Angola is an unlikely place for heavy metal, but a small scene has started to develop in the African country. The documentary ‘Death Metal Angola’ showed this to the world. One of those bands is Horde of Silence, who refuse to remain quiet in their homeland. The documentary showed how metal is taking root in this corner of the world, brilliantly showing its force.
Photos byJosé Alves
The country came out of a civil war in 2002 and peace hasn’t come cheap. A generation grew up with conflict and strife. The country is still recovering from the years of turmoil and people have been displaced. Metal music seems to be one of the most fitting forms of expression from people who have had a lot bad luck coming their way. This is a way to find their voice and identity once more
On behalf oof the band YannickMerino was kind enough to answer questions about Horde of Silence, Angola and metal music, so that the world may learn a bit about their refusal to remain silent.
Could you start by introducing yourselves and telling us how the band got started?
A: William Sazanga: Vocals, Denilson Jayro Cardoso: Guitar, William “Seth” Neto: Bass, Yannick Merino: Drums
The person that had the idea to startthe band was Edilson “Pagia” Chitumba (currently he’s the vocal / bass player for DorFantasma. He wanted a band with fast riffs and heavy tunes, similar to Divine Heresy. He invited Jayro, also from Dor Fantasma to join the band and the two called me to be on the drums. They asked me, because at the time I was one of the few drummers that was able to play fast double bass and blast beats.
We first met at a concert in Luanda, at King’s Bar, in February 2009. Jayro and Edilson went from Benguela to play with their band (Dor Fantasma). I was one of the organizers of the concert and I played in a band called LastPrayer (a Groove Metal band). Horde of Silence started at the end of 2009 when I moved to Benguela and we first played live in January 2010.
What bands inspired you to start playing this kind of music?
A: The bands that inspire us are Behemoth, DarkFuneral, Sodom, RottingChrist, My Dying Bride, CannibalCorpse, DivineHeresy, FearFactory.
How did you settle on this name, what does it mean to you?
A: This name was chosen by Denilson Jayro, it’s supposed to be contradictory, because we aren’t silent.
What is the theme in your music, what sort of stories are you telling the world?
A: We talk about religion, mythology, wars. The main focus in the songs is the Angolan culture, we talk about the different religions that are in the country and the Angolan mythology. The wars is a normal thing that most of the bands in here talk about, we exited a war in 2002 and some of us still feel some repercussions. We try to put our history, the things that we lived through in the past into the songs, the conflicts, the deaths, the mysticism…
So you’ve recorded a song for a split album ‘You Failed…. Now We Rule!!!’ with some of the bands from the Angola metal scene. Can you tell us how that record came to be?
A: All the bands that recorded ‘You Failed…. Now We Rule!!!’ are from CubeRecords. The idea was to each band record one song and tell Angola and the World that in Angola we have metal bands. It was a bit hard to record because we recorded in a home studio, but it was worthy.
How do you guys go about writing your music, who is responsible for what element of it?
A: The lyrics are the responsibility of the vocalist, as for the instrumental part, the main parts are done by Denilson Jayro and Yannick.
You’ve mentioned you are working on your first EP. What can we expect and how is the progress? Where will it be available?
A: We are working in the EP, it’s in a slow process but we expect that it will be done in the end of the year. We will launch it through Cube Records, but it’ll be online a bit later probably.
Angola’s scene got quite some attention thanks to the documentary ‘Death Metal Angola’. How has that impacted you guys as a band? Did it open doors for you guys?
A: It did open a few doors to the Angola bands, we receive some invitations to play in other countries, so has a lot of bands, such as Dor Fantasma (that’s Denilson Jayro main band), BeforeCrush, LastShout and many others.
What is super typical about metal from Angola?
A: The speed, the heaviness, the mosh pits , and especially the union that exists in the metal.
How did metal come to Angola, what was the thing that made the scene start and how big is this music where you are from?
A: I honestly do not even know how to respond to this, I know there were a few metal bands in the early 90’s, but the main scene here in rock was punk and hard rock. I think the metal bands start to came out because of the speed and the heaviness in style. In the 2010’s there was a boom on the metal bands, but right now is starting to fade a little bit, metal bands right now are not as much we would like to.
So do you have things available like rehearsal spaces, instruments, music stores, venues etcetera? Or how do you cope with the lack thereof.
A: In Angola to get good instruments is hard, especially for metal. Most of our instruments are bought outside of the country. In terms of rehearsal spaces are to limited, most of the bands (90%) rehearse in a part of their homes.
What do you feel is typical about the music scene you have over there. What is its beauty and what are its downsides? And how do you connect to metalheads from neighboring countries?
A: Most of the people in Angola dont listen to metal, they say that’s noise, so it’s difficult for us to show our thing. When we have the opportunity to do it, the people are amazed with our performance, and most of them ask if we are from another country hehehehehe. We connect to the metalheads in other countries through social media (Facebook, WhatsApp).
What sort of position does metal music have in your country now, how does society respond to it? Is there forms of censorship?
A: Its very low, the people in Angola prefer to listen to soft music, for most of them, Metal is noise. We are censored all the time, even by the local rockers, they state that we should play soft like Coldplay or U2. We only play in certain places at certain times, if we played another rock genre we would be more acceptable.
What other bands from Angola should people really check out (and why)?
A: You can check DorFantasma (Thrash Metal, they sign in Umbundu – a dialect from Angola) , Mvula (2 time winner for best rock band in Africa from AFRIMA), BlackSoul (winner of the best rock band in Angola from Angola Music Awards), SentidoProibido (winner of the first battle of the Bands), Singra, ProjectosFalhados, OvelhaNegra.
What future plans do you guys have right now?
A: Right now the plan that we have is to finish recording our EP.
Final question: If you had to compare your music to a type of food, a dish, what would it be and why?
A: That’s difficult, but we think it would be palm oil beans with grilled fish, because it’s a dish that represents a little bit what’s the Angolan culture, and we sign in our songs some elements of the Angolan Mythology.
It’s a rainy day in Varniai and we’ve found a dry spot for a chat with Lithuanian folk-metallers Ūkanose at KilkimŽaibu festival. The band has been around for a little while and released an absolutely great record with classic sounding songs. We’re sitting down with guitar players RobertasTurauskas and LinasPetrauskas to discuss the band.
The sound of the band is a complex matter. It’s not full on metal, but it also isn’t rock. The songs are almost purely folk though, which all the force and bombast merely support. It’s as if the band tries to make the songs more vitalic, more powerful, without losing any of their integrity.
The group has six members, who have all been active in some form in the metal scene. They’re currently changing drummer, so half their set at Kilkim Žaibu festival was played by Vilius Garba (who also plays in Sagittarius) instead of ViliusPanavas. It turns out it’s not the first shift in the band’s line-up since 2012.
I just think that if you want to say you are a warrior, if you want to sing about being a warrior, you can’t be some lazy guy just blathering about this while smoking your cigarettes. You have to be what you preach. – Martynas Švedas
Q: Can you tell me a bit about the origin of Ūkanose?
Linas: Well, I started the band back then together with our accordion player Tadas (Survila red.). We both had a love for folk music and wanted to do something together. We wanted to be like folk music, but heavier and for that, we needed a drummer and so on. So we got a band together and played our first show in Trakai back in 2012.
Mind, back then we were a very different band, we had a girl on vocals next to the male vocals and the line-up was vastly different.
Robertas: When I joined the band 1,5 years ago, there were seven members. Some of those were dropped, it was simply not working. We also decided to not have any females in the band. No, I’m just kidding about that, but the singer was just not fitting in with the sound we wanted to attain. We wanted to play, as a band, a much heavier sound so some members left at that time. We were simply not on the same line and that showed in the productivity in songwriting. By that time the band had written 5 songs in 4,5 years. In just 1,5 year we wrote 6 songs now and we’re working on more.
At this moment singer Martynas joins.
Martynas: Songs that I actually can sing!
Singer Martynas in action at Kilkim Zaibu 2017
Q: It seems to me that this addition was very significant for the sound of Ūkanose?
R: The thing with Martynas is that he doesn/t play anything, but he listens very well and has a good overview of things. Het looks at it as an outsider.
M.: You really have to take your time for the songs to come together and keep an eye on the theme and topics. For example, we did a song about Viking raids and the Curonians, a tribe from current day Latvia.
R: We have to make the songs relevant to what we want to communicate. We take inspiration from the partisan songs during the Soviet occupation, we make resistance metal!
L: What we write about comes from the inside.
Q: What sort of reception did your music get at first?
R: A friend in Poland, named Leopold, said that we sound like an amazing folk punk band. I guess we have a mixture of punk, metal and folk going on. This is also because Tadas is the punkrock guy, so I think that also helps with a unique sound.
L: There’s something in there for everyone, even for the people in the small villages there’s something to be found in our sound.
M: We want to do a lot of things with our music, it has to be as Linas says something we truly feel like. For example. today I have three events to partake in. Participation is essential to feed the base. You have to be there to make it genuine. But we play only to please ourselves in the end.
R: We participated in a band contest a while ago, where everyone gets to play three songs. For some reason, the judge of that contest decided to say we were Nazis. That makes no sense at all. They decided that our music and message was in that spectrum somehow. That sort of crap comes easily if you try to be different.
Q: So how did that work out? That sort of accusation can really be damaging for a band.
R: It happens a lot here. Maybe itś something political, but there’s a lot of generalization involved with it. Folk metal would automatically be nazi, even though these bands, like ourselves, rarely have any political content.
L: We shouldn’t care about this, but it ruins our reputation.
R: What we did after that is share that information as a video online and asked people this: “These people think we are nazi’s, what do you think?”. No one agreed with the jury…
M: I think these were just very narrow-minded people, who have no clue about music. They are only focussed on that mechanical music and disrespect attempts at making something genuine. They miss the effort that goes in it, the lyrics and the message of a band.
Q: Since you guys sound so different, what sort of reception did you get from the metal crowd?
R: There was this German guy who kept writing to us to tell us that Martynas sucks, he made a whole study of why and how he sucked and kept telling us about it. Unfortunately, there’s always a bit of a negative response from the metal crowd.
Thereś a huge divide between the pop audience and metal crowd I suppose. Metal really resists societies norms, wants to be evil and about satSatand stuff… Though I think it is not as bad in Lithuania.
Q: So what I’m getting is that you guys are about the past in a sense, but is it to reinvoke or reimagine the past or to take from there and be in the now?
R: I think we are a modern band, we are a continuation of that past. There’s something to take and learn from that past. You see Martynas and Linas here, they are real. Let me explain, Martynas for example plays three shows today and takes part in the viking reenactments. Martynas makes things like this leather satchel he is wearing, because he learned how to craft that. Linas is a shieldcrafter and also a reenactor. They are living the things we sing about. Martynas can just live in a forest and be happy there, you know? That makes what they do come from a real place.
M: I just think that if you want to say you are a warrior, if you want to sing about being a warrior, you can’t be some lazy guy just blathering about this while smoking your cigarettes. You have to be what you preach.
Q: Are there any bands you look to as an inspiration for the sound of Ūkanose?
L: When I started shaping this band and its sound, I didn want to sound like anyone else really. I wanted to sound like Ūkanose. Something that wasn’t around at that time and I think that is what we are now. I guess there is some black metal inspiration in the sound though.
M: I wanted this band to sound like Martynas…
R: I think Skyforger would be an automatic inspiration for us, we even covered one of their songs. To me thereś even something of power metal in the music, which is partly the ideas and context it invokes, like Sabaton does.
Q: How do you create your songs as a band?
