(At the beginning of this week we hosted the exclusive premiere of one of the year’s best albums, Indecent Idols, by the German epic doom band Fvneral Fvkk. And now, on the day before its release by Dying Victims Productions, we present our Comrade Aleks’ interview with two of the band’s members.)
The first full-length album from the German epic doom brethren Fvneral Fvkk was released in 2019 via Solitude Productions. On their debut, Carnal Confession, the four-piece — whose members are also largely active in the Hamburg-based death-doom outfit Ophis — tackled the issue of child abuse by representatives of the Catholic Church. Fvneral Fvkk emphasized that they are not an anti-Christian band; they do not critique Christian dogma or faith as a whole, but rather specific manifestations of the Church as an institution.
Given this approach, doom metal — a genre arguably closer to liturgical or ceremonial music than to extreme metal — was chosen as the most fitting vehicle for critiquing the Church’s documented crimes. While the band’s name itself embodies a form of dark satire, their follow-up, Indecent Idols, continues and further develops the melodic richness and solemn emotional depth of the debut.
I approached Fvneral Fvkk for guidance, and Decanus Obscaenus (guitars) alongside Cantor Cinaedicus (vocals) answered my call.
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Hi reverend ones! How does your sacred work go? What’s going on in Fvneral Fvkk’s artistic cell?
DO: Thank you for having us as guests at your audience again. I think we’re all pretty tired and worn out at the moment, at least I am. Producing an album is always exhausting — not just the music itself and the processes involved in the actual work, but even more to all the work surrounding it. There are just so many steps and tasks that have to be taken care of before everything is finally “finished.” On the other hand, it’s also nice to now just wait for the moment when the album will finally be available for everyone to hear.
What was the most challenging part of producing the album? And did you have any time-frame set by the label?
DO: I think there were two major challenges. First, it was really challenging to live up to my own expectations of the music, especially given how well our debut album was received. I don’t think I was the only one in the band who felt that way. Everything we came up with had to go through a pretty rigorous test. There were moments when we said to ourselves, “If it comes anywhere close to Carnal Confessions, that would be great.”
The second challenge was the discussions within the band. Working on a piece of music with five people can be pretty exhausting, and we tended to be very critical of everything we did. That can become quite draining over time.
It’s good that we did that interview six (?) years ago, so we can skip all the basic questions. Yet, what did you do as Fvneral Fvkk since the release of Carnal Confessions in 2019? How did you spend this period as the band?
CC: We were never a band that meets and rehearses on a regular basis. We usually only do that, when there’s an occasion like an upcoming gig, a songwriting session or something similar. Fortunately, even after all this time, people still seemed interested in seeing us live, which we are really grateful for. Apart from playing gigs here and there, we shared and collected some new musical ideas and lyrical topics, but did not seriously work on anything. Nevertheless, we were always in contact with each other, since we play together in other bands, meet at concerts, or simply talk or do stuff together in our free time.
So, there aren’t bigger ambitions besides recording a proper doom metal album, isn’t it?
CC: No, not really. The main drive for me has always been to create music and lyrics that I like and share the process and the outcome with other people. I do not know for sure, but I assume it is similar for the other bandmembers. Of course it is very nice to be acknowledged, get positive feedback and play for larger crowds and we are grateful when it happens. But let’s be honest, if we were in it for commercial success, we surely would not be playing Doom Metal with that image and that bandname.
Was there a turning point when some of you realized that it’s time to bring back Fvneral Fvkk to activity and continue the band’s mission?
DO: It never really felt like the band was on a break. We were always playing live, even though not particularly often, so we always kept things going. Behind the scenes, I was also constantly collecting material and basically building up the pool of ideas. I always have riffs and melodies floating around in my head, which then get worked out to varying degrees. At some point, there was a clear feeling that it was time to make another album. That’s when we started working on it more seriously.
You released the debut album through Solitude Productions (CD) and Bleeding Heart Nihilist Productions. How smooth was your collaboration with Dying Victims? I bet that there was no chance to work with Solitude as they had to stop almost any activity.
DO: Yes, you’ve got that right. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Solitude has simply been unable to operate. On top of that, we wanted to take a step in a different direction, and Dying Victims has a lot of great bands on its roster.
Since I was already in touch with Florian through my podcast, I simply reached out to him, and he showed interest very quickly. After a phone call, pretty much everything was settled and discussed, and we’re absolutely happy with how the collaboration has been going. It just feels good to get a response within a short time and to discuss things briefly and straightforwardly.
The tape version of Indecent Idols will be released a little later through Bleeding Heart Nihilist, which we’re also really happy about. By the way, anyone with a taste for unusual releases should definitely check out their shop!
By the way, I understand that you’re serious in your sarcastic approach to the topics you have raised in the lyrics. But do you see it as a mission indeed? As an instrument to tell people these stories of real crimes the Church committed against children?
