SOLIS NIGRI hails from the gray, precipitatious depths of the United States’ Pacific Northwest, but forgoes the typical atmospheric focus which stereotypically brands black metal from that region. Instead, with debut EP The Serpent Which Heralds The Dark, sole creator Jamison DeBolt (also of SKRELLE, NIHILIST) adopts a more straightforward and unfettered approach of pointed and deliberate black metal, with a penchant for occult magick.
Opening track ‘Lament at the Serpentine Altar’ is an exercise in progressive striation, honing in on repetition but adding and subtracting various complexities and aggressive elements (guitar lead, double kick, etc.) as layers along the way, very much letting the vocals stand at the fore. The ominous combination of flames, eerie effects, an occasional rattle, and vague ritualistic murmurings of ‘The Alluring Circle’ conjure images of forest witchcraft at midnight around a ceremonial fire. Proceeding into ‘Sinew Everlasting, Scales Unbound’, the continued emphasis on the generally intelligible vocals solidify the strongly narrative aspect of the release, reminding me somewhat of the heavy narrative element of CRADLE OF FILTH, although the vocals are not very similar in sound.
It was at this point, particularly with the repeated referral to “The Serpent”, that it seemed necessary to investigate the lyrics provided. This revealed a dark tale of fratricide and bloodpact, of cult ritual and dark obedience, and the awakening of an ancient ophidian evil to overtake the world of man and God… much of which is depicted within the dark Italian renaissance-esque cover art. The title track ‘The Serpent Which Heralds The Dark’ excellently begins with a guitar lead reminiscent of the first notes of ‘Legions of the Black Light’ by the mighty WATAIN and breaks into a mid-paced exposition, featuring more barbed riffing, duel vocals, and intervals of calm menace, like The Serpent coiling the earth in peril.
The closing track ‘The Black Sun’, in contrast to the rest of The Serpent… is quite serene and beautiful, melodic guitar supporting a melancholy poetic commentary, which seems removed from, yet referencing the tale which preceded it. What does it all mean? Questions demand answers, so I reached out to Mr. DeBolt himself to illuminate SOLIS NIGRI’s darkness. Read on below.
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GOS: Greetings Jamison, and thank you for taking the time for Black Metal Daily. I hope this dark season is treating you well!
JD: Hail, GOS. A pleasure to commune once more, and gratitude for your keen observation on the eve of SOLIS NIGRI‘s inaugural release. Your coverage of SKRELLE‘s debut left an indelible mark, prompting this collaboration for the unveiling of my solo endeavor. The holidays – a realm of expected torture – have passed; and I find solace in their retreat. As we trudge forward, the path ahead holds the promise of new landscapes and the mysteries that they may bear.
GOS: As I addressed in the review, The Serpent Which Heralds The Dark seems to be, or perhaps is the beginning of, a tale springboarding off of the biblical story of Cain and Abel. Are you willing to shed some light about the narrative which is taking place and what inspires it?
JD: Ah, whisps of inspiration often twist and turn in unforeseen ways. While I didn’t intentionally delve into the biblical realm of Cain and Abel, it is intriguing to witness how the tendrils of ancient tales may weave through the album’s narrative. The Serpent Which Heralds The Dark is more an odyssey into the primal, exploring realms where darkness and the human psyche entwine. It’s a journey through the occult, a manifestation of the suffering and pain that resonates deep within the soul. Each track unravels the cryptic narrative, drawing listeners into a realm where ancient whispers and existential struggles converge. In The Serpent Which Heralds The Dark, my lyrical content narrates an occult tale of cosmic turmoil. The protagonist, a chosen vessel, releases an ancient entity known by many names from its celestial prison. The narrative unfolds through verses of dark prophecies, encounters with the Stygian Order, and the aftermath of The Serpent’s emergence. The story culminates in ‘The Black Sun’, where the protagonist, standing alone, reflects on destiny, remorse, and the inevitability of their role in the cosmic drama. Solis Nigri‘s debut is a tale depicting the inescapable dance with destiny.
GOS: Whereas the tracks which precede it tend to follow a particular narrative and have a particular sound, ‘The Black Sun’ has a more serene timbre, and the spoken lyrics seem to be almost ‘meta’ in relation to the rest of the album, not really being a part of it but instead referring to it. What is the function of ‘The Black Sun’?
JD:‘The Black Sun’ is a spectral speech to bring an end to the symphony of chaos. As The Serpent slithers free from its celestial confines, the aftermath unfolds. This track serves as the last lament of the protagonist, standing alone in the wake of cosmic upheaval. The Black Sun, another guise of The Serpent, encapsulates the essence of his inner turmoil. Within the abyss of remorse, he grapples with the revelation that his journey, a macabre dance choreographed by fate, was inevitable. The spoken verses echo his dissociation, a deliberate choice to convey the fractured psyche navigating the aftermath of the abyssal emergence. The question lingers, “How did I get here?” — a testament to the character’s introspective journey amid the ruins of destiny.
GOS: The moniker SOLIS NIGRI seems to be an inverted reference to Liber Nigri Solis, a grimoire centered around black magic and apocalyptic conjuring. What, if any, are the connections between SOLIS NIGRI and this text?
JD: While parallels with Liber Nigri Solis do exist, SOLIS NIGRI, translated as ‘Black Sun’, stands independent of direct ties to the grimoire. The association is more coincidental than intentional, though the serendipity does add an extra layer of mystique to my concept. SOLIS NIGRI, akin to a celestial body eclipsed in darkness, orbits the realms of black metal and the occult, drawing inspiration from the cosmic miseries that resonate beyond the pages of any singular grimoire or black book.
GOS: What is your creative process and how did it play out for The Serpent Which Heralds The Dark?
JD: The alchemy of creation is a ritual forged in the crucible of personal tribulation. For SOLIS NIGRI‘s debut, The Serpent Which Heralds The Dark, my process was a descent into the abyss of my own emotions. It emerged from the shadows of a personal upheaval, a separation that echoed through the haunted corridors of my soul. The music became a vessel for the profound depth of dread, anguish, and desperation that enveloped me. In the sanctum of creativity, I don The Key Of Solomon, a talisman to unlock the gates of inspiration. Surrounded by the flickering glow of candlelight and the ethereal sway of incense, I immerse myself in the sonic tapestry. The process is a mental journey, a return to the darkness from whence I draw forth the haunting melodies and channel the depths of my being into every performance. SOLIS NIGRI, a manifestation of the shadows within, takes shape through this immersive and cathartic experience.
GOS: Are there any primary musical inspirations for you? Which bands for you represent the ideal in Black or Extreme Metal in general?
JD: SOLIS NIGRI, my attempt at a venture pure and uncorrupted, stands as an intentional departure from the eclectic influences that weave through my other projects. In the crucible of creation, I sought to distill the essence of black metal, channeling the purity of its emotional resonance into every haunting note.
GOS: Do you plan on taking SOLIS NIGRI on the road? And if you could conjure the black flame and bend reality to your will, what band or bands would you play with?
JD: Currently, SOLIS NIGRI remains a studio endeavor, but the allure of a live performance beckons. Should I find like-minded musicians willing to become hired conduits for the music, the stage might witness the desperation of SOLIS. In the current conjuration of my live endeavors, the primary focus lies with SKRELLE. The dark energies of that project take precedence as I navigate the allure of live performances. The hypothetical black flame’s dance on stage could align with fellow arcane entities such as ADVENT SORROW,MGLA, PESTE UMBRARUM, HULDER, and WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM.
GOS: Since you mentioned SKRELLE, which saw a self-titled EP back in 2022, how do you view these two projects and how do you characterize them from an emotional or spiritual standpoint? Does SKRELLE intend to transmit something distinct in the same way that you have described SOLIS? Do the projects have any specific relation conceptually?
JD:SKRELLE and SOLIS NIGRI, born from the same soul’s depths, yet each channeling a distinct resonance. SKRELLE, a conduit for the inner struggle of self, mirrors the turbulent journey of self-awareness. Much like SOLIS NIGRI, it delves into the raw essence of emotions. Conceptually, the intentional link lies in both projects’ pursuit to externalize the internal, allowing listeners to traverse the landscapes of self-discovery. Unintentionally, their debuts share an uncanny connection, a testament to the inspiration drawn from the same profound corners of my soul. Each project, a unique expression, yet both entwined in the tapestry of my creative exploration.
GOS: It appears that you have some merch planned for SOLIS NIGRI, both a CD and LP which will hopefully materialize. It has been said that actualizing physical media can be a bit of a challenge these days. How did you accomplish this and do you hope for any label support or do you wish to remain independent?
JD: Indeed, navigating the labyrinth of acquiring physical media can be a challenge in these times. While label support is a possibility, with ongoing discussions, there are no concrete plans as of now. However, the shadows have whispered a solution, and I’m pleased to share that both CDs and Vinyl for SOLIS NIGRI, and soon for SKRELLE, will materialize in the near future. The path of independence, though challenging, offers a canvas for creative autonomy and the realization of the physical embodiments of these sonic tales.
GOS: What are your future plans for SOLIS NIGRI? Is The Serpent Which Heralds The Dark a one-off EP or do you have more material planned?
JD: Shadows of the future writhe in uncertainty. As I stand on the precipice of The Serpent Which Heralds The Dark‘s unveiling, thoughts turn to what lies ahead for SOLIS NIGRI. The response has been intriguing, and the idea of delving deeper into this spiritual odyssey beckons. Plans are afoot for potential follow-ups, perhaps even a full-length conjuration after this EP. The tendrils of creativity often lead to unexpected destinations, and while SKRELLE commands my immediate attention, SOLIS NIGRI holds a special place in my personal realm of creation. The question of whether to continue the narrative or to explore new realms lingers, a conundrum that arises from my penchant for weaving intricate concepts into each of my offerings. As The Scrolls unravel, only time will unveil the next chapter in the tale of SOLIS NIGRI, though the shadows are known to whisper their secrets when the time is right.
The Serpent Which Heralds The Dark is available now.
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Purchase The Serpent Which Heralds The Dark on digital, CD and LP from Bandcamp HERE.
Australia’s OPIUM GRAVE is true outsider music. By that, I don’t mean music for those who fancy themselves “different”; who might try to fit in with an edgy subculture in an attempt to outwardly express how they perceive themselves inside, or perhaps to even attach some form of an identity to themselves and feel like they belong somewhere. No, I mean music BY an outsider; someone who is living and creating art of which few in the grand scheme of things will like or understand, solely for the fact that they need to do it and everyone else be damned. Almost anyone and their dog could knock out a “black metal” (or, conversely and tangentially related, dungeon synth) recording to a relatively warm reception in the current era, but doing something like Opium Grave‘s raw blackened synth space oddities is an altogether different kettle of fish.
Along this singularly focused path, sole practitioner Siliniez‘ journey has certainly been an interesting one, not only in a personal sense but conspiring with other likeminded outsiders such as Striborg or Puschagogoi along the way – and he has created some of the most unique music you’ll be likely to hear whilst doing it. Whilst we have covered his Opium Grave releases many times before, we decided it was high time we spoke with this enigmatic ascetic to learn more about the mind and spirit behind these sounds; the resulting conversation is one of the most in-depth and revealing interviews we’ve been privileged to have gracing our stained pages.
Without further ado… read on. And listen to Opium Grave.
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Greetings, Siliniez. It’s a pleasure to be speaking with you today, and probably long overdue – I’ve been following your work with Opium Grave for quite some time.
If you don’t mind, I’d like to begin with something I’ve always been curious about: what is the symbolism and/or meaning behind the moniker “Opium Grave”?
Greetings, mate. I’m pleased to be speaking with you also. Thank you for your ongoing support of and interest in Opium Grave (OG).
Well, my moniker is a little unusual for sure but it is ultimately something that holds quite a bit of meaning to me, both personally and symbolically. Firstly (and more importantly) it is a subtle nod to what I see as the complete and utter rot of modern man and the erosion of society, especially the way in which people nowadays choose to just sink into the void in a velvet-lined coffin. Into an opium grave, if you will, blind and already dead. The complete willingness of human beings to destroy themselves and their environment is fascinating to me. Doing so whilst being enslaved and distorted by social media, over-consumption/consumerism etc is total insanity when you think about it.
Caring little or nothing for the natural world and our catastrophic impact on it because you’re materialistic and a narcissist seems like it’s a common trait these days.
It’s not that I can’t see beauty or feel love etc, but I just see so much ugliness and stupidity around me that it is truly hard not to loathe your fellow man.
We are living in such strange times. People are, for the most part, vile and selfish creatures who would torch the nearest forest without hesitation if it meant better wi-fi reception or a new shopping mall. Or they would film it ablaze, pose in front of the flames and then post the footage for likes on Instagram.
The second meaning speaks to my past experience with heroin addiction and the OG name is one permanent reminder of a time in which I nearly terminated my journey on this plane – a time of darkness and misery. I didn’t intend for this to shine through when I chose the name but it did nonetheless. It is part of who I am today.
For me, there’s a great deal of catharsis in making music and through it I have chosen to vent some of the hate that inhabits me as well as poeticise the observations I make in my travels. Above all, OG stands against the modern world and for dark, occult art and musical experimentation. I am an adversary to many.
You know I agree with those views, and I’d like to return and touch on some of that said shortly, but – I had no idea of your past battle. Very glad you saw your way out of it. Did that have any impact on the formation of Opium Grave? Were you fighting that during your tenure in Kulturkampf, your previous project alongside Svibrager?
Well, it was a challenge, for sure. But hey, people suffer every day, right? I got off easy. I am not one of these whining ex-junkies who want you to feel pity for them or think that the world owes them something. I loved how I felt on smack, but the hideous truth of that lifestyle is that it engulfs you, makes you weak and attempts to strip away your strength and your spirit. You experience an illusion of control, a bit like modern life can make you feel.
Previous drug abuse is not a subject I will speak of in any great detail (and I’m sure your readers don’t want to hear it) but I will admit that it took around 14 years to fully defeat the colossal beast of addiction. I was using many other substances concurrent to my heroin use. At the time I didn’t want to deal with the world and anyone in it so being in a state of perpetually altered consciousness seemed the easiest way to navigate my existence. I am not trying to be mysterious by withholding more detail, but it is a rather personal experience and I wish to keep it that way. It was my time to wander in the wilderness, so to speak.
I have learned a lot about myself and my place in the world because of those years. Awakened through strife! For that, I am strangely grateful – pain hath stirred the pagan/heathen spirits inside me that were previously dormant.
Kulturkampf began in 2010 and at that time I was using far fewer opiates (pills only, no more needles) and really beginning to find the strength I needed to move forward. The musical partnership Svibrager and I embarked upon then was truly forged in steel, and certainly helped me re-focus my mind towards more constructive realms. I might even go so far as to say it was a true turning point. I am proud of our catalogue thus far and hopefully one day there’ll be a new release of some sort. Recently, there has been some discussion of a complete discography re-release on CD and it looks like this is going ahead, so if you’re interested in obscure and raw BM, keep an eye out. All will be unleashed via Breath of Pestilence.
The formation of OG in 2016 had nothing to do with the narcotic history of my life and everything to do with wanting to start something that I had full creative control over, and in which I could experiment with the ideas I had.
And those ideas, if I may say, have proven to be quite unique. While some do tread similar-ish paths, I can’t really think of anyone else doing exactly what you’re doing with Opium Grave. What was it that sparked these ideas, this blend of Black Metal, Darkwave and Krautrock/Kosmische Musik?
I think that at the time OG began I simply wanted to do something that was a true representation of the “storm of influences” I found (and still find) myself affected by. I have always listened to a wide variety of music, mostly gravitating towards the dark, heavy and atmospheric. Music with weight and substance. Sometimes these things can be found through the light of the sun or the beauty of nature represented in song. Sometimes through esoteric art presented as sound or even via sheer sonic violence, channelling pure destruction and death. Through depression, pain and sorrow we are enlightened. Through hatred of humanity or religion we experience catharsis. In praise of ancient gods or by the eternal glorification of Satan we worship greater forces.
For me, life is about duality; good and evil, light and shade, etc… and when I listen to music, I want the same experience. So, whether I find this in Black Metal, Death Metal, Doom or in Neo-folk, Opera, film soundtracks etc, it doesn’t matter. I’m not a one-dimensional being and so I find many different recordings that move me spiritually and emotionally on different albums across different genres. The light makes the dark seem darker, and vice versa.
As for a specific “spark”, well I can recall one evening in particular around mid-2016 when I was drinking some rather excellent Scotch whisky and playing records together with my wife. I reached this point where, when we had played “Cyclone” and “Force Majeure” by Tangerine Dream, “Cyborg” by Klaus Schulze alongside some Burzum, Branikald, Can and Joy Division, I felt a creative fire burning in my gut.
Perhaps it was my intoxicated state that allowed me to see the potential for combining the driving rhythms of Krautrock with certain elements of raw Black Metal and the gloom of old-school Darkwave. Basically, I felt inspired to create my own music after that night.
I didn’t exactly know what I was doing then and maybe I still don’t know now, but I am on a path leading somewhere… continually trying to experiment with my influences and create something heavy and unexpected. It’s becoming easier with each release to cohesively express what I originally set out to do.
