Interview Graceless

"In all the years that I have been playing in bands I have learned one thing, there is nothing more important than having the right group of people around you."

With diligence, perseverance and their fourth album “Icons of Ruin”, Dutch band Graceless have earned themselves a firm place in the Dutch and international scene as well as a place in the hearts of many fans. I spoke to founder, singer and guitarist Remco Kreft about the new album, the band's history, upcoming live activities with Asphyx and Sinister, the importance of a good social structure in the band and about the hopefully soon to be released new album by Soulburn, which also features Graceless' drummer Marc Verhaar alongside Remco.

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Hello, how is the new album "Icons of Ruin" going, what do you think of it now that it's finally out?

This is the best feeling ever! The album was already finished in December last year and we really had to be so patient. It's really a great feeling that we can now share it with everyone. The reviews are also amazing and we are of course super happy with that! We worked so hard on this.

Review Discography Equinox (Florida, USA)

This time I would like to introduce you to a band that unfortunately never received the attention it deserved and which has long since been shrouded in a gray veil of oblivion. In order to revive the band a little, so to speak, I'd like to do my bit: I'm talking about the US-American Equinox (not to be confused with numerous other metal bands worldwide as well as in the USA with the same name) from sunny Florida, who play great and not quite so US-typical death/black metal, although I would assign the band mainly to the first mentioned subgenre. But more on that later. Over the course of the band's history from 1992-2009, they released two demos, a 7" single, two albums and an EP, featuring musicians who were or are known from such illustrious names as Acheron, Incubus, the Incubus successor band Opprobrium, Possessed, Massacre, Diabolic, Angelcorpse, Amon and Druid Lord. 

At this point, I will limit myself to the two albums and the EP. So let's start with the 1996 debut album "Return to Mystery", which was released on CD by the long-defunct Greek cult label Unisound and re-released on CD and vinyl in 2024 by Dutch Vic Records with a completely new cover artwork that many people consider to be better than the original one. The almost 48-minute album, which consists of nine tracks, begins with ominously dark synthesizer sounds before brute riffs and throaty, screeching vocals kick in. It is maybe these vocals that are responsible as well for the categorization as black metal, and both this and other tracks feature very atmospheric mid-tempo parts accompanied by dark synthesizer sounds in  best Rotting Christ style. In general, the band always varies very well with different tempos, so that the album is highly dynamic. 

Interview Svartsyn

"I rather like the images of bands in the early days who hardly took any pictures and didn't expose themselves as much as they do nowadays on social media and without corpse paint."

Svartsyn are a jewel of Swedish black metal and stand on equal footing with such illustrious names as Arckanum, Sorhin, Grafvitnir, Setherial or Ofermod. Five years after the great “Requiem” album, the band recently released a new album via Norma Evangelium Diaboli.  In the interview with Ornias, who has been living in Belgium for several years now, you can find out to what extent this work also closes a circle to the beginnings of the (predecessor) band and why there will  be no more live performances by Svartsyn (unfortunately I missed the band in Cologne on the joint tour with Behemoth and Desaster in the distant year 1997). But read for yourself...

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Hello Ornias, welcome to the interview.  The new album “Vortex of the destroyer” has been out for a few weeks now, how do you rate the album with a little distance and how have the reactions been so far?

Hello and thanks for getting in touch for the interview. I haven't read that many or seen any reviews. But it seems that people enjoy the album very much. For myself I think the album is very strong but how it stand against all the other albums its too early to say. Since everything is new and fresh I would say in about a year when the recording process and the hard work behind it all is out of the system, than I can judge it a little bit better. But ranking your own albums is hard of course, since every album is taking a piece of flesh from your soul. At least I think all the albums contain high quality material.

Filmrezension "Des Teufels Bad"

"Und weil ich vor Verdruß recht müde war dieses Lebens, so kam mir in den Sinn, begehe einen Mord." -Zitat zu Filmbeginn

"Des Teufels Bad" ist ein österreichisch-deutscher Spielfilm des Regisseuren-Duos Veronika Franz und Severin Fiala aus dem Jahr 2024, der diverse Filmpreise, u.a. den Silbernen Bären der Berlinale, gewinnen konnte und als österreichischer Beitrag für die Oscarverleihung 2025 ausgewählt wurde. Der Film thematisiert ein wohl den meisten bisher unbekanntes Phänomen der Neuzeit, und zwar den quasi-Suizid über den Umweg Mord. Diese meist von Frauen an Kindern begangene Taten resultierten aus der damaligen Haltung der Kirche, dass Selbstmord ein unverzeihliches Verbrechen sei, welches per se den "Weg in den Himmel" versperre und den Lebensmüden insofern ewige Höllenqualen drohten. So fanden hier einige Menschen die "kreative" Lösung, einen Mord zu begehen, um an ihr Ziel zu gelangen: dies gipfelte zum einen so gut wie immer mit der Hinrichtung der Delinquenten, zum anderen konnten die geständigen und reuigen Sünder nach der Absolution durch einen Geistlichen als geläuterte Seelen in den Himmel gelangen. 

