Memories Of A Dead Man Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?


Pierre : After the recording, we did several concerts with some new songs to see the audience's reaction. On 14th March was the release party at the ADK pub, a month before the official release of the album. We got positive chronicles in the press and on the internet, we gave interviews for the radio and realized a video on the title 'Melancholia'.

2.Recently you have released a new album, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical direction of the new recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

Pierre : We feel that we have asserted ourselves by successfully exploring new directions. We have worked with a lyrical singer, Pauline Courtin, and a trumpet player, Gilles Allard, and this has been a wonderful and enriching experience. The common point with what we have done before is the exploration aspect of our music and the difference is the accomplishment.

Ben : Ashes of Joy was inspired by  A tragedy and a willingness to pay
a tribute, A final tribute are at the origin of this disc. Ashes of Joy I pushed myself to the design of this album only for my girlfriend  TatianaDesous died towards the end of  2011 ..
This is explication  for the Music achievement  of Ashes of Joy  and the style or  direction of this LP  ( Melancolic , Progressive ....)

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

Pierre : The malaise, the difficulty to live with one's self and past that goes along with the will to get through, religion _ or rather the hypocritical illusion it has become, dividing rather than bringing together_ and its expression in History as in the title Wounded Knee.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Memories Of A Deadman'?

Ben :
We wanted and we are looking for a name that would be talking about Psychology ;
about introspection and  the duality of Human .

I wrote texts around faults or disturbances of man in the beginning of
this Band it was necessary that the name is related to these ideas.
After many proposals The name stuck and that was the original was  "MEMORIES Of A DEAD  MAN "

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

Ben :I'm played with Revive ( with First  Drummer of M O A D M )With Bands like Raised Fist / Comeback kid  / Gorilla Biscuits / Madball ... And with Memories of a dead Man  Since 2006 with New Model Army / Tesseract / Devil sold his soul / Sonic Syndicate  /Saul Williams  or our friends at The Arrs These shows  are really Amazing and our stage performances really violent and emotive  .


6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new release?
Ben :Not really , the band is going to make a break this summer cause there' s several and many  long reasons has to explain here .

7.The new album was released as a joint effort between Send the Wood Music and Seasons Of Mist, how did you get in contact with both of these labels and also how would you describe the support they have given you so far?

Ben : This connection exists from the first disc  ( in 2007/2008. ) with    Season of mist  that's  following the Band  carefully since that date .
David Lefur  loved  our first mcd,  and since sustains us in the Advanced of M O A D M

And it's the same Story  with Send the wood Music  and Nancy /Hadrien  whose following the band since our I st Album  " Beyond the Legend"
So when the opportunity came ( in  2013 )  , we went with them .

8. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to the new album by fans of metal and underground music?

Pierre : 'On a worldwide level' may be a huge expression but we can say we've had chronicles abroad in the US, the UK, the Czech Republic... so yes, worldwide, why not? :)

Ben  :We have many good  returns that come  from Canada, Latin  America and the Eastern Europe Fans; Zines and  Magazines are really enthusiastic  about this new record .

9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
Ben :We would like to see the band at the top  and on a Worlwide Tour with  Tool  !


10.What are some of the band or musical styles that have influenced your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
Ben  Opeth / Neurosis / Tool / Deftones / Alice in Chains / Machine Head and this days I listen Hardcore and brutal Hardcore like This is hell /Converge / Hatebreed .

Pierre : The answers vary according to each group member. As far as I am concerned, I've been influenced by artists I listened to when I was younger
like Alice in Chains, Nirvana, Radiohead, The Smashing Pumpkins, etc. and by bands I currently listen to such as Neurosis, Tool, The Blood Brothers, Meshuggah. These days, I'm listening to Cult of Luna's new album.

11.What are some of your non musical interests?
Ben :Sport ; Philosophy,Psychology  and Body painting on Women with Amazing
Boobs  or Huge Breast !

Pierre : I love literature. It is closely linked to lyrics writing.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words orthoughts?
Ben
Thank you for the interest paid to the band  by you and your readers.

Pierre : I'm a bit sad it's over; on the other hand, the group has givenits best in this album and in the last video which I strongly recommand, not because it's ours but because it's good :) I'm confident in the fact that each member of the group will live his passion on their own paths.

Asilo/Comunion/Zann's Music/2014 CD Review

  Asilo  are  a  band  from  Argentina  that  plays  a  mixture  of  doom  metal,  sludge, drone,  crust  and  hardcore  punk  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Comunion"  which  will  be  released  by  Zann's  Music.