Well, it’s definitely unexpected, and very welcome. It must be noted that you’ve certainly had no problem finding kindred spirits along that path – your split releases have been with some surprising yet very well matched artists. The split with Striborg was a particularly interesting pairing, as I feel that alongside the similarities you share, you’re both pioneers in your current fields. Have you ever considered what you’re doing in that way?
No, to be honest I have never thought of my music as pioneering. It seems odd to consider myself at the forefront of something.
I do know that what I am doing is different and a little “out there”, but I try not to think too much about the outside world or what others might think of me or my music. I just keep doing what I do because I dig it.
I know that is a fairly simple reason to give but it is the truth – I feel somewhat driven to express myself in this particular way. I get a vision in my head of what I want to achieve and I just keep going until I reach a point of completion. This vision or “cerebral manifestation” changes and mutates frequently depending on life and influence, ebb and flow etc. so it evolves with each passing day. Hopefully with future releases I can continue to realise said vision, in whatever form that may take. My early work is pretty rough and raw so it’s also a challenge to keep improving as a musician. I do feel that I will still be on a path of being “too metal for the electronic crowd and too electronic for the metal scene”. Time will tell.
Yes, I have indeed been fortunate to release music alongside some great artists. Striborg is certainly one of them. Listen to “Unknown Entities” for example…that album is so far out of the known universe it may as well be alien in origin. I would argue that no-one else sounds like Striborg and no-one else sounds like OG. Not an easy feat in today’s world. Perhaps we both represent the ideas of a new era in dark, experimental music. However, we are very different from one another.
I really enjoyed working with Krik from Spear of Teuta too, the split turned out really well. Absolutely killer project, that one. The same is true of the EP I did with Psuchagogoi. Hers is some of the most interesting music I have heard in ages. Actually, that one is due to get a cassette release very soon. Stay tuned.
Although OG isn’t strictly Black Metal (since I haven’t used guitars on any of my recordings) I’m heavily influenced by it in sound and philosophy and I reckon it is a genre ripe for experimentation and mutation, so… why not actually experiment? In the “early days” there were so many weird bands or side-projects created by BM musicians. I grew up (as a teenager in the early-mid 90s) listening to all sorts of underground music and it always amazed me how much creativity and difference there was amongst the extreme metal bands that I came across during those years. Look at the early works of Abruptum, Havohej, Bhaobhan Sidhe, electronic era Beherit for starters (plus the obscure masterpiece that is “Drawing down the moon”)… and then you have genius, forward-thinking albums by bands such as Order From Chaos, Mystifier, Windham Hell, Enslaved, Thorns, Moëvöt, Mutiilation, Ildjarn, Mortiis, Fleurety, Arcturus, Manes, Mysticum, Monumentum, Burzum, In The Woods…, Diabolos Rising, Root or Master’s Hammer to name some favourites that come to mind. The opening track on Mayhem’s “Deathcrush” was composed by Conrad Schnitzler, a Krautrock pioneer and member of Tangerine Dream. I always thought that was pretty cool, and it feels like there’s been a link between these genres from the beginning. Fenriz’s Neptune Towers was another excellent project (and one inspired by German electronic music) from way back then that still sounds good today.
I should also mention the early albums made by the Blazebirth Hall bands like Forest and Branikald as inspiration, although these were more mid-late ’90s. Their impact was profound, as their music always seemed to transcend metal into a realm of otherworldly sound. Meditative and powerful to the point of hypnotic ritual. Ulv Gegner Irminsson once wrote that “music is a magical weaving pattern that encircles the universe, gives birth to new movements and new flashes of the stars, new relentless storms… we just need to hear her through our senses and perceptions”.
To me, Black Metal should know no boundaries and the spirit of rebellion should always persist. However, it must retain the occult and mystical spirit of its origins. I guess I just take that as a given and create music accordingly. There is a lot of bland, homogenous crap out there nowadays – the same boring shit repeated ad nauseum and dominated by image over substance. That stuff is pretty harmless really, but we should all want a bit more in our musical diet, surely?
These days I’ll find way more inspiration in an Eloy album or a John Carpenter soundtrack than in a contemporary band that very carefully and deliberately ticks all the “kvlt” boxes.
Obviously, there’s still some incredibly good Black Metal being created but it seems to be a rare thing that I hear something new that blows my mind.
Ultimately, I am just doing my own thing… amazingly, it has resonated with some kindred spirits out there in the ether. I’m honoured to have the support of forward thinking labels like Dark Adversary and Altare in spreading the plague even further than I’d ever hoped. I would not be where I am without their belief in the madness of Opium Grave.
I was going to mention your other splits – that one with Spear of Teuta in particular is also exemplary, a firm personal favourite. I think your vocals added another dimension and took the project to the next level. Is that something you’ll be continuing, vocals for Spear of Teuta? Are you always open to collaborative work with other artists?
I unfortunately haven’t corresponded with Krik for some time, so I can’t say yes or no on that subject. I would definitely do vocals again if the possibility arose. I think his music is absolutely brilliant and criminally underrated. Hearing those demos for the first time was inspiring to me, so I just wrote to him a few days later and suggested the idea of a joint venture. It was a real pleasure to contribute to the Spear side of that EP. I always hoped it would get a vinyl release one day, you know; just those tracks as a 7″, for example. But each of our songs have now already been put out on LP, so that’s unlikely.
I can’t wait to hear some new material.
As for collaborating with other artists…well, let me simply say that OG is now and will always be solely a vessel for my own expression. I like it that way. I don’t work well with others anymore, haha – but I am open to the right input if the right offer presents itself, and I am interested in doing split releases with those of a similar mindset, worldview and musical persuasion. In fact, there are a couple of things brewing right now.
I’ll keep a keen eye out for these upcoming collaborations. But, let us head back to speak about your world-view and mindset, which features prominently within the themes of Opium Grave. As you said up above: modern man is rotten, society erodes and we are all too willing to destroy ourselves and the natural world. Are these sentiments that you have felt and held your whole life? Can you remember when you began to notice this about humanity, or what led you down the path of awareness that all is indeed rotten?
I never used to feel as strongly about these themes as I do now. Paradoxically, I do feel such great loathing for the scum around me but still I manage to lead a fulfilling existence. I am generally happy and I have a fortifying clan around me – my family forms part of my armour against the barbs of our modern world. Perhaps I have come to accept the inevitability of our species’ demise and I am living freer for it. Perhaps it is just the balance that makes the universe turn. Life and death, order and chaos, love and hate etc. As I got older I realised that I didn’t have to fit in with those around me, it’s easier to live with yourself if you stand strong and don’t capitulate to the powers that can dominate one’s experience on this planet.
I have removed myself as much as possible from society’s machinations, customs and common areas so that I only participate in the rat race through necessities such as work and other mundane activities. I am no slave and I shall always walk as a wolf but reality dictates that I work to earn a living…being a musician has never paid enough, that’s for sure.
The world is inexorably heading down the drain and I’d prefer to exist as an individual with honour; knowing the solace of having forged my own path, before we all slide into the abyss.
As a child I had some pretty idealistic views of the world around me, the society I was a part of and the people within that society, but I was always quite content on my own and found great solace in reading, music, nature or escaping into my own self-created fantasy worlds. Kinship was very important. As it is now. I wasn’t yet aware of the outside world as a threat.
I think that as a teenager I developed a slow and brooding resentment for people the more I spent time with them, worked with them, had relationships, friendships etc and slowly began to understand that most human beings are dishonest, immoral, greedy and selfish. I could never understand how people behaved the way they did. No moral compass. I am not talking here about being puritanical but simply of the cancerous spirit possessed by so many out there. I believe LaVey called it “Psychic Vampirism” – perpetrated by those weak souls who might sap you of your own vitality, should you cross paths.
Even when exploring different roads of life and music scenes that I thought may have led me to associate with more honourable folk, it only led me to see the same terrible behaviours from the same two-faced degenerates, etc. I strongly felt then that I had become a traveller on some cruel journey. Cursed to wander like a ghost through life. I think my drug use had a lot to do with wanting to just be numb to it all.
Now, we are faced with all the aforementioned spiritual deficiencies of human beings, with the added bonus of malignant narcissism and extreme consumption and materialism. All at the expense of the natural world and at the expense of our responsibility to live in harmony with flora and fauna. Corporations dominate over mother nature and brutalise animals for our insatiable and above-requirement appetites.
Call me a hippy if you will but I believe it to be true that we are in complete disharmony with nature. Many are treating it as a foe now, to be tamed and mastered. This is a foolish tactic and can only put humanity in further peril. It is simply a matter of time before the great beast (the serpent master and world eater!) will swallow us all. Clearing the way for the next phase. We have ruined our shot at a utopia.
I am not a political person, so don’t attribute my feelings to one side or the other. Either side is as terminally stupid and corrupt as the other.
Just take a stroll around social media for a few hours and you will be greeted by the bizarre and disgraceful actions of seemingly “everyday” people. You will see a circus of freaks. People desperate for validation, posing and preening like deranged peacocks; self-centred rants from sad lowlifes who demand way too much and contribute nothing, diatribes about utterly trivial social and political issues, spat out by delusional creeps. It makes me fucking sick. People are so obsessed with their own pathetic little desires and feelings of entitlement that it has set the world into a dive. Plato said it beautifully: “The first and greatest victory is to conquer yourself; to be conquered by yourself is of all things most shameful and vile.”
I read recently that persistent extraction of groundwater over the last decade has shifted the axis on which our planet rotates. That’s a pretty intense fact and evidence that our negative impact is indeed a massive one!
Look at the advances of AI in recent years. We have set ourselves up to be exterminated by machines and networks we ourselves created. Even artificial intelligence is able to learn quickly that humans are a toxic poison to this world.
We are being conquered; crushed under the weight of our greed and we continue to tear up forests, destroy animal and plant life and poison the oceans just to further our voracious desire for more manufacturing, more energy and more progress. Except progress really means consumption. Technology is generally a good thing, how we often use it is not.
Sometimes I feel like Nada from John Carpenter’s “They Live”. I can finally see all of the signs around me pointing to how the world really is and I can never, ever unsee it! Obey. Consume. Die.
I believe we are headed for a catastrophic event, be it a nuclear, environmental or pathogen/pandemic type situation. The Earth is horrendously overcrowded and could benefit greatly from a total and utter cleansing. If I have to be part of that then, so be it… for I shall return in another form, in another age.
Many humans seem unable to realise that their society is a blip on the timeline of this planet and in the distant future all of this mess will be forgotten…or perhaps even debated by scholars about where it all went wrong.
Regardless of the future, the Earth will carry on without us. We are nothing.
We are nothing indeed. Regarding social media, it must be noted that you’ve kept Opium Grave far away from that entire circus – something which, intentionally or not, seems to me to lend the project an extra air of integrity. Seeing black metal artists begging for attention or merch sales is always distasteful, and you’re clearly not interested in that sort of thing (despite the fact that you’ve been doing quite well, relatively speaking, and have worked with some excellent labels thus far). Do you feel you would be doing Opium Grave even if nobody else were listening?
Absolutely. I would. Definitely. Defiantly.
When I began OG I felt like no-one was listening and that didn’t deter me in the slightest. It did not slow my desire to create nor did it stifle my urge to make music.
I certainly felt then that nobody cared about my efforts at musical expression but still, I persisted. I am very grateful to have had the support of some loyal fans and two or three truly visionary labels who are unafraid to put out unconventional music.
It is a tad surreal at times, because once I have unleashed something into the public eye there is a part of me that wants it to be understood and enjoyed. However, there is an even bigger part of me that doesn’t give a fuck about how I am received… even to the point of wanting to deliberately piss scenesters off further with more unconventional approaches and bastardised musical unions, things that should only exist in some bizarre alternate universe.
There are still occasions where I feel like people don’t connect with what OG is, but as I have mentioned elsewhere in this interview, I do this because I want to create and I enjoy what I am doing. As long as I can still find the time to write and record songs, I will endure. I keep hoping to push my songwriting ability and my musicianship further. There are a lot of ideas I’d still like to try out.
People seem to either love or hate OG. I am more than happy to polarise, haha.
I tend to think that many still fear what they do not understand (particularly in music) and if they wish to stay in their little hovels, feeling safe and listening to the same familiar things, never seeking “beyond”, then they shall perish in there – blind and weak. The black flame burns on… with or without their attention.
Well, I certainly refuse to be a part of that “circus” you mentioned (great description, by the way) and so I have to live with fewer eyes on my releases and fewer albums sold, etc. But I guess that at the end of the day, I am happier to follow that path. If my music is meant to be heard, it will be. It frustrates me at times that I am not more widely heard but I accept that what I am doing is a bit “niche”. I would rather keep any shred of integrity I may still have than prostitute myself on Facebook etc. I have never existed there and I never will.
As for social media in general…oh mate, where do I start? It’s a joke.
Personally, I abhor social media and all the drones who lap up the milk of mediocrity that leaks from it. I have no use for it and I think it serves only to corrupt any underground movement that strives for a sort-of sonic purity, such as Black Metal. I mean, bloody hell, you have so many supposedly kvlt bands (or whoever is a current darling of the “underground” press) vying for people’s attention like salivating dogs but all you really have underneath the veil is a big lie… “check out my Insta, catch me on Facebook, like my posts, look at my merch site, please buy my stuff, visit my link-tree, follow me on this, that and the other… look at me, validate me… it is a giant load of wank, if you ask me.
Pure Black Metal (and I am not saying I fit musically into this category, only in philosophy) should be underground. It should be intolerant, hateful and well aside from the mainstream. It should reside in the shadows along with the other mutant genres that have been spawned from its rancid womb.
Now, I do fully understand that labels and artists have to promote themselves somehow. That’s not the issue here. Technology and the internet are not our enemy and allow us to maintain an important music scene in the current age. Again, it’s the people who are screwing it all up. In the past, good music was always heard by fans one way or another. We once had a very strong scene without the internet, and especially without posting every single move online. It didn’t require more than creative artists, tape trading, radio/zines, word of mouth, good gigs with die-hard fans, honest labels and, of course, killer music. I used to co-run an extreme metal radio show during the 1990s – we reached plenty of people and contributed to a burgeoning scene without social media. It still would have been an unnecessary hassle had it been available as a tool back then.
The underground should be underground. Maybe I am just old and bitter, haha, but it seems like now, you’ll find such huge YouTube channels and other marketing houses that exist solely for promoting (carpet bombing), mass-marketing and over exposing the newest “big thing” in BM… they are all championing this incessant barrage of image over substance. The tropes of common, whore-ish social media sites have infiltrated this once proud scene and its associated allies. This is a place for the satanic, the weird, the misanthropes, the warriors and the barbarians… not for trend setting hipsters and influencers. Not for sheep in wolves’ clothing.
I am not interested in being part of the shit show. My music is only on Bandcamp and Spotify to try and reach a bare minimum of listeners. My music is on Youtube as part of each label’s promotion of its releases. Aside from their increasingly “woke” agendas, I will argue that these platforms ARE still good resources (except for YouTube’s censorship obsession) for bands trying to get heard in the maelstrom, but so many great releases get swallowed by the tsunami of garbage that the publicity hounds and fame-seekers generate.
Yes, we all exist online in some manner but I am trying really, really hard not to be part of the hype machine. That’s all.
I am only interested in releasing unorthodox music and having it heard by those that dig it. I don’t need to beg for attention. Either you like Opium Grave or you don’t. Those who don’t can fuck off. I don’t care about fitting in.
I agree – sometimes I wish we could just nuke the internet and continue without it, although I’m not entirely sure that would help anything. Can you see a way forward as a species, or do you think we’ve ridden the bike off the cliff, so to speak, and are doomed to hit the ground in catastrophic fashion no matter how fast we pedal on the way down?
Haha nuclear obliteration! Now there’s a thought. All the post WW2 and cold war era paranoia will come to fruition at last! It won’t be long before our annihilation, I’m sure.
Well, as far as deconstructing the internet goes, I honestly think it would make ZERO difference. If we were even capable of this feat, it wouldn’t matter. Humanity would just start over on the same inane, dead-end journey to resurrect the very thing that destroyed our brains and souls in the course of advancing our so-called freedoms and development.
I do like the “bike-over-a-cliff” analogy. It does seem like we have pedalled to the nearest edge, over it and headlong into the gaping maw below. We have continued to accelerate on the way down, more than likely creating a scapegoat for our predicament during the descent. Throwing blame left and right like lightning bolts from some angry God. Assigning responsibility to everything and everyone but us. Unable to accept that we led ourselves to this point. I think you could argue that human beings are resilient, like cockroaches, and that this race has survived many challenges so far, so why couldn’t we survive for longer…continuing on into myth and legend? Why couldn’t we accelerate further, into a utopian existence? An existence like those we have read about in science fiction novels. Why have so many other great societies of the past failed? I am not a philosopher nor a scholar and so to me the answer is simple – we always underestimate our own destructive power. We are the great destroyers of life. We are the Obliterators.
