Lapsus Dei/Officium Triste/Broken Memories/Australis Records/2018 Split CD Review

  This  is  a  review  of  a  split  album  between  Chile's  Lapsus  Dei  and  Netherland's  Officium  Triste  called  "broken  Memories"  which  was  released  in  2018  by  Australis  Records  and  we  will  start  off  the  review  with  Lapsus  Dei  a  band  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal.

  Their  side  of  the  split  starts  out  with  some  heavy  riffing  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them. Synths  are  also  mixed  into  the  heavier  sections  of  the  music  as  well  as  some  stringed  instruments  also  being  used  at  times  and  the  vocals  also  add  in  a  mixture  of  death  metal  growls  and  screams.

  Elements  of  doom  metal  can  also  be  heard  in  the  slower  sections  of  the  music  along  with  some  clean  playing  also  being  added  into  some  parts  of  the  songs.  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  as  well  as  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  all  of  the  music  sticks  to  a  slower  direction,  clear  vocals  can  also  be  heard  on  the  closing  track.

  Lapsus  Dei  plays  a  style  of  doom/death  metal  that  is  very  melodic  and  atmospheric  sounding.  The  production  on  their  side  of  the  recording  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  death  and  religion  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Lapsus  Dei  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  doom/death  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  their  side  of  the  split.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "The  Feeling  Remains".

  Next  up  is  Officium  Trise  who  return  with t heir  melodic  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal.

  Their  side  of  the  split  starts  out  with  some  drum  beats  along  with  some  keyboards  and  melodic  guitar  leads  a  few  seconds  later.  Clean  vocals  are  also  utilized  quite  a  bit  throughout  their  side  of  the  recording  along  with  the  slower  sections  of  the  music  being  very  heavily  rooted  in  doom  metal.

 Death  metal  growls  can  also  be  heard  in  some  parts  of  the  music  while  a  couple  of  their  tracks  are  recorded  live  along  with  one  songs  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  all  of  the  music  sticks  to  a  slower  musical  direction  as  well  as  being  very  heavily  tooted  in  the  90's  atmospheric  style,  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  briefly  on  the  closing  track.

  On  this  recording  Officium  Triste  take  their  style  of  doom/death  metal  into  a  different  direction  which  is  also  very  different  from  the  stuff  they  released  in  the  early  90's.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  thoughts,  gloom  and  pessimism  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Officium  Triste  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  melodic  and  atmospheric  doom/death  metal,  you  should  check  out  their  side  of  the  split.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "On  The  Crossroads  Of  Souls". 

  In  conclusion  I  feel  this  is  a  very  great  sounding  split  and  I  would  recommend  it  to  all  fans  of  melodic  and  atmospheric  doom/death  metal.  8  out  of  10.

https://www.facebook.com/lapsusdeifan
https://www.facebook.com/officiumtriste/      

Ulfven/Folklore/2019 Full Length Review

  Ulfven  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  melodic  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  with  some  black  metal  influences  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2019  album  "Folklore".

  Nature  sound  along  with  a  brief  use  of  shamanistic  humming  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  musical  direction.  Elements  of  doom  metal  can  also  be  heard  in  the  slower  sections  of  the  music  along  with  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  the  vocals  are  mostly  death  metal  growls.

  When  screams  are  utilized  they  bring  elements  of  black  metal  onto  the  recording  while  the  acoustic  guitars  when  they  are  brought  into  the  music  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  progressive  feeling.  along  with  the  guitar  solos  and  leads  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  as  well  as  a  couple  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length,.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  as  well  as  some  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  being  added  onto  the  recording  when  the  music  finally  speeds  up  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  acoustic  instrumental  is  also  added  onto  the  recording.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  are  a  concept  album  based  upon  Scandinavian  Folklore.