R: We really start with one idea that comes to the table. We get on top of that with the whole band as a team. In a band like ours, you sort of have to. For example, I can’t write the melodies for the accordeon. We can help eachother add things, change things that don’t work, but we have to work together on that. We make a lot of changes. An then we have to make the songs a lot shorter every time…
Q: Ok, so let us talk a bit about your album that came out last year, the self-titled release. What can you tell me about it, how was the response?
R; The overall response we got was quite positive. We were quite happy that it finally got released actually. The original line-up of Ūkanose couldn’t do all these songs, this one can. Martynas sings all the songs and they are some great songs. Unfortunately the mix was done by someone with a metal background, so the folk is a bit missing when you listen to it.
L: It’s a good start, I give it a 7.
R: I think the album gives a good picture of what we are about, what we try to express and is a great way of saying to the world ‘here we are’! This is us coming out of the mist, as a band and a message. This is what the word Ūkanose actually means; ‘out of the fog’. I also feel it shows artistic integrity, it feels like an honest record to me.
L: For me Ūkanose has a lot of meaning to it, it is about life and death, being between the sky and the earth, it is the connective tissue that binds all of this together. I think the album captures that.
All money was put into this record and it was released on a Russian label. That was not the best idea I think, we should have done that part different. I have nothing against Russia, but with everything going on it may not be such a good thing.
guitar player Linas at Kilkim Zaibu
Q: I just watched you guys play live. It’s a great experience with a sound, you can’t really compare to other bands. How would you describe your live show?
M: Well, I like to play as offten as possible actually… I want people to feel welcome at our shows. But now I have to go for the next act of the day. (red. Martynas plays later with Ukanose, a folk project and with Lithuanian black metal legends Obtest).
R: I think it’s a very genuine experience. Martynas is a great frontman for us live, he is just very authentic. I never was into this folk metal sound myself, but I think we sound very speial. Our music is different, it stays closer to something authentic, but it also has something spiritual to it for me.
L: I think we have a bit of a classic rock feel on stage, but itś also really metal to me.
R: The message is to express yourself, like we need to express this in Ūkanose. Don’t let the constraints of society stop you from sharing your message. Just play!
M: But make sure that you have a message!
Q: If you had to compare Ūkanose to a type of food, what would it be and why?
M: Mead…
R: Well, that is sort of cheating, but it fits. Mead can be sweet and spicy, but not too shy. We drink mead to Perkunas. We would be a good honey mead of 14,5% alcohol.
M; It’s a celebratory drink.
L: It’s a drink that expresses strong friendship and praise of the bees and honeys, that’s us.
The phenomenon of global metal keeps being a point of fascination for me. In the most interesting places you can find bands playing this type of music. Most people might know that metal has a place in the United Arab Emirates, so finding the band Aramaic playing this music there is not entirely surprising.
In the documentary film ‘Global Metal’ by Sam Dunn and Scott McFayden the Desert Rock Festival finished up the film. It showed that metal was even finding its roots in the most unexpected places. For the guys from Aramaic this is as normal as it gets though. Aramaic has been going strong since 2011 and members of the band have worked with internationally known formations like Schammasch (German drummer Hendrik Wodynski joined the Swiss giants live) and Heavenwood (guitarist Fadi Al Shami did guest vocals for the Portuguese goth veterans), while singer Serge Lutfi moved with his other band Abhorred to London and back from the UAE.
Most interesting is that the members are all from neighboring countries (apart from Wodynski of course). Most band members answered these questions about their band, the concept and what it is like to play metal music in the United Arab Emirates. A country is known for its shining city of Dubai, but also with strong religious roots. Thanks to Fadi Al Shami, Michael Al Asmar, Ahmad Rammal and Serge Lutfi for taking the time to respond. Though none of them was born there, they all moved to the country for work and find music as well.
This article was originally published on Echoes & Dust.
Aramaic from the United Arab Emirates
Could you briefly introduce yourselves and Aramaic for those readers unfamiliar with your work?
Fadi: We are Aramaic hailing from the Levant region (Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and neighbors), currently based in the UAE. If you were to describe our music, I feel we do not conform to a specific type of metal genre. We prefer to avoid restricting ourselves and having the classification done by our peers.
Michael: To give you a brief summary on the name, Aramaic is an ancient language spoken by nomadic tribesmen inhabiting areas around the Tigris River (the river flows south from the mountains of south-eastern Turkey through Iraq and empties itself into the Persian Gulf) dating back to the 700 B.C. the Bronze Age. It is from the Semitic family (Arabic, Hebrew, Syriac, Maltese & Ethiopian), and adopted by Assyrians (currently known as the Middle East, including Armenia, Cyprus, Iran & Turkey), parts of Babylonia (current day Iraq), even ancient Egypt and the Canaanites (Lebanon, Palestine and neighbors).
Serge: We, however, adopted the name to best represent our origins and expose the listeners to something that is not typical to modern discussions and music. History has always intrigued us, the more we researched the more fascinated and infatuated we became with this ancient civilization, it brought us closer to our heritage and we wanted to share this with everyone through our incantations and hymns.
How did you guys get into metal in the first place?
Serge: I have to praise my sister for introducing me to metal in 1991, started with Kiss & Danzig, moved to Testament, Anthrax, Metallica & Pantera then straight to MorbidAngel, Obituary & Entombed. The most memorable albums that I grew up with were Testament’s The New Order, Metallica’s Master Of Puppets, Danzig’s How the Gods Kill, Pantera’s Vulgar Display of Power (I still have the tapes). I started playing guitar at the age 5 and by the time I was exposed to metal (as an 11 years old), my first electric guitar was bought. The rest is history.
Fadi: My first encounter with metal music was when I was 9 yrs. old by getting introduced to Metallica’s Black Album. Yet the reason I learnt guitar was Death’s Symbolic (such a master piece). I started playing guitar at a very late age (27) when I managed to spend 3 hours every day trying to develop better techniques as I moved forward in the music career.
Michael: I got into metal because I liked a girl who listened to DefLeppard and Europe and when I went to the record shop and asked for similar music the guy gave me Metallica’s …And Justice for All and IronMaiden’s Seventh Son of a Seventh Son.
What are your main inspirations for the sound of Aramaic? There’s a hint of some traditional music in your sound, how did you manage to create this mixture.
Ahmad: We all bring our experiences, influences and capabilities to the table whilst composing the music. That’s what makes it unique, from traditional Arabic music, classical progressions, instrumentals and hymns to extreme diabolical works. Serge: The writing process takes a considerable amount of time, as we all come together to write the structure of a track and the more we embrace it, the more intense it becomes. We take our time making sure every person involved has his signature and seal on it. We also try and incorporate some native instruments to give a more distinctive element.The lyrical theme is based on myths, legends, deities & tragedies that befell the Aramaens and Assyrians during the ancient times.
Your name is derived from the ancient language, with that also bringing in a culture, history, and people. There are a lot of directions you can go with a name like that. How did that come about and what sources originally made you want to go in this direction?
Michael: Being from the Levant region, we wanted to represent our history & our people in an unorthodox way, completely straying away from religion (of any kind). We wanted to focus on apologues; documented works and myths from that era to expose the masses to our bright and rich past.
It compelled us to dive deep into the realms of these ancient civilizations to bring forth the knowledge bestowed upon us through materials lost in time.
I understand there are various mythologies you use as a theme in your music. Can you tell a bit more about that and maybe share a little light on what sort of stories you really take to put to music, since many people from other places might not be familiar with them?
Serge: The songs are all story-based; each journey talks about the plight and encounters of the protagonists (Sennacherib, Ereshkigal, Shamesh, and others) in our own interpretations. We will shed more light on these stories throughout the album’s artwork and lyrics. Footnotes will be provided for further explanations.
We stress on this by saying that all the lyrics are based on stories we read and reinterpreted in our own way to suit the music & the image of the band. We are also using the themes to reflect on the modern and current issues of the world, as the reoccurrence of these subjects happen throughout the millennia.
Your last record is from 2014, which is a great piece of music titled ‘The Fallen’. Are you working on something new now?
Fadi: We released a single called The King single in 2015. Currently, we are finalizing our debut album ( the title is also ready), an update will be given in due time!
How do you guys work on new music, do you start with music or a concept and how does the process follow from there?
Ahmad: We throw ideas around, and once a riff is liked by all the members, we start working on it and adding our styles and influences. The lyrics are usually written after the structure of the song is done. We research a certain topic and elaborate on it.
In a couple of weeks, you guys get to open for Paradise Lost in Dubai. How excited are you guys about this how and how did you end up filling this slot?
Fadi: We were contacted by JoScene, them being the organizers & promoters of the show, to take our place on the bill with Paradise Lost.
Serge: We had the seize the opportunity. They are one of the bands we grew up with and that influenced us musically. It is going to be a surreal feeling and one we have been looking forwards to since day one, even before the conception of Aramaic!
I would like to ask you some questions about playing metal in the United Arab Emirates. For example, I’m very curious what it’s like to make metal music over there? It seems there is quite a scene going on actually. So I guess there might be quite some misconceptions about that, right?
Michael: Metal in the UAE has been around for 2 + decades (probably unexpected) but there has always been a following. From school kids to the older generation. Being a religious country, some might think that it is forbidden or frowned upon. The government does not seem to be particularly bothered by the music as long as its lyrical content does not offend a particular group or have explicit content. We have had many international bands coming through Dubai to play gigs, most without any issues. Bands that have passed though the UAE: Nile, Mayhem, HateEternal, Katatonia, Obscura, Defiled, Metallica, InFlames, Testament, Sepultura, IronMaiden, Mastodon, Opeth, Motorhead, Fleshcrawl, Megadeth, Korn, MachineHead, Arch Enemy, Yngwie Malmsteen, Epica, Anathema, Insomnium, Vader and countless others.
Do you have all the facilities available, like access to music, instruments and rehearsal spaces? Are there venues especially for rock/metal shows and do you get foreign bands over?
Serge: In our day and age, Internet made music readily accessible and available. There are a few decent rehearsal spaces in Dubai that are equipped with good musical equipment at reasonable prices (for this city).
Fadi: Not too many venues that appreciate this type of music. We do manage to play at various venues that are equipped to handle the heavy music.
Do you have to deal with any sorts of misunderstanding with what you are doing? Is there any form of censorship or anything?
Fadi: As long as there is no offense against a religion or faith, or against the government. No preaching about the devil, then we are all free to do what we do, within reason.
So, a bit of a history question, how did the metal scene in your country get started? Who were the pioneers?
Serge: Spyne, EskimoDisco and Abhorred (Serge’s own band, ed.) were the pioneers (started in 1997) soon came Nervecell and we all know who they are \m/!
Nervecell is probably as big as it gets when it comes to death metal in the UAE. The band was the first ‘local’ group to play at Deser Rock Festival and is signed currently to Lifeforce Records. You should probably check them out (particularly their latest album) (Ed.).
Any bands from your part of the world that other people really should check out (and why of course)?
Serge: Kaoteon – Extreme Black Metal from Lebanon, it is powerful, malevolent & heavy music!
Fadi: Kimaera – Death Doom Metal from Lebanon, heavy riffs, good song writing, catchy and heavy tunes!
Michael: Ascendant – Power & Heavy Metal from UAE, a great bunch of musician with exquisite taste in music
Ahmad: Blaakyum – Coz heavy fucking metal \m/
What does the future hold for Aramaic?
Ahmad: Releasing the long-awaited Aramaic album in the near future. Of course, play gigs, and hopefully, tour Europe in summer 2018
Is there anything you would like to add that I forgot to ask?
Michael: Catch us Live on the 8th of September at the MusicRoom supporting the almighty ParadiseLost and on the 3rd of November (venue still unconfirmed) supporting the doom legends Saturnus.
