Thursday, June 18, 2015

Interview with Artificum Nex done by Patrick on 6-18-15

Hails 
Here  is  a  new  interview   with  the  black  metal  band  Artificum  Nex   from  Russia.If you  are  a fan  of  black  metal  then  defintly  give this  band  some  support  and  buy their  releases  either  physical  or  digital-copies.Read  on  and  if you  are  in  a  band  or  label,Pr  company  and  would  like  some  reviews or  interviews  please  feel  free to get  in  contact
Regards
Patrick
fiendformetal@live.com






Interview   with  Artificum  Nex   done  by   Patrick




1.Hails!!  when  did  you  all get  the  idea  to  form   Artificum  Nex ? How  did  you  come  up  with  the  name  of  the  band?Does  it  have  a special  meaning?
 NickHarren: Hails!  It happened in 2007 when I (as a guitar player at that time) have decided to move into atmospheric and extreme music. Together with bassist Alex and vocalist Astaroth we designed the band concept. “ArtificumNex” in translation from Latin means something like “craftsmen of death”.





2.What  is  the  current  line-up  of  the  band?  For the readers who have never heard  Artificum Nex's music  how  would  you  describe  it?
 Nick Harren:
Thecurrentline-upis:
Nick Harren – vocal
Thorn – guitar
Adam Crow – bass
Centurion V – guitar
Recently our usual line-up changed - our drummer Noctus has left us, we wish him luck in his future projects.
It is always hard to describe music, music is something you should listen to. Never bothered with exact style name, for us it always was just a Black Metal, probably with some Death Metal influences. Perhaps our listeners could describe it better.


3.Artificum Nex recently released their debut cd  "Epitaph For Life" through Satanathand Black Plague Rec. how  did  you  come  in  contact  with  these  two  great  labels?

NickHarren:
We met with Alex from Sathanath before the release of our EP “Desert of Sins” and I paid attention to his young and perspective label. I was sure that our first release (EP) will be on Satanath records. When it comes to our first LP release we decided that it should be available not only in Russia and Satanath helped us here again together with Black Plague.


4.How long did it take to write the music on this release?Does the whole band work on the music or does one member usually write everything?

 NickHarren:
The “Black Revolution” and “From the Grave” were written in 2010 and the rest during the year before the record by me and our guitarist Thorn.





5.Who  usually  writes  the  lyrics  for  the  band?What  are  some topics  you  all  write  about?

 NickHarren:
Our most common topics are death, mysticism, apocalypse,anti-religion. We all are contributing to lyrics, Thorn usually doing the final version. 


6.Besides  the  debut  cd  "Epitaph  For  Life"  does  the  band  have  any  other  merchandise  available  for  the  fans?

 NickHarren:
A small line of our merchandise will be available soon on concerts and through internet.
Unfortunately, all CDs of our first EP “Desert of Sins” are sold out by this moment but it’s still available for download.



7.Does  Artificum  Nex    play  live  very  often  or  do  you  prefer to  work in  the  studio?

NickHarren:
Playing live is our main activity, somehow it helps for a short time to escape from habitual reality.  Work in studio is always harder for us but we are trying our best to achieve the maximum possible result.


8.Who are some bands you have sharedthe stage with? Are their  any  tours  or  shows  planned  this  year?

 NickHarren:
We have shared the stage with Marduk, Withershin, Forgotten Tomb and other great bands. We don’t have planned shows for the rest of 2015 yet.




9.What does blackmetal mean to you ?


 NickHarren:
Black Metal is our internal universe.


10.Artificum  Nex  comes  out  of the  Russian  black  metal  scene  what  is  your  opinion  of  Russia's  metal  scene?

 NickHarren:
Metal music in Russia are still in development stage, there is much to grow. But from year to year appears more and more interesting and quality bands on extreme metal scene.


11.Who  are  some  of your  all-time  favorite  Russian  bands? Are their  any  new  bands  you  feel  the  readers  should  check  out  soon?

 Nick Harren:
Nabaath,Todestriebe, Beyond ye Grave, NoxDoloris, Negative Voice –great bands.


12.Are  any  of the  members  of  Artificum  Nex    currently  working  with  other  bands or  solo  projects?

 NickHarren:
Nope. Currently we are concentrated on the ArtificumNex only and preparing material for a new album.



13.Thank  you  for  taking  the  time  to  fill  this  interview  out  do you  have  any  final  words for the  readers?

