metal hails!!!!
this is a new idea i had and finally had time to put
it into action. i had thought of doing monthly or bi-monthly "scene
reports" but instead of just posting a list with a bunch of bands/labels
i decided to interview 4 bands,labels,zines from a certain country or
state here in the u.s first country up is serbia.i have met/heard some
excellent bands from this country so i wanted to shed some light on
their scene for the rest of the world to hear/check out.
i will soon
begin work on the next feautured country so keep reading. {i am HOPING
to do this feature every month or 6 weeks depending on fast i can send
out and recieve the interviews back.
always interested in feedback so please let me know ur opinions {good OR Bad}
best regards,
patrick and winter torment web-zine
http://www.myspace.com/winter_torment
up first is the mighty bane,i have interview branislav before but the
band is currently working on a brand new full-length.fans of early 90's
european style black metal will love these guys!!!!
Interview with Branislav (lead guitarist, growls, lyrics for bane).
Done by Patrick.
1. Metal hails brother! How are things going in Serbia? Please tell the readers a little about yourself.
Hails Patrick! Things are pretty chaotic for at the moment, but good enough, thanks.
Well,
I am Branislav - founder, main writer, lead guitarist & vocalist
for Serbian Black/Death Metal band BANE
(http://www.myspace.com/baneband), and lead singer for Serbian/USA
Modern Death Metal band Synesis Absorption
(http://www.myspace.com/synesisabsorption).
Beside that I use to play in Technical Death Metal band disdained.
2.
When did you first start listening to metal? Who were some of the first
metal bands you listened to? Who are some of your "current" favorite
bands?
I started listening to Metal about 10 years ago, but
extreme Metal came in about 7 years ago, when I discovered bands such as
Cryptopsy, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, Broken Hope, etc...
3.
When did you guys form BANE? How did you all come up with name of the
band? Does it have a special meaning? If i am not mistaken you all
stopped the band for a few years. Why did you all stop the band?
BANE
was formed by myself in 2006, and I am the only original member. The
band name simply represents in a way the music and emotions I have to
express: misery, death, curse, ruin, etc...
Yes, the band was
inactive from 2007 (after the first demo was recorded) to mid/late 2009.
There are several reasons, but the main ones are because I could not
find a steady line-up, and because at that time I was very busy with
touring & recording for disdained (which is now disbanded).
4.
When did you guys decide to re-start up the band? What is the "current"
line-up? For the readers who have never heard the band how would you
describe the bands music?
I decided to re-activate the band in
mid/late 2009, when I started writing some new material for BANE.
Luckily, with a few struggles once again, I finally managed to gather a
full (live) line-up:
Branislav - Growl Vocals & Lead Guitars
Khargash - Scream Vocals & Bass
Vandal - Rhythm Guitars
Zombi - Drums
The
music we are now playing can be best described as "Swedish Styled
Black/Death Metal" from the mid 90`s. For fans of early Dissection, Dark
Funeral, Naglfar...
5. Earlier this year the band released it's
debut EP "Misanthropia". How long did it take you all to write/record
the songs for this release? Happy with how everything turned out? How
has the response been from the press and fans?
Correct. The
writing process & recording of that material was realized pretty
quick actually...I would say about 2-3 months in total.
I am very
satisfied with the EP, since at first I did not even think it would be
released. Victory By Fire Records released it in March 2010, and just a
few weeks ago Set Productions from Egypt re-released it. And it will
most likely re-appear on a 3-Way Split CD later this year on US Label
Winter Thorn Records.
The response of the fans & press is very nice as far as I know and heard.
6.
I know you have told me the band is currently working on new songs for
the bands new full-length. What can you tell about this release? How
many songs will be on it? Will this be a self-release or have you found a
label to help you release it? Do you all have a release date set for
it?
The new material for our first full-length album is about 95%
complete at this time. We are entering the studio in about a week or so
to begin the recording of the album entitled "Chaos, Darkness &
Emptiness". The artwork is done by legendary Marcelo Vasco (Belphegor,
Gorgoroth, Satyricon, Vader, Obituary, etc....).
The album will contain 9 songs, and will be equally divided into 3 chapters.
Chapter I - CHAOS
Chapter II - DARKNESS
Chapter III - EMPTINESS
It
will be released on ABYSS RECORDS (USA) as a special Digi-CD edition,
with a bonus track - cover of Dark Funeral`s "The Dawn No More Rises".