If you had to describe Aramaic as a dish, what would it be and why?
Serge: Lasagna, its layers and layers of intense flavors soft, textured and velvety but certainly a deliciously heavy and intricate meal, full of spice.
El Salvador is one of those places that evokes images of amazing nature, beautiful beaches and blue sea. The country also is home to a metal scene, slowly turning its attention outward to the wide world that has been conquered by metal music. Disorder is one of those bands for certain. And Jorge Montesino (M.Q.) loves to tell about his music.
El Salvador may be depicted as a paradise, but up until 1992 the country was racked by a raging civil war. This has been the theme for Disorders lyrics for a long time. The country is still reeling from that period and crime rates are still particularly high. This has an impact on the music that is made in the country.
Like many other countries south of the states, metal music has found a place and expression in El Salvador. For some bands the story of their country can be found in their music. Disorder has been telling that story for years as we’ll find.
Hi, could you first of kindly introduce yourself to the readers.
[M.Q.] Hello this is M.Q. Speaking in charge of the chaotic chords and vomits on this band, thanks for the interest in us and for the interview. Drums are handled by V.K. And that’s it, a two member’s band.
Which bands really shaped your interest in this sort of music and how did you get started in this?
[M.Q.] I got started listening to metal in the early 90s with the 80s heavy and thrash metal bands and then with the 90s traditional death metal bands. There are many bands that influenced me in the very beginning but to mention one of the more important ones is Deceased from USA and of course for the music but also for the passion King Fowley has after all these years and keep playing live and creating music it is just inspiring for me.
Disorder band-boss M.Q. (vocals, guitar, bass)
Disorder has been in existence for a good 22 years. Can you tell a bit about the history of the band? How did you get to the point you are at now.
[M.Q.] Well I started to make music for this band alone around 1992/1993, after that I looked for other people to get a live line-up, it was very primitive in that era, no internet, no money to get good music gear but I managed to release a demo and an album independently by the hands of PUS Records, supposedly my first label. Around early 2000’s things went bad with the other members, they tried to kick me out and get the name of band so then I decided to end it in late 2002. We parted ways and at that point I immediately started to work on a new band, named SpiritualDemise. Later it changed name to Conceived by Hate. From 2002 to 2010 I constantly got emails or people asking about DISORDER if there were still CDs or Tapes available and so forth… I saw there was still a lot of interest in the band and in 2011 I decided to bring it back to life as a studio project, as a two member band and that’s it.
I’m very interested in your lyrical matter, I understand your theme is mostly the history of El Salvador. Many people are probably not too familiar with that. Could you elaborate a bit on that, give us some general background?
[M.Q.] Well, at the beginning there was a strong necessity to talk about that window of the civil war. I always try to be natural when composing music and writing lyrics, maybe in the 90s I was very interested in those topics but now time changed and the reality of our country is different. In a way I think some lyrics are still tagged to the civil war but now talking about the effects caused by the end of war, our country is bounded by a lot of violence and at a certain point I think we are used to it and learn how to live with it and go on. Unfortunately this country is trapped in a sea of corruption, mafia, social discrimination, political bullshit and lack of opportunities for most of people.
It’s quite difficult to measure it but I think that most of people are used to see or hear about violent deaths in the country. It’s the daily news here so I think we are used to it so I guess this could translate to the fact that in terms of metal music the extreme genres are more popular in the underground. Maybe because it helps to release that energy or like a catharsis. If we talk about the level of corruption in governments and all the bullshit on political parties, this could translate to the sense of anger on the compositions of younger bands. We can include hardcore and punk bands. There is a lack of trust in all that bullshit and a lot of anger to be released, because of frustration about injustice and the lack of opportunities for people to grow and have a decent life.
So for sure, all these situations translate to having more aggressive music from the local bands and I may say in bands of the whole region of Central America, than scenes you find in other countries that have higher life standards. I was hearing a short interview from a Venezuelan band I like and may work with in the future on my label that the reason why Colombia had the Ultrametal legacy, was because of the level of chaos that was present in that society. That boiling society vomited all that aggressive music called Ultrametal, that’s the legacy Colombia has in underground metal and this guy mentioned this because there is such a similar chaos now happening in Venezuela. That situation is generating new bands who vomit out such evil, blasphemous and aggressive metal. So in general Latin America countries are struggling with all this political bullshit, which causes low life standards which in turn create such level of aggression in the music.
If someone finds himself in El Salvador and in need of some metal music, what are places to go?
[M.Q.] Ten years ago, there were some big stores where you could find metal albums to buy. Most of them were run by people just for making money and I think they were not real metalheads. Since downloads started from the internet all those stores closed, so right now there are no big stores selling metal. People started to purchase directly from internet and there are some people that purchase from internet to resell locally, using virtual webstores as Facebook fan pages. Maybe you can count on your fingers the amount of online stores like the one I have for Morbid Skull Records that sell locally and internationally.
I think the reason for the lack of record stores is that you will not make money out of it. Or if you do make some money, is not so worth it in comparison to the time and efforts you will have to invest on doing it. So now it’s more like doing it for the passion and not for the money. I think there’ll be little people doing that in the next few years.
Disorder drummer V.K.
So, you’ve got plenty of other projects going on (as in bands). Which ones are you working on currently and how do you decide if material you write is suitable for one or the other project?
[M.Q.] Yes, in this decade I started to be involved in many bands and also the label (Morbid Skull Records) again. I just think and do it naturally, but try to keep certain separation in terms of music composition so that each band has something different and may be interesting from a different point of view. I think the process never stop for each band or project it is a constant situation on which you can get inspired and create riffs or lyrical topics that fit one of them so I constantly work in all projects but always try to focus in 2 or 1 to get them finished soon.
How do you guys work on material for Disorder now as a two-piece? What is the writing/recording process like for you and who has what role in this process?
[M.Q.] As mentioned before I reactivated this band back in 2011 as a solo project and at the start V.K., who is also the drummer of MorbidStench and ConceivedbyHate, helped me to record the drums for ‘En El Rio Del Olvido’ (2014). After that I decided the he joins the band as permanent member. The writing process generally starts by putting together the music structure and then the lyrics, when song is ready I get a raw mix with basic drum machine and send it to V.K. And when he is ready we record the drums and that’s it.
Your lyrics are in Spanish, this makes it for many listeners hard to figure them out (those in the Anglophone countries). Was it a conscious choice not to go for English? Or the other way around to go for Spanish and why?
[M.Q.] At the starts I wrote mostly songs in Spanish and a few in English. Since Spanish is my native language I decided to keep it like that, I know it would be hard for the band to get some people interested in Anglophone countries, but I just wanted to keep it native on the lyrics side. Also when I reactivated it I already had other projects where I was singing in English so I kept it in Spanish just to be different from the other projects and keep it interesting to me.
You’ve recently released the album ‘Fuego Negro’. A daunting bit of death metal, with pounding energy and wild thrashing passages a bit of an Entombed like death’n’roll vibe (to me at least). Can you tell us a bit about this album, how it came to be and what story are you telling on this one.
[M.Q.] Yes, it was released on April 21st by Symbol of Domination and Morbid Skull Records, I am thinking about releasing it on tape format on my label soon. Well, I have been working on this album for maybe 2 years and my intention was to make it full of speed and aggression. Not complex structures, just in your face attitude. In the lyrics you find songs talking about one of the cancers of society in Latin America, which are the religious shepherds and congregations that just drain people’s salaries to live like kings. I also talked about the current violent environment we have in our country and how justice and governments are rotten to the core by corruption and the mafia and there are other topics maybe related to personal beliefs.
So what is ‘Fuego Negro’?
[M.Q.] Fuego Negro means Black Fire in English and in my personal point of view is that inner energy that make you see far beyond the written reality, a motivation to improve your strength and move forward while you be on this plane.
I understand that Disorder is currently a studio project. This album however, to me feels like the sort of record that could prompt a crowd to burst into radical frenzy and insane moshing. Do you have thoughts about taking it onto the road?
[M.Q.] Yes reactivated it as a studio project because I do not have enough time to bring it on the road. I also agree these songs have a lot of energy and will be interesting and exciting to play them live but unfortunately it’s very difficult to find the correct people to play with. I really like to be humble when doing this, I mean I do this because I need it in my life. Anything I get back for it, good or bad, is unexpected. Some people just start or join a band as a hobby or to be part of a movement or even to get attention.
My philosophy is to work on this from the shadows and I just hate people that have that rock star attitude and shit like that in their head. I cannot deal with that in a band, so I am kind of tired about that and maybe that is why I find difficult to bring this band onto the road, but who knows…maybe in the near future. So currently I am just working on the promotion of this album and the composition of the new stuff.
What song do you feel most exemplifies the sound and spirit of Disorder and why?
[M.Q.] I like all of them, I mean if I do not like a song then I do not include it in a release. I think the song ‘Fuego Negro’ represents my personal vision and life within the last decade.
Your album came to me through a Bangladeshi promo agency, released by a Russian label (Symbol of Domination Prod.). You’ve recently done a split too with a Swedish band. How did this all come to pass? Regarding the current day metal scene, you guys seem to be extraordinarily international.
[M.Q.] I think that is an effect of the efforts I have been putting on the promotion of my bands. Now with my label’s releases also, I invest a lot of time in that and it seems to work! Today with the internet you can get in touch with a lot of people and bands very easy, cheap and fast. With Morbid Skull Labels I started to get more communication with emerging bands and Total Inferno from Sweden was one of them. We had good connection in terms of what we are doing in metal so the ideas just came out from out of the blue. That became the split ‘Ina Etuti Asbu’ was released on 7”s and a tape version by Deathgasm Records (USA) and Morbid Skull Records (El Salvador) in 2016, there was no big negotiation or shit like that, it was just released by a group a good friends.
You’re also releasing the album on Morbid Skull, your own record label. Can you tell a bit more about that?
[M.Q.]Yes it was also released on my label with help of Symbol of Domination because I like also to have enough copies to be distributed by myself. I always had in my mind this idea or dream to have my own label to release my music. Back in the early 90s my first label was called PUS Records and I released a couple of tape and CD-R demos for Disorder called ‘Voces de la Tumba’ but I just quit the idea for some time. Then around 2012 I think I decided to try it again but this time with better quality on the releases and it has been like 5 years now. At the beginning my plan was just to release my own band’s music, but with time I included bands that I like and more important that are handled by people I think are easy to deal with, no fucking rock stars!
You’ve been active in many bands, how did the metal scene in El Salvador get started? Which bands from your country really count as the more influential corner stone acts and why?
[M.Q.] Well I have been active since the early 90s as a band, I am not sure my point of view is the best one to answer accurately this question but will try. I think in the 80s there were few bands trying to make metal music, but it was more heavy metal and maybe influenced by the US glam scene. The real extreme metal scene I think started in the early 90s. I remember there were not so many bands playing, because it was hard to have the money to purchase instruments. Also maybe you knew a few guys that liked this music, but not all of them had instrument to play with. The first concerts were also organized within that era and has been growing until now. Today I think there are more bands and people involved but too much metal without soul; too much fashion and less passion.
You could think it sounds egocentric, but it’s the true; I have never been influenced by a local band in my life. I do try to respect all of them, I think this is because in the early beginning I did not have the “connections” to get the help or promotions other bands had so I felt a lack of support. I just focused on doing my thing and literally did not listen too much to what other bands were doing. I also wanted to try to keep my sound natural and “original” to myself. I mean I did not wanted to be influenced by other local bands because I wanted to create my own sound and do the things my way. So I respect the efforts most bands made, but I try to keep isolated in a way. Nowadays this is more related to the lack of time. But I can say that I have been influenced by the classic 80s traditional heavy metal, 90s traditional death metal and for bands like Deceased and Dissection because of the level of compromise they put in their music/art. I feel I might have started a legacy here myself.
