A Soul Called Perdition Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the musical project?

Tuomas: Well, the whole thing started during the last few years as my main band Pain Confessor was sort of losing itself amidst the failing industry and our inspirations and motivations started to die off. Some wanted to keep going, some didn't want it that much and finally it unraveled when our drummer wanted to take a timeout. That's what broke the camel's back. We didn't really have the spirit left in us to continue searching for a new drummer and keep going. At least that is how it seemed to me. I had been writing material as usual and had a full length's worth of songs demoed and we had even tried out a few but when the shit hit the fan I was disheartened to see my songs threatened to be left unused.
They were pretty good songs and I really felt there was something there so I pondered what to do. After a while I came to conclusion that I will release the songs after finishing them as best I could and have it be my farewell to my band. It seemed appropriate as I had so much stuff to take up my time in my personal life and I even thought I would just put it out and quit. So I wrestled the whole thing together, finished the songs, did vocals, mixed the album and had it mastered by the innovative LANDR online mastering service. Now it's about to be released and I can breathe again.


2.How would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the album?

Tuomas: It's a mixture of stuff I love, which would be the whole field of metal music. I guess it is supposed to be called Melodic Death Metal but I don't know. I am at a loss with genres anyway and just do what sounds good to me. It is heavy, brutal at times, yet melodic. I write songs to my moods mostly so the music reflects how I felt at the time of writing the material and even though some songs are a few years older I apparently feel the same way about things as I found it very easy to dive into it and finish it all with lyrics and vocals.
Vocals range from lower growling to shrieking and anything between the extremes. You will not find the traditional clean vocals here though. I used one absolutely clean vocal thing in there, which is in the background of the chorus of Emptiness. I did all the music in quite a live fashion so the songs would sound much like they would sound played live. Vocals are one take or two takes, mostly. Guitar and bass parts are also few takes and as live as possible. Drums I had to construct using software as I didn't have a drummer ready and also I wanted to do my own arrangements for drums as well, like how I would play the parts if I was good enough drummer. The end result is music I want to hear.


3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects you explore with your music?

Tuomas: My hatred towards the world we live in. I mean, I love life and I want to enjoy life but the suffering all around us and the damage we do to the world and to each other is just so fucking horrible and disgusting that it eats away at everything achievable in one man's personal life. I write about my feelings when I see pictures of dead children bombed to pieces for some rich privileged asshat's greed or families torn apart by some religious fanatic shitheads, when I hear news about kids and teens raped by some disgusting supposed "refugee" fucks who left their women and children to die of hunger and came to MY country to abuse MY money, MY land, MY hospitality and MY people. I want to help those women and children, and the men who really need help but to allow this shit to happen to innocent people who are not ever responsible for the goddamn wars the "refugees" are "fleeing" from is absurd and criminal. And I do not condone the raping and abuse by anyone else either. The current world situation just makes one capture the moment. I feel utter hate and rage toward both sides of every conflict for there is no justified war going on. Everything seems staged to make us all suffer.
The political landscape is total bullshit. I hate the lying, deception, greed and the disdain towards the people who elected them. That's what I write about. The scorn of the elite towards those who essentially make them what they are. Emptiness is about perseverance in a situation where you have everything staked against you and there is nothing you can do but bite the bullet and soldier on. It is actually inspired by some very close people who have to fight a muscle deteriorating disease and after living with that struggle seeing their power and will to withstand something that would have me cry like a pussy and wish for death made me think about it thoroughly and write about it. The chorus is, funnily enough, inspired by the scene from the movie Dredd where a couple of guys get themselves skinned alive and thrown down a building with a puff of Slo-Mo slowing their experiences to feel like eternity. I imagine the pain in the muscles and waiting for the seizures to subside would feel similar.
Also, when my first child was born I dove into an eternal state of worry and preparedness. Every loving parent knows this. I am on DEFCON 5 all the time. When I read about someone's child molested, kidnapped, killed or raped or whatever horrible shit perverted people do to others, I always wonder where their fathers are? If anything should ever happen to my children I know in my heart I could not bear to live with that knowledge without acting on my instincts which tell me to retaliate and make sure the horror ends there. I would kill, butcher, the assailant. I would rather go to jail or die than let my friends or family suffer unpunished.
Immortal, Entwined lyrics are plain fiction based on some real events that I just wanted to write a story about. And the last song is what it is, a farewell.