It will also be released on European soils (co-release between 2-3
Record Labels) as a standard jewel case CD version. And finnally, a
limited MC version will be released on Satanic Deathcult Productions.
7.
You also told me the band is preparing for a european tour in support
of the new full-length. How is this going? Can you tell us any confirmed
dates for the tour? Where are some of the countries you will be
playing/touring in?
Yes. At the moment, there are only confirmed
dates in France, Poland and Czech Republic. But we are hoping to visit
other countries such as Belgium, Holland and Germany.
There are
still a few open days for booking, so local organizers can write to me
for more info, a deal will be easily fixed: banedeathmetal@gmail.com
The
tour dates will be announced in early September, if not earlier. So if
you are reading this interview and located in Europe, and would like to
see BANE live, then drop by our MySpace page for frequent updates &
info.
8. Who are some bands you will be playing/touring with? If
you could set-up a "dream" show/tour who are some bands you would love
to play with?
We will do the whole Tour with great French band
NIBIRUS (http://www.myspace.com/nibirusband). Also on some dates of the
Tour Brutal Death Metal/Hardcore band LIVARKAHIL
(http://www.myspace.com/livarkahil) will share the stage with us. For
now this is all I know.
Definitely I would love to play a Tour as
support to DARK FUNERAL, or any Swedish Black Metal band: Naglfar,
Setherial, Watain...
9. In your opinion what is the best and
worst thing about the underground scene today? and what does the term
"underground metal"mean to you?
Well, the best thing for sure is
that it`s still alive, and that there are tons of new bands releasing
their material on Tapes, Vinyls, CD-r`s, etc...so the spirit or the
Underground in that way is still alive, and happy to see that there are a
lot of small labels supporting small bands, and the other way around.
And the worst thing...is probably that there are too many new
bands/releases, that it`s impossible to follow everything. And most
likely by now I have missed many releases which I would have enjoyed if I
had a chance to listen to them.
"Underground" has a big meaning
for me, a value that cannot be replaced with anything. By underground I
think of all the bands, shows, releases that will never be supported in
mass-media, that I love and support. It`s just something that to most
people has absolutely no meaning, but yet for me, means a lot.
10.
Bane come out of the mighty Serbian metal scene. Serbia seems to have a
strong metal scene. Would you agree? What is your opinion of serbia's
metal scene?
At this time, it is really bad. Since the last time
we spoke about this, things have gone even worst...a few more clubs have
closed, which means that it`s even more hard to find a club/local
organizer and promoter who will help you support UG bands anywhere in
the country.
As for releases, people seem to have no interest at
all in buying original CD`s, MC`s, Vinyls...and our first and only Metal
Shop closed, so we now don`t even have the possibility to enter a store
and buy merchandise.
So to be honest, the Metal scene in Serbia
is horrible. Even bands seem to be really lazy, and do not work on
themselves for promotion, recording, etc...only a VERY small number have
gathered some attention on themselves, but that attention mainly comes
from abroad countries.
11. Who are some of your all-time favorite
Serbian bands? Are their any new up and coming bands the readers should
watch out for?
Some of my favorite Serbian bands are: Dead Joker
(Brutal Death Metal), May Result (Black Metal), Infest (Death/Thrash
Metal), Draconic (Modern Metal), Through Art (Melodic Death Metal),
Shadowdream (Ambient/Metal) etc...
Or course, there are a few new bands I would definitely recommend:
Ancient
Sorrow (Old School Black Metal), Mrznja (Black Metal) , Blasphererion
(Black/Death Metal)...damn, I can`t think of any more at the moment.
12 .Besides bands does Serbia have any good/honest zines or distros/labels to check out?
The only and true Metal Record Label is of course GROM RECORDS (http://www.myspace.com/gromrecords).
As for zines...NOCTURNE MAGAZINE (http://www.myspace.com/nocturnemagazine).
13. You handle guitars for the band. When did you first start playing the guitars? Are you self-taught or lessons?
I
seriously started playing the guitar when I was 13 years. Since then, I
never had a guitar class in my life, so I guess you can say I am pretty
much self-taught.
14. Who are some of your influences/favorite guitarist? Do you play any other instruments?
Some
of my favorite guitarists and main influences: Chuck Schuldiner, Jon
Nödtveidt, Ishahn, Lord Ahriman, Luc Lemay, Jonathan Levasseur, Andy
Timmons, Guthrie Govan...and no, I don`t play any other instrument
seriously.