So spielt auch der zweistündige Spielfilm, dessen Handlung in diesem Sinne lose auf historischen Gerichtsprotokollen beruht, in der Zeit um 1750 in einer ländlich-bäuerlichen Gegend in Oberösterreich. Die frischverheiratete Agnes (sehr gut gespielt von Anja Plaschg, die unter dem Namen Soap&Skin Musik kreiert, u.a. auch den Soundtrack zu diesem Film), eine sensible und hochreligiöse junge Frau, fühlt sich in ihrer neuen Umgebung fremd und nicht angenommen, leidet unter der strengen Arbeitsmoral der Schwiegermutter und der Gefühlskälte ihres Mannes. Als ihre Depressionen (damals eben als "Des Teufels Bad" bezeichnet) immer stärker werden und Agnes "fort von dieser Welt" will, sieht sie nur noch einen Ausweg, den des mittelbaren Suizids. Einen wesentlichen Beitrag zu Agnes Entscheidung für diesen Weg liefert unfreiwillig der örtliche Pfarrer, als dieser in einer Messe der anwesenden Gemeinde aufgrund eines kürzlich begangenen Suizids erklärt, dass Selbstmord schlimmer als Mord sei und der Leichnam nicht begraben werden könne.

Filmrezension "Heretic"

Mit einiger Spannung erwartet, liegt nun endlich "Heretic", der in Deutschland am 26.12.2024 in den Kinos startete, als Blu-ray vor. Der sympathische Hugh Grant, eher durch Liebeskomödien und Artverwandtes bekannt, spielt in diesem Film den zumindest anfänglich sehr netten älteren Mr. Reed, der von den zwei jungen, attraktiven und etwas naiven Missionarinnen der Mormonen, Schwester Paxton (Chloe East) und Schwester Barnes (Sophie Thatcher) im Rahmen eines Hausbesuches vom "richtigen Glauben" überzeugt werden soll. So weit, so langweilig, könnte man sagen. Nachdem die zwei jungen Frauen im Haus angelangt sind, drängen sie dezent darauf, die Gattin von Mr. Reed zum theologischen Gespräch herbeizuholen, da ihre Religion es verbiete, allein mit einem fremden Mann in einem Raum zu verweilen. Mr. Reed serviert Blaubeerkuchen und vertröstet im Laufe des Gespräches immer wieder die Mormonninen, seine Frau werde bald dazustoßen. Der halbwegs aufmerksame Zuschauer ahnt es schon - die Ehefrau existiert überhaupt nicht.

REVIEW CHAOS INCEPTION "VENGEANCE EVANGEL"

Chaos Inception is a death metal quartet from Alabama, USA, formed in 2008 and has released three albums to date - with a slightly different line-up in some cases. To my shame, I have to admit that I have not yet consciously taken notice of the band, which also has (former) members of such illustrious bands as Monstrosity and Diabolic in its ranks. Fortunately, this has now changed with “Vengeance Evangel”, which was released in mid-February via the Czech label Lavadome Productions almost 13 years after its predecessor. As much as the label praises the band, these words are justified, at least if you are a fan of brutal, but at the same time technically demanding and sometimes tricky arrangements. The band naturally draws from the pool of American death metal and, in addition to the aforementioned Monstrosity and Diabolic, the usual suspects such as Immolation, Hate Eternal, or, in certain, particularly rhythmic parts, Deicide can also be cited. In contrast to many of their American colleagues, however, Chaos Inception seem more chaotic, impetuous and wild, despite their sophistication and technical demands.

REVIEW DEINONYCHUS "FATALIST"

Seven years after their last album “Ode to Acts of Murder, Dystopia and Suicide”, Deinonychus released their new album at the end of last year on Ván Records. Good things take time-so “Fatalist” is another great work that combines all the typical Deinonychus trademarks and should not disappoint any fan of the band. It should be clear that this style-ultra heavy, often tough, slow compositions in the intersection between doom and black metal-won't win any popularity prizes. Consequently, despite nine albums to date and a history stretching back over thirty years, the band is still - at least in comparison to other bands from the black and doom metal genres - an insider's tip and deeply rooted in the underground. But as is so often the case, the most demanding and intense works are to be found there, their depth disqualifies them as offerings for the masses, this applies to metal as well as to popular music, literature or film - as always, exceptions prove the rule.

