Interview with death metal band from Germany - EVOKED.
Answered Artilleratör (drums), thank you!
Recenze/review - EVOKED - Immoral Arts (2024):
Ave EVOKED! Greetings to the German underground. Let's go straight to the most important thing. You have released a new EP „Immoral Arts“, which is literally packed with honest, dusty death metal. How did the album come about and how do you feel about it? What direction have EVOKED evolved to?
And Ave to you too, Jakub! Great to hear from you and thanks for the opportunity to do this interview with you an DEADLY STORM Zine!
Yes “Immoral Arts” was released about a moth ago and got quite a bit phenomenal reactions in the Death Metal scene, witch we really appreciate. The writing process took a lot of time, as usual for us, as we are a rather slow working band in terms of writing. We a generally really content with the outcome of the writing and recording, with the sound and the songs and are sure, that we’ve created a solid piece of crushing death metal. I think we didn’t change much in direction. The EP is a consequent step forward in our path of playing death metal (ear crushing and brutal). And we’ll see where it leads us from here and what the next release will sound like.
I'm listening to it right now, and I have to write that this time it took me a while to get this record into my blood. I put the album into the player, I am listening to it in the car. I really like the sound. It is lively, organic, old school and at the same time clear. It seems different to me from your previous records. Where did you record and who is signed under the sound?
And fortunately the EP isn’t so long, so you can listen to it a 100 times a day, hahaha! Where ever you go, EVOKED will go with you! I’m glad you like the sound so much. The main reason for the difference in sound is the change of the recording place most likely. We opted for ‘That Basement Studio’ to record all tracks and let the grandmaster Marco Brinkmann at ‘Hellforge Studio’ lay it hands on the recordings for mix and master, who had done the complete recordings, mix and master on our 2019 album ‘Ravenous Compulsion’.
I think you'll agree with me that packaging sells. You guys have it pretty brutal this year. The author is Timon Kokott. The theme is the exhumation of the damned? Personally, I like the cover, I just wonder if it's "too" brutal. You know, on social media, artificial intelligence evaluates what's right and what's wrong. A lot of bands have gotten in trouble for covers like this. How did you and Timon get together, and what exactly does the theme convey in relation to the music?
In terms of brutality I would disagree, as I find the ‘Ravenous Compulsion’ cover art much more bloody an violent. In general the theme around ‘Immoral Arts’ evolves around the legend of Frankenstein’s Monster. Timon Kokott is the man behind our cover arts since ‘Ravenous Compulsion’ and did a fantastic job also this time. We got in touch, discussed the idea, settled for a style of drawing and pointed out some details as for example the fearful, painful and agonising expression on the cadavers face, as it comes to life, which he doesn’t want to. And we never experienced any problems with social media or some one else. Guess we have to test the boundaries a little more.
I put "Immoral Arts" over and over again in my head and I think what I like most about the album is probably that hard to describe old school death metal feeling. Then I look at your promo pics and one of you is wearing a shirt of my favourite CRYPTIC BROOD. Looks like we're of the same blood. Who was and is your role model? Every musician started out somehow, there are role models that shaped their signature. What were yours?
Yeah man! Cryptic Brood are good friends of us and we did work with Steffen. Concerning the role models - every band member has kind of its own. Mine are in terms of drumming definitely Demolition Hammer’s Vinny Daze and John Bonham and maybe a little bit Phil Taylor of Motörhead :) But for our music in general, the great, classy old school death metal bands of Europe.
I remember when I wrote a review of your first album "Ravenous Compulsion" years ago, I listened to it over and over again. Do I have it set up that if I like a band, I want to see them live, to confirm how the songs sound in concert? How do you enjoy going to gigs? And how do the new songs work live? What kind of feedback do you get?
We really enjoy playing live. Well - except for the waiting time that comes with every performance, but generally we like the whole bundle. Meeting new and old friends, share beers, going on stage and give last drop of sweat and blood and sometime get to enjoy a concert afterwards. All our song work out great in live situations. We’ve got the chance to perform two songs from the EP last year and they absolutely stood the test on stage with good feedback.
What do you think about the current trends, widespread mainly among young bands, where they try to play as technically as possible, they often insert a saxophone, various keyboards into death metal and look for a way in a very complicated way. Do you enjoy such bands? For example, if I ever come to a concert and someone like this performs there, I'm confused. It seems like a rehearsal of a jazz school to me, but in the end I don't remember anything at all. What about you and current trends in death metal?
Hm … well. There is nothing wrong to play technical and try out something new. Or if a song kind of requests a difficult and technical part, to play it but please leave sax out of death metal hahahah. There may be styles that can profit from exotic (within metal) instruments, but that’s not true for old school death metal.
In the Czech Republic, the scene is so closed. The band and the fans more or less all know each other and to be honest, it seems to me that not many people go to death metal anymore. The younger ones listen to something completely different. You're from North Rhine-Westphalia, what's your scene like, what are the clubs like. And the fans? Do they support bands, do they go to shows?
In our region there is a quite lively, active metal scene with great clubs and organizers. We’ve got to meet so many people over the years in the death metal scene, that it my seem small, but i’m always surprised to see, how many people come to our shows, that we don’t know. And there are even a hand full of younger dudes and dudettes, which keeps the hope alive, that the scene will not come to an end so fast.
A lot of bands are already planning tours for autumn and winter. How are you doing with the promotion of "Immoral Arts"? I'd like to finally see it live. Are you coming to the Czech Republic?
We surely want to play all over Europe but haven’t found the possibility for a tour yet. But we also enjoy single shows or weekend tours, so if you are connected to organizers in Czech Republic, feel free to invite us over. We’ll find a way. In September we are playing in Slovakia (Poprad) and Hannover and in October we’ll have a great gig in Hamburg coming up.
In the end I always ask a slightly philosophical question. How would you define death metal and what does it mean to you? I don't mean the playing technique now, but rather what it brings to you, how you perceive it in relation to the fans. Did you grow up on it?
Oh that’s a question to talk about at a table over 20 beers hahaha. To me it’s pure energy, brutality that is formed into melodies and rhythms, while pushing the limits of the instruments as well as the body and garnish it with “gore” and “disgusting” leads. It took me a while to get into the extremer forms of metal. So I started out as a normal Motörhead, Punk rock and Iron Maiden kid, and then disaster happened somewhere along the way and threw me into Black, Thrash and Death metal. Like a natural flow.
Thank you so much for the interview. I appreciate it. Now let's talk music. I'm going to play "Immoral Arts“ really loud! I wish you good luck and all the best in your personal lives. Thank you!
Really thank you for the opportunity to do this interview with you and the interesting questions! I’ll have a beer and a daily dose of death metal (also ‘Immoral Arts’ of course) and hope to meet your in person one time is Czech Republic!
about EVOKED on DEADLY STORM ZINE:
Recenze/review - EVOKED - Immoral Arts (2024):
Recenze/review - EVOKED - Ravenous Compulsion (2019)
Minirecenze/minireview - EVOKED - Lifeless Allurement (2016)
Minirecenze/minireview - EVOKED - Lifeless Allurement (2016)
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