Svarrogh Interview

1. Can you update us with what is going on with the project these days?
1. Hi, I am still waiting for the final mix and mastering of the new full length album "Aether" which was recorded in 2009 and it might be the best Svarrogh album up to now with a very coherent concept and compositions. Currently I am working on very new material which is going to be released as a mini-album afther "Aether".
Svarrogh didn´t enter live stages since 2 years because of lack of time, as well as the session musicians have their own bands themselves, like Helfahrt and Secrets of the Moon.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the newer material?
2. Svarrogh was never easy to categorize. It has always an individual sound. Thats the matter of making music these days. I could not imagine doing something common which has already been done. Svarrogh is always changing, like experiences and life situations are changing themselves. Every album is an instant expression of my thoughts in different stages through time. When art defines itself with stagnation - there is no art at all. But maybe the newer material is the most atmospheric up to now with a lot of post rock and black metal and somber folk or ambient atmosphere. I try to make my music as oppressive as I can by using many stylistic devices. Actually after 5 years of smooth atmosphere of neofolk and ambient, I am thirsty for the harsh sounds of black metal again, as this is the only music that I listen to right now.

3. What are some of the lyrical concepts that you are working on these days?
3. It is hard to describe. Everything is very individual-mythological. It is not a personified mythology. It is something ancient, unspoken, unseen, archaic.
I use fragments of slavic mythology and embed them in a very poetic text concept.
"Aether" is about a floating, sub-conscient archaic art of existence and it is influenced a lot by the american writer Ezra Pound. A human being is totally lost in
an environment of beautiful, violent and powerful nature, struggling his way and path to the very self knowledge of his existence. Aether is the shape of his status -
a dismal and sallow material atmosphere. The last album "Yer Su" was similar, but with more association to heathen slavic and old-bulgarian mythology.

4. What is going on with the other projects these days?
4. I stopped the most projects as I saw, that this is just bringing you away from the things that are more important. Next to Svarrogh, I have now only Fahl, a dark ambient project with members of the german neoclassic band Sagittarius.
We are also working on the new release of my other project Miel Noir, which is more electronic/surreal dark wave. When there is time, we will work also on new songs for my drony black metal project Schwarzwasserbrunnen.

5. How has your newer material been received by both newer and older fans worldwide?
5. I don´t know - we will see. But I have heard a lot of positive opinions.

6.Out off all the releases that you have put out so far, which one are you the most satisfied with?
6. It would be "Aether", when it will be released in 2011. I like all Svarrogh albums, they are all different and have there own words. "Balkan Renaissance" is a very powerful and simple album, very mature.

7. How would you describe your musical progress over the years and what direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?
7. Svarrogh started as pagan black metal, developed to neofolk with industrial and ambient elements and now the black metal element is the most important part of the music. But Svarrogh was always more avantgarde and not really a simple style with common arrangements and compositions. Actually the lyrical concept never changed, it just grew and developed itself. Like the painter Edgard Degas said once:
"I am glad that I did not found my style - I would be bored to death!"

8. You are originally from Bulgaria but now live in Germany, what was the decision behind the move?
8. It is a long story, which began in 1992.

9. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
9. Of course it is impossible to stay away from influences. Generation after generation is influenced. However, I try to stay for my own.
I like the art of Hate Forest, Urfaust, Wolves in the throne room, Mono, Red Sparowes, Drudkh and some industrial, neofolk and ambient projects.
The greek dark folk band Defile des Ames is definitely awesome.

