs will sound fresh. We could easily create record sounding very similar to “Reflections”, but we decided that it is not something that brings us excitement or joy. The rule is simple: influences from other genres are always an addition to the song, not a dominant element of the track. We still try to keep this strong post-rock spine, but in the same time add new, exciting and maybe not typical guitar or key choices to final result.
The concept of “home” is central to your upcoming album. What does “home” mean to you as individuals and as a band, and how is that theme reflected in the music?
We built the main concept of the record around „Home”, which is a safe space and place where we love to get back to. It might also be interpreted as finding good mental condition for ourselves and calling this state home. We noticed while writing the tracks for the record that a lot of them have quite positive vibe and melodies and this is also what determined that we wanted to name this album with a simple but positive word. Songs like “Crickets” for example reminded us of chilling calmly during summer evening with the sounds of crickets in the background. It doesn’t mean that we are showing only good face of the titular home. Good example of showing it’s bad side is “This Place Was A Shelter” where we explore topic of us as human beings destroying world that we are leaving in. It shows that there are also negative and destructive aspects of main theme which can also be noticed while listening to this album.
How did working with experienced producers like Tomasz “Zed” Zalewski influence the sound and production quality of Home? What did he bring to the table that enhanced the final product?
Oh, we learned a lot from Tomasz. First of all he is a wonderful, patient and to-the-point specialist. He showed us some recoding techniques which we definitely will implement in our demo recordings. He also pushed us to create the best takes possible. Some guitar takes for example were good from the start in our minds, but we tried 5 to 10 more times to get that best take with this “special spice” in it (a vibrato, feedback, whatever the significant part needed). In case of production we gave Tomasz some simple pointers how we want this record to sound in case of mixing and mastering, so it is mostly his doing how it sounds as a whole… and it sounds massive and modern. We worked on that together as first versions of the songs sounded even too massive and with a bit too much low end, but when we found the right spot everything went smoothly with remaining tracks.
The artwork for your albums is also important in conveying your message. How do you collaborate with visual artists to ensure that the artwork aligns with the themes and emotions of your music?
For two previous albums we used already existing artworks. For “Reflections” we only made some color changes compared to the original. With this record we gave Jarek Kubicki and idea, theme of the album. Later he sent us some mood boards and motives which he proposed as an interpretation of the theme and music which he heard from our demos. We choose one of the ideas that fitted perfectly for what we wanted to say with our sounds. As it is all digital art all changes could be done very easily and quickly, but the most important is that this time the artwork was created exclusively for our record.
With the rapid evolution of your sound, how do you ensure that each new album maintains the essence of Yenisei while exploring new musical territories?
Our core elements are present on every Yenisei’s album. We have heavy riffs, guitar leads, pianos, pads and of course very post rock rhythmic section present on every album. Heavy parts mixed with more atmospheric parts of the songs, this is also what can be our description. However, the most important and characteristic for us are memorable, catchy melodies, and this is what makes up the essence of Yenisei.
What impact do you hope your music has on listeners, particularly with Home and its exploration of inner peace and the complexities of finding one’s safe place?
We hope that all our listeners will reach the state in their lives where there will be a place for them in the World, a place where they belong, a place which they can call home… We also wish everyone to find their inner peace and to not bother about everything around that can be really negative and destructive on many levels. The best conclusion for what we wanted to say is the speech on the final song, “Forgotten”: “when the world feels like a tempest, let the melody of home guide you back to tranquility”.
Looking ahead, what are your goals for Yenisei in the coming years? Are there any specific projects, collaborations, or directions you’re excited to pursue?
As Home has just been released a few days ago, we did not discuss what we are going to do next with our music yet. Maybe on some kind of “Christmas” band meeting we will talk about what we would like to do next. It is always a question, but sometimes music just comes out from us and decides for us… We are going to play two release shows in Poland this year and hope to play some festivals in 2025.
Check out Home on Bandcamp here. Follow Yenisei on Facebook and Instagram.
