VIBRATIONS OF DOOM MAGAZINE
ISSUE #44





This is obviously getting old. I had a ton of difficulty lining up interviews for this issue, so they're not as numerous as they were in the past. On the positive side, though, we've lined up support from some new labels, like Wraith Productions, more stuff from Solitude Productions out of Russia, and an ungodly doom label known as I Hate Records. Plus some individual band stuff, FINALLY got realigned with Candlelight here in the States, and after an almost 10 year wait, a new album from Israeli black metal band Bishop Of Hexen! They're interviewed as well...

Oh yeah, so we're trying to disguise the fact that this issue is a few months late.... Well, since I ain't getting paid for this gig, I guess no one's complaining. Besides, I'm sure everyone's busy with the radio show and the classic albums section! Let's get an address out of the way, and then onto the magazine...

Vibrations of Doom Magazine
c/o Steven Cannon
P.O. Box 1258
Suwanee, GA 3024-0963 USA

RECORD REVIEWS

ABLAZE IN HATRED "Deceptive Awareness" (Firebox) SCORE: 95/100

DAMNIT if this label can DO NO WRONG!! Such an amazing ear for high quality bands these days, and their newest signing is no exception. Granted, I will be perfectly honest, this is NOT the most original band in the doom/death genre, but they can craft some amazing melodies and some dark haunting passages as well! In a nutshell, they rely on the synth melodies and high ended guitar work that Draconian utilizes so well; in fact many songs you can DEFINITELY hear the Draconian influences. Shape Of Despair rears it's stylistic influences as well, especially on some of the vocal patterns (like the way Mika draws out the letter s at the end of some verses, and some of his death growls sound familiar). Damn, where to start. Well, opening track 'Lost' sounded a LOT like an intro, especially opening up with the synths and nice dark acoustic. That coupled with the fact that for it's 5 minutes and 11 seconds, you only get vocals with lyrics about 4 and a half minutes in. Draconian's signature doomy and high ended guitar work further infects Ablaze In Hatred's sound, of course you'll also hear a good Shape Of Despair sound in the guitars on this track as well as the fantastic CD ender 'Closure Of Life' (one of the best CD ending songs I've heard in awhile now). By track four, 'Constant Stillness,' Draconian's still firmly entrenched in my mind, and amazingly there's a lead solo present, though it is also of the ultra slow variety. The only difference between Draconian and Ablaze In Hatred is that Ablaze has NO female vocals, and ALL the music is presented in more of a doom metal format, but damn if it isn't still fascinating and emotional! Now and then, the band breaks out of it's signature pattern, and you WILL hear some very dark and heavy guitar work that sounds like no one else: they even throw vocals into these patterns! 'Ongoing Fall' and 'Closure Of Life' are two of the best examples proving it's not all a Draconian/Shape Of Despair worship fest. One other thing I felt HAD to be mentioned, though... UNLIKE many doom/death bands, the longest song here is 9:25. There's two songs clocking in at 5 minutes a piece and one at 6 minutes, the others being 7 and 8 minutes, so those complaining about ultra long songs have a bit more relief here than from many other bands (not that that's EVER been an issue for me). Like I said, I'm here to pass on the selling points of this band, as the emotional, doomy, and oftentimes sorrowful and melancholy guitar work definitely drives the point home! I have ONE major complaint though, and that is with three passages in three songs: 'When The Blackened Candles Shine,' 'Constant Stillness,' and 'Closure Of Life:' Halfway through EACH song, for roughly half a minute, they completely STOP the music and put on some dark, atmospheric soundscape that really does NOTHING to enhance the actual song or structure whatsoever. It's almost like someone switched the CD player OFF or tuned it to a radio dial that has no active station. It's annoying as hell, especially when they feel the need to put scratchy sounds halfway through one of these "interludes." A minor point, though, because this band just fucking RULES, and you can tell right away. FAST becoming one of my favorite labels of alltime, Firebox is.
Contact: Firebox Records

AHAB "The Call Of The Wretched Sea" (Napalm) SCORE: 97/100

And just when I though the doom/death genre couldn't get any sicker, along comes a band from a most unlikely place. Anyone who has ever heard Midnattsol would say that this particular genre is so far removed from what they're capable of. And yet, this is one of the BEST funereal doom/death bands of 2006, right up there with Tyranny's "Tides Of Awakening." The similarities are the same, in fact: the monstrous and sick inhuman vocals sound like they came straight from the masterminds of the Firebox sensations themselves! Bell note synths start this up, and I must say that these keyboard passages are indeed some of the most twisted, dark and sick I have ever heard, not just rattling off the odd notes here and there but actually adding to the already crushing and oppressive atmosphere that the overtly distorted guitars create. There are also some well utilized clean sung male voxals, almost like monks chanting, which serves to diversify the vocal patterns already set forth. The percussion work is quite diverse as well, for what usually is put forth in this genre, in fact, it's not uncommon for a double bass passage (like on the CD opener 'Below The Sun,' or track three 'Old Thunder.') I had a problem with the 1 minute 52 second track 'Of The Monstrous Pictures Of Whales,' since it only had some dark rumbling soundscapes. I can feel where it contributes to the overall feel of the album, but also felt it didn't contribute enough to the oppressive atmosphere. Clocking in at an hour and 7 minutes long, there probably wasn't much room for another tune (even though this surpasses most doom/death releases by having 7 tracks). The most amazing track here is 'The Hunt,' as the instrumentation manages to be epic and harsh at the same time, in fact some of the darkest and most eerie synth passages are here, and at times has a somewhat epic feel to it, as if it's the final climax to the horrific struggle taking place (which makes CD ender 'Ahab's Oath' sound like it's out of place, though the song itself is well done, especially with the most eerie and unholy of synths.) The entire body of work is somewhat a tribute to the classic and timeless Moby Dick, but guaranteed this entire CD is more oppressive, frightening, and definitely more sinister than ANY words Mr. Melville could have EVER come up with. And I must comment on the way Ahab broke the track 'The Sermon' up midway, with classy movie samples, and wind and ocean sounds that totally FIT this track. If you're going to interrupt the continuity created by your music, make it RELEVANT. A few guitar parts I had a problem with, but they are minor compared to the entire body of work. Folks, this is as sick and eerie as it gets, and there isn't much in the doom/death genre that is more twisted, violent and diabolically evil as this entire CD. The question remains: After such a brilliant and what had to be exhaustive work of art, is there enough left for a second CD?
Contact: Napalm Records

AREKNAMES "Love Hate Round Trip" (Black Widow) SCORE: 78/100

Let me start off this review by saying that this was one of THE most anticipated releases of 2006 for me. Their debut album for Black Widow was an absolute masterpiece mixing psychedelia, epic heavy 80's type metal, and so much more. And when they thanked me for inspiration in the SECOND LINE of the liner notes of this album, I was completely blown away. That being said, upon first listen I was VERY frustrated at some of the strange nuances of this band that kept popping into many of the tracks on this record. Regardless, I made sure that I digested this entire body of work as a whole, to make a decent judgement. These songs are all over the place in terms of structures, tempos, influences and vocal variations, but the main body of many songs is quite well done. 'The Skeletal Landscape Of The World' starts the CD off in fine fashion, with heavy but slow guitar work that meshes trippy, psychedelic organ/synth landscapes for a nice mixture. Solo piano notes help things along, however my attention screeches to a halt at the oddly sung vocals with the heavier passages. It's a complete track for the most part, but you have that jarring sequence. Track 2 follows in much the same fashion, though the unnerving parts are a bit longer in scope. Once again, it's the teeth grinding heavy vocals on top of heavier instrumentation, threatening to destroy a trippy and beautiful mood. By third track 'Outcast,' I was determined that while not bad, I wasn't overtly impressed with this song. The more prog-rock structure rears it's ugly head, and it doesn't help I'm not totally into the vocals or music. 'La Chambre' proves that once again, many of these tracks have amazing melodic passages, though once again a brief jarring crash of odd vocals and, yep, you guessed it, heavier instrumentation. A darker sound is picked up on 'Snails,' and a nice progression through darker material, but ugh, those trumpet sounds rounding out the track! The brass sounds ARE utilized in a nice fashion on 'Stray Thoughts From A Crossroad,' though they also tend to pop a few odd notes at times. There are some amazing gems, though, even with the annoyances, and my alltime favorite track is 'Someone Lies Here,' complete with beautiful epic instrumentation, the heavier guitars mesh SO well with the trippy Hammond organ like structures. CD ender 'The Web Of Years' has amazing acoustical guitar work as well, and some of the most amazingly mellow vocal work on the disc; it's obvious that when things are going well Michele's vocals (that's a guy, not a girl, folks) are the epitome of a musical instrument all their own, carrying the emotional passages even deeper than the actual music itself! 'Yet I Must Be Something' is even a fantastic, complete piece of work, and is probably the first track totally devoid of annoyances. Still, despite it all, this is a keeper, though you have to keep in mind that every now and then you'll be thrown off track for a bit. It's not the masterpiece that the self titled debut album was, but damnit if I still end up sitting through MANY of the songs here, and that's saying something. The heavier stuff just didn't work as well this time around. And I won't even mention the short 1:23 "song" (and I use that word VERY loosely) 'A Grotesque Gift,' which is nothing more than the wierdest sound samples I've ever heard.
Contact: Black Widow Records.

BISHOP OF HEXEN "The Nightmarish Composition" (CCP) SCORE: 95/100

A wait of almost 10 long years between their first and second record, and it was damn well worth it, despite a new vocalist and a few new members! This Israeli based black metal outfit obviously has a better production and the synth work this time around is seemingly on a more epic, grandiose and massively dark and evil scale; utilizing some of the darkest symphonics I've heard in quite some time! This album barely clocks in at 50 minutes and I GUARANTEE you it will take AT LEAST 5 or 6 complete spins before you can pick up on EVERYTHING going on in EVERY song! Look at the album cover... That nightmarish Lich looks like several I've fought in that PC game Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, and those black metal vocals sound like they come from the same undead, death-dealing throats! Sick vocal work abounds, and some of the most diabolic too, but it doesn't stop there! I counted at least two or three different types of spoken word vocals, some death metal vocals, and amazingly soaring clean sung male vocals! They are relegated to a few lines within the first half of the CD (the clean sung vocals), but by the last four tracks, they comprise a major element of the songs, going so far as to offer a somewhat traditional "chorus." My only complaint with the CD is the effect some of the synths have, like on the track 'The Somber Grounds Of Truth,' they have this wierd, dark carnival effect that sounds a bit cheesy. The spoken word intro as well has a wierd spoken voice pattern, and they interrupt the flow of the tune 'Eyes Gaze To A Future Foreseen' to include some odd sound effects. The majority of the tracks are at least 6 minutes in length, but there's SO much variety going on that you'll probably blink and miss two or three progression changes! The majority of the tempo is fast paced, however, but some songs start off with a more midtempo pace (even slower at times), like on 'A Serpentine Crave' or 'Somber Grounds.' 'Velvet Demise' was a bit surprising as it starts off with a fast paced set of blast beats and death metal vocals and VERY up front synths, and reminded me of the local hometown heroes Ground:Xero in their approach. The guitar work oftentimes sounds like it's buried in the mountain of synths, but here and there you can pick up on some majestic and emotional riffing ('Somber Grounds' again, as well as "Serpentine Crave') as well as synths that aren't always portraying a dripping, suffocating mass of evil (like on 'Spiritual Soul Sunset'). I can't stress enough just how much of a dark and twisted black metal piece this is, highly intelligent not only with lyrics and the lyrical themes, but the whole symphonic pace and damn near everything else. This will comsume MASSIVE amounts of your time, and leave you thinking QUITE differently about how synths in black metal can be properly utilized for the most intense and horrific of effects.
Contact: CCP Records.

