Interview with death metal band from United Kingdom - BLASPHEMER.
Answered by Arno Cagna of Blasphemer.
Translated by Petra, thank you!
Questions prepared Jakub Asphyx.
Questions prepared Jakub Asphyx.
review:
Ave BLASPHEMER! Greetings to Great Britain! I hope all well about you. It should be because last year you released an excellent death metal album! I have been listening it for some time and I consider this album as excellent. It is dark, sharp and uncompromising. How satisfied are you with the result?
Yeah I think we are all quite happy with new album. We wanted it to be heavier and darker than our debut album last year. I am personally satisfied with the end product I would like to think we succeeded in what we set out to do.
I belong to the old generation of metal fans. I'm such an underground maniac who passes through every grave. I did not know about you until 2017 when you released the album "Blasphemer". It literally enthral me. Your history dates back to 1992. I read some of the first demos, I think you had even some compilation, but nothing else. You have even interrupted your activity. Please, take us through history of BLASPHEMER.
Blasphemer as originally active between 1990 to 1995 during in this period we released demos put in a load of ground and played many gigs. The band kinda ended in 1995 when myself and Mass had to put the band on hold due to another musical project we were involved in at the time. We had a record contract with other project with Peaceville records and the demands at the time meant we didn't have the time to do both. It wasn't over for Blasphemer though as in maybe late 2012 or early 2013 Mass started talking to me about reviving the band. We eventually managed the get Dan and Dale on board and we haven't looked back since . We put out a new demo in 2015 just prior to Dan & Dale joining the band. But since then we have done loads of live shows put out our debut self titled album in 2017 & our new album Lust Of The Goat which was released 30th November 2018. Now on to more live shows for the moment.
Everyone who hears your music must think about the sound. It is unusually mouldy, gruesome and sick. It looks like you're recording somewhere in an old analogue studio. Somewhere where created their first records bands such as PESTILENCE, ASPHYX, OBITUARY, BOLT THROWER. Where and how did you record the album and who is signed under the sound?
Well it's interesting you say it sounds like an analogue recording captured in a studio in which classic records were produced. You're not too far wrong there actually. All blasphemer recording dating all the way back to our first demo have been recorded at the infamous Academy Studios. The studio is synonymous with early records many now large bands such as Paradise Lost ,Anathema,Cradle Of Filth,My Dying Bride ,Bal Sagoth etc etc. We are lucky enough to live in the same town Dewsbury where the studio as always been based. Furthermore our drummer Dan is now the in house studio engineer there too. As we have always recorded there since day one it made perfect sense both our albums were recorded there . In terms of it sounding like it was recorded on analogue equipment. Although it was recorded digitally we wanted to approach the recording like we did in the 1990s. What I mean by that it's not a cut and paste album. There was none of this that will do attitude or we will fix it later. No drum triggers and moving things round in pro tools. We hate all that shit. Takes were played properly from start to finish. If errors were made the take was scrapped and re done until they were correct. Things have to be tight but that's what you had to do back in the day. In addition to that we as a band had a clear vision of what a death metal record should sound like. Combine all those things and that's why our latest record lust of the goat sounds the way it does .
I really like the cover of the new album. Who is the author? My friend, when he first time saw your album on a bandcamp, told me that like this he imagines apocalypse. What mean the motif on a new album and how does it relate to music?
The cover is definitely striking ha ha. The concept of the cover of what would be depicted in the image came from the band. The artwork it's self was done by two friends of ours called Paul & Ant Cuthbert. They did a fantastic job I think and it came out much better than I imagined. The artwork depicts perfectly the meaning behind the lyrics to Lust Of The Goat.
An integral part of every honest record is the lyrics. I wonder where you get inspiration for them? I would have guessed from horrors of the eighties, maybe old books, but maybe I'm wrong. For me, when I heard the novelty for the first time, it reminded me by mood movies about living dead. What are the lyrics on "Lust of the Goat" about?
Our lyrics are based on many different things. Some of lyrics are based on old horror films, some of them are based on real life horrors and some are based on situations we think of. Lust of the Goat is about a sex ritual with Satan himself. It's a dark tale of invocation, sex ,death and joining the legion of hell. It's also influenced by the old horror film The Devil Rides Out but it's not based specifically on that film. We take many ideas sometimes and make a story from them and this is a good example of that.
The new album was released by British Grindscene Records. Why did you choose this label and how satisfied are you with their work?
Yeah the new album was released through Grindscene Records. We wanted to release the new record on a label that believed in the record and wanted to work with us . They really showed us they wanted to do that so it made perfect sense to release the record though them.Furthermore we are good friends with Peter Clarke who runs the label so we knew he would be very easy to work with. We are very happy with Grindscene Records because they have done everything they said they would do.
You play music old as death metal itself. How do you perceive new directions in lethal metal? I mean, mixing with death core or technical death metal? Do you have any favorite bands in "modern death metal"?
I pay little attention anything Core or a lot of what passes these days as metal. I find many modern bands over produced and focused on style over substance. Lacking songs, riffs or hooks. It's just my general impression . I haven't heard anything by anyone of late that's jumped out at me that I would say is so called modern death metal. I prefer to listen to bands that sound more old school and know how to write riffs.
What about BLASPHEMER and concerts? Do you play a lot? Are you touring or you are choosing only bigger festivals? And what about some Europe tour? What are plans for BLASPHEMER in the coming months?
Yeah we have played quite a lot over the last 4 years mainly in the U.K. & Ireland. We just did our first few concerts prior to the end of 2018 to start promoting the new album. We already have a number of dates booked this year and are hoping to come and finally play in Europe. Which is something we all really want to do. In terms of festivals we obviously apply to play festivals but you're in the hat with many other bands who are also applying. Unless you're a big band it's not easy to get on to decent festivals. Festivals take note of what bands people are requesting to be on this years event in their forums . So the more people that are talking about Blasphemer in their forums the more likely you are to see us playing that festival. That is largely out of my hands I can't control things like that.
Are you watching the scene, are you discovering new albums? What was last album which got your attention?
In terms of old school death metal there are some great bands around currently . I really like Skeletal Remains I like everything I've heard by them. Also have also really enjoyed what I've heard from Rude. In the U.K. We have some great old school death metal bands at the moment such as Live Burial, Repulsive Vision, Mordhau,Pemphigoid & of course our label mates The Crawling and Stangle Wire. In terms of the last album that grabbed my attention. It was actually a post punk band from Canada called Actors. Their latest album called It Will Come To You. It's a fantastic album. It has influences of stuff such as PIL, Killing Joke, Mission & Gary Numan. It's very dark sounding and sounds like an 80s album. I would highly recommend it.
On the end one philosophy question. What does death metal mean for you? I do not mean the technique of playing, but rather what does it mean directly to you, to your person, how do you feel it?
Imagine if you stumbled across someone who had been violently attacked and brutally stabbed to death. Blood everywhere a total horror. Well our music should be the soundtrack in your head to that moment. That's the kind of emotions I stir up within myself in order to create the music.
Thank you very much for the interview. I wish BLASPHEMER all good, lots of sold media, sold out concerts and inspiration for the future. I firmly believe that my dream come true and I'll see you sometimes alive. Good luck with whatever you do in your personal lives.
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