10. Where do you get must of your inspiration on Slavic and Bulgarian Paganism/Shamanism and are you into any other esoteric paths or philosophies as well?
10. There are so many interesting things and materials out there.
Actually I am interested in everything that has to do with european and asiatic
culture, mythology and esoteric. My inspiration comes from nature with all her
daughters like dew, fog and beautiful landscapes and mountains, especially in Bulgaria. Esoteric is maybe one of the most growing parts in society with a lot
of bullshit and orthodox believers. I think this has to be your own esoteric life philosophy. The transcendent way, how you are on this earth and how you feel your life. I am a very ambivalent person - atheist and somehow very nihilistic, but I feel the ancient roots of Hyperborea and also the yearning to the old knowledge. Actually everything is in a context, it is logical. But I don´t believe in a hollow earth.
However, you can reach a transcendent level of your life also with the nihilistic philosophy of Nietzsche or Sartre. It is just your point of view then.
Of course the bulgarian shamanism (Tangra) and slavic mythology is more next to me, I can feel the connection to the ancient in my heart. It is just sad, that we live in a such soulless world.

11. Outside of music what are some of your interests?
11. Black & white photography, philosophy, drinking, mountains.
Unfortunately life is too short to reach all of your dreams.
I am also the editor of the printed mythological and cultural magazine Svarga which is released annually. The last issue #2 had also a lot of interviews with bands like Allerseelen and Dordeduh and dealed with european arts, cults and rituals. I have also an photography portfolio at www.dimo-dimov-photography.de.tl

12. Any final words or thoughts before we close this interview?
12. Thank you very much! Be ready for the 6th Svarrogh album "Aether" in 2011.

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Svarrogh/Yer Su/Ahnstern/2008 CD Review

 Svarrogh are a band originally from Bulgaria now residing in Germany that started out as a folk/black metal band but has evolved into more of a neo folk band over the years and this is a review of their 2008 album "Yer Su" which was released on Ahnstern but distributed by Stienklang Records.

There are a lot of folk instruments on this recording such asa bagpipe, balkan viola, big mandoline, Balkan Shepard flute, ocaria, and clarinet that gives the music a very medeival  feel that harkens big to the Pagan days mixed in with a lot of keyboards that sound very atmospheric.

Acoustic guitars use a lot of open chords played fast at times to give the music a folk music feel,while the electric guitars are fast black metal riffs that are melodic at times with some slow doom riffing, as for the drums when they are utilized they are fast beats.

Vocals are mostly clean singing and spoken word male vocals with some black metal screams being thrown in at times with some clean singing and spoken word female vocals, while the lyrics touch on Slavic and Bulgarian Paganism and Folklore with songs being written in both the English and Bulgarian languages with a concept being used in between songs, as for the production sounds very dark and raw.

In my opinion Svarggh are a very talented and original band that will appeal to both fans of folk/black metal and neo-fol. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "The Old Mill" "Stone" "Samodiva" and "Eternal Flame". RECOMMENDED BUY.

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Hrossharsgrani/Dead Man's Hill/Dead Meat/Steinklang/2010 CD Split Review

  This is a review of a split album between Hrosshargrani from Austria who has had a full length reviewed before in this zine and Dead Man's Hill from Belguim, the album is called "Dead Meat" and was released by Steinklang during the year of 2010, we are going to start of the review with Hrosshargrani.

Hrosshargrani are a band from Sweden that mixes martial industrial with dark ambient, noise and black metal.

Drum programming is mostly slow beats that get a little bit fast at times with some blast beats, while the noise effects sound dark and evil, as for the guitars they are very distorted sounding leads with some acoustic guitars being used on occasion.

Keyboards are very dark and epic sounding giving the music a ritualistic feel, while the vocals alternate between deep growls, clean singing male and female vocals and spoken word passages, while the lyrics are written in a mixture of German and English pagan orientated with some references to Romanian history, as for the production it sounds very dark and epic sounding.

In my opinion the songs that put out on this split are a lot better and darker then the previous full length that was reviewed. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Countess Bathory" and "Down There".

Dead Man's Hill are a band from Belgium that plays a very dark form of death industrial mixed in with a lot of ritual elements, neo classical and folk and now we are going to review their music.

Drum programming is all slow and militant, while the synths are very dark and evil sounding, as for the noise effects they are very loud and avant garde sounding.

