Interview: The Forest of Knives
On February 13, 2026, The Decomposition EP will be released as the harbinger of the first The Forest of Knives album, Decomposition Continuum I: Fragmentation Bloat. The opening elevenminutes are bound to catch listeners off guard, thoroughly subverting expectations with avant-garde tech death that is as intricately layered as it is eerily accessible.
Given that it remains something of a mystery how Aaron D.C. Edge, alongside his countless platforms (ranging from Hellvetika to Bible Black Tyrant or Lumbar Endeavor), not only finds the time for a new project – one that goes into such obsessive detail, no less – but also how he and roaring-force Chad Kapper (Frontierer, Unikneim, A Dark Forest, When Knives Go Skyward, etc.) manage, as a new all-star tandem, to stylistically push each other with such exhilarating hunger beyond their respective domains – sludge and doom on the one hand, mathcore on the other – it certainly doesn’t hurt to double-check with a few follow-up questions.
If I understand correctly, you work as The Forest of Knives exclusively as a duo?
Aaron: Indeed, a duo. I write and perform all music, Chad writes all lyrics and screams ‚em. We each record our own parts in our own studios – in our own separate countries – before mixing each song together. It’s a bonkers, creative, seamless process that I was – at first – incredibly self conscious about diving into. I’ve admired Chad’s work for a long time and NEVER in a billion storms of rolling waves would have thought he’d want to create with me. We trust each other. We respect each other. It’s the most important relationship I have outside my marriage and family tree.
So you are both familiar with each other’s work outside of your collaboration as well?
Chad: I actually had been listening to all of Aaron‘s work for a very long time, and was especially familiar with Lumbar, when he released the first album, and I was hooked by his ability to connect musically with such a specific and unique sound that’s all him… dark and it just completely encompassed what I love about music that becomes more like sonic art with how it makes you visually see what you are hearing.
While we’re on the subject: Regret Beyond Death (2018) und Encased in Iron (2020) were released quite some time ago. Is Bible Black Tyrant still active in any form?
Aaron: Oh man… ya never know. I’d love to do another release with Tyler! He’s such a glowing, creative and passionate creature. Cross your fingers and I’ll cross mine.
How do your TFoK songs come together?
Aaron: More often than not, I’ll have a riff swimming around in my head while on a bike ride, run or photography walk here in London. I’ll stop and make an audio note into my phone so as not to forget it. It must be odd for a stranger next to me on a busy street, train or bus when I hum notes into my device. Once home, I’ll record the simple riff into a new studio session (I use Garageband for everything), save and close. I’ll revisit when I have more ideas to add or time to shut off all the terrible news and get creative. Each song then morphs as they grow… no differently than other musicians and producers, I bet. But, different from my other material, I have tried hard to twist and turn more with each Forest song we write. I find myself getting lost, without a torch, and starting to be okay with that. There’s also more orchestral parts than I normally feel comfortable layering. At times, out of my comfort zone, often unsure and out of control. Some parts live like barnacles on a phrase until the whole track is finished… then they find their place and—I hope—hook the listener.
What can you tell us about the thematic level or the conceptual ambition of the music? And what does the working process look like with regard to music and lyrics?
Chad: This project for sure continues that love I have for music that creates a visual aspect when listening to it. Aaron once again has that unique ability to create his own sound, one that I can pinpoint immediately in his projects, and it comes across in TFOK as well. It’s a hellish cinematic experience, but I feel Aaron has gone even deeper down his bag of tricks and created a feeling even more special and haunting. The man is a musical machine. He creates new music as easily as water flows from a tap. It’s insane, and always of such high quality each time.
As for our process of creating music together: it’s super simple. He sends me the music, where I can then take it all in and absorb it. I then write and record my parts so that I could send it back to him for mixing. It really couldn’t be any easier and it’s completely organic on how it comes out. We discuss it a bit, but mainly we both let each other treat it as open waters. Do what you feel and create something fresh and different, but unique to your own creative tone and stamp.
Now that the first two songs from Decomposition Continuum I: Fragmentation Bloat are known—could you tease a bit where the journey with the rest of the album is headed? Or maybe even beyond that…? Considering the numbering, it doesn’t really seem like a one-off project – am I wrong there?
Aaron: The first two tracks, Bangor and The Grave… are true examples of the path we have blazed with this year’s full album. There’s a lot of genres represented, as well as forgotten doors opened that should’ve remained locked. This project isn’t safe, and I’m so very excited to have others feel unsafe too. We write horror music, sometimes without the revenge scene you normally crave from the flick’s hero. If you remember the old metal band Himsa (which I co-founded with friends way back in 1998), the writing was all across the board and often without category. I’ve continued with that ethos: Chad and I deliver something delicious, bitter, heavy and filling without a recipe.
What can be said without much qualification: The Forest of Knives sound familiar yet still venture into new territory; they challenge the listener without overwhelming them. Or put differently: The Decomposition EP makes sense in a surprisingly straightforward way — and really makes you want more.
In this sense, many thanks once again to Aaron and Chad for the interview!
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