CHTHONIC "Seediq Bale" (Down Port) SCORE: 97/100

After seeing this band live at the New Jersey Metalfest waaay back in 2001, this Taiwan outfit surprised and shocked the hell out of us. Now, with a proper U.S. release this latest album is full of sick, vicious and brutal black metal with lots of nice symphonic touches, and chanted female vocals that are one of a kind in this genre. Progeny Of Rmdax Tasing' opens the CD up and is a good indication of where the album will go for the next 8 tracks. The speed of the instrumentation is almost blinding in spots, and it is the definite framework for nearly all the tracks. Thrashy guitar work is definitely a highlight, and it's obvious to me that the band took a few pages out of 80's thrash bands (check out the opening guitar work on 'Indigenous Laceration,' and several furious headbanging riffs on CD ender 'Quasi Putrefaction.') as well! This CD really threw me for a loop, man, I gotta tell you. Just when you think the entire track is going to be a speed fest, they manage to slow things down and assault you with some amazing synth work, like on CD ender 'Quasi Putrefaction' which has some very majestic passages and the haunting, beautiful and etherial female chanted style vocals. Consequently, the female vocals throughout the disc are rarely ever sung, they're more chanted type, which is unusual and adds to the atmosphere but still is different. 'The Gods Weep' had a bit of death metal brutality, even if I detected a few riffs that got a bit repetitive, but it's nice to know that black metal styled vocals have their death metal counterpart in some songs as well (like on 'Bloody Gaya Fulfilled' as well.) And to hear piano notations going on with the headbanging pace of 'Banished Into Death,' well, you know the band was going for something unique and special. At times, sad to say, it's going to remind some of Cradle Of Filth, even if the vocals are ten times better than that band, but the synth interaction is so rich, it gives life to these songs. Chthonic has created one hell of an album, one that gives off such majesty and power, sadness and beauty all in the same breath, but one that will split your head open with it's savage viciousness. THIS is music as diverse as any you will hear in the black metal genre, and one of the top black metal albums released in 2006. Oh, and did I mention the North American release contains THREE music videos and other cool info? (As if you needed any other reason to get this besides the MUSIC!)

Contact: Down Port Music

CRESCENT SHIELD "The Last Of My Kind" (Cruz Del Sur) SCORE: 88/100

Anyone remember Onward? That power metal styled band (a term that should be considered VERY loosely, I might add) that released two albums on Century Media before disappearing forever? Well, not forever of course (more on the story can be seen in the interview this issue), as vocalist Michael Grant decided to form an entirely new band. Power Metal fare, which, as I said, has more in common with, say, Manowar or Manilla Road than Dragonforce, Rhapsody, or Symphorce. These songs, while some having slightly speedy tendencies, focus MORE on the heavier riffs, bordering on thrash. Their most glaring weakness is the longer songs that proceed at a slower pace, like 'The Great Devoid,' or even, to a lesser extent, the title track (though, in defense of the title track, there's some nice acoustical passages and tempo and structure changes, though we're speaking of overall track structure). I thought also that 'Rise Of The Red Crescent Moon' could have been a bit stronger, though for the few faults that crop up (like a few songs not being as dynamic as they could have been) there are definite gems here! You want a headbanging, pure METAL anthem? Try the first two CD opening tracks 'Above Mere Mortals' and the ultimate 'Slaves To The Metal Horde,' both complete with HEAVY riffing and great opening lead guitar work, not to mention the soaring vocals of Michael, who ultimately portrays a singer that hardly ever dips into the high note range but still can inflect melody, passion AND the brief but effective "rougher" edge when it's necessary (for more info, once again, I extol the virtues of "the interview.") CD ender 'The Passing' is one of the most epic and dynamic tracks on the CD, making the weaker ones here DEFINITELY stand out. 'Await The Champion' was the oddball track, extremely catchy though it was, as it sounded a bit more... Damn me, dare I say "mainstream," or "acceptable?" Maybe more like an arena rock band, with riffs straight out of 80's metal. The tune rocks tho! 'North For The Winter' and CD ender 'The Passing' also showcase some folkish touches, something I wish the band would expand upon more, as it allows them to dip ever so slightly into Falconer territory, and gives them a rather folkish touch to add to their multifaceted approach to true metal. A damn good release that, for a first effort, is quite solid, and proves that POWER metal can be done with strength, conviction, and honour, even without the presence of keyboards or 100 miles per hour riffing. (Which I'm sure this band is quite capable of, considering the passion and craftiness of Daniel's guitar solos).
Contact: Cruz Del Sur Music.

DOOM:VS "Aeternum Vale" (Firedoom) SCORE: 100/100

WOW. The side project of Draconian's famed drummer Johan Ericson finally sees a release through Firebox's "new" sublabel for the doom/death stuff, and it's obvious that Johan has a hand in crafting much of the music to be found on Draconian's three releases. This is one monster of an album that, while very identifiable with Draconian's sound, is a lot heavier, harsher, and more in the doom vein than Draconian. 'The Light That Would Fade' starts things off nicely, in fact from the first notes it's obvious that this is much more of a doom metal entity than Draconian, even with the synth work, the piano notations, the spoken word vocals (which are seemingly meant to sound a bit more etherial), and even the high ended lead guitar work. Truly monstrous death vocals, however, are MUCH more in line with bands like Tyranny, Shape Of Despair or Swallow The Sun. By second track 'Empire Of The Fallen,' Johan has taken to adding female vocals, and this is one of the shorter tunes on the album, clocking in at around 5:41. The instrumentation on this piece is quite moving, and the Draconian "sound" is DEFINITELY evident. 'The Faded Earth" continues on, as yet another doomy masterpiece, with almost militant like percussion, great atmosphere, and emotional death styled vocals. You even have some clean vocal work in here as well. Sorrowful guitar work adds a nice touch. With 'Oblivion Upon Us,' the piano notations are almost a false intro to the monstrous doomy instrumentation and vocal work, almost reminiscent of Tyranny, but by the time 'The Crawling Insects' come in, you're hooked. 'Insects...' is the most monstrously crushing piece here, it's dripping with darkness and disease, and is the most tortured piece here. It takes the blackest and darkest nightmarish reaches of Draconian and works them full force, though even at it's blackest there's still melodic instrumentation to be heard. The spoken vocal work on this disc is seemingly narrative in style, rather than just another "different voice." The CD ends, all too soon in my opinion, with the 12 minute epic 'Aeternus,' and utilizing sung vocals that are a bit Mourning Beloveth like gives this a nice CD ending feel. An amazing emotional atmosphere lends this track to the ultimate in diversity, despite the haunting and dark start. This CD is quite simply amazing, and begs the question of whether this should be a fulltime project rather than a side project from a band that is not only one of my favorites, but one that has become increasingly more popular. Tours and MORE albums hopefully will become the M.O. for one of the most surprising and best releases of '06, and when I first got this CD, knowing who was involved, I expected a great quality release. I was more than stunned by just how godlike this masterpiece was.
Contact: Firebox Records.

DRACONIAN "Burning Halo" (Napalm) SCORE: 96/100

As many of you know, Draconian is one of my favorite bands of alltime. This is a good release that shows Draconian's past and present, as you get three brand new songs ('She Dies,' 'Through Infectious Waters,' and 'The Dying'), three reworked demo songs from their very early days ('Serenade Of Sorrow,' 'The Morningstar,' and 'The Gothic Embrace,' ALL taken from their 1999 self-produced demo "The Closed Eyes Of Paradise"), and two cover songs. What brings the score of this record down a few notches is the Pentagram cover 'Forever My Queen.' They went about this in a more straightforward manner, and utilizing screaming vocals and death metal vocals gives this a cringeworthy effect. Music wise, this is spot on, but I thought they should have done more to make this sound like one of their own songs, like they did with 'On Sunday They Will Kill The World,' which is a song from Dutch band Eskeption (they recorded during the late 60's/early 70's) and I HAVE heard the original tune. It's amazing just how well this is covered, and you would SWEAR this is an original Draconian tune. Slow and doomy, with female vocals utilized in place of the original male vocals gives this an amazing touch. Actually, the original version is pretty dark in and of itself, save for the middle solo instrumentation passage which is kinda wierd and somewhat proggy, thanksfully Draconian improves on this a bit while still keeping close to the original. Anyway, this ain't no Ekseption review! 'Through Infectious Waters' is one of the sickest and darkest tracks Draconian has ever recorded, and if this is an indication of things to come, I think the next full length will be a much heavier and darker beast. Of course, the signature Draconian sound comes through in full force from CD opener 'She Dies.' Utilizing the death vocals alongside the female ones is a nice touch, and it might be me, but it seems like the female vocals get a bit more space on this record than they have in past efforts. Especially 'Serenade Of Sorrow.' Sorrowful keyboard passages mark 'The Morningstar,' and the use of multivocal operatic passages near the end mark a rather dynamic pace near the end of this track, though the awkward transition from slower pace to faster threatened to ruin the mood, their transitionary phase was not well thought out. Female vocals grab a lot of time as well on 'The Gothic Embrace,' possibly showcasing a more gothic side of the band from earlier days (I have no idea what the original demos sound like, so no basis for comparison I must admit). 'The Dying' is about 10 minutes long, but the emotions running through this track justify it's length. The somewhat melancholic, high ended guitar work opening this track set the pace for much of the song, though don't forget the crushing death metal vocals (which tend to go for a blackened pitch midway). This track also showcases Draconian's tendency to resort to faster and heavier passages to prove they're not firmly entrenched in the doom metal trenches. A piano "solo" conveys the message that there's much in the way of Draconian's style and sound to keep us interested for the length of some of these tracks. Another winner, and though some may see this as a "cash grabber" until the next new complete batch of new songs, it's tastefully done, and you can't deny the strength of this material.
Contact: Napalm Records.

ENSLAVED "Ruun" (Candlelight) SCORE: 94/100

Enslaved just seems to get better and better. Though I wasn't crazy about "Monumension," which was one of their first releases to start experimenting with psychedelics and other influences, I must say that since then, they have been getting better all the time. "Below The Lights" was a good experimental piece, but this latest release is a bit more straightforward, though most of the faster paced instrumentation is absent from this release. It's still there, but mainly in parts on a few songs (like the last minute or so of 'Essence,' as if to throw you for a loop, and quite a few passages on 'Fusion Of Sense And Earth').'Entroper' starts the disc off nicely, and throws in some of the psychedelic touches that remind us Enslaved is still progressing. Clean sung vocals are presented on the disc as well, and sometimes they mix very well with the black metal vocals (though sometimes they don't, and even seem a bit out of place on the title track). Every now and then some of the lead guitar work got a bit odd for my tastes, but overall the instrumentation is very well written, despite the absence of black metal structured guitar work. The vocal work is quite sick, and gives many of the songs their driving force. CD ender 'Heir To The Cosmic Seed' seems almost like an instrumental, except for the few multivocal sung pieces (which seem more like chants than actual sung lines). You'll even hear some acoustic passages midway in 'Path To Vanir' and 'Ruun;' now THAT'S how you interrupt a song midway that's cranking up the heaviness! (That is, without useless filler space). The instrumentation on 'Essence' is quite dynamic, in fact it definitelty has a sort of Pink Floyd essence (pardon the pun) to it, very mellow, and the black metal vocals work well here. There's plenty of headbanging material, and it's more of a metal album, but there's lots of diverse stuff to enjoy, and Enslaved's newest outing is a damn good one, despite the few problems. I dare say it mixes older era influences quite well while still retaining much of what makes Enslaved still heavy. If vocals count for the majority of this being considered black metal, then the sick and vicious vocal work keeps this dynamically evolved release firmly in the forefront of black metal fan's minds.
Contact: Candlelight Records.

EYES OF LIGEIA "A Fever Which Would Cling To Thee Forever"
(Paragon) SCORE: 97/100

Bringing the gap between horror laced doom/death metal and the black metal genres is no easy feat, especially when you take into consideration the penchant doom/death bands have for the 8 minute plus song length. Eyes Of Ligeia has figured out how to write songs that retain your interest while building up unusual and emotional atmospheres while changing structures as often as the wind changes strength and intensity. CD opener 'The Stillness Fades' is a synth based intro, with spoken but sick blackened styled vocals, a good indicator for what lies ahead. 'The Shadow Out Of Time' starts off with HEAVY blackened guitar work that blazes down the darkened path, and of course the sickened but almost indecipherable blackened vocals which give this music a most punishing edge. What will really surprise you is the ability of E.O.L. to slow things down midway and inject some almost melodic yet atmospheric passages utilizing simply acoustic like guitars and simple drum patterns (simple so as not to disturb the landscape being set in motion). This is most notable on 'What The Moon Brings Part 2,' which utilizes a faster pace for this CD than we thought would be possible, almost an oldschool black metal feeling, but inlaid with a beautiful acoustic solo. The lead guitar work as well shows off many of its finer moments, oftentimes utilizing some higher ended riffs. The music, as we've seen, isn't always haunting and dark, in fact the title track (right around track 6 of 7 tracks) starts things off with some rather majestic type passages, but once the vocals kick in the atmosphere and setting changes almost instantly. CD ender 'As The Ravens Descend From The Tower' utilizes a very interesting vocal concept to make it sound like hundreds of evil birds are screeching in the distance and this tends to sound almost like an instrumental piece. The use of instrumentation to craft such landscapes is masterful to say the least, and it definitely paints pictures of moments of serenity and beauty within a horror filled framework. This showcases not only the maturity level and skill of the music writers, but also the dynamic backdrops seem to move and take on a life of their own, outside of the influence of the composers. Very impressive is this body of work, and one of the most interesting mixtures of different styles of metal you will ever hear.
Contact: Paragon Records.