4.What are some of the things you are able to do with your solo project that you where not able to do with 'Pain Confessor'?

Tuomas: Honestly, nothing really, except do vocals. We had a great band with six guys writing stuff together and I didn't really feel I didn't get to do something I wanted. I have always been writing different stuff by myself anyway so there is an outlet for material not suitable for Pain Confessor and now A Soul Called Perdition.
I guess the main freedom here is I do everything without consulting anyone and I get my vision down 100% instead of running it by 5 other guys. Not that it was a problem but this here is me and only me. I say what I want, play what I want and sound like I want. And release it how I want, when I want and for what price I want. The business part was the crappy part of my band experience so this time it is all me, no one else is invited to affect the processes and decisions. Perhaps this is my trial that I just have to go through. To see if it can be done this way. I ended up sounding like that one girl in Coming to America there for a second, hahahha! “I want to produce my own songs, write my own songs, sing my own songs…” Oh my…


5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'A Soul Called Perdition'?

Tuomas: I have suffered from severe depression for most of my life and it is hell to live with, both for me and for everyone around me. Considering all the lyrical content I have laid out for this album and the fact that this is a one-man-project it seemed appropriate. I am a troubled soul full of hell. A lost one. And I am not the only one, nor am I anything special so "a soul" would describe it better than being "The Soul Called Perdition". Anyone feeling the same might be able to identify with it. We are all lost. And no, I am not religious. Far from it. Soul just describes mind more poetically than the word “mind”, I think.


6.With this musical project you record everything by yourself, are you open to working with other musicians again or do you prefer to work solo?

Tuomas: Yes, I am open to working with others, even though I prefer to keep this project as it is, if I continue that is. Actually I am planning on a live lineup if the need arises and some place would have me/us come and do a set live.
I also do vocals and write lyrics for Kara Darahu and I am also playing guitar for a black metal / grind band Ruumiskellari so I am not as hermit as you might think. Oh yeah, and we have a Sentenced cover band that does only older material of the Taneli Jarva-era until Amok / Love and Death EP.


7.Currently you are unsigned,are you looking for a label or have received any interest?

Tuomas: Fuck no! I finally got rid of the shackles of previous labels and am feeling awesome so hell no, I won't step into that trap again. Why the fuck would I voluntarily bring in people whose sole purpose is to make money out of my work? If I were to ever again consider a label the offered deal would have to be not of this world. I'll keep my rights, thank you very much!


8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of extreme metal?

Tuomas: Have received none with this project yet but can't wait to hear what people have to say. Overall I have had great experiences with metal fans and I share their passion. I love Japan and Japanese metal fans! Also, I would love to tour Europe. Never really got to do it so I just rely on what other musicians have said and their comments are always encouraging. US would be cool too, to visit there again and bring some music with me this time.


9.Where do you see yourself heading into as a musician in the future?

Tuomas: Straight to the gallows. No, I have no idea whether or not I am able to do music as much as I would love to. Other commitments take up so much time now. But I will keep writing music and probably eventually do another album or something. I would love to play live but that is not entirely up to me. If the right occasion comes and I get the right people to join up, it will be great!


10.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?

Tuomas: Sentenced definitely, the North From Here – The Trooper EP – Amok era. I was just thinking about this topic and I think 80s stuff like Iron Maiden and WASP, their dual guitar leads are awesome and I always preferred the more melodic licks by Adrian Smith and Randy Piper over the faster guitar hero stuff of Dave Murray and Chris Holmes. Metallica was a big thing for me, still is but you just cannot be the same fanatic fan of teens at 30s, I think. Dissection and Satyricon were a doorway for me to some darker territories and through a vast selection of the best black metal the early 90s had to offer I found something to soothe my depressed mind. Yes, I did not kill anyone, it actually helped me get through most of the more rough times. I guess the only thing that has not influenced me is music I haven’t heard. I tend to like a song if it’s good, no matter what genre it comes from.