There are those among us who periodically inspire hope and faith in our possible salvation, and every now and then you’ll read about how an invention or an idea could possibly slow down the decay in which we exist. But, these are always just stop-gaps, fads and band-aids… nothing can halt the course of fate. At the end of the day Man’s true nature will always win out. That nature is to wipe out everything around us and then ourselves. I don’t mean to be flippant with this quote, but as Pete Steele once said “everything dies”… so, why should we be any different?
I don’t particularly care what others outside of my circle do, but I choose to try and enrich my life whilst I am on this plane of existence… and by that I mean I don’t wish to treat my mind as if it were a toilet to fill with excrement, like so many seem to do. In addition to basic pleasures, I also seek enlightenment and knowledge whilst accepting that I will one day fall from life and descend into blackness. I do, however, believe that I am a “Seer” and that I will be reborn (from the void) into a new age. An age free of the human scum that pollutes my current existence. Call it reincarnation, call it recycling, call it a promotion… whatever… it will come eventually… but for now, tonight, I am getting drunk and playing a few Alice Cooper and King Diamond records. Tomorrow, I’m visiting an art gallery and the museum. Balance.
Sounds like an excellent way to spend a couple of days, if you ask me. Your answer has also acted as a wonderful segue into an album I wanted to speak about: Obliterator. Specifically, the lyrics – they possess a unique and profound resonance. Lines like “I see myself walking in endless summer rain…” and those passages that follow have stuck with me every day since my first listen. What was your inspiration for these lyrics? What is this “galaxy of beauty” that you speak of?
It is indeed a wonderful way to spend one’s time, although the last few visits to our city’s national gallery have been marred by the scourge of influencers behaving like total scumbags. For example, on my most recent visit (to the Pierre Bonnard exhibit) I witnessed a woman walking past in a very revealing outfit, breasts jutting out for all to see (as if attempting to compete with the art around us) and a sort of wannabe catwalk swagger in her step. Nothing terribly abnormal about that…BUT! After a while I noticed she actually had a photographer in tow who was taking shots of her as she pouted, posed and pretended to look at the paintings on display. Probably hoping to post later on Instagram about how “cultured” she was. That is the stuff that you tend to see a lot of in a city like Melbourne. Pisses me right off… but I digress.
Re: lyrics – thank you! That means a lot, mate. I do put some effort into writing songs that possess a poetic quality as well as meaning, and of course, they certainly have meaning to me. I enjoy writing lyrics. Sometimes, it is rather difficult to express the disgust I might feel or to really recount the sort of hatred that burns a hole in one’s gut. It often all ends up as reflective and sorrowful in tone, which is probably how I really feel deep down, beneath the rage. I romanticise and dramatise my thoughts and often have grandiose themes and images in my mind’s eye. I frequently struggle to put these into words and I hope that people reading them can understand what I am channelling. I feel that my words do tend to go hand in hand with my music, and the true meaning I seek to convey always comes through in the end but it is also open to interpretation by the listener. You may find other things that lay hidden.
Those lyrical passages you refer to, from Obliterator II – Doomsayer, relate to visions experienced during an acid trip and are inspired by actual events. The song is partly a testament to why we have always used illicit substances – since the earliest recorded history – to become closer to the next world, to commune with the ancients and to transcend our mediocre selves.
The journey begins within (conception) and then reaches outward, flying past the borders of our small planet and far out onto a deep plane of existence free from the ugliness of everyday toil and strife. The lyrics attempt to recount a narrative through poetry of one’s struggle with being a slave to time, knowing what pleasures lie beyond it and having to wait it out, fight through it and endure a lifetime of spiritual pain (or worse, malaise) on planet Earth before being delivered, like a newborn, into a realm of unimaginable joy and light.
In this scenario, loyalty to the great serpent Ouroboros (aka Satan, the world eater) calls for devotion to a life of frustration and anger amongst the human race and all of their destruction in order to truly see – with all three eyes – the futility of our day-to-day lives and the power of what lies beyond. Perhaps a basic lesson of sorts, before being crowned a Seer and thrust unto a realm of endless astral travel, adventure and possibility. It is all a test of strength from the master, if you will. The LSDemon in this story.
The “summer rain” line is perhaps a subconscious reference to a baptism of sorts…but it is also my way of describing the feeling of peace one might experience at a moment of profound realisation. The moment you have surpassed a hollow, terrestrial existence and have been newly formed as a Seeing Spirit, traversing the cosmos. You are no longer human, you are part of an ancient order.
Man has been destroyed. Hence, “a galaxy of beauty built on graves”.
There’s a lot of surreal imagery going on but that is the gist of it.
That’s incredible. Thank you so much for that information, you’ve now bestowed even further depth upon that track for me the next time I listen. In true prolific form, you’ve unveiled a couple more releases since Obliterator, the last of which was June’s two track Black Kosmische Musik. That title seems like a statement – would this be considered the definitive sound of Opium Grave, or is there something more to it?
My pleasure, I’m glad that you’ll now be able to hear that particular song with more context in mind. I think lyrics should add meaning and depth to the music that lays alongside them.
As for the term “Black Kosmische Musik”…well, hell yes – it is most definitely a statement and should indeed be considered the definitive sound of Opium Grave. I didn’t feel my music fitted with the Blackwave tag that I seemed to fall under, although I am happy to be associated with this description too. My music has more in common with the ’70s than the ’80s or ’90s… well, to my ears at least.
I feel that Black Kosmische Musik is the most appropriate descriptor of my sound and intent, as I am largely inspired by the original Kosmische Musik (“Cosmic Music” in German) scene that began in West Germany during the late ’60s and early ’70s. This was a scene that produced some truly excellent recordings, made by some insanely creative musicians. It was often defined by its highly experimental nature, encompassing rock and electronic elements as well as artistic and psychedelic themes. There really was nothing like it at the time. Bands/artists like Tangerine Dream, Riechmann, Klaus Schulze, Michael Hoenig, Neu!, Can, Harmonia, Cluster, Ash Ra Tempel, Popol Vuh, Faust, Kraftwerk, Eloy and Amon Düül II in particular. The albums released by these few alone could sustain me for the rest of my life!
I feel I can relate to that scene’s experimentation and genre-pushing ideals. Granted, it is not my only influence, but it is one that I feel has profoundly inspired me. Perhaps even more so than Black Metal or Darkwave.
Also, the lyrics on this EP are a slight change from past works. They are written in a Gothic horror style and are almost like short stories in tone. I hope to incorporate more of this sort of writing in future releases.
I love many of those artists (Tangerine Dream my favourite of all mentioned), but you’ve also just given me a few more to check out, so thank you again! I’ve also noticed the message “All glory and devotion to The Great Beast, eternally worshipped with offerings of flesh and blood” in the liner notes of Black Kosmische Musik. To what are you referring to when you say “The Great Beast”? Is that a Crowley reference?
Actually, it is not a reference to Crowley, although that is an interesting idea. He did refer to himself as The Great Beast, correct? I think he was an extremely interesting man, but honestly, I’m not the kind of person who could worship another human being to such an extent that I would ever offer up those things to him or her. That particular statement refers to sacrifices I have made to the World Serpent or Ouroboros (sometimes referred to as The Great Beast or Dragon). This ancient being is out there in the cosmos, coiled around us, slowly squeezing us to death. It is the way of the eternal cycle. I think it was once described by some ancient gnostics as a large dragon encircling the world. You could say that this is my personal spiritual belief. I believe that my pain, toil, blood and flesh in conjunction with my actions and thoughts in this life continue to be currency for passage into the next world. This planet is a sinking ship and I’ll swim alone into the darkness before I drown with the rats.
Ah, yes of course – similar to Jörmungandr of the Norse myths, or within many other beliefs around the world. Do you consider your personal spiritual beliefs aligned with any particular system or faith? What IS that next world for us? What awaits us, the Obliterators, after death?
Yes, absolutely akin to Jörmungandr. This concept can certainly be found in many other old cultures around the world; eg. Hindu, Roman, South American, Aboriginal and Egyptian to name a few. All hold similar views in their mythologies. Some may see the Serpent as a villainous force, but I think that it should be viewed purely as a necessary agent of change and a powerful symbol of both destruction and rebirth. Whether you believe in it literally or metaphorically the outcome is the same; death, destruction, rebirth, new life.
My spiritual beliefs are most definitely my own. I’m not a religious person but I am a spiritual being, if that makes sense. I guess I’ve got a few views that run parallel to religious values, but I have never subscribed to any religion. I mean, Christianity plagiarised many of its core beliefs from Pagan traditions anyway, and then passed off basic human behaviour as its own special set of rules. I do have an affinity for one tenet of Satanism though: the “I am my own God” law. That makes sense. The trouble is with people once again, for many of them are just petty and corrupt Gods. Generally, I pity organised religion and those who chain themselves to it. It’s really just another man-made way to blind us to the truths that lie in nature and beyond. Family, tradition, cultural identity and heritage are all far more important than any prison of monotheistic religion. I used to hate Judeo-Christianity with a militant passion and I made a point of expressing that often, but after a while (and with age) you see more of how the world is. That it (religion) isn’t as much of a threat as you might think. There are worse things out there now. Most people are inherently followers so let them follow, whether it’s religious dogma or a corporate messiah, you can’t persuade or reason with drones. If they can’t think for themselves, fuck ’em. I’m happy for them to dig and then fill their own graves.
I wasted too much energy attacking others when I could harness that force to strengthen myself and grow. I will use the same force to defend my own spiritual domain from potential invaders until death… but I don’t go looking for trouble so much these days. Leave me alone and I’ll afford you the same respect. Funnily enough, lately I’ve even found that some of my more “conservative” ideals/morals have lined up with some Christian values. Or, theirs have lined up with mine! I spoke with a religious coworker recently and it was a little spooky how much we agreed on in relation to the vile modern society we inhabit. Time is a strange beast for it hath aligned two enemies against another, more insidious enemy…
I hope we will soon start to see the pendulum swing away from our current age of “everything is socially acceptable”.
I consider myself a lone wolf as I have no allegiances outside of my inner circle. That’s how I will walk through life, proudly free of any yoke until I reach the point where time continues and I do not.
What awaits me after death is what I have spoken about above. Rebirth into a new age, with other Seers. As for the rest… the only thing that awaits them is nothingness. Fade to grey. Kaput. Lives that have no value here are not worth a thing in the next world.
Almost an “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” type of situation, there. So, inevitable nothingness may await the deserving masses… but what lies in the nearer future for Opium Grave? The tape of Black Kosmische Musik is on the way via Victims Of Fate, but what else do you have on the boil?
Haha well, almost…but don’t count on me appearing at Sunday mass, mate. In this case, the enemy of my enemy is still my enemy! It is just interesting to me that a more urgent threat to one’s existence can rally combatants/opponents to become temporarily “aligned”.
As for the near future of Opium Grave, well, the cauldron is bubbling away steadily. As you mentioned, VoF is releasing what will certainly be a killer version of “Black Kosmische Musik” on cassette. They are also unleashing limited editions of “Obliterator” and “Shroud of Sorrows”. These will all be on UV cassettes with some alternate artwork and each tape will come with a pin. There will be an über-limited three cassette box set appearing too – perhaps only ten copies or so will be produced.
In addition to these looming cassette releases, there will be a third instalment of the “Black Sun Hexes” compilation series, coming out on CD via Dark Adversary. This will chronicle my older material, with tracks taken from some of the rawer, embryonic works of Opium Grave. I’m not certain of the release date yet.
As for new music, I’m in the process of writing and forming ideas for a full length album, with recording to start soon. I find myself increasingly busy with work and other commitments, so I’ll just be sporadically creating this thing in my downtime… and it will eventually take on a form of its own. It’ll be done when it’s done.
I’m discussing things with a couple of different artists right now regarding a potential split release to precede the full length… but I’ll hold off on mentioning further details for now, as nothing is set in stone. At the very least, you can expect more misanthropic and obscure music from the grave!
Excellent news, the world needs more Opium Grave (even as the soundtrack to its demise).
Haha, cheers! Well, that’s one soundtrack I’m very pleased to take part in!
Sincerest thanks once again for your time, Siliniez – it’s been an honour, truly. Any final words or wisdoms you would like to leave us with?
Thank you, mate. I’m grateful for your support over the years, for writing about Opium Grave when no-one else would and for the chance to express myself freely in this interview. Hopefully, I’ve informed more than rambled and not bored any of your readers to slumber with my lengthy responses.
I’m not going to make some pseudo-intellectual attempt at wisdom or provide a thought provoking quote to end on... but I’ll just reiterate that modern society is a sickness. Stay apart from it at all costs if you value your sanity.
Staunchly underground, the Australian duo of DRUGOTH has been on a rampaging campaign of ultimate destruction since 2017. Forging a blade of total berzerker black metal with a backbone of paralysing, primitive and crusty groove, each one of their dozens of releases wages total war against the light. All are also completely uncompromising in their vision. The pair of Drugoth (skin-flaying, throat shredding) and Shograath (strings of war, backing howls) recently offered up to us what is only their second full-length album to be released in six years… and yes, Battles May Cease but War Is Forever absolutely KILLS.
Whether it’s the ravenous onslaught of opener ‘Triumph Borne of Bloodshed’, the slow, stomping stroke that lies within closer ‘Of Blood and Iron Bound’, or hell, just everything else in between, Drugoth attack with just one singular driven mind and purpose: to crush their enemies, see them driven before them, and hear the lamentations of their women. As they devour their flesh. Probably.
Theirs is a thrilling proposition, one quite unlike any other. We here at BMD have followed the project since inception and realised it was high time we supported the war effort, giving these orcs a chance to speak – thankfully, main composer Drugoth himself was available and sat down with us to answer a few questions. Read on, and listen to the unstoppable might of Battles May Cease but War Is Forever below. May their campaign never end.
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Hails, DRUGOTH! What goes on in the ravaged lands of the orcs?
D: Drugoth has just finalised the latest album BATTLES MAY CEASE BUT WAR IS FOREVER which is being unleashed August 25th of 2023.
It is the most relentless, uncompromising and purist work we’ve captured to date.
The true essence of what Udûn black metal is.
No singles – only an exclusive song premiere on the ‘Into the Necrosphere’ podcast, whom of which has the total 100% support of Drugoth.
Apart from that, Drugoth has been busily occupied with drumming in other projects soon to be released later this year.
For those weak souls unaware: what exactly is TRUE UDÛN BLACK METAL?
D: TRUE UDÛN BLACK METAL is simply Drugoth and Shograath – The two quintessential pillars.
Musically, it is relentless and blood thirsty.
Skull crushing riffs are essential and of the utmost importance.
Lyrically, it is always self empowering.
The complete and utter nullification of weakness and cowardice of self and others through the metaphors of combat warfare.
No compromise – no fucking mercy.
Drugoth was bestowed with foul birth in the year of 2017. What desires or necessities instigated the beginning of this campaign?
D: Drugoth was formed out of frustration and my longing for something of this style.
Frustrations caused by being in other bands. Though fun and enjoyable as they were – I despised the stagnation. I understand people go through writer’s block and personal issues which interfere with progress, but I must keep busy.
The early Drugoth demos consisted of songs seldom passing the two minute mark.
Short and to the point was the idea, but over time the songs got longer and more structured.
Some physical releases have been produced in the past, and one for the new album will be released also through the mighty REGIMENTAL RECORDS, but that isn’t the most important thing for us.
We are very grateful of course and said releases are usually through mutual, respectful friendships.
Other merchandise is more of a rarity, we do one-off prints whenever we feel like it and it is first in first served.
From the beginning and still to this day we care not for labels, groupings or doing what is popular at the time.
Drugoth is Drugoth and will do whatever the fuck we want when we want.
I am very grateful for people enjoying and listening to Drugoth.
You’ve mentioned the progression in the Drugoth sound, which is something I’ve noticed myself – and, following natural progression, the songs on the new album are some of the best you’ve ever done. Total crushing grooves, very well composed (a phrase which almost seems at odds with the barbaric nature of the project). What can you tell us about the creation of the album? Do you aim for an increase in quality with each release?
Thank you, I appreciate the kind words and most of all I appreciate you taking the time to listen to the album in its entirety.
The album was written late 2022
And this happened to be the first album where bass was recorded.
I find influence in a lot of different music and readings, but I always seem to circle back to my roots.
But then again – if I was to go riff by riff, song by song, then we would be here until the cows come home.
The song writing itself is just a representation of my musical progression.
The ultimate goal is to write songs that if it wasn’t me who wrote it, I’d think it’s cool and would listen to it.
They’re definitely cool. So, this is the first album with bass recorded! I think that’s helped with a more organic sound on the album – I know you already play real drums (which is a great point of difference in your favour) and the bass just caps it all off. Who is playing the bass, Shograath?
I am playing bass on the album.
Shograath records all the guitar that I write and also does the lower vocals.
Without Shograath Drugoth wouldn’t be what it is today.
On that note – the debut Shograath release should hopefully be available by the end of the year.
His song writing, riffs and vocals are ferocious.
I assisted with the drums.