FALCONER "Northwind" (Metal Blade) SCORE: 99/100

All hail the return of Matthias!! This CD definitely shows a reborn Falconer, BACK on top of their game and genre where they belong, and they have proven themselves to us with an amazing CD filled with 14 tracks, NO filler material whatsoever! The CD opens with the title track and is a great start, in fact from this point on I'll dare to say this is one of Matthias' STRONGEST vocal performances to date! Two of my favorite songs 'Blinded' and 'Delusion' show a bit higher of a range than we're used to, nay, thought possible even! There are a few small problems I have with the CD, though not NEARLY enough to warrant more than a point off. 'Tower Of The Queen' is a track that reminds you quite strongly of 'Quest For The Crown' from their self titled debut album, and the lyrics on the chorus to 'Fairyland Fanfare' I didn't care for, but as I said, VERY minor points for a CD I consider to be one of the best released in '06. 'Himmel Sa Trind' was a surprising track for me, as I had yet to hear a song done in their native language, and I gotta say after hearing this, bring on more Swedish songs!! 'Long Gone By' is almost ballad like, but with sad lyrics about the passing of old age, though it's done very majestically (they definitely aren't doing the "chick ballad" here). Nice use of acoustical passages and some synths, which are present in a few other songs but aren't dominant enough to keep you from remembering what drives the heart of this music: The guitars. And guitar work is very strong, with many songs varying tempo greatly, whether it be the fast riffing and pounding drum work on the main lines of 'Blinded' only to drop into slower prechoruses to the somber yet midtempo (almost death march like) tone of 'Himmel Sa Trind.' HOW they managed to keep consistency and majesty amongst 14 tracks only proves that Falconer is back, better than ever, and this medieval minstrel metal masterpiece NEEDS to see PROPER U.S. support, including a U.S. tour!!
Contact: Metal Blade Records.

GOD DETHRONED "The Toxic Touch" (Metal Blade) SCORE: 89/100

Arjen mentioned that the new record isn't all about blastbeats (see the interview this issue) and it's safe to say that there's still a good bit of speed present. That's obvious from many of the tracks. However, what's NOT so obvious is that many tunes here do a good job of varying things up without losing their intensity (for the most part). If you're not familiar with God Dethroned's work, let's just say it's vicious death metal with (I think) black metal inflections on the vocals, and a bit of melodic guitar work, even going so far as to use lead solo work that's a bit more emotional and well crafted than it is trying to crank out 100 notes a second. 'Faithless' starts the CD off more like an intro (at 36 seconds that is) before your first tune 'Hating Life' kicks in. And the guitar work is quite thrashy and sick; there's just something unusual in the guitar sound God Dethroned is using these days! As an interesting side note, keyboards are used (damn if I can remember whether or not they're used on past records, however the most notable ones were quite bizarre sounding on 'Macabre World') and they're used quite sparingly, as it wasn't until track 8 'Macabre World' that I even noticed them, and then only when I was doing the review! The only slow tune here is also the longest, in 'Typhoid Mary,' and after this track I was questioning (and still am) if this is indeed TOO slow for God Dethroned? The choruses are definitely odd, and some of the lyrics were a bit strange. There's a nice instrumental as well ('Away From Emptiness') as if they needed to vary the pace a bit (though they had 'Typhoid Mary' to do that). Not much to really complain about, though CD ender 'Fail To Exist' had a moment where the crushing, headbanging riffs were somewhat interrupted by the overt use of melodic lead solos. Those solos are all over the place, too, and quite well done for the most part. The CD does manage to keep your interest for the most part, and the first half of the CD definitely blazes away and crushes with intensity. I don't think I've heard a bad God Dethroned record, and since I have four of their titles, I'll say that this one deserves a place in your collection as well. Nice contrast of melody and brutality without constantly referring to "the Gothenberg sound."
Contact: Metal Blade Records.

INTAGLIO "Intaglio" (Solitude) SCORE: 84/100

Coming out of Russia, this CD never progresses past the ultra slow pace. There's only 4 tracks, but your total running time is 47 minutes, folks. Those without patience may find this a tad difficult to sit through, especially given the fact that Intaglio uses the most simplistic and mimimalist of structures to create atmosphere. Track 1, 'The Beginning,' is quite simply a 3 minute instrumental that doesn't quite indicate where this CD is headed. The following three tracks clock in at 12:51, over 13 minutes, with CD ender 'Wind Of Autumn' reaching the 17 minute mark (more on WHY that is in a moment). The cold death metal styled vocals are untypical for the genre, with lyrics seemingly consisting of Russian language; thank god for the English songtitles in the booklet, otherwise we'd have no way of knowing what the names of the songs are (a mistake Solitude Productions made with one of their other bands Ekklesiast, one of the reasons it's not reviewed here. Well, that and time constraints). At times, though, these vocals do sound a bit strained, and a tad annoying, especially when going for the long winded approach (most evident at the end of 'Dark Cherry Day.') Also too, since their instrumentation approach is quite minimalistic, you'll find yourself going "hey, didn't they play that set of riffs in a previous song?" It's unavoidable, but for the most part it's a musical illusion. And on 'Solitude,' some of the riffs could have been better written, and I only say that because they occur so frequently in the space of that one song. Still, though, the dark acoustics and interplay between the darker, more, "electric" guitars, if you will, are quite nice and do the job of building the solitude and darkness necessary to fully enjoy this body of work. It's not perfect, not even quite close to a masterpiece, but it definitely works on the principle that less is more, and is spaced out to assure you of that. CD ender 'Wind Of Autumn' seems to really be two songs, with a rather lengthy wind sound separating the two. The wind noises were dragged on a bit too long, but if you have patience you will hear the final few minutes or so containing some of the best instrumentation (IE, most mellow and best written) on the disc. It's all instrumental from that point, and it does need to be said that the vocals are not as much of a highlight through these 4 tracks as the instrumentation. A nice effort that you can just tune out the rest of the world to. The very second CD release this Russian label has ever done.
Contact: Solitude Productions

ISOLE "Throne Of Void" (I Hate) SCORE: 98/100

If you're ANY kind of fan of doom metal, you HAVE to have this! Enough said, really. This is traditional doom, though, so if you require death or blackened styled vocals, you may want to look elsewhere. But then again, the emotional heaviness is overwhelmingly crushing; I was hooked from the very first play! Opener 'Autumn Leaves' starts things off interestingly enough: vocals AND instrumentation go hand in hand right off the bat. The vocals are so emotional in whatever mood they're in: at first they may sound rather monotone but you soon see the wide range of vocal tones. Mostly of the doomy and low variety but they can get emotional and almost soar off the disc! They're that good! An almost hypnotic effect can be obtained especially in the choruses of a song like 'Insomnium,' especially the way he lengthens the chorus (which is simply the song's title elongated, so to speak). My alltime favorite track is next to last CD tune 'Bleak" (which personally I felt should have ended the album instead of 'Life?' (which, for some reason, isn't listed in the CD booklet nor are there lyrics for it). 'Demon Green' is by far the longest cut on the disc (a little over 10 minutes) but has some of the darkest and heaviest vibes on the record; not to say that other songs don't have an intense dark vibe about them. You feel it practically from track one! Where this band shines is in their ability to change the structure of their sound almost drastically but still retaining the original feeling the song started out with in the first place: it makes a track like 'Demon Green' (for example) varied and diverse, especially when they change to some almost thrashy guitar work (which speeds up the tempo of the song a bit). The darkest vocal performance comes via the title track, and these vocals almost sound chanted. Multi layering makes these vocals come alive, and everything seems so precariously balanced that if this band was to ever get another singer, I think the vibe and feeling of this band would be lost. Doomy as fuck, and another masterpiece from a genre that is slowly but surely gaining many fans and building up to a massive catalog of fantastic and emotionally moving bands.
Contact: I Hate Records.

LA IRA DE DIOS "Archaeopterix" (Nasoni) SCORE: 92/100

If you thought Natas was the only export from South America then you'd be dead wrong! However, unlike Natas, the stoner rock genre is just one small facet of this Peruvian quartet's sound, a band that not only encompasses the stylings of Hawkwind, melodic stoner rock not unlike Natas, but also the psychedelic 60's coupled with some wild and passionate Jimi Hendrix like lead riffing! Be forewarned, though: the atmospheres are quite beautiful and well done but these songs are LONG! CD ender 'Cordillera' alone is a whopping 24 minutes, but if you enjoy the atmosphere and the ambience the members create then you'll no doubt be able to carry on as long as the music plays. The CD starts off with the title track, one of the heaviest songs on the disc, and it's a crushing stoner rock piece. There's lots of instrumental jams, and though lyrics are (as far as I can tell) in Spanish, there isn't much vocal wise going on with each and every track. Wind sounds start just about every track, and 'El Llamado' continues things with some melodic but dark acoustic guitar work. The atmosphere is quite effective though the instrumentation is a bit minimal, especially the beginning where you have acoustics and drums. Varied structures abound on the disc, though as I said some may find CD ender 'Cordillera' a bit too unvaried, especially since the opening acoustic passage lasts almost 5 minutes, and is repeated 14 minutes onward, though spacey synths are added to diversify the atmosphere. Speaking of synths, they are utilized to GREAT effect and are one of the reasons Hawkwind like memories are invoked. 'Al Viento' is a nice track as well, utilizing somewhat whispered vocals (which makes sense, since the lyrics seem to refer to the wind), and the instrumentation sounds like it's almost in the distance, as if all the notes were being carried away on the wind! 'Nave Fenix' has some crazy psychedelic synth sounds at first, and you're thinking acid trip music! The lead guitar work on this album is quite simply amazing, and recollects one Jimi Hendrix, especially the rising high note passages that seem to get more and more intense as the tracks go on. I was a bit miffed at their insistence on adding chaotic passages near the ending of 'El Llamado,' though you can definitely hear the drummer's speed, making me think that if La Ira De Dios doesn't work out, he might be able to pick up work as a black metal drummer (okay, maybe not). At least 'Al Viento' manages to break up the length by varying the structure, and for the CD ender there's a slight pause after the 4.5 minute acoustic session. VERY nicely done, though as I said some may consider a 24 minute track to be a bit much. And the next longest tune is 17 minutes, but despite all this, if it's a trippy, melodic and beautiful jam session you're looking for, with heavy and intense moods mixing everything together, La Ira De Dios cannot be compared to any other acts out today. Nasoni once again proves that they definitely KNOW talented bands when they hear them, and surprised I am consistently at their ever diverse roster.
Contact: Nasoni Records.

LITTLE DEAD BERTHA "Way Of Blind" (Stygian Crypt) SCORE: 91/100

It amazes me these days just how many good quality bands are coming out of Russia. This band surprises me even more with just how many great ideas they pack into one song! I don't know what their earlier works were like, but to label them gothic/doom metal (as the Encyclopedia Metallium has done) is just plain wrong! You see, there's female operatic styled vocals, death AND black metal styled vocals, some violins, synths, slow and doomy riffs and fast, black paced type metal, also some blastbeats at times, and clean sung male vocals. And all this can be heard in just ONE song! I ran out of space on the paper jotting down all that can go in in one friggin' song! And there are MANY structural variations that happen in just one song, often so flawless and precise that it's obvious the band has 4 albums and many years under their belts. This is a VERY good thing, as you have a 9 minute song, two 7 minute tracks, and two 6 minute tracks, so you BETTER keep it interesting! The female vocals I thought could have been utilized better, the operatic style works well but it's more like chanted type (more specifically, it's "aaaah's" and "oooh's" type of stuff). 'Last Way To Nowhere' is probably one of very few tracks that retains much of the same pace throughout (but it can't get past the structure/ tempo change niche the rest of the CD falls into), and THIS track is the true essence of gothic/doom metal for the band. It will throw you off a bit because by the time this track rolls around (track 5), you're so used to the myriad of time and structure changes that this song seems a bit longer than it is. No big deal, especially when you hear the beautiful and sorrowful melodies which end the track. Don't be surprised to catch a nice acoustic melody or a piano layer breaking up the songs almost midway (like on 'Force And Brave' or 'Requiem.'). It is obvious that for all this variety, a few problems crop up. The lead guitar work is one of the highlights of the disc, but the leads on tracks 1 and 3 tend to repeat themselves a tad. Some of the solo guitar work on 'My Evil Wish' could have been fleshed out better, especially towards the end. CD ender 'Requiem' is TRULY the surprise highlight of the disc, since it opens up with what sounds like TRUE doom/death, all the way down to the slower pace and the vocals. But halfway through you see the link to the present (this particular track dates all the way back to 1994, which predates even their first demo!), especially with the amazing folkish melodies through heavy and acoustic guitar work! This band knows how to make great use of multilayers, and I mean they throw EVERYTHING from the vocals to the guitar, bass, synths and even violins (which popped up MANY times). I don't know the exact words to describe the style or sound of this band, but they are definitely good at writing catchy material, and keeping it all interesting.
Contact: Stygian Crypt Productions.