So what is the scene like in El Salvador, what styles are most popular, where are the centres of the scene and how big is it. Which bands do you think matter and which bands from El Salvador should everyone be checking out?
[M.Q.] Unfortunately I do not have too much free time to go to concerts anymore, because of the Label and the bands but like I said I see more people involved and that’s a good thing. Also as well as they come, they go also in few years. I mean I do not see many bands lasting 5 or 10 years so it seems like they give up quick and do not have a clear persistency in what they are doing. I think there are many people focussed on the fashion in how they look rather than how they sound. If the music they put out is not really honest and with an own identity, then I think that is one factor why this scene is not boiling like in the South.
There is a lack of passion and honesty in the efforts. Some promoters say they support the scene by doing shows, but the reality is that they do it to earn money but none of them had even purchased a damn $3 patch in the period of more than 20 years! So I think it’s a lot of hypocrisy, but is normal in a way in humans. In general the metal scene in El Salvador has for sure grown, but lacks of quality in the released formats. Many go for the cheap way of CD-Rs and do not take the risks as few others. I have lost a lot of money doing these and in all my releases, but I do not care because earning money out of this is for sure not my vision or goal. Also extreme genres are well received here, anything from thrash, death and black metal, you can check Conceived by Hate, Disorder, Morbid Stench and Antares Death! I’m also involved in a band named Witchgoat, which plays thrash/black and is recording a debut album. Look out for the new albums of the other bands too!
If you had to say what things are typical about metal from El Salvador, what would it be? What really is part of the vibe of your country?
[M.Q.] Maybe always dealing with the extreme sounds.
What future plans does Disorder have now? What happens now the album is out?
[M.Q.] Well my plan is to continue to promote this album and since I feel the inspiration and motivation to start working on the coming one.
IF you had to compare Disorder to a type of food, a dish if you will, what would it be and why?
[M.Q.] Really hard question, a seafood cocktail with a LOT of hot chili to make you sweat hahaha.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
[M.Q.] Thanks a lot for this interview and interest in the band and also to those that invest time in reading it, cheers from HellSalvador!
Romania often gets less credit than it deserves, but the country has a wealth of history and a pretty intense and intriguing metal scene. Many interesting sounds come from that neck of the woods, and one of them is the band named Bucovina. A thriving folk metal project with a distinct flavor to it.
Bucovina is also a region of the country, which the band is named after.In the east of Europe, Romania often gets lumped in with other countries as part of the Eastern block. That’s a shame, since the country definitely has a history of its own. The region called Bucovina is part of that but due to history’s unfolding events, it is now part of Ukraine.
Florin “Crivăţ” Ţibu is the man behind the group. Crivat was willing to answer some questions over email, which took quite some time due to various reasons. I’m glad to say that he really gives a lot of information.
Could you kindly introduce yourself and tell what your role is in the band?
Hi there, I am Crivat, I play guitar and vocals in Bucovina and I am the mastermind that put everything together.
How did you guys get into metal?
They say that it’s metal that finds you, not the other way around, haha. Each of us, back in the day, happened to listen to the right song and meet the right people. Honestly, it’s almost impossible to describe what exactly got us into metal, but we’re ever so glad it happened. On the other hand, what KEEPS us into metal is the fact that we really enjoy what we do.
How did Bucovina get started? What were your inspirations, both musical as well as thematic?
I started the band after I went to college, with the bass player from the bands I had back in highschool. I’d say that the biggest thing that made me want to have a band and write music was Vintersorg’s first CD, the Hedniskhjartad EP. I was struck when I had listened to it for the first time and felt like there are things that needed to be said through music I could write.
The first Bucovina tracks were mixture of viking/norse/pagan/call-it-what-you-like and black metal, even though it was obvious since that early stage that we might not fall that easily into just one category. Then things evolved, yet we’re still dealing with a lot of influences, most likely because we have different backgrounds.
As for the lyrics, they go from nature, philosophy, old lore and magic, to more mundane themes, but they all relate in one way or another to whatever purpose human existence has in the universe, and how the noblest goal is to be able to understand at least minute fractions of all that existed, exists or will exist.
You combine a folkish sound with metal. What is the reason or motivation you chose to go this way with your music?
Again, it was music choosing us; and we’re lucky for this, because we don’t feel like „hey, let’s write a song like X, or Y, or Z.” In my book, what we are doing is proper neofolklore because we just don’t pick up traditional songs and add distorted guitars and heavy/black metal sounds. Most of the songs start as mere tunes I hum and record using whatever tool I happen to have at hand, and it’s the smartphone almost all the time.
Then, as I get home or to the studio, I grab a guitar and replicate the tune. Most of the time it turns out into a part that is useable or even an entire song theme. Sometimes it’s just useless crap 🙂 In a way, it’s like the peasants of old, who went out into the fields to work the land or to hunt, and they would sing. That’s why I say that we’re doing is actual modern folklore.
In the past bands that work with national/historical themes have often been criticized for or linked to the far right. How do you feel about this and has Bucovina had to face such issues?
Well, I guess there will always be people who feel like they MUST add some of their improperly-founded opinion to the game. Likewise, there will always be people who feel that the NEED to feel offended by one thing or another. Our paths crossed several times and, what can I say, I pity these folks. Instead of trying to see what lays beyond what they BELIEVE things are, they prefer to stir up shit and call bands names, put words in their mouths and so on. Thankfully, we know better and make do and mend.
We simply like Romania and would love to see it fare better these days, and leave a nicer place to live for our kids. We never agreed with the political views of the guy who owned the label that released our first album, and that’s why we put an end to the collaboration. The fact that we dealt with a label that was perceived as being a spearhead in the NS direction affected us in the early years, but through hard work we managed to shake off that burden.
Bucovina is named after a region. Can you explain the choice of name and the significance of the region? I understand that half of Bucovina is part of Ukraine, is that a cause for tension?
Indeed, Bucovina is a region in the north of the country, with its northern half beyond the Ukrainian border. We went for this name because I and Luparul, the other guy playing guitars and vocals, are from Bucovina and wanted to do something for that amazing part of the world.
Well, tension I wouldn’t call it. It’s more like regret, regret for a past where the Soviet Union used to rule that part of Europe and when the western countries left the entire East Block go fuck itself under Soviet dominion.
Honestly, I believe that the wounds of the aggressive Soviet regime will never heal, and this is so fucking disheartening. Nevertheless, I do believe that it’s worth not forgetting the errors of the past and passing a rich heritage to our offspring.
What are the themes and subjects in your music? Can you tell us more about them, since little is known about Romanion paganism, history and so on in this part of the world (and I’m most interested in these).
Well, it would take years to tell you about Romanian lore. We have stories and legends that seem like they could go hand in hand with whatever fiction masterpiece modern history produced, and we are slowly showcasing them in our songs, albeit in a rather laconic way.
Mostly it’s about the relationship between man and nature, and how certain gifted individuals rise above the human condition to become better integrated with the forces that govern the universe. From merely abandoning yourself in contemplation of a sunset in Bucovina’s mountains, to traveling through vales and woods, to the high plains where horses roam by the hundreds, from the secluded small villages where magic is still a part of everyday life, to the everyday thoughts, aspirations and fears, we’re one with them.
Is there in any way a mission or message that you try to convey with Bucovina?
Of course there is, and maybe this is why our albums are rather short. They simply seem to end when we feel like we said what needed to be said in a certain moment. There is no bullshit on any of our albums, and I do hope we keep it that way despite people way they’d enjoy longer albums. If we will have a lengthier message to pass on, you bet your asses that the album carrying it will be longer.
The main message, although it’s not that easy to understand by everyone from the first spin, is that people would do better to try and be who they really are deep inside, while also trying to make the world a better place. Life is too short for crap, and it can end quite abruptly in a thousand ways, so trying to understand as much as possible from the universe almost sounds like a must.
We are a part of nature, whether we like it or not, and despite the fact that some religions are trying to hijack and downplay the message. We often describe our music as being “Of mountains and magic,” and at times, it just couldn’t be any closer to the truth. We like the nature and the magic way it can still oppose the dumbness of the people who think they are the supreme being. We, as a species, may be cool, indeed, but we’re definitely not the icing on the cake 😉
What can you tell about your last album ‘Nestramutat’, which came out in 2015? What is the story you are telling on this record?
The name of the album could be translated to “Unswerving,” and it speaks about how certain individuals with a strong spirit cannot be broken or changed. In a way, it’s like nature/the planet itself: you fuck with it, it will fuck you up in ways that are far worse, and then there is nothing you can do about that. It’s just the fact that you can’t mess with the planet/universe and get away with it.
Or, speaking about people who are so dear to someone that their memory lives on and on even though they have been dead for a long time. A lot of things change, but some don’t. The latest album is about the latter.
What was the recording and writing process like? Does every band member have a specific role in it?
It’s so fucked up that it almost pains me to remember doing the last two albums. We are so chaotic and so reckless that I keep wondering how do we make it. The truth is that we are incredibly lucky to work with DanSwano for mixing and mastering.
The guy is a genius and a gigantic name in metal and prog, and even though we’re not even able yet to tap into a tenth of his true potential, he gets the job done where other would simply fail or deliver mediocre results.
I’ve learned a ton from him and keep doing so each time I get to talk to him. Also, Dan is an amazing person and we get along very well; and I have to thank him for his patience, too. We are independent so we don’t have a production crew, so sometimes, things are friggin’ difficult and downright nasty, but we always manage to pull through.
As for the studio work, another round of thanks go to Maanu, our former keyboard player. He’s the conductor of the NationalOpera choir and his duties and schedule prevent him from touring with us, so we had to part ways. Even so, we’re still in excellent terms, he even has a set of keys to our studio. He helps us with tracking when I am not able to, and we’re also writing some choir parts together. As for roles, everybody is taking care of their own stuff.
Lately, Dan Swano became quite busy and with us not having a very clear schedule of how a new album should progress, things are becoming a bit harder. Nevertheless, we worked with Martin Buchwalter, the drummer of Perzonal War, who is also a studio producer, and the first results – the Asteapta-ma Dincolo (de Moarte) single turned out great. We’ll see what the future brings…
Currently you’re self-releasing your music. What prompted that choice? What is the story with the label Lupii Daciei?
It was a lousy choice we made without fully understanding that the fellow with whom we were dealing (a chap from an obscure label that had signed us) was more interested in pursuing his dumb neo-nazi racist shit than he was in metal. We are a bit nationalist, but not in a way that relates to such political crap.
We disliked (and still do) the direction things were heading for, because we’re not fighting a fucking racial war here. We don’t hate Jews, black people, the Slavs, we don’t believe in Aryan ideology, race purity, untermensch and all the crap. We don’t need any Heil Hitler and swastikas in our music to find a purpose for what we are doing.
We realized that the label’s purpose was in no way close to our expectations so we called it a day. If anything, I could be mad at ourselves for making the deal in the first place, but young people DO make mistakes, ain’t that true?
As for releases, yes, we are a completely independent band and we plan to stay that way. We’re doing just fine, as it looks like being true to yourself and not write music just to have another track on the upcoming CD pays off. We have the money we need to produce top-notch digipacks, we have our own studio and bus, we can afford mixtering by Dan Swano, also do our own booking and merch.
We can deal for small endorsement deals ourselves, but we’re in no hunger for gear, because we are able to buy what we need and plan to not sell out for the sake of some guitars or other stuff. We CAN manage our own shit. Why would we change that?