13 NickHarren:
Thanks for the interview.
Listen the music. See through lies. Stay in black.

                                                         Band    Contact
                                                 https://www.facebook.com/Artificum.Nex?fref=ts
                                                    https://soundcloud.com/groups/artificum-nex

                                                              Label    Contacts
                                                       http://www.blackplaguerecords.com/
                                                            http://satanath.com/

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

Interview with California's GraveSpawn done by Patrick on 6-10-15

Dark  Greetings!!
Here  is  a new  interview  with the  mighty  U.S  scene {specifically  California}   GraveSpawn  and talking  about  their  past  and future  and  their   newest  release   "Woe To The Conquered"  released  by  the  band  themselves.GraveSpawn  are  a  band  you  will defintly  like  if you  enjoy  the  mid  90's  black  metal  with  fast  and furious  guitars  and  drumming and  some  of the  best  vocals  out there.Enjoy  the   interview  and  keep  watching  the  blog  for  more  reviews  and  interviews  coming  soon.
Regards
Patrick





Interview   with   Gravespawn   done  by   Patrick





1. Hails!!  Gravespawn  was  formed  in  2004   when  did you  all get  the  idea  to  form  this  band? How  did you  all choose the  name  for  the  band?


Rellik started doing Gravespawn  as a solo project when he was in the military apart from another band he was in at the time. At the time there really was no purpose behind the band other than creating an "over-the-top", raw as fuck, satanic black metal band. Honestly, the name is the result of finding that all the "good" black metal names were taken so he decided to just roll with the first silly name that came to mind. It happened to be available hahaha!





2. What  is  the  current  line up  for  Gravespawn?  How  do you  all feel  the  music  has  changed  over  the  years?


Rellik Sephiroth on lead vocals, Atrum Abbas on lead guitar, Verigo on rhythm guitar, Advorsus on bass, and Mattias on drums. Over the years, our music writing has transformed from less of a fast in your face black metal sound, to more of a sound which incorporates elements of black metal, along with melodic riffs, allowing our music to develop various atmospheres. We changed what needed to be changed but at the same time also preserve what needs to be preserved.  The most noticeable change would be Rellik moving to vocals after having played rhythm guitar for the entire existence of the band.  Also moving Verigo to guitars and adding Advorsus to bass duties.  Unlike before, Gravespawn finally feels like a genuine brotherhood.  There is a feeling of camaraderie finally.




3. Gravespawn  has  just  released  their   new  cd  "Woe To  The Conquered." How  long  did  it  take  to  write and  compose  the  new songs? Does  the  whole  band  work  on  the  music  or  does  one member  usually  write  everything?



 Completing this album was a painstaking process but was worth it in the end. We went through three different mixes. The whole thing was written over the course of about a year and a half or so from 2011-2013. We really like to keep the whole band involved in the writing process, and most songs are composed in a section by section manner when writing. Each member not only contributes their part; we all throw ideas at each other during the writing process, regarding to the structure of each song, and various ways of playing sections, etc.  Before, it was only two or three members contributing to the music and lyrics…now we are an entire band of competent and talented songwriters.  No loafers or free loaders allowed!




 4. Who usually writes  the  lyrics  for the  band. What are  some  topics/subjects  you  all write  about?


In the same regard to writing the music, with lyrics, we like to have every member involved. Each member has their own personal interests, and we like to incorporate aspects of those while writing both lyrics and music. Some lyrics are written entirely by different members, while others are written as a group effort, with multiple members contributing sections to make the whole. In the past our lyrics centered entirely around the typical "Hail Satan/fuck religion" theme. Now that things have changed quite drastically within the band this past year, we want to expand our horizons and write more about our particular interests and studies as a whole.



5.Besides  the  new  cd   "Woe To  The Conquered",   does the  band  have   any  other  merchandise  available  for  the  fans? If  yes  where  can  the  fans  buy  it?


At the present moment, the cd is the only available merch that we have available. However, T-Shirts will be re-stocked in the very near future, as we have a new T-Shirt design undergoing completion to be pressed into shirts. For merchandise sales you can contact any one of our pages on the internet. (Facebook, Reverbnation, etc.)



6. I  believe   "Woe To  The Conquered"  was   self-released. Has the  band  searched  for  a  label  to  work  with or  do  you  all prefer  to  release  everything yourselves?


To date, mostly everything has been released on our own, but we have considered pursuing a label to work with, and may start searching after our "Woe To The Conquered" release is well established. However, plans are also in place to release all of our own material in case we are unsuccessful in finding a label that meets our demands.  There have been many labels that have offered what we would consider to be “sub-par” offers; we are in no hurry to sign with anyone, but a great opportunity presents itself…




 7. Are  their  any  tours  or  shows   planned  for 2015   in  support  of  the   new  cd? If yes  where  are  some  places  you  will  be  playing?