On the topic of the drums being real – I do not sample anything. Whatever the drum sound is on the day of recording that is what it will be on the release. I might add a little reverb here and there, if anything.
I’m not against solo projects programming drums but it must be done well… it is repulsive when the programmed drums are 500bpm and perfect. But if that is what they’re going for, then whatever.
I’ve drummed for multiple other projects and I know there’s quite a few artists out there who offer their drum recording services.
Flakpanzer who runs Regimental Records is a absolute weapon of a drummer who like myself is always taking up offers.
I tend to agree, I’m not fond of the sterile, programmed sound myself (unless it’s done very well). So, given your multi-instrumentalism, how does a Drugoth song manifest? Do you start with a riff, a rhythm, an idea?
It really depends.
Sometimes a singular riff, drum beat, bass line or even a vocal line will determine where the song goes.
It’s almost like a puzzle or a recipe.
A song might be rewritten or restructured 3 or 4 times before I’m satisfied.
But then also sometimes I sit down with the guitar and a whole song is written in 10 minutes.
I’ve learnt over time not to force anything.
Doing drums and lyrics for other projects helps keep things fresh,
if I’m stuck on one I’ll work on the others.
Inspiration is plentiful – it just needs to be sought.
How did you learn these instruments? Do you consider yourself a drummer first and foremost?
Yes, drums were the first instrument I learnt
although I’ve never had lessons.
I just learnt by ear then later by watching other drummers perform and breaking down techniques to see what works for me.
But over time I feel I’ve developed my own signature style and sound.
The limited drum set up, cymbal choice and to the point of being strictly militant on using only a single kick pedal.
Guitar was more a necessity to bring my vision to life thus the origins of Drugoth were forged.
I cannot stress this enough but,
The skills of Shograath to record my riffs and most importantly comprehend what I am trying to explain when I show him my riffs with my poor playing is beyond exceptional.
After becoming proficient in your instruments, what eventually led you down the path of creating black metal?
Frustration and freedom...
A two sided coin answer.
The freedom to do whatever I want, whenever I want, however I want.
One song could be 100% blast beats and then the next could be a slow brooding doom inspired track.
Black metal is the freedom to choose – Black metal is the inextinguishable dark flame.
Frustration being that I don’t want to have 20 cymbals and 15 toms, trigger or sample my drums, have a clean singing chorus or play radio friendly music..
There’s a time and a place for that but not here.
Drugoth is Drugoth – never will we cede to the whims of the inane babble of what is the hot topic or popularity.
What’s happening with the other projects you have on the go at the moment? I know you have a show coming up with Sightblinder…
Yes Sightblinder has a show in late September with some prolific Australian black metal bands. We play rarely and only when the show lineup is appropriate.
Christbane is currently writing a new full length album along with a second split soon to be announced and released.
Shograath will be debuting his EP soon which I had the privilege to perform drums on.
It was the most ferocious drum recording process I’ve ever been a part of.
He is a riff machine and an unbelievable vocalist.
I am most looking forward to this.
Celestial Sword is finalising the new album which I believe will really blow people away.
Also I will enter the studio again in the next coming months to work on some more creations for this project.
Siegetower is in the middle of writing our debut full length. I’ve completed my drum tracking for that so that shouldn’t be too far off I’m hoping.
LLYR – the other member of Christbane has a demo for his new project of his namesake that I drum for.
Nocturnal Effigy is writing new material I just completed tracking for.
Spells Ov Torment, Rokkung and Hellnium are all to be worked on when everyone’s schedules allow.
And lastly Drugoth is always being worked on.
Riffs, lyrics and songs are always being forged.
On that note, I’d love to do a black n roll or war metal band and play live if anyone in Brisbane Australia is keen!
Can’t wait for all of that – the war rages on. And finally, for someone about to hear BATTLES MAY CEASE… BUT WAR IS FOREVER for the first time, what should they expect? What will they take away from the experience?
I would hope listeners listen to the album in its entirety as it was meant for.
Hence no singles were released.
Then I would also hope that whatever ills are in the listeners life they find the strength and resilience to persevere through and this album assists them with said troubles.
BATTLES MAY CEASE BUT WAR IS FOREVER represents the complete and utter nullification of weakness.
Stand tall and proud for your beliefs and yourself.
THIS IS TRUE UDUN BLACK METAL!
Sincerest thanks for your time, Drugoth. It’s been a pleasure. Any final words or wisdoms for us all?
Keep an eye on the horizon for the debut SHOGRAATH release,
It will make you want to beat people to death with a rock.
Thank you for your questions, your time and your support.
Support the underground and support each other in the black metal community.
DRUGOTH
Battles May Cease But War Is Forever is available now.
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Purchase Battles May Cease But War Is Forever digitally from Bandcamp HERE. Physical edition coming soon from the Regimental Records Bigcartel HERE.
A Peek Thrv The Black Metal Bedroom Window With The Mighty Perthvert, Funston J. Rimmer
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If you have somehow missed all recent news of the second coming of the apocalyptic black metal legion that is DEADSPACE… then now is a good time to listen up.
This five headed “Master Blaster” is set to once again reduce Oz to nothing more than a barren wasteland, with not only a new album release on the horizon but two live shows exclusive to Australian audiences. Tearing across this dusty and inhabitable country in a Black 1973 Falcon XB GT Interceptor (probably) from their one show in Melbourne to the the only follow up show in Perth this November, the current line up is as follows:
Chris Gebauer – Throat Furiosa Thomas Major and Theuns Olckers – Keepers Of The Strings Dan Jackson – Bass Buzzard And Herb Bennetson the Tubs of Doof.
Now, being a Perth dweller myself, I didn’t hesitate to jump on the ol’ blower to frontman Chris Hauzu (Gebauer) and scream incessantly “I Am The Toecutter” before promptly hanging up. This did not win me his confidence of sanity nor the free backstage pass that I was hoping to siphon out of him, but it did (uncomfortably) break the ice, so to speak.
In a fortunate leap of faith he still (very wearily) agreed to proceed ahead with the following insightful, Australian exclusive interview, to which he gave his full attention and went into great and appreciated detail about all things Deadspace. And which I now present to you, the esteemed readers of Black Metal Daily. So, read on… and check out the new single ‘Within His Wretched Tomb’, from the upcoming Unveiling The Palest Truth, while you’re at it.
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G’day, Chris! It’s nice for you to finally sit down & be drilled by The Mighty Perthvert, yeah?
CG: At least I’m sitting down. I feel a little safer that way haha.
Before we get into it, let me just say that in the short time that we’ve been acquainted that you have been nothing other than kind, and really quite humble… that’s not very black metal of you now though, is it? Do you ever think to yourself “I need to be more of a bastard?”
CG: Haha... never. I make black metal because I am interested in the musical textures at my disposal, the atmosphere and mystery of the genre and the spiritual connection I feel with what I do. I am not so much influenced by the movements or legacy of the black metal scene, nor the attitudes that surround it. I believe that there is a power in attempting to give other people rise and allowing myself to grow with that experience, as opposed to placing myself above others in a pursuit of the ‘I am my own God’ outlook which is so often adopted by artists that dwell in occult music circles.
By this, I do not mean that we should not take our lives in our own hands. To me, that is a basic human responsibility. What I mean, rather, is that we should not ignore the efforts and shortcomings of others to get ahead in our own lives. Usually, we only get ahead in our own minds. Another thing to remember is that I am Australian, and a lot of my attitudes are shaped by Australian values of mateship, compassion, and inclusiveness. Also, note is that I am only 30 years old. Claiming that I was at all a part of the development of the black metal genre and ethos would be ridiculous, and there is only a selection of first/second wave bands that I consider true inspirations to me as a musician.
Over the recent years I have become rather humanistic. It has taken me a long while to reconcile with my own horrible behaviour in the past and I constantly endeavour to be a better person than before. There are also things that I have been unable to reconcile for. For me, the black metal activity is more ritualistic, rather than the adoption of detrimental philosophies that are built on selfishness and the need for attention. I am also not quick to condemn people for their attitudes as they often develop due to socio-political or personal circumstantial pressure to take care of themselves both mentally and financially in a disintegrating global environment. People that appear to be ‘bastards’ (for lack of a better term) are usually very sensitive human beings that have suffered some sort of neglect that is sometimes ongoing.
Now, in the eight years since the release of your debut album The Promise of Oblivion, Deadspace have released six more full length albums and three EP’s, is that correct? On top of that you are a live performing band that has toured relentlessly. Do you care to give us a short history on the obvious hyperactivity disorder surrounding your past eight years? That’s a high outpouring of creativity.
CG: Yes, that is correct. Look, I just like to make music and this band is something I’ve always felt compelled to drive. I do, in fact, become extremely hyperactive around summer due to a faulty adrenal gland and I generally cannot stop myself from working on at least something. The biggest difference in the last few years has been that I have become very picky with Deadspace’s output, and thus have appeared rather quiet. My bandmates are absolute soldiers and helped me more so than ever to bring this new fury to a sharpened blade. I am truly appreciative of all of the efforts from all members over the last 8 years that have come, gone, or stayed, always pouring their heart and soul into the band. Here’s to the future.
Have you ever felt that there was a purpose or message of sorts that the band was wanting to convey in those early days? Or, was it perhaps more so a case of answering the mind and the body’s call to relieve a bottleneck of artist expression?
CG:There is always a purpose for me. My message is never meant to be taken didactically. At the end of the day, I only aim to bring great music to our listeners.
My messages are always incredibly powerful to me, but I will never let them dominate the essence of our sound. I feel that across our discography, you will find an evolution of thinking and wisdom. Earlier Deadspace reveals to me a certain feeling of despair and hopelessness at an infantile stage of attempting to metabolise the changing world around me through feeling alone. Around the Dirge / Libido Dominandi era, my thinking became much more Nietzschean, perhaps as an attempt to rise above said feelings. Like many prominent historical figures, I managed to misinterpret and shallowly adopt the values underlined by Nietzsche, often failing to act compassionately in my own life. Failing to find happiness this way, I began to re-evaluate what happiness was to me, becoming critical of social critics like Descartes and Rousseau, and eventually developing an outlook that was much more Bataillean.
Philosophical shit-slinging aside, what I mean is that I realised that happiness is indeed unattainable as a species, came to accept that we are all the cursed share heading at the speed of light toward the sun, and learned how to harvest that energy in a way that gives my individual experience purpose and kinetic energy.
Despite being often tagged as DSBM it seems clearer to me that, if needing a label, “apocalyptic black metal” is a more apt description for Deadspace these days – when we consider that the first couple of releases were celestial or cosmic themed in nature, what inspired the direction into a more apocalyptic sound?
CG:I guess I partly addressed this above, but I can elaborate. When Deadspace was first born, it wasn’t intended to be a live experience. The years working on the road really turned us into a pack of wild beasts and this has naturally carried over into our output. We still play songs off The Promise of Oblivion live but we started to notice that these older sentiments were growing new claws that we hadn’t imagined. We have become more guitar-driven, darker in undertone and bigger as a whole. The track ‘Moksha’ was a closing of the old chapter that we felt we needed to achieve closure. Going forward, we wish to play and record music that we find more interesting as a unit. It has been an adaptation that happened without pressure, and completely in concert between all members. Lastly, it reflects the feeling of confidence we have built in what we do. This band simply would not have reunited if it weren’t for a very good reason, and this reason is ready to be revealed.
I understand you lads were quite young, dumb and full of c…c…complicity in 2014, when Deadspace was formed. Can I ask exactly how old you were at that time? As a double barrelled question – predating Deadspace, what was your first exposure to extreme metal that inspired your own personal foray into the genre?
CG: I was 22 when The Promise of Oblivion was released. Before then I’d had about 9 years of experience playing drums in bands, mainly in the death metal genre. I grew up playing classical piano, which I didn’t take very far, and my first real exposure to heavier music was through black metal bands like Emperor and early Dimmu Borgir. I never could really get into classic metal like Metallica, and I still can’t stand most thrash. I’m not really a ‘rocker’ and would generally pick funeral doom over anything more direct. A long-time favourite black metal project of mine Leviathan (USA) really opened up the doors to guitar driven dissonance. This led me to heavily endorse bands like Deathspell Omega, Throane, later Mayhem (Ordo Ad Chao era), but these influences only presented itself in our music from the Dirge record onwards.
Mate, I really appreciate the history lesson but let’s talk about the thing everyone wants to know about: the here & now. The exciting shit.
In 2020 the band announced it had reached its own apocalyptic end, causing windswept desolation across the hearts of many hairy, drunken metalheads, followed by acid rain tears & devestation amongst the faces of many a young goth girl. Then June 2023 arrives with the announcement of a new Deadspace release. What happened in those three years to make it obvious that your work was not done?
CG:A lot of space and writing happened. The band collapsed for many reasons. One was the physical and financial onus of relentless touring grinding us down, the other was the frustration of being chained to a version of the band that older records had pathed for us. We really thought this was a done thing and we all split into different projects, with me starting Exitium Sui, which is now a side project, and the other guys, Woewarden, which is a formidable gigging band. It was pretty obvious that I was descending into a musical sphere much more sinister and obscure, but I really just missed playing with my best friends. So, I reached out carefully, slowly, and methodically and let the others into my new world. It effectively just re-ignited an old flame that always refuses to die and that was that.
I recently read a statement by the band regarding the new EP, which also spoke about how some members found themselves no longer resonating with your old style of sound, which then led to the hiatus. So, I’m curious: how do you feel about those older releases now, in light of that statement and Deadspace moving away from the (misguided, in my eyes) DSBM tag and into darker waters?
CG:We still play select tracks off even Promise live, but not in the same way that we used to. There is a lot that we have simply outgrown, but we also respect them for what they are. The good thing though, is that the songs also evolved with the band, and we have allowed them to grow through experience. Those releases will never go away but Deadspace now is not what it was then. We are all older, more experienced, and more focused. We know exactly what makes us tick and exactly how to deliver it in a live arena.
Proof of this will come this year as new music is released and stages are revisited.
In that same statement, mention was given to the energy and ferocity of later albums Dirge and The Grand Disillusionment. I just wanted to say that TGD is my personal favourite Deadspace album, by the way; so is it fair to assume that we fans can expect a more violent or extreme version of the band?
CG:Absolutely. There is an infectious bombastic nature that we have embraced; however, there is a certain power in restraint that also allows us to achieve an epic feeling of glory throughout larger and more open sections. It’s a little hard to describe but time will reveal all, and it’s unfolding quickly.
With the shift in sound, were there many challenging aspects in terms of instrumentation used or say, your distance apart from your crew? (You live in Belgium now, I believe? I hear it has very many pretty ladies.)
CG:Honestly, all of the instrumental parts were recorded while I was still in Perth. Drums, guitars, and bass were all composed and engineered at my studio in Australia. All the vocals were tracked in the basement at our place in Belgium before it was sent off for mix/master.
Not a slight discrediting of my own local scene, but I imagine where you are currently living would possess a very different black metal dynamic than what you were accustomed to in Perth, Australia. Is there anything that you have immersed yourself into whilst living over there that you’d like to share with us?
CG:Well firstly, Australia is truly great. Do not underestimate the power of Australian music, venues, and fans. The community down-under is like no other. This being said, I’m working on material for a more brutal extreme black metal band I have with my wife, housemate and good friends called Humanitas Error Est. The band started in Leipzig, Germany, back in 2013 and built a rather prominent name in the European black metal jungle until disbanding in 2019. I joined the outfit after the break and we spent a long while searching the perfect members in Belgium, with one guitar player being in France. I am also playing bass for Belgian/Austrian band Lebenssucht, also with my wife. Other than that, we have attended some cool concerts here, seeing bands like Afsky, Darvaza, Helleruin, Au Dessus, Gaahls Wyrd, Wiegedood, etc… there is quite a healthy local scene in Belgium and the fans are generally very supportive of their own horde, but most of Deadspace’s European support currently comes from France and Germany.
So, would you say that has had an influence on your process & sound for this new Deadspace release in any way?
CG:So many things have influenced this new chapter, such as the reasons for the break-up, the time apart, the reuniting of newly aligned ideas, the time over the years as a band, etc… our process is usually quite similar, so no difference there. If your question is hunting for a list of bands or music groups that we are inspired by, you can look for bands like Leviathan (USA), Mayhem’s Ordo Ad Chao record, Abigor’s Fractal Possession record, bands like Throane/Au Dessus, some latter Deathspell Omega. They’re not really new influences for us as far as listening goes, but those tastes creep forward to a much more dominant place on this new album.
Assuming not every reader of Black Metal Daily also follows your socials, care to speak about the new release’s visual themes? The art direction? The sigil? Might we expect a new video clip, perhaps?
CG:I will firstly just copy/paste the actual post here because it took me over an hour to formulate and will be the most accurate depiction. I will then elaborate.
“Our long friend Arnaud Vansteenkiste helped us summarise the entire ethos of the band and put it into the sigil you see in the centre cover. It represents the fire that burns at the heart of man, his strength and inescapable relationship with death. The layout, constructed by Anett S Caedes Hauzu (Anett Gebauer Photo & Film), is made up of hand selected paintings purchased from vlad.darkness666art.official from Ukraine. These paintings portray the apocalyptic convictions of the lyrics and music. Featuring dystopian landscapes buried in corpses, these works felt like they were simply made for this release. Anett worked on interweaving the specific texts of songs into the perfect pieces of art to represent their essence. We could not be happier with how it came out.”