  Dark  sounding  drones  start  off  the  album  which  also  bring  in  elements  of  dark  ambient  and  after  a  few  minutes  the  music  goes  into  a  more  slow  and  heavy  sludge/doom  metal  direction  along  with  screams  and  growls  as  well  as  some  melody  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  The  band  keeps  around  the  drones  and  also  adds  in  noisy  distortion  and  spoken  word  parts  in  certain sections  of  the  recording  along  with  some  clean  playing  being  utilized  at  times  and  on  some  of  the  tracks  they  also  bring  in  traces  of  harsh  noise  as  well  as  speeding  up  which  also  leads  to  punk,  hardcore  and  crust  influences  becoming  a  huge  part  of  the  music.

  When  synths  are  added  on  some  of  the  tracks  they  bring  a  more  tragic  and  avant  garde  feeling  to  the  recording  and  the  band  while  they  experiment  at  times  mostly  stick  to  a  heavier  sound  and  a  good  amount  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  they  also  bring  in  a  brief  use  of  saxophones  on  one  of  the  songs  which  also  enhance  the  avant  garde  qualities  of  the  recording.

  Asilo  show  a  good  amount  of  diversity  with  their  music,  their  sound  is  mostly  in  the  sludge/doom  metal  category  but  they  also  have  the  energy  of  crust,  punk  and  hardcore  and  also  have an  experimental  and  avant  garde  side  along  with  drones  and  elements  of  harsh  noise,  the  production  is  very  dark,  heavy  and  raw  and  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Spanish  and  cover  dark  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Asilo  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  doom  metal,  sludge, drone,  experimental,  crust  and  hardcore  punk  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Geografias"  "La  Paciencia  del  Cuchillo"  "Miedo  y  Curiosidad"  and  "La  Ultima  Voluntad".  8  out  of  10.  
  

Melmak Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

Now, we’re rehearsing and practising a lot. We’ve started composing new songs with the intention to enter the studio again on September to record an EP. Meanwhile, we’re looking for more dates to present our album. We’ve some shows confirmed in some Spanish cities but we want more and we would like to go to England or another Europeans countries in the future.

2.Recently you have released a new album, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical direction of the new recording and also how doesit differ from 2 previous demo's?

Ohhhh, our musical direction? We really don’t know it!!! jajajajaj We only want to enjoy and make music as it emerges from our minds (we havea little chaos inside, the new album is the result of that). We’re trying to learn more technic and complicating our compositions. The twoprevious demos were simple and we made them without any resource (technical and financial). The Only Vision Of All Gods has been different. We made a crowd funding project to finance the recording. We 
decided to include some songs from Cosmic Pain to give them greater potency. We have worked with a professional producer (Ernesto Maestro) and we sent the mixes to New Alliance East Studios (USA). So, the difference is obvious.

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

Future, Universe, Human Extinction, God-Devil, Humans are rats,.... Humanity is destroying itself and we write about it and issues around everything the humans are becoming our existence.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Melmak'?

The name is derived from a Kylesa’s show in which we were with a friend. You know, beers, beers and beers….and our minds began to twist. Cosmos and humans, Technology vs handmaking, Aliens and gods,...and here is the bands name, a different planet called Melmak

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

For now, our best shows were IRF2013 (Inkestas Rock Festibal supported by the fans). It was very easy to play and the sound was hard that night, and it was a pleasure to share the stage with the other bands. The other great show was at  La Faena II in Madrid (the audio engineer,the other band Misty Grey, the stage owners, the organizers,...). It was like driving an spaceship!!!

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

Yes, we have some shows confirmed (not public yet) and we are looking for some more, in Spain or Europe (we accept invitations).

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

We are not obsessed in this aspect, but, why not? We know it would be a great help for us if we sign for a label. We haven’t received any proposal yet(labels!!! come on, make us a proposal!!! jajajajajajajaj)

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

We have a little problem with that...Our influences are all this genres, however, our music is a mix of that genres but not exactly no one of them. So, sometimes we reach to more audience that we thought and other times to less audience. We are in a no man’s land….

9.What musical direction do you see the band heading into during the future?

Future? More elaborate songs, more destroyer shows…but always doing what we want, not guided by any external agent.

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?

Buffff, the question!!! It’s difficult to answer… In the past, Fudge tunnel, Living Coluor, Bad Brains, Black Sabbath, Faith No More, Alice In Chains, Pantera, Sepultura, Slayer, Bullet Lavolta, Kyuss, Suicidal Tendencies and many many more….

Now, YOB, Gaza, Converge, Black Cobra, Doomriders, Yautja, Tombs, Ken Mode, Lord Dying, Phantom Glue, Lions Of Tsavo…..