We actually recently played the Kansas City Black Death Fest at the Riot Room in Missouri, last month in April. At the moment no further shows or tours are booked, but when something comes up, we'll be sure to let it be known.




8. Where  have  been  some  of your   most   memorable   shows  to  date? Who  are  some  bands you   have  had  the  pleasure  to  share  the stage  with?


We did a West-Coast tour with Dodsferd back in 2011, and played some amazing shows in San Fransisco and Sacramento. The tour itself is something that will never be forgotten. Kansas City was also an insane show with incredible amounts of support while we were on. To date, we've had the pleasure of sharing the stage with some greats such as Horna, Blood Stained Dusk, Stonehaven, Wayfarer, Dodsferd, and Nightbringer.



 9. What   does  black  metal  mean  to  you  all?


Black metal is a musical expression of revolt against the structured fabrication of society or quite simply an expression of darkness in general. It is a means of tapping into our primal and unfiltered true self, by using a form of music which allows one to transcend the causal world and enter a world of their own creation; it is an escape from the mundane.



  10. Are  any  of the  members  currently  working  with  other   bands  or  solo  projects?  If  yes  please  tell the   readers  a  little  about   them?


Actually all the members are involved in other projects. Rellik and Advorsus are also involved with an atmospheric epic metal project inspired by Robert E Howard's Conan the Barbarian stories called Ben Morgh. They also just recently finished an album for a death metal project called SVU. Advorsus plays in an extreme metal band called Dark Apostle. Their music is essentially a mix of black, death, and thrash metal.
Atrum Abbas is involved in Indesiderium, which is not your average typical black metal. It has all the blasting and sinister riffing black metal is known for, but there is so much depth and complexity to it that is stands out from most black metal out there.  It is very unique, yet extremely dark and evil.  Very atmospheric as well.  Mattias is involved in Indesiderium as well along with other projects called Heši, and Abysmal Chaos. Heši is a Dark Metal 2-man project with an atmospheric-melodic sound, somewhat similar to Fen, and Abysmal Chaos is a solo-project, whose dark sound creates an atmosphere of solitude and melancholy
 Charles is also involved in a black metal band called Vesterian who recently released an album on Glorious North and is about to embark on a US tour.



  11. Gravespawn   comes  out   of  California's  black  metal  scene.What  is your   opinion  of  California's   black  metal  scene?

The California scene has is strengths and its weaknesses. In many Los Angeles clubs, the audience will have a fair amount of people who want to look different and act different for egotistical and self-image related reasons, but outside of L.A., there is a real strong  energy and interest in black metal, and those who show up are die-hard fans of the music and give tons of support. Overall, the CA scene is strong and in full force, with a plethora of Black Metal bands emerging.




 12. Besides  California  what  is your   opinion  of  the  U.S  black  metal  scene  as  a whole? Who  are your   all-time  favorite  bands from  the  u.s?  Are  their  any   new  bands you  feel  the  readers  should  check   out  soon?


The U.S. Black Metal scene as a whole is fitting and appropriate. There are a lot of fucked up issues in the U.S., and therefore people have a lot of reasons to need and desire an extreme outlet from the strains of everyday life. From the average cost to live v.s. the average salary earned, to the excessive amount of everyday murders, robberies, public shootings, rapes, etc., the U.S. is an extreme environment. It is therefore not surprising to see the amount of Black Metal and other forms of Extreme Metal in the U.S.
We highly respect such U.S. Black Metal acts as : Inquisition, Grand Belial's Key, Crebain, Leviathan, Crimson Moon, Nachtmystium, Ceremonial Castings, Krallice, and Falls Of Rauros, Thy Infernal, Caladan Brood, Bloodstained Dusk, to name a few. We would definitely like to support our fellow comrades, and advise all readers this to turn their ears towards Ritual Combat, Conjuror, Revanant Vrykolakos, Killgasm, etc.




 13. Would  you  all consider yourself's  Satanist  or  just  anti-religions?  When did you  first  start  questioning   organized  religions?


Each member of the band has their own individual beliefs, and we choose not to label ourselves in such a way. While some members walk a spiritual path, they choose not to label that path, for it is ever-growing and ever-changing, and, like all spiritual paths, is personal to their beliefs and understanding.  
We are against any form of organized religion, and believe in thinking for oneself.  