  In  my  opinion  Ulfven  are  a  very  great  sounding  melodic  mixture  of  doom  and  death  metal  with  a  touch  of  black  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "A  Mother's  Betrayal"  "Nocturnal  Watcher"  and  "The  Black  Waters".  8  out  of  10.

https://open.spotify.com/album/18Ep3CgsZzKYDc2eyEYir6?si=VL-IkwTuSrmpLJcBvxuqlw

https://ulfven.bandcamp.com

https://www.facebook.com/Ulfvenofficial/   

   

    

Painthing Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
Sure! The band formed around 2014. We are a bunch of friends living in Warsaw. In the past we played in various bands and shared few gigs bills together but didn’t had the chance to play together
in one band. As our previous bands disbanded some time ago, the right opportunity has come to try
to make music together and time has shown that it was a great idea. We had a lot of fun making the
record.

2.Recently you have released your first full length, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical style you went for on the recording?
On our debut album “Where Are You Now…?” you can expect old school doom metal played in the vein of English pioneers of the kind such as Anathema or My Dying Bride. All of us are doom enthusiasts so it was an obvious choice of style of our music on that record.

3.The band has been around since 2014 but waited until 2018 to release an album, can you tell us a little bit more about the first 4 years?
We have struggled with lineup changes during the first years and took our time to write the record the best way we could. As we weren’t rushed by any deadlines and wanted to have the best lineup it took us some time to achieve that goal.

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores on the album?
First of all, the lyrics is relevant and inevitable part of the album. Music and lyrical parts combined together make this work completed. Regarding the topics – if I would say that they treat about life, death, fear, joy etc… I would say nothing. It doesn’t mean that they are so generic and vague that it’s impossible to identify the point, as it frequently happens in so called “doom metal poetry”. They are quite simple, but you may be touched by them in your very personal way, as they refer directly to emotions. This is why I strongly encourage you to read them by yourself and have your own interpretation

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Painthing'?
We use the music as painters use the paint to create their vision out of emotions. As the result you get the piece of art, filled with colors, structures, shapes…The complete composition takes you into your personal journey through your sensibility, feelings and reflections. Our music is our painting and because there’s lot of pain and sadness within, this word play – pain(ful)thing / painting brought us to PAINTHING.

6.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the album cover?
The artwork was created by Michał “Xaay” Loranc. Michał is a great artist. And very experienced. Luckily, Darek and Michał have been friends since secondary school and it came naturally that we have chosen Michał to take care of cover and layout. The conception of cover was ours and Michał and Darek have been working on it to achieve the final result.

7.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
We have played 6 shows so far mainly in Warsaw and it’s region. Our first show had a lot of energy and unknown vibe. It was quite a unique performance for us. To play those songs live for the first time and see the feedback of the audience. We played also a gig in Minsk Mazowiecki near Warsaw in a small venue which was really cool, the crowd responded really well that evening. As for our stage performance we are playing at our best, have fun and give the energy to the crowd to make the evening as unique as possible.

8.Do you have any touring or show plans for 2019?
We are scheduling few dates but nothing is confirmed yet. Definitely we will hit the stage.

9.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of atmospheric doom and death metal?
The reaction so far has been really great. We are receiving a lot of positive messages and the press is good. So far the record is received really well which makes us more happy.

10.Are any of the band members currently involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?
Currently only our bass player is involved in the band Thesis which plays more rock/post rock oriented music.

11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We will still play doom, it’s in our veins. We are trying few ideas now and it sounds really doomish. No doubts on that. We will play more gigs for sure and try to bring Painthing on stages outside Warsaw.

12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and
also what are you listening to nowadays?
Tough question. We are listening to a lot of different music so in some way, voluntarily or not, our music must be influenced by what we are listening to. We really enjoy music so we are listening to all kinds of good music, from grindcore to progressive rock, pop or classical. It would be difficult to pick just few names.

13.What are some of your non musical interests?
Every day brings something interesting and inspiring. It makes the life a constant adventure.There are too many things to name them all.

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thank you very much for this interview and for giving a chance to bring Painthing to your readers.
Meanwhile – feel free to listen to our music online or via Tidal, Spotify etc. and join us on
https://www.facebook.com/painthingband/

Cheers!

Miscarriage Interview

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



Miscarriage: We are in the process of releasing our new album, “Imminent Horror”, through Sentient Ruin on physical media. Along with that we are beginning the writing for our next album which we believe will be quite the experience once completed. Hopefully we will be able to have it finished and released this year.



