AN NCS INTERVIEW: VOIDCEREMONY

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Jun 022023
 

(In the following new interview Comrade Aleks spoke with Garrett Johnson (a/k/a Wandering Mind), guitarist/vocalist of the international band VoidCeremony, whose newest album Threads of Unknowing was released in April of this year by 20 Buck Spin.)

Californian prog-death/black-metal outfit VoidCeremony was formed by Garrett Johnson and Jon Reider in the summer of 2013, and now after a few line-up changes the band consists of Wandering Mind (guitars, vocals), C. Koryn (drums), The Great Righteous Destroyer (bass), and Hyperborean Apparition (guitars, vocals).

There’s nothing impossible now, and thanks to Metal-Archives we can figure out that Wandering Mind is Garrett himself. C. Koryn is Charles Koryn who’s known for his drumming in bands like Ascended Dead, Ghoulgotha, Vrent, and more. The Great Righteous Destroyer is Damon Good himself, the founder of one of the oldest Australian funeral doom bands – Mournful Congregation (as well as Cauldron Black Ram and Stargazer) — and that fact makes VoidCeremony an international project, as well as the residence of Hyperborean Apparition, who’s Philippe Allaire-Tougas, “multi-instrumentalist, producer, recording engineer, and guitar teacher” from Canada. He performs with Chthe’ilist, First Fragment, and more.

As you see, here we have a bunch of prolific and talented musicians performing a different kind of extreme metal, and if you heard VoidCeremony’s debut Entropic Reflections Continuum: Dimensional Unravel (2020), then you know where they can lead. The band’s sophomore album Threads of Unknowing was released on the 14th of April and it won’t disappoint fans of intelligent progressive extreme music.

These deconstructive tunes of primordial (crawling) chaos aren’t something you need to talk about but rather to experience, and yet we tried to discuss the  contrasting sonic canvases of Threads of Unknowing with Garrett. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: DROTT

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Jun 012023
 

(Karina Noctum has brought us the following interview with two members of the Norwegian band Drott, whose fascinating new album was released not long ago on the label of By Norse Music.)

Drott’s latest album, Troll, left me with the impression of having listened to something unique, and that does not happen too often in the metal world, quite frankly. Drott have an eclectic blend of musical influences. Some of the songs are framed in what can be a pretty dark and cold Norwegian atmosphere, which is something I cherish as a black metal fan. You could not have expected otherwise from a band that features Ivar Thormodsæter (Ulver), Arve Isdal (Enslaved) and Matias Monsen.

In this interview we get interesting insights from Arve and Matias. At the time of this interview the album was set to be released on May 19th, and is out now.

Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: FALL OF THE IDOLS

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May 242023
 

(In this interview Comrade Aleks communicated with two original members of the Finnish doom band Fall of the Idols, which returned from a long hiatus with a new album in 2022, and appear to have one more album in them before bringing the band to a final end.)

Finnish doom metal band Fall of the Idols was born in 2000. They progressed slowly towards the point when their first full-length albums The Womb of the Earth (2006) and The Seance (2008) were complete. Their tragic and pretty traditional worship to the Doom Cult reached its catharsis with the third album Solemn Verses (2012), but it was released a year after the suicide of the band’s drummer Hannu Weckman, who was a huge creative force alongside the other members.

Ten years ago Fall of the Idols said that they had enough material for one more album and that it would be the last one in their discography. Years passed but nothing happened until November 2022 when I Hate Records released it – the band’s fourth full-length, Contradictory Notes.

We tried to do this interview back in 2022 but it took some time, so forgive us for this welter, there was no better choice. These songs were recorded by the band’s original members Vesa Karppinen (bass), Jyrki Hakomäki (drums, vocals), Rami Moilanen (guitars), and Jouni Sihvonen (guitars) (also you can hear Hannu Weckman‘s drums in the first track “Vicissitudes”), and we have two of them tonight. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: NEXORUM

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May 232023
 

(Late last week Non Serviam Records released a new album by the Norwegian blackened death machine Nexorum, which our writer DGR reviewed here today, and now we also present Comrade Aleks‘ interview of the band.)