MELECHESH "Emissaries" (Osmose/The End) SCORE: 96/100

One thing I found so amazing about "Sphynx," their last release, was the abundance of amazingly dark and heavy, alnost thrashy guitar work. And in doing the interview with Ashmedi (which you can, naturally, read this issue) I was told that if I loved the guitar work on the last record, I would really dig it on this one, and man if he wasn't kidding! CD opener 'Rebirth Of The Nemesis' blasts right into your face from second one and is a furious and vicious assault, though it did take quite a few spins before I could get into the high ended leads. Tempos here are varied so quickly, which only comes from such extreme skill (and many years of honing their abilities, I might add). The blackened vocals are just as sick as ever, and with the CD opener we are introduced to a new element in Melechesh's sound: The multivocal sung choruses! This adds great effect to the somewhat occultish and otherworldly orientation of the Melechesh sound (not to mention the distinct Middle Eastern flavor that is almost a guaranteed framework from song to song). It's amazing how they work this cultural influence into such brutal, vicious and fast paced black metal! 'Deluge Of Delusional Dreams' starts off fast yet again, and once again it took some time to get used to the high end leads at such a fast pace. Thunderous percussion abounds too, and on 'Touching The Spheres Of Sephiroth,' it's amazing to me just how much control this guy has, especially when blasting away at top speed; only to have to slow things down later on. 'The Scribes Of Kur' was the only track I couldn't get into, and that's because it is strictly an instrumental featuring some rather odd sitar like sounds. I'm not too big a fan of the sitar unless it's done right, it tends to sound a bit too twangy for my tastes. So 'Scribes Of Kur' is DEFINITELY too long for me at over 6 and a half minutes! The 11th track (which I am not sure if it's a bonus track or not on the U.S. release) is a MUCH better instrumental, and it DOES have the Mideastern sound, but with heavy guitars making up the framework and some badly needed percussion. 'Leper Jerusalem' is a kick ass track, hell nearly ALL the tracks flat out rule, and of course the power of Ashmedi's vocals can be clearly heard on the slower pacing of 'Emissaries And The Mysterium Magnum,' which holds your interest despite it's 7 minute length. This is a masterpiece, folks, and while a few tracks (most notably 'Emissaries...' and 'Ladders To Sumeria') sound a tad familiar in spots (mainly on some of the riffing), it's another vicious and sick Middle Eastern influenced black metal affair. Maturity has not lessened the punishing effects of this newest release, and solidifies Melechesh in the originator's throne of true Mesopotamian black metal.
Contact: Osmose Productions
Released in the U.S. through The End Records.

NERONOIA "Un Mondo In Me" (Eibon) SCORE: 91/100

It's quite difficult putting a numerical rating on a piece of work like this. For those of you looking for a body of work that transcends and defies all the atypical genres, THIS IS FOR YOU. Very heavily synth oriented, almost ambient like in it's approach, though that would be your first mistake to label this on those merits alone. Vocals are sung in Italian, and there are quite a few unique vocal styles. Thus, the doom and industrial genres come into play. There is a harsh set of vocals (mostly due to the electronic effects, harking back to industrial), though they tend to be perceived as a rather distorted whisper (so that includes doom metal that utilizes death metal vocals). Guitars are found and ever present, though they tend to have unusual effects on them and are often high ended notations. When they are used in full force, they can showcase a very emotional and dynamic range (like on 'IX' and check out the lead solos work on 'VI.'). The percussion work is the most interesting, as there are quite a bit of effects processed through the drum work, but for the most part it's quite unusual how distant the percussion work sounds, as if you're hearing the drumming waaaay off in the distance. Unusual still is how the tracks are numbered with Roman Numerals, not names. So you can fully concentrate on the music, and what music it IS! One major complaint is with track 5, um, I mean 'V,' and simply put it repeats vocal patterns and phrasings that are found in 'VI,' though not as well structured. The industrial soundscapes weren't thought out very well here, and there seems to be too much loose structure here, with many pieces jumping from mood to mood. For all the relaxing atmosphere of this CD, there's JUST enough darkness and haunting moods, whether in the vocals or the instrumentation, to remind you that they're still there. Your darkest vocal work is on CD ender 'X,' while the best and most dynamic vocal work rounds out the best song on the CD with the track 'IX.' Though Neronoia jumps around all over the place, everything is (with the few exceptions I noted) well structured and I guarantee makes for a different, diverse and somewhat relaxing atmosphere.... Float away! (features members of Canaan, another Eibon act).
Contact: Eibon Records.

PATHS OF POSSESSION "Promises In Blood" (Metal Blade) SCORE: 81/100

Many longtime readers of this publication should know that I have not been too pleased with Cannibal Corpse since Chris Barnes left the band. Not to take anything away from George Fisher, because he is a killer vocalist, but the 'Corpse machine just bogs itself down in too much speed with recent releases, so what a surprise to me to see George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher taking on vocal responsibilities in a band that owes much more to Gothenberg based melodic lead riffing than the American based death metal sound we've known about for years. The CD is a good mixture of slower, creepier death metal (like what "The Bleeding," one of my favorite Cannibal Corpse records, was) that really hits home with some of the faster passages and the more melodic leads. Overall, this CD does a good job of keeping things interesting by varying not only the tempos but also the very sound structures each song may start off with. Lead solos abound too, and some of the best ones are at a dizzying pace ('Bring Me The Head Of Christ') though also the eerie, slower ones add a different pace ('Through The Fiery Halls.') One of my favorite tracks is 'Where The Empty Gods Lie,' most noted for such a crushing set of riffs and the sick vocal work of Fisher, and it may come as no surprise that this is one of many tracks that works well at a slower pace. The faster parts aren't bad either, especially the percussion work which is not only forceful and solid, but helps drive the overall hammering effect home. Not all the songs are blood boiling though; as I said there's so much going on within one song that sometimes the track seems to lose the focus as it's going through it's motions. For the most part, it's seemingly a mix of American based death metal and Swedish Gothenberg riffing. If anyone needs proof that George Fisher is one of the sickest death metal vocalists, one only need to listen to the sheer power of his screams, something that gets buried in many performances with Cannibal, due to the overwhelming need to rip off vocal lines at 100 miles an hour. Paths Of Possession is probably the best outlet to showcase the sickness and power of Fisher, and that makes for good listening. Some of the songs could have been tightened up, but overall it's hard to get completely bored since the backing band knows how to keep the pace interesting. See also: Torture Killer, the band fronted by former frontman Chris Barnes. Definitely proof positive that the "side projects" are FAR more interesting than the main band from whence they spawned.
Contact: Metal Blade Records.

SAMMATH "Dodengang" (Folter) SCORE: 86/100

What we have here is pretty basic black metal, at least from the indication of the first few tracks. Of course track 1 'To Hell' is an instrumental, though a pretty dark one at that, so we're left with 7 actual songs. The blackened vocals are quite sick, though this reviewer thinks that the vocals should have been brought into the forefront more. Production wise, this isn't the clearest of plastic meshing, but it does the job adequately enough so that it doesn't sound like it was recorded in a trash can. It's pretty much guitar, bass, vocals, drums and that's it, so you old school black metal fanatics have something to cheer about. However, once you start delving deep into the rest of the tracks, some surprisingly skilled guitar leads rear their ugly heads. This CD definitely captures a cold and dark atmosphere, made all the more ingenious by the extremely fast and high ended lead riffing. And from the second track ('Ravager') on, there is a great deal of variety in the tempos and even the structures on this album. Still though, for mostly fast paced black metal, I think most would agree that an 8 minute song length (as witnessed on the title track) is a bit much for fast paced black metal. Fortunately, some war sounds thrown in midway serve to break up the track, which at times seems like two seperate songs. A few of the tracks do have a tendency to drag a bit, like on 'Oblivion,' there's too much speed riffing and not nearly enough variety near the end of the song, but this song does boast some dark, almost acoustic like leads. And the almost doom metal pace ending out 'Merciless' (which also ends the CD) was quite a shock as well. I didn't care much for some of the death metal styled vocals which served as backup to the main screeching blackened vocals, though I had kinda hoped it would bring what's already there out into the forefront more. Solo bass guitar rumblings (with a dirty and sick processed feel, remember sick is GOOD!) prove that there's more going on to the percussion section than the overtly intense drumming! Speaking of the drumming, quite varied are the drum riffs from tune to tune, and it's rather obvious to me that this drummer is not only skilled, but knows how to write interesting and diverse percussion material. Sometimes this CD will lose you for a bit, but the guitar lead riffs are downright interesting, and the eerie and haunting feeling is offset by some damn creative musicianship. Your attention might wander at times, but for oldschool styled black metal, this is well played.
Contact: Folter Records.

SKYFORGER "Kauja Pie Saules" (Paragon) SCORE: 89/100

We've reviewed Skyforger's "Semigall's Warchant" before, and while that was mainly a reissue of their 1997 demo of the same name, THIS is Skyforger's first album, reissued this year by Paragon Records here in the States. A nice job was done on the packaging first of all, complete with English translations for EVERY song listed... Not that it matters, because if I were to learn the lyrics to the songs, I would ALWAYS sing them in their native tongue. Makes it more exotic. SO, basically, the language and band hail from Latvia, and lyrics deal with their ancient cultures and mythologies. It's fist in the face styled black metal, with many unique and exotic folkish touches, making even their earliest of works very unique in all of black metal's realms. The vocals are just as sick as the ones on "Semigall's Warchant," and are most unique: no one sounds like Peter in the blackened genre! 'Zviegtin Zviedza Kara Zirgi' starts the CD off in pure folkish fashion, complete with horse sounds, tribal drums, melodic and quite nice acoustic sounding passages (STILL not sure if those are guitar like instruments, as they also grace the CD ender 'Svetais Ugunskrusts') and of course the male multivocal sung passages, yes, in their native language. The percussion drives this CD well, quite thunderous are the battery of drums and they help the sonic attack along quite nicely. You'll find plenty of headbanging riffage here, though many of the songs are fast paced black metal. The guitar work is oftentimes untypical of the usual blackened genre, however, as you'll find Skyforger content to thrash away, and even compose a song at a slower pace for half of it's length (great example of this is the track 'Kauja Garozas Sila.'). Here and there on some tracks things tend to stray a bit, but it's obvious this was a band in it's infancy. Most noteworthy of things going a tad astray are on 'Viestarda Cina Pie Mezotnes,' where the guitar work sounds quite odd, with rather wierd structuring. The vocals mix with this for a short time on 'Kursi,' but thankfully the odd passages are brief, not totally ruining the respective songs. 'Kam Pusat Kara Taures' was another non metal track, more folkish than anything, utilizing flutes, horn sounds, various odd forest sounds, tribal drumming, and that famous multivocal folk sung accompaniment. The spoken vocals here sounded a bit rushed, and I thought this was an okay part, though I would rather have been back to the vicious blackened instrumentation! Still, for an early start in their career, these songs are damn enjoyable, and quite vicious as well, even with the sometimes majestic and folkish lean on their guitar riffing, it's safe to say that their sound is quite original and headbangers will find plenty to their liking here.
Contact: Paragon Records.

TEMPLE OF BLOOD "Prepare For The Judgement Of Mankind" SCORE: 46/100

Right off the bat, I have to say that this singer is totally MISMATCHED with this band. The musicians themselves all possess excellent musical SKILLS, however their SONGWRITING abilities leave much to be desired. The vocalist has a sort of warbly quality that really annoys, especially when the band is cranking up the speed metal like influences. This instrumentation is oftentimes TOO heavy for the likes of what is esentially a power metal singer. I do tend to hear LOTS of amazing lead guitar work, but for some reason once the vocals come in the guitarist tends to "dumb things down" a tad. Not to say the main instrumental structures found within the framework of the songs are bad, I think they could have been better written. And you all know, once a vocalist proves to me he doesn't sound good, it's hard to get into the rest of the band's repertoire. The fact that this band is preaching christian lyrics doesn't sit well with me either, though that is definitely NOT a factor in my decision. I won't even comment on the too bland and basic, done to death album cover consisting of a hill, dark sky and three crosses. Basic, bare bones bland looking crosses. You want a further analysis? 'Spiritual Warfare' is WAY too long, though for the first few minutes it's cool to hear JUST THE BAND thrashing away. The leads in this sound almost Nordic even! The drummer has no problems keeping pace, in fact he even blasts away at top speed (most evident on the track 'Conviction.' There isn't much in the way of catchy choruses either, so I doubt that even a competent vocalist can do much with the choruses on 'Seeking The Truth.' As bad as the vocals get to me, the higher range is even WORSE. Still, standing to look for the good in everything, 'Legion Of The Crypts' totally surprised me. No, it's not a great track or even a good one, but on a few choruses I heard high notes that sounded really good! A freak accident? Makes me think that maybe this guy is singing WRONG. I know the vocals are such a personal instrument, and I REALLY hate to rag on someone for it, but this band and this singer are TOTALLY mismatched. However, that being said, the band isn't exactly writing catchy and dynamic songs, though they do have the 80's thrash style down... Except they insist on being labelled speed metal, which I will give them that. Once again, it's hard for me to EVER want to listen to a band that has a bad singer, but the instrumentation and amazing lead solos PROVE that, christian or not, with some retooling and redefining, this band MIGHT be able to take it somewhere.
Contact: Temple Of Blood

INTERVIEWS:



BISHOP OF HEXEN. Interview with vocalist Lord Koder via email.

