On Drowner, BLACKSTAFF dives into a haunting world shaped by folklore, fantasy, and horror, crafting a concept EP inspired by the eerie legend of the Will-o’-the-Wisps. Drawing influence from The Lord of the Rings, The Witcher, tabletop RPGs, and survival horror, the project unfolds like a dark cinematic journey through cursed marshes, ancient myths, and supernatural terror. Rather than relying solely on relentless heaviness, BLACKSTAFF balances doom, black metal, death metal, and atmospheric passages to serve the story, allowing each shift in intensity to emerge naturally. The result is an immersive listening experience that values vivid imagery and emotional impact as much as crushing riffs, further expanding the band’s ever growing mythological universe while leaving listeners submerged in its bleak, unforgettable finale.
Interviewer: The EP revolves around the folklore of Will-o’-the-Wisps. What drew you to that legend, and why did you want to reinterpret it?
Dustin: “One of my favorite series of all time, and I’m sure manny can relate to this, is Lord of the Rings. In the books, there is a scene where Frodo, Sam and Gollum are traversing an area known as the Dead Marshes, where swampy terrain had swallowed up a field of the dead from an ancient war. In the story, the “candles of corpses” hypnotized travelers and lured them to their death in the water. I couldn’t get this image out of my head while writing the song that would later be called Swamp Lights.”
Interviewer: The narrative unfolds almost like a film. Did you have specific visual scenes in mind while composing each track?
Dustin: “As I mentioned, the swamp lights imagery was very strong during the writing and recording of this EP, but after the spoken word of the Drowner portion of track 1 There is a sort of sensation of being pulled down into something strange and even darker, a place where sunlight has never touched and even the fae won’t go. when the drums kick in behind those jarring dissonant chords, I can see that journey down in my mind.”
Interviewer: Were there any horror authors, fantasy novels, or films that directly influenced Drowner?” Flesh Golem” takes a particularly disturbing turn. What made you decide to end the story on such a bleak note?
Dustin: “Absolutely, The Witcher series features a beast known as a Drowner, of a family of creatures known as Vodniks, or water-devils. I have read in the past that they are rooted in Slavic mythology, but my use of their imagery is purely rooted in the aforementioned series, which is a fantastic read if you are unfamiliar (i admit I enjoy the world of the Witcher video games quite a bit more as they reinvent a particularly depressing aspect of the books’ ending, but I won’t spoil that for anyone who might chance upon this interview).”
Interviewer: BLACKSTAFF moves seamlessly between doom, black metal, death metal, and atmospheric passages. How do you know when a song needs brutality versus restraint?
Dustin: “That sort of happens on its own. I admit that changes in my music are initially driven more by whim than by design, And then it evolves into its final form as I listen and feel it out. Sometimes it changes for flavor, or the story, and sometimes it changes because my mind is reaching for some musical movement every time I hear the song.“
Interviewer: You mention being inspired more by classic riff-driven rock than traditional black or death metal. How does that shape your songwriting?
Dustin: “It probably makes me a worse extreme/death metal musician, to be honest. My music will probably never be as brutal as some of my heroes, but it may grow into something that excites passion and the imagination more than that. The music I have always loved the best is music that spirits you away, or that makes you feel something.
I often tell people that New Mother Nature by The Guess Who Always felt like a really exciting and heavy song to me growing up, and that in its transitions to more energetic moments from the subdued verses it makes me want to bang my head more than a lot of the more extreme music that I love. It’s just that songwriting aspect that was so common back then–where the sudden and unexpected shift to a mind melting guitar riff from something completely different makes you say “god damn, what was THAT?”“
Interviewer: Every BLACKSTAFF release seems to expand its own universe. Do you see these stories existing in the same world?
Dustin: “Most of the time yes, when I’m not paying homage to beloved IPs i had nothing to do with writing. The purest example i can think of this is the song Swarm-That-Walks off of The Storyteller, which is about a certain mythic path on a Pathfinder video game called “wrath of the righteous,” where you essentially become a living swarm of insects.“
Interviewer: Your background in tabletop RPGs and video games is evident throughout the project. If Drowner were adapted into a game, what kind of experience would it be?
Dustin: “Absolutely survival horror!“
Drowner EP Track Listing:
1. Swamp Lights/Drowner
2. Godlike
3. Flesh Golem
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