The essence of pure primordial evil shines from Trondheim’s underground. Nexorum is a tight extreme unit formed in 2019 by Vidar Lehmann (drums), Wizziac (bass), Roger Isaksen (guitars), Frank Løberg (guitars), and Terje Olsen (vocals). The four of Nexorum had honed their blasphemous skills for years in local bands, including a few pretty famous names. They were absolutely focused, and naturally the first full-length album Death Unchained appeared in 2020 on Non Serviam Records.

The bond and understanding between the band and the label were tight and the sophomore album Tongue of Thorns was set for release by Non Serviam Records on the 19th of May. “Cult of the Monolith”, “Eldritch Abominations”, “Mother of Ghouls”! Why wouldn’t we support the band like this? And here we go. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: TILINTETGJORT

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May 172023
 


photo by Carl Eek

(The Norwegian black metal band Tilintetgjort made quite an impressive full-length debut in late March of this year with their album In Death I Shall Arise on Dark Essence Records, and followed that the next month with a performance at Inferno Metal Festival in Oslo. It seemed like a good time for Karina Noctum to reach out to the band for an interview — which now follows.)

Tilintetgjort from Oslo bring a fresh approach to the scene by blending their own musical perspectives with the traditional Norwegian Black Metal sound in their solid debut album In Death I Shall Arise. In this interview they gave us we not only talk about their new album, but also get some insights into its recording and production at Chaka Khan Studio (Darkthrone, Nekromantheon).

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What’s the meaning of the band’s name and why was it chosen?

Tilintetgjort is Norwegian for “Annihilated”, or literally “Made Into Nothing”. We felt it reflected our music very well, this concept of destruction, the way all things must end and die. Something has to disappear for something else to grow. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: THY CATAFALQUE

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May 162023
 

(We have been devoted fans of Thy Catafalque for a very long time, and the band’s new album Alföld has only strengthened our ardor [see the review here]. And so today we are very happy to present Comrade Aleks‘ interview of Tamás Kátai in advance of the new album’s June 16 release by Season of Mist.)

Thy Catafalque celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. It started as the duo of Tamás Kátai and János Juhász, who were highly enthusiastic towards black metal with an avant-garde edge, and it took just a bit before Thy Catafalque established their own unique blend formed by elements taken from different genres and sub-genres, from extreme metal to electronic and folk music.

Years passed, and the band turned into Tamás’ solo project, but he managed only to sharpen his skills and it seems that he never suffers from a lack of ideas. Alföld is Thy Catafalque’s forthcoming eleventh album. It’s still unique and unpredictable but you can already form an impression about its direction if you check Season of Mist’s Bandcamp and find there three new songs: “A csend hegyei”, “Testen túl”, and “N​é​ma vermek”.

Recorded in Budapest with a dozen guest vocalists and musicians, it turns out to be one of most exciting releases in the metal underground. Tamás reveals a few secrets behind Alföld and the project’s current status. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: OLKOTH

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May 152023
 

(The South Carolina black/death metal band Olkoth are awaiting the release of their debut album At The Eye Of Chaos by Everlasting Spew Records on the 26th of May, and today we present Comrade Aleks‘ interview of the band’s guitarist/vocalist Zach Jeter.)

Everlasting Spew Records has released some great new albums which the NCS crew has covered here. And now it’s the turn of Olkoth.

The band from Columbia, South Carolina was formed in 2017 by Zach Jeter (guitars, vocals) and drummer Apollyon Baphomet (Vance Jeffcoat). Apollyion died of cystic fibrosis the same year, and Zach started to gather a new lineup to keep the band active. The lineup was stable after Demo (2019) and the single Eidolon in the Flames (2021) were released, and now Olkoth consists of Zach, Hunter Ross (guitars), and Alex Rush (bass, vocals). This trio recorded the full-length album At the Eye of Chaos together with guest drummer Krzysztof Klingbein, and the release date is set on the 26th of May.

