Interview with death metal band from Finland.
Answered Lauri and Matti, thank you!
Translated Duzl, thank you!
Recenze/review - WRATHRONE - Eve of Infliction (2021):
Ave WRATHRONE! Greetings to Finland. At the beginning, I will immediately allow you to pay your respects. I have just returned from a trip to the forest and in the snow and frost your new "Eve of Infliction" listened to me perfectly. I felt like the melodies were completely stuck in my brain. How did the album come about and did you approach it differently than the previous "Reflections of Torment"? I find the novelty darker, colder, but also more melodic, was that the purpose?
Lauri: Greetings from here also! Nice to hear you liked the album. Album created itself pretty easily, we brought songs to the training place, made some pre-production tracks and choosed the best possible combination for the album by dropping some tunes. Then the album was recorded on two separate weekend sessions.
Matti: I feel EoI is quite a natural step forward from RoT. A lot of similarities but maybe even a bit tighter combination although the songs carry variation that suits us well. The procedure has been the same for some time now. Vili and Lauri bring in the songs, Pekka also contributing and arrangements finalized with a combined effort. Works really well for us.
Where did you record the album and who mixed it and did a production? As I wrote, the sound is really crystal icy, but at the same time sharp, dark and raw.
Lauri: It was recorded in Vili’s cabin by the lake in the middle of the coldest winter. Mr. Venho (who has recorded and mixed Torture Killer and Reverend Bizarre for example) brought studio gear and stayed with us for a weekend. Vocals were done similarly on a different occasion, and I programmed synths at home after everything else was done. Mr Venho then mixed the album and another studio guy Mr Sillvan did the mastering for cd and vinyl.
I don't have an original CD in my hand yet and I wonder who drew the cover for you? Was he the same artist as last time? Both motifs seem to me to follow each other. How did you get together?
Lauri: This time the album cover and all other graphics (excluding the band photo) was drawn by our multi-talented bass player Pekka Wärri. Style is a bit similar compared to the previous album, and we like it very much.
Matti: Pekka’s artwork suits the album perfectly. It was his first work of art for a complete album as such and he nailed it amazingly. He has done shirt graphics for us before, so we knew that he’s good for it. Really cool to have that kind of talent in the band too.
I'm always interested in how the band composes. How a new song were created. Who bring the riffs, do you first play for yourself at home and then bring everything to the studio? Or does everything come together? How did you create new material?
Lauri: I think our production process is a very common model. Guys record demos and bring them to the rehearsal where others learn to play the songs, and some changes are made collectively. Most of the stuff in Eve of Infliction is written by Vili, but we don’t really pay attention who has done what, and everyone in the band is free to throw ideas to the table and we use what we think sounds best and fits the album mood in general.
I am one of the fans of death metal who also collect music physically. I'm old school, I like sitting at the player and reading the lyrics. What are they about on "Eve of Infliction" and who is their author? Where do you get inspiration for them?
Lauri: I think all lyrics came from Matti and Mikael.
Matti: Yeah, that’s right. I tend to lean on quite traditional themes for death metal. Gloomy, gory horror stories from beyond light’s reach. Also I feel that the general decline in natural aspects with disasters and pandemics will eventually rectify our actions with blunt force. Those sceneries appear in my writing also.
Lately it seems to me that there is literally a boom of death metal bands in Finland. I've never been in your beautiful country, but somehow subconsciously I'm still looking for bands from there. I like your old scene (for example I listen to PURTENANCE, I listen them from their first album, CONVULSE too, I like the new REVULSION, SHRAPNEL STORM, DEATHGOAT, WORTHLESS, SPIRITUAL HOLOCAUST). It looks like that underground is quite active in Finland, right? I would be interested in your view from the inside. You are part of the scene.
Lauri: I think it’s not a boom, but rather a long timeline since the early 90’s. Finnish death metal has always been a mix of original sound and some swedish influences. You might want to check out Sepulchral curse, Gorephilia and Galvanizer if you are into new finnish death metal.
