1. First of all I’d like you to fill us in on
what’s happening in the ACID DEATH camp at the moment.
Hello and thank you for this presentation! Yes,
ACID DEATH are back after 11 years without an official release. “Eidolon” CD is
out since June 1st. At the moment we are preparing the live appearances in
Greece for next season. Things seem to be in a right way and a lot of work has
to be done.
1. Hello. How are you?
Which is the news from the CONCRETE SWINE camp at the moment?
Doing fine, thank you.
No news is good news. At the moment we are working on some new stuff and
planning some gigs for the future. There it is on a nutshell. Our hammond
player Tomi Korpela also joined in as a permanent member, so we are also
excited about that.
1. Hello!
You are back with a new E.P. entitled “Brezhnev's Cocktail”. How do you feel
about it? Which are your expectations from it?
Hey, what’s
up? Well, we hope that the new stuff is better and we can get more people to
listen our music. We have realistic expectations and we don’t have big rock
star dreams or stupid shit like that.
1.
Hello! How are you? You will soon release your new album entitled “Pentagram”.
How do you feel about it? Are you anxious to see how the metal fans will
receive it?
Hi
Nick. I'm doing better than ever. You're right, our fifth album is just around
the corner. Actually it's been ready for quite some time but it took a while to
figure out how to best release it. The reason to why it felt extra important to
do everything right this time is because this album kicks ass from here to
eternity. I'm not anxious about how the fans will receive it. I'm more curious
about which songs turn out to be the most popular. In my book they are all
favorites.
2.
Three years have passed since the release of your previous album, so why did it
take you so long and how have these 3 years affected you as musicians and as a
band?
I
have spent a lot of time figuring out how to leave the old dying music business
behind and go my own way. I simply couldn't find any motivation whatsoever to
release more music through the old channels. I could think of so many other,
less expensive and more fun, ways to destroy CDs. I tried an axe, gasoline, a
tractor, dynamite and a really angry elephant. They all worked as good as our
previous labels. I have developed a lot during this period. I think the main
reason is because I have done a lot of thinking. It's been very good for me as
a song writer and also in my private life. But I was far from inactive during
this time of soul-searching. For example; I hooked up with a German band with
which I have toured the world twice during this period. I did write the
upcoming album that will be released on the 21st of May - and I started my own
company Dark Minstrel Music. I also recorded a couple of other albums and just
recently I wrote and produced the song “Let's Unite in Rock” for Metal For
Cancer. It might seem like it was a long time since you heard from me, but I
have kept pretty busy as you can see.
3.
From the little that I have listened to your new album, I think that it has a
darker and heavier approach. Am I right? Which are the new elements that you
introduced to your music with this new release?
Yes,
it's a lot darker and pretty damn heavy. New elements? Well, that's a question
I don't know how to answer other than abstract. I'd say we added some extra
darkness and made it about 75% more evil. Then we took away most sunshine and
blackened the light that remained. Basically I would say that this album is back
to the roots of the metal I grew up with. The production is more analogue-like
and we have avoided pushing the levels through the roof. We trusted the power
and energy to come from our performance instead of a lot of studio magic. Large
parts of the album are first takes by real musicians playing real music. I'm
tired of hearing productions that are cut to pieces, glued together, sampled to
death and then auto-tuned. Those kinds of productions might sound “perfect” in
the mathematical meaning of the word, but are boring as hell. We have never
used much of that stuff in the past, but it felt like the time had come to step
even further away from this artificial way of making music. I mean, we have a
really great band – why should we hide that? I'm very happy with the results.
4.
I believe that “Pentagram” is a concept album. Can you give us an idea of what
we should expect lyrically from this new release?
I'm
not sure what a concept album is. But I know that it's very smart to say it is,
because that sells more albums. So 'yes', this is definitely a concept album...
hahaha. But seriously, I think I understand your angle. It has a clear red
thread going through the album. It deals quite a bit with spiritualistic
thinking - and pentagram-ish ideas are addressed more than once. I don't want
to say too much because that would ruin people's own interpretation of the
songs. Good lyrics have the ability to touch something personal if allowed to.
That's part of the magic I think.
5.