Vocals use some deep growls along with a mixture of clean singing male and female vocals, with a small amount of heavy industrial guitars that make the music sound very evil.

Lyrics touch on the destruction of the world, Occultism, nature and Voodoo, while the production sounds very dark, powerful, epic and evil sounding.

In my opinion while Dead man's Hill are not black metal influenced they have the best and darkest music on this split. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "The Dangerous Emptiness" and "All Saints Day Rituals: To Baron Samedi". RECOMMENDED BUY.

https://steinklangindustries.bandcamp.com/album/skd26-hrossharsgrani-dead-mans-hill-dead-meat-2010

Hrossharsgrani/Pro liberate dimincandum est/Steinkling/2009 CD Review

  Hrossharsgrani are a band from Austria that mixes noise, dark ambient, industrial and black metal together and this is a review of their 2009 album "Pro liberate dimicandum est" which was released by Steinkling Records".

Drum programming is mostly slow militant beats, while the noise effects sound very dark and evil, as for the samples being used they bring a depressive feel to the music.

Vocals are very dark and demonic sounding growls with a lot of spoken word passages while the synths sound very dark and utilize influences from industrial and neo classical,

Lyrics range from anti religion, Norse mythology and some political themes mixed in with some other dark subjects while the production sounds very dark and gives the music an esoteric feel.

Electric guitars when they are utilized are slow and heavy riffs while the acoustic guitars are only used briefly to give the music a neo-folk feel

In my opinion Hrossharsgrani are a very good project and while this is not as metal influenced as some of their early work I still feel this album will still appeal to fans or black industrial, dark ambient, noise and martial industrial. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "All Systems Go" "The Glory Of The Dead" "The Victory" and "Mercyful". RECOMMENDED

https://steinklangindustries.bandcamp.com/album/skd25-hrossharsgrani-pro-liberate-dimicandum-est-2009

Limbonic Art/Phantasmagoria/Candlelight Records/2010 CD Review

  Limbonic Art are a band from Norway that has been around since the 1990's that play a very atmospheric and symphonic form of black metal and this is a review of their 2010 album "Phantasmogoria" which will be released by Candlelight Records.

Drum programming is mostly fast and brutal with a lot of devastating blast beats being thrown in and they slow down at times to give the music a darker edge, while the keyboards are very symphonic, ambient, epic and atmospheric, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone that follows the riffs that are coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars are mostly fast black metal riffs that contain some melody and the riffs get slower at times with some thrash and traditional metal influences, while the lead guitars are very melodic sounding guitar solos that contain a lot of skill when they are utilized.

Vocals are high pitched black metal screams with some clean singing being thrown in at times as well as some deep death metal growls, while the lyrics cover death, darkness, necromancy, astral projection and other occult themes, as for the production of this album it sounds very powerful and professional with all of the musical instruments having a heavy sound.

IN my opinion this is another good album from Limbonic Art and this is their heaviest album to date and if you where a fan of their past albums you will not be disappointed. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Curse Of The Necromancer" "Portal To The Unknown" "Prophetic Dreams" and "Astral Projection". RECOMMENDED BUY

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Troll Bends Fir Interview

1. Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that have never heard of you before?

The band was created in 1999 by its permanent members Troll and Jetra (at the moment they are the only from the first line-up). Having left St.Petersburg Viking metal band “Nomans land”, I, wishing to play more folk music, came across Jetra, who sang and played Irish whistle. I offered her to make a funny folk band based on metal rock. Later we named the style “Beer folk” that defined our material exactly.

2. How would you describe your musical sound?
The rhythmic base of our music was taken from metal but we often play using little guitar distortion or sometimes without it at all. Combining such way with tunes different from typical European folk metal, we get quite fresh, emotional and catchy sound.