11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Tuomas: I love movies and games, reading huge books by good writers, studying history and law. I am also an avid conspiracy theory reader, I enjoy looking into the most ridiculous shit as well as the more real theories and stories. For some reason I often listen to all kinds of Ancient Aliens stuff at work. Fascinating stuff. I also have a penchant for sharing tidbits of useless facts and knowledge. My wife describes me as someone who doesn’t know what time it is or when Christmas Eve is but I know what size are the testicles of a blue whale. Couldn’t agree more. I know too much useless shit!


12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Tuomas: Thanks for this interview! I appreciate it! To anyone reading, be cool to each other and listen to good music. Fuck the oppressing governments, let’s take back our lives and live it to the fullest!

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A Thousand Sufferings Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

We started from the ashes of Vex (Pj and I used to be in this band and we released one album via German label "Art of Propaganda") around 2013. We, as a fourpiece, are based in Klein Brabant (located beween Antwerp and Gent) and have one album out entitled 'Burden' via Satanath Records.


2.How would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the album?

We had the idea to create something wich stands in the middle of sludge, black and stoner metal but apperantely people found it more doomish then we ever intended it to be. It is, like you might have understood, rather difficult to describe your own music so I just name some bands or adjectives people are reffering to when they hear our music. Celtic Frost/Triptykon, old Tiamat...dirty, heavy and nasty.

I can live up to that.


3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

I'm not the one responsable for the lyrics but I do know we don't mind to step on so called holy crosses and I would like to make it clear you should see this as a metaphor. PJ tries to put a deeper meaning unto his lyrics and he's inspired by his own experiences in life. One might recognise aspects and most likely they aren't very positive...



4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'A Thousand Sufferings'?

Our starting point was not really groundbraking when we were searching for a bandname. It just had to fit the music...Though, our former guitar player (Noctiz/bass player in Lugubrum) came up with this proposal and it just felt right. There is no deeper meaning. Sorry for the dissapointement and a lack of yet another cool or dark story.


5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

Our best show was mayby the last one we did, in Gent on the 'Occult Sabbath' with Goat Torment, LVHTHN and Zemail. The most memoriable was with Urfaust, Lugubrum and Alkerdeel in Antwerp. We dare to say we kinda fit with the other bands on this bill. Every band is different and all have something equal. We also did an extra coversong of my previous band 'Verloren' with Verderf (vocalist in Verloren) as a guest.

Our stage performance is quite simpel. We get on stage and we play. Nothing more, nothing less.


6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

Individual shows are coming up in 2016 but touring is not our main goal. Though, we are open for any suggestion so if we get a serious offer to play anywhere we are glad to accept it.


7.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black and sludge metal?

It's too early to answer that question properly.


8.Are any of the band members also involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?

Our guitarplayer has it's own project called 'dreams and disasters' but I think it's been put on hold from the moment he joined us.


9.Where do you see heading into musically during the future?

Skip the doomish parts and adjust more heavyness and filthyness.


10.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?

Personally? Burzum ;-)

I try to follow what's going on musicwise and it goes from Chelsea Wolfe to Steve Von Till to Blaze of Perdition to whatever...I think it's nice to expierience there is STILL good music out there and that pleases me the most. It helps some of my Facebook friends are doing the research for me.


11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Photography


12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Well, thank you for the interview. I hope people find the time and effort to check out what we're doing. We wrote 50% of our next album so we hope to record this summer...

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Concrete Icon/Through Agonizing Past/Black Vulture Records/2015 CD Compilation Review

  Concrete  Icon  are  a  band  from  Finland  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black,  death,  doom  and  sludge  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  compilation  album  "Through  Agonizing  Past"  which  was  released  by  Black  Vulture  Records.

  A very  dark,  heavy  and  melodic  doom  metal  sound  starts  off  the  compilation  along  with  some  solos  and  leads  that  also  use  a  great  amount  of  melody  before  adding  in  death  metal  growls  and  black  metal  screams  and  clean  singing  can  also  be  heard  in  the  music  at  times  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Some  of  the  riffs  add  in  a  90's  Swedish  death  metal  feeling  while  some  of  the  slower  riffs  bring  in  the  heaviness  of  sludge  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  as  the  compilation  progresses  some  of  the  songs  also  start  bringing  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  some  songs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  playing while  a  later  track  brings  in  a  small  amount  of  keyboards.

