Xpus--In Umbra Mortis Sedent cd{Transcending Obscurity Rec.} done on 3-25-20

Xpus--In Umbra Mortis Sedent cd{Transcending Obscurity Rec.}
Coming out of the Italian old school death metal scene is Xpus with their second full length release.In Umbra Mortis Sedent.The new release contains eight tracks with a intro and outro the music is played with mid paced tempoed musical patterns. the musicians do speed up to a faster pace throughout some of the tracks.The guitar work and drums are played with a lot of skill and well written passages.The vocals are old-school death metal growls that are done with a lot of powerful vocals and fit Xpus's music perfectly.If you are a fan of early deicide,Obituary with the bands ability to write quality death metal then be sure to pick up a copy of In Umbra Mortis Sedent when it is released.
                                                                               Band Contacts
                                                                         https://www.facebook.com/xpus666/
                                                                               Label Contacts
                                                                          https://tometal.com/
                                                                      https://transcendingobscurity.bandcamp.com/
                                                                 https://www.facebook.com/transcendingobscurityrecords
                                                                  https://twitter.com/transcendingobs

Interview with Architectural Genocide posted on 3-11-20

1. Please introduce yourselves to the readers.

Hi, readers! Nat, Matt, Dan, and Jonathan here, and we are Architectural Genocide! Could that have sounded any more Captain Planet?

2. Hello, how are things going in Texas this week?

Matt: Texas is ight. Lots of construction, traffic because of the construction, sporadic weather, and, you know, killer death!

3. What age were you when you first discovered death metal, and who were the first bands you heard? Who are some current bands that have caught your attention?

Dan: I started listening to metal at the age of 10 and got into death metal when I was 15. This was around the beginning of the MySpace era, back when brutal death bands would reach out to you, thank you for the add, and tell you to keep it brutal! You bet your goddamn ass I kept it brutal because I started discovering bands like Devourment, Incantation, Digested Flesh, and the Berzerker. They put a little lead in my pencil, if you know what I mean.

These days, Italy has been pumping loads all over the death metal community. With bands like Septycal Gorge, Antropofagus, Indecent Excision, Blasphemer and Hour of Penance, you can’t really go wrong.

Laying it down in the Texas region, you have elites like Flesh Hoarder, Reviled, Demonseed, Defiled Crypt, Putrid Womb, and Necrosis. Lots of great death metal in the continent-sized state that is Texas.

4. Architectural Genocide was formed in 2017, when did you and other members first get the idea to start this band? How did you choose Architectural Genocide as the name of the band?

Nat: Dan and Jonathan had been trying to put together a project since 2015. Jonathan started with jamming with me in late 2017. Jonathan came out to a sesh my friend and I were having. I could instantly tell he was a thicc ass boy. He was ready to work so we got after it. We started getting together every weekend. As things progressed, Jonathan came over during the week, and sometimes he would even spend the night. Soon enough, I asked for Jonathan’s hand in marriage and slowly put together what you see and hear now.

5. Cordyceptic Anthropomorph is the band’s debut which is being release through Comatose Music, when did you and the band first come in contact with this label?
Matt: Jonathan has a long-standing relationship with Comatose Music given his previous project released music on the label. When we received the premixed tracks, we sent them to the label in September. They immediately got back to us and they said they loved what we were doing. With a label like Comatose Music that’s so strongly planted into the death metal community, how could we pass that up? They offered the deal, and we took it.

6. Does the whole band take part in the writing process or does one member usually write everything? How long does it usually take to complete one song?
Nat: Jonathan and I write a lot of the content and bring it to Matt and Dan. They give their input and we go from there. Dan and I collaborate on lyrics and vocal rhythms.
Completing a song varies. Sometimes, it can take a couple of hours. Other times, we can work on a track for weeks.

7. Besides the debut does the band have any other merchandise currently available or coming out soon? If yes what is available and where can the readers purchase it?
Dan: Merchandise can be found at architecturalgenocide.bandcamp.com and through our label at comatosemusic.com. We’re in the process of working out a deal with NASA to ensure those not on Earth get their fix, too! We gotchu, ET!