11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Music is something basic in our lives (not only as a band, in our everyday life too) but we are interested in surfing, travelling and drink beers with our friends for example.

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

Only say thanks to you, to any who has come to our shows or buy our cd and if anyone like the album we are very grateful. Thank you very much!!!

Contaminated Interview

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

Contaminated was formed in 2013 to make dark, crushing, dirge-ridden death metal. Nothing more, nothing less.

2.Recently you have released a new demo can you tell us a little bit more about your musical sound and what are some of the things you where able to bring onto this recording that you were not able to do with previous bands?

For years previously, I had tried to get numerous death metal projects off the ground with a few other members; however, in the end none of them made it to the demo stage for a variety of reasons. With this release I was able to fully control every aspect of the sound and I didn’t have to rely on others’ level of commitment or musical compatibility.

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

The general theme of this project is based around the slow decay and eventual death of all life.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Contaminated'?

I chose the name because it was appropriate to the feeling of the music; dirty, filthy, rotten death.

5.With this project you work all solo, do you feel this adds to the creativity of the music?

I doubt it adds to the final result as a few like minded people will usually be able to produce something better than a single person handling every instrument, but, I do like having full control over everything as this is quite a personal project; it’s essentially my tribute to some of the greatest bands in death and doom metal.

6.The demo came out on Crawling Chaos Productions, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

Wayde’s an absolute cunt and to be avoided at all cost! Jokes aside, Crawling Chaos Productions is run by a good mate of mine who understands exactly what I want to do with Contaminated. Plus, there needs to be a far greater level of support for local metal labels in this country. Pestilential Decay is the third CCP release.

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

So far, most of the reviews that have come through have been pretty well spot on with what I’m going for and I’m happy with that. A couple of people have been so far off the mark that I found it pretty hilarious, but you can’t please everyone and it’s really quite a small crowd that’s interested in this sort of music.

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

I don’t see it straying from the path laid by Pestilential Decay. I’ve already got most of the next release fully written and all I can say is to expect morbid, Finnish and dark US influenced death/doom.

9.Does Occultism play any role in your music?

None whatsoever. The harsh realities of life are far more deadly than any wishy-washy, make-believe “magic” bullshit…

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?

My main influences for Contaminated include Abhorrence (FIN), Rippikoulu, Incantation, early Paradise Lost and early Cathedral. In recent years I’ve been broadening my musical horizons and for the last 6 months or so I’ve spent a lot of time delving into the works of the legendary Mick Harris and others he has collaborated with (SCORN, James Plotkin, etc.).

11.What are some of your non musical  interests?

Outside of work and uni I try to fill my time reading and playing 90s video games when I can.

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

I’ll take a moment to plug the band I’m most active with on the live front, Terror Strike – punishing grindcore devastation. Cheers for the interview!

The Great Sabbatini/Dog Years/Solar Flare Records/2014 CD Review

  The  Great  Sabbatini  are  a  band  from  Canada  that  plays  a  very  progressive  form  of  sludge  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Dog  Years"  which  was  released  by  Solar  Flare  Records.

  A  very  heavy  thrash  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  blast  beats  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sounding  very  powerful  and  then  the  music  slows  down  and  adds  in  screams  and  growls  while  also  mixing   in  some  of  the  fast  parts  as  well  as  adding  in  elements  of  punk  rock.

  As  the  album  progresses  the  music  starts  bringing  in  a  mixture  of  fast  hardcore  punk  and  slower  doom/sludge  metal  as  well  as  adding  in  some  shouting  type  vocals  and  they  also  start  bringing  in  more  progressive  sounding  structures  on  some  of  the  later  tracks  along  with  small  amounts  of  melody.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  music  also  has  a  good  amount  of  stoner  rock  elements  which  really  shine  when  the  melodic  clean  singing  vocals  find  their  way  onto  the  recording  and  on  one  of  the  later  tracks  they  add  in  acoustic  guitars  and  slides  which  adds  a  desert  like  blues  feeling  to  the  recording  and  then  return  back  to  a  heavier  sound  on  the  following  songs  as w ell as  bringing  in  a  small  amount  of  guitar  solos  and  leads,  one  of  the  later  tunes  also  has  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts  and  the  acoustics  also  make  their  return  on  the  last  song.

  The  Great  Sabbatini  have  a  very  interesting  sound  with  their  music  taking  the  heaviness  of  sludge  and  doom  metal,  the  energy  of  punk  rock  and  some  progressive  and  stoner  rock  elements,  the  production  sounds  very  dark,  raw  and  heavy  with  a  professional  sound  and  the lyrics  cover  darkness  and  war  themes.