In the beginning heavy metal music had a lot to do with the devil and the
pentagrams in general, but somehow lately bands seem to avoid that (even the
black metal bands). Why do you think this happened?
Maybe
they became parents and are afraid to scare their children.... hahaha. I don't
know. And basically I don't care. I still write about the devil and pentagrams
when I feel like it. The music dictates the lyrics. I have written songs that
include clowns, witches, religion, humor, sorrow, hate, love and so much more.
Anything goes if dressed properly for the occasion.
6.
I see that almost all the members of EVIL MASQUERADE participate in other bands
too. Can we say that EVIL MASQUERADE is a kind of project band?
Not
at all. EVIL MASQUERADE is high priority for all of us. After all, we've been
around since 2003 and the current lineup played together for the first time
already back in 2005. That's 7 years this year. Dennis and I have been here
since the very beginning. Apollo said it very true backstage just recently;
There's something magical with this lineup.
7.
What I always liked about you is this theatrical touch that you have in your
sound. So, have you ever thought of making some kind of metal opera or adding
some theatrical acts on stage?
I
have thought about it sometimes, but not enough for it to happen. I think it
feels somewhat pretentious when metal bands are doing “metal operas”. It takes
more than a couple of sopranos and an orchestral sample library to make an
opera. It doesn't really work for me. If I were to do it, it would need to be
something never seen before. However, I actually happen to like straight
forward hard rock and heavy metal and I think this is as great and exclusive as
any opera. The theatrical touch you are speaking of will probably always be
present one way or the other. But the music I write is pretty straight forward.
I think the secret lays in good melodies, arrangements and how it is performed.
8.
By the way will you have any guest musicians in your new album?
Nope.
No need to.
9.
Will you do any video – clip in order to promote your new album? If yes which
song will you choose and why?
Yes,
we will release the song “A Silhouette” both as digital single and video. This
song is very memorable and certain to reach a broad audience. It was the
obvious choice for the first single and video.
10.
Are there any plans for live shows? Is it possible to see you for a live show
here in Greece?
Yes,
the first shows are already booked in May. We start in Sweden, then Denmark. We
are very interested in playing in Greece and will come as soon as someone
decides to book us.
11.
What kind of thoughts and feelings do you think your music creates to your
listeners?
That
would be as many different thoughts and feelings as there are listeners. But I
hope they want to hear it again and come to a show.
12.
Is there a phrase you think represents EVIL MASQUERADE? If yes, what would it
be?
Damn
great band.
13.
Thanks for your time answering my questions. I wish you the best of luck! Leave
a message to the readers of our webzine…
We
look forward to coming to Greece as soon as possible. In the meantime, buy a
copy of the album and a couple of Mythos. Εβίβα!
1. Hello
GLORYFUL! How are you? How do you feel now that you see your first official
work released? Are you anxious to see how the metal fans will accept it?
It feels
fantastic to see the Code arrived in the shops and is selling online as well!
We are all just happy reading the most of the part very positive reviews. We
were a little nervous before the release how the reactions of the press will
turn out, but as it seems they all like it!
2. Let me ask
you a few things about the creation of “The Warrior’s Code”. How long did it
take you to compose the songs and which were the difficulties that you had to
confront?
As on this
record we put all the songs we´ve ever written for the band so far, the process
of writing started with the founding of the band which was in the summer 2010.
We recorded nearly all the instruments in different studios, so it took some
months to complete the whole recordings. There was no deadline as we produced
the album before signing the record contract, so we took the time we needed.
The only difficulty was to take some time to record between our regular
necessary jobs and the live-shows.
3. From all
the compositions that you have included in your new album which was the easiest
to compose and which one took you more time and why?
To answer
that question I have to tell you something about the way most of our songs come
up. Usually Johnny comes over with the basic structure by means of the strophe
and chorus riff. The same day we record the guitars in Cubase and add some midi
drums in here and in most of the part we finish the track then directly in case
we find the perfect fitting lead-guitar hookline, bridge and solo-part. In a
next session Johnny is trying some vocal arrangements on the track and
sometimes the whole lyrics are written spontaneously then.And as we are not trying to get out of the
classic rock song-structures, it´s just our job to find the best possible riffs
and melodies. If it´s a good day so we are in a good mood and the beer is cold
– that´s easy going sometimes. Regarding your initial question – I remember
“Fist of Steel” was the most easy-going song to compose for the album.