Hire some fuck who only thinks about money? Why, it doesn’t make any sense. We are also making our own deals for shows abroad and we enjoy touring on our own efforts. We already toured in Brazil in 2016 and booked nice festivals in Germany this year, with more gigs coming up in Poland, UK, the Czech Republic and more. We are extending our operations, for lack of a better word.
What is the Romanian metal scene like currently? What bands do you think are worth checking out?
Still, the Romanian metal scene is a fairly young one. Before 1989, the Communist regime did not take good of rock and whatever metal people made then, so we can say that we’re a bit behind schedule. Nevertheless, I do perceive some sort of crystallization, with some bands understanding the need of good production, good and – if possible – original sound (even though being completely original is rather impossible).
Without being too stiff, I’d say that we are far too busy trying to make things right here (in the band) to have the time to analyze what exactly is going on around. People have better gear, have learned more about music and some of them are really putting up serious efforts to make it as big as possible.
The Romanian metal scene may be a rather small one but certain things are not different from any other part of the world. We do need people with money to put up records companies and distribution networks, we do need support from the public, and no – nobody becomes a star overnight. We’ve spent like 15 years of sacrifice and hard work until results started to show up the way we wanted. Making good metal is hard. As it ever was.
We do have certain interesting bands, such as Dor de Duh, Hteththemeth, Adamo Caduco (though it’s not metal). Also you could check out Ashaena’s new release, Implant pentru Refuz, Asemic, Bucium or Dara.
Can you tell a bit about the history of metal in Romania? Which bands got it started and when?
There were some feeble metal acts before 1989, but it all started in a rather primitive way after the Revolution, with a mixture of punk, thrash and hardcore-ish bands which are no longer active. We were so hungry for rock back in the day that we enjoyed everything and everything seemed like a godsend for the masses.
Unfortunately I haven’t dedicated time to becoming a metal historian for the scene, therefore it’s impossible for me to speak about this subject. I’d rather say we’re still in the “history in the making” stage.
In 2015 there was the fire in a nightclub in Bucharest that has not only shaken the metal scene, but Romania as a whole. In what way did it affect Bucovina?
The blaze at ClubColectiv put an untimely end to the life of one of our best friends, AdrianRugina. He was not only a great guy, but also one of the best show producers in the country, having worked with the likes of Metallica and Madonna and everything in between. He played drums in Bucium, a folk-rock band we toured with, with whom we released albums together and was a true friend.
He died after returning to the burning club several times and saving other guys, and he became a national hero. Sad to see that people forget way too easily about guys like Rugina. We don’t; both me and Mishu, the drummer, have his name tattooed on our bodies and we wrote a song to his memory. Eventually, the song became the Asteapta-ma dincolo (de moarte) single and we even shot a video for that particular song. Adi goes with us wherever we may roam, he’s not alone and neither are we. He just lives on inside our hearts.
Other thing that changed in Romania after the blaze was that the number of people who can attend a show is now much smaller. Safety, laws, shit like this. In a way it’s better and safer, that’s true, but when you can no longer host 400 people in a place that can handle these guys, things are nasty; and this is because of some small inconvenient stipulated by the law. I do hope things will be better in the future as far as this goes. We have even done two shows back to back in the same place to have all the guys who wanted to see us play well and happy.
What future plans do you guys have as a band?
We are working on a new album for 2018, a special show for the end of 2017, but I can’t tell you more details about this one, at least not now 😉 We intend to dedicate more time to playing shows in Europe and become more professional. Also, new videos are being worked on, albeit in the planning phase, so far. Expect to see us more in Europe in 217 and 2018, with a big South American tour in 2019.
Please use the space here to add anything you feel should be mentioned.
We do feel that we are part of a new wave of bands that managed to raise their heads independently and without having someone pumping money to make us grow. The fact that we are an independent act has its pros and cons, of course, and maybe, when the time is right and the deal is fair, we’ll even take that step to sign a deal with a big production company. Until then, we’re working our asses out to deserve that fair deal. Otherwise, we’re doing fine, and that’s why we’ll keep on delivering fine metal to our fans.
This interview with Harmasar was originally published on Echoes and Dust.
In the furthest, forgotten corner of Europe, in between Romania and Ukraine, you can find the country Moldavia. You might know the country, because in some strange twist of faith, your local football team ended playing a team from there or even your national football team. It’s there where most people’s knowledge of Moldavia ends.
Moldavia became a country on its own in 1991, but historically it’s been a turbulent region. Inhabited by the Dacians in the ancient past, it is said the region gets its name from a combination of the words ‘many’ and ‘fortress’, which would be along the river. Part of the historical, often overrun Moldavia is now part of Romania, the other part being the independent Republic of Moldova.
Moldavia is historically intertwined with Wallachia, Transylvania and Bucovina, all parts of Romania. The historical connection runs deep, even to this very day. The flags are not very different even and there’s talk of unity. On the other hand there’s a pull of Russia on certain autonomous regions. In between, Moldavians find out that they also have their own identity. Harmasar is a band that expresses that nationality and identity through their music and art.
I got to have a chat about this with the band.
Hey, could you kindly introduce yourselves to the readers?
Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, greetings! We are HARMASAR and we’re a Folk/Pagan Metal band from the Republic of Moldova.
How did you get together as a band and started out making music? Have you guys played in any metal bands before Harmasar?
The legend says that as a band HARMASAR was born in September 2013 (the day of our first concert), the founding member being Mircea (the drummer). Most of us had some experience of playing in a band before Harmasar, but the majority of these bands were popular and known only among its members.
Tell me about Harmasar? What does the name mean and what is the concept or story you are telling with this band?
Harmasar in Romanian stands for stallion (you know, the one with balls, with testicular integrity). The main message we are trying to present is the one of ‘knowing your roots’, remembering the great and heroic deeds of your ancestors, as well as the idea of conservation of the traditional values.
Our inspiration comes from ancient Moldovan/Romanian folk tunes and music, like doina’s and hora’s. As for bands, we find inspiration in the like of Eluveitie, Arkona, Korpiklaani, Bucovina.
You’ve recently released your debut album ‘Din pământ’. A thunderous folk metal album, that seems to lean close to the more folkish expressions with peculiar traditional instruments and elements. What is the story you are telling on this album?
The closest translation of the title ‘Din pământ’, we guess will be ‘From dirt’ or ‘From dust’, with the meaning of roots, origins. This is also what the album is about.
For people, like me, who know little about the past history of Moldova, can you introduce us into the material. What are the elements you are singing about?
Well, in this album we mostly sing about great battles, fought by our ancestors, so the songs ‘Daoi’ , ‘Tapae’ and ‘Moesia’ are about the war between Dacians and The Roman Empire. ‘Vaslui 1475’ tells us the story of the war between The State of Moldova ( Tara Moldovei ) and the Ottoman Empire and particularly The battle of Vaslui. On the other hand there are also songs that criticize human vices and corruption such as ‘Națiunea’ and ‘Porcu’.
Well, the main messages in ‘Natiunea’ is to stand for the ideas you believe in. People should always remember who they are and where they are from: standing for the ideas that you believe in and always remembering who you are and where you do come from. In ‘Porcu’ the idea is to not let yourself be manipulated by anyone, especially by political forces and other empowered entities. Literally, it tells about not becoming a pig, a creature that is raised without values to be killed and eaten at a whim.
Harmasar, source Facebook band
Can you tell us more about the writing and recording process of your album? Is everyone equally involved or is there a clear division of tasks?
Yes, we find it more productive to have a good division of labour and tasks in the band. So the song writing process is performed by Max (the vocalist) mostly, band promotion and graphic design by Ștefan (the bass player) and the events, concerts organisation by Mircea (the drummer).
What sort of traditional elements do you put in your music and which instruments do you use for this?
Well for the rhythmic part we used such elements as Sârba and Hostropăț wich was also used as a traditional tune for panflute as well as ”Ciuleandra”. In addition to the panflute (Nai) we recorded also some flutes (fluier, caval), violins and an accordion.
Let’s discuss the art work, can you say a bit about the artwork you use and the visual aspects of the band? I understand you guys perform also in a traditional outfit?
The artwork was made by our friend Octavian Curoșu with our suggestions, it’s our vision on the album name “Din Pământ”. As our songs are about our ancestors we have decided to wear similar outfit inspired from them with some elements created by us.
The artwork of the album is open for interpretation, we like to see that people find different things in it. In our vision it is a conglomerate, a synthesis of ideas. In Moldova we have a natural reservation called ‘One hundred Hills’ or ‘Suta de Movile’, which consists of a large group of hills of different sizes. According to the legends these are considered to be ancient warrior’s tombs. So basically the hill on the picture has the signification of an ancestral grave, a tomb representing at the same time: the end, the past, our history and roots. On the other hand this hill is also a mother’s womb, with a child to be born, the foetus representing the future, the birth of a new generation. So essentially it is like a synergy between these two ideas, past and future, like the Phoenix rises from its ashes, the child is waiting to be born from the grave of his ancestors.
Can you tell me a bit about metal in Moldova? How did it get started in your country and which bands pioneered the genre?
As we know, till this time there were and are a lot of metal bands here in Moldova, but the most remarkable one was Accident (Death/Thrash Metal) that was formed in 1988.
What is the scene like now? Where is it centred and do you guys have relations with bands from neighbouring countries?
The scene is centred mostly in Chisinau, the capital of RM, where you can find several places for bands to play live, and also some open air festivals during the summer. We have some good friends in Romania and Bulgaria playing in a well-known bands there with witch is always a pleasure to hang out and play some shows together.
Which bands from Moldova do you think people should check out and why these ones?
You can check out ABNORMYNDEFFECT – this is a Polyrhythmic Grindcore/ Death Metal band that is one of the most appreciated of its style in Europe. Their songs are about our social and political problems.
What future plans does Harmasar have?
The most primary for us now is to have a tour for supporting our debut album in Romania, Bulgaria, Ukraine and other countries. To meet with our great fans from there and to reach a new audience.
About other plans we cannot tell, yet…
If you had to compare your music to a dish (food), what would it be and why?
I don’t know any dish that I can compare to our music, but probably it would be a Grilled Ottoman with some bloody sauce, but we haven’t tasted it yet. (joking, referring to the bloody history in wars with the Ottoman empire)
The first dish that came up in my mind is Ciorbă de Văcuță (beef broth), it helped us a lot to survive tough mornings during the past tours.
Metal music has found its way to remote parts of the world, but rarely to ones so isolated as Yakutsk. Yakutsk is the capital of the Sakha Republic, an autonomous region of Russia that covers about as much ground as India, but has only one million inhabitants. This article was originally published on Echoes & Dust. A thinly populated region, covered in ice and snow, and inhabited by the Sakha people gave birth to the band Hounds of Bayanay. Modern technology allows the band to create music an unleash it onto the world, but it’s really a complete DIY mentality that the group has. But what a place to make metal music. A land so heavily under the elements, with a people that live far away from any real bustling region.
In a way that is something you can find in the sound of Hounds of Bayanay. They’re eclectic and unique, finding their own sound in the city of Yakutsk, which has virtually no music industry present to speak of. Listening to bands they love, they created a sound so distinct that it truly represents their place in the world. I was fortunate to get in touch with the group and have a chat about that.
Can you kindly introduce yourselves and your band? Where does the name Hounds of Bayanay come from?
The band has been in existence since 2014, when Alex Yakovlev ‘Red Hat’ (rhythm guitar), Gregory Grigoriev ‘Klath’ (drums) and Slava Sivcev ‘Sleeva’ (bass/vocals) decided to start a ‘Sakha’ ethno-metal band. The previous band, Fahrenheit, had collapsed. Vocalist Aina Egorova ‘Keres’ and solo guitarist Michil Mekumyanov ‘Chillet’ joined the band as well and so Hounds of Bayanay was formed.