14. Who  are  some  Satanists/occultists  you  enjoy  reading  and  studying?


Each member of Gravespawn has his own unique interests that we all bring to the band. Rellik and Avorsus, for example, primarily enjoy studying ancient and medieval history as well as mythology. Atrum Abbass and Mattias enjoy reading about various topics such as consciousness and psychology, the occult, entheogens, etc., from authors/publishers such as : Lux Ferous, Black Tower, Thomas Karlsson, TOAF, the ol' Lodge Magan.




 15. Thank  you   all  for  taking  the  time   to  fill  this  interview  do  you   have   any final   comments  for the  readers?


We would like to thank you for giving us the opportunity to discuss our music and band to all who are interested, and thank you for presenting this interview. To the readers - we would appreciate you checking out our latest release 'Woe To The Conquered', if you haven't already, and we would like to thank you for supporting the band throughout the years, and giving us a reason to keep the flame burning!


                                                   Band   Contacts
                                             https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gravespawn-Official/
                                              

Thursday, June 4, 2015

Interview with Nordland done by Patrick on 6-4-15


Greetings 
Here  is  a  new  interview  done  with   the  one-man  band  Nordland   who  recently  released  their  newest  cd  "Songs Of Regression"   put  out  by  the  mighty   labels  Black  Plague Rec.  and  Metallic Media.So  if your  a  fan  of  pagan  black  metal  with  some very  well played  black metal  with  some  atmosphere  then do yourself  a favor  and  buy the  cd or  digital  copy today
Regards
Patrick
fiendformetal@live.com









Interview   with  Vorh  vocalist  and  all  instruments  of  Nordland    done  by    Patrick






1.Hails  Vorh   how  is  your   week  going  so  far? Please  introduce  yourself to  the  readers? When  did  you  get the  idea to  start  Nordland?


 Greetings Patrick, my week so far, same old shit! Trying and avoid the endless swarms of human detritus!
I am drunk right now, so everything's good! I am the fool who likes to write songs about things few people care about. As far as Nordland is concerned I started it about 4 years ago out of frustration and desire. Some of the songs existed before that but they had no place to call home.





2.How  did you  come  up  with the   name  for  this  band?For  the  readers  who  have  never  heard  Nordland's  music  how  would  you  best   describe  it?
 
 
 Nordland the name was part of the concept for the first album. I wanted a name that represented a place. I wanted the listener to go to that place when they are fully involved with the music. I think it helps with the immersion of losing yourself for a brief period. At least that's what I do when I listen to the stuff I'm into, and that's what I try to achieve also with Nordland. The music? I don't know, it's changed over the 3 albums. The debut was fairly primitive, it has expanded and grown I think. I think alot of non-metal influences are coming out now, but coming out metal!
 
 
 
 
3.  Vorh  you  are the  sole  member  of this   band  why  did you  decide to  keep  it  a  one man  band? Have you  ever thought  of  adding  more  members to  play  live  or  is Nordland  strictly  a  studio  project?What  do  you  feel  are the  advantges  and  disadvantges  to  being the  only  member  in the  band?
 
 
It is a one man band because it is easier to be in the creative process alone, the results are more pure or less diluted I think. The disadvantages are that if you are not careful your song writing can become stilted because you inevitability fall into patterns of doing things in certain ways and that can lead to dead ends. I have to be hyper critical about everything or it will quickly become boring. I have been in bands before and only one or two of the people you work with have any desire to push things out of the mundane. Most are concerned with looking cool, something which I don't give a shit about.
 
 
 
 
 
 
4.If you  had  the   opportunity  to  work  with   any  musicians{past  or   present}   who  would  you   like to  work  with  and  why?
 
 
 I don't know, people I admire in music across different genres. Even people you admire can be a pain in the arse to work with! It would have to be someone with similar ways of doing things.
 
 
 
5.Nordland  just  released their  new  cd  "Songs Of Regression"  through the  great  labels  Black  Plague Rec. and  Metallic Media Prod.   how  did you   come  in  contact  with  these  two  labels?
 
 
It happened really quick, I contacted Metallic Media and before I knew it Black Plague where on board and things got rolling. Two awesome labels to deal with and the CD came out great, so I'm happy with that. I hope to work with them again in the future.
 
 
 
6.How   long  did  it  take you   to  write  and record the  songs  for  the  new  release?Where  do  you   usually  draw  inspiration  for the  lyrics?
 