CC: Mission is a too strong word for it. It’s not like we founded this band explicitly to throw a light on the crimes of the church. Creating music still is the most important incentive for us. But the concept, especially the lyrical themes evolved in a way, that today, we indeed hope they can be an instrument to raise awareness for those topics. The church has covered up so much shit unpunished and deserves criticism on so many levels. We know that we are just a small band without a wide reach and, as I said, we are not on a crusade. But if a few people are inspired by us to think a little more critically about the Church or organized religion in general, that’s cool.
You used a kind of documentary samples in Indecent Idols, are they real? Where are they from?
DO: The song “A Hidden Threnody” deals with the cases of abuse that took place in the Australian Diocese of Ballarat during the 1970s and 1980s. Church authorities repeatedly moved perpetrators to other parishes, while the accounts of the children and young people who had been abused were ignored in an effort to protect the reputation of the Church. The interview excerpt heard at the beginning and end of the song is a real recording from a deposition by Robert Carlson, the former Archbishop of St. Louis in the United States. It is not from the Ballarat investigation itself, but illustrates the same problem of denying any guilt or responsibility.
Do you see Fvneral Fvkk out of this concept? And did you search to keep it during your work on Indecent Idols?
CC: No, we don’t see FF out of this concept. We have had it since our debut EP and there was never any discussion of dropping it for Indecent Idols. I think, musically FF would also work without our conceptional frame. But our topics and the way we present them add an emotional depth that is special in a way. Although we intentionally kept many components consistent (like the robes, pseudonyms, artwork styles, etc.), there has been a slight evolution in other parts, especially the lyrics. In the beginning, there was just the basic idea of “Hey, let’s do a venomous satire, where we portray perverted priests.” But over time, we came in contact with more and more real abuse cases, thus our approach became more serious and thoughtful.
So do you believe that you’ll be able to record an album or a few relying on the same concept? I wonder if it’s possible to avoid self-copying in such situation… But we have legions of bands praising Winter Storms ™ or Infernal Hordes ™, so it’s hardly a problem in a wider scale.
CC: Unfortunately, I cannot give you a definitive answer to that. On the one hand, the sheer number of misdeeds within the organized christian church would yield enough material for many more albums with the same concept. On the other hand, the words and perspectives to portray that concept are limited, so self-copying is a possible risk. It is way too early to think about another album and maybe there will never be one. We do not plan that out in advance, so let’s see what time brings.
You can pass this question if you want, I can understand, because with all freedoms and tolerance and other civilized trends, everyone knows how far tolerance spreads in such fields indeed. I mean that not only the Christian Church commits crimes against its flock and children especially. Can we say that it’s safe to criticize Christianity and it’s unsafe to criticize others?
DO: Quite the opposite, actually. I think it’s a really interesting and completely valid question. Of course, there are similar cases in other religions or cultural communities, and in a way it could be interesting to step outside the familiar territory. But for me, there’s a strong sense that I’d be putting myself in a position where I’m not really entitled to be. I’m not part of those communities, so I don’t feel I can speak about them in the same way.
All of us in the band grew up and were shaped by predominantly Christian environments, so it makes sense for us to direct our criticism towards that particular cultural sphere. I’d find it presumptuous to apply the same concept to other groups when I don’t really have the perspective or background to judge them properly. And apart from that, there’s also the danger that presenting a concept like this in relation to other cultural or religious groups could very quickly come across as racist. That’s obviously something we would consider completely wrong and unacceptable.
Thanks for the answer, it sounds reasonable. Did you receive negative feedback regarding Fvneral Fvkk’s concept from your surroundings or relatives?
DO: Not really. Most people around me either see it in a positive light or simply don’t care. Even my relatives, at least those who know about the band, have no problem with it. Even genuinely religious people in my circle understand what we’re doing.
At its core, it’s a vicious satire of the inexcusable depths of what happens and has happened within the Church. And at the risk of repeating myself, we’re criticizing the Church as an institution and an established structure, not faith itself.
Personally, I have no problem with someone believing in God and seeing that as their own personal truth. What I find puzzling, though, is why some people feel the need for an overarching institution like the Church and are willing to submit to it. The cracks in the whole structure are surely too obvious to simply look the other way.
I believe that the Doom Shall Rise festival took place in the military church building, Pantheist performed with live organ in church as well; Funeral probably and a few more. Did you have an opportunity to perform your anticlerical doom metal in a church as well? Would it be a better place to make a statement? At least they have better acoustics.
CC: We have never had the opportunity to play in a church, although that would be nice. I do not think it would be a better place to make a statement, but it would probably enhance the atmosphere of what we are portraying in a very fitting way. On the other hand, I played in a big church many years ago and the acoustic was awful. Cathedral reverb is a good enhancement for vocals, but I imagine for a whole band you’d have to have a good live mixer in a big hall or everything is just gonna sound muddy.
How far do you feel you strayed from Carnal Confessions’ sound with Indecent Idols? Did you search for any changes at all?