About the name, it may sound a bit silly but it started as a joke. Imagine how the media would call a Sakha terrorist group? But the name sounded hilarious and bad-ass at the same time. Bayanay – in sakha mythology – is a spirit and master of nature. He is considered the patron of hunters. The Cult of Bayanay still exists today and hunters in Sakha still pray to Bayanay to ask for favor before the hunt. Though our songs and music are not about Bayanay and the hunt themselves, it connects us to the themes of mythology and folklore of Sakha. Legends and forgotten tales of our people and the greatness of the northern nature.
How did you guys get into making metal music? What bands originally inspired you to make this sort of music? Each of us have been listening to metal since we were young, but our inspiration is very different. Bands like Metallica, Nightwish, Behemoth, System of a Down and even The Red Hot Chili Peppers are part of that inspiration. Yakutia already had many folk bands since the eighties. An example is Cholbon, who are considered the Siberian Pink Floyd and had success in Russia. The band has even been on a world tour. In 2003 a band named 103 emerged as the first folk metal band. They are huge in Yakutia now.
What are your inspirations for starting Hounds of Bayanay and choosing the lyrical themes you have picked? I find when listening to the music, that there’s a unique, ethnic element to your sound. How did you shape that?
What we wanted to create is something heavy, dark and wild, but at the same time it must contain chanting and feel festive like old Sakha folk songs and shaman ritual chanting. The band 103 was a huge inspiration, but we wanted something with more aggression, more blood and gore. The lyrics needed more pathos and mysticism. I suppose that through this our band was born.
In 2016 we started to find out that our music was not only beloved in our native Yakutia. It was then we started to connect and communicate with people from abroad, who loved folk metal music. They told us to spread our music even further. We had been playing live shows in our home town mostly. We were playing new songs at gigs and recording was put second. In 2016 we had also changed some band members. Before we didn’t have big plans, but that changed everything. We had a goal to record our first album, so that’s where we started on our EP ‘MYYC’.
You’ve released your EP Myyc. Can you tell us how the writing and recording process looked like? What sort of facilities did you use and what sort of process do you take in making your music?
We actually wrote and recorded the music in our garage during very dark and freezing evenings. All we had really was a few laptops to work on and USB-audio interfaces. After recording the vocals and the guitars, Alex and Gregory made the other music stuff.
I find, when I listen to your music, that in there you have something rather unique, it feels very ethnic and different. Are there specific bands that you feel inspire your folk metal sound?
The band 103 might be the closest inspiration we have.
In 2016 you’ve not just released your EP, but also dropped 2 demo’s. What was the motivation behind unleashing so much material in such a short time?
Well, one EP and two demo’s… We’d do more if we had the time for it.
On metal archives your lyrical theme is listed as ‘Yakut folklore’. I find that this otherness, this different cultural background is very tangible and strongly expressed in the music youe been making. Can you tell us a bit about that Yakut folklore, what is it about, what sort of elements return in it?
Yakut folklore is based on the pagan beliefs and ther epos “Olonkho”. Briefly described, there are three worlds: Upper, Middle and Lower. All of them is connected by giant tree “Aal Luk”. The upper world is world of Gods “Ayii”(Айыы), the ,middle world is settled by humans and the Lower world is full of demons “Ajaray”. In the epos, often, demons capture woman and the humans then will have to send one of hteir legendary heroes to rescue her. The hero will ask for the help of the Gods and must succeed to protect his people.
There also some more realistic folklore of yakutian people. Folklore of forgotten times when vast clans and tribes waged endless wars, powerfull shamans who gathered armies to destroy other nations and heroes who fought and sacrificedthemselves for justice. All of this is inspiring to many poets, writers and ourselves
Do you also put something Yakut, something typical, in your music?
Sometimes we put throat singing and we sometimes use the Khomus (something like jew’s-harp).
You’re making music very far from Moscow, far from any place commonly known as a centre for metal music. What is it like to make this sort of music in Yakutsk? Are there venues, record shops, studio’s and rehearsal spaces there? Do you lack any means to make music?
Yakutsk is a relatively small city and if you take a look at the map you’ll find that it is positioned in the middle of non-settled lands. Most of these lands are covered with snow and ice. This means we lack the professionalism in metal, we have no specialised sound people, there are no huge stadiums or arenas filled with metalheads…
What we do have are talented musicians. People with a will to create something original. We have willpower and it seems like we’re slowly getting something done. The population is not huge here, so there’s also no big amount of metal heads. There are no venues, no record shopws, no studio’s and no rehearsal spaces. All we have is unbreakable enthousiasm and metal unity.
There are atleast two or three annual music festivals for bands to perform at. Gigs are organised in local bars by enthousiasts and musicians themselves.
What sort of scene exists where you are from, are there other bands you think people should check out? That you’d recommend (and why?)?
People should check band “103” they sound very hard and very folklorish. Just check it out!
What future plans do you guys have at this point?
For now we are fully concentrated on recording our first album this year, it already took long enough now.
If you had to describe Hounds of Bayanay as a dish (food) what dish would it be and why this particular one?
If Hounds of Bayanay was a dish it would be elk cooked in a cauldron on a campfire. It would be a sign of Bayanay’s blessings after a hunt, when the hunter can reward himself with this delicious meat and drink some kymys.It is the real happiness for a sakha hunter: campfire, smell of cooking meat, taiga which surrounds you and not single soul for hundreds of kilometers.
Uzbekistan is probably not the first place you think of when you hear metal music. Still, there’s a big scene of alternative music in the former Soviet states south of Russia. Uzbekistan is an overly Islamic country that actually has seen its share of censorship in the best years, but the music flourishes, especially if the lyrics are in English.
With a dense history spanning the ages, it was rather surprising to me to find a band that took its name from a horrible spot of executions during the time France still had kings. Their sound was an eclectic mixture of various genres and this is what drew me to the band Montfaucon. I got in touch with them through e-mail.
Valentin Myamsin has left Uzbekistan and lives in the United States now, but the band keeps working on material across the globe. With a new record just released, titled ‘Renaissance’, the band is keeping it up and staying strong, so we had a nice little conversation about metal in Uzbekistan and Montfaucon.
Could you kindly introduce yourselves as band? Have or are you guys involved in any other musical projects?
Montfaucon has been formed in 2002 in the city Tashkent in Uzbekistan by me (Valentin Mayamsin) on guitar and Mikhail Epifanov on piano. We started actively working on composing songs and have been selected to perform at two day festival ‘Alternative music festival 2004’ organized by British council. (It was quite an event I’d say given that we had rare metal gigs and just a few metal bands). That was a trigger to find a drummer Renat Khidirov and bassist Sergey Sadokov. Over the course of next few years we had on bass Denis Raytuzov and Andrey Astashov and at last saxophonist Andrey Golubev. Today Montfaucon exists as a project since I moved to USA and I am separated with other members by the entire planet Earth. Thanks to Internet we’re still actively composing new stuff, but unfortunately cannot perform live.
How did you get inspired to make metal music? What bands specifically inspired you and why?
We all had different influences in different bands. I personally had influence of a very wide range of bands and styles, most notably Satyricon, Cradle of Filth, CannibalCorpse, maudlin of the Well, Andromeda, My Dying Bride, Opeth, Emperor, even PinkFloyd. What inspired me to make metal music? When I met Mikhail and heard a few of his dark piano compositions, I realized that it moves me. We combined them with heavy guitars, brutal vocals, and produced a unique and interesting sound driven primarily by piano. I thought that piano is quite unrepresented in metal music and it inspired my to further experiment with it.
How did you come up with the band name and concept of Montfaucon, which appears to be the place where a huge gallows was positioned in France during the time of their kings. A rather gruesome place?
Indeed. Gruesome, dark themes are found everywhere in our music and lyrics. The band name was inspired by Victor Hugo’s novel ‘Notre-Dame de Paris’. At the end of the book he describes Montfaucon gibbet which somberness stroke me. I have also been inspired by this novel when writing lyrics. The description of torturous imprisonment in a stone box gave inspiration for ‘Prisoner’, The song ‘The last night’ is set around Montfaucon gibbet and medieval punishment traditions.
Musically Montfaucon is an oddity, combining raw death/black elements with progressive and experimental bits. How did you come up with your specific sound?
I think it’s because of my wide exposure to different bands and styles. A friend of mine regularly introduced me to different bands before even Internet became widespread in our country and speed was enough to pirate music. It was late 90’s. He is an artist with extensive connections abroad who supplied him disks of rare bands, demos. Back then we could only find cassettes of popular bands like Metallica, Sepultura or My Dying Bride. But this guy had things like Satyricon, maudlin of the Well, SymphonyX, etc. This is what I grew up on, and this is what Montfaucon is heavy influenced with. And this is just influence on my side since every member of Montfaucon brought in his own influences.
Your musical production has been sparse. Are you working on anything right now?
Yes we are! We haven’t had a chance to produce a full length album for many different reasons. Back when we got started we merely didn’t have enough money. Mikhail was first among us who had a computer and we produced a few demos at home which allowed us to participate in big music events in Tashkent and promote on radio. Later on we were busy building our careers and couldn’t find enough time for music. And finally last year we decided that we owe ourselves a decent record and started producing our first album. We recorded everything at home, decent recording hardware is quite affordable nowadays. All songs have been composed a decade ago, but we refined some parts, added layers of additional details. Yet we tried to keep original parts contributed by each member of our band. Legendary Swedish sound engineer Dan Swanö agreed to mix and master the album which turned out terrific! He made every part of every song sound best, he managed to find our unique sound and he even put a few easter eggs for those who will listen carefully.
You’ve got a new album ready, can you tell a bit about that?
The new album is basically what we have composed over the course of active years. There are many experiments with the style and sound. Every song has it own unique sound and feature. We were lucky to work on the album with legendary sound engineer and musician Dan Swanö who made every our song sound the best it can possibly be. The album was recorded in the comfort of our home without any rush over the course of 6 months and exchanged files over the Internet. We didn’t have any previous recording experience so we involved the leader of ‘The Faceless’ Michael Keene who advised us on the process of recording. I was focused on the quality and I had to rewrite all guitar and bass parts 3 times. Mixing process was challenging as well since we had no clue how piano can be put together with guitars so it wouldn’t get lost. With Dan we went over many variations and experiments with the sound before achieving perfection.
What can you tell me about the history of metal in Uzbekistan and how does the scene look like now?
Well, I don’t think I’m competent to give accurate history of the movement as I joined metal community pretty late. I’d recommend reaching out to Peter Stulovsky for that matter – he can tell about promoting metal on radio and cover history comprehensively. However, I can give you my perspective on that.
When I first visited a metal gig it took place in an old ‘Palace of Culture’ which was quite common at the time. The place was not fit for this kind of activity: there was no dance floor, just dense rows of seats stationary nailed to floor. No wonder when people got high on heavy music and alcohol they started to crash this place and it finished with police and troubles for organizers. This kind of concerts and outcomes were quite common those days and seemed like other clubs learned that and stopped giving places for any gigs. There was a quiet period for a few years when old bands disbanded and new bands formed grown up on Internet and a new radio show called ‘Hard days’ (‘Тяжелые будни’). That was the time when we formed our band as well. Suddenly it was announced on the radio that there is going to be a two-day festival organized by British Council and there is a call for demos and rehearsals. Needless to say, it was one of the biggest events in music history of Tashkent. Many new metal bands showed up including us, Zindan, Sweet Silence and Titus. Here is a few of videos from that concert:
It triggered a renaissance in metal scene of Uzbekistan. Internet also became more widespread, opened a new metal forum where bands could promote themselves, gigs has been organized and announced. New bands started to pop up every month or so, opened a few more or less permanent rock/metal clubs, new records by local bands played on radio. A few examples. ‘Sepsis’ playing death metal including covers on Cannibal Corpse and Death. A black metal band from Ferghana (unfortunately I don’t remember their name, hope Peter will help out with that) playing blast beats on crappy Soviet drums. A progressive metal band ‘4th dream’ playing 10 minutes long ever-changing compositions with a vocalist singing in ranges from high pitch clean vocals to growl and screams.