Bishop Of Hexen has returned after a nearly 10 year wait from their first amazing record "Archives Of An Enchanted Philosophy." Armed with a new vocalist and a few new members besides, their newest release "The Nightmarish Composition" shows them back, stronger than ever (not to mention with better production), and more sinister and darker than their previous effort. This is a rather lengthy interview, but one that was a pleasure to enjoy, as "The Nightmarish Compositions" is definitely one of the best black metal releases to come out in 2006.

Well, the most obvious of questions on the table is the extremely long wait between albums! I know Hammerheart went out of business, but apparently there were some other problems dragging the band down.

Except for being in the army for 3 years, and recouperating after 3 years in the army. (I) had good things to drink, bad things to drink, got girlfriends, lost girlfriends, got hired and fired. Partying, smoking, shopping, reading, travelling. We were busy doing this thing called "life." Hey, it's not like we were dead for seven years! But it took us awhile to get back to business

The vocals of course are different this time around, though you can hear similarities. What happened with the vocalist from "Archives Of An Enchanted Philosophy," and what qualifications was (the band) looking for when searching for a new singer?

The vocalist from "Archives..." has a demanding profession so he didn't have the time for commitment. He sure had a distinct voice, a very harsh one, which gave the "old" bishop an eerie sound. The qualifications for a new singer were... none, since I knew Bishop Of Hexen (members) as friends for years already. They invited me to sing, they thought they'd try and see what will happen. The rest is history so they say.

Besides the obvious production qualities, how do you see the fundamental differences between "Archives" and "Nightmarish Compositions?" What would you say was better about each one?

The difference between making an album when you are 18 and when you are reaching 30 is very very big. Your whole perception of your self and life has changed and so is your musical perspective. And naturally it can be felt in our music. "Archives..." was a mystery in how it was done, and in how it sounded at the end. Very grim yet majestical. You cannot make it sound like this today, even if you try. It's all analog. So the good and bad between the two are like every comparison between digital media and analog. Analog= you get warmth and true ambient. Digital=precision and sound ....but less soul. So musically which is better? I can`t answer that. There are riffs in "Archives..." that if we were in a more mainstream genre, you would probably read about us in the "Rolling Stones" magazine, and also in "The Nightmarish Compositions," so...

One thing I thought was cool with the new album was the upfront production of course, but also the fighting sounds on 'Spiritual Soul Sunset,' as they sounded similar to the battle soundscapes on 'The Surreal Touch Between Steel And Flesh.' Was that a way to tie in the two albums together?

They both cater (to) this "larger than life" atmosphere we tend to be very fond of in Bishop Of Hexen. They both boast epic tales.

Speaking of concepts, we know that "The Nightmarish Compositions" deals with the battle between good and evil, and also with dealing with inner turmoil, but what does "Archives Of An Enchanted Philosophy" deal with? It seems like in some fashion it's about the deeper meaning to existence, rather than just accepting things at their face value.

"Archives..." is an epic story that focuses on the micro side of life through the eyes of a character, whilst "Nightmarish..." has this outroperspective. Like seeing the plot through the eyes of "history" (so called) itself in a very MACRO way.

And while we're on that subject, I was rather astonished to find that you used the concept of the bible to explain your themes. I know personally that the bible has been mistranslated and misquoted over the years: let's not forget that dark period of man's history where the bible was considered too sacred a book for the common man to possess. In my eyes that led the book to be deliberately mistranslated and rewritten to serve those in higher positions of authority. So who really knows WHICH version of the book we can read today?

YOU, and by "you" I refer to the Anglo-Saxons,and Christian readers' people (of which I do NOT associate myself - Ed), read the version edited and written by Jerome, and others, during the medieval period. (Which is actually the "dark period I referred to above - again Ed.). While WE (and by "we" I refer to everyone who can read hebrew not necessarily jews) read the actual ancient scripts wrtten during the times of the bible. Aprox. between 3500bc and 500bc (let's not get into a history lecture, find out the precise details your self!) you can imagine that like you mentioned, the facts has changed a bit during 4000 years. Moreover, in the lost scrolls of the dead sea (google it, if you will) which were written in a later period, we can learn about parts which state very clearly about the battle between "those of the light, and the sons of darkness." Wait this is starting to sound like the Da Vinci Code bbbaahh!

You've mentioned Satanism in your thematics several times. How do you view Satanism and it's importance today? Do you see it as relevant, or has it outlived it's usefulness.

I see it as a good starting point to question the lies and deceit around you: What better way to expose the lies of christianity than to look to the enemy of the church? However, at some point I feel man has to move beyond that, as Satanism itself seems rather limiting and more destructive rather than creative.

And on a final note about that, since you stated that we all seem to be battling against ourselves, how do you see things finally settling? Do you believe in the concept of Armageddon, or are these "good and evil" conflicts to be resolved in the minds of the collective human race as a whole? Who knows, maybe we'll nuke the planet into oblivion; it certainly seems like we're headed that way with all the environmental waste and pollution, not to mention hundreds of babies being born ever day. Where are we to put all these people when the lands are all used up?

Nature has it's way of dealing with population explosion. And baby booms. The black plague in 14th century Europe for instance is a great example. The last tsunami in southeast Asia. So I am not worried about where we should put all the newborn. I don't believe in Armageddon, that the world will go up in flames like a science fiction movie. I think we live through daily armageddon now anyway. By the way, armageddon is also a very childish christian mistake. It's an error. It's the christian version of the hebrew word Megiddo, a place in today's state of Israel. A place where a great battle took place, but certainly not the end of the world. Generally, the church and royal courts in the middle ages acted as travelling agencies, shouting out verbal commercials of far away holy lands and mythological manifestations. All this to inflame the minds of the simpletons, and to drive them into crusades and all sorts of "start-ups" as such. It's all about the money.

Is it difficult to be in a band like this coming from Israel? Have you met with any problems or difficulties? I recently spoke to Melechesh and I know some of their members do not reside there anymore. Is there even a real metal scene to speak of? I'm not sure if metal bands play in your area much.

Israel is just another country in that aspect. The formal religion of this country is not present in our daily life. It's not like we had a lot of comments from the religious public of this country. I guess they don't know about us at all. I don't know about Melechesh and their views, but I can tell you that Israel is one of the most liberal countries in the world. It's such a mess down here! I have travelled in Europe a lot and I can tell you that where I live, in Tel Aviv, there are more parties and bars and pubs open all night long full of people than most of the European capitals! Not to mention smaller places. So metal in Israel, it's not even considered "radical" here. When at least 10% of the population has seen real blood, real people getting killed, and real atrocities... Metal, this is child's play.

How do you feel about Israel? Ashmedi from Melechesh spoke of Jerusalem as an incredible place that is rather occultic and that really doesn't belong to anyone, be they christian or whatever. It almost sounds like he's describing a place that is the source of spiritual and energetic "recharging," as he states you can feel the energy of the place just by touching the soil and the stones.

Jerusalem is indeed a very impressive place. It's one hour away from here by car. But still it's a totally different world. Christians of all streams (Greek, Orthodox, Coptic, Catholic, etc), Jews, and Muslims are mixed there in small crowded alleys. There are amazing moments of history scattered around the city, and most from the B.C. era. Moreover, the "recharging" effect you mentioned is quite famous amongst the pilgrims who still come here. It's called the "Jerusalem Syndrome" and every year dozens of people are ending up in mental hospitals claiming they saw Jesus, they ARE Jesus, Jesus spoke to them or some other wierd shit. There are a lot of really spirital places in Israel, very ancient catacombs from 2500 B.C., historical battlegrounds, etc. Every major influential civilization has passed through this troubled land. From Napolean to Richard the Lion Hearted, from Jesus to Muhammad. So modern Israel is atop all this memorabilia.

I'm curious as to where you feel your place is in the black metal scene today. Norweigan black metal has changed almost drastically since it's inception in the early 90's, and many bands that were harsh and heavy have since incorporated many elements into their music that some true "elite" members do not find acceptable (IE, keyboards, female vocals, etc.) Of course, I am NOT of this mindset, feeling that music has to expand and evolve. There's a very fine line that can keep things running smoothly (as in you can change and adapt your sound while staying true to your core sounds, your "center" if you will) and cause you to abandon your ideals.

I feel that black metal has come to a stage where it needs to come back to its sources and roots. Making good music, not thinking while writing the riffs: "wow, this sounds TRUE," "or doesn't." Okay, we've explored all the fields of this "true or trendy" chit chat. Are you satisfied? Are you through with that? Let's go back to making the best and most emotional music the world has seen. There is no other music like black metal; music that encompasses so many good and sophisticated elements. From the lyrics to the song structures! They say jazz is complicated... well it is, but at the same time it doesn't need to sound comprehendable. And metal does. I don't think the main change in this music is the leadership, be it Norweigan or Swedish. I think the digital production studio and the internet has crippled metal. Making it sound plastic, and being spread to every 9 year old with a "kazaa" software, diminishing the joy and dark aura of the underground atmosphere. And when the underground is dead (and it is), then the "zest" is diminished. Make music with true fury and spite, and the rest is bullshit. And if for a certain riff a female voice sounds right, then USE IT. It's all a matter of taste. But don't use female vocals just to say that you have them.

Something I've been meaning to ask (for over 7 years or so now!) is concerning the artwork of the albums. The cover for "Archives Of An Enchanted Philosophy," is that a picture of an actual place in your homeland? And finally, the nightmarish cover for "Nightmarish Compositions," that looks an awful lot like a Lich creature (I've been playing LOTS of Elder Scrolls: Oblivion for the PC and I've run across MANY of those!)

The cover art for our debut album "Archives..." was taken from a very old painting book which Dimrost had in his family book library; it was drawn by a German painter in the 19th century. The cover artwork for "Nightmarish..." album was done by Eliran Kantor who is a very gifted artist. He managed to realize our vision concerning the layout for "Nightmarish Composition." We gave him general guidelines about the layout concept and he executed them perfectly.

Finally, as we wrap this up, are there any plans for live shows? Have you ever played live out of your native country?

We prefer at this stage not to have live shows. We would like to have a real "nightmarish theater" on stage. And since we are signed to a label, we don't believe the funds for this operation need to come from our own scrawny pockets! We do make CD sales around the world, so we generate income for our label, if you catch my drift! And as for Israel, unfortunately we are very much tied up in our daily jobs. 2 of us work in high tech, one of us is a general manager of something secret, he he. And my humble self, I own an advertising agency. Full time. SO, if someone would pay us to tour, then we can manage.



BLOODSTORM. Interview with Mezzadurus.

Bloodstorm has been doing their thing for roughly 10 years or so now. One of the most interesting and vicious acts in black metal, the otherworldly themes are what makes Bloodstorm truly unique. Not to mention that as an American black metal act, it proves that Norway isn't the only country where vicious black metal is born and raised. Once again, there are many discussions of occult places and deities, as in the last Bloodstorm interview we did, so if things are misspelled, I apologize, but much of what is discussed here is only vaguely familiar.

Sorry for the lateness of the phone call, but I got stuck finishing up watching Stargate SG1. You ever watch that show?

Nah, I'm still stuck on Star Trek: The Next Generation. My girl loves that show though. Actually, I love the movie; as a matter of fact, I sampled.... Remember in the movie when they first went through the wormhole? You know, you hear all the stars zipping by them and everything? That effect is actually in "Atlantean Wardragon" (one of their first albums - Ed.) Of course, it's playing in reverse.

What's cool about Stargate is the explanation of the Egyptian, Sumerian, and Nordic gods. Nice to see all those gods in there!

It's a wonderful thing. I believe in all that kind of stuff anyway.

It's kinda funny with your newest album "Sirian Storm," you were on Metal War Productions for awhile, and then you jumped over to this label Necroharmonic that I had never heard of before.

