AN NCS INTERVIEW: ALEX SCHENKELS (YAMA) — “STONER THAT KILLS THE EGO AND HELPS REACH ENLIGHTENMENT”

 Interviews  1 Response »
Feb 262015
 

 

(In this post our Russian contributor Comrade Aleks interviews Alex Schenkels, vocalist of the Dutch psychedelic doom/stoner band Yama.)

Yama have been playing their heavy and driving stoner for about five years, but their first full-length album Ananta was released only at the end of 2014. It was worth waiting for it — a bunch of strong, highly energetic, and catchy songs that evoke no less enthusiasm than the new works of more famous bands. Yet I don’t want to waste your time with a long foreword, ’cause Yama’s frontman Alex Schenkels is already here.

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Hail Alex! You have released Yama’s grand debut about a month ago. How long did the band work for this release?

Hail Aleks! Yeah, Ananta has finally found its way to the public. It’s been quite a long process to be honest. We recorded Ananta approximately 1.5  years ago. Due to many factors the release got postponed several times. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: CHRISTIAN DRAGHI (DOCTOR CYCLOPS) — “SURREALISTIC VISIONS OF MANKIND’S OBSCENITY”

 Interviews  2 Responses »
Feb 232015
 

 

(Our Russian contributor Comrade Aleks returns with this interview of Christian Draghi, vocalist/guitarist of Italy’s Doctor Cyclops.)

Take the map of Italy and find the small town Vaghera in Lombardy. Do you see it? It’s there in the North… Yes, that’s right. It’s a place where the Maserati Brothers were born, four gentlemen who created what has become one of the world’s best luxury sports cars for a long time. But today this place is more interesting for us because of Doctor Cyclops; they’re a trio who have been playing pretty original retro doom rock since 2007. Their songs have a unique Italian touch – some prog elements, something from the atmosphere of Argento movies, and something elusive and really fresh. And they are not as simple as one might think.

I had this interview with Christian Draghi (guitars, vocals), and we discussed their two albums Borgofondo and Oscuropasso. After that I have even more respect for the band. So here he comes – Doctor Cyclops. Continue reading »

REINO ERMITAÑO: “CONJUROS DE PODER”

 Album Reviews  4 Responses »
Feb 172015
 

 

(Comrade Aleks, whose name is usually seen in our pages because of the interviews he delivers, has now brought us a review of a most interesting album by the Peruvian band Reino Ermitaño.)

Peruvian shamans of traditional doom Reino Ermitaño have a consistent approach to their work throughout, and they’re always loyal to their roots and folk traditions. I think that is one of reasons why, step by step, the band have created stable and quality stuff since 2001, improving their skills and succeeding with new, authentic records. Reino Ermitaño’s last album Conjuros de Poder was released in autumn 2014 on the band’s own label Ogro Records right before the start of their European tour.

The title of the album translates as “Spells of Power”, and they’re not empty words. For those who hear the band’s name for the first time, I need to tell that the key elements of Reino Ermitaño’s music are heavy, doomy riffs, highly enthusiastic and profound guitar solos, the strong and seditious vocals of Tania Duarte, who sings in Spanish, and lyrics on mystical topics enhanced by elements of tribal melodies and rituals. But first of all, Reino Ermitaño play doom. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: SCOTTY SIMPSON (BENEATH OBLIVION)

 Interviews  1 Response »
Feb 092015
 

 

(Our Russian contributor Comrade Aleks brings us this interview of Scotty Simpson, vocalist/guitarist of Ohio’s Beneath Oblivion.)

It’s time to dig out this piece of doomy sludge! Beneath Oblivion (Ohio, USA) have been in business since 2003. This band isn’t hyperactive, as they have only two full-length records so far – Existence Without Purpose (2006) and From Man to Dust (2011). But Scotty T. Simpson (guitars, vocals) sent me an e-mail with the good news of some new songs that Beneath Oblivion is working on. Do you need some violent, maniacal, and depressive tunes? Scotty has a few ones for you.

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Hi Scotty, how are you? What’s the weather in Cincinnati?

Hi Aleks! I’m doing alright as of late; been playing a lot of doom metal lately, and that has a way of pushing all of the negativity out of my system… The weather here is snowy today, and it could be warm tomorrow. Cincinnati is always up and down, never consistent.

 

Hah, do you always play doom when you feel negative vibrations? And what do you do when you have no chance to play but you really NEED to push this negative stuff out?

Haha. I wish I could play doom metal whenever I feel negative vibrations… but I don’t always have an amp and guitar right next to me. Fortunately, I probably could just scream my head off whenever I feel that way, but people would think I’m totally nuts, which I may well be. What I do is let that build up and go to the stage, studio, or rehearsal space with said energy and put it out that way. If I don’t get to put out that energy, crank up an amp, and scream my head off, I can turn into a real manic depressive asshole. My girlfriend will usually let me know if it get’s to that point and tell me to get the fuck out of the apartment and into the rehearsal space. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: MARKUS STOCK (THE VISION BLEAK)

 Interviews  1 Response »
Jan 282015
 

 

(Comrade Aleks interviews Markus Stock of the German band The Vision Bleak, among others.)

If you like really dark and mystic metal, then you should certainly know the German project The Vision Bleak, a duo of Markus Stock and Allen B. Konstantz. They boldly explore a world of myths and horrors, writing album after album; the fifth full-length record Witching Hour was released in 2013, and I felt a need to know if the band had plans for something new for us.