15. Do you or any of the members in bane have side-bands or projects to the readers should know about?
We all have different side projects:
Branislav:
-Synesis Absorption (http://www.myspace.com/synesisabsorption)
-Goat Eater (http://www.myspace.com/goateaterserbia).
Khargash:
-Obscured (http://www.myspace.com/obscuredsound).
Vandal:
-Infest (http://www.myspace.com/infestserbia).
Zombi:
-Infest (http://www.myspace.com/infestserbia)
-Simargal (http://www.myspace.com/simargalband).
16.
Well brother thank you for taking the time to fill out this interview.
Do you have anything you would like to add before we end the interview?
Patrick,
I would like to thank you once again for the true support you have
given to this band since it`s re-activation, it really means a lot to
us.
Everything that I would say is already mentioned above, so
thanks to everyone who read this interview, and if you are interested in
reading more info about BANE, feel free to drop by, add & follow us
on:
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/baneband
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bane-Serbia/114824395214837?ref=ts
Twitter: http://twitter.com/BANE_band
Last.fm: http://www.last.fm/music/Bane+(+Serbia+)
And for direct band contact & booking, write to:
banedeathmetal@gmail.com
Let thy Chaos forever reign upon us!
-Branislav
next
up is samrt,simply described by the band as "black metal" which
listening to the songs off the bands myspace page fits perfectly.
nothing fancy just pure aggressive black metal. fans of this style watch
for the debut cd "nek vam crn bog sudi" coming soon.
nterview with Nekrst, guitarist for Samrt. Done by Patrick.
1. Hails Nekrst! How is your weekend going? Please tell the readers a bit about yourself.
Hails
Patrick! Greetings to readers! Weekend was okay, I've mostly spent
these days in checking all parts of the upcoming album, from music to
lyrics, for the umpteenth time, to be sure that everything is allrigth.
The rest of the time I was listening to music, right now it’s a 4-way
split 'Secta Nova' from Angstridden, Enshadowed, Devathorn and Burial
Hordes. Great bands from Greece.
2. When did you first
start listening to metal? Who were some of the first bands you listened
to? Who are some of your "current" favorite bands?
In primary
school. First bands were Iron Maiden and Metallica, later I discovered
Death, Dimmu Borgir and Emperor and these were the doors that lead me
into the world of extreme metal. Some of my favorite bands beside the
bands I mentioned above are Marduk, Immortal, Darkthrone, Vader, Slayer,
The Stone, Behemoth, Avenger, Inferno, Inquisition and others.
3.
When did you all form Samrt? What is the "current"line-up? For
the readers who have never heard Samrt, how would you describe the
music?
Samrt was formed in winter 2006. That was a time when I was
already largely working on songs, and after Nemanja joined the band,
things were even more accelerated. In may 2007. we entered studio as a
duo to record the first demo called 'Poljubi me majko odlazim u smrt' ,
which is released as a split CD with On Horns Impaled on Darzamadicus
Records from Macedonia in September last year. During recording session I
was vocalist and guitarist and Nemanja did the drums and bass. After
recording demo, for the needs of live shows Demonetras is involved in
the band, and now he is a full time member. Current line-up that works
in studio on debut album is Demonetras on bass and guitars, Dragan Pagan
on vocals, Nemanja on drums, Urok behind the keyboards and me on
guitars.
As for the description of band's music... I love to describe
it simply as black metal. I like to let my music speak for itself, but
let's say that Samrt plays an aggressive, raw, yet melodic black metal
with frequent changes of rhythm, that leads you from the atmosphere of
the time when this country was pagan to the feelings of devastating
apocalypse.
4. I read on the band’s page that you are
currently writing/recording the debut cd "Nek vam Crn bog sudi". What
can you tell about this release? How many tracks will be featured? Do
you all have a release date set for this release?
We are still in
studio, recording is in progress and soon we will finish it. Album
should be out until the end of summer, there is not precisely specified
date. It will contain 7 tracks, lyrics are written in Serbian language.
Topic of lyrics remained the same as on the demo release -
antichristianity and Slavic beliefs, but in musical aspect there were
some changes. They are not big, but I think we made an important step
forward.
5. The debut will be released through
Darzamadicus records. How did the band come in contact with the label?
Are you happy with them so far?
As I said above, our demo is released
last year as a split CD througth this label, so we were in contact
several months before it. They had a good distribution of the split all
over the world and they were satisfied with the band, so we decided to
continue our cooperation for the debut album. We'll see where will it
lead us, so far it is good.