2.At the end of 2018 you had released a new album, musically how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?



Miscarriage: We would say the most noticeable difference is that it is much slower than what we have previously created. We wanted to embark on something much more atmospheric and monstrous.



3.On the new album you went for more of a sludge/doom metal direction while previous releases where more grindcore orientated, what was the decision behind going into this musical direction?



Miscarriag: Ultimately the decision came to mind that we wanted to have music that resembled a nightmarish embodiment, a creature devouring civilizations if you will. As it started to take shape, we believe it became much more than that.



4.Since 2017 there has been 5 different releases, do you spend a great amount of time writing and creating music?



Miscarriage: We are very focused on writing and creating new music for Miscarriage. We aim to release one new album every year if not more. Currently we easily have over five albums we plan to pursue over the next several years.



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



Jon - Lyrically in the beginning Miscarriage was quite personal. More or less I bled the words onto a page in many ways. I think the lyrics have started to become much more conceptual and much more about what perpetuates through our sound. Our future works will become much more about the imagery, feelings, and thoughts that come to mind from the music.





6.One member lives in the United States while another lives in Sweden, how does this work out in the recording process?



Miscarriage: We discuss very heavily and thoroughly what we are wanting to accomplish prior to the writing process. From there Ulf will write and record drums to have sent over to Jon to record guitars, bass, and vocals to. Sometimes lyrics are already ready to be implemented and sometimes lyrics come together after the music is completed.





7.Would the band be open to doing any live shows if the opportunity came?



Miscarriage: We wouldn’t mind to play shows together if the opportunity ever presented itself, but it is unlikely due to the far distance in which we live apart. Creating music is what is most important to us so even then we would rather focus on creating as much as we can.



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



Miscarriage: We are not necessarily looking to be signed, but if an offer were to be made that was right for us we may take that route in the future.



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



Miscarriage: Overall we would say the reaction has been quite positive and even more so with our upcoming album. It’s actually been somewhat surprising to see how much support we have received to be honest.



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



Miscarriage: We plan to venture into all kinds of different territories for future releases. Nothing is off limits when it comes to what we will create.



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?



Jon - Last Days of Humanity, Circle of Dead Children, Hexis, Primitive Man, Vermin Womb, Daughters, See You Next Tuesday, and probably more... kind of an endless amount of sources of inspiration and influences really. I listen to anything from synthwave to ambient instrumental music to the most vile music obtainable recently.



Ulf – In regards to what bands that have had an influence in our sound, Jon has more or less covered it. Its pretty rare that I check out newer bands that much these days in all honesty. These days I listen to music that I listened to growing up and that I listened to during my mid mid 20s – early 30s. But if I would have to mention what I’ve been listen to recently would be Jesus Piece, Full of hell, Vein, Reverorum Ib Malacht, Demonomancy, Texas Murder Crew etc.



12.What are some of your non musical interests?



Jon - I am very involved with extreme and horror movies. I can’t seem to get enough of them.

Ulf – More or less anything related to horror be it in terms of movies, books, art etc. Apart from that: history, psychology, mythology, nature (exploring and hiking), painting, writing etc.



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



Jon - Thank you for this opportunity and for those reading we hope you dig what you hear!



Ulf – Thanks for the support.

Asphodelus Interview

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

After we finished recording the album we had some problems with getting a scan of the painting which we used as an album cover so the release date was delayed a bit. We have just been rehearsing the album since then and we are hoping to get some gigs abroad after the release.

2. In February you have your first full length coming out, musically how does it differ from your previous ep's, demos and the stuff you recorded as 'Cemetery Fog'?

When the band was formed in 2012 our intention was to play stuff like early Katatonia but because we were young and inexperienced, we didn’t know how to write songs like that. The band has developed a lot in these 7 years. Cemetery Fog demos were crude and primitive death doom with some black metal influences. “Towards the Gates” was a step towards our current sound but the song writing is still quite primitive on it when you listen to it now. On the first release under Asphodelus name, “Dying Beauty & the Silent Sky” EP we had still some fast death metal parts in our songs but it was never really our thing and didn’t work so naturally so we stopped writing songs like that. With the new material on “The Veil Between the Worlds” and “Stygian Dreams” we have achieved our own style and sound in my opinion.

