Interview with death metal band from Colombia - OSSUARY.
Answered Brahiam Valencia, bassist and vocalist and Juan Esteban Sánchez, Guitarist and Founder, thank you!
Ave OSSUARY! Greetings to the Colombian underground. I hope everything is fine with you. It should be because this year you have released a fourth full-length album in your band's career. I have to admit it has literally blown my mind. It is dark, energic and as if it cuts by the sharp edge of the knife. I can hear from the record you did a really good job and you added a big portion of the talent, too. How do you perceive the new album in comparison to the previous one? Where did you want to move and in what are these two records different?
Greetings brothers, I am Brahiam Valencia, bassist and vocalist of Ossuary. Before starting with the dynamics of the questions and answers, I would like to thank you for the interview. Having done this, I would like to say that both albums are distant from each other, clearly I am not stating it in a chronological sense. First of all, Stellar Annihilation is a more mature album, both in theme and instrumental composition. To exemplify this, just read some of the lyrics from Addicted to Human Flesh, and compare it with any of the new album, you will notice that the influence is already another. We have tried to make this more serious.
Consider that both pieces are thought of from two very different perspectives. Today Osario moves in other orbits, perhaps a little more delirious that, without leaving the flesh, has settled on a stellar path.
“Stellar Annihilation“ includes all attributes of good death metal. For me personally, it represents the record, which I really like to listen to. How did you produce it? How look the writing process of new material in the case of OSSUARY?
For this, Juan Esteban and I worked on the musical composition for a few months. We tried to make the music follow the classic style of good death metal, therefore, the guitars and bass remain faithful to this genre. Julián, our drummer, was in charge of adding the touch to the percussion. Regarding the lyrics, there is the intention that they be thematic, that their development during the album leaves in each piece fragments of a single story compacted in the eleven songs. There is a common thread that invites listeners to immerse themselves in the plot, while the riffs complement the hallucination of such a trip... With that intention, Stellar has been written.
I found out that Juan Esteban Sánchez is signed under the mix and mastering of the new record. I have to confirm that the sound is literally killing. It still makes me add volume to the player. Juan has created a sound that is cruel, raw and at the same time dark and organic. How went the work with him and why did you choose him? In which studio did you record it? How did the recording process look like?
Juan Esteban is the leader and founder of Ossuary, also a very good producer who has left his mark on this piece, both in the composition and execution of the guitars, and in everything related to production. Previous albums have been mixed and mastered in other studios, and with other engineers. But Juan has been in charge of this album, who in his Studio 440 hz, has injected rawness and brutality into each of the songs. Exactly what we had thought for this work, since, although the previous productions are forceful, the sound of the drums seemed to be reduced to computerized programming, losing all organic traces.
The recording process was carried out in a pleasant way, each of us recorded our lines in confidence. First there were the drums, then the guitars, basses, and finally the voices. We tried to ensure that the work was articulated, always thinking about the coherence of the arrangements and the production intention led by Juan Esteban.
An important part and a kind of extra bonus for fans today is the physical CD. You released the new album at CD through Awakening Records, and it has a dark cover art. Who is the author? Do I explain well the picture when I would think it is a scary cthulhu monster? How did you choose the motif and how does it relate to the music at the record?
All our works have been published physically, we consider it essential. The author of the cover is a Colombian illustrator named Carlos Jacome. He has been in charge of almost all of our art, from Buried, launched in 2019, to the present.
As for the second question, it is an interpretation that is given explicitly, since the reading of art does not leave much to speculate when looking at the main spectrum. Without a doubt, he is that character that Mr. Lovecraft has left behind. However, when linked to the theme of the songs, it is possible to find that this Cthulhu is never named, but rather he represents in himself that extraterrestrial species that with its demonic tentacles penetrate the bowels of everything organic on planet Earth. The link between the cover and the lyrics is found there, since that demon is the one who embodies all the cruelty of the foreigners who colonize through terror the physical and spiritual areas in which the human being circulates, who, dejected by his inferiority, surrenders absolutely to the irrational luck of the gods. The entire context of the main art can account for this.
I wonder what the lyrics on the new album "Stellar Annihilation" are about. Who is the author and where is his inspiration?
I have composed the lyrics. Interestingly, the influence can be traced in some readings to Sumerian mythology. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith have also been a starting point for thinking about certain nuances. But let's say that the greatest influence is produced by a dialectical perspective that is eclectically mixed with ufological stories and interpretations of these on mythology, especially Sumeria, as I already said, where the image of man is projected onto the divine, in this case the gods or demons, who as archetypes establish an anthropological ideal.
For over thirty years and I still go to Colombia for music with certainty. I think we have a similar nature and taste when it comes to metal. I like your bands a lot and I monitor your scene carefully. Maybe I envy you a little, because we only have a few death metal bands that are worth it. How do you explain that death metal are doing so well in your country? How do you perceive your scene, fans, labels?
It is difficult to affirm that there is success for Colombian death metal bands, at least a success that is measured under econometric parameters (I am aware that this condition is common in almost all countries in the world, but I would like to emphasize on this side of the planet) .