4. I have
noticed that 3 of the songs that you have included in your debut album were
also included in your demo. So my question is: did you include the songs as
they were in your demo or have you changed them a bit and in which way?
We recorded
them again because we never did that with a complete band before. Our demo
“Sedna´s Revenge” was recorded as a two-piece band; it was only Johnny and me.
We knew that a lot of people liked these early songs and as the debut album
would reach a lot more new fans, we wanted to put these songs on the album as
well. In the track “Sedna´s Revenge” we made the last guitar-solo part a little
shorter, the rest of the songs stayed nearly the same. But as we recorded
everything again, the character of the vocals and gang shouts is a little
different now and as well some lead-guitar stuff has developed a little bit of
course.
5. All the
members of the band are well experienced musicians and have participated in
well known bands. Also most of the bands you have played in the past were into
the extreme and modern metal sound. So, why did you decide to create GLORYFUL
and play traditional heavy metal?
We listen
more and more to the classic stuff that we have bought already as metal-kids
and the same time it´s getting harder and harder to find new stuff that we
really like. I always wanted to end up in a classic heavy metal band, but I
never found the right singer to start that band. As I met Johnny la Bomba, the
time had come. And by the way if you played all kind of technical and extreme
metal styles for nearly 20 years, it´s just time to start with the real shit,
haha. There is nothing more important than the good old, real heavy metal. It´s
never too late for a musician to pay tribute.
6. Since you
have named your album “The Warriors Code”, I would like to know who in your
opinion the modern warriors are and which must be their code.
Most of the
heavy metal people out there over the whole world started with the big
important bands like IRON MAIDEN, JUDAS PRIEST, MANOWAR, HELLOWEEN or DIO. The
older you get, the more you probably realize how important these bands really
were for your personal development and the way your life went so far. You found
your best friends in metal and these are people you can always count on. No
matter where on this heavy metal planet you go, these crazy people are your
brothers and sisters. If you agree, you know the code. That´s it.
7. I am also
interested in the lyrics and I see that yours have to do with fantasy. So, who
writes the lyrics and from where do you draw inspiration?
It´s Johnny
who writes all the lyrics. We involved some Inuit-mythology stuff here, for
example the saga of sedan and also used these great typical heavy metal themes.
In a way, Johnny´s lyrics got a different meaning and are just combined with
some cliché-phrases. The most important is the big picture and this is always
the song itself.
8. I want to
stand a bit on the songs with the title “Sedna’s Revenge” and “Death of the
First Earth”. Can you tell me which the lyrical story of these 2 songs is?
These two
songs are strongly inspired by the Inuit-mythology. I will tell you some more
details of the story of the sedan-goddess. I copied the whole content that
follows from Wikipedia (you can of course shorten that a bit):
Sedna is the
goddess of the sea and marine animals in Inuit mythology, also known as the
Mother of the Sea or Mistress of the Sea. The story of Sedna, which is a
creation myth, describes how she came to rule over Adlivun, the Inuit
underworld. Sedna is also known as Arnakuagsak or Arnaqquassaaq (Greenland) and
Sassuma Arnaa ("Mother of the Deep", West Greenland) and Nerrivik
("Table", northern Greenland) or Nuliajuk (District of Keewatin,
Northwest Territories, Canada). She is sometimes known by other names by
different Inuit groups such as Arnapkapfaaluk ("Big Bad Woman") of
the Copper Inuit from the Coronation Gulf area and Takánakapsâluk or
Takannaaluk (Igloolik).
More than one
version of the Sedna legend exists. In one legend Sedna is a giant, the
daughter of the creator-god Anguta, with a great hunger that causes her to
attack her parents. Angered, Anguta takes her out to sea and throws her over
the side of his kayak. As she clings to the sides, he chops off her fingers and
she sinks to the underworld, becoming the ruler of the monsters of the deep.
Her huge fingers become the seals, walruses, and whales hunted by the Inuit.