8. Has Architectural Genocide had the chance to play very many live shows over the years or do you prefer working in the studio?
Jonathan: We’ve played a handful of shows so far. We’re grateful for the offers we’ve received. We’ve already had the privilege of playing one of Texas’ premiere metal fests, Building Temples from Death Fest, and we’ve been able to open up for some of the sickest names in death metal. Matt, Dan, and I love the live performance element, and Nat gets his excitement from the writing process.
Our plan was to track an album first, then play the live shows in support of the release. But we received an offer to play Building Temples from Death Fest 2018, and we didn’t want to turn it down. We rushed to track a 2-song demo to have for the event because we wanted a little something to show people what we’re about. After that, we decided to keep the train moving and play some shows while finishing writing the rest of the debut release. Once the full length was done, we stopped taking offers for shows and focused solely on the release.

9. Are there any tours or shows planned in support of the debut release? If yes where will the band be playing and who are some bands you will be sharing the stage with?
Nat: So far, we’ve been confirmed for this year’s Chicago Domination Fest this summer. That’s going to be a wild one! This year’s lineup includes names like: Devangelic, Vile, Party Cannon, Condemned, Created to Kill, and Virulent Excision; very stoked for this. We may or may not be making our way out to Sin City sometime this year. *wink, wink*
We just played our CD Release Party here in Houston in with Flesh Hoarder, Defiled Crypt, Orchiectomy, and Scrap Pile. We packed the place for a night of delectable death metal, drunken antics, and endless pitting. We couldn’t have asked for a better turnout!

10. Architectural Genocide comes out of the Texas brutal death metal scene what is your opinion of the scene in Texas over the years?
Jonathan: We feel like it comes and goes at times here in Houston, but there is always something going on. Dallas/Ft Worth has a pretty steady stream of brutal death bands, and all the major cities have their share of heavy hitters. There have definitely been some iconic bands come out of Texas over the years, and we are happy to carry on the legacy.

11. Who are your all-time favorite bands coming out of Texas and are there any new bands you feel the readers should check out soon?
Jonathan: Infernal Dominion is a name that comes to our minds rather quickly, as well as Insideous Decrepancy. Everyone knows about Devourment, and there is Scattered Remains, too.
As far as bands to check out, go jam Toluca from San Antonio. I dig their sound a lot.

12. When you need to take a break from working on new music or band business what do you like to do in your free time?
Matt: I’m into all forms of melting of the mind, if you catch my drift. Nat partakes in strength training, he favors hanging out with cats over humans, and he is an avid World of Warcraft player. When Jonathan isn’t writing riffs, he hangs with his daughter. Our guttural goliath known as Dan is a vinyl collector, console gamer, and family man.

13. Besides playing in Architectural Genocide do you or any of the members currently play in any other bands?
Jonathan: Nat has a few side projects he works on in some of his downtime, but we are all pretty focused on this band’s momentum.

14. Thank you for taking the time to fill this interview out do you have any final words for the readers?
Dan: We hope everyone checks out the release and spreads the word of Architectural Genocide. We hope you’re digging what we’re putting down!
CORDYCEPTIC ANTHROPOMORPH OUT MARCH 13th ON COMATOSE MUSIC!

Matt, Nat, Dan, and Jonathan: See you in the pit!
Band Contacts
https://www.facebook.com/architecturalgenocide/
https://architecturalgenocide.bandcamp.com/merch
Label Contacts
http://www.comatosemusic.com/
https://comatosemusic.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Comatosemusiclabel

Interview with Nerve Saw done by Patrick posted on 3-8-20

Interview with Nerve Saw done by Patrick

1.Hello how are things going in Finland these days? Please introduce yourself to the readers?

 Hi there! My name is Markus Makkonen and I handle bass and vocals in Nerve Saw currently. Being on AWOL are Heikki Matero, our guitar player and Michael Dorrian, who played drums on our debut album.