3. What is the meaning behind the band's name?
Troll Bends Fir’s Russian name “Troll Gnyot Yel” sounds very close to Scandinavian languages, it’s original and dynamic. It just came to mind somehow and we realized that it would be the band’s name.

4. How would you describe the lyrical content of the music?
The heroes of our lyrics live in pagan Scandinavia and in Europe of the Middle Ages. Some songs tell funny stories happened to characters in taverns and woods due to drinking too much amber nectar. Other ones are praise for hop and beer philosophy. Actually, it’s not easy to find more beer band than we are!

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?
I can’t think of one particular show because we like to perform live and do it often. When we’re on tour we can play both in a small club without even support bands, where you see faces of happy fans just in meter from yours, and at main Russian festivals or cities’ beer festivals, where there’re tens of thousands of people and a huge crowd jumps to our music. What do I prefer? I enjoy all of them… We use several concert costumes of different kinds: Scottish themed costumes, beer monks and ones with leather armors of brewers.

6. Are there any plans for a U.S tour?
Well, it’s hard to say if we have plans. We’d love to come there and according to many feedback's on our Myspace profile there’s an interest to music like ours in the USA. However, we started promoting ourselves outside Russia a short time ago, so we’ll live and see how things work out.

7. The band has a lot of beer drinking songs, what are some of your favorite beers that you drink.
Our favorite sort of beer “with a perfect taste, much, not expensive and better paid by organizers”! Haha

8. How has your music been received so far by folk metal fans worldwide?
As I mentioned before, we get lots of positive feedback's via Myspace from many countries, even such distant from Russia as Brasilia and Japan.

9. Out off all the albums that the band has recorded so far, which one are you the most satisfied with?
We’re the most satisfied with our upcoming album, we’re recording at the moment… We like a lot what we have already nailed!

10. How would you describe your musical progress over the years and what direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?
As for me, our music hasn’t changed, I enjoy making it as I used to in the beginning, let the others judge it. I think we’ll keep on moving in the same direction.

11. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and what are you listening to nowadays?
Can’t say right away… but there’re some Russian bands influenced by our music!

12. What role does Slavic and Norse paganism play in the music?
An active role. To be honest, though we’re patriots, pagan Scandinavia as an art symbol is more attractive.

13. What are some of your interests outside of music?
My hobby is tourism, drinking, my wife and collecting beer mugs, festival T-shirts (certainly, with our participation), gifts from our fans. I have no idea about other members but, probably, almost the same. At least, our bass player is really fond of drinking :)

14. Any final words or thoughts?
“Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy” (B. Franklin) I totally agree with that! Cheers!

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Abigail Williams/In The Absence Of Light/Candlelight Records/2010 CD Review

  Abigail Williams are band originally from Arizona but now relocated to new York that started out playing melodic black/deathcore but have evolved into a symphonic black metal band over the years and this is a review of their 2010 album "In The Absence Of Light" which is being released by Candlelight Records.

Drums range from being slow, mid paced to fast with some brutal blast beats being thrown in at times, while the keyboards sound very symphonic and atmospheric, as for the bass playing it is mixed down low in the mix and seems to follow the riffs that are coming out of the guitars and on some songs they have a very powerful sound of their own.

Rhythm guitars range  from being mid paced to fast symphonic black metal riffs that has some thrash and death metal influences that also contain a good amount of melody, while the lead guitars are very technical and melodic sounding guitar solos.

Vocals are all high pitched black metal screams, while the lyrics cover horror stories, battles and cosmos, as for the production it sounds very professional and heavy with all of the instruments having a good sound to them.

In my opinion this is a great improvement for Abigail Williams and while I have never listened to a full album from them until now I have seen them live once opening for Enslaved and Dark Funeral and they did not sound this powerful and while some people probably wont check out this album because of their old sound i still feel symphonic black metal fans will enjoy this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Final Destiny Of The Gods" "Infernal Divide" and "An Echo Of Our Legends". RECOMMENDED BUY.

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