We felt like we needed something simple and bold that marked this new era for us. Having a sigil that held in it the heart of this band would allow us to further explore the artistic sphere without having to worry about the mundane world of marketing. My wife and I havebeen following Vlad online for a long time, often chatting to him about his work. After a discussion about artwork, one of his paintings just happened to pop up on Instagram and we just looked at each other grinning. It was a pretty obvious choice, and he was more than happy to sell us many of his pieces for this intended purpose. In terms of video clips, you know I can’t tell you that. With the release around the corner, you will just have to wait and see, my friend.
Something I also read which has really stuck with me: that the album is about “the philosophical pursuit of happiness, and the anthropological reasons that it’s unattainable.” I paid no attention in school, Chris – I was busy trying to look under my English teacher Ms Blair‘s desk. There’s a lot to unpack in that short phrase, can you please expand on that for me?
CG: So, there’s this modern philosopher called Nick Land who has some very insane but oddly plausible opinions. It is mainly the way he writes (it’s poetic, absurd, crude, and dramatic) that draws me to him as an author. One of these ideas is that capitalism is an artificial intelligence in which humans are simply created to serve. Now, although I find such a conclusion rather erroneous in itself, he draws much of this theory from Bataille and Nietzsche’s work, mixed with his own cocktail of occult ritual and extensive substance abuse. The particular book is called “Thirst for Annihilation.” Land, for me, turned philosophy from a dry pursuit of wisdom into a theatre in which artists could explore the true sense of human futility. He is both cunning and dangerous, and after reading Land, Bataillean and Nietzschean thinking gained a much darker relevance. Take, for example, Rousseau’s work. In his initial 1755 publication “A Discourse on the Origins of Inequality”, he clearly states that systematic belonging is dangerous for the individual due to it creating a breeding ground of self-doubt. Then in 1762, the system forced him to refute himself in “The Social Contract” which then became a major work used to substantiate imperialism, floundering for reason to bend humans to systematic pressure. Hobbs, being more pessimistic, was largely overlooked, just as Nietzsche was later misunderstood… until now, as mankind is waking up to an impending doom that has already been long working.
The Western political system clings so tightly to Locke’s work because it best serves the system required to manage such a superpower that has long outgrown the individual, but Rosseau’s initial criticism of systematic inequality is still ever-present. My theory is that we are fucked, so at least enjoy the ride and do it in a way that brings joy also to others. So, what better way to do that than to return to Nietzsche and follow artistic pursuit as a spiritual pursuit. “Without music, life would be a mistake.” – Friedrich Nietzsche ‘Twilight of the Idols’.
It’s clear to me that you are quite interested in philosophy. I’ve often seen the following quoted by yourself or the band: “death is always inevitable, but never imminent enough.” I’ve never read that phrase anywhere else. Is it your spin on the 15th century renaissance writer Michel de Montaigne’s “Death is always inevitable”, perhaps?
CG:They’re actually some lyrics from this upcoming record from the track ‘Dwell in Desdemona’. The record addresses the points discussed above and does not directly relate to Montaigne’s work. Although I am interested in philosophy, I am predominantly a writer and musician. Sometimes a line is simply chosen because it fits the orchestration and delivers the appropriate punch.
You are also a painter, I see – and a rather established one, at that. I really dig your work, I’ve always been drawn to dark visual art. When you’re not painting a portrait of your family cat, are your works a reflection of a darkness within yourself? Or, might they be more an observation of the darkness you see in others?
CG:I’m not really a highly established painter. I have sold some larger work and been awarded a few things from larger organisations, but I wouldn’t say I have a name on the art scene, which I’m very okay with. I started painting during the pandemic while studying an English Literature and History degree at Notre Dame University. I had two great painting coaches, Jules Hancock and Peter Barker, who taught me how to fearlessly but masterfully construct narratives in the oil painting medium. I am obsessed with classical, renaissance, and baroque masters and nowadays follow the work of Odd Nerdrum quite closely. For me, a painting needs to be identifiable and relatable to the viewer. It should tell a real human story that has further meaning. It should be emotionally compelling but compositionally strong to draw in the eye and then capture the soul.
So, with a renewed vigour the band seemed determined to continue to spread the plague with not only a new release, but also two live shows in Perth and Melbourne throughout November this year. What might we expect from these shows? How are you preparing for them?
CG:You can expect a band that is a lot more mature than earlier performances may remind you of. A band that knows when to shut the fuck up and lay low, and also when to destroy. My vocals are always ready, I practice frequently and record my sessions. The guys at home are gathering and preparing a whopping 50-minute set for the occasions. The shows will cover a vast collection of selected material from our discography, including some old tracks and brand new. But the shows also serve another purpose, the ability to hang out and connect with many old friends and new ones alike. For us, this is a celebration of all the work we have put in so far as a musical and artistic force and we greatly look forward to it.
Once the adrenaline of the end of this year begins to recede for you lads, what can we expect to see in 2024? Any big plans at this stage?
CG:Deadspace will re-assemble in Perth and work out how to approach our next record. We all have a lot going on in our private lives at the moment, many expenses to be covered, transitions to be made, etc. There will definitely be a follow up not too far into the future, but I really don’t know any more than you do at this point about specifics.
Chris, thank you once again, it’s been an absolute pleasure. I’m looking incredibly forward to seeing you in November. I won’t be at the gig but I will be peering through your bedroom window at night. Before we bail, have got any shoutouts you’d like to leave us with?
CG:Yes, I would like that thank my newly hired 24/7 security team that will be looking out for you in November, the 40 Dobermans that will be guarding my window and the wonderful gentleman that feeds them for me. But in all seriousness, I think I have said more than enough here. It is probably enough talking for few years. I would like to thank you, of course, for taking the time and interest to ask some really insightful questions into what we do and thank you to your team for letting you off your leash on this one. Until November, mate.
Greetings, Pete. What is the concept behind this new ALGHOL release, and how is it connected with the idea of “Eternal Night”?
PETE RODWAY: Night Eternal is the sequel to The Osseous Key and part two of what I’m planning on being a trilogy of albums, with the album after Night Eternal wrapping up this storyline. Night Eternal is its own adventure, but it builds on and ties in to some of the events and themes from The Osseous Key. It’s set several years after The Osseous Key and takes the listener deep into unexplored jungle and the darkness that lies within!
It’s definitely a bit of a departure from the more standard Black Metal themes and settings, but I thought it would be cool to do something a bit different this time around.
May I ask what the inspiration behind this album was? Lyrically and musically.
PR: As far as the storyline and lyrical inspiration goes, this album draws a lot of inspiration from the book “Heart of Darkness”, as well as Tiki culture and themes. I started collecting Tiki mugs and getting into making Tiki drinks around the time I started writing the album and that played heavily into the decision to take this album into the jungle. My buddy Logan Hamilton did all the artwork for the album, and he did an awesome job incorporating Tiki aesthetics into all of it. I’m very pleased with how it all came together.
From a musical standpoint, I really just wanted to build on what I did in The Osseous Key. Sicker riffs, spookier (and catchier) synths, and just an overall more refined sound. My goal for each new album is to show some kind of progression from the previous one, and I think I managed to hit that goal this time.
How did the process of creating, recording, and producing the album go?
PR: The process with this album hasn’t really changed much from my previous work. I do everything myself, so I just kind of take inspiration when it comes and run with it. The recording and writing processes are very intertwined. I tend to write a track as I’m recording it, so when I start a tune, I really don’t know what the finished product is going to sound like until I get there. I usually start with a riff idea or a drumbeat, and then build the song around that. Once I’ve got all the instruments tracked, then I’ll write lyrics and track vocals.
On occasion, I’ll have lyrics done before the music is written, and in that case, I usually just have to tweak some things to make them work with the song. I also pretty much always complete a track before moving on to the next. I rarely ever am working on more than one track at a time. Once Ifinished the writing and recording, I spent a good amount of time working on the mix to try to get everything sounding as good as possible, and after that it gets sent off to mastering.
This is the first album I’ve had professionally mastered as opposed to doing it myself. I sent it off to Dan Randall at Mammoth Sound Mastering and he did an awesome job with it. I’m really stoked on how the final product came out.
I feel Alghol is evolving, musically. Where do you intend to take this project to? How much are you willing to get “outside the box” from now on?
PR: I’m honestly not sure where the project is headed, but I have absolutely no plans of slowing down. I’ve already started writing the next record and am always kicking around ideas for reissues or merch or whatever else. I’m always doing something with this project. But at the end of the day, I do all this for myself. The fact that people like what I’m putting out is still pretty wild to me, and I’m unbelievably grateful for all the support I’ve had for this project so far. But even if nobody was listening, I’d still be doing this shit. The support just means I’m able to do it on a bigger scale, so as long as the support is still there, I’ll still be pushing to do bigger and better things. If not, I’ll still be here writing tunes for myself haha.
As far as getting “outside the box” goes, I’m definitely willing to explore whatever interests me as long as it still fits the project. I think there’s a certain point where an idea is so far outside the realm of what the project is at its core, that it needs to be explored in a different project. For example, I fucking love Reggae. And while I think that there are some elements of Reggae that could be co-opted and altered to fit a Black Metal tune, it wouldn’t make sense for me to put out a full-on Dub album as Alghol. I think context is super important when it comes to doing things outside the box. Experimentation has to fit within the bounds of the project, but luckily with a project like Alghol, I think those bounds allow me a lot of room to play around.
Night Eternal self-releases July 28th.
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Pre-order Night Eternal on LP, CD, cassette and digital HERE.
Unlike many other musical genres, black metal demands from the listener more time and attention. The smaller details, the intricate shapes and forms, the overall expression and significance of the music… it all forces the listener to put himself into a different state of mind. The energies that swirl around one’s mind are unmatched, and the end result is tremendous. One might find it hard to understand it at first, but once you get sucked in you will not be able to turn back, nor will you want to. Black metal is this dark force that lures you in, and when you least expect…
FUNERAL FULLMOON is one of those special projects; one of those differentiated projects; a project that has shown its ability to emulate the melodies of old… MNV218 is one of those musicians that lives his art. A few years back I had the chance to talk to him about black metal and his inspirations – very few musicians live by their words, and create based on their words, but he does. He knows black metal is a vehicle of many beliefs and ideologies, and the carrier needs to uphold those beliefs as life standard.
Unholy Kingdom of Diabolic Emperors is the latest musical endeavor of MNV218 and Sepulchral Augury with Funeral Fullmoon, and it is simply amazing. They gather two sides of the genre: the visceral, violent, classic side, and the eerie, haunting, atmospheric side that lives through MNV218’s keyboards. Both facets easily complement each other, merging into this beast we call Funeral Fullmoon.
It is hard for me to point out weak details or moments, honestly. I’ve had it playing in a constant loop, especially due to the fact that it needs to be absorbed, as mentioned before. It does have its immediate side, the visceral one, the violent one… yet it resides on a platform of delicate atmospheres. Behind the dark cloth lays a demon of multiple attributes, and we are drawn into it, voluntarily. ‘Enter the Abyss’ is black metal at its best. The intro, interlude, and outro do not sound misplaced. And by this, I mean that all tracks merge into each other, almost crafting one single track that floats from one point to another, shifting pace and overall atmosphere.
It is also hard for me to describe art created by an artist I respect so much, especially since he seems to continue to push the boundaries of his own work – so I have reached out to him again with a few short questions.
In the end, Unholy Kingdom of Diabolic Emperors is BLACK METAL, but the depth he applies to his music, his art, is immense. Black metal from the darkest place in the Human mind. Read on below.
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Greetings, Magister Nihilfer Vendetta 218. What does the title of your last work, Unholy Kingdom of Diabolic Emperors, mean?
MNV218: Greetings! The title of the album, Unholy Kingdom of Diabolic Emperor, is a malefic testament that we have written into this sonic portal. When we speak about The Kingdom is what, as shadow entities, have built, a great misanthropic monument; a movement within the dark paths, and the conjuring to open portal of energy in the mind of those who listen to us, but also somewhere else in the physical realm with the wicked vibe we have achieved with this album. That’s why the ideological, magical and misanthropic Kingdom is ruled by the diabolical Emperors (we, who have chosen this path with full commitment), the ones who keep destroying the causal energy and manifesting the acausality of this not manifested chaos, which is our banner.
Unholy Kingdom… showcases a structure you previously also used on the recent EP Eternal Battles of the Ancients Shadows: a dungeon synth intro, interlude and outro. Youseem to perfectly understand the connection between black metal and dungeon synth, and how the two can make the other stronger. What were your intentions with the inclusion of the interlude on Unholy Kingdom, especially?
MNV218: The recent EP was a link with the upcoming album, as the Eternal Battles of the Ancient Shadows is the return to the old medieval stories where our spiritual ancestors, and leaders in the dark crafts, still dwell and rule over hostile astral worlds. As we keep summoning their old names and stories, we bring their energy upon our cursed spirits to immortalize our own black flame! That’s what then inspired the Unholy Kingdom of Diabolic Emperors, which is our own history written in blood to open new paths and keep recruiting contaminated evil minds to our ranks, and keep up the battle in the astral planes after the end of this existence. Therefore, the link is not only ideological but also translates into the music through the intros and interludes, as those help us to plant our dark energy in the mind of our followers, using their imagination as our own portal. Their energy is the goal and their mind is the key.
According to Metal Archives you have left the Pure Raw Underground Black Metal Plague Circle, and the Old True Dungeon Synth Committee. May I ask the reason – or reasons – behind this decision?
MNV218: The reason is because I am organizing a way more powerful ideological circle, with greater entities, with more commitment and belief involved, beyond the aesthetics or easily digested music. For me this is not another mundane activity; for me Black Metal is a mindset and militancy, it’s a way to open portals of energy and manifest the ancient evil in this world. It’s not a game.
Your art has always been based on your personal beliefs. Could you possibly see yourself creating without that in mind?
MNV218: No, being honest, but we believe that it will improve over time.
Can we expect more music in the near future, from any in particular of your many projects?
MNV218: Of course, the album for 2024 is almost ready. It will consist of eight tracks. Seven of these are pure Unholy Black Metal, and one is an intro. I also have agreed on a series of splits with bands such as Aarkanne, Todverhexen, Blackest, and Nocturnal Prayer among others, and the unreleased EP from 2021 may see its materialization in the upcoming year.
Thank you very much for the opportunity. Any final words you would like to add?
MNV218: “Poison your mind with the sound of the evil emperors.”
Black Metal Daily Interview with O.W.G.A. from The Hermetic Order of Ytene
Conducted by GOS and ABK
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Where to start? There’s so much to potentially cover here it is truly difficult to determine where to begin. First of all, we suppose, the obligatory but sincere thank you for taking the time and energy to correspond with us. Time and energy being invaluable, it is much appreciated.
OWGA: Not a problem at all. Thank you for the interest.
Since the intention here is to inquire about your creative output as a whole, it only makes sense to begin with a very wide lens. In terms of active projects, you have AULD RIDGE and ALBIONIC HERMETICISM, and we suspect at least a significant hand in SKARE as well (although that one is less confirmed). Why? How is your creative intention behind each of these projects distinct from the others musically? How are they distinct conceptually?
OWGA: The main distinction here is between AULD RIDGE (AR) and ALBIONIC HERMETICISM (AH), although this distinction did not really exist initially. AH began as a more personal affair. It serves to explore the Occult world and my personal path within it. This covers a broad variety of things of course, but that is holistically what it is. AR began mainly because I had a few discarded neofolk compositions that were intended to be used for a collaboration album that never came to fruition. I liked the pieces enough that I wanted them to have a home, and so Mítt Ríce [ep, 2019] happened. These pieces were reverential expressions of nature in a way that didn’t fit with the darkness of AH. Then Ascetic Invocation [AR, 2020] came along, which in hindsight could well have been an AH album. It is a very personal journey through that album. I think my main reasoning for releasing this through AR was to avoid “oversaturating” one discography too much. I really do not enjoy it when projects release hundreds of releases every year. With me being rather prolific, the natural way to counteract this is to spread over a few different projects. After Ascetic Invocation however, I began to feel overwhelmed by the more personal expressions that AH had started to demand of me. I started to feel inspired by putting myself “in other people’s shoes” so to speak. That is, to play a character. I became infatuated with this idea of taking an event in history that interests me and writing in first person as if I am within it and experiencing it first hand. This, ultimately, is what led to the distinction between AR and AH. AR focusses on history, legacy, struggles, the archetypes of the European soul, the beauty that is found in nature, etc. etc. AH focusses on my experiences in the occult world and the darkness that can be found in nature.
AULD RIDGE seems to be, in some sort of vague way, the “flagship” project of The Hermetic Order of Ytene. Is this accurate?