 
 It took awhile. I don't know exactly because I do it in stages maybe I'll have a week of writing then not write for 3 weeks I can sit and try and write something then the next day think its shit and delete it. If I kept everything I wrote it becomes a hindrance so I have to edit myself quite harshly. I don't know how to describe it really I just get a feeling something is right or not quite right or total shit, even though I kept some of the stuff I don't think is that great in a song, anything else I try to replace it with sounds worse! Its like overworking a painting you have to get a feel for when something it finished and leave it alone on move on. But that is why I keep trying to improve my writing. Lyrics mostly come after the music is finished. They are mostly concerned with paganism and reading the signs we are given every day, which most people don't see any more.
 
 
 
 
 
7.Vorh   you  handle the  vocals when  did you  become  interested   in  singing/screaming? Do  you  do  anything  special  to  keep  your  throat/voice   healthy?
 
 
 
 I think my vocals have improved since the first album. I can control them better and get different tones and light and shade in them now. I quite like doing them now whereas before I didn't . I wanted to add more variety on 'True Cult' but didn't have the ability. It's something I definitely have to keep working on because its not that easy to get the variation in the harsh vocal style. I think it can become a little monotonous if you don't try and vary things from time to time.
 
 
 
 
 
8.Who  are  some of your  favorite  vocalists?
 
 
 Peter Hammill, Derek Shulman, Nicklas Barker, Jon Anderson, Quorthon, Attila Csihar, Grutle Kjellson, Paul Di'anno, Sandy Denny, etc etc.
 
 
 
9.you  also  handle the  guitars  for the  band  when  did you  become  interested  in  playing the  guitars? Are you  self taught  or  did you  take  lessons  when  first   learning?
 
 
Back in the mists of time when I was about 14 or around there. I started on Bass then moved to guitar later. I used to try learn classic Rush stuff like Hemispheres, YYZ etc also early Maiden bass lines like Phantom of the Opera and also thrash stuff. I was always good at learning stuff by ear pretty quick, I would sit and learn whole albums by ear. Try and get every little thing right. I don't do that anymore it's just how I learnt to play. I just used to play along with loads of metal and prog stuff basically. If you just stick to one style of music it can become boring I think and you don't pickup different way of doing things.
 
 
 
 
10.Who  are  some  of your   influences/favorite  guitarists? Besides the  vocals and  guitars  are  you  currently  playing  any  other  instruments? Are their  any   instruments  that  you  would  like to  learn  to  play?
 
 
I'm more interested in the output of a band rather than a guitar hero type, that doesn't do much for me to be honest.  Arrangement, dynamics and atmosphere and the way a song is constructed is way more interesting to me. I can sit and listen to a piece of music and be amazed at really small things in a song. No other instruments at the moment but I would like to be able to play piano, I just like the purity of it.
 
 
 
 
11.What   does  black  metal   mean  to you?
 Well the type of Metal that means the most to me is the stuff that conjures a connection to something thats been lost. A tradition of songs which is about the connection to others of similar mind. Personally it keeps me in touch with the primal and holistic ways of connection to the earth. I guess I'm a bit of a hippy! I'm not really interested in the 'we're really evil and love Satan brigade'. Satan is a Christian construct, something which I have no interest in, Christianity is an over inflated, self serving belief . I can't see a justification to promote evil for evils sake, it's pointless.
 
 
 
 
12.Vorh   you   live  in  the  U.K  what  is your    opinion  of  England's   black  metal  scene?
 
 
Very Strong at the moment, loads of established bands like Winterfylleth, Fen, Wodensthrone, Forefather, The Meads of Asphodel, and a load of  others forging a path, Funeral Throne, Verdelet, Written in Torment etc etc and Nordland of course! I think the UK has and is establishing a strong scene now. I don't know every new band or project. I like what I like and thats it!
 
 
 
 
13.Who  are  your  all-time  favorite  U.K  bands? Are  their  any  new  bands you  feel  the readers  should  check  out  soon?
 
See Above! I am into alot of stuff that people into Pagan/black/whatever metal would probably laugh at! 
 
 
 
 
       
14.Besides  Nordland  are  you  currently  working  with   any  other   bands  or  solo  projects?
 
Not right now.
 
 
 
15.Thank  you  for  taking  the  time to  fill  this    interview   out  do you  have  any  final  words for  the  readers?
 
 
Thank you Patrick and  to all the folk out there who have supported Nordland so far I am very grateful.  
 
                                                          Label    Contacts
                                                  http://www.blackplaguerecords.com/
                                                  http://www.metallic-media.blogspot.com/
 
                                                       Band   Contact
                                                  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Nordland
                                                http://nordland6.wix.com/nordland
                                                  https://nordland.bandcamp.com/