In another
version of the legend, she is dissatisfied with men found for her by her father
and so marries a dog. Her father is so angry at this that he throws her into
the sea and, when she tries to climb back into the boat, he cuts off her
fingers. Her fingers become the first seals and she becomes a mighty sea
goddess. When she is angered, the shaman travels to wash and comb her hair for
her, after which she is placated and releases the animals to the hunters.
In the
Netsilik region, the story states that Nuliayuk was a mistreated orphan. One
day the people tried to get rid of her by attempting to drown her by chopping
off her finger tips. But the fingertips would transform to seals and walruses.
Eventually Nuliayuk marries a sculpin and lives in the sea controlling all sea
mammals.
Other
versions of the legend depict Sedna as a beautiful maiden who rejects marriage
proposals from the hunters of her village. When an unknown hunter appears,
Sedna's father agrees to give her to him as wife in return for fish. Sedna's
father gives Sedna a sleeping potion and gives her to the hunter who takes her
to a large nest on a cliff, revealing his true form: a great raven. She wakes surrounded
by birds. Her father attempts to rescue her, but her husband the bird creature
becomes angry, causing a great storm. In desperation, Sedna's father throws her
into the raging sea. Attempting to cling to the kayak, her hands freeze and her
fingers fall off becoming the creatures of the sea. She falls to the bottom of
the sea and grows a fish tail.
Sedna is
kidnapped by a different bird creature in yet another version. Her father then
leaves in his kayak to rescue her from the floating ice-island where she is
imprisoned while the bird creature is away. The creature, enraged by her
disappearance, calls to a spirit of the sea to help him. The sea spirit locates
the kayak with the two humans aboard and creates huge waves to kill them. Her
father throws Sedna overboard in the hope that this will appease the angry god.
Sedna clings to the kayak but her father grabs a little axe and chops three of
her fingers off before striking her on the head. The three fingers each become
a different species of seal. The stroke to her head sends Sedna to the ocean
floor where she resides, commanding the animals of the sea.
The varying
legends each give different rationales for Sedna's death. Yet, in each version,
her father takes her to sea in his kayak, chopping off her fingers. In each
version she sinks to the bottom of the sea, worshiped by hunters who depend on
her goodwill to supply food. Generally considered a vengeful goddess, hunters
must placate and pray to Sedna to release the sea animals from the oceans depths
for their hunt.
9. I think
that you have already done a video – clip. Can you tell us which song you chose
to visualize and why? How was the shooting experience? Will you do another one?
We did the
first official music video for the title track “The Warrior´s Code”. It was
filmed, edited and finished by Mirko Witzki (www.miwi-graphics.de) and we are
very satisfied with the result. We recorded at a heavy metal underground club
called “Helvete” in the city of Oberhausen. You can see the five of us and a female
Kung Fu Warrior. We got some hits and kicks by her after the guitar solo, I
still got to smile when I watch that scenes. The whole shooting was a special
day and pure fun. It´s not that typical metal video and it´s a very long song,
it´s over a playing time of 7:23 min.
10.I want to stand a bit on the cover which I
like because it has an 80’s touch. Actually it reminded me a bit of HEAVY
LOAD’s “Death or Glory” album. Who is the artist and how is it connected with
your lyrics?
I just
googled that HEAVY LOAD album Cover: haha yeah you are right! It´s a similar
idea with that arctic scenery and the fighting set-up of two characters. We got
our inspiration somewhere else. The black creature is Sedna, the goddess of the
sea, something like our eddy that will follow GLORYFUL throughout the next
albums I guess. The female warrior riding the domesticated ice-bear is inspired
by a logo of an old and strong German herbal schnaps. As we got this idea in
mind, we couldn´t resist to do it, haha. We asked the famous Belgian Artist
Kris Verwimp and he liked the idea. Verwimp did a lot of the classic black
metal cover paintings for Osmose Records back in the early 90ies like ABSU or
MARDUK. He did every single SUIDAKRA artwork and as well some nice older works for
the Goodlife HC-Label. And besides that he is doing brilliant
Viking/pagan-style comics and illustration of fantasy books.
11. By the
way is there a chance to print your album on vinyl too?
We are in
talks with a cool German vinyl label to release a limited edition of 300
copies, 140g black vinyls with poster an signature-photo card, hand numbered of
course.