Here, most bands have been established in conditions of scarcity and violence, making it difficult to access those cultural assets, such as a recording studio, or even an instrument (of course, as difficult as it was a couple of decades ago). Fans of Ossuary and death metal in general, understand the vicissitudes that the passion for this genre implies, as do the sister bands that, despite the difficulty of cultivating and solidifying a musical work, remain standing, due to that strong character that owns the undergraun lover. And that is where the efforts of labels, magazines and other initiatives, most of them independent, contribute to the growth of death metal and other metal subgenres. I consider that that is what has strengthened Colombian metal. Despite the difficulty, it continues to expand, and at the same time creates an important artistic repertoire for metal.
You play devastating death metal influenced by, among other things, the American school. Today, the band can't avoid comparisons, but I would like to know how the idea to start OSSUARY was born, who was and is your metal idol? Where do you want to move your band? Are you attracted to large foreign festivals, for example, are you willing to go on tour with a more famous band?
Our influence from the beginning, and I think until now, has been American death metal, as you have pointed out, however, old school European bands have also been a tremendous frame of reference for Ossuary. In a small list we could name the following: Morbid Angel, Obituary, Death, Malevolent Creation, Deicide, Pungent stench, Asphyx, Death, Pestilence, Cannibal Corpse, Sinister, Grave, Entombed, Unleashed, Nocturnus, Demilich... Among others.
To complement this answer, I would like to quote verbatim what Juan Esteban thinks about it, since he has the authority to do so as he is a founding member of Ossuary. (I arrived in the promotion of the second album, Buried and Forggoten from 2019). Juanes says:
The idea of forming the band was mainly due to the found taste towards metal and mainly for the subgenre of death metal and for its proposals for dark bands with a classic sound. Having several of these influences, it was decided to form a band with several friends from that time, around 2012, and with the passion to perform songs that caught our attention and had marked us. It was at that moment that the band was born.
Where we hope one day to be able to share the stage with some of them, whether outside or inside our country.
From this question onwards, it seems necessary to me that the one who answers is Juan Esteban. In that case, I deeply thank the Zine for the interview. See you soon. Thank you for supporting Metal Underground.
When I started my website six years ago, I had a vision that I would try to support bands that are not so much popular, or they are lost in underground. To let the world knows about them. I think I'm doing quite well, at least according to the responses. How do you approach the promotion of your music? Do you rely upon the label or do you send the CDs for various reviews by yourself? For example, I buy albums that I really enjoy. What about you? Are you also fans who often support your colleagues? Do you go to concerts?
Greetings friends and DEADLY STORM ZINE. I am Juan Esteban Sánchez, Guitarist and Founder of Ossuary.
Well, the promotion of our band has been well reflected through the record label we are working with: Awakening Records from China, they have helped us a lot in the distribution of physical material, distributing it throughout almost the entire planet; In short, they have contact with several labels, and we have seen this reflected in new followers who are coming to our pages.
Also through the networks we have reached different media that have given us support with interviews and reviews of the albums that help make the band a little better known.
And on our part, of course we seek to support bands of friends, buying their material and distributing it. We have a good collection of material, mainly from national bands. And we also try to attend as many events as possible to support many bands in our region.
On the one hand, today the new band has a lot of opportunities to make themselves more known, but on the other hand, there are a huge number of groups and the fans are getting lost in this big metal sea. A lot of people just download mp3s from the internet and instead of to visit the concert they prefer to spit poisonous saliva on Facebook. How do modern technologies affect you as OSSUARY? What do you think about downloading music, google metalists, streaming music, etc.?
What I think about new technology, regarding music, is that it can be a very good tool, which allows the band to be heard and known in any corner of the world with great ease. There are different digital monetization platforms that can be an income for the band, although it is not in a large amount as it could be by selling physical material. But if this option is well explored, technology can be positive for musical projects.
Controversies on the networks abound, and death metal is not immune from that. I consider that there are well-founded criticisms, others are just nonsense.
I like to ask the musicians what death metal means to them. How would they define it, whether it is more the philosophy and lifestyle thing for them or "just" relaxation? What does it mean for you? How do you perceive and experience it?
Death metal is more like a way of life, in our case it is like a form of relationship that causes when listening to it, also when it comes to interpreting it it is the way of letting off steam and giving everything with the instrument, letting the darkest things flow. that lives inside. It is also a door to get out of the routine. We really enjoy death metal.
Finally, a classic but important question. What is OSSUARY planning in the upcoming months? Where can we see you at the stage and when will you visit Europe?
At the moment we will be playing in Colombia in promotional concerts for the band's new album. We also hope to soon start recording a new official video, corresponding to one of the Stellar songs. In addition, we are currently recording a reissue of our first album, A Morbid Lust for Death.
As for concerts, we are hoping to finalize a proposal to visit Mexico, and we are looking forward to a proposal to travel to Europe.
Thank you so much for the interview. I wish a lot of success to the new album and let the number of your fans expand as much as possible. I will look forward to seeing you somewhere live again. I wish you a lot of success both musically and personally. I'm going to push "Stellar Annihilation" into my head again!
Thank you very much for the space and the good energy. We hope to provide a Stellar Death Metal download.
Recenze/review - OSSUARY - Addicted to Human Flesh (2021):
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