With "Ancient Wraith Of Ku," I paid for that album completely by myself. We paid for the mastering; the band did it. Metal War Productions was my ex wife and Spencer, they got fired from Nuclear Blast and wanted to start their own record label but didn't have any money. So I used the money I had and paid for the entire production of the "Ancient Wraith Of Ku" album. So I told them that when they start the label, Bloodstorm would be the first band on their label. I tried to help get the label off the ground. It's a really long story, the album got one pressing, but they weren't able to keep it together. But my ex was cheating on me the entire time we were together, with Spencer.

So what did she do at Nuclear Blast? Was she a publicist?

This is the truth, she sat at the desk, and had Spencer do all her work for her. That's pretty much what it was. I was there a few times, she'd answer some phone calls, but she told me herself Spencer would have to help her do everything. And I was like, well, if you're getting away with that, then fine.

But you know, those situations only last so long.

Well, after "Ancient Wraith Of Ku" got done, Spencer was trying to get releases done, and Karen was taking the money and spending it. See, the business end, it became personal, because she didn't want to do anything; she didn't want to work. Obviously, I didn't know anything was going on, because I trusted my wife and one of my best friends. We did shows though, we did a tour with Enthroned around the States, a few festivals. The guy that put the tour together didn't do it that well, you're in Georgia right?

Yeah.

The furthest south we went was to North Carolina, South Carolina. We didn't even get to go to Florida, I don't know why. We then went west to Texas and them up to Kansas, etc. and made our way to Colorado, Vegas and California. Anyway, with the record, none of the money got put back in to do another record, because the money was being dipped into (money that was supposed to go back into the label to make other releases). And I had nothing to do with the record label, I wanted NOTHING to do with it. It's my wife and Spencer. I don't want to do any distribution, I don't want to be a promoter, write a fucking magazine, do a radio show....

So who is behind Necroharmonic?

Necroharmonic is Roy Fox. He's a great old friend of mine and he's been involved in the scene about as long as I have, we're the same age. Back in the day when I was involved with Goreaphobia, Roy was one of the first people from that scene still around today, and he came to ALL the shows and he comes to all the Bloodstorm shows today. Whenever we play in New York and New Jersey, he's there. He's really, genuinely involved. He's seen things come and go, and I'd rather work with people like that. They really are involved! It's not about the money, it's just honesty and love of the metal scene, the music. In this fucking country, nowadays you have to be geographically correct to play a certain style of music, which is fucking retarded. If these stupid, cowardice internet geeks knew ANYTHING about the metal scene.... Half of them know no background!

Venom came from England, man! I mean, this music was NEVER meant to be mainstream anyway. You can't go next door and hang out with people who are into death and black metal.

Yeah, exactly. You know, a lot of bands from the 80's never really got to see the light of day. It never really was meant to be mainstream. Even in the 80's when metal had it's biggest potential. All you have to do is look at the history. How many bands were out there that were really good, and made demos, but NEVER got to see the light of day! And a LOT of those bands came from the States, a lot of them came from Canada even! A lot of bands up there couldn't get a fair shake, Voivod was the real successor out of that country.

Well, hell, look at Razor, they have like what 10 or 12 albums out now?

Yeah, and they were put on the back burner. Only the people that were really involved with fanzines, and going after national magazines like Aardshock, Metal Mania, Kerrang, Cream Metal. But there used to be those sections in the magazines for underground metal, like a Carnivore or English Dogs album review. The scene was an isolated thing, and there's so many things that people can say caused things to drop, and the scene had problems because of this...

Well, a lot of people blame grunge really (laughing).

Yeah! I believe that... Going back a little further, I blame two fucking bands. For the people that were into thrash, Anthrax. With that Run DMC shit and 'I'm The Man.' For the mainstream people, people who were into Kiss, Van Halen and Guns 'N' Roses and stuff, it was Aerosmith. Those two fucking bands in two different genres in this country completely ruined metal. And all that glam pussy rock shit, look at what it is! It's selling sex. The porn industry is one of the biggest industries in the world! And sex sells, so what does America do? They capitalize on it. And then metal got really stupid and queer, people didn't take it serious anymore and got introduced to rap. All of a sudden, rap is being made out to be this new inner city anger thing. I hate to say it, like the black man's hardcore.

It's funny you say that, because I did an interview with Abdullah, and Jeff Shirilla said something interesting. You know, metal was strong in the 80's and died out in the 90's. Then metal comes back strong in the 2000 era. Guys like us who are old enough to have kids, you think our kids are going to want to listen to what their parents listen to? That's why they turned to rap. And then of course as they get older, their kids don't want to listen to that rap shit, so they turn back to metal. It's the whole rebellion phase, which Jeff explained very well.

My parents kinda left me alone about my music. My dad was kind of an easy rider and my sisters were somewhat like wild hippies. Not like the Greatful Dead hippies tho. My family was very into music, and when I was 6 I was heavily into Kiss. I mean Marvel came out with the comic, and you see them on T.V. and suddenly they were like heroes to me!

Yeah, it made them seem so much larger than life!

I didn't understand what it meant, but I liked their look and dug their music. I was like "wow, they're like superheroes!" Your heroes are REAL! And it all ties in! And then here comes AC/DC, and it was '78 by then. I started liking them! And then I'm 9 years old in 1980, and my brother who is older is into Rush and stuff like that, AC/DC and all, and I was already into it. The area I lived in was full of people like US, and it helped develop who I became. 1982 you have "Number Of The Beast," Motorhead's "Overkill," and then there was Venom's "Black Metal." Whoah! When I saw "Black Metal," it was a little bit intimidating to me, I was like "this shit's like the Exorcist!" (laughs). I mean, I was 11 years old! Venom's stuff was real to me, because it wasn't like Iron Maiden or Priest or anything. Then comes Slayer, and Hellhammer, and bam.

Everytime I see a Bloodstorm album, the first thing that blows me away is the artwork. The "Ancient Wraith Of Ku" artwork was kickass, and this "Sirian Storm" thing, it's like a times 1000 nightmare out of the Cthulhu mythos or something! It's so fucking sick, and I just love it.

Thanks. The "Sirian Storm" album, the whole magical work and operation there deals with Sirius, the double star system. Anubis is the gateway, the leader to that star. And of course, there's Cthulhu, that's supposed to be his home dwelling. Everything ties in together, it's silver magic. It's supposed to be the silver star. It all has it's place. And the songs all deal with the negative aspects, the negative effects of Sirius and how it affects Earth during it's potencies during the year. It's most potent in the winter solstice, before it's not visible in the Northern Hemisphere. There's such a wealth of ideas with the occult. The Sirius star is such a potent element for me; it ties into my birthday, my magical number and the intelligence of my zodiac. I love putting conceptual ideas and theories together about how these things work; how this affects the planet, the people, the magnetic energy coming into this planet, the effect of our solar system because of it... The Sirian Storm is all the negative phases that Sirius gates through back to us, shines back to us.

How do you balance all that, as it sounds somewhat catastrophic!

The whole thing about it is, is acceptance. I was told this a very long time ago by my advisor. He said that you have to understand there's no black or white, it's grey, silver or gold magic. You need both, but most of all you have to have purity. Accepting the negative DOESN'T mean it's bad, it means more like you're accepting the change. The things you consider a normal standard in your life may switch, and will have an effect on you. Earth has polar shifts, and we're going through a polar shift. I've been trying to read up on it more recently, like within the past 8 to 10 months, and that's one of the reasons I wrote "Sirian Storm," maybe Sirius is having it's effects during the time of a polar shift. It's changing the world, the solar system, it's changing thought patterns, matter and energy.

Did you have someone else conceptualize the artwork or did you do it yourself?

We usually have the same artist. We had this guy Saksalin, I met him at a festival in December 1999, he was with the guys in Ibex Throne, and he does artwork for Ibex Throne too. We used him for "Ancient Wraith Of Ku," and his original artwork is on the back of Sirian Storm, it's a lightning elemental of the negative phases of the silver current of magic.

Yeah, and it looks like there's two jackal heads on sticks there as well.

It's in the form of Anubis, one of the main Guardians of that path, along with the three daughters of the Bowstar. Which I specifically write about in the song 'Anubis Cell.'

Yeah, I remember when we touched upon these themes in our last interview. It seems like there's some themes that carry over from the "Ancient Wraith Of Ku" album.

Yeah, there is. The thing is, I really started it deeper by the time I did "Pestilence From The Dragonstar." I was doing it in the demos of course, due to various Grimoires, especially the Necronomicon. These Grimoires had a lot to do with Talismanic magic, and the intelligent formulas behind them. And all the forumlas have elementals, and they have a physical manifestation, a mirror image of itself reflected onto you when you're channeling that psychic energy into it. You're seeing yourself as that energy. It's more of a crude, rough, primordial working (the earlier Bloodstorm stuff), but by the time I did "Pestilence...," it was more of the double currents, the Typhonian Trilogies, the Temple of The Red And Black Snake. It got deeper into that, and also into Sumerian and Babylonian civilizations. Just taking things a bit deeper, more vast, and branching out into many other areas. The occult is a subject that can NEVER dry up, and it doesn't follow a specific path, which is fantastic. That's the beautiful thing about it, it's a free spirit, a very pure and free working knowledge of the mind, body and the spirit. It's a perfect trinity.

And that's what I've come to realize as well, I mean I've studied a lot of religions on the planet, and they're so rigid and dogmatic! I mean, to simplify and somewhat gleefully blaspheme it, it's like: sit, stand, kneel, and pray. You basically just follow the words of the preacher, and there's really no time for personal reflection or growth.

It's like brainwashing.

Yeah... Well, you get where I'm coming from, right, I mean there needs to be personalized study along your path. With religion, it's like everybody is following ONE path, one straight line, and there's no deviation, no adjustments. Because no two people are exactly alike, and as important as religion is made out to be, it should be able to fit the individual, not the other way around!

Religion is control, something that inspires guilt, control and fear. From an infant stage up until your manhood, it inspires guilt upon you, and it's psychically pushed into your subconsciousness. And one thing guilt does to a person's body and mind, and your psychic energy, it makes you more prone to be sick and have illnesses. The idea of guilt brings on the idea of punishment and it brings to forth the whole idea of sin. It's a really sick, disgusting control mechanism that's been going on since the dawn of time. Guilt is like the poison of the human mind, spirit and body.

It's almost like programming your subconsciousness to failure!

Exactly. It's destined to fall. One of the most beautiful things that Celtic Frost writes about, and always has. I love that, they do it artfully; they're able to paint a real picture in those words, those feelings. You can actually put a tangible body on that. Voivod's like that too, though they're more post apocalyptic, technological disasters... Same idea though, even though it's a different area of it. Voivod and Celtic Frost seem to work in the same area, just in two different perspectives. That's how I see it. One of the things that I stumbled across, a passage going through one of Kenneth Grant's books, is that each man and woman's mind is a star, and your mind is a magical universe. And you are yourself a star and you travel within your own universe freely. That is a very pure and honest way of thinking and living. Because realistically you can only be hurt if you allow yourself to be hurt, you can only be controlled if you allow yourself to be controlled. You can only be sick if you want yourself to be sick. Your mind is YOURS. That's the one thing that no one else can take it away unless you allow it. If you're conditioned at youth and you keep that guilt the rest of your life, then you WON'T become the things you WANT to become. You'll feel like you're supposed to be this. You're supposed to fit in, supposed to contribute, "you gotta be contributing to society," and benefitting others. Benefitting others is good, you know, IF those individuals earn it. From YOU.

And of course there's a very popular saying, which of course gets twisted around, which is "To do thy will is the whole of the law," which I interpret as saying, you know, you're here on this planet, you're supposed to figure out what you're supposed to be doing, and then you just basically do it. It's just following your lifepath, which I understand VERY clearly.

That's all I've ever looked at it as. Be honest with yourself, be true to yourself.

I want to get your reaction on something. I think we talked about this in the past, but I did an interview with Melechesh, and Ashmedi was talking about how the occult is really just undiscovered science. For instance, herbal medicine is good, even though doctors won't prescribe it....

You're exactly right, because the body has all the necessary minerals and vitamins, all the chemicals we need to deal with things in our bodies. These natural healing abilities. I believe it's the development of the mind. I always look at it as undoing your thinking, what you were taught as you were young, and rethink your life completely ALL over again. Now this is for me, everybody is different. Whatever works for a person, THAT'S all that matters. As long as it is pure for themselves, and uncorrupt. You cannot allow yourself to be corrupt, because if you are corrupt you are always going to be destined to fail or you'll be living an illusion. You'll be behind where you should be at the end, and it's already been proved there's other dimensions that exist. There's infinite bigness and infinite smallness, and there's worlds within worlds. It's ignorant to think that what we have is IT! Our minds are only 10 to 12 percent developed fully.

I recently bought "Visions Of The Soothsayers," the 4 videos on one DVD. I REALLY enjoyed that video set, those were amazing videos! Especially the "Invaders Of Darkness" video.

