For Imminence, the theatricality of their live show was not necessarily something they had mapped out from the beginning. Rather, it grew naturally from an understanding of what their music could offer. “For a long time we were wanting to bring another theatrical element or another theatrical level to our show,” Harald explains. “We understood a couple of years ago that our music resonates pretty well with that.”

The larger stages have gradually made it possible to realize more of that vision. Elements such as the band’s distinctive stage design are not simply decoration but an extension of the identity they have built around their music. “It’s also an extension of the visual universe and identity of us as a band, trying to bring that feeling onto the stage as well,” Eddie says.

That same philosophy is now carrying into a new chapter for Imminence. Following their signing with Sumerian Records, the band has begun unveiling new music that deliberately moves beyond what they established with ‘The Black’. Three new singles have already been released, with the band acknowledging that listeners would inevitably notice a change. “We are definitely turning a page,” Harald says. “It feels very right for us to do so.”

That change, however, was not born from a desire to deliberately distance themselves from their previous work. Instead, it comes from allowing the band’s creativity to move naturally. For Eddie, trying to recreate ‘The Black’ would actually have been the more restrictive approach. “If we were inclined to say, let’s do a follow-up to The Black and let’s write something in the same vein, that would be putting pressure on yourself and forcing yourself into a creative box,” he explains. “Whereas if you just write the music for the sake of writing music, then I don’t feel pressure in it. It’s just an extension of yourself and your expression, expressing yourself and your emotions.”

That freedom appears to have translated into a significant response to the new material. Harald describes the level of attention surrounding the new songs as something the band had not experienced before, particularly in terms of reaching new listeners and the numbers surrounding the releases. Yet while the sound continues to evolve, there is a line that Imminence do not want to cross: losing the emotional core that has always been central to their music. “It’s all there to amplify that,” Harald says when discussing the increasingly cinematic and theatrical side of the band. And like Eddie says, “The music is always the foundation, it’s the cornerstone and everything else is just there to amplify that, to convey that same feel.”

That philosophy extends to the band’s visual work as well. ‘Axis Mundi‘ is not simply another collection of songs but a larger narrative that is already unfolding through the music videos. The band describes the upcoming record as their most ambitious yet, with a consecutive story developing across the visual releases. A growing production toolbox does bring its own challenges, however. As the scale of the band’s creative work increases, Harald says they have to regularly check whether what they are creating still serves the original idea. “You need to kind of check in with yourself a little bit,” he explains. “Are we really sticking to where we are at now? Are we doing really what we’re intending to, or are we building in a different direction?”

That self-checking process also plays a role in deciding which songs actually make it onto an album. Some tracks can be objectively strong while still failing to fit the band’s vision. “We’ve had a few songs that we were writing for the album which didn’t make it for that very reason,” Eddie says. “It’s a really cool song, it’s a great song, but it’s just missing that special feeling that we’re looking for.”

For Imminence, that feeling is ultimately difficult to define from the outside. It is something the band recognises instinctively after years of developing their identity. “What Imminence is in that regard is something that only we can decide,” Harald says.

The same instinct informs the band’s live approach. At a festival such as Alcatraz, they cannot reproduce everything from their headline shows. Production depends on logistics, stage size and set length, while a festival audience may contain many people seeing the band for the first time. Their answer is therefore to make the experience more direct. “I don’t think so much about people’s opinion,” Harald says. “I just feel like you have one hour to make an impression in that sense, or like, how do we get to that point as fast as possible?”

For those who have followed Imminence through the smaller venues and earlier festival appearances, that growing ability to create their own world on larger stages represents another step in the band’s evolution. And with ‘Axis Mundi’ due to arrive on October 2 via Sumerian Records, that world is about to expand further.

The album will be followed by major European and North American touring plans in 2027, while the band says there is still plenty surrounding ‘Axis Mundi’ that has yet to be announced. For now, though, Imminence are clearly embracing the uncertainty of a new chapter rather than trying to repeat what came before.

Links