  In  my  opinion  The  Great  Sabbatini  are  a  very  great  sounding  progressive  sludge  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Royal  We"  "Periwinkle  War  Hammer"  "Pitchfork  Pete"  and  "Life  During  Wartime".  8  out  of  10.  

Serpentine Path/Emanations/Relapse Records/2014 CD Review

  Serpentine  Path  are  a  band  from  New  York  that  plays  a  mixture  of  sludge,  doom  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "Emanations"  which  will  be  released  by  Relapse  Records.

  A  very  slow,  dark  and  heavy  doom/death  metal  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  growling  vocals  and  the  music  evokes  a  very  early  90's  sounding  feeling  along  with  some  morbid  sounding  melodies  and  on  the  later  tracks  the  songs  start  getting  more  long  and  epic  in  length  along  with  more  sludge  elements  being  added  into  the  music.

    With  each  track  the  music  keeps  getting  heavier  and  darker  as  well  as  sticking  to  a  slow  direction  from  beginning  to  end  of  the  album  and  the  vocals  also  add  in  more  high  pitched  screams  in  certain  sections  of  the recording  and  when  guitar  leads  are  added  into  the  songs  the  help  bring  a  more  dark  and  melodic  edge  to  the  heavy  rhythms  this  music  produces.

  On  the  7  tracks  of  the  album  the  band  ignores  all  of  the  modern  trends  and  takes  doom/death  metal  back  to  its  heavier  roots  as  well  as  bringing  back  a  dark  atmosphere  this  genre  has  been  missing  all  of  these  years

    Serpentine  Path  create  on  the  the  most  pure  sounding  sludge  doom/death  metal  albums  that  has  came  out  in  years  with  no  fast  parts  or  blast  beats  ever  being  utilized  on  the  recording,  the  production  has  a  very  dark,  heavy  and  old  school  sound  while  the  lyrics  cover  darkness  and  occultism  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Serpentine  Path  are  a  very  great  sounding  heavy  and  dark  mixture  of  sludge,  doom  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "House  Of  Worship"  "Claws"  and  "Torment".  8/5  out  of  10.

   

Melmak/The Only Vision of All Gods/2014 CD Review

 

  Melmak  are  a  band  from  Spain  that  plays  an  atmospheric  mixture  of  doom  metal,  sludge  and  hardcore  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2014  album  "The  Only  Vision  of  All  Gods".

  A  heavy  and  melodic  sound  starts  off  the  album    only  with  some  aggressive  hardcore  sludge  style  vocals  and  the music  has  a  sound  that  mixes  southern  style  sludge  with  old  school  east  coast  hardcore.

  On  the  other  tracks  the  music  starts  going  for  a  heavier  yet  slower  direction  and  the  doom  metal  elements  really  start  to  kick  in  and  give  the  album  an  early  80's  underground  metal  feeling  while  still  having  a  great  amount  of  90's  sludge  and  hardcore  influences  along  with  some  groove  metal  being  added  onto  some  of  the  tracks  and  the  vocals  also  start  incorporating  more  melody  to  them  while  still  sounding  very  aggressive  at  the  same  time.

  On  some  of  the  later  tracks  the  vocals  start  bringing  in  more  death  metal  growls  and  screams  along  with  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts  and  movie  samples  and  the  band  also  brings  in  a  more  stoner  rock  edge  to  the  songs  as  well  as  making  each  song  sound  very  diverse  along  with  some  of  the  riffing  and  drumming  speeding  up  a  small  amount  in certain  sections  of  the  recording  as  well  as  bringing  a  punk  rock  feeling  to  the  album  and  on  the  last  track  psychedelic  elements  are  added  into  the  song  along  with  some  clean  playing.

  Melmak  show  a  good  amount  of  diversity  with  their  music  taking  the  90's  sludge  and  hardcore  sounds  of  the  90's  and  mixing  them  in  with  the  heaviness  of  death  metal,  80's  doom  and  the  modern  feeling  of  stoner  rock,  the production  has  a  very  dark,  heavy  and  raw  sound  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark,  philosophical  and  metaphysical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Melmak  are  a  very  great sounding  mixture  of  doom  metal,  sludge,  stoner  and  hardcore  and  if  you  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Collective  Suicide"  "Dinhuman"  "Saturn"  and  "The  Only  Vision  of  All  Gods".  8  out  of  10.  

