Saturday, March 4, 2017

Canada's Versifist interview done by Patrick posted on 3-4-17

Hails
Here  is  a  new  interview  with the  Canadian  black  metal  band  Versifist who  released  a  EP. late  last year  "Cipher"  so  anyone  who  is  into  well  executed and played  black metal  be  sure to  check  this  band  out  today  and  keep  an  eye  out  for  news  as  they  are  working  on  new  music.
Regards
Patrick
fiendformetal@live.com
https://plus.google.com/110515263288050247357?hl=en
https://twitter.com/PDeathrasher


Interview   with  Ross  V.   vocalist and  bassist  for  Versifist   done by    Patrick


1.Hello   Ross   how  are  things  going  in  Canada  these days? Please  introduce  yourself to  the  readers?
 
Hello Patrick. Things are ok here in Canada. Its a very brutal winter here but we are used to it. Versifist is black metal trio from Canada formed in 2013. There is myself on bass/vox, Graham F. on guitars and Evan W. on drums


2.When  did  you  first   meet  the  other  members  of  the  band and  was  it  long  before you  all formed the  band?How  did you  all  choose   Versifist  as  the  name  of  the  band?


    I have known Graham and Evan for about 20 years now. We met when I was playing in a local death metal act Terratomb and they were playing(and still are) with black/thrash demons Hellacaust. Eventually Graham joined Terratomb. When that band disbanded, not long after we started Versifist.
    When coming up with the name I wanted something that was an original word, a creation so to speak, and its translation its based upon the theory of the spoken word or written word is a very powerful thing. It can start wars, it can end lives etc. Whether its the holy bible or the Quran, or Hitler speaking in front of thousands of starving pissed off Germans that wanted something more, or even a motivational speaker, the word can be indeed be mightier than the sword.


3.What  is  the  current  line up  of  the  band? And for the  readers  who  have  never  heard  Versifist's   music  how  would  you  best  describe  the  band's style? 


Versifist has a backbone made of molten black metal but we are not limited to any sub-genre.


4.Versifist  is  getting  ready to  release  their  newest  EP. "Cipher" how   long  did  it take  the  band to  write the  music  for these  songs? Does  the  whole  band  take  part  or  does  one  member  usually  write  everything?


Cipher has been out for close to a year now and we are very satisfied with the results. It is the next logical step from the "Scripting the Catechism" release. We tend to write slowly but when a song is done we know it. Quality over quantity is suppose. Versifist is a collaborative effort between the three members. We all write music. 

5.Who  usually  writes  the  lyrics  for  the  band  and  what  are  some  subjects  the  band  writes  about?

Lyrics are usually between Graham and I. Lyrics are derived from all sources of inspiration including but not limited to, some occult themes, dealing with daily life, fictional stories of our own creation, nightmares/visions . The very definition of the name of the band requires that any subject is fair game. The only exception to that rule is we don't delve into politics i.e. left /right . All are worthless in our eyes so we'll leave that stuff to scum of the earth.


6.Has the  band  started  working  on  new  music for  the  next  EP.  or  would  you  like  to  try to  write  enough  songs for  a  full length?


We are writing for our first full length now.


7.Will  the  band  work  with  the  label  Vault  Of  Dried  Bones  or  have  you   and  the  label  discussed it?


Yes, the Vault of Dried Bones is our home.



8.Besides  the  new  EP."Cipher"  does  the  band  have  any  other  releases  or  merchandise  available  for the  readers.And  if yes  what  is  available  and where  can the readers  buy it?


Our first release was the "Scripting the Catechism" cassette. The initial run of 100 tapes is sold out. We are awaiting a repress.
www.vaultofdriedbones.com  has some shirts as well as http://www.morbidmoonrecords.com/ . 
Keep an eye on https://versifist.bandcamp.com/ for future merchandise.




 
9.Ross  you  handle  the  vocals  for  the  band  at  what  age  did you  start  growling and  screaming? Is  their  anything  special  you do  to  keep your  voice  and  throat  healthy?Who  are  some  of  your  influences and  favorite  vocalists?


I have been doing vocals in this style for about 20+ years off and on. The lack of touring means I don't do it often so no "tricks" to tell. My favorites are Pete Helmkamp (Angelcorpse O.F.C), Mark of the Devil(Cultes Des Ghoules), and Sir Proscriptor McGovern (Absu).


 
10.Besides  the  vocals  you   also  take  care  of  the  bass   when did you  start  playing  the  bass? Who  are  some  of your  favorite  bass  players?Besides  the  vocals  and  bass  duties  do  you  play  any  other  instruments?


I started when I was 17. I am a bit of a "caveman" on the bass. I tend to keep it simple and try to lock in with Evan's kick drum and to free myself up for a powerful vocal delivery and to serve what the song needs instead of my ego. I dabbled with drums years ago but no more. Some bass greats are Steve Harris, Roger Patterson, Erik Danielsson, and whoever did the bass on the new Cultes Des Ghoules album.



11. Versifist    comes  out  of  the  Canadian  death,black  metal  scene  what  is your  opinion  of  the  Canadian  metal  scene   over the  years?

Canada has some the greatest metal bands in the world such as Voivod, Blasphemy, D.B.C., Sacrifice, and Revenge. I haven't paid to much attention to any "scene" in years but those are the some of great bands.


12.Who  are  your  all-time  favorite  Canadian bands  and  are  their  any  new   bands  you  feel  the  readers  should  watch  out  for?

Answered above but local bands I would add are Thaumiel, Cottus and Novichok. All very different from each other but all worthy.


13.Besides  bands  are  their   any  good  labels  or  distro's  you  could  recommend  to  the  readers?

Again I don't pay a lot of attention except for in Versifist's world. The Vault of Dried Bones has a great distro with lots of great bands that we can stand proudly next too such as Sortilegia , Mitochondrion, Sorguinazia , Recluse, and Genocide Shrines. Also, Morbid Moon Records in Montreal is great distro/label.


14.In  your   opinion   what  is  the  best  and  worst  thing  about  the  underground  scene today? And  what  does  underground  metal  mean  to you?


Probably the short attention span of people these days causes a lot of great bands to go unnoticed. Everything is a click away, so people take it for granted.(I suppose I am guilty of this as well) But I come from the days of tape trading and buying records cause the album art was great so it meant more when you saved up to buy that "cool looking" record. Sometimes the record sucked but when it didn't, there was some magic happening there.

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


 Thanks you Patrick for the interesting questions. I hope the answers hold up.  New Versifist material will come in 2018 I expect.   Contact:      versifist@hotmail.com      https://versifist.bandcamp.com/