DO: We’re still very happy with the sound of Carnal Confessions, so we used the sound and the recording approach of that album as a kind of blueprint for the new one. Unfortunately, our producer from back then is no longer working in the field, so we had to look for someone to take over. Luckily, we found exactly the right person for the job in Jens Ballaschke. He really likes Carnal Confessions himself and could immediately see how we could build on what we had done back then.
Of course, we didn’t want to simply recreate the same sound. The idea was to take that approach and develop it further and bring it up to date. During the recording process, we realized that this approach really paid off. Some decisions actually came quite naturally. For example, we ended up using exactly the same guitar setup as on the previous album, simply because it worked perfectly again and gave us the same kind of feeling we were looking for. We got a lot of positive feedback on the sound of our debut album, so there was definitely some pressure to maintain that level. I think we managed to do that — and maybe we’ve even grown a little bit beyond it this time.
How did this recording session differ, and was it differently organized?
CC: There were a few differences to the last recordings. With the new producer naturally came a new studio. The studio of our former producer was quite small. We could only record on weekends and were very rarely present all at once, because there was not enough space. Jens lives in a village outside of Hamburg and built a studio in his basement.
We recorded the new album on approximately ten consecutive days and although not everyone was present for every step of the way the studio is spacious enough for the whole band to be there for important steps. It also has a guest room, which enabled me to stay over night two times, thus sparing me from the Hamburg traffic fuck-ups and being a little more relaxed before recording vocals. Last but not least, we often enjoyed home-cooked meals courtesy of Jens’ girlfriend, which we were very grateful for. Thanks again for the great experience, Mareike and Jens!
Sounds good — I didn’t hear stories like that for awhile! Most of the time bands nowadays use a more utilitarian approach, and I wonder how many can afford themselves a studio with a guest-room. And home studios is another thing. Didn’t you think to record everything at home?
CC: Not for a second. Past experiences have shown that money invested in the right studio is absolutely worth it. We probably know enough about recording to record something okay sounding, but we are no professionals in that field, so the outcome would never be a great sound.
Of course a real studio alone is no guarantee, you can burn a lot of money and end up with something unsatisfying. Likewise, it is perfectly possible to achieve a good sound with homerecording, if you know what you’re doing. But in our experience, a good and trusted producer, who understands what you want to achieve, is immensely helpful. Moreover, it enables you to focus on just being a musician and takes away the stress of recording, cutting, mixing and dealing with technical fuckups.
I guess that we can tell that the main band for Fvneral Fvkk’s members is Ophis, and its new release should happen really soon too. Don’t you think about combining both events as one release party?
CC: The release parties for the new FF and Ophis albums are only a week apart and both take place in our “home”-club, Bambi Galore in Hamburg. We kept them separate, so that each band and release will have its own spotlight and special occasion. Moreover, it is demanding to play two gigs on one evening for those members that are in both bands. We have done gigs with multiple of our bands on the same evening in the past and it is not ruled out for the future. But it is something that you can and do not want to do too often.
Will you support any of these releases with a mini-tour or series of gigs? Which of the two bands has a better chance to play a solo gig?
DO: We’re not planning a full tour at the moment. For now, it’s more about individual shows and the occasional weekend run — that’s about all our schedules allow at the moment. I think the two bands are pretty close to each other in terms of size, but we do appeal to somewhat different audiences. There’s obviously a fair amount of overlap because of the broader DOOM label, but even the way we approach our live shows is quite different.
Will you join any doom festivals this year or in 2027? Are there any confirmed events?
So far, the only proper doom festival for next year is DoomShip, which takes place in our hometown around the middle of the year. I can wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone. Besides us, the lineup includes FUNERALIUM, THRONEHAMMER, ENNUI, ESOTERIC, and many more. The venue is an enormous old fishing trawler, filled with corridors, machinery, and all sorts of equipment. It has an incredibly atmospheric feel to it and is absolutely worth checking out. A truly unique setting for a doom festival!
What are your further plans for the rest of 2026?
DO: There isn’t actually much left on our schedule for 2026. We only have two more regular shows planned for the rest of the year. We do, however, have two special events coming up around the album release. The first is a listening session at Plattenkiste, a record store in Hamburg, on October 23rd, which is the actual release day. Then, on November 29th, we’ll be playing a special matinee show at Bambi Galore in Hamburg together with Ascian and High Warden. We thought it would be fun to give the whole thing a little funeral atmosphere, so there’ll also be coffee and cake afterwards — basically our own little version of a traditional funeral reception.
By the way, I didn’t listen to High Warden yet, and need to check them. So… that’s all gents. Thank you for the interview, it was a pleasure. One last thing – who will cook the cake for this special event? And how many persons may expect that they’ll get their piece?
DO: Thanks, it was a lot of fun answering your questions and looking beyond our usual horizons a little.
We’ll be baking the cake ourselves, hopefully with a little help from friends. So it’s all truly DIY, just as it should be. Advance ticket sales are already looking really good, so I’d recommend getting there early if you want to get a big slice. But then again, it’s a Sunday, so surely everyone will have time to pay us an early visit after church.
https://www.dyingvictims.com
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