Things in Finland are quite alright, at the moment. We’ve had a pretty warm winter, as it has been south wind throughout. That has meant a lot of ice, cold rain and slush. None of that typical 10-20 minus degrees celsius we usually have at this time of the year. Today it has been pretty nice, though. Fresh snow, nice minus 8 degrees and sun is shining again, after it being mainly away for December-January. So, yeah, I’m enjoying it in here right now. Going to town to buy some records this Saturday too, so it’s all good. 

2.When did you first start listing to death metal music and who were the first bands you heard?

- This would be in the early and mid-90’s. I was into Finnish punk bands at first, then discovered thrash metal. After I had got as far as Sepultura and Slayer, it was pretty easy to jump into realms of Morbid Angel from there. So, Morbid Angel were the first proper death metal band I heard, with Obituary, early Amorphis, early Sentenced, Edge of Sanity and Napalm Death soon on their wake.

3.When did you first get the idea to start Nerve Saw and are you happy with how everything is going with the band?

- I started Nerve Saw out in 2010 already. Around the time the band I was playing in, and I still am too, Sadistik Forest was heading to more a technical kind of death metal maybe. I had just read the brilliant Choosing Death book by Albert Mudrian and was listening a lot of very early death metal because of it. Early Carcass, Master / Death Strike, Napalm Death, Obituary and Six Feet Under… My teenage greats! So, I wanted to have a channel to write some of that mid-tempo “pick up truck” death metal as well, not just the technically advanced stuff. This is how Nerve Saw got started. I did an EP in 2011 and the band got signed by a certain label too, who did not release anything from Nerve Saw unfortunately. The EP was buried in the vaults for years, until it was dug up and released via Old Skull Productions a couple of years back. While that recording was laying in the shelves I was busy with Sadistik Forest and Hooded Menace. All this time I had Nerve Saw in mind as well. Only problem was the fact that there was more and more old school death metal coming out, lot of it sounding quite the same. So, I did not want to release any more of that. Wanted to find a fresh angle instead. At some point I realized that Nerve Saw needed to rewind back in time to early 90’s again, as far as the influences go and melt some punk stuff into death metal format. To find a refreshed sound. And here we are. Debut album is coming out in March via very good label, Testimony Records. The record turned out pretty neat and the band is very happy about it and how things are taking shape in general.

4.Who would you say are the bands biggest influences and for the readers who have never heard the band how would you best describe the bands sound?

- Somebody said that Nerve Saw in 2020 sounds like At the Gates playing GBH and I can understand where that is coming from. There’s the death metal thing, yes, but there is a lot of that 1980’s / 1990’s punk and hardcore thing involved as well. The sounds were done in similar fashion as bands from Sweden in early 1990’s used to do them, but the songs are all fresh and not a bit retro. So, I think the result turned out to be somewhat timeless. It does not belong to any decade in particular.

- While we were writing the album there was a myriad of things we were listening. Whereas I tried to conjure up the energetic, unstoppable vibes of bands like Motörhead, Disfear, Celtic Frost, but also some hardcore and punk riffs like Discharge, Terveet Kädet and Musta Paraati, Heikki was into Raised Fist like he always is and Mike was listening his own favorites, namely Suicidal Tendencies, Death and Cynic. In a way Peril became a mix of all these elements, put into a bucket, shaken and then stirred with HM-2 distortion.

5.Peril is the bands debut full-length which will be released through Testimony Rec. When did you first come in contact with this label?

- After the album was mastered and complete, we started sending out promos. Testimony Records was one of the very first, as we thought they were handling everything very well and had impressive distribution too. So, we did not even get to finish our list of labels, when Testimony Records contacted us and things took off pretty fast from there on.

6.How long did it take to write the music for the debut release? How long does it usually take to complete one song?

 - I think the songs for Peril were written, rehearsed and recorded within a radius of one year, or one and a half in maximum. Some of the songs in the album were written pretty quickly, in a matter of hours, some took a little longer to take shape, but one can write stuff like this pretty quickly. You need a good idea first and after it, just find the right notes and vibes to match it.

7.Besides the upcoming Peril release does the band have any other merchandise currently available? If yes what is available and where can the readers buy it?

- Our EP, Call of the Casket, can be bought via Old Skull Productions and we are about to do some t-shirts as well in the future. Keep your eyes open and follow the Facebook site of Nerve Saw for them. 

