A few questions - interview with death doom metal band from Poland

A few questions - interview with death doom metal band from Poland - RITES OF DAATH.

Answered Tomasz, thank you!

Recenze/review - RITES OF DAATH - Doom Spirit Emanation (2020):

https://www.deadlystormzine.com/2020/08/recenzereview-rites-of-daath-doom.html

Ave, can you introduce your band to our readers? – When was it founded and what style of music do you play etc.?

T: Hello Jakub, hello all. Well, we’re mostly a death metal band hailing from the basements of Kraków, Poland. It is actually hard to say when we were formed – we were born twice - as Rites of Daath we’ve been playing since 2017. But before RoD, we all played in a band called Cemetery Whore. This was also, a death metal band, but more straight forward, I would say. We’ve spewed up one demo and a rehearsal tape under that name. And I think that Cemetery Whore came to life around 2015.

Where and under what conditions were you recording the new album? Who was in charge of sound, production and mastering?

T: We recorded „Doom Spirit Emanation“ at Roslyn studio, out in the rural areas of Poland, more precisely in a small town named Róża (that’s why the studio’s called Roslyn, I believe). Really great place, hidden amongst the trees. We’ve also recorded there our first material, „Hexing Graves“. Actually, many well established polish death metal bands recorded there their stuff – like Kult Mogił, Stillborn or Hell United – the owner really feels the vibe of this music. Mixing and mastering were done by VK, new zealender known from a killer bands like Vassafor or Temple Nightside.

How many copies were released and which medium was used for this new edition (CD, digital, vinyl, cassette)?

T:We’ve got vinyls in three colours, tapes in two colours and CD in (sadly) one colour. And a few russian torrents at least. As for the copies or limits...I don’t know if I am at liberty to speak of it – it is a secret between a band and the label, you know. But surely we’re running low on everything, so be quick!

Who is the author of the lyrics and how were they created and about what do the lyrics deal with?

T: That must be me, I’m a vocalist so I’m also carrying the cross of the lyricist – in most cases. Actually, there’s a huge contribution of our drummer Dawid here. He often drops me a theme or a topic of a song and I’m „giving birth“ to a word, as I would call it. As for the topics and themes itsefl...well, the case of „Doom Spirit Emanation“ was quite interesting for me, as a writer. Album’s lyrics fluctuate around one, particular theme. I wouldn’t call it a concept album though, but there’s one thought behind it all, something like a staple pinning it all together. I haven’t done such things before, usually I treated songs as a seperate entities, but here I tried something different. It’s not a top-notch literature, but it required a different approach from me and I am quite satisfied with the results.

Who created the logo of the band, and who took care of the graphics and the website? What about you and social networks? Do you consider these things important?

T: Logo is a magnificent job of a very talented guy named Ihasan. He’s known for not only creating logos, but also an original and unique caligraphy. Do I consider social media important in promotion and in band’s life in general? Hell yeah, I believe that nowadays it is very important. It is a main way to promote your stuff amongst poeple these days, with all of pros and cons coming with it. But do I consider it important for me and Rites of Daath? Hell no, I do not treat my music like a product, you know. We’re keeping our facebook page as pristine as we can, only most important information. I think that our music won’t flow with a pushy promotion.

Which label did you choose for releasing your album and why this label? Are you satisfied by how your label represents you and takés care about you?

T: We’re tied to Godz Ov War Productions (Hail Greg!) for life, I hope. I am more then satisfied with cooperation with GoWP, I wouldn’t like to exaggerate it but I think it is one of the most prominent labels here in Polish underground nowadays, you see. Greg is a great guy, we’ve got really great relationship – on a business and a private level.

Which bands do you idolise and where do you get your inspiration?

T: Cavernous death/black metal, mostly from Australia and its surroundings! We dig Temple Nighstide, Portal, Grave Upheaval, Impetuous Ritual, Vassafor but also Dead Congragation, Qrixkuor, Cruciamentum, Malthusian...lots of it, lots of underground, lots of bad, bad music.

Did you send your record to some Labels - which are the labels? How was the response?

T: No, we’re signed to GoWP exclusively, so they were entitled to our debut album right from the start. We didn’t take under considaration any other label.

How many gigs have you played? Which type of gigs do you prefer, whether it's (clubs or festivals) and which of your performances would you consider as the best?

T: Not too many, I am afraid. We prefer gigs in caves and basements. It reflects our nature in a best way I think. And a lot of clubs in Poland are situated in basements! I think our best gig was in Rzeszów in 2018 – there were a group of friends, and I think we did a good job on stage. Also, I liked a lot our show with Grave Miasma. Because it was with Grave Miasma.

What about your plans for the future? What do you want to achieve with the band?

T: Future is always uncertain, so hard to say. We’re doing some rehearsals, we’re trying some new stuff, but it is hard to say where we’re going with it. Also, I am still not sure about the gigs, as the Covid-19 is still raging here in Poland (and abroad) and it’s hard to organise something.

How and where can your fans contact you? Can you provide some contact information?

T: Yeah, if you’re into dropping us a massage, feel free to use our facebook or our gmail – it’s easy to find out on the internet I guess but I’ll leave some links below:

https://www.facebook.com/ritesofdaath

ritesofdaath@gmail.com

Thanx for the interview.

T: Big thanks also.

Recenze/review - RITES OF DAATH - Doom Spirit Emanation (2020):

https://www.deadlystormzine.com/2020/08/recenzereview-rites-of-daath-doom.html

https://ritesofdaath.bandcamp.com/releases

https://www.facebook.com/ritesofdaath/
https://open.spotify.com/artist/6j1w4RqMh632DDrqmGCVtu?si=sbRLwOTOSSm8WzVAkhpauw
http://godzovwar.com/