The Witch Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new ep?
Antoine (Guitar): Hi, the band found a new bass player just after the recording and he worked hard to learn songs before the release. Since we toured locally and also went to Netherlands in hope to defend this new ep. We actually are working on new stuff.
Djul(guitar&vocals):We all do by ourselves so it took some time to have a bigger view of what people and medias think about "black flower field" and be exposed in bigger medias but it works, we had a good review in Rock Hard France last month and we're on several national compilations.More shows,radio airplays and reviews are coming.

2.Recently you have released a new ep, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical direction of the new recording and also how does it differ from the ep, you had released 2 years back?
Djul:when we started The Witch,  We already had the material for our first Ep because I wrote it alone  the year before we started playing together...All we had to do is practice the songs and then record it.It differs a lot with the 2nd because we wrote "black flower field" together , with all the guys influences so we didn't proceed the same way,we had to send each other the riffs and ideas we had via the net ,then work it at home and after put it together in rehearsals.


3.Can you tell us a little bit more about the lyrical topics and subjects you explore with your music?
Djul: I often find inspiration in things that piss me off...like the act that humanity don't respect our planet:they forgot that we need earth way more than she needs us... I try to transform these  feelings in something full of imagery ,not something obvious.I won't tell you the meaning of the songs,it's just stories that can be interpreted in different ways,find yours.


4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'The Witch'?
Antoine (Guitar): This remind us the people who were hunted and killed because they didn't follow the crowd and acted differently. That's still unfortunately relevant in other proportions.
Djul:Most of the people that were called Witches and were burned were just  atheist or pagan people,with different states of mind from the majority , the others called it witchcraft because they didn't want to understand what was different of them.It was biggotery. In our modern days it's still the same but under different forms :you don't follow trends ,you're burned...fuck that.
That's where we stand: We don't follow trends and never will, whatever happens.


  5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Djul:I don't have a particular show in mind but a good show for me is when the crowd is crazy about the music, when you saw people getting nuts in front of you, that's a great show !
Our stage performance are intense, we give no rest to the audience !



6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
Djul:we are currently booking some shows in France and germany for 2014. we came to netherland last month and we will go back there next month !



7.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
Djul:We didn't find a label interested in a "debut EP",in general people want an album...We are working on new stuffs now,for a "debut album",we'll see for labels at the proper time.



8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of metal?
Djul: Really great !Everytime someone listen to The Witch there's a great feedback !Our main problem is the promotion, we have to do all by ourselves, so it's a very long way !
There's more and more radios playing our songs,people talking about us and there's a bunch of reviews and interviews that are coming for black flower field, that's a good sign ahaha. When you do that kind of music you have to learn to be patient !



9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
Djul:I don't know, it's not my call.All I can say is that we'll be writing/recording/playing live the music we love  until we can't, but I don't know when that day will come!
I just want to put good records out and playing good shows,that's all.



10.What are some bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
djul:there are so many bands!!! We like sludge bands like Mastodon,High on fire,crowbar,Baroness; trash bands like Slayer,Revocation or Gwar ,grind bands like Nasum,Magrudergrind,old stuffs like ac/dc,black sabbath,deep purple, pantera ...We even listen to classical music.The list is way longer than that, we are very eclectic people.


11.How would you describe your views on Occultism?
Djul: In the band we don't believe in God or Satan or things like that,you can explain everything, it's called science...I think humanityshould be more focused on the real things of life and not praying/acting in hope to be rewarded (often in death)...how stupid is that when you just live once?
  you can misinterpreted everything and be scared of everything...some people see signs everywhere ,everytime where there's nothing special tosee.Some people see a light in the mirror or through their window  or ear a scratch in the basement during the night and they immediatly  think "it's a ghost !" or  whatever instead of being rationnal...They don't know what they see or ear but they believe "it's a ghost!"... really???It's the same story for the Gods, it's freestyle.
For us it's just crappy fake beliefs mixed with fear and a big waste of
time.


12.What are some of your non musical interests?
  watching good movies,skateboarding, video games, working out, smoking weed and drinking beer, hanging out with friends !

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

Thank you for this interview!
…....and don't forget to visit our website :  witchcrew.free.fr

Nightfell/The Living Ever Mourn/Southern Lord/Parasitic/2014 CD Review

 

   Nightfell  are  a  duo  from  Portland,  Oregon  that  plays  an  epic  and  melodic  form  of  doom/death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2014  album  "The  Living  Ever  Mourn"  which  will  be  released  as  a  joint  effort  between  Southern  lord  and  Parasitic.

  Clean  playing  starts  off  the  recording  and  a  few  seconds  later  the  music  gets  heavier  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  and  then  the  music  starts  incorporating  more  melody  along  with  a  good  amount  of  Swedish  influences,  the  bass  guitars  bring  a  very  heavy  sound  to  the  recording.