OWGA: I think it has certainly become that yes, but this was never intentional. I still consider AH to be my “main” project. AR really has always been more of a side project, ha! The style of Black Metal that AR plays is more uniformly appreciated. Most people that are into Black Metal enjoy IMMORTAL, RAGNAROK, EMPEROR and so on, but not everyone gets on with bands like NECROMANTIA, MYSTIFIER, MORTUARY DRAPE. These are not perfect comparisons of course but you get the idea.
Completionist minds would like to know: Do you anticipate that Ascetic Invocation will at some point be available in CD format or for streaming / download from The Hermetic Order of Ytene bandcamp page? Currently that album seems to be officially available only on vinyl and the digital availability on Cold Beach is limited to the first track with a £777 price tag.
OWGA:Yes I do intend to upload it to the new Bandcamp, I just never got round to it. The original digital was lost the last time my Bandcamp got nuked. I have discussed a CD release but no immediate plans.
Regarding AULD RIDGE, what is the relation between Consanguineous Tales Of Bloodshed And Treachery (2021) and Consanguineous Hymns of Faith And Famine (2021)? These albums seem to be both undeniably linked and simultaneously distinct, based at the very least on their album titles. What is the relation between the two and how does Folklore From Further Out (2023) fit in with the project?
OWGA: The two sister albums are very intimately linked in the sense that each track is a first person narrative detailing a particular legend or event in European history. Both on the continent and in the British Isles. To give an example, I particularly enjoy the song ‘Pant Mawr…’ from Consanguineous Tales of Bloodshed and Treachery. This song tells the story of John Oldcastle and his band of English Lollards. Oldcastle is a fascinating character. In the song I detail a few important events. Oldcastle was fond of a particular form of western European christianity called “Lollardy”. I won’t go into the theological details but in summary the Lollards did not like the roman catholic church. They produced the Twelve Conclusions of the Lollards which is a 14th century manifesto. This manifesto was rather unpopular, not least because it was quite unsavoury towards the priesthood. It stated that confessions to priests for the absolution of sins is inherently blasphemous as it implies that priests have the power to absolve sins, putting them on a level with God. They believed only God should have this power, which if we are to believe in an absolute and powerful god. Makes sense as far as I am concerned!
Oldcastle managed to get away with his dissenting views as he was in good favour with both Henry IV and Henry V. But after more and more evidence was brought forward, he was eventually convicted of Heresy and locked up in the Tower of London. This is where our story in the song truly begins. Oldcastle managed to escape the tower of London and subsequently led a rebellion in Southampton (a place close to home) to try to overthrow the king. An excerpt of lyrics from the track: “For the light of Christ the Redeemer, athwart the black mountains, in search of followers to lead me to Southampton and overthrow the king” (the Black Mountains in Wales were one of his areas of influence in the UK. A place with a considerable Occult and Heretical history that, in the interest of brevity, I will not go into here). His schemes and plots ended in failure every time and eventually resulted in his capture and execution for heresy. He was hung, drawn and quartered. Some accounts even say that he was partially burnt alive first. Needless to say, a gruesome death fitting the title of …Bloodshed and Treachery. I could go on and on about this but I dont think your readers or yourself would appreciate that!
In a similar vein but somewhat less “historical” in flavour, [regarding the album Consanguineous Hymns of Faith and Famine] the track ‘Wretched, Famished, Scorned’ is about a farmer suffering a terrible winter of crop loss and death. The intensity of his despair leads him to question his faith and curse God. On this album in particular, I was interested in how far Christian man can be pushed before he turns to the old gods for answers.
Moving now to Folklore From Further Out, the title really does say it all. On this record I was taking inspiration from “further out” as well as closer to home. For example, folktales from Iceland and the very far northern tip of Scandinavia and Finland. The title of the album itself came because I enjoyed the alliteration, to be honest. It was also somewhat inspired by the short story compilation “Roarings From Further Out” which compiles some great stories from Algernon Blackwood. His writing was an inspiration for much of the Folkloric energy this album exudes. I was also very interested in the Archetype of the Hero, in the Jungian sense, on this album.
To elaborate on this, let us consider the album opener ‘A Pact With Kólumkilli’, this song is directly inspired by the opening few chapters of the book “Independent People”. This book is a modern classic in Icelandic literature. In the book we follow Bjartur, as he strives for independence and ownership over his loaned piece of land and flock of sheep. It is men like this more and more nowadays that I find myself admiring and respecting. Especially as someone that fairly recently became a smallholder/farmer. Bjartur’s tenacity and stiff upper lip in the face of the most horrendous adversity is truly something to revere. The man is a hero, in the purest sense of the word. He has distinct faults, he has a short temper, he can fly off the handle and make rash decisions; but at his heart he is a good man that will do anything for his family and his independence from a world of opportunists and scum looking to exploit the everyman. We follow Bjartur in the song as he questions whether his land is haunted. He is looking for one of his Sheep, following a mysterious disappearance. Despite the harsh and uncompromising weather, he heads out into the mountains to look for her. Unknowing to him, his wife, having gotten sick of the limited diet of dried fish and bread, had killed this Ewe and slaughtered it whilst Bjartur was away. Bjartur struggles to understand his wife’s desire and need for more in a world that he finds to be perfectly satisfactory and blissful. Whilst on this search, Bjartur comes to terms with the events that happened and accepts that this was his wife’s doing. He struggles through a storm by imagining himself fighting Giants and Gods in the night, before returning home to find his wife has died in the cold of the night, leaving a child for him to raise, independently. In spite of this adversity, Bjartur does not shed a tear. He keeps his head high and makes it his life’s work to raise this child to the best of his ability and to work his land until it is his and his alone. These kinds of “mundane” heroic deeds are what inspired much of this track and album. Not the battles and chivalry of the previous two releases.
To elaborate a little bit on a few other tracks here, we may turn our attention to ‘The Sound of the Fyrth…’ this track is deeply inspired by the folklore surrounding the Werewolf. Specifically the Irish folklore surrounding this. In Ireland, the story goes that a priest was traveling from Munster to Meath when in the night he is come upon by a disgusting dog like man begging him to aid in the final rites of his death. The man describes a curse that was placed on his entire clan by the Abbot Natalis which cursed them to walk the night as these wolves, even though the sin for which the clan was cursed happened long ago. The priest is initially very taken aback and does not know how to respond to this request. The story goes that the priest is taken back to the wolf’s lair, where he is presented with the wife of the man. The priest says that he will be satisfied to perform christian dying rites provided that they can prove they are human. In the original folklore, a sort of body horror-esque scene occurs where the wife peels back her wolf skin violently to reveal the body of an old hag like lady. The priest, satisfied with this proof, conducts dying rites for them to ascend to heaven. In our interpretation of this folklore, we do not take it this far. We leave the story with the Priest questioning his right to decide if this creature should be allowed a christian death. In this story, it is debatable who our hero is. It could be the man of God, working to be merciful and help out a human condemned. It could also be viewed as the man cursed, as he is prioritizing his Wife’s salvation over his own.
I have probably rather overstayed my welcome with my self indulgence on these explanations, so I will keep this last insight rather brief.
The last track I’d like to give details on is ‘An Omen of Death’, this song is deeply inspired by a few individuals that I met and befriended in the far north of Sweden and Finland in the very unique Tornedalen valley. The perseverance and strength of these people is beyond belief. Living in houses without running water or electricity through winters with absolutely no sun and summers with the worst mosquitoes I have ever experienced. These people exist in a community so far removed from what most of modern Europe is like nowadays. I found it to be a deeply inspiring and beautiful thing. The song specifically, is inspired by the way they spoke about christianity and how it ruined their culture and language. These people are still deeply Pagan. Drawing their religion not only from what is familiar to any North-West European as “indo-european paganism” but also finno-ugric beliefs that line up more with a kind of tribal shamanism. I am looking forward to exploring these ideas further. My own heritage is significantly Norwegian as well as English/Welsh, and whilst I in no way line myself up with some of the more silly modern views on the persecution of the Sámi, I do relate to their disdain for christianity’s destructive and poisonous influence on our native religions and traditions. After all, it was mainly christianity that persecuted the Sámi in Norway (and the rest of Scandinavia) and not Pagan man.
We cannot thank you enough for going into depth on these matters! Patterns between ALBIONIC HERMETICISM albums are even harder to discern, with what we have probably somewhat grossly interpreted as (for instance) a heavier, deathier sound to Psalms Of The Father (2021) a more raw and rudimentary sound to Brittonic Ways (2021) and a more avant-garde / cosmic / psychedelic sound for Nova Nativitas Mundi (2023) What accounts for these variances?
OWGA: As I have alluded to in prior answers, AH is very much an exploration of the Occult. It is an expression of my personal spiritual development, for this reason album to album sees fairly dramatic changes in what I am looking to express. The darker/more sinister sound you hear on Psalms to the Father is a result of my journeys around the country around that time. I was visiting a lot of sites that had uncomfortable and divine energies. Many of the counties of England have this presence, this unexplainable folk-horror aura that I tried to recreate with that album. The way I always viewed Psalms to the Father was what I imagined a Black Metal Fairport Convention, Black Widow and Comus might sound like. That distinctly albionic sound that many of the 60s and 70s bands did so well. Psychedelic and weird with a sinister undertone.
Brittonic Ways was actually recorded before Psalms. Around this time I had just returned from living in Norway for a period of time. I spent a lot of time in Dartmoor in the south-west of England and much of the songs on here were inspired by the landscape of Moors and stone circles. I think the rawer sound of this LP lends to the more rugged and visceral landscape of the moors, with its jagged and angular Tors.
Moving on to Nova Nativitas Mundi, this is clearly a bit of a departure from the usual AH material. It was actually never meant to be AH, initially. The first two tracks I had as instrumentals. I was trying to do a “Black Metal Prog” type project. Not dissimilar to VED BUENS ENDE or something like this. Over time I decided I didn’t want to start another project and it seemed more and more like this LP was begging to be an ALBIONIC album. I had also been playing with this idea of a formation of a “Galactic Reich” and had this big concept that I wanted to explore. I am a big fan of classic Science Fiction, things like Heinlein’s Starship Troopers and Asimov’s Foundation trilogy. I liked the idea of trying to make a kind of occult cosmic Black Metal that embodied these ideas. Thus NNM came into fruition. The sound of this album came naturally from the themes and the fact that I was heavily inspired by English Progressive Rock. I find Progressive Rock to be massively influential on me in general. Perhaps even more so than Black Metal. Specifically the Norwegian and English scenes of the 70s but also some more modern bands. Bands like RUFUS, HOEST, CAMEL, EMERSON LAKE AND PALMER, KING CRIMSON, ASIA MINOR, THIRD AND THE MORTAL, POPOL ACE, RENAISSANCE, RAGNAROK (from Sweden)… the list could go on for a long time.
We absolutely cannot help but inquire about the availability of lyrics for this album. The CD insert gives a brief description of the overall theme or plot of Nova Nativitas Mundi, but when listening to it, it is clear that there is a substantial narrative taking place and we would love to know the details of the storyline.
OWGA: All I can say on this is watch this space. Something very cool may be on the horizon involving a fully illustrated lyric book for this album…
Without a similar frame of reference between albums, perhaps the SKARE album has the benefit of standing on its own accord, and a fantastic album it is (particularly ‘Beyond The Church Spires’, which is truly a masterpiece of a track). At the same time it is the most difficult to tie directly to you, with, for instance, very little information online and one source which states that the project originates in Australia. What is SKARE?
OWGA: All I really want to say on this matter is that Skare is a project associated with The Hermetic Order of Ytene. Anyone with basic knowledge of Geography can tell by looking at the pictures associated with the album and the project that it isn’t from Australia, though.
What is the origin and function of the Hermetic Order of Ytene? Our hunch is that it is more than simply a label to tie your projects together and that it might have greater meaning for you on a historical, cultural, or philosophical level.
OWGA: Originally, The Hermetic Order of Ytene was not just me. It was a small group of like minded individuals that grew up in the New Forest and surrounding area, or “Ytene” as we knew it. It was meant to have a strong tie to location and place. It became apparent pretty quickly however, that this was to be a solo endeavour. It was always basically me from the start, but it quickly became just me making the music. The word “Hermetic” in the title was used as a general term to represent some kind of “hidden” or “sealed” aspect of this work. It was meant to be obscure, weird, occult.
I know that it seems a little bit strange to still be associating myself with an area of south-western England now that I have moved to France and also spend a lot of time in Scandinavia, but it’s in my blood, you know? It’s where I grew up and it still sits right at the heart of everything I make. I don’t think I could ever make an album without the wyrdness of Britain beaming through, no matter where I reside on the European continent. If I am to be really facetious here, it is sort of in the nature of the Saxon and Viking soul to conquer and explore new places. Since these are my predominant genetic makeup, it only makes sense.
At the very least it sounds like most of your projects feature the musical pentad of vocals, guitars, bass, drums, and synth. Are you regularly using any other instruments in your work? Do you create all of this on your own? How did you get your start becoming a musician? Do you have a formal background in music and/or composition?
OWGA: Yes, all of the instruments are me, I never collaborate with anyone for these projects. I do regularly use my Classical Guitar and I have also used a Viola and an Irish Bouzouki that I frequently use for AULD RIDGE songs. The whole of ‘Ancient Pride’ is Bouzouki. Also that riff that starts at 4:18 in ‘The Sound of the Fyrth’ has a Bouzouki in it. You can hear Viola in ‘Troneck’ at about 4:30. These are subtle additions, but they are there.
I don’t have any formal education in Music, really. I studied Music at school when I was very young but I basically learnt nothing. My family encouraged music playing, but that was about it. My dad was always very into Rock and Metal so maybe that had an influence on me playing guitar. Having said that, I almost never played rock or metal guitar. Not when I was younger, or now. If I am to play guitar “for fun” now, it will be my classical guitar and I am most likely to play some renaissance lute pieces that have been transcribed for modern classical guitar or something like that, maybe some Bach or Tarrega. The only time I really play electric guitar is in the act of composition itself, I obviously listen to plenty of Black Metal, but I never “play along” so to speak. When I write Black Metal, it is just from picking up the electric and composing immediately.
One cannot help but notice, especially when considering your multiple projects, the sheer number of sublime riffs that you unleash, it seems, almost effortlessly. They have a very distinct organic and free-flowing sound and progression to them, almost as if you are creating on the spot during the recording process. How do you go about writing and recording your music? Is everything written beforehand or is there some element of spontaneity in the process?
OWGA: I am glad that you notice the element of Spontaneity. This is important to me, I almost never go into a recording with a full song written. I usually begin with a rough idea of a riff or melody and then let it develop organically over time as I am laying down tracks. This is why a lot of the time my songs can end up being fairly long, the ideas just didn’t want to stop coming I guess. I usually have a theme in mind before I write, though. For example with the opening moments of ‘The Sound of the Fyrth’ I knew I wanted it to sound almost like a montage scene in a film. I pictured the priest traveling through a shire-like land over rolling hills on a freezing autumn night as the stars beamed down on him. Gently stepping over dry stone walls and into leafy woodland. These snapshots of images help to form a general musical palette that the rest of the song can work with when creating a feeling and, hopefully, an image in the listeners mind of what I am trying to convey.
Listening to your music, particularly the newest AULD RIDGE and ALBIONIC HERMETICISM records, it is very apparent that you are a highly skilled musician and songwriter. We’ve actually debated about whether or not you’re playing the drums as well, considering the overall *feel* on display that typically only a live drummer can produce. Do you play live drums for your projects? What gear do you use for recording? Do you utilize the same drums, guitars, and other instruments and equipment for all of your projects?
OWGA: The drums are indeed played by me, but they are not “live” drums, so to speak. They are drum samples that I recorded myself when I had access to an acoustic kit many years ago, and I use an electronic kit to trigger them. The kit I use picks up on the attack/velocity of the hits so that it can sound quite organic. I tend to quantise them too. With my lifestyle, it makes no sense to have an acoustic kit, perhaps in future I may invest in one but to be honest this has worked so well so far that I am not inclined to change just now.
I use really old gear, it’s stupid really but it’s just what I am used to. I have two electric guitars and a Fender jazz bass. I have a ’70s Fender Jaguar and a ’70s Strat with a humbucker in the bridge. I enjoy the brightness of these guitars and I have always enjoyed the sounds you can get when using a guitar like this for metal. I have a small Marshall tube amp and a few pedals, Tubescreamer Big Muff, etc., the usual stuff. I use a ribbon mic and I record into a reel to reel before entering the digital workspace. I like the “tape” feel this gives to the sound without sacrificing the ease of digital production. It does mean I get through loads of tape though, and that stuff is getting insanely expensive. Using old gear for aggressive music like this just brings out this really awesome sound. Like what I said earlier about Psalms to the Father. ’70s Psychedelic rock black metal, haha.
Regarding sporadic idiosyncratic moments wherein one of the Ytene projects reminds us of other bands, diverse elements of FALKENBACH, FINNTROLL, and WINDIR could be cited, as well as early GORGOROTH, 1349, LIMBONIC ART, and even CRADLE OF FILTH… but we almost feel foolish making these comparisons because they seem so inadequate. What or who do you consider your most important musical influences to be?