REVIEW MACERATION "SERPENT DEVOURMENT"

The Danes from Maceration released a very strong comeback album at the end of 2022 with “It never ends...”, after the band had been on ice for years following their 1992 debut album and a 95 promo release. Now, a little more than two years later, the next album by the men around Jakob Schultz, who was also active in the legendary thrash metal outfit Invocator, is already available. “It never ends...” convinced both fans and the press with its great, convincing and catchy old-school tracks (read an interview with Jakob Schultz from last year here ). Appearing once again on the great Danish label Emanzipation Productions, the extraordinary cover artwork once again shows the octopus-like underworld creature typical of Maceration. Like the artwork of the previous album, this cover was also drawn by Ola Larsson, who has once again created a wonderfully atmospheric artwork with a great light pale blue color scheme. 

REVIEW TOTAL HATE "FORTHCOMING AGE OF THE REAPER"

Total Hate from the beautiful city of Nuremberg - which, among others, have personal overlaps with the "predecessor band" Seeds of Hate (maybe not quite right, I always felt that way), the awesome Deathronation (if something came along again, that would be great...) and the now also quite well-known Goath -  honored us at the end of last year with their already sixth album called "Forthcoming Age of the Reaper" via War Anthem Records, after the predecessor "Marching towards Humanicide" was released just 21 months before the current work. In this case, quality is definitely not at the expense of quality, friends of traditional black metal sounds will hardly find anything better at the moment. The usual suspects can be mentioned here as name droppers, so anyone who counts bands like Gorgoroth, Carpathian Forest, Urgehal, Armagedda, Craft, Graven, Horna or old Darkthrone among their favorites will be perfectly served here.

INTERVIEW MERCYLESS

 

"For me, people are almost more important than the music .... Before you make music and give concerts, you need people who understand each other and get along."

Mercyless from Mulhouse, close to the German border, are probably one of the big three of French death metal, which also includes Massacra, who we have long since opposed, and Loudblast, who are still active. These bands made the underground happy with their first demos back in the mid or late 80s, soon followed by their respective debut albums, in the case of Mercyless the still great “Abject Offerings” with its iconic cover artwork by the famous Salvador Dali. After two not-so-great albums in the mid/late 90s and a ten-year hiatus, Mercyless have been back in full force since 2011 to present their ominous death metal. Last year, the band debuted on the legendary Osmose label with their outstanding work “Those who reign below”, which I can only warmly recommend to anyone who likes dark and sophisticated death metal. A good reason to talk to founding member, guitarist and vocalist Max Otero about the latest album, the band's history, French death metal, the value of friendship and the band's home town. But enough preamble, now read for yourself.

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Hello Max, greetings from the Rhineland to Mulhouse! How are you and the band? How do you rate your latest album “Those who reign below” and the reactions from fans and the press now that a few months have passed?

Hi, I'm fine thanks...we were honestly surprised by all the good feedback from fans and the media in general...which is no longer obvious these days with the multitude of releases and bands that occupy the world stage.

REZENSION HÖRBUCH "HIGHWAY TO HELL" VON DR. MANUEL TRUMMER

Prof. Dr. Manuel Trummer unterrichtet Vergleichende Kulturwissenschaften an der Universität Regensburg und ist zudem Gitarrist der Heavy Metal / Doom Metal Band Atlantean Kodex, die ja dem geneigtem Leser bekannt sein dürfte. Trummer befasste sich bereits in seiner  Dissertation mit Transformationen und Erscheinungsformen der Traditionsfigur des Teufel in der Rockmusik und ist somit quasi inhaltlich schon seit langer Zeit bestens mit dem Thema seines Buches "Highway to hell - Das Satanische im Heavy Metal" vertraut. Dieses Buch ist der dritte Teil der "Metalbook"- Reihe des Kohlhammer-Verlags, in welcher Sachbücher zu  Themen aus dem Metal-Kosmos erscheinen (Besprechung des ersten Teils der Serie,  Dr. Hartmut Rosas Werk zum Begriff der Resonanz siehe hier).  An dieser Stelle wird allerdings die Hörbuch-Variante besprochen, welche bei CC-live erschienen ist, und es mit vier CDs auf eine Gesamtspielzeit von über fünf Stunden bringt. Besonders schön ist dabei die Gestaltung der CDs in Vinyl-Optik mit einem jeweilig andersfarbigen Label. Claus Vester ist als Sprecher zahlreicher Hörbücher bekannt; u.a. auch als deutsche Stimme von Rychard Rycroft (Master Wolkan) in "Game of Thrones". Als weitere Sprecher fungieren Alexander Wohnhaas (Sänger der Band Megaherz) und der Schauspieler und Sprecher René Oltmanns. Die immer wiederkehrenden Songtexte bzw. Songzitate werden wortgewaltig und ausdrucksstark von Ron Williams wiedergegeben, der als schillernde Figur aus Film, Funk und Fernsehen bekannt ist. 