And what about concerts? Do you play a lot? How has the current situation with the covid 19 pandemic affected you? Do you have a club in your city where you can play or do you have to travel to Helsinki? By the way, I did an interview with Russian PYRE from St. Petersburg and it seems that it's also active scene there lately. What about a tour to support the new record, are you gonna plan something like this?
Lauri: Before the plague we toured actively in Finland, a couple times in Germany, Poland and baltic countries. I think there were no live shows at all in 2020 which is a shame, we enjoy playing live and visiting new places. Maybe this year will be better. No plans yet, however.
Matti: Playing live and touring is really the thing for us (though with all connected activities quite strenuous too!). Great to see new places and play for audiences smaller or bigger. Let’s sit this pandemic shit out and ride out again, we are certainly eager for that!
I just watched your new video for the song "We feast on fear". How and where did you shoot? I remembered the old videotapes copied from MTV's - Headbangers ball. Maybe I'm just missing the beer there:).
Lauri: The video was filmed with two DSLR cameras and one GoPro at our friends place, and then I did the editing. We wanted to do it simple, easy and cheap because we don’t like overproduced and super polished stuff anyway. I personally would have wanted to make it even more raw looking, but it turned out ok.
Anyway, you're exactly the kind of death metal band that plays old school incredibly. Who was your role model? Which band was the reason you picked up your guitar, started beating your drums and shouting into the microphone? Or did you start playing because of the girls?
Lauri: I started playing guitar in the late 90’s after listening to old Sentenced, Amorphis, At the Gates, The Crown, In Flames and stuff like that. Nowadays I listen to more black metal than death metal.
Matti: The first encounter with death metal for me were the first two albums by Amorphis. At that time in my early teens I had just discovered traditional heavy metal but those albums just blew me away. Then it was on to Sentenced, Obituary, Morbid Angel, Cannibal Corpse and the likes. These days I listen to quite a varied mix of metal, though mainly my favourites still derive from the days I discovered the fascinating world of metal. With death metal, I’ve always enjoyed most the low-pitch growling, so that’s what I mostly do too.
WRATHRONE seems to me like a bunch of cheerful maniacs. What do you do in your free time? Do you have any other hobbies? What about a pub, beer? Parties? Finland I have associated with vodka, what do you think?
Lauri: I mostly use my free time to play video games, listen to records and spend time with my family.
Matti: When we get to head out on the road with the band, we most certainly are a bunch of cheerful maniacs and the excessive amounts of any alcohol imagined plays a decisive role in that. So we are not unfamiliar with the common Finnish association. That being said, it’s just a small part of life. We work daytime jobs and take care of our families. But when we get on the road, we’ll make the most of it!
What does music mean to you? How do you perceive death metal in relation to your life? Are you a fan too? Do you collect, for example, vinyl, cassettes, CDs? You can go deeper and look at death metal from the point of view of life philosophy.
Lauri: Music in general, including death metal, is a very important part of my life. I like to buy albums on vinyl to support artists I enjoy and post pics to instagram to help promote them. I love it when nowadays you can find a new band to enjoy if you just browse youtube long enough. Metal music as a life philosophy sounds a little bit cheesy though, I think I enjoy aggressive and haunting music the same way some people enjoy horror movies.
Matti: I do listen to music regularly but for me it’s more like a normal, everyday part of my life. I don’t really focus on it that much, though it’s an important and enjoyable part for sure. At younger age I bought CD’s more and I’m holding on to them though not buying music that much these days.
What are WRATHRONE planning in the coming months? What can we look forward to? What about l the T-shirts with the new motif? I have to order one!
Lauri: Since we don’t have any gigs because of the pandemic, we have been rehearsing new material and have many songs ready for pre production. Maybe we can make a 4th album next year. I also dream of releasing the previous album on vinyl. T-shirts are in the making!
Thank you so much for the interview. And actually for your music. I really enjoy the news. I'm already looking forward to going to the woods again in the afternoon after work. I will definitely take your album with me. May the record sell well and all the best to your personal lives! Death metal forever, WRATHRONE rules!
Lauri: Thanks for the support.
Recenze/review - WRATHRONE - Eve of Infliction (2021):
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