  Concrete  Icon  plays  a  musical  style  that  is  mostly  rooted  in  a  more  melodic  style  of  doom/death  metal  while  the  influence  of  black  and  sludge  metal  can  be  heard  at  times,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  death, darkness,  sorrow,  suffering  and  apocalypse  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Concrete  Icon  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black,  doom,  death  and  sludge  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Flood  Of  Darkened  Thoughts"  "Desecrating  The  Throne"  "Standing  At  the  Mass  Graves"  and  "Summoned  From  The  Sleeping  World".  8  out  of  10.

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Mussorgski/Creatio Cosmican Bestiae/Godz Ov War Production/Third Eye Temple/2016 CD Review

  Mussorgski  are  a  band  from  Poland  that  plays  a mixture  of  symphonic  black  metal  and  ambient  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2016  album  "Creatio Cosmican Bestiae"  which  will  be  released  in  February  as  a  joint  effort  between  Godz  Ov  War  Productions  and  Third  Eye  Temple.

  A  very  dark  ambient  sound  starts  off   the  album  along  with  some  elements  of  classical  and  after  awhile  the  music  gets  more  heavy and  melodic  as  well  adding  in  deep  black  metal  style  growls  while  also  mixing  the  heaviness  in  with  the  symphonic  parts  and  the  solos  and  leads  also  use  a  great  amount  of  melody.

  You  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording  and  spoken  word  parts  can  be  heard  in  the  music  at  times  along  with  a  great  portion  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  the  keyboards  at  times  also  bring  in  the  atmosphere  of  a  horror  movie and  they  also  bring  in  a  couple  of  instrumental  tracks.

  Some  songs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts  which  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  ritualistic  feeling  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  while  most  of  the  music  sticks  either  to  a  slow  or  mid  paced  musical  direction  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  male  and  female  choirs  can  be  heard  and  the  last  track also  brings  in  elements  of  electronic  and industrial  music.

  Mussorgski plays  a  musical  style  that  is  very  heavily  rooted  in  symphonic  black  metal  while  also  mixing  in  elements  of  experimental,  ambient  and  classical  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own, the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  scientific,  universe  and  anti  christian  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Mussorgski  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  symphonic  black  metal  and  ambient  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "God  Is  In  The  Neurons"  "Key  To  The  Universe"  and  "Paradisum".  8  out  of  10. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQbGloaUo2g

 

Hooded Eagle Interview

1.For those that have never heard from you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

Lynn: Hooded Eagle is a doom metal band that embraces elements of every extreme metal genre. We will happily throw black metal, death metal, sludge, hardcore punk, or whatever else we want into any song, as long as we can make it work.


2.Recently you have released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

Lynn: The album consists of songs stretching from the very beginning of the band up through the beginning of 2013. Our former guitarist envisioned the band as a chill, post-metal outfit, and his performance of the songs reflected that. Bobby's style generally has an air of evil to it, and you can definitely hear that in these recordings.

Mark: The opening track, ‘There is No Goodness Left in this World’, was the first song Hooded Eagle wrote and the last track of the album was written with all four standing members, if that helps put it into perspective.

3.Originally the band played more of a post metal style but the current music is more rooted in doom and doom metal, what was the decision behind going into this musical direction?

Lynn: It was definitely a conscious decision. When I joined the band, "slow it down" kind of became my mantra, and after years of referring to us as a doom band, even when we weren't, it kind of rubbed off on the attitude of the other members.

Bobby: Way before I joined I was asked to write lyrics/vocals for a few parts in their, then, newest song (‘I Have Dreams…’). Having played with Lynn and Wolfe in a death metal band years ago, I knew they were taking Hooded Eagle in a more metal direction after I heard it. After I joined, they had already written most of the record; but once I added my style of playing and vocals into the mix everything just fell into place.


4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

Lynn: We generally take really rough, personal, emotional songs about loss, loneliness, and sadness, and add a filter of science fiction and horror to them.

Bobby: I feed off of Lynn’s, more personal, introspective lyrics in the respect that my writing comes from a third person perspective and different interpretations of his words. I could be speaking as him or as an omnipotent narrator at any given point.