OWGA: Good bands you mentioned. Aside from FINNTROLL and CRADLE OF FILTH, they could all be considered influences. I constantly go back to WINDIR specifically. I have mentioned a lot of non black metal bands already, so here I will list some Black Metal influences, trying to avoid the usual suspects which are of course huge influences too:
BRANIKALD and FOREST
NORMAN SHORES
CELESTIAL BLOODSHED
OBTAINED ENSLAVEMENT
SUHNOPFER
The first TAAKE album (only this one)
ARCKANUM
TROLLDOM (my favourite of his projects, I Nattens Sken is a fucking masterpiece)
MJÖLNIR (Hinweg über die Tore der Zeit specifically)
NOKTURNAL MORTUM
I could keep going for a long time. Black Metal is timeless. I do find myself preferring older bands though. As awfully cliche as this is, it’s true: most modern Black Metal is kind of terrible.
A common theme we have noticed in the booklet photos between the various AULD RIDGE, ALBIONIC HERMETICISM, and SKARE albums is one being out in nature; be it in front of ancient castle or fortress walls, a pack strapped to your back and staring out into a grand valley, or on skis in a snowy forest. It is also noted that you recorded vocals in various natural sites all around England for ALBIONIC HERMETICISM’s ‘Psalms To The Father’. As one who gets out into the mountains and valleys of Alaska, we would like to know what nature means to you, and how it plays a part in your overall creative process.
OWGA: Again it is a huge cliche, but of course nature plays a huge role in my inspiration. Especially since I have moved to live within it. Being a farmer and living in nature/being reliant on it makes you appreciate it even more.
It is not only the beauty and divinity one can find within nature, but the darkness and the harshness of it. Certain esoteric groups in Britain have spoken at length about the importance of testing yourself in the presence of the natural world. This is something I have pursued at length in my life. Whether that be spending 10 days camping with minimal equipment in Northern Norway in January, or hiking 40km a day with a 30kg bag. One could also call this an “Ascetic” practice at a push. It is, in a sense, showing total devotion to mother nature by allowing her to test you to your absolute limit. This is almost a pagan version of “standing naked before god”; you only really reveal to the world what you are truly made of when you are pushed to breaking point. It is like Bjartur, our hero fighting his way through a frozen stream in the vain hope of saving one Ewe from the brink of death in a blizzard. Mother nature would look on him with respect. The man that fights nature and believes nature below him, the farmer that tries to defy the force of nature rather than embrace it. This man will be scorned by her.
I guess I have taken this idea to its logical conclusion by moving to the middle of nowhere and being completely at the whim of what the natural world decides to throw at me. Sometimes I cannot save that Sheep, sometimes it will die in my arms whilst I try my utmost to keep the poor thing alive. Sometimes the potato crop will fail, but this is the will of nature. So be it. We will live to see another day. A baby goat may be taken away by a wolf, but we must share it with the wolf. So be it. We cannot live as humans fighting these things constantly. That is how we end up in a mess like we are in currently.
Do you pay much attention to the overall ebb and flow of Black Metal in general? Do you have any thoughts about the paradox between Black Metal being fertile ground for musical creativity and expansion, ever attracting more disparate persons and influences, while at the same time possessing a traditional ethos of exclusivity, hostility, and antagonism?
OWGA: To be completely candid with you, no I do not. I am passionate about Black Metal, but I don’t care enough. I do believe that Black Metal should stay underground though, but this much really is obvious to anyone that truly understands and appreciates the artform.
This might be so broad of a question that it is not expressed very clearly, but nonetheless: How do you view yourself, your projects, and your music in relation to the larger context of the world and history? What are your thoughts about the modern era in which you exist and create? What is the essential nature of The Hermetic Order of Ytene against the backdrop of the present epoch of humanity?
OWGA: That certainly is a huge question to answer. I think it is obvious to anyone that is more traditionally minded that the world is coming to an end. We are seeing the end of an age and it will happen in our lifetimes. This is no bad thing, but one should be prepared for it. I think my projects fit in the time that they exist in. They are a rejection of modernity, materialism, overconsumption and every vile thing this disgusting modern world offers us as normal. As humanity we have overwhelmingly forgotten one thing: the most important thing in life is Family and Community. We need to strive to be more like those people in Northern Lapland that I was so inspired by in ‘An omen of Death’. We need to raise children into a world that cares about them and cares about the kind of place they will grow up in.
The problem with this is fundamentally that the human animal has wrongly considered itself above nature for too long. We must adapt our modern lives. There is no need to throw every technological development out the window, some of them are useful and productive, but there are certain comforts that one must learn to live without. People like Paul Kingsnorth and Allan Savory have spoken at length about this. There is a way forward, but it would mean a whole lot of people accepting a life that they just won’t ever live. For this reason the only real outcome for them is oblivion. And for me, I welcome that.
I could go on about this topic but I fear this interview is already rather long, so I will leave it there!
Do you believe in gods?
OWGA: Of course I do.
What are the plans for your creative endeavors? AULD RIDGE and ALBIONIC HERMETICISM have both released albums in 2023. Will we see any more material from SKARE or anything else from the Ytene camp in the near future? Do you plan on ever expressing your music via live transmission?
OWGA: I will be working on music as it comes to me and releasing it when it is finished, it is as simple as that. Needless to say, you will definitely see new music from me in the not too distant future. First, I hope to release the long awaited AH records that have been waiting in limbo for years now! That is Ytenic Blód, Brittonic Ways and Ancient Hermetic Purity.
Are there any final thoughts or messages that you would like to express to your rapidly growing fanbase?
OWGA: I truly appreciate the interest in these projects. I am humbled and thankful that so many good and honest folk have found enjoyment in my creations. I hope people continue to enjoy the music and find some form of escapism in it, as that is its intention. Set your mind free.
Thank you sincerely for your time and effort with this. May thy will be done.
OWGA: Thank you very much for your questions and your interest in my silly music. It will not be forgotten.
the process of reducing something’s strength or effectiveness through sustained attack or pressure.
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The above dictionary definition is certainly an apt descriptor for Pestilential Warfare of the Black Flame, the highly anticipated first full-length strike of barbarous bestial black death horde METHCHRIST. Forged in 2016 and – after a barrage of two demos and a split with Self Harm – finally unleashing their debut album in 2023, these uncompromising New Zealanders trade in an absurdly relentless rampage of ravenous, skin-flaying ferocity and lethal intent that is indeed entirely weakening… and the ‘Attrition Rituals’ of Pestilential Warfare of the Black Flame are the clear pinnacle of their attack thus far.
Obliterating riffs and sickening dissonance conceived at the outer limits of extremity have been weaponized for maximum impact in every single one of these seven tracks, but far from wearing the listener down, the thirty-two minute onslaught (mere minutes longer than the perfect Reign In Blood album length) almost seems designed to prepare you for something. To scour away all that is you, wear your down to the core and then charge you back UP – to build you into an ultimate, unstoppable force of hatred and destruction. Sound like hyperbole? Just listen to it. Oh, and the drum sound is exquisite too.
We were fortunate enough to discuss the finer nuances of this withering assault with Messrs B. Cochrane (bass, vocals), D. Bloxham (drums), O. Trainor (guitars, vocals) and fresh blood S. Fortune (guitars), and it is certainly a tale of tribulation and triumph above all, of reconfigurement and rebirth.
So, read on, and be sure to listen to the embedded full-stream whilst you do. For in Pestilential Warfare of the Black Flame, Methchrist have crafted an auditory incineration of the human race, to shape a new form from the ashes… in death we shall reach salvation.
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Hails, Methchrist! Pleasure to be speaking with you lads. You’re about to release your long awaited debut full-length, entitled Pestilential Warfare of the Black Flame… and in my opinion, it fucking kills. What does this album represent for you? Do you consider it a huge step up from your previous works?
OT: I think it would be safe to say that for all of us this album represents a triumph of our will, the pure ferocity of our dedication. The album is the direct result of a perpetual barrage of challenges that I am not sure many other bands would have survived. It is safe to say in the end we were victorious, and all roadblocks were overcome and conquered. Those challenges forced us to grow and mature in a way that I don’t think any of us anticipated. The quality of this album is incomparable to our previous work. But if this album is leagues ahead of our demos and eps, it will be seen as only the beginning in comparison to our future work. This album represents a milestone, and a gateway has been opened onto far more atrocious, violent, and barbaric planes.
BC: I consider PWotBF to be a snapshot of both the band’s past and future. You could say it’s the final culmination of what we did as a trio, as far as songwriting goes, but it’s also an indication of what will come next – as all the material was originally written as a trio, but it has all the sonic textures of what we are now, a quartet.
SF: I had been a huge fan of Methchrist for years before being asked to join the cult. You’ll likely see me up front of many sets – watching any Methchrist live video between 2016-2020 will prove this. Honestly it was quite the surprise to receive the message about joining Methchrist, I was initially sceptical of what benefits I would bring to the group – but after an earnest and vehement discussion it made absolute sense that I join them in honing their craft. For the record, I did not write any of the music on PWotBF (as it was written before I joined the band) – the initial purpose of my addition was to thicken the textures that Methchrist exudes and I believe that PWotBF embodies a significant maturation toward this collective goal.
Thematically speaking, I’m intrigued – based on the track titles alone, you seem to be exploring a deeper darkness with Pestilential Warfare of the Black Flame than you did within the more “blunt force” approach of say, Nomadic War Machine. The titles might even read as a concept album. What is the album about, and how do these themes fit within the greater Methchrist philosophy?
OT: The album is a collection of war chants, psalms sung on the battlefield by the bestial horde. The lyrics detail a war against humanity, of the ubermench as becoming-beast, the acceleration and amplification of the inhuman forces. Where traditional black metal may speak of Satan against Christ and God, we speak of the Beast against the Human. To a large extent traditional Abrahamic religion is vastly irrelevant. Humanism has become the primary religion of our times. This anthropocentric theology which has replaced God with Man, elevating humanity to a point of divinity, is just as much a disease as traditional religions.
Philosophically, Methchrist is devoted to Transcendental Thanatology, transcendental in the Kantian sense. We have taken the most inhuman currents from the work of Georges Bataille, Delezue & Guattari, and Nick Land and allowed them to fester with the audio violence of Black and Death metal to create this Nomadic War Machine we call Methchrist. Simply put, Methchrist is the audio manifestation of philosophical Death-Worship. Death is the origin and the end, all life is a deviation from death, and all deviations must return to death. Death as Base Materialism, General Economy, and the Plane of Immanence.
Musically, you’ve stated that the album is paying homage to ’80s and ’90s black, death and grindcore bands – and I can certainly hear the presence of many classics. Are there any bands in particular that you feel strongly influenced or inspired you during the writing of the record?
OT: There is nothing surprising about our influences. You can hear our influences from the first blast beat and tremolo. We have first and foremost been interested in a sound that is primitive, barbaric, and oppressive. Blasphemy, Beherit, Conqueror, Sarcofago, and Sadistik Exekution were the ones that originally set us off down the trajectory we took. From there I spent a lot of time relistening to the early “proto”, first wave records. Kreator, Possessed, Bathory, and Goatlord were all massively influential for this album. From the realm of grind, Repulsion’s demos and Carcass’ first two albums have had the biggest impact. Immolation has long been the standout Death metal influence. Above all, I would say the biggest influence has been Archgoat. All their material is outstanding, but when you put their first two demos and EP in context of ‘91 and ’93, they stand out leagues ahead. Jesus Spawn and Angelcunt epitomise the culmination of our ’80s and ’90s black, death, and grind influence.
Whilst the end result is great overall, I hear rumour that the birthing process of this record wasn’t entirely smooth. What’s the story there? What was the creation of Pestilential Warfare like for you?
BC: We recorded the album twice. The first time around, we recorded drums at Dive Bar (prev. The Captain Cook, Dunedin), in the venue upstairs. Pretty much a day after we wrapped, we went into the first NZ lockdown – we like to think our material caused the plague. Later, we noticed that the quality of the drum tracks was unacceptable. The issues could not be rectified, so Stephen ended up mixing and mastering the 2 tracks that sounded the best and we released the MMXX demo. In 2021 we contacted Ryan Finnie about re-recording drums and he was keen, so we re-recorded drums at our rehearsal room. Immediately we knew that he had captured the essence of Dan’s drum-assault. As a result of the drum recording being finished a second time, we were plunged into another lockdown. I personally enjoyed the re-recording process, as I was running my bass pickups through separate amplifiers, for a fuller sound. Once everything was re-recorded, we sent our tracks away to be mixed and mastered. However – a few days later, we saw in the news that the person we engaged doing our mixing and mastering had been arrested (and was later convicted) for owning and sharing child abuse images, so we had to find someone else to do it. Daryl Tapsell immediately understood what we were intending musically and did exactly what was required.
SF: Once we had ascertained there were unfixable issues with the first recording I spearheaded the process for the re-recording of the album. Choosing to undertake the drum-take stitching and guitar/bass production myself was a grand endeavour – countless hours were spent with each drum take, ensuring it sounded as natural as possible while constantly doing guitar scratch takes to ascertain the playability of each track and subsequently the whole album as an experience. We were able to conceive befitting guitar and bass tones with the experience, tools and good humour of my good friend Jake Burns. He and I are absolute nerds when it comes to instrument tone and sonic-balance in both recording and in live context, and are fervently thrilled with the result we managed to manifest given the apparent obstacles manifest before us. I would like to shout-out Tony from Pepers’ Pedals for his constant support of our audio chaos – this record would not sound how it does without his necromancy.
The album art is excellent. Who was the artist, and what does it depict in relation to the album?
DB: I created the artwork using an ink pen, card and the long monotonous hours that the first covid-19 lock down brought. The artwork is a visual interpretation of a particular apocalyptic dream that a fellow band member had, showing the aftermath of a life scourging war. The bleak atmosphere and empty streets were generous with inspiration at the time the work was created.
OT: As mentioned, this image was shown to me in a dream. You can think of it as being the result of our bestial warfare, the consequence of this album. The Human is crucified, and he remains dead on the cross. He is not “risen”, and he is certainly not divine. It is a reminder that death reigns supreme. It is a decorative display and celebration of humanity’s desecration.
I notice that this record is dedicated to one Peter Michael Trainor. If we may touch on this, who was he and why is the album in dedication to him?
OT: Peter Trainor is my father. He died April 18th 2022. He was fundamental to Methchrist and it is with 100% certainty that I can say Methchrist would be a very different beast if it wasn’t for his support and influence on the band. He was a diehard Methchrist cultist, one of our biggest fans, who has probably seen Methchrist play live more than any other person. The time and dedication he put into this band without any desire for anything in return, just out of sheer passion, was essential to this band and we owe him immensely. Dedicating the album to him and paying homage to his existence doesn’t come close to the respect and attention he deserves but it was the least we could do.
Total honour and respect to him, and my sincerest condolences for your loss.
You recently played the album in its entirety live. How was the reception to it? What was the show like for you?
BC: Overwhelmingly positive. For me it was a massive relief to finally share what we had been working on for the past three years and looking out over the crowd of the die-hards who had been with us since our formation is something I will never forget.
SF: I have played long sets for other bands’ album release shows… But this particular experience was sublime in the context of truly feeling the Dunedin Metal Scene’s respect to the craft that Methchrist has manifested over the years we have been active.
The album has been released via Landmine Records. How have you found working with them thus far?
SF: I was in discussions with the gentlemen at Landmine Records for another release and subsequently asked them if they were interested in this particular Methchrist LP we were working on. They mentioned to me that they were intending to get in contact with Methchrist to see if we wanted to put out a vinyl for our next release… Serendipitous! With what we happened to be working on it seemed like a match made in hell. They have been very supportive and communicative through this whole experience!
And finally – what do you hope the listener takes from the experience of Pestilential Warfare of the Black Flame? What havocs will thou unleash upon us all?
OT: Above all, this is a beginning. This album has cleared the way for us to now create something completely afresh.
Sincerest thanks once again for your time, lads. Any final words or wisdom for us all?
SF: Listen to the album loud enough to cause physical and/or mental disturbance and let us know how you feel.
BC: Agreed, listen to the album as loud as possible. Also, let nothing stand in your way. Surround yourself with the right people of the right mindset and anything is possible.
Pestilential Warfare of the Black Flame is available now via Landmine Records.
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Purchase Pestilential Warfare of the Black Flame on CD, LP and digital from the Methchrist Bandcamp HERE or on LP and digital from the Landmine Records Bandcamp HERE.
If you thought Dutch destroyers SAMMATH would have a hard time topping their fucking annihilating sixth album Across The Rhine Is Only Death, you wouldn’t have been alone in that presumption. In our review we scored it a rare 5/5, and we weren’t the only ones either. Surely, after creating “the ultimate war album” as we called it, the only way to go from there is down…
…well, proving that theory wrong with a big fuck-off middle finger to the face, arrives the seventh Sammath opus of devastation: Grebbeberg. Taking the obliterating punishment of their recent work and infusing it with the melodic dynamics of their early days, Sammath don’t just drop us in the middle of a brutal bloodbath – there’s a different vibe on these songs. Whereas Across the Rhine was total open battlefield, daytime warfare in the mud and guts, running screaming at the enemy across the field or being rained on with artillery fire, on Grebbeberg you’ll also feel the fear. The suspense. The pure terror of being entrenched in freezing forests at nighttime, never sure where the enemy is in the mists or where the bullet that rips through your skull and brain tissue might come from. Your life could end at any second… and you can’t even see a single fucking thing.
