Answered Barbarian and Ale Wülf
Translated by Markéta, thank you!
Ave WEAPÖNIZER! You have recently published your new album ͞Lawless Age͟." I am so excited about the album. How are the reviews and feedback from your fans and critics?
Barbarian: So far we have gotten a lot of positive response. 20 Buck Spin sent out quite a few advance copies for magazines and websites to review; so even before the album was released, we were able to get some feedback from critics and reviewers. Now that the album is out, I'm looking forward to hearing what the rest of the Metal community thinks of it.
How do WEAPÖNIZER compose new material? How does the process goes when you compose? Who is the author of your music?
Barbarian: Pretty much everything is composed together. Usually Ale Wülf or Deströyer will come to practice with a couple riffs or the outline of a song and then all of us will work with it to add parts and give it a structure we all like. And sometimes that process never ends. We will keep making minor changes to songs right up to, and even after, we go into the studio to record.
Who is the author of your lyrics and what are they about? Where do you find inspiration for your Lyrics?
Barbarian: So far I have written all the lyrics. That’s not because I won't let anyone else write or anything like that; it's just easier for me to do it since I am the one singing them. Some of the lyrical content comes from literature, movies, and history. For instance, Rattenkrieg is about the Battle of Stalingrad and Vulture is based on ‘ Der Geier’ by Franz Kafka. But the lyrics for most of the songs are inspired by misanthropy and my hatred of religion.
You have always had a great covers for your albums. Is it important for you to have a special cover for your albums and how the cover should look like? Who is the author of your new album ͞Lawless Age͟?
Barbarian: I would say that it is important to us to have a cover that we like and that fits the attitude of the music, but we don't micromanage every aspect of each piece. I think we usually give artists a lot of creative freedom to do what they want with a few conceptual ideas from us.
Ale Wulf: I have a lot of respect for the artists that we use. I like to allow them to do what they feel like doing instead of weighing them down with requests and direction, though some artists do better with working within constraints than having to come up with everything out of thin air.
The history of your band started in 2009. How did you came up with the idea of playing black/thrash metal?
Barbarian: When we first started, I thought we would be more of a straight forward Thrash band. That's how Ale Wülf pitched it to me. But we all came from more extreme Metal backgrounds (Grind, Black, Death, etc), and that influence bled into our songwriting. Plus, I can't actually sing, so it was hard to get a true thrash feel with my vocal style.
Who was your idol?
Barbarian: There are many bands that I have looked up to, and it would be hard to say who has influenced me the most; but the two people I have idolized since I was young are Steve Harris and Cliff Burton. They have different playing styles for sure, but I think they did more than anyone else to showcase what a bass can do in Metal.
Can you please tell us some stories and share some memories?
Ale Wulf: There are a lot of memories and stories that could get us into trouble so I’ll decline talking about them in print…. Our last show was at Gathering of Shadows, it was also the first show we’ve played since the new album came out. It was outdoors in a secluded area in the forest of the Rocky Mountains. We played as the sun went down, surrounded by torches. The audience members had axes, swords, staffs, home brew and were very excited about our performance. At one point an all-white wolf-looking dog came up onto the “stage” area and walked up to greet each member while we played!
You play typical, classic old black/thrash metal. You have never played anything else, you are orthodox͟. Personally, that is one of the reasons why I like your work. But have you ever thought about trying something a little bit different? To spice up WEAPÖNIZER a little bit?
Barbarian: I don't think we will ever make drastic changes to our sound or style. We’ll evolve, of course, and adjust here and there, but Weapönizer will always be pretty straightforward, aggressive Metal.
Why fascinates me when I listen to ͞Lawless Age͟ is the mixture of music, darkness and madness. This album is full of absolute blasphemy. No compromises. I can tell that you believe in what you play. How about you and Christianity? What is your opinion about it? How does religion influence normal life in Colorado?
Barbarian: I feel the same way about christianity - and other religions - as I do about all superstition: it is fundamentally bad for the world and should be stamped out whenever and wherever possible.
As far as how it influences life in Colorado, I'm not sure that it has a huge effect on my daily life. I go about my business day-to-day with little interference from religious folk. But I'm not a woman seeking an abortion or contraceptives. That's where christians here lose their minds: women wanting autonomy over their own bodies. Then they throw huge fits and try to pass laws based on their religious beliefs; completely ignoring the separation of church and state that is guaranteed by our Bill of Rights. The other topic they can't leave alone is teaching evolution in science classes. They want to force schools to teach their particular creation myth alongside actual science. Again, this doesn't really affect me directly, but it will have a huge impact on our nation if it's allowed to continue. If we teach fairy tales instead of facts in our science classes, we are going to end up with a generation of fucking morons who will be unable to compete in a global marketplace, and we will lose jobs and innovative people to countries who value science over superstition.
I often hear people on Czech concerts saying that there is not enough people on concerts. I would like to know how is it in your country? It is a big country for us, there is a lot of bands and promoters. Do you prefer smaller clubs or bigger festivals?
Barbarian: There are never as many people at underground shows as I would like to see. The only shows that attract large crowds here are big touring international bands. Otherwise there will likely be less than 100 people at a show. We haven't really played any big festivals. All we have played is smaller clubs, so we can't really compare the two. That being said, we really enjoy playing live regardless of what kind of venue it is. Every place we play, and every crowd, brings its own energy and excitement, and we just try to feed off that no matter where we are.
Nowadays, most people download music on the Internet and they only use its digital form. How do you feel about this issue as a musician?
Barbarian: I think that any medium that increases ease of access to underground music should be welcome. However, I also think people miss out on a part of the experience when they only listen to digital versions of songs. There is something visceral about holding vinyl in your hands before you listen to it; a ritual almost. And I realize that digital music sharing makes it harder for us to make money; but in the end, the most important thing is that underground and extreme music gets shared and listened to by as many people as possible.
Are there any bands which have caught your attention recently and can you recommend any Albums?
Barbarian: There is a band called Malleus, from Boston, that put out their debut album last fall. It's called ‘ Storm of Witchcraft’ and it sounds like it could have come from the First Wave of Black Metal. Perversor’s ‘Demon Metal’ has the same feel. I highly recommend both. I've also been listening to Nightbringer’s new album, ‘ Terra Damnata’ a lot lately. I know they are not a new band, but this is just too good not to mention.
Do you know or listen any Czech bands?
Ale Wulf: Yes, it seems most bands I know of or hear about in Czech are grind bands. I like Black Aspirin, Controlled Existence, March of the Hordes, Twisted Truth, Old Malignant Tumor, Sedem Minút Strachu, Morkhimmel, Kreas and others...
What are WEAPÖNIZER´s plans for the next few months?
Barbarian: Not a whole lot planned for the next few months. Just a few shows close to home coming up soon, and then a couple shows in Texas with our friends in HOD and Steel Bearing Hand in December. In the meantime we are going to try to write new material so we can put out another album before too much time has passed.
Thank you so much for the interview and I wish you many sold out albums, hundreds of crazy fans and tons of great ideas.