8.Does Nerve Saw play live very often or do you prefer to work in the studio? What have been some of the bands most memorable shows so far?

- To this day, Nerve Saw has not played live a single show yet. In the beginning I was playing all the instruments anyway so that made playing live impossible, but as we have a full band now the live aspect is an option too. Every member of the band has been playing metal since 1990’s, so we all have played lots of shows already, during 20 + years. Therefore we have not rushed with the live thing, but if we get asked to play an interesting show somewhere, there’s no reason why we could/would not do it.

  9.Are their any tours or shows planned in support of the debut release? If yes where will the band be playing and who are some bands you will share the stage with?

- We are still waiting for that phone call. Hahah!

 10.What does Underground Metal mean to you?

- A lot. Without a doubt. Have been dealing with the underground metal scene since the mid-1990’s. First here in Finland and for more than a decade internationally as well. Underground death metal scene around the world is a fantastic bunch of people, with similar mindset, values and goals. It is easy to get  along with everybody, no matter where the person is from and there are no rock star wannabes in death metal bands either. All this makes underground scene a brotherhood I’m glad to be a part of.

 11.Nerve Saw comes out of Finland's death metal scene what is your opinion of the Finnish death metal scene?

- We have great bands in here, but not too many venues where to play. Death metal has never been very popular in here, even we have a history of quality death metal. First in the beginning of 1990’s and now again. I guess all the Finnish death metal is more popular OUTSIDE Finland than here in our home grounds. Finnish bands have always tried to avoid direct copying, rather come up with a different twist for each band instead. We have had slow bands, fast bands, death ‘n roll and plain bizarre stuff as well. Melodic and plain ugly stuff. This makes Finnish death metal interesting, but maybe a bit hard to categorize at the same time.

12.Who are your all-time favorite bands coming out of Finland and are their any new bands you could recommend to the readers?

- My favorite band from here was Sentenced. Their early death metal stuff pretty much set the standard and was a fan of their later, more goth albums too. But the pinnacle of Finnish metal still has to be Demilich. They are one of a kind band in the world. The fact that they did only one album in 1993 and are still playing shows over it speaks volumes of their quality. You really do not meet nicer people, either.

- Of new bands coming from Finland, I’d like to mention God Disease, Lantern and Cumbeast, at least, but the album everybody should look into would be Realm of Ash and Blood by Solothus. I’ve heard the record and it is actually coming out the very same day as the Nerve saw album is. What these lads have done is simply marvelous. Mind-blowing, jaw dropping stuff. Atmospheric too, still brutal. By far the best death metal album that has come out from Finland in years and years! Be forewarned! 

13.Besides working Nerve Saw do you currently work with any other bands or solo projects? If yes please tell the readers a little about them?

- I play bass and do vocals in Sadistik Forest. We have a new EP coming out this year, so watch out! Mike  also plays guitar and does vocals in Anatomy of I. So, besides being our drummer, he is an exceptional all around musician. If he goes and records with Dirk Verbeuren and Steve DiGiorgio, it really should not be a surprise even. Hahah!

14.When you need to take a break from working on new music or band business what do you like to do in your spare time?

- I’d like to take a moment of rest now and then… And have a beer maybe. Hahah! But that is proving to be difficult. Besides family and work routines, I’m also wrapping up a book about Finnish death metal. Have had it under works for a couple of years, but that should be finished real soon. More news about that will follow pretty soon, I guess. So, watch out again!

 15.Thank you for taking the time to fill this interview out do you have any final comments for the readers?

- Thanks for having Nerve Saw onboard! Always a pleasure and an honor, if somebody takes a moment to listen and think about the noise we are making. To all the people reading this, stay safe, don’t buy everything you hear for a truth, but think with your own brains instead. Fear no beer, keep on supporting the extreme metal scene and please – give our debut album a listen when it’s out!

Band Contact

https://www.facebook.com/Nerve-Saw-101834354696011/

Label Contacts

https://www.facebook.com/testimonyrecords/

https://testimonyrecords.bandcamp.com/music

https://testimonyrecords.bigcartel.com/