Markus is also a mastermind of the forest-influenced band Empyrium, and an honorable member of post-black-metal project Eudaimony; it was obvious that he had a lot of things he could tell us about. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: JARMO NUUTRE (ODOTA)

 Interviews  4 Responses »
Jan 122015
 

Odota — photo by Berit Lamp

 (Comrade Aleks brings us this interview with Jarmo Nuutre (Blood Pavilion, Hjem, Skull Trading, ex-Talbot) whose new solo project is named Odota.)

 

Odota is a new experimental black metal project of Jarmo Nuutre, who took part in the massive Estonian duet Talbot till 2013. Jarmo has decided to concentrate on his solo career, so he plays all instruments on Odota’s first release Fever Marshal. Subjectively, as a person who is not the biggest fan of black art, I got this stuff, and if you need a reason to pay attention to this record, then here’s an interview with Jarmo.

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Hail Jarmo! I’m glad that we have a chance to talk, but let me start our interview with the predictable question about leaving Talbot. Let us clarify it at once – is it time to speak about the reasons and is there any chance that you will return?

Hi there, Aleksey!

Well, the main reason for leaving Talbot was that I wanted to focus on my solo stuff once again. Odota, Blood Pavilion, Skull Trading, etc., Hjem too, although I’m not alone there — there’s a singer as well.

Over the years I’ve actually left different bands for the sake of my own projects, so I guess I’m not really good “band-material”. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: ALCO TONY (PRESSOR)

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Jan 092015
 

 

(Our Russian contributor Comrade Aleks brings us this interview with Alco Tony of the Russian stoner/sludge band Pressor.)

Let me introduce you to a sludge’n’stoner band from the far-away and ancient Russian city of Kostroma – Pressor is its name. The guys have absorbed all the necessary elements of this dirty genre, so Pressor’s way lies through murky and ugly swamps of narcotic nightmares and most horrific dreams. Anton Khmelevskij aka Alco Tony reveals the sacred ancient obscure occult knowledge of Pressor. Alright now!

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Hello! What do our readers need to know about Pressor?

The main thing is to keep yourself together and not get into postmodernism. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: SAMI RAUTIO (MY SHAMEFUL)

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Jan 072015
 

 

(Our Russian contributor Comrade Aleks returns with another interview.  This time he talks with Sami Rautio of the band My Shameful, whose sixth album Hollow was released last fall by Moscow Funeral League Records.)

My Shameful is a pretty extreme death doom / funeral product of bitter and hateful inspirations from the daily life of its mastermind Sami Rautio. Its line-up has changed through the time, but mostly My Shameful works as a trio with Sami (vocals, guitars, keyboards) at the helm, Jürgen Frohling on drums, and Twist as the bass-guitarist.

The band’s followers got a full-length album Penance in 2013 after five years of silence; but Sami and the crew didn’t want to waste their time and they returned with the next record Hollow in 2014, and soon after that My Shameful took part in the split-album The Symmetry of Grief with Russian band Who Dies In Siberian Slush. Is it too much? That’s a good question, and I needed to ask Sami himself to know the answer. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: ECHOES OF YUL

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Dec 192014
 


(Comrade Aleks brings us this interview of Michał Śliwa of the Polish atmospheric doom band Echoes of Yul.)

Echoes of Yul (Opole, Poland) was started as an instrumental doom project with some experimental influences that give their first self-titled album some unique and strange atmosphere. Time has passed, and with each new release Echoes of Yul became stranger and more eclectic. Their second LP brought even more researches with dark electric sound and haunting samples, so I was not surprised that their EP Tether came with a bunch of remixes amidst a few new tracks. Even the name of the new drone-like track “Asemic”, which was included in a 2014 split-CD by Echoes Of Yul and Thaw, means “a wordless writing”, as the project remains an instrumental one. But Michał, the man behind Echoes, has some words to share, so we did this interview a couple of days ago.

 

Salute Michal! What’s going on in a life of Echoes of Yul? Did the sales of your last album “Tether” go well enough?

Hello Aleksey. Echoes of Yul is very busy – as always. I am recording and arranging a new album, doing remix work etc. In September I released a split album with Thaw on the Instant Classic label.

Regarding the sales of “Tether” I’m not sure whether Zoharum Records are satisfied with the results. I am aware that it is niche music with a small number of listeners, and it’s a good thing that Zoharum is rather a  child of love to music than a business venue, so I haven’t heard any complaints. But you know in a wider view streaming music, downloads, etc. is slowly killing small labels. I totally respect their passion to increase their catalogue with new bands. They put a lot of effort and cash into promoting, packaging, and discovering hidden treasures. Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: MONTENEGRO — “COSMIC JOURNEY OF ROCK GAUCHOS”

 Interviews  No Responses »
Nov 202014
 

 

(Comrade Aleks returns to NCS with an interview of Luciano Marchisio, bass player for the Argentinian band Montenegro.)

Montenegro is a psychedelic stoner band from Argentina who mix a bunch of unusual musical and conceptual elements in their songs. Their first full-length album Confusos Recuerdos Después Del Coma has shown the band’s best as of 2013, but a few months ago Montenegro took part in split-album with Russian psychedelic band The Grand Astoria that reaches new heights in their explorations.

Their new epic track “El Matadero” (“Slaughterhouse”) perfectly holds the main motive of this split-release, complementing the musical conception of their Russian mates and evolving their own ideas in new ways. Luciano Marchisio (bass) represents Montenegro today for our readers and tells us the story of four gauchos from Argentina.

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