  When  synths  are  brought  onto  the  album  they  bring  a  very  dark  and  atmospheric/ambient  sound  to  the  recording  and  they  are  only  used  briefly  on  one  the  short  instrumentals,  while  the  main  focus  is  on  being  heavy  and  epic  as  well  as  focusing  on  a  more  melodic  side  of  doom/death  metal  and  most  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in   length  and  they  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  singing  on  a  couple  of  the  tracks  as  well  as  a  brief  use  of  acoustic  guitars  which  also  dominate  the  2nd  instrumental  before  returning  to  a  heavier  direction  on  the  following  tracks  as  well  as  bringing  in  a  small  amount  of  blast  and  d  beats.

  Nightfell  have  a  very  interesting  and  dark  sound  to  them  taking  the  epic  doom  metal  sound  and  mixing  it  in  with  the  heaviness  of  death  metal  as  well  as  also  being  influenced  by  the  melodic  side  of  that  genre  as  well,  the  production  is  very  professional  sounding  and  the  lyrics  cover  death,  dying  and  darkness  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Nightfell  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  and  epic  doom/death  metal b and  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "I  Am  Decay"  The  Hollowing"  and  "Funeral  Dirge".  8/5  out  of  10.    

Contaminated/Pestilential Decay/Crawling Chaos Productions/2014 EP Review

  Contaminated  are  a  1  man  band  from  Australia  that  plays  a  very  dark  and  evil  form  of  doom/death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  his  2014  ep  "Pestilential  Decay"  which  was  released  by  Crawling  Chaos  Productions.

    A  very  dark  and  early  90's  style  death  metal  sound  starts  off  the  ep  along  with  growls  and  blast  beats  as  well  as  slowing  down  and  letting  the  doom  metal  element  dominate  while  also  keeping  around  the  fast  and  brutal  parts.

  On  the  other  tracks  the  music  starts  taking  a  very  raw  approach  to  doom  death  metal  along  with  some  evil  sounding  melodies  and  a  sound  that  is  very  close  to  the  earlier  Incantation  material  an d there  are  only  4  short  tracks  present  on  this  ep  and  non e of  the  tracks  have  any  of  the  newer  sounds  of  the  past  20  years.

  Contaminated  bring  back  the  dark  and  evil  side  of  death/doom  metal  of  the  early  90's  with  this  recording  and  the music  is  very  blasphemous  and  old  school  sounding  along  with  a  92  style  death  metal  production  and  lyrics  that  cover  darkness,  evil  and  death  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Contaminated  are  a  very  great  sounding  dark  and  evil,  old  school  death/doom  metal  project  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Untold  Depths"  and  "Pestilential  Decay".  8  out  of  10.  

Korseld/Jordevandring/2014 CD Review

  Korseld  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays   an  atmospheric mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2014  album  "Jordevandring".

  A  dark  and  symphonic  sound  starts  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  more heavy  and  melodic  direction  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  and  blast  beats  and  after  awhile  solos  and  leads  become  a  part  of  the  music.

  As  the  album  progresses  more  melodic  doom  metal  elements  are  added  into  the  recording  and  the  band  slows  down  a  bit  on  the  other  tracks  and  the  music  is  heavily  rooted  in  the  early  90's  doom/death  metal  sound  and  on  some  of  the  tracks  you  can  hear  a  small  amount  of  clean  singing  being  utilized  along  with  powerful  sounding  bass  lines,  on  some  of  the  later  tracks  keyboards  make  a  return  to  the  album  along  with  a  small  amount  of  violins  which  also  bring  a  classical  feeling  to  some  of  the  tracks  while  the  music  mostly  sticks  to  a  very  heavy,  dark  and  atmospheric  direction.

  Korseld  have  a  sound  on  this  album  that  could  easily  be  mistaken  for  an  early  90's  doom/death  metal  record  and  a  very  great  quality  sounding  on  at  that,  along  with  a  very  professional  sounding  production  and  lyrics  that  are  written  in  Swedish  and  cover  dark  and  depressive  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Korseld  are  a  very  great  sounding  atmospheric  doom/death  metal b and  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Mote  Med  Doden"  "Dagen  Da  Kriget  Kom"  "Gryningstid"  and  "Jordevandring".  8  out  of  10.  

Elsewhere Shine/The Wired/2013 Demo Review

  Elsewhere  Shine  are  a  band  from  Serbia  that  plays  an  avant  garde  form  of  gothic/doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2013  demo  "The  Wired".