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

JV: The lyrics I usually write are inspired by mythologies and folklore, literature, poetry, my own experiences etc. I have written lyrics only to one song on the album, Stygian Dreaming, but I’m going to write more material for the band in the future.

JF: Most of the lyrics on our debut album has been inspired by different feelings in life, like depression, stupidity of living creatures, delusions and paranoia. I try to add metaphors and from mythologies and literature.. One theme that you can also see on our album is time, in many ways.

4. I know that the band’s name comes from Greek Mythology, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this topic?

JV: I have been interested in Greek mythology since I saw a documentary of King Minos of Crete and Minotaur when I was a kid. I find it as one of the most interesting mythologies with a lot of gods, deities, heroes and the underworld etc. The mythology also fits well to our music style in my opinion. There’s also some influence from the Roman mythology in our lyrics like on “Scent of Venus”. The main gods of them were basically the same as Greek with changed names.

JF: My brother has a big collection of Greek and Roman mythology books and I started to browsing them at a young age.



5. Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover


The painting is Les Océanides (Les Naiades de la mer) by Gustave Doré. Here’s a description from the site of The Leicester Galleries who kindly scanned the painting for us.

“Les Oceanides is a haunting interpretation of a scene from Prometheus Bound, a play by Aeschylus, written between 460 and 450 BC. The water nymphs, daughters of the Titan deities Oceanus and Thetis, cling to the rock where Prometheus is chained. His fate was a punishment from Zeus for both stealing back a spark of fire from the Gods and restoring it to man and for holding the secret of the Oracle's prophecy: how the Oceanides mother, Thetis, would bear a child greater and more powerful than Zeus himself. As further punishment, Zeus ordered the creation of Pandora, the first woman, who released from her box all the evils of the world.

Dramatically lit, Les Oceanides, swept by the sea's current onto Prometheus's rock, reveal not only Dore's understanding of chiaroscuro, a talent which can be traced back to his prolific work as an engraver and illustrator, but also the artist's restless meditation on mythology and its relationship to life and death. Dore's oeuvre is a crucial link between French Romanticism and European Symbolism. “


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

JV: Some gigs in our East European tour last year with Kuilu were great like in Budapest (Hungary), Zemun (Serbia) and Tuzla (Bosnia & Herzegovina) where the venues had big stages etc. Too bad the Bosnian venue which was otherwise great had only squat toilets which were quite unpleasant to us westeners haha... The tour was interesting experience overall.

Our stage clothes are influenced by a British band Sabbat a bit. We have had candles and lanterns on stage in some of our shows. We are probably going to improve our stage performance a bit for the future shows if we get some good ideas.

JF: One of our best shows have been in Lepakkomies, Helsinki and Finnish Death Metal Maniacs fest in Pori. Also we played good shows in Tuzla, Bosnia and Budapest, Hungary.

On the stage I try to express and spread the same feeling to the audience which I get from playing our music.

7. Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?

We don’t have anything confirmed yet but we are probably going to play some gigs or do a tour abroad.

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

There have been a lot of people who have liked and praised our music and I hope that we will reach new people with our full-length. It would be great to play in the US some day for example.

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

We are trying to progress and get better with our instruments and composing on every release. We can't say for sure yet if the music is going to change in the future. We are getting more and more influences from other genres than metal for our melodies for example but the main roots will stay the same I guess.

10. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

JV: The riffs and melodies I have wrote have been mostly influenced by Greek black metal bands like Varathron and Rotting Christ etc. I listen to a lot of different genres and bands/artists, mostly metal, rock and punk though.

JF: I have been influenced by the mighty HELLENIC METAL as well, and My Dying Bride, Katatonia, Black Sabbath, Anathema etc. has been the biggest influence to our music. My musical taste nowadays is very wide. One of my favorite artists ever is Kate Bush.