This embodiment of foul blackened death metal gets closer every day and our duty is to warn you of its unavoidable arrival. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: OAK

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May 092023
 

Photo by Catarina Rocha

(In February of this year Season of Mist released a mournful maelstrom of an album by the Portuguese atmospheric death/doom band Oak, and in the following interview Comrade Aleks discussed the accomplishment with Oak drummer Pedro Soares.)

Oak is a Portuguese duet founded in 2018 by drummer Pedro Soares and singing guitarist Guillermo Enriquez. The duet quickly recorded an impressive debut full-length Lone, with the four tracks included in the album sounding at the junction of atmospheric death-doom and funeral doom metal. The name of their new album, Disintegrate, corresponds to the name of the only, forty-five-minute, composition, which oddly enough was represented by two singles – four- and seven-minute excerpts — posted a couple of months before the release.

A one-track doom album is nothing new in itself, but Disintegrate is a brave and ingenious piece, and we made an attempt to dissect it together with Pedro. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: CULT OF EIBON

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May 042023
 

(In the following interview our Russian contributor Comrade Aleks caught up with songwriter/instrumentalist Nyogtha from the Greek black metal band Cult of Eibon for what turned into a candid discussion about the band’s inspirations. themes, and principles.)

Hellenic black metal is a thing in itself. The genre which was originally associated with the names of Rotting Christ, Varathron, and Necromantia grew and bloomed with the new bands that have kept Tartarus’ dark flames burning. And so Cult of Eibon has done that.

Being forged in Athens in 2015, this band has never stopped exploring the realms of black metal, moving step by step in their own way. The EPs Fullmoon Invocation (2016) and Lycan Twilight Sorcery (2017) led them to the split with another Greek band, Caedes Cruenta, in 2018. The unholy opus magnum Black Flame Dominion (2021) was a milestone of this way, and the last Cult of Eibon release since then was the Necronomical Mirror Divination split with Ceremonial Torture released in December 2022.

One of the Cult’s founders is Nyogtha (guitars, bass, keyboards, vocals) and he’s involved in four more blackened bands, so you can imagine how busy he is. However Nyogtha found time to answer our questions, and I encourage you to take a look at what Cult of Eibon hides. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: MMXX

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Apr 282023
 

(During the uncertain and unnerving depths of the pandemic lockdown three experienced musicians from different sides of the Atlantic joined forces to create MMXX, and during the last 18 months Candlelight Records has released their debut album and a follow-on EP. These prompted Comrade Aleks to reach out for the following extensive interview, which included all three of the band’s members.)

One of the key US melodic death-doom bands, Daylight Dies, has been silent for nearly ten years. And to my surprise I’ve found the band’s rhythm section, Egan O’Rourke (bass) and Jesse Haff (drums), in the company of Andrea Chiodetti, the former guitarist of the Italian gothic doom band The Foreshadowing. Actually, it was the interview with Mick Moss of Antimatter where I learned about MMXX, as Mick recorded vocals for two songs on MMXX’s album as the guest vocalist.

Andrea, Egan, and Jesse formed this studio project during the Covid quarantine and it resulted in the full-length album Sacred Cargo released in November 2022, where guys were accompanied by ten guest musicians, including violin and cello players. The other eight guests are vocalists, and among them you’ll find not only Mick but also such names as Aaron Stainthorpe (My Dying Bride), Mikko Kotamäki (Swallow the Sun), and more. Together they recorded the inspiring album Sacred Cargo and the following EP The Next Wave came out on the 14th of April.

Andrea, Egan, and Jesse tell the MMXX story tonight. Continue reading »

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