  A  dark  and  atmospheric  sound  starts  off  the  ep  before  going  into  a  sorrowful  and  acoustic  direction  along  with  female  gothic  vocals  and  after  awhile  keyboards  and  guitar  leads  become  a  part  of  the  music  along  with spoken  word  parts  before  adding  in  the  heaviness  of  metal  which  leads  to  a  mixture  of  melodic  vocals  and  death  metal  growls.

  The  3  tracks  on  this  recording  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  on  the  alter  tracks  ambient  sound s become  a  huge  part  of  the  music  along  with  a  mixture  of  both  clean  and  heavy  parts  which  also  bring  a  poetic  feeling  to  the  music  and  the death  metal  growls  add  an  evil  edge  to  the  recording  when  they  are  utilized..

  Elsewhere  Shine  bring  in  a  very  interesting  sound  with  their  music  with  the  heaviness of  doom/death  metal  mixed in  with  the  keyboards  and  gothic  vocals  along  with  acoustic  guitars  that  bring  a  classical  and  folk  music  feeling  to  the  recording,  the production  sounds  very  professional  and  the  lyrics  cover  poetic  and  mythology  themes.    

  In  my  opinion  Elsewhere  Shine  are  a  very  great  sounding  avant  garde,  gothic  doom/death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  demo.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Sepia".  8  out  of  10.  

Ice Dragon/Tentacle Interview

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with both ice Dragon and Tentacle these days?

We've been very busy making new material for the next Ice Dragon album. It's some of the best recording we've ever done, but without sounding too sterile and "studio"-ish. Trying to finish up vocals and bells and whistles now, as long as those go smoothly it should be ready in a month or two. I'm taking my time on the mixes, trying new things, weirdo stuff, etc. We have riffs and lyrics kicking around for the next Tentacle project, but realistically I don't know if we'll start working on that until the fall. But you never know, we may get in a bad mood one of these nights and lay something heavy down. 

2.How would you describe the musical sound of both bands and also how do they differ from each other?

Tentacle was meant to be very "doom" from the get go and we're going to keep it that way. We basically wanted to get a little more experimental and psychedelic with Ice Dragon so we figured we'd have Tentacle as our outlet for the heavy downtuned stuff. I wait until I'm in a really shitty mood to do the vocals and I can get out all my aggression. Ice Dragon is meant to be a bit more "rock", not so gloomy doomy, and we do whatever the hell we want, stylistically. 

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects you explore with both bands?

I guess a lot of the lyrics are the sort of introspective, troubled mind kind of stuff. Why are we here, and why does everything suck so bad, that kind of thing creeps in there a lot. But then there's the nice songs about love and ladies and nature, sometimes you need to have a few of those too. I try to stay away from doing too much of the fantasy stuff in the lyrics, songs about wizards and witches and shit, but they can work well if not done too often and placed right. I'll write four or five songs in a few days and then maybe nothing for a month, or switch to another project with a different theme and try that out for a while instead. It's usually easiest when we already have an overall idea for the album, not necessarily a "concept", but at least a rough idea on what the lyrics should be like. Then I know to go heavy on the moody brooding, or throw in some psychedelic love vibes. 

4.With Tentacle you cover a lot of Lovecraft themes, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this author?

It doesn't really get any better in terms of creepiness. He has this sort of outcast, outsider feel to everything he does and I really appreciate that as well. There are things he writes about so well that you would think only someone who actually experienced them could do so. And maybe he did. "Pickman's Model" might be slightly autobiographical... who knows. Most people into heavy music dig Lovecraft, and a lot of bands have songs based on works of his. I don't really like the idea of having a song based on one story though, or named specifically after it, so I tried to make my lyrics a bit "inspired by" and not so strict with one story or another. An homage of sorts. 

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the names 'Ice Dragon' and "Tentacle'?

I suppose there really isn't much meaning in either of them. Ice Dragon is one of those names where you tell it to people and they either go "Whoa! That's a killer name" or "Ice Dragon? Are they power metal? Sounds lame". But we've grown into it at this point. The original thought was that it would be cool to find an old record in a thrift store with a name like Ice Dragon on it. I'd be psyched to find that. Tentacle is in keeping with the whole Lovecraftian vibe for that band, pretty straightforward I guess. And it's a one word name that sounds cool and hadn't been taken yet. 

6.What are some of the best shows that you have played with both bands and also how would you describe the stage performance of each project?

Well, Tentacle hasn't actually played any shows yet but we're definitely into the idea and may get around to it soon. Ice Dragon played a lot of shows early on and now we hardly play out at all. The best one we've ever done was at The Middle East Upstairs, which is a club in Cambridge, MA near us. The sound was perfect and we actually had good, working monitors. For once. There's a live version of "Aquageddon" floating around on the nets from that show. We had our drummer out in front and I stood behind him, I'd like to do that again for the next show. 