It continued to be this way pretty much till I left the country in 2008. I guess Peter can cover up period from 2008 onward.
To wrap up, I’d say it was pretty isolated metal community. A few of Uzbekistan bands played abroad, mostly in Kazakhstan. A few foreign bands played in Uzbekistan. Although we always followed what happened on Europe and USA metal scenes.
How are the facilities for you in your country? Are things like music, instruments and such easily available? are there venues to play and rehearsal spaces, studioś and such available?
When we got started it was hard to find a rehearsal space, metal music was not welcomed, metal culture has been (and still) stigmatized in many people’s minds. As I mentioned earlier concerts has usually been held in ‘Palace of Culture’ with help of Soviet era amplifiers and speakers. Music instruments was hard to find. Guitars, basses, drums – everything was from Soviet era. Originally I even played on a DIY guitar combined from other guitar parts. I made my own distortion pedal, even tried different schematics found on Internet to achieve better sound. Occasionally somebody brought some wonders from abroad like guitar processors, cardan shaft drum pedals, etc. Rehearsals took place in basements, storerooms or in the best case in ‘Palace of Culture’ next door to some dance studio.
Later on it improved substantially. Some folks managed to find an abandoned high-rise student dorm and turn it into rehearsal space. There was room for everybody and they did not disturb other people. People started selling gear from China and Russia which was both affordable and way better then we used to have. People started hanging out in new rock/metal clubs demanding more metal gigs. Venues improved as well by providing better experience and security.
If you were able to play anywhere, what places would you most like to play shows at and why?
Haha. I don’t have any place in mind. I just love to play for any crowd.
Uzbekistan being a mostly Islamic country, do you face any repression as a metal musician? I’ve learned that this differs immensely depending on where musicians live and I’m interested to know what it’s like for you guys and if you have some experiences to share?
Well, I have not experienced any repressions on religious grounds. Although most people practice Islam, they are pretty mild. At least in big cities like Tashkent or Samarkand. However people still have Soviet mindset and police is quite repressive. Occasionally there was ‘educational’ police raids which I heard was quite humiliating experience. It didn’t happen to me though and as far as I know it usually didn’t have much consequences to others. Censorship might have existed, but all our songs are in English and nobody seem to bothered to translate what we shouted out from stage.
Do you put something typical Uzbeki in your music? Like note patterns, instruments or such?
Not really, I didn’t feel much influence of Uzbek music on me. Although we have an Oriental instrumental which hasn’t been recorded yet and a few turns in piano parts. Though I may not realize it, others may tell there is an Oriental twist in our music. You tell me…
What bands from Uzbekistan should people check out and why?
I don’t really follow Uzbekistan music scene these days. I hope Peter might suggest something.
What future plans do you have as Montfaucon?
I hope to finish new compositions which will raise quality bar for Montfaucon. We have a few unfinished songs which already sound terrific. I dream of Montfaucon to grow out of just being a project and perform live.
If you had to describe your band as a dish (food), what would it be and why?
Haha. Funny one. Bloody burrito? I dunno, music and food are in different dimensions to me which cannot coexist in close proximity. Say what?!…
If you were looking out for awesome releases in 2015, you might have seen the album ‘Umbras De Barbagia’. An album with an intriguing cover that beckoned you to enter a misty world of a forgotten past. Interesting enough, if you looked into it, you’d find out that Barbagia is the more wild and untamed part of the Italian island of Sardinia. So how is it that Downfall Of Nur from Argentina is addressing this?
For those more versed in linguistics or history might have already detected the rare topic this band uses in their music, namely that of a forgotten civilisation on the island of Sardinia in the mediterranean. Wildy atmospheric and daring in its lack of simple song structures, it’s winding build-up and storytelling progression, it was an album that should have been and probably was in many end-of-year lists.
I instantly got my hands on the vinyl and recently also managed to purchase EP ‘Umbras de Forestas’. Listening to that after the full lenght feels a lot like going back in time, tracing the origins of a sound that feels so thought through, so completely captivating. I felt it was necesary to learn a bit more about this band and its origins. It’s because of that I decided to get in touch with Antonio, the man behind Downfall of Nur. A young musician with an incredibly creative and maybe even ancient mind.
How are you doing and can you kindly introduce yourself?
Hello, very well! My name is Antonio; I’m an Italian musician and producer based in Argentina, founder, and mastermind of the atmospheric Black Metal project “Downfall of Nur”.
There seems to be an overall confusion about your nationality. As I understood you are from Sardinia, but residing in Argentina. How did that all happen?
Yes, I was born in Sardinia in 1996 and moved here in Argentina on 2008, so, I’m Italian.
What does it mean to be Sardinian to you? To write about your homeland and the meaning it has, can you describe this?
It means a lot, and when something means a lot sometimes you are proud or just sad about it, Sardinia was always loved and hated for the wild and enchanting cultural heritage, this cultural heritage made of values, the language and history is what creates an identity, to which you belong. It’s in your blood. Nowadays, little is left of all this, considering that society since the seventies has become much more individualistic.
With globalization everyone wants to be the stereotype, each passing year more people cares less about their “origins”. I think it’s the media bombardment taking all of your attention in different directions and besides there’s this materialistic society, which encourages originality and diversity, but discriminates against those who think differently. Writing about Sardinia, my home, my history and culture is what make me be and feel Sardinian, defend my origins and carry them like a flag.
Your project Downfall of Nur is to me one of the most fascinating things I’ve heard in a while. I’m specifically intrigued by the story behind the concept. Can you elaborate on that?
The project concept is based on the Nuragic Civilization, the ancient civilization of Sardinia. Some years ago in 2013, I decided to end all the musical projects I had, than anyway, they were not approached very seriously.
I started to working on something new and much more personal that I wanted to approach with all seriousness (which I believe I did). With this idea I started writing about my homeland and my ancestors and after some months this project took the name of ‘Downfall of Nur’.
u’ve played in some other bands; can you say something about that?
Actually I haven’t played in any real bands this far. I just had a couple of projects when i was 15/16. Most of those are a bit embarrassing if I look at them now. In those times I wanted to have a band, though not a black metal band and where I lived at the time I just couldn’t find anyone to play with really, everyone at the time was wanted to play covers of other bands and I was bored of them.
Then I got in touch with the work of Burzum and the fact that Varg Vikernes used to do everything by himself and that just inspired me to start do everything by my own and after a couple of years here we are.
When I first saw the cover of ‘Umbras De Barbagia’ I glanced over it a couple of times, but it stood out so much and lured me in. Can you tell a bit about the cover and why you think it’s particularly interesting, drawing new listeners?
Oh yes, I believe than the cover of an album is important as or even more than the music. In this case much of the interest the album garnered is thanks to the album cover. As you said, it’s particularly interesting. I think this is an image that provokes suspense and mystery and is also quite unique in its form. It expresses the concept of the album itself. What you see represented on the cover is the old masked figure, which is an ancient, traditional mask of Barbagia, than represents a pre-Nuragic divinity or expression of divinity.
How did you go about writing and recording this album and did you find a specific state of mind in which to do it, since it is so wrought with feeling and emotion (to me as a listener)?
I started to write for “Umbras de Barbagia” at the end of 2013/2014. I felt pretty nostalgic and was not too well in those times so I started writing songs. Everything went quite naturally, I never planned anything, the album started to take the shape on his own while I was recording and composing. When the instrumental recordings were finalized I started to looking for a guest vocalist and I got in touch with Dany Tee, we had meet some time before I started out with Downfall of Nur, I was a fan of his bands specially Seelenmord and I thought it would be a good contribution. After this, we spent all of autumn and winter working on the album. I think beyond how I felt at the time, what was most important and influential is that the album was not forced in any way. I believe than that determined the final sound of Umbras de Barbagia.
Balancing the folk and metal elements is something that can make or break an album, but on your album I find that it only makes each other stronger. How did you find a way to integrate the two so completely without mixing them up?
The integration happened through the composition and recording process of the album. Long ago I was planning to add ethnic instruments and create some semi-folkloric atmospheres to give to the album some details. This took place on this record, as the overall composition and the concept allowed it. These instruments fited very well without feeling as if they are out of place. I think this album needed such instruments to create these kinds of atmospheres.
The quality of your recordings is superb. Can you say something about the production and mixing?
Thanks, I think nowadays you can get great results even with a home studio. The mixing of ‘Umbras De Barbagia’ took quite a long time. We worked together with Dany Tee as co-producer. After the mixing process was end, we send the album to Hernan Conidi, Dany friend, who had a studio in Buenos Aires. He did the final mastering and for me the result was perfect. We are very pleased with the final sound of this record.
In your music you are using a couple of traditional instruments. Can you tell a bit about those and what effect you feel they have on your music? Why did you choose these particular ones?
What I use most frequently are the Quenacho flute, high whistle and the Launeddas, which is a traditional instrument of Sardinia. I also used some classic cellos. I think these instruments really contribute to enrich the atmosphere giving more archaic touch. This was one of the main points of focus during the production of the album, because there are many parts with ambient sounds. Everything was made to make it feel like the music was a bridge between the present reality and your imagination. Close your eyes and let the music take you away.
Do you feel connected to the black metal scene (in so far as there is one) in general and what bands have inspired you to make the music you make? What is it about those bands that you find inspiring?
Not really, I think I’m out of the ‘scene’ with the exception of a few friends.I don’t feel I’m really part of it. I just record and write music at home in my studio, because this is what I like to do, and that’s it. Back in the days, some years ago, when I discovered ‘Black Metal’ some bands did inspire me directly. Examples of those are Ulver, Burzum, Darkthrone and Satyricon. The sound, the mystics, by the time everything was mesmerizing. I was looking for something similar when I stumbled upon the first Opeth record. That was after reading about extreme metal and Scandinavian bands in the nineties and I found something better there.
Like many ‘new’ black metal bands, your music isn’t strictly in the ‘old’ format and explores its own artistic realm. Where else do you get your inspiration (outside of BM), both musically and in a sense of ambiance and feel?
Thanks! I think personally that it is boring to remain stuck in the old format. I don’t mean that this is boring for an audience, but for me as an artist it would not work out. It’s simply not what I like to do. I like listening to a lot of film soundtracks; these influence my ‘inspirational’ process a lot. Ennio Morricone, James Roy Horner and Jerry Goldsmith are my favorites. Nowadays I listen to very little metal actually, except some underground bands that seem to me to be spectacular and unique. I used to listen to a lot of folk, jazz, ambient, old prog and things like that.
Which black metal bands do you listen to and why should people check them out?
Recently I’ve been listening a lot of American/Icelandic Black Metal, a few bands from Europe too and the (no-metal) bands/artist I always listen to, would like recommend the following bands/projects; Vohann, Arizmenda, Selvans, Panopticon, Lluvia, Svartidauði, Misþyrming, Naðra, these are in my Black metal playlist.
I’m very intrigued by the folk project that you’re working on. Can you tell a bit about that? What can one expect?