11. What are some of your non musical interests?


JV: Movies and reading. I have a collection of about 500 DVD/Blu-ray films, mostly horror. I read mostly classic novels, horror, history and mythology & folklore books etc. I also work at a library. I'm also interested in other countries and their culture and would like to visit many places I haven't been yet.

JF: I love watching movies and I have a large collection too. But otherwise my life is almost only around music and especially playing it.



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


Thanks to everyone who read the interview. Go listen to our new album "Stygian Dreams" and support the label & us by buying it if you liked what you heard. And thanks for the interview!

Siempre Guerras Interview

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



SIEMPRE GUERRAS is a new Argentine band, with members that come from remarkable projects in the region since the 90s, and have met in 2017 to form this new formation. See the following link for more information, in the "members" section.

https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Siempre_Guerras/3540447541 



2. So far away that you have released an album, can you tell us a little more about the musical style that you were to give in the recording?



The style we choose is broad, with influences from metal / thrash / hardcore originating in the 70s, 90s and fundamentally the most current Doom / Death styles. We chose this reflective and powerful style that accompanies the theme of our lyrics. We also have influences from other non-metal musical styles, which enrich our compositions.



3. What are some of the lyrical themes and what the band explores with music?



We work with real and subjective themes in our lyrics. On the one hand we approach a position of criticism to modern society, the middle class, the predominant politics in the world, trying to mark some way to change reality from our small place, invoking reflection and action of people on their own reality from a political stance against global neoliberalism. On the other hand we cover existentialist themes, of intimate experiences that are also related to the way of life of the human being in modernity.



4.Who knows that the name of the band means 'always Wars' in Spanish, how does this name fit with the musical style that is played?



SIEMPRE GUERRAS, means the spirit of daily struggle as the main engine for the change of society and our own social and individual conscience. We refer to the social struggle, and the internal struggle of each individual to prevail in the system, and also to try to change it.

5. Can you tell us a little more about the work that is presented on the cover of the album?



It is an old painting made by Gustavo Mateo (Guitarist of the band). From the year 1995. We saw in it a representation of what we want to transmit with BROKEN CHRIST (CRISTO QUEBRADO). We hope you can relate visually to what inspires to listen in detail to the music of this SIEMPRE GUERRAS album.



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



With the name of SIEMPRE GUERRAS, we have had only 3 local performances so far. In the previous projects of the members, we have made national and international tours. We are thinking about making the official presentation of the album from March 2019 if we get enough support. We hope to have the physical edition on CD / Vinyl by then. We are now seeking support in this regard.



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



Yes of course. We are interested in presenting our album in Latin America, Asia and Europe mainly, and also where there is more interest from the fans.



8. The album was released on 'Loneravn Records', can you tell us a little more about how you got in touch with this label?



We met LONERAVN Records after having published our band in bandcamp, and immediately received several offers of independent labels. A few days later we received your offer, we saw it convenient, and we accepted it. Only for promotion, distribution and sale of the digital disc for the moment, and globally. We hope for this label good results, and be able to make our physical edition soon.



9. On a worldwide level, how has the reaction to your music been by extreme metal fans?



We still do not have the first official statistics of the label, but because of the publications that we make on our own in social networks, we see that there is an interesting repercussion towards the proposal of the band. Mainly in Argentina, Mexico, Brazil and Colombia. We also saw interest in other continents, but not in a massive way. It is to be hoped for us that the LONERAVN promotion of good results in Russia, Ukraine, Eastern Europe, and some Central European countries



10. What is happening with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?



The projects that are currently in force are Carillion (Metal) and Magia Negra (Blues), both projects of the bass player. Garcha and Petardo (Hardcore / Metal) are projects that involve the singer and a guitarist. All these projects already have several productions and are presenting them live, except Garcha which is conceptually a band that only exists for broadcast and does not make live presentations. The singer also has a project called Tango Engrampado, which is in the stage of diffusion.



11.Where do you see the band starting in musically in the future?