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

Not really. We've never been much of a live band, and as we get older have less and less interest in it. I'm sure there will a few shows here and there and we'll try our best to make them memorable. 

8.Recently PRC Music has re-issued albums from both bands, what are your thoughts on the final product?

It's amazing to finally have all these albums released, and together all in one place is even better. PRC did a great job on the layouts too. Funny thing is we have so many digital releases and I don't even own an mp3 player. Haha. I have an old flip-phone that only makes calls, and don't have an "i" anything. I still play cd's, records, tapes, you name it. I like the act of picking out an album, opening it up, and inserting into a player. Call me old fashioned. There's a certain "fixed" feeling to it, like you're in it for the whole album. You're not going to skip around and cut songs off halfway through like the kids do nowadays. Anyway, we're very psyched on the releases through PRC, a huge thanks to them for finally getting these out. 

9.With Ice Dragon you have participated on a lot of split albums, out of all the bands you worked with on this splits, which one did you enjoy the most?

Hm. That's a tricky one. The only band that we technically "worked with" was Pilgrim I suppose. I recorded both of our tracks at Ron's Wrecker Service, they came over one weekend and got wasted and we BBQ'd. It was great. I wish every time we did a split we could have the other bands over to hang out. The other two were with bands that don't live near us, Kroh from England, and Fellwoods from Portland OR. The Kroh split came out real cool, Devizes put it out and they did a killer job on the vinyl and layout. The Fellwoods split was supposed to get a release through Svart, but I'm sure what the hell happened there. It's a bummer because that's one of my fav songs of ours and their track rips. Maybe one day someone will release it, the art is insanely cool too. Oh well. 

10.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to both bands by fans of doom, sludge and stoner metal?

We're all amazed at how well it's been received. Especially some of the newer stuff that is more psychedelic and pop/rock sounding, I think our fans have been very open minded to it all, which is really refreshing. Good tunes are good tunes, regardless of genre, but sometimes people get hung up on that. The doom/sludge crowd is definitely into the Tentacle stuff, and we've had some amazing reviews for it. I think if Tentacle wasn't an "Ice Dragon side project" then people would dig it a lot more actually. C'est la vie. 

11.When can we expect new material from each band and also where do you see the projects heading into musically doing the future? 

Ice Dragon should have a new album done in a month or so, roughly. It's a weird one, but it rocks. Probably going to get weirder and more Rock-ish with the ID stuff in the future and heavier with Tentacle. May be a bit longer for something new from Tentacle, but it'll happen this year most likely. 

12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have influenced the music of both bands and also what are you listening to nowadays?

We all love 60's and 70's rock, and a lot of the pop/psych stuff from that era as well. It's funny because basically that's what we're trying to do but it ends up not sounding a whole lot like that stuff because all of our influences get in there and change it around. I have no idea how we even got around to making the Tentacle stuff to be honest, that one still surprises me. I listen to a LOT of different music from different genres and time periods, so it's hard to really pin it down to a few. The other day I was in a bad mood and played all my Napalm Death tapes in a row, then right after listened to the Bee Gees. Haha. 

13.How would you describe your views on Occultism?

I dabble. I'm more into the 70's boobie movie style of occultism, like weird outfits and dancing around to bongo music while someone says cool shit in a deep voice. Candles and witches, magic daggers and spellpouches. Stuff like that. I don't really get the dudes who try to pretend like it's all super serious and worry about pronouncing demon names right or memorizing stuff. Most of those guys have never even been in a fight and live with their moms. Can you imagine if a demon actually materialized in front of them? Haha. Poke Runyon movies are awesome, I love those. And Simon: King of the Witches, he's the kind of occultist I can get behind. 

14.What are some of your non musical interests?

I like messing around with electronics a bit, I've built more than a few oddball music-related things. Synths, pedals, studio stuff. I really like working on old cars, but lately I've been too broke to have a good project. There's nothing like getting into a greasy old jumper, drinking a few beers and turning wrenches. I like the shitty cars that no one wants, crappy old 70's stuff with straight/slant sixes and a dent in the door. That's my style. Movies are kind of a passion of mine as well. I have an insanely huge VHS collection, mostly old stuff, B movies. Joe just gave me both of the Dr. Phibes movies on vhs, that was awesome of him. We got to be extras in a new animated film coming out soon from Gorgonaut too. It's going to be insane. I got to stab one of the directors in the neck and everything. 

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

Always drink upstream from the herd, don't squat with your spurs on, and lettin' the cat outta the bag is a lot easier than puttin' it back in.