5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Hooded Eagle'?

Lynn: "Hooded Eagle" is the name of a song by a band called Jerusalem. They put out one album, produced by Ian Gillan from Deep Purple, in the early 70s.

Bobby: We actually thought about changing it a few months after I was in the band but it stuck regardless. The name can mean whatever you want it to mean. To us, it’s just a title for the music we play.


6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

Lynn: Charleston has always had an issue keeping DIY venues open, so through several periods in the band's history, we've focused on playing house shows. They're always brutally intense--to the point where anymore, I have to face Mark's kit. Otherwise, the crowd would be blocking me from touching my fretboard.

Bobby: We use lights and fog on stage (or anywhere, really) to build atmosphere while also playing at extremely high volumes. We want the crowd to be immersed in the music. There have definitely been issues with playing certain venues because of how terribly loud we are, but it’s an integral part of our live performance. We are regularly called the loudest band in Charleston.

Mark: Opening up for Eyehategod at The Oasis (deceased) was awesome.  Our latest show opening up for High on Fire and Crowbar at the Music Farm was kickass for us and we are really looking forward to opening for Jucifer at The Tin Roof in West Ashley later this month. The performance, I was told once, is described by one word; "Monstrous”.


7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?

Lynn: We don't have any tours planned, yet. We're almost done writing our second album, and we'll probably hit the studio before we spend any substantial amount of time of the road.

Bobby: We will be be playing shows regionally, but like Lynn said, we have most of the next album written so we’re going back into the studio in the spring to record the follow-up.


8.Can you tell us a little bit more about 'Swamp Metal Records'?

Lynn: Swamp Metal Records is a new label started by an acquaintance of ours, Jack Flanders. As far as I can tell, he just saw the number of quality metal bands around the southeast U.S., and decided to start putting out sludge and doom records. We're really stoked to have his support.

Bobby: Jack has also been a fan of the band for years, so it’s super cool having one of your fans put out your music for you because they love it so much.


9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black, doom, and sludge metal?

Lynn: Well, this is our debut album, so hopefully it finds an audience with some of those people. I guess we'll just have to wait.

10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

Mark: The sound is definitely getting darker and heavier.

Lynn: We already have our second album almost done, and there's definitely a noticeable shift with it. It's the first time Bobby's been 100% involved in the writing process, so his love of black metal and Slayer definitely peeks through. We've also recently added more death metal elements to our sound. Generally, I can only imagine us growing more viscous and more complex as time passes.

Bobby: The new material is more aggressive, dissonant and evil sounding than anything the band has done before. I won’t go into detail, but I think the next record will make ‘Nightscapes’ look tame in comparison.


11.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?

Lynn: I heard Type-O Negative when I was 12, and immediately knew that slow, gloomy metal was what I wanted to play.
We're all pretty open to different types of music, and drawing influences from all over the place. If you can imagine it working in the context of a slow, heavy song, we're willing to explore it--whether it's something expected (USBM, funeral doom), or entirely out of left field (slam death metal, hardcore, or even grunge).

Mark: Hearing and seeing the Black Sabbath reunion tour with Pantera is what did it for me.

Bobby: I grew up at the altar of Slayer. Evoken, Thou, early Cradle of Filth and Deathspell Omega are among my main influences as well. ‘Monotheist’ (Celtic Frost) has been in heavy rotation lately along with the numerous collaborations between Thou and The Body. ‘Gateways to Annihilation’ (Morbid Angel) is also in there somewhere. Perpetually listening to ‘Reign in Blood’ and ‘Master of Puppets’.


12.What are some of your non musical interests?

Lynn: Satan.

Bobby: Satan.

Mark: Time and space… the forces of nature.


13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Bobby: We have a busy year ahead of us.

Mark: Thank you and we look forward to coming to your town or city to give you the Hooded Eagle experience when that time comes!

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A Soul Called Perdition/Into The Formless Dawn/2016 Full Length Review

  A  Soul  Of  Perdition  are  a  solo  project  from  Finland  that  plays  a  very  melodic form of  blackened  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  self  released  2016  album  "Into  The  Formless  Dawn".