We see the band being part of any professional international circuit, semiprof, or undergroud as well. The experience of the SIEMPRE GUERRAS musicians is at the height of any of these possibilities, provided that the proposal is suitable to the needs of each party.



12. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what you are listening to today?



There is a strong influence from the music of the 70s, 90s, and also from the scene of the last 15 years. We like bands like Napam Death, Faith No More, Black Sabbath, Carcass, The Polla Records, Dead Cross, Anathema, Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride, among many others.



13. What are some of your non-musical interests?



Mauro Gentile and Gustavo Mateo (Vocals and guitars) are excellent painters and writers as well, with several publications to their credit. The rest of the members are involved in the creative aspect contributing musical compositions, lyrics and work proposals for the project.



14.Before We have finished this interview, do you have any last words or thoughts?



We believe that it is important that the fans and those interested in SIEMPRE WARS, pay attention to what we are saying in our lyrics, which are an invitation to reflection and action before this reality that oppresses the world through the economy and the ideological bias neoliberal and individualist. That they give us their opinions, because we need them and they strengthen us, that they help us to spread our music and ideas, and that if they immerse themselves in the artistic world of CHRIST BROKEN, they will discover new interesting and valuable things in each listening.

Finally, I would like to thank you very much for your publication for your interest in spreading the band, and invite them to be part of our project in the networks and scenarios, whenever they want and feel it.



Daniel Kalbermatten (Guitarrista y compositor en SIEMPRE GUERRAS)

ONO Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band since the recording of the new ep?

T: At the very moment we are finishing the production of two songs for a split tape with a German band called Owl. Both songs are older 0N0 compositions which have received a new solid sound, vocals and each has been rearranged and upgraded to a certain extent. At the same time we are starting to track guitars for our next full-length which will come out in 2020.

2.In 2019 you have a new ep coming out, musically how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

A: The material on the EP could be considered somewhat more accessible, songs also needed to be shorter than usual due to physical limitations of 7" vinyl format. We definitely wanted the EP to have a heavier sound compared to our previous release.

T: Listen to our previous 2016 full-length record Reconstruction and Synthesis. We usually produce songs that are way longer and complicated. We almost never use basic song structures, so motifs rarely repeat themselves and the development of our songs is like a stream of consciousness, moves towards the unpredictable and unknown. We also revel in more extreme forms of expression, blast beats, dissonance and ultra slow doom.
We experiment with a slightly different approach on this EP, more accessible structure, limited song length and a more organic sound. Yet characteristic attributes of our music, for instance heaviness, otherworldly vibe and depth, you name it, are still present.

3.Your lyrics deal with Transcendence and Hallucinations, can you tell us a little bit more about your interests in those topics?

T:  These two words are a different way how to express our inspiration that stems from antediluvian yet timeless wisdom and understanding of the world combined with surrealist methods like dream narrative, free association and absurdity. Even then, everything is deliberately cloaked and concealed. We want people to scratch their heads.

S: I've always been fascinated by human brain and the images it is capable of creating. With my lyrics, I try to build landscapes that revolve around certain ideas, colours or even sounds. Every word has a visual representation in my mind, in a way it's like painting a mental fresco.

A: If you set apart everything around us the human culture has created, what you're left with are the rawest emanations of mind, primitive, chaotic, illegible. We are trying to work with these forms and display them within the music.

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

T: The word 'ono' /ɒnɒ/ is written as zeroNzero and it is the personal pronoun ‘it‘ in Slovak. It's a binary code fragment 0110 and the word represents consciousness free from duality.

5.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the ep cover?

A: Contrary to our previous release, this time around the three of us had some pretty diverse ideas about a suitable visual representation for the material, both stylistically and considering what to actually express in the front cover. We also wanted the artwork to make an interesting T-shirt design. It took some deciding before we settled on Viral Graphics, but it was the right choice as the guys did a great job in capturing the essence of the record.

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?

S: Definitely Pohoda 2018 which is the biggest festival in Slovakia annually attended by 30000 visitors with bands from all around the world and from almost any genre you can think of. The organisation in general was amazing and the sound was superb and totally crushing. Also, my favorite moment was when I saw this little boy dancing