Ah, you know what that was inspired by? The Phantasm movies. The first Phantasm movie, well, visually anyway. You know that part where the hooded guys are walking around the woods? When the screen comes up and you see that haze, that is like your mind's eye seeing the cross dimension. Like a doppelganger dimension. They're like Arachnian Acolytes. That was the last song on the album ("Pestilence From The Dragonstar") before the bridge to the "Ancient Wraith Of Ku" album. On the "Ancient Wraith" album, you see these spider headed acolytes spinning a web onto this magical mannekin (on the front cover). There's the triple fire tongue in a crowned horn coming out of it's head. It's supposed to be the human embodiment of Anubis. The acolytes are the network, the web between both dimensions. They're giving life to this magical mannekin to operate between both, to polarize both planes, and the acolytes are responsible for bringing their virus, their current, through both worlds. Through the language of fire, through the magical mannekin.

'Clavicula Solomonis' was a cool tune, where was that video filmed at? It looked like it was filmed under a bridge or something.

Yep, it was a bridge on the Delaware River going to New Jersey, on the Philadelphia side. We were trying to find a place where it was not all grass, and dirt and having a bit of privacy. And that was the best place we could find! And it was windy there, we liked it that it was windy. It was hard, that was shot for us almost for free. The people that worked on it for us, we bought them dinner, drinks, basically whatever they wanted, we bought it for them. We gave them cash, gas money, merchandise, toll money...

The quality on those videos were really good, although I assume that these were never shown on MTV or any music channels or anything.

They're very amateurly done, and the truth be told, they were only HALF done to what they were supposed to really be. It was one team of people that went to a videography school in North Jersey, they were friends of ours that came to the Bloodstorm shows a lot. All three people got together and shot one of the videos, and each one of them edited it. So we put it out, but there was supposed to be a LOT more going on.

I really dug these videos, though, they're NOT your typical videos. I REALLY liked the use of symbols and those cool pieces of ancient text that scrolled along the screen on I think the video 'Nibiru Assassins.'

Actually, the ancient text is the REAL writings of the Necronomicon. I actually have a copied version from the original text, the original text written in Arabic. It's a COPY of it.

How did you manage to track THAT down? (Of course we're referring to the fact that most, or nearly ALL, modern day copies are heavily edited with many references and texts removed).

My occult advisor had a shop in upstate Pennsylvania, and he served in World War II. After the war was over, he went back to Egypt, as he was stationed in North Africa. He went back to Egypt, and got fascinated with the occult there. He read the Egyptian book of the dead, Crowley's books, and Osman Spare's work. He wound up going to Saudi Arabia, and after he got discharged he did some travelling. He had contact with people over there, and someone in one of those countries had the recopied grimoire of the original language. And that friend of his copied it for him, it's actually a third generation of the original copy. I can't read it though, because it's all in ancient Arabic.

Are you planning on doing any more videos or anything like that?

Oh yeah. We've been discussing it over the past couple of months. We're thinking of doing one for 'Anubis Cell.' It's going to be like the tomb of Set or tomb of Anubis. We want to try and find something that replicates that well. Like from the city of the Crocodile, start from there and do a star pattern, you know like a Stargate thing you know how they zip you around from star to star until you reach your destination? We're gonna do a flight plan thing where we go to Sirius, but along the way we'll have a couple of key celestial points. And those have been documented in ancient Sumerian texts, the epic of creation where Tiamat and Marduk have collided in battle in our solar system, and it spilled out through the Kypher belt. Supposedly, and something that's been discovered in the past couple of years is, we are a binary star system and we have a dark star. There's a twin to our sun, it's a dark sun. There's 6 inner planets, and the outermost planet is like pluto.

Which they changed and said it was a fucking moon!

That's what I mean about this fucking country and all that bullshit. It is. And they do that, and because why? Because more people, like US, they ARE out ther and they DO want the truth.

Finally, anything you can tell me about a new record or new songs?

We're writing new songs, we've got six new ones and we just wrote a new song yesterday. I'll give you some song titles we have, one is called 'The Howling Void,' which will probably be the opener on the album. We have 'The Distortions Of Enlil,' another song called 'Ituhat,' it's one of the curses I like to call the Reptilian Language of Fire, which is the currents of the Red And Black Snake, the stellar lycanthrope of the primordial nullspace, the spaces of the universe. Then 'Disease Falls From The Stars,' 'The Venom Elemental' is another one.

Any theme that's going to be running through this next album?

Yeah. Actually, the idea is, it's gonna be dealing with... There's a 12 path of the Nightside of Eden, on the qliphotic side of the tree, the Kaballah tree. And when I say Kaballah tree, I don't mean the Hebrew culture, I'm talking about this as a magical operation. This has nothing to do with culture or heritage or nationality, or religion at all. It's about the binary star system. The main formula is supposed to be a shadowed mockery of our physical plane. It's the mockery of mankind, which... the magical work I'm doing is the influence of Baratchial. It's attribute is the planet Mercury, and it's shadow mass is a sigil whose magical number is 260. The meaning of that number 260 is supposed to be concealed, hidden, a priest. Not of light but of the dark, meaning the blackness. It's the root being of the Egyptian Kan, meaning the black. It's also attributed to the magician, or the magnus; you know, the black or hidden priest. It should NOT be identified with the black magician, but the black brothers: the black brothers are the black brotherhood of the crimson desert of Set, Set being the evil god of Ancient Egypt.

Well, Set wasn't originally seen as an evil god; he was described as that later on by god knows what in Egypt.

Right, exactly. Metaphorically speaking, it's duality. The twin duality of the serpents...

Kinda like our Yin and Yang?

Kinda somewhat. It could be like that; it has the same principles. It's like the temple of the red and the black.



CELTIC FROST. Interview with Martin at the Masquerade in Atlanta.

When you opened up the show with 'Procreation Of The Wicked,' I think that's the slowest I've ever heard that song! I'm very familiar with Celtic Frost's material from the past, and I definitely remember the doom metal elements of Celtic Frost; moreso in your live set!

This is the way we hear the material right now. Fast songs like 'The Usurper' and 'Into Crypts Of Rays' will always be fast songs. I think we tended to play 'Procreation Of The Wicked' too fast in the old days; right now we can develop more of the feeling it actually has, that slow, dragging, twisted "wreeeeaar!" It has more of a drive to it. We were talking about that in the band, what tempos the songs should be played. They are played the way they feel natural to us. Songs like 'Necromantical Screams' and 'Dawn Of Megiddo,' work SO perfect right now. We hardly ever played those songs live in the old days, because they just didn't seem right. We played them but it just seemed like a riff fest to us. But right now those songs have a majesty they never had!

Some of my biggest memories of Celtic Frost were when they toured with Voivod, and I guess you guys trying to keep in synch with that; I can understand.

Yeah, 1986, that was the first time both of those bands were unleashed upon the North American audience. And those were the days of course when everything got started. It was a time when thrash and speed metal, and extreme metal was completely new. Of course, it's a different time that you can't compare to nowadays.

Yeah, speaking of nowadays, I'm sure you're familiar with a band called Usurper. What do you think of those guys?

Out of Chicago! I like them. I heard a couple of songs; I don't have a record of theirs or anything, but I really liked it.

Total Celtic Frost worship! (laughs). Within a black metal context.

Yeah, they do a little bit more thrash, more faster stuff. Even faster than we would have done it back in the old day. Actually, I just found out about a band made up of all these Florida ex-Death and Terrorizer members called Denial Fiend. That was the name of our original drummer in Hellhammer. It was his stage name: we all had stage names back then. Tom Warrior was Satanic Slaughter, I was Slayed Necros, and Bruce was Denial Fiend. Of course you have a lot of bands that take their names from Celtic Frost songs or album titles. Therion, you know, for instance.

How do you feel about that nowadays? I have to admit I was a bit skeptical about the turnout: sometimes in Atlanta shows don't do so well, but I was pleased to see a lot of people. It was a good sign of respect.

I appreciate it, I was amazed as well at the turnout. This is a headlining tour and we're out on our own on the road. Of course we have great support from a fantastic band like Goatwhore, who have been out on the American circuit for 2 years almost non stop. They're working the market and are really seasoned guys. And of course we had 1349, which was their first time in the U.S.

Yeah, I read about that, we didn't get them here, I really wanted to see 1349 here in Atlanta.

They could only afford to do the first half of the tour. What I was told, is that everybody's going out in packs. You always have package tours with two headliners, maybe even three sometimes, plus one or two opening or special guests. That's why you have shows like Sounds Of The Underground, The Gigantour, Ozzfest, they're all working like that. They get a whole lot of bands together, a whole bunch of headliners, and then you get the crowd's attention. So I'm really amazed at how well things have been working. The responses we got were WAY beyond what I expected, sometimes I was overwhelmed. There's people coming that have seen us in 1986, some that have had our records for 20 years or more; there's the new generation coming who have gotten to know us through some of their black metal or death metal favorites who have cited us as an inspiration.

There was even some punk kids in the crowd, which surprised me.

Yeah, well, I think the crossover potential for this band is bigger than it was. I mean, Celtic Frost is a metal band, but somewhat UNLIKE other metal bands as well. Even in the old days we were (unlike other bands). Although we were gone for over 15 years, all those people in all those bands who cited us as an influence and inspiration, they kept the spirit alive. And I'm really greatful and very thankful for the support, because if it wasn't for them there would not be that much interest in Celtic Frost I think.

It seems like all these 80's metal bands are back together, like Exodus, obviously Hallows Eve, even Voivod is still going!

It's hard to say "back together," I mean if you check out Exodus nowadays, who is there from the original days? Exodus is a great band, they were part of the original pack. If not for Exodus, Metallica wouldn't have been the way they are. The way they WERE I mean! Not now of course!

(laughs) Yeah, not the way they are NOW! You mean the way they WERE back when they were great. I'm sorry, but my respect for Metallica went into the toilet: I got rid of ALL my Metallica stuff.

I don't have a problem with Metallica. Honest to god. I mean, who am "I" to say? I'm in a band who did "Cold Lake!" "Vanity/Nemesis" is a good metal album but it's not a great Celtic Frost album.

Well, there's experimentation, and then there's abandoning who and WHAT you are: where you came from. "Monotheist" is a PERFECT example of what I'm talking about: yeah, it's different, but it's still.... The ideals... Maybe this sounds corny, but the ideals of the underground are still there, the ideal that you want to be heavy, you want to be dark...

I think it's more underground than anything we've done for a long, long time. It's more underground than "Into The Pandemonium" or anything that EVER came thereafter. And one of the reasons it is like that is because we had to get back in sync. When Tom and I decided to do this, we were giving it a thought like "WHY should we do this?" We don't want to do it for the money, and this is Celtic Frost. It should be in the spirit of what Celtic Frost meant back then, but it should represent US right now. Because otherwise it would be like a lie. It would be sort of like Kiss going back into costume and playing the old songs again. Fair enough, it's okay, and a lot of people want to see this, but this is not what Celtic Frost was all about. Celtic Frost was about genuine emotion. It was about that spirit of rebellion that we had, of feeling misplaced in our times, you know? And of course we realized we're in a different place right now but we're still the same people we were back then. We had to get in touch with ourselves and rekindle our friendship, get in synch with our legacy.

...And I heard that was quite strained for awhile.

And that's why it took so long. It took like 4 years because we really had not just to write a couple of songs, but we had to become a band again. And not only become a band again, but become Celtic Frost again. We had to be able to live it NOW, because otherwise it would have been rehashing the old days and covering our songs with different titles. We didn't want to do "To Mega Therion" part 2, because it would have never been the same. This is more in touch with the time when we were doing Hellhammer, or when we were starting with "Morbid Tales."

How do you feel about the black metal scene? I know people talk about black metal's beginnings starting with Venom or Bathory, but even before Mayhem started you had such a sick and brutal record with "Apocalyptic Raids," and when I say sick, I mean in a very good way! (I got off track a bit when discussing this record, I had to be reminded of what the topic was!)

The black metal scene is so diverse by now; there's already so many different subgenres to it, and it's really hard to put it all into one place. Like, I wouldn't consider Mercyful Fate a black metal band, especially by their music; however King Diamond is one of the most sincere and honest Satan worshippers that I have ever come across. He's truly genuine in his feelings and in the way he approaches his beliefs. So he's black metal in that respect, he's also of course black metal by the way he dons the makeup, the corpsepaint...

Which of course goes even further back to Kiss in the earliest of days...

Right. Well, we used it as well, but we didn't use it like Kiss, King Diamond didn't use it like Kiss did, he did it in a different way as well. I have a lot of respect for artists that have created works of art that have brought extreme metal, and black metal in particular, further. The Norweigan black metal scene has created a lot of genuinely interesting and emotionally and spiritually true music. Of course, they've done a lot of stupid things as well. When you really reflect on that stuff, like when the church burnings were done, or the murders, it was just a couple of piss drunk kids.