REVIEW GURKKHAS "A LIFE OF SUFFERING"

Gurkkhas are a French death metal band, named after units of Nepalese soldiers in the service of the British Army and the Indian armed forces, who released two albums around the turn of the millennium (more about the current and earlier band history in the interview with the band, read here). The debut album “Engraved in Blood, Flesh and Souls” was released in 2000 by Massacre Records, and just one year later “A life of suffering” was published by the legendary German label Morbid Records, which has long since ceased to exist. Now, out of nowhere, a compilation of the two albums is being released on the French label Great Dane Records, or rather, the complete “A life of suffering” album plus four further selected tracks from the debut album.

INTERVIEW GURKKHAS

"For me, French death metal is made up of three bands: Massacra, Loudblast and Crusher."

Speaking of bands that have been inactive for decades, a few weeks ago I suddenly had the announcement of the reunion of a band in my mailbox that I, like so many others, had long since irrevocably consigned to the eternal hunting grounds of death metal. We're talking about the French Gurkkhas (with one more “k”, named after the Gurkhas, Nepalese soldiers in the service of the British Army and the Indian armed forces, in which they form their own units). They have now released a compilation via Great Dane Records (read the review here), which includes the complete second album as well as parts of the debut, and which I can only warmly recommend to all fans of US-American death metal in particular. I spoke to vocalist Jeff about the two albums released back then at the turn of the millennium as well as about the current and future situation of the band and death metal in France.

INTERVIEW NOVEMBER GRIEF

"Our sound was finally developed in a way that pleased us, and we all have very fond memories of it. I can’t believe that at the end of this year it will be 30 years since it’s release…"

November Grief from Montreal, Canada, were founded back in 1993 and have been dormant for more than 20 years. Now that the band has been active again since 2020 with a few new members, it made sense to talk to bassist and singer Stéphanie Masson, who was in Wallonia, Belgium, at the time of the interview.

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Hello Stéphanie, how are you?  I saw you had a gig recently. Did it go to your satisfaction?

Hello Gerald, I am doing very well thank you. Just arrived from Belgium a few days ago and still a bit jet lagged. Yes, we did  show here in Montreal last December 14 and it went very well. It was also our first show at home with our new lead guitarist Rachel, and boy did she deliver the goods that night ! Kudos also go to Simonne and Zack. We had a good flow onstage that evening and the maniacs in the crowd had a good time. 

INTERVIEW DEVISER

"I believe and feel that we have made a second debut with “Evil Summons Evil” and I responsibly declare that the best is yet to come."

The Greek Deviser who have been spreading their musical mischief from the famous Greek scene all over the world since the distant year 1989, have delivered their opus magnum after more than three decades of band history with their 2023 album “Evil summons evil”, released on Hammerheart Records. Anyone who loves aggressive black metal as well as symphonic and melodic-mystical sounds, which are particularly characteristic of the Greek scene, will find a perfect symbiosis of both worlds here. A good reason to talk to founding member Matt Chnaras, singer, guitarist and bassist, about the current album as well as the band's entire history and to take a look into the future. Let's hope we can see the band in Germany in the not too distant future!

REVIEW "INTO EVERLASTING FIRE -THE OFFICIAL HISTORY OF IMMOLATION"

With “Into everlasting fire”, Kevin Stewart-Panko presents the official 450 pages long band biography of Immolation, one of the longest-serving and for many probably one of the best death metal bands on the planet. First of all, it should be mentioned that this work is one of the best, if not the best and most interesting band biography I have read, and I have read quite a few, such as those of Obituary, Paradise Lost, Necromantia, Rotting Christ, Hellhammer / Celtic Frost, Behemoth, Kreator or Tankard to name but a few.

First of all, let me mention my personal connection to the band; the first album I bought was the “Here in After” album (which I remember scoring just 6 out of 10 in the German Rock Hard magazine, but more on that topic later), which I bought during my civilian service in the former German capital Bonn as an adolescenct. A year later, in 1999, I went to Wacken for the first (and last) time and as the author describes, Immolation were supposed to play in Wacken in 1999, but due to visa issues this didn't happen until 2016, 17 years later; the band was also in muddy Wacken in 2023. So unfortunately I've never seen the band live, more on the band's live presence later.