  A  very  heavy  and  melodic  sound  starts  off  the  album  and  after  a  few  minutes  the  music  starts  to  speed  up  a  bit  along  with  some  death  metal growls  and  the  solos  and  leads  also  use  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  you  can  also  hear  all  of  the musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording  and  the  music  has  a  great  mixture  of  both  Finnish  and  Swedish  influences.

  Some  of  the  tremolo  picking  gives  the  music  a  touch  of  black  metal  as  well  as  some  high  pitched  screams  also  being  used  at  times  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  and  spoken  word  parts  along  with  some  clean  singing  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording.

  A  lot  of  modern  metal elements  can  be  heard  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  and  throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  great mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  some  of  the  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  very  heavily  influenced  by  traditional  metal  and  the  whole  album  also  remains  true  to  a  very  heavy  and  melodic  musical  direction  from  beginning  to  ending  of  the  recording.

  A  Soul  Called  Perdition  plays  a  musical  style  that  is  mostly  rooted  in  melodic  death  metal  but  also  mixes  in  elements  of  black,  modern  and  traditional  metal  to  create  a  style  of  his  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  themes.

 In  my  opinion  A  Soul  Called  Perdition  are  a  very  great  sounding melodic  blackened  death  metal  solo  project  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "There  is  No  Shelter"  "Emptiness"  and  "We  Walked  In  The  Shadows".  8  out  of  10. 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0MliXayt0o 

  

Hyperion Interview

A Different Shade of Black Metal Interview with Erik Molnar from Hyperion
For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
Molnar: Musically, I would say that Hyperion is a band inspired by many different genres within metal and even to some extent by other styles of music as well. The main focus, however has always been to create a forceful, epic and melodic musical landscape over flooded with emotion. Our aim is to create music that is explosive, grandiose and beautiful at the same time.

Recently you recorded a full length album, how would you describe the musical sound that you wish to present on the recording?
Molnar: From a song writing point of view, that aim has already been explained in the answer to your previous question. From a production point of view, however I would say that we obviously wanted the sound to reflect and bring forth the full potential of each and every song. Our music is quite complex in the sense that we tend to have layer upon layer of guitar harmonies, orchestrations at times, complex bass lines and so on, so we wanted every instrument to be heard as much as possible without sacrificing the original atmosphere. We also did not want the album over produced like many modern metal releases, nor did we want something like say the first Bathory album (even though that album is fantastic). We wanted something in between and still have something unique. Epic I suppose is the keyword to the sound we wanted and I believe our mixing/mastering guy Sverker pulled it off.

Originally the band was a melodic death metal band but have started adding in over the years, what was the decision behind going into this musical direction?
Molnar: I guess you must be referring to the change we made with the release of the “Blood of the Ancients” demo back in 2010? Well, when we started the band we were quite young. I was 17 at the time and you naturally mature as a musician and include new sources of inspiration as time passes. I started listening to a lot of 90s Black and Death Metal and as a youngster that was incredibly inspiring for me to hear. It was wild, brutal, dark, and sinister but many of the bands still had a very melodic and melancholic touch to their music, which I felt very attracted to. Inevitably, I wanted to include these elements in my own music and my bandmates shared my enthusiasm. It was a step forward in our evolution process.

From 2010 to 2015, there was no new music released. Can you tell us a little bit more about what was going on during that time period?
Molnar: There were a lot of things going on during that particular period. We were writing a lot of material for the album that has now been completed, we played a lot of live shows, we made some small steps forward here and there, but nothing of great significance really happened, so we decided it was time to record our first full length album in the beginning of 2013. It took us almost 3 years to complete, the reason for that being mainly because we faced numerous obstacles along the way. As a band, we basically could not agree on anything at certain points and got into a lot of arguments about everything involving the recording process. I dealt with a lot of personal issues and the stress around the recording sessions made it all even more frustrating and harder to deal with, since all of us kind of lost motivation for a while. There were a million other reasons for the delay, but the tides eventually turned for the better. We now finally have the album ready for release. We are now only waiting for the printing of the album to be completed and then it can be spread across the globe!