12. I would
like to know which bands you think that have inspired you in order to create
the GLORYFUL sound. Also which are the elements according to you that make your
sound recognizable?
It´s all
about the big 80ies classic stuff from IRON MAIDEN, JUDAS PRIEST, MANOWAR,
RUNNING WILD, WASP, DIO or HELLOWEEN but as I can speak for myself as well a
lot of THIN LIZZY and RAINBOW when it comes to the guitar-stuff.
We are
recognizable and original most of the part because of Johnny la Bomba´s unique
sounding voice. For sure we got our very own style writing those cheesy lead
guitar hooklines, haha. We call it the “Cambozola-Style”, haha.
13. There are
so many interviews that you do and I think you pretty much have to answer the
same boring questions. So which was the weirdest or the most interesting
question that you’ve been asked so far?
It´s exactly
this question you ask me right know, haha. Because I got to concentrate a lot
to answer, but there´s nothing coming to my mind that´s fitting here as
extraordinary weird or worthy enough to mention. Maybe it´s the everlasting
question regarding Johnny´s non-metal headgear, haha. There are many people who
can´t take it, that we can look like this while playing and promoting true
metal.
14. I will
ask you to change a bit your role and become the interviewer. So what would you
like to ask yourself about GLORYFUL?
Now I am very
curious about to know what your next bigger future steps are. When will you
start to write new songs for the next album?
Well we
already started and nearly finished with 70% of the composing. We now
concentrate on the last few tracks, solos, and lyrics. We already asked Kris
Verwimp for the next cover artwork and we got some ideas for the whole artwork
and lyrical concept. Dan Swanö will be responsible for the album mix again. We
hope to get the recording-sessions started in August to get the album released
in early 2014.
15. Thanks
for your time answering my questions. I wish you all the best! Please close
this interview in any way you like…
Thank you
Nick for your long time support and this nice interview! We hope to get the
possibility to tour beautiful Greece next year. We all love to go there. People
who could help out with serious booking-contacts lease get in touch at
contact@gloryful.net. Everyone interested in new album merchandise please ask
at facebook or contact@gloryful.net.
1. Hello!
How are you? “Heroes of Origin” is your debut album and will soon be released.
Do you feel anxious about it? Which are your expectations from it?
I’m doing
really well.Thanks for the
interview.We have been really busy
promoting the new album and I don’t think anxious is the word, but very excited
might be the better way to say it.This
is my first real band since EXODUS and the press and the fans have been very
supportive, to say the least.With the
modern music industry I try to not really have expectations, other than for the
record company to do its job and for the fans to hopefully go get the album.I promise it is the best record I have done
in my whole career, and that is saying a lot!Honestly I am just happy to be back in the scene making albums and
playing for the fans.
2. How long
did it take you to compose and produce the whole album? Did you have any main
difficulties during the whole process? If yes, how did you overcome them?
There were
no difficulties at all, and in fact, this is probably the most hassle free
record I have ever done. My guitarist, Kosta Varvatakis, does the majority of
the writing and arranging, and then I write lyrics to what he creates.It makes a very easy work environment and we
get a lot of stuff done with HATRIOT in a short amount of time.We have been working on the material for this
record for the better part of a year now.
3. From all
the songs included in “Heroes of Origin” which one was the quickest to compose
and which one made your life difficult and why?
Again, it
was a fairly simple process and I can’t think of one in particular that gave me
any trouble.Kosta is such a gifted
writer.I am hoping that the world will
recognize what a great talent this kid is.I wouldn’t have even attempted a new band without him.We have a great writing chemistry and it is
hard to find a songwriting partner that you just click with on every
level.Kosta is the guy.He will be this generation’s thrash metal
guitar hero.
4. Have you
left any song out from your new album and if yes, why? Also have you thought of
leaving out any of the songs that you have included in your debut album and
what made you change mind?
Well we
have a 4 song demo EP that we did last year just to show the world what we were
doing at the time, and 3 of the 4 songs have been re-recorded for this
album.The only one that didn’t make the
cut was “The Fear Within,” and it’s not because it is a bad song.It’s a great song!The fact is it has a mellow section and we
didn’t want to let up the intensity on this record one bit.So it may be on the second album.It depends on what else we come up with.We are always writing new material and
working on stuff.We have another three
songs written now for the second album.