Well, this may sound wierd, but I really identify with Norweigan culture and bands, especially Nordic culture. I hope I'm not stepping on any toes, but I am a big hater of christianity, and most of that is because I've seen it destroy people's lives and tear families apart. And not that I'd ever go out and torch churches, but after seeing what the Christians did to the Nordic culture and their way of life, but I think those actions were justified. It's one thing to be a barbarian, a warrior, and that's your way of life; at least you know what you're up against. With christianity, they say "peace and love," but then they're slaughtering women and children and building their buildings upon sacred Nordic burial grounds; it's hypocritical, you know?

I just want to say Christianity AIN'T all about peace and love. It MIGHT seem like that in the teachings and the writings but not in the way it is lived, not in the way it is brought to the people. Otherwise it would not have spread across the globe: South and Central America especially wouldn't be christian.

And they're almost vehemently christian too!

Yeah, but they've had christianity FORCED upon them. I think Norweigan black metal was first and foremost a genuine youth rebellion. They wanted to rebel to the way they felt the Norweigan society was putting a corset around them. They didn't feel they were free enough or liberated enough to do what they wanted to do... But they didn't even really KNOW what they wanted to do. This is my guess. And of course rebelling against the highest state within that society; the highest state in any society is usually a god that society worships. In this case, the christian god. It was also my form of rebellion when we did Hellhammer. And when we started with Celtic Frost. I was brought up as a stern Catholic.

Yeah, so was I!

My mother was a Catholic religious teacher.

And it was probably forced upon you, too, like it was for me.

Well, no; see, as a kid you don't feel it as forced upon you. You don't really know what's going on because you don't (yet) have a sense of the self. But it always felt wierd to me, and it felt frightening and not right. The first time for me being a kid in church, I think I was 5 years old, and everyone's "hallelujah!" and good is this, and we're liberating whatever, and I have this lifesize image of this tortured person hanging in front of me nailed to a cross by human beings. It's a human being, but it's supposed to be a god. But he's dying you know, and he's dying for our sins. Not only that, he's dying for MY sins! I am a five year old kid, I felt like I was really, REALLY bad, because that person was dying for my sins. And ALL the explanations they had didn't work out for me, and they never did thereafterward work out for me. And that's where everything got started, of course. And then of course, becoming a teenager I wanted to become my own person; to get rid of all the codes, and the strict rules, the morals, that society had forced upon me. Of course, "society" that time was represented by my family, my parents. So I was opposing them, I was opposing their god, and the strongest way to do this was by denying their god. I was brought up a catholic, and I will have to carry that around with me for the rest of my life. I will always have part of the catholic boy in me. My parents haven't done me wrong; we had our differences, but I respect them, and we rekindled. So I sorta respect their beliefs as well, but they're not MY beliefs, it ain't MY God, and for that matter I don't believe in Satan. Satan is a symbol for me, a powerful symbol that I use to oppose all those christian believers thatfeverently try to force their beliefs upon everyone else. (Gets animated at this point) You know, "I AM TRYING TO SAVE YOU!! I AM TRYING TO SAVE YOU and if you won't be saved, then I'll destroy you." And these people are in power. There is somebody in power RIGHT NOW who says (conveyed in a rather snotty voice) prayer before he goes to dinner! While people are being killed in his name by corporations that he supports so he and his friends can make more money.

You're talking about George Bush, right?

Well, you mention the name... But I have NO disrespect for people's personal beliefs, if they live their religion on their own, and leave me out of it. They have respect for me for my beliefs. My quarrels are not with the personal beliefs of the people, but with organized religion. Take the catholic religion for that matter. It's the biggest christian creed in the Western Hemisphere. We are in the 21st Century country right now, and half of the followers of that creed don't have anything to say in church. They cannot become a priest, they cannot become a cardinal, they cannot become a bishop. They will have NOTHING to say in that organization. And the direct representative of their god will ALWAYS be a male, and NOT a female. EVERY female has nothing to say in that religion. In the 21st Century, if the United States would try to enforce that amongst the women, they would have an uprising, they would have a rebellion! How many females would have people telling them there would only be males running the government, only males running for the senate, the congress, etc. But for the Catholic religion, it's been accepted!

Yeah, but what I really hate about religion is they enforce rule through fear, it's fear that's the backbone of how religions keep their people. Even dictators and people like Machiavelli knew how to control a population (Read "The Prince" by Machiavelli some time).

But that's in their religion basically. It's not really like that in the personal creed, which can be a liberating experience. I know people who find that to be a liberating experience, and they have a great respect for me and other people who don't necessarily share their beliefs.

Yeah, but those types of people seem to be very few and far between; the rest of them are so fanatical about it!

You know why? Because most have decided, without knowing so, to become followers. Because it has been forced upon them to be followers. This is the way society works, you have leaders and you have followers. Most have decided to be sheep and they're going for the slaughter. And they're going happily with a hallelujah on their lips, and this is one of the problems I had when I was a kid.

So let's talk a bit about the thematics of the new record, because I don't have it yet. I know you've moved a bit away from the same lyrical themes as Hellhammer.

It would take too long of a time to talk about that. But we have a lot of those things that we've been talking about. We have the song 'Synagoga Satanae' which is part of the tryptic; three songs making up this one piece. 'Synagoga Satanae' is about a realization that I had, when I realized that hell, just like the devil, was a christian creation. Because there was a need for that enemy, there was need for a place for everything they deemed to be evil or bad to be put. And they created hell and Satan. All those people that don't believe in Christ, people that might be christians but don't have the same beliefs as they themselves; they're heretics. So I realized that I am already in this place, because I have left the flock and decided not to be a part of this religion anymore. So to them, I am already in hell. So I was like, okay, why not create that place and create a Dante'esque place. This is not the first time I tried to work this out. So what is hell, what is it like?



CRESCENT SHIELD. Interview with Michael Grant, vocalist.

Anyone lamenting the demise of Onward, fear not. Cruz Del Sur music has picked up this band, one I had been watching with interesting ever since a few tunes popped up on their myspace page. If you liked Onward, I think you'll find that Crescent Shield is the natural progression from a band that unfortunately got lost in the Century Media shuffle... Michael Grant is ever the metal warrior, and I feel I gained a new friend with this interview, one that definitely shares a love for traditional and pure heavy metal.

(Interview starts off with a question for me!) Where are you calling from?

Atlanta... Well, metro Atlanta actually, we're about 35 miles north of Atlanta.

Ah, okay. Home of Prog Power! Gonna try to get out to that one day.

I'm surprised you haven't been on a bill with that yet!

Actually, I have. The first two years of the festival, it was in Chicago, and I did a year when I was in Onward; we did a set. But nothing in Atlanta, which I hear is much bigger...

And much more sold out! (laughing). Now I wanted to ask what happened to Onward? I remember getting the first album, and then when the second record came out I got a CD and a piece of paper; it was very poorly promoted!

Well, we thought we would be able to do a third record. Century Media said make some demos, and we did. Then they said book some studio time, and we did. I flew up to Montana to rehearse the record so we'd be ready to go into the studio. Then when I came back I got word that three weeks before we were to record it, we got dropped along with about 5 other bands. Century Media was doing a housecleaning. And they were getting rid of non profitable bands, or thinly profitable bands. That's what we were. Technically, we were making money for Century Media, but it was on such a thin margin that they said "we don't need this headache, let's try to find another band to fit the roster to make us more money." It REALLY sucked, we were so bummed, and we were so pumped up for that third record, which was going to be called "The Neverending Sun." We kinda salvaged it, Toby Knapp, the guitarist, packaged the demo and sold it online. When I said, "Hey, let's try to resurrect this and shop this," Toby Knapp said naah, and quit. I was kinda left high and dry, but fortunately, Crescent Shield was still developing at that time. And instead of thinking of Crescent Shield as sort of an "other" project, I said let's make lemonade out of lemons, and turned to this and really focused on it.

So what eventually will happen to that album? Is it going to be re-released, or maybe some of those songs are going to be reworked into Crescent Shield?

If you go to Toby's myspace page there's some info about it, I really don't have much to do with it anymore. He took those demo tracks and is going to try and spruce that up a bit, put some solos on there, and make it the best sounding demo as possible; repackaging it for release. I did vocal tracks on there. It's still a demo in my book, but something is better than nothing.

That was such a good album, I was really into Onward.

I loved being in Onward, I miss it to this day, I really do.

Apparently Crescent Shield is different guys from Onward, so I'm curious how the members came together.

Crescent Shield has been around since 2000 really. The idea was manifested when I was in Onward and Dan was in Destiny's End. We have always been good friends, but except for the five minutes when we were in New Eden together, we never really had a chance to work together. Even though our musical tastes and ideas were all the same and we really clicked. So Dan called me up one day while I was at work and said "Hey Mike, you wanna do our own stuff and have fun, maybe put something out on a small label?" And I said yeah! So we started out with three songs, kinda in the vein of Manowar, true power metal and all that kinda stuff. Finally, we said, let's start really writing some songs. And the project just evolved over time. For awhile we didn't have a name, and we started talking with the guy at Sentinel Steel Records, Dennis Gulby...

Yeah, I'm familiar with him.

He sorta nursed the project all along, even though he didn't commit to it. He gave us some good advice, and at the end of a leisurely pace we had ten songs demoed. We really looked at the material and we thought it was strong enough to present to the world, so we took it seriously after Destiny's End and Onward died. We turned Crescent Shield into a serious project instead of a side band.

So did the deal with Crescent Shield come about by sending demos out? Because they have some damn good bands, though they're located halfway across the world!

Yeah, I know. In metal, it doesn't matter WHERE you are on the planet. That's the best part of it. Cruz Del Sur discovered us while we were in demo phases. They did not really have enough money for a recording budget, but they kept close tabs on us while we decided to do the record ourselves. To finance the record ourselves. When the finished product came out, we resent that product out to labels and Cruz Del Sur was the first email back, basically with a contract in hand, saying "I want this. I want this before anyone else gets this." He was very, VERY aggressive, and we said, okay if you really believe in us, let's do it! And we do not regret ONE MINUTE of that decision.

What can you reveal about your contract? Is there any tour support, how many albums are you in for, any other perks?

It's a one at a time album deal, which is rare. We're going album by album. I don't know why that is, usually a record deal is multiple albums. For some reason, we got album by album, which we actually like! It keeps us loose and flexible.

And of course, you can negotiate each individual album, and it's like renegotiating your contract.

And if it doesn't work out, no harm done. And that's why we're really happy about it. In terms of tour support, I really don't think Crescent Shield is going to be a major touring band, like Nevermore. The truth about today's metal is, it's such a huge expense for such little return. Especially for bands who are just starting. If ANY tour were to happen, it would be like a two to three week stint with a bigger band, we'd be an opening act.

Like Manowar? (laughs).

Ha, yeah, right. More like Jag Panzer or something like that.

Well, look at Manowar, they brought Rhapsody over here, and that did really well.

Enrico, the guy who runs Cruz Del Sur, said he'd put as much money as he can to help us either get over to Europe or fly us out to Chicago to do a Cruz Del Sur music fest, which is in talks right now. Things like that. The bottom line is he's trying to be as supportive as he can allow. And we'll take it. And then we'll try and put in as much as we can. We're trying to do as many live shows as we can, at least here in California, and maybe Nevada and Arizona. And maybe a couple of national gigs, who knows? We may get over to Europe and do a couple of shows over there...

And you know the power metal scene is rabidly fanatical overseas...

God, I know, I've seen the Manowar, the Iced Earth videos, and it just looks UNREAL. I've seen all the videos. It's something you just can't even imagine. It kinda makes me ashamed to be an American metalhead sometimes! (laughs).

You know, I've said the EXACT SAME THING sometimes!

When you see a European band like Helloween or Gamma Ray, they play like stadiums and stuff, then they come over and play some shit pool bars and stuff. But they still put on a great show, and that's very inspirational.

So let's talk about the new record a bit, because we haven't yet...

Well, we're chit-chatting like metal heads.

You know, I hate the whole cardboard sleeve thing, but that's what I got. You know, no lyrics, so passionless and pointless packaging.

I know, I know. You know why they really do that? This is my theory, I don't know if it's the actual answer. I think the reason they do that, is because if you listen to it enough, and you like it enough, you'll actually go out and BUY the jewel case. As a fan.

Yeah, you might be right. And you know, I'll actually do that from time to time.... If I find them cheap enough on ebay! (laughs) The first half of the record really grabs you. I mean, a song like 'Slaves To The Metal Horde," that's a fucking metal anthem if I've ever heard one.

It is. It started out as a song just about the masses of metalheads coming together as one big unit and what not. The problem is, lyrically that song is so similar to the first track 'Amon