Your lyrics cover some Occult topics. Can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in Occultism?
Molnar: We have some minor references to the occult in our lyrics yes, but it is by no means a central theme for the lyrics of Hyperion. It is impossible to play this kind of music without at least touching upon the subject, I suppose…
I used to be quite interested in the occult some time ago and still am to a certain degree. Although it is nothing I practice in my everyday life and I don’t subscribe to any particular religion. Some parts of it resonates with me, other parts are completely illogical in my understanding of it. I do strongly believe however that there are unseen forces beyond humanity’s comprehension that challenge the norm of “conventional thinking”. In short, Hyperion is not a religious band and we don’t support any kind of occult organisation, or activity as a band.

What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Hyperion'?
Molnar: Hyperion was one of the great Titans of ancient Greek mythology. He was the titan of the sun before the Olympian Gods overthrew him fellow deities. The name reflects our music perfectly: It is ancient and it is epic. Some of our lyrics deal with tales from Greek Mythology, so that obviously fits in perfectly as well.

What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Molnar: There are 2 shows in particular that come to my mind at this very moment. The first one is when we performed at Snövit, a small pub in Stockholm in 2013. The place was packed, the sound was crap, but the atmosphere was fantastic. I believe there were about 70-80 people there that night, which is a lot by Hyperion standards and we were the “headlining act”. The crowd was great and we simply had a fantastic time. The second show was back in 2014 when we opened for my cousins band “Descend”. They has just released their new album. That gig was amazing and I have a lot of fine memories from that gig as well. It was magical.
Our live performances are pretty standard metal shows, I believe. We let the music speak for itself, headbang as much as we possibly can without fucking up our playing and we have a good time. I personally try to immerse myself as much as I possibly in the music. I care little for social norms, or what is considered “correct” when I’m on stage.

Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?
Molnar: Yes, we have. We have avoiding playing live to often during the last time, since we believe that we must have something new to promote other than our old demo from 2010. There are a lot of things boiling in the cauldron you could say, but nothing booked quite yet. Time shall tell about that, but we definitely want to promote the new album and gig as much as possible when the album is released.
On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of melodic black and death metal?
Molnar: From those that have heard our music, the response has been great as far as I know. We have not gotten out of our way to promote our music that much to be honest since the release of our demo, but things are about to be adjusted… Our new single “Novus Ordo Seclorum” received quite a lot of airplay on metal podcasts around the globe and a lot of people have heard it on YouTube, I believe. The feedback seems to be positive so far and of course it would be nice if it continued that way when our album comes out. It is not that crucial to us, however if people appreciate our music or not. The important thing is that we do what we love and if people like it, it is certainly an immense bonus.

Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
Molnar: We actually have quite a lot of written material lying around. Not much has been completed yet, but I find the direction it is taking quite alluring, although it is far too early to speculate regarding that topic. Time will tell as we eventually complete the writing process for the next record.
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?
Molnar: Oh, there is a lot of stuff that inspires us. Undoubtedly there have been many Black/Death Metal and of course Melodic Death Metal bands that have influenced us, especially from the 90s. Some of the major would be: Dissection, Emperor, Marduk, Ulver, In Flames (their old material), Dark Tranquillity and At the Gates. We are also inspired by some Power and Heavy Metal acts such as Blind Guardian and Iron Maiden. Other genres tend to seep into our music as well, like classical music, gaming soundtracks, movie soundtracks… anything that catches our ears basically. We are experiment and mix influences as we see fit.
At the moment I am listening to a lot of Wintersun, some songs from Old Man’s Child and some good old Ensiferum, but I’m always on the hunt for new music to listen to.
What are some of your non-musical interests?
Molnar: I am quite interested in health, wellbeing and nutrition in particular. I like to take care of myself as much as I possibly can by eating right, getting enough of sleep, exercising as often as I can etc. Currently, I am also studying to become a system software developer, so programming and IT in general plays a significant role in my life. Other than that, I enjoy spending time with my loved ones, having an occasional drink and playing Starcraft II.

 Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Molnar: From the bottom of my heart, I would like to thank each and every individual that has supported us thus far. Hyperion is growing slowly, but surely day by day and it feels terrific. I encourage anyone reading this interview to listen to our latest single “Novus Ordo Seclorum” and pick up the album when it comes out! Thank you for showing interest in Hyperion!

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