Subtle changes with a huge impact; it’s incredible how different they’ve made this album from the last while still doing what they do best. Each record transports you to a different scene, but is still blatantly and unmistakably SAMMATH… and both are utter fucking triumphs. We’ll have more in-depth coverage coming soon when further audio is available (for the moment you can sample a teaser of ‘Reichswald’ below), but to whet your appetite we reached out to the inimitable Jan Kruitwagen for a chat – because not only is it a killer album, there’s a personal story behind it that needs to be told.
Read on.
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Hails Jan! Cheers once again for speaking to us today. Your seventh album Grebbeberg is about to be unleashed, and it’s an absolute fucking belter. How’s the feedback been so far from those who have heard it, and more importantly, what’s YOUR opinion of it?
JAN: Hails. Thanks man.
I sent it out to about 20 journalists a week before the rest got it. The reactions are pretty much overwhelming to be honest. We somehow managed to combine 30 years of Sammath and take this to a totally new level in all ways. Songwriting, bass and guitar playing and an all out slaughter of brilliant drums.
Grebbeberg is the pinnacle of our 30 years. I spend a lot of time writing riffs and even more on tremolo driven tracks. I really wanted to write an album with pure violence perfectly blended with more melody. Can’t even explain how proud I am of this one.
From the title it sounds like it’s about the Battle of the Grebbeberg. What exactly was this battle, and what was its significance to WWII?
JAN: This was a small dot in World War Two, but for the Dutch an important battle. In the end it was a crazy but proud attempt to try to slow down or stop the German war machine from crossing the defence line running through the country. Protecting the west where the government resides and most of the population live. The Dutch army wasn’t weak as people think; the leadership and tactics were simply poor.
After three days it was over. And they did more than could be asked of them. Four hundred and seventeen soldiers lay dead, amongst them my great-uncle.
I was going to ask about that. As is evidenced by the tombstone on the back cover artwork that carries the name Kruitwagen, there’s a more personal story behind the themes chosen for this record. Could you tell us a little about this?
JAN: It’s my great-uncle’s gravestone. Where I got my second name from. He died there alongside four hundred and sixteen other soldiers. No chance in hell really, but he stood his ground. He was shot, probably by a sniper and died at the age of twenty five. His last minutes were written down by eye witness accounts. The title track lyrics are the word for word copied diary of his last moments. Putting the gravestone on the back of the vinyl was really important for me. Lots of my family members, who have never really understood anything of what I am doing with my music before, are really proud of this. They still don’t get the music, which is good.Extreme music like this should only always be for the few rather than for the masses.
Crazy thing is, we discovered later that Wim’s great uncle also died in the war as a soldier. His gravestone is also in the booklet.
Fuck, that’s immense. So would you consider this a concept album? Do the tracks follow any sort of narrative order?
JAN: Not really. Only two tracks speak of Wim Kruitwagen. The title track ‘Grebbeberg’ describes his last breath and ‘Tot de laatste granaat’ (“until the last grenade”) is also a tale of holding out against all odds at that dreadful place. The other tracks are about other battles near my area. ‘Reichswald’, the first single, describes the real life horror story of entering Germany and fighting them on their own soil for the first time in Feb 1945. Relentless bloody war that was, a total slaughter house.
This first attack was in a huge dense dark forest called the Reichswald, It must have been terrifying to say the least. Heading into a well defended dark forest with murderous artillery raining constantly. Other tracks are also based on different battles or moments a soldier experiences in the horror of war in the Rhineland.
While listening to the album, it almost sounds to me like you’ve taken influence from yourselves – like you’ve taken a step back towards your early albums in the ’90s. Was this something you were aiming for? What were your intentions during the writing process this time around, as opposed to how you attacked your previous record Across The Rhine Is Only Death?
JAN: I was somewhat stuck after Rhine was released. That album pounded from start to finish. I knew I wanted to return to a more tremolo based guitar driven way of songwriting; we needed more depth in our songwriting to make another step forwards. I never have intentions usually, I simply write. I also spend a lot of time working on the guitar sound. I didn’t want reamping. What you hear on the album is two mics in front of the cabinet. Careful placing and testing over a month before I found the sound I wanted. This time however, I had a picture of what I wanted. Wim’s final arrangements of the music was spot on. Rhine was a full on onslaught, this one combines Rhine with a better thought out version of our older albums. And best of all, a step into a more varied way of writing.
There’s a drum solo in the track ‘Murderous Artillery’ which is, in fact, accompanied by the soothing sounds of murderous artillery. Knowing your attention to detail and accuracy when it comes to this sort of thing, I have two questions: what inspired the inclusion of the drum solo (there should be more of them in black metal!), and what sort of artillery are we hearing in the samples on this album?
JAN: I thought of the idea for a drum solo and Wim jumped on this idea immediately. When listening to the album one must not forget that every drum track is recorded in one take. All that you hear is a naturally recorded drum kit with 12 mics, no cutting and pasting. Wim stands on this. During the recordings of ‘Murderous Artillery’ I thought he was going to pass out at some stage. I think he nailed this one on take 7 or so. The samples you hear are Nebelwerfer, german machine guns and a Stuka dive bomber. The machine guns in the 2nd part of the solo go together with the bass drums. How Wim did that is beyond me. This track will surprise many.
One thing I’ve always loved about Sammath is the honesty and authenticity in your attack. It sounds like you’ve really gone out and walked the places where these battles happened, drank it all in and felt immersed in it all yourself. Which I believe is something you actually do, more or less. Can you tell us a bit about this? When did you start doing it, and what sort of things have you discovered? Any great stories to tell?
JAN: Visiting those places inspires me greatly. As all the battles the lyrics deal with are within a 40 minutes drive from me, I frequently visit those places. Last year whilst digging in Germany (metal detecting the trenches with a mate) we found the remains of a German soldier. He was identified later by the German authorities. That was a day never to forget. We have been doing this for ten years. The Germans have no regard for the places of battle from World War Two. They bulldoze them into golf courses or even worse, if that’s at all possible. In the Sammath rehearsal place it looks more like a dark museum these days. Helmets, bullet belts, weapons. Gas masks and much more.
Speaking of which, the CD box set of Across The Rhine Is Only Death is probably my favourite that I own, not least of all because it includes a spent German 7.92mm calibre casing. Is there anything like that in the works for Grebbeberg?
JAN: Thanks! We dug those 100 casings up ourselves. That box is perfect, we were glad Hammerheart took the risk to make 100 expensive limited editions. They were all sold out before the release.
No special edition this time. We really couldn’t come up with anything as fucking good as that previous box. So we decided not to do one at all. The artwork on this album is brilliant, a black and white shadow art (taken from a larger piece of art) shows Dutch soldiers on the Grebbeberg. With black and white and shadows only. A Dutch bayonet design featuring the S of the Sammath logo made by Luka Djordjevic looks brilliant as well, and makes this album’s art one of our best.
It does look fucking ace; I’ll be grabbing that shirt. Now, I find myself looking forward to each Sammath album because I know that war themed records that will truly rip off my head and shit down my neck are few and far between lately – at the time of writing only the new Minenwerfer springs to mind this year, and I’ve just chucked on Niden Div.187‘s Impergium as I type for some past reference. It seems this purely hateful, savage approach might not be taken as often these days. Do you agree? And if so, why do you think that is? What is your opinion of the current state of the black metal scene, versus what it was in the ’90s?
JAN: Thanks. Humbling words really. I haven’t heard many albums as savage as our previous three albums at all in the last few years. The ’90s metal scene and the start of black metal was a totally different scene and produced more in this style.
These days lots of the people online are exactly that… online and nothing else. If you see their Facebook pages you wouldn’t even know they listen to black metal. Neat clothes, normal people promoting hipster crap with no riffs. They try to water down black metal so it fits their neat little world. They don’t see shows and if they do they stand arms folded in the back drinking milk.
Music wise, lots of the new stuff is good. Now that the album is done I have a lot of catching up to what came out the last two years.
Yeah, people definitely aren’t living it as much anymore. Got any recommendations of newer bands for us that you’ve been particularly enjoying?
JAN: Not many totally new bands I’ve picked up on the last year due to writing music myself. Check out Dutch sickos Wrok. The new Salacious Gods album should also be amazing from what I hear.
Dutch dude Floris from Schavot has some amazing 90s worship. Australian Vahrzaw is a killer. Lots of good stuff is coming out. And lots of shit too, but that’s the way it’s always been.
And finally, now that you’ve created your magnum opus – what the fuck are you gonna do now? What’s on the horizon for the mighty Sammath?
JAN: We are rehearsing for this winter’s live campaign. Kicking off in Hoogeveen in the Netherlands. We played two new tracks at our shows winter 22/23, and these new tracks require a lot of practice. Last winter we only did shows in the Netherlands and Germany due to our bass player becoming a father for the first time. Rightfully so, he wanted to stay nearby.
Music wise the album will be out 16th of June. I’ve spent a good part of two years working on this daily. I’m pretty much empty music wise. Learning to perform these tracks exactly like on the album is a huge task.
I bet. Sincerest thanks for the chat once again mate, you’re a legend. Any last words or wisdom for us all?
JAN: Thanks for the great interview.
Last words of wisdom. Support your local record dealer! The 7th of April the first audio will be online!
Australian black/death metal bastards VAHRZAW have been around and seen some shit. Formed way back in 1992, they’ve attacked many challenges in the decades since and been shafted over countless times – but that’s never bothered them. They always push forward with their mission, solely for themselves, fuck everything and everyone else. When the premiere of their fifth full-length In The Shallows Of A Starlit Lake was organized yet failed to materialize not once but TWICE, through two separate publications, they said fuck it and took matters into their own hands once again, launching it on their own YouTube channel – and it’s taken off, racking up 5.6k well-deserved views in a couple of weeks. DIY until you fucking die, the spirit of the underground lives.
However, because we think the album is superb and the best thing they’ve done, we reckon it still deserves a proper (albeit belated) premiere piece. So here, presented in full, is their return to the days of old, cold, pure BLACK METAL (which our GOS called “an album which will be difficult to beat as an example of authentic, unvarnished and unequivocal symphonic black metal; a homage to the time-honoured sound of Norwegian and Swedish spirits of old” in his review) alongside an interview with guitarist and main composer Scott Williams exploring it’s intricacies. Listen and read on below… and buy yourself a copy right now from Bitter Loss Records, for fuck’s sake. Support the underground. Hails.
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Greetings, Vahrzaw! Your latest album In The Shallows Of A Starlit Lake has recently been released, and there’s a noticeable change in your attack – you’ve gone completely back to your roots in second wave black metal, hearkening back to your demo days. What instigated this return to the core?
S: A few reasons. One being we were sick of studio costs and the travel and rehearsal time and the back n’ forth with editing and mixing. The second was the great plague of 2020. So during the wait for The Trembling Voices… to be released (it would take nigh on two years) we began writing something new, and as it turns out, in one of the longest lockdowns on the planet. So we purchased some basic gear and I set about recording it. Put the time to good use. It was the easiest and smoothest writing and recording we’ve ever done. The third reason being we had mined the black/death thing on the previous three albums and it unconsciously pushed out songs leaning towards the roots of the band. The home recording and isolation also pushed it in that direction too. A product of the time.
There’s some fucking killer influences to be heard in each track; if one were to write them all down you’d end up with a who’s who of ’90s black metal royalty. You must’ve been having a ball writing it. Are there any “Easter Eggs” in terms of influences during the writing process that nobody’s picked up on yet?
S: I think most of the obvious ones have been covered. The clear ones are of course old Emperor, Satyricon, Marduk, Mayhem, Impaled Nazarene, Ulver. The not so clear ones are the demos of Setherial, Thy Serpent, Sorhin, Primordial, Carpathian Forest & Gorgoroth. We flogged those demos to death back in the early ’90s and some of that found its way in there. Not intentionally either, I can just hear them in the tracks.
The lyrics are typically eclectic, with a wide variety of topics approached… George certainly keeps us on our toes once again. For those who haven’t read them, a little info: what does the title refer to, and what is happening in the title track ‘In The Shallows Of A Starlit Lake’?
S: To put it quite simply the title track is about a vile infanticide, there’s two tracks regarding that topic. It portrays a mother who drowns her child in the shallows of a lake.
So the cover portrays something peaceful but under the surface lies something sinister and unspeakable.
I love this record… but then I also love your early demo stuff. What do you think when you go back and listen to those early recordings these days?
S: It’s a weird listen. We were very young. The band formed about 2 months after I picked up a guitar. We were all new to being musicians. No idea how to write or arrange. No local mentors besides a Metallica cover band. But the idea was to be original from day 1. Write our own songs. As shit as they were in Necromancy, it was something. When Ben joined in 1994 we had a few ‘better’ tracks and that’s when the Midgard demo was done. It’s rough as fuck and out of tune, but recorded live into one mic. Considering we were 15, 17 & 18 it has certainly time-stamped our capabilities.
There are some gems though. I still think ‘Namiros’ is our best track of the ’90s and the Black Resplendent Waters demo is pretty good for a live studio recording in 1996.
Capable… amateurish… but I enjoy the old stuff for what it is. The passion was there.
And on the flipside: what do you think your younger selves would have thought if you’d been able to travel back in time to show them this album?
S: I think we’d have loved it profoundly. If only eh…
It’s not just a stylistic change, but his album was recorded quite differently to the preceding few – you did it all yourself, and if I remember correctly, it barely cost you a cent. Why did you decide to also completely switch up your production process for In The Shallows Of A Starlit Lake?
S: As stated above, cost and pandemic mainly. I wanted to have control over the sound of it too. Have that bass fuzzed out, the guitars like a noisy blur, the kick drum as a thud and not a clicky up-front distraction, old dodgy sounding keyboard parts. In true black metal form, the opposite of current death metal. No plug-ins. No amp sims. No over editing. No quantisation. We even left mistakes in to give it a live raw feel. To strip it back to basics. Simpler arrangements. Simpler production. I think we achieved the goal.
We used very basic equipment from top to bottom. Less mics on the drums. A smaller amplifier. A podcast microphone.
The entire production cost us a slab of Jack Daniels and a carton of cigarettes to do the drums, & an $80 interface for the rest.
We did no rehearsal & the only time any of us were in the same room was to record bass and vocals.
You’ve also gone with an Australian label this time, Bitter Loss Records. What’s the story there, just keeping it all local?
S: The intention was to just release it independently and move on pretty quick to the next one. Maybe 50 CDs and tapes.
I sold some stock to Bitter Loss and the conversation came up about the new album and Rob offered to release it. How could I say no?? Australian. Independent. Great roster. Name getting out there. So that was perfect timing. It’ll have a better existence for sure.
The album seems to be having a great reception since release, with some killer reviews… I’ve even seen people calling it album of the year. Are you pleased with how it’s being received so far?
S: Yeah, I think it’s going really well. Kind of unexpected really as it’s self-produced and forged together so easily. AOTY is thrown around as much as ‘masterpiece’ these days (people comment that on modern Darkthrone albums for some insane reason) so I don’t pay much attention to that, but it’s a solid sentiment. I’d certainly be humbled if people enjoyed it on that level.
It would’ve had vastly more exposure if Black Metal Promotion ran it, but he decided not to for some reason. But alas, the YouTube stream, Spotify and sales did just fine on its own steam.
People have checked it out regardless, and we thank those that have and will continue to in future.
I know we’ve spoken of this before, but whilst the Vahrzaw sound is constantly evolving, you do seem to group your releases into larger stylistic blocks – as in you do a few of one type before you move on to the next metamorphosis. For those slackers who haven’t read previous interviews: is that a conscious thing? Does this mean we’ll get more Vahrzaw in this glorious vein of old, cold black metal, or are you going to take a wild turn towards dungeon synth or something for the next release?
S: Yes, we do. Usually in blocks of three. They’ll have similar elements. In this current era it looks like it will be all home produced and treated the same way in terms of writing and arranging. We already have an EP written (it was completed in 2022) that’s just waiting to be recorded, but I thought I’d give it some space for new elements to be integrated and for the current one to run its course. We plan for three in this style. The third is in planning stage as we speak.
After that… well, we’ll see how old we are.
I hate dungeon synth… little blocks of it in songs, fine, but whole albums, please no.
And finally, I’m sure I already know the answer to this, but… gonna do some live shows for this one?
S: Absolutely not. I hate playing live, as does George. Brandon plays live quite a lot with Eskhaton though.
Sincerest thanks for your time, Scott. Any final words or wisdom for us all?
S: Thanks again for the support! Much appreciated as always.
In the sodden mire that is music these days any point to grab attention for 5 minutes is worth the time.
Black Metal Daily 