6. When the band begins to
work/write a new song, how long does it usually take to complete? Does
whole band work on the music or does 1-2 members handle everything?
It
depends, sometimes it can be finished in one day, but it often takes a
couple of months to complete everything. In fact the song is not over
until it's put on CD, until then you can always change something, it is
all a game of thought with an instrument, the circle is closed when you
have done recording. On demo I was working all alone, but on album I
decide to include Demonetras in composing and I think we made a good
job. You will soon have the opportunity to hear it.
7.
Which usually comes first, the music or lyrics? Who usually handles the
lyrics for the band? What are some topics/subjects you all write about?
Sometimes
lyrics comes first, sometimes not, it depends on the inspiration. I
wrote the lyrics for the demo and most of the texts for the upcoming
album, while the rest is the work of my fiancée. Topic of the lyrics is
antichristianity imbued with Slavic paganism, mythology, culture and
customs of our ancestors.
8. Does Samrt play live very
often or do you prefer to work in the studio only? Who are some bands
you have played/toured with? If you could set-up a "dream" show/tour
who are some bands you would love to play with?
We've played live but
not so offten, last gig was in November last year in Belgrade with
Nargaroth. We also played with Volkodlak, with Serbian death/trash horde
Infest and a few more bands. It's equally exciting working in the
studio, to create something new, and to present that work live. If I
could set up a dream tour it would be with Slayer, Black Sabbath and
Dimmu Borgir.
9. You handle guitars for the band, when did
you become interested in playing guitars? Are you self-taught or have
you had lessons?
I become interested in guitars when I was 6 or 7
years old, but first time I took it in my hands when I was 16 years old.
I didn't have money for lessons, so I was forced to learn everything by
myself. It was very difficult to learn alone, but passion for playing
was strong and I have succeed.
10. Who are some of your influences/favorite guitarist? Do you play any other instruments?
I
only play the guitar. I don't have some special influences but there is
a couple of guitarists that I really enjoy to listen, like Blasphemer
(ex-Mayhem, Aura Noir), hellish Slayer duo, Steve Vai and my collegue
Demonetras.
11. The band comes out of the mighty Serbian scene. What is your opinion of Serbia's metal underground?
Well,
the situation is better from day to day, no matter in which genre you
are you can always find some cool band to listen. More and more bands
are signing deals with Western labels, some bands are playing abroad and
that is a motivation for everybody to keep working hard. There is also
couple of concert agency, longstanding and most dedicated record label
Grom Records, high quality printed magazine Nocturne. There is also some
internet promoters and supporters of underground scene... More effort
should be made, but I think that the bright future of the Serbian scene
is in front of us.
12. Who are some of your all-time favorite
Serbian metal bands? Are there any new up and coming bands readers
should watch out for?
Number 1 domestic band for me is definetly The
Stone. I adore their work, it's perfect, and I also enjoy to listen
other bands from their members, May Result and Kozeljnik. There is also
an interesting band called Mor and I have to mention forever frozen but
not forgotten band Maroth. And if you are lover of true old school black
metal, you should check out newcomer band Strah Gospodnji.
13. Do you or any of the other members of Samrt currently play in other bands? If yes please tell us a little about them.
I
play only in Samrt but rest of guys are playing in some other bands.
Demonetras plays in The Stone (guitar), May Result (bass), Besomar
(guitar and vocal) and also work live shows with Kozeljnik, Nemanja
plays drums in Besomar, Dragan Pagan plays guitar and sing in Posmrtna
Liturgija and Acaverna and Urok is in May Result (keyboards) and The
Stone (bass on stage, keyboards).
14. Everyone has their own ideas/opinions on what "black metal" means. So in your opinion what does "black metal" mean to you?
Many
see it as a lifestyle but I consider it primarly as a beautiful art,
and then as a lifestyle that logically follows the art I do, through
which I express my spiritual and conscious thoughts and feelings.
15.
Well Nekrst,we have reached the end of the interview, thank you for
taking the time to fill out this interview. Do you have any final
comments for the readers?
Follow the news about our upcoming debut
album on our page www.myspace.com/samrtsrbija and also check out some of
Serbian bands I mentioned above, you will not be disappointed. ''Nek'
vam Crn bog sudi'' is coming soon, so keep your eyes open and prepare
your ears. Hails from Serbia! SLAVA!
Read more: http://www.myspace.com/winter_torment/blog#ixzz0xP49RLqA