I’m working on that and I guess I’m on 70% of the recording and mixing process of it. Most likely I will release it as an EP with five songs. It’s really a project inspired by all the music I like that is not metal. It will be my other facet. We’ll have to see what happens.
I have been to Sardinia, but for any reader who will still visit the Island, what are the parts to visit to get a true feel or sense of what it is you invoke on ‘Umbras De Barbagia’?
The entire island is truly beautiful, from its archeological and cultural treasures to its beautiful nature. It’s like an open air museum and if you go in summer you have some of the best beaches in Europe and If you go in winter, you’ll find in the centre of the island the forests, mountains and numeral archeological sites to visit. They’ll take your breath away. It’s in the heart of the island where you will feel the true vibe of ‘Umbras de Barbagia’.
What does nature mean to you? When I listen to your music I feel a deep connection to the land and natural force of Sardinia represented as much as its culture. How do you feel about that?
Nature means a lot for me, it’s another part of my being, just like another vital organ. Many people do not realize of this, for the simple fact that she is something that may seem far removed from everyday life, but truth is than nature elements are as important as our organs. We depend on her, so she must be treated with respect.
What future ambitions do you have with your music?
Keep doing what I’m doing now: compose, record and produce more music.
In November Downfall of Nur is releasing a split with Italian band Selvans. The split will be out on Avantgarde Music.
Though we may know Brazil as a country well known for its amazing death metal and passionate fans, there’s more to it than that obviously. Jupiterian is a whole different monster that landed with their debut EP ‘Archaic’, which was followed by their album ‘Apothic’.
The sound of Jupiterian is black as the depths of the cosmos and solid like a thick slab of meteorite hitting you in the face. Devoid of any frivolities, it’s a heavy listen, but well worth your time. So time to get to know them a bit better, before they head to Europe for some shows, where I hope to see them again.
I first met V. from Jupiterian at Roadburn and soon I got to know his newly founded band Jupiterian. An avid music fan and lover of science and sci-fi, V. is a creative force with plenty of inspiration from music and literature. Their sound is to me rather unique and unforgivingly heavy, so let’s hope they can head back to play Roadburn soon, because this band belongs on that bill. Time to get into it.
How did Jupiterian get started and what brought you guys together as a band? Did you have any previous projects that you would like to mention?
We started in 2013 while I was still playing with my previous death metal band The Black Coffins. I started to work on some riffs with a borrowed guitar I had at home, so I asked some friends if they would be interested to join me in this new project. When the band suddenly split up that year, I decided to focus 100% in this new project which would become Jupiterian. By that time, the band was called CodexIvpiter, we were 5 guys, I was just doing the lead guitar and we had a lead vocalist, but I felt it would be easier to work only as a four piece, because I was working on the songs, themes and at the same time creating the vocal lines. After this line-up change, we also changed the name to Jupiterian and we entered the studio to record our first material, a 3 songs EP called ‘Archaic’. That was pretty much it.
Can you start by explaining the name and the concept of the band?
I have always been fascinated by mythology, especially the Greek-Roman mythology. I also love astronomy and as an amateur, I try to study and read about it as much as I can. But I am also into sci-fI books, authors likes Arthur C. Clark, Frank Herbert, Asimov, William Gibson blew my mind as a kid as much as Lovecraft and Robert E. Howard did with their cosmic horror novels. When I started the band, the first thing I had in mind was to create more than only the music, but an entire journey through all of that.
Jupiter is part of ancient mythology in the form from many gods for many extinct cultures and it could sum up all the references I had in mind. So the name Codex Ivpiter came up, but as you presume, it was terrible to speak and explain how to spell it. Jupiterian was a name that I was already about thinking for a while. When I talked to the other guys, it made much more sense and we thought it would fit perfectly for our purpose.
What are the musical inspirations for you guys, both for the band as well as for yourself?
We have a very different background in the band when it comes to influences. I try to keep my mind opened to everything concerning music. New bands, old bands. I still feel excited when I listen to something new that blows my mind, be it metal or not and it inspires me a lot to try to reinvent the way I play or the way I want to create new stuff. As a band I could name a few like Jacula, Fabio Frizzi, Arvo Part, Anathema (their firsts albums), Graves at Sea, Asunder, Worship, Winter, Deathspell Omega, Iron Maiden, Whitehorse, Teeth of Lions Rule the Divine, Blut Aus Nord, Mercyful Fate & King Diamond, Funeral Mist, Goblin, Antaeus, Cathedral, Celtic Frost and, Svartidaudi, Thergothon and so on…
You’ve just released some new music. Can you tell a bit about the recording and writing process? Who does what and how does it unfold?
Yes! We recently release our Anathema’s “Mine is Yours To Drown In” cover. Well, more like a version. We started to work on that and I didn’t want to just emulate the original version, so we tried to put some of our DNA on that. And I am really proud the way it came out.
Where do you guys get your inspiration from further, because it seems that the inspiration is a dense mixture of the fantastic, absurd, horror and science fiction. Do you derive your concepts from books or films?
That’s for sure! As I told you, I read a lot sci-fI and horror books. Also I am really into those movies, and my love for the genre is very specific. I am really into all Ray Harryhausen’s animated monsters, and also am obsessed with David Cronenberg’s work, John Carpenter, the Hammer Films movies, Amicus.. you know, the victorian-era horror movies, also mixed with some steampunk style like “First men in the moon”, “The Time Machine” and everything I can find from the gold age of sci-fI movies.
When listening to your albums, the sound is so overwhelmingly heavy and devoid of most other elements. The returning themes makes me feel like that’s a very deliberate choice, also related to the subject matter. Is that so?
That’s true. This is the core of the band, we want to deliver all the heaviness with a dark, yet melodic atmosphere within it.
I would like to know a bit about your visual expressions. Rarely does a band pay so much attention to artwork, logo’s and thus creating such a complete picture. Can you tell a bit more about that?
Thanks a lot. I am glad it called your attention. Well, we are telling a story with the band I want it all to make sense to the listener, be it with the music, the videos, t-shirt and everything. For me, music is much more than what you are listening in a moment, It’s a journey.
Most of the time I am the one behind the imagery, but we are very lucky to work with great artists that get our idea and deliver a great work for us.
You’ve done some covers for the new release. Why did you pick those songs exactly?
Yeah, ‘Mine is Yours to Drown’ In was the first one and the other one is Black Sabbath‘s Behind The Wall of Sleep’. About the Anathema version, when we started the band, we talked about choosing a song to cover and this one was my first idea. It was one of the firsts extreme metal songs I ever heard when I was a kid, so recording it felt like retribution cause it means a lot to me. About “Behind the Wall of Sleep”, Cvlt Nation invited us to their new Cvlt Nation Session, and the chosen album this time was Black Sabbath’s “Black Sabbath”. We chose that song for two basics reasons: 1. It’s Lovecraft; 2. It would be very challenging to record a song so different from what we do cause it’s a faster song. As we did with “Mine is Yours”, we re-think the entire song and made it slower and with our approach and way to do things. Both will be available on digital format in our bandcamp in October. They are part of this 2 songs EP called “Urn”.
Like before you’re working with Mories (Gnaw Their Tongues) on this new release. How did you get in touch and get to work with him? What do you think that the impact on your sound is of his contributions?
The first time I talked to Mories was in 2010 when I interviewed him for a metal website I used to keep here in Brazil. But I met him personally for the first time at Roadburn 2013 and then we became friends. The sound of his bands is outstanding, he is always releasing amazing albums, always working on something new and all I can say is that I am lucky enough to work with someone I admire and respect that much. I think Jupiterian sound so much darker, dense and intense because of his final touch in the process. Sometimes he also creates some extra textures and it’s by his will. Yeah man, he is definitively a big part in this band.
If you could do the soundtrack of either a Lovecraft film or a sci-fI horror combi, which would have your preference and why?
Good one! I never thought about it but when I read the question, the first movie that came to my mind was Deep Star Six. I think the movie has an overwhelming claustrophobic atmosphere. Maybe Andrzej Żuławski’s “On a Silver Globe” (wich is a movie we already used for the “Archaic” video) or Tarkovisky’s “Stalker”. I’d love to do the soundtrack for a lovecraftian movie if there was any good for his “dream cycle”, specially “The Dream-Cast of Unknown Kadath”.
What can people expect from a Jupiterian live show? What kind of experience are they in for?
We like to think our shows are like painful processions, an experience that hurts the soul cause it’s about heaviness but it’s also about sadness and darkness. It’s the worship of what doom metal means to us.
Brazil is known as a firm and established metal nation, maybe even one of the biggest in the world if you may believe the documentary ‘World Metal’ by Sam Dunn. Can you spare a few words on how the Brazilian scene looks and how doom metal fits in there?
I think there is a romantic vision about the Brazilian scene because of all the amazing bands that came out from here in the past decades like Sepultura, Sarcofago, Mystifier, Krisiun, Violator, Facada, Rebaelliun and so on, but I don’t think we can say its firm and established. There’s a lot of passionate people doing their stuff but in a very amateur way, you know. Brazil is a continental country and yet, we cannot arrange a proper tour here at least you are a real DIY band. Of course you won’t make real money and you probably will play with shitty amps on shitty venues. We have only a very few pro labels actively working nowadays, but we are still surviving because everyone involved in this, be it thrash, death, grind and so on, we are used to that. That’s how things are and still love it
We know Brazil from its death metal scene of a while ago. Which bands from Brazil are on the rise and should get our attention (and why)?
Facada is one of my favourite grindcore bands of all times. They are relentlessly brutal, it’s like a mix of the best things Napalm Death, Brutal Truth and Nasum ever released in one band, and of course with a strong (and relevant) politic approach on the lyrics. I recommend their last album Nadir. My favourite track is “Amanhã vai ser pior”.
Thy Light is amazing. They are one of the most relevant bands in the DSBM scene world wide and Paolo is a great guy. He also plays in a Death Metal band called Desdominus, which is also a fantastic band. “No Morrow Shall Dawn”, their last album, is perfect for cold and grey days.
Abske Fides is a great Funeral Doom metal band from São Paulo and reunite some of my oldest friends in the scene. N., the bass player, joined us for the Chilean tour we did this year. He also plays in Noala and Au Sacre Des Nuits and is always delivering amazing music, be with his bands or with his solo projects. We’ve been working together for many, many years now in a lot of projects and you can hear a jam we did on the track “Daylight”, in the end of the song.
Mythological Cold Towers is legendary. They are active for more than 20 years now producing great albums and putting amazing shows. Their last album, “Monvmentvm Antiqua”, is fantastic!
Infamous Glory is an old school death metal band featuring K. from Abske Fides. “Bloodfeast” is a death metal worship with all the elements we love in the genre.
Rakta is a brilliant – way beyond any label – band from São Paulo. I love what these girls do and to see them live is an incredible experience. One of the best active bands in Brazil nowadays.
Deaf Kids just released their last album called “Configuração do Lamento” and it’s one of the best 2016 albums so far in my opinion. This power trio deliver an hypnotizing punk with a lot of tribal-driven rythms. A trully unique band.
What future plans does Jupiterian have?
We have 4 shows in Europe in late October, it’s a mini tour with our brothers from Mythological Cold Towers. We’ll play 2 gigs in Belgium, one in Czech Republic and the last show will be at Dutch Doom Days in Rotterdam, NL. After that we will focus on finishing the lasts songs for our next full length and record it in the beginning of 2017. We have 3 new songs, one of them are on our setlist, and 2 structures not finished yet, so i’d say the next album is 70% done.
If you had to describe Jupiterian as a dish (food), what would it be and why?
Maybe it’s a Brazilian feijoada, cause it’s black, dense, fat, it’s hard and slow to digest. Actually it looks like a disgusting swamp haha
