1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
We are one of the oldest bands if not the pioneers of symphonic melodic extreme metal style from Egypt. The band formed in 1996, following steps of many other Egyptian bands in the 90s that we watched perform as teenagers in what was once a healthy scene. Most of these bands played covers, but we took a different approach and decided to focus on original material which lead to the 1997 demo “Storms from the East”.
2.You have your first full length coming out towards the end of April, musically how does it differ from your previous demo and singles?
The new album is richer in music and concepts as well as the lyrical content. It has been a long time for since we last made new music and time has shown its effect on how we approach composing compared to teenage days.
The material of the late 90s are mellow in a way compared to the new stuff that is coming out soon, but there are also a lot of similarities which identify how we sound as a band; lots of melodic riffing with orchestral influence.
Regarding singles, released a couple singles from the upcoming album over the past two or three years but compared to the single released in late 1997 “Ode to Thebes”, these ones are of a totally different music feel and lyrical theme.
3.The band was broken up for 16 years, what was the cause of the split and also the decision to reform?
We were just all graduating high school during the late 90s and naturally life take us to the next step with education etc., the biggest reason why we could not continue was because of the Satanic scandal that happened in the late 90s in Egypt which tore down the entire scene, completely shattering young dreams. It no longer made to continue as this type of underground music had no place to belong to. There also was no internet at the time. Another main reason was that our drummer from the original line up moved outside of the country. It was very hard to replace him with somebody who could play well enough, though we did release and single after his departure; those drum lines were recorded through a keyboard.
Around 2012, the drummer from the original line up and I reconnected and discussed re-recording the 1997 demo because it was done poorly back then; you can hardly hear what is being played. Back then in the 90s there was no professional music studio in Egypt that understood how to produce metal music, thus the quality being so low.
The idea of re-recording the old material turned into revamping the whole demo, which later lead to making new music. At first we wanted to release at 12 track return album which included both the old and new material, but the drummer decided to leave the project and that lead me to consider making a return album include only the new songs.
4.So far the band has released very little material, other than the 16 year hiatus, what are some of the other delays you have had in recording and releasing music?
There are many reasons that can delay things. First of all, this album was done completely online, which takes time accordingly. The material for the new album had been complete by 2016, but since, lot of time was lost in searching for members and auditioning those who showed interest to be a part of the project. A lot of trial and error was done trying to record actual orchestral instruments but the task was to great, finding the right female vocalist was also one of the reasons that consumed a lot of time. The hardest part was finding the right vocal, I’m glad I was introduced to Scott by somebody from the Egyptian metal scene.
5.Some of your lyrics and the bands name comes from Egyptian Mythology, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in your homeland's ancient past?
Since Egypt has a great ancient history and a rich culture, a lot of us Egyptians take pride in it. It is also a dark and mystical theme which suits underground metal music. As we all know Egyptology is a world heritage, therefore it would be correct to say that the ancient Egyptian theme belongs to all, but surely we have our understanding and relation to it over others who are just fans of Egypt.
As for the lyrical correlation to ancient Egypt; we use the theme merely as a lens to express what we want to convey. Lyrical content of the new album focuses around modern day or every day matters. We mostly discuss an internal battle between the light in the dark aspects of human emotion, whether that be pain, anger, hate, fear, solitude, hope, passion, and such and we scope that through the deities and culture of our ancestry to maintain the theme of the band.
6.What are some of the other lyrical topics and subjects you have explored so far with the music?
Well one song is merely about the myth of Osiris, which is a story that includes human emotions that we can all relate to such as love, jealousy, envy, greed, hate, revenge and vengeance. Other track discusses modern day socio-economic structures that enslave the individual to a lifetime of inevitable duty, similar to how every stone that resembles ancient Egypt was built. There also is a song that discusses the realization of self and overcoming the self through seeking guidance then redemption. So the lyrical content, as mentioned previously, tackles the darkness that exists within our daily lives as well as the beauty and hope that exists within our darkest hours. As for the rest of the songs, be sure to check them out once you have the record, for every track should convey to the listeners differently.
7.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the album cover?
The artwork was done by an professional artist, Michael Sissons, a mentor and a friend of mine. I think the content is straightforward; the person in the middle being torn between two opposing elements, and as such, being affected accordingly. It presents the musical and lyrical content of the album flawlessly. Again, art is open for free interpretation.
Michael did an amazing job giving life to the album in the form of an image, and I thank him greatly for his input. He is someone who has an natural and outstanding ability to feel and mimic one form of art and transform it into another, and I truly can recommend him to anyone who seeks such immaculate work.
8.Currently there are only 2 members in the band but you had a full line-up, are you open to working with other musicians again in the future or do you prefer to remain a duo?
We are very open to working with other musicians and talents, in fact it would be great to have more members to make our music even richer.
9.When you had a full line up, did you ever play any live shows?
We probably began the band at the worst time possible, in the late 90s in Egypt, when there was a framed devil worship scandal that resulted in the arrest of a lot of teenagers and young men, who where basically just fans of metal music. All venues were shut down. Although we released a demo in 1997, the band performed only once at a private birthday party, but never in front of an actual audience.
10.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of symphonic and melodic black metal?
The feedback so far has been great. We’ve had great feedback from the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, South America and Africa.
11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
There is no specific direction for the music, we play what we feel and that’s all.
12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
If by this question you mean what metal bands have influenced me, then it is definitely Dimmu Borgir "Enthrone Darkness Triumphant", Arcturus "Aspera Hiems Symfonia", Dissection "Storm of the Light's Bane", Emperor "In the Nightside Eclipse", Satyricon "The Shadowthrone", The Third and the Mortal "Tears Lain in Earth", Katatonia "Dance of December Souls", Hyprocisy "The Fourth Dimension" only to mention a few. In case you meant to include music outside of metal, I grew up with Guns n Roses, Nirvana and of course the great Michael Jackson, as well as Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi, Chopin, Beethoven just to mention a few of those greats as well. Also listened to a lot of game soundtracks from the early series of Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy and Castlevania as a kid.
Who do I like nowadays, hmm, this is hard to answer. I don’t know if you called these bands nowadays, but Insomnium, Draconian, Dark Funeral, Uada, Harakiri for the Sky, Shade Empire, Dimmu Borgir always, Rotting Christ, Septicflesh, etc are all great
13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
A tree may last hundreds of years, but for the tree to bare its first fruit, it may take decades. It took us 24 years to bear this fruit, so I hope it’s enjoyable and bring something you can relate to through your happiness and difficulties. Thank you
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