5. Who had
the idea of forming HATRIOT? How easy was it to find the other band members?
Nothing is
easy in the music business, but this time things fell into place rather quickly
for me.It started when I found Kosta
and then started writing material.We
went through a few minor line-up changes until we arrived at this group of
guys.It wasn’t hard at all really.Our second guitarist, Miguel Esparza, was
referred to us, and the rhythm section consists of my sons – Cody Souza on bass
and Nick Souza on drums.Both of them
tried out for the band and proved to be the most qualified for the position.
6. Steve
Souza is a very known musician, so I would like to know if the other members of
the band have participated in other groups before HATRIOT and if they have
released anything with them….
They have
all played in local bands around the Bay Area, but nothing that went to the
next level.“Heroes of Origin” is their
first record, but you would never know it from listening.We really worked hard to make sure we had
everything down before we hit the studio, so these guys sound like seasoned
veterans themselves.Aside from doing
demos with their other bands they had never been in a studio before.They all went straight into the major
leagues.
7. I want
to stand a bit on the band’s name. Is HATRIOT a combination of words between
hate and patriot or between hate and riot? How did you come up with the idea of
this specific band name?
It is a
combination of hate and patriot, and I took the name from the line in the
EXODUS song “Scar Spangled Banner”’ where I say “I’m no patriot, just a
hatriot.”The word sounds pissed off and
angry, so I felt it would be perfect for a thrash metal band name.It also ties this chapter of my career to my
days in EXODUS, so it worked well.
8. Also I
want to stand a bit on the cover of your album which shows you holding the U.S.
flag upside down and also shields of Captain America with a pentagram on it. I
like it and I believe that there is a strong symbolism on it. What exactly do
you want to express with it?
Mark DeVito
did the artwork.He has done several
known bands, MOTORHEAD being one of them.I didn’t really have a concept, other than I wanted the band on the
cover somewhere. Bands just don’t do that anymore.I wanted the band on the cover and for Mark
to use his own visions to create the rest.I wanted chaos and violence, and Mark fucking nailed it.I think the artwork is great.I see all the little poser kids trashing the
cover on the Internet, but it is amazing art in my opinion.It is one of those records that you see in
the store and it grabs your attention, like back in the day when you would buy
an album just because the art looked cool.The art on “Heroes of Origin” is very recognizable and I think it stands
out amongst the other bands.If you saw
it on the store shelf you would be like “oh shit there’s the HATRIOT record,”
and that’s the whole idea behind it.
9. How
important are lyrics for you? What kinds of things inspire you to write about?
What kind of message do you want to pass through them to your audience?
Lyrics are
very important to me.I know most people
think of the riff as being the key factor in metal music, and in many cases it
is, but the lyrics in HATRIOT are a huge part of the equation.My lyrics are always dark and sinister.You will never hear Zetro do a love
song!I write about anything that
intrigues me, and on this album that happens to be suicide, school shootings,
and monster movies.There is no shortage
of brutal topics out there.
10. How has
the press accepted your new album? Which was the most interesting and which the
most bizarre comment that you have received about the album?
The press
has been praising this album, giving us near perfect scores.I have done a lot of interviews around the
globe and I have not yet had one guy in the press tell me the record was okay
or could be better.They are all floored
by it and that is a huge accomplishment for me.The most bizarre comment would be when one journalist said the album is
the best EXODUS record Gary Holt never wrote.That’s a pretty big statement!
11. I will
ask you to change a bit your role and become the interviewer. So what would you
like to ask yourself about HATRIOT?
I would ask
myself what in the hell are you doing starting a new band this late in
life?The answer is I am taking over the
fucking world!
12. Thanks
for your time answering my questions. The album is very good and I wish you all
the best! Please put the epilogue you like to this interview…
Thanks a
lot for the interview and for spreading the word of HATRIOT to your
readers.The album is out right now and
I need all the old school thrashers to go out and get a copy today!We need your support to get this thing to the
next level.I plan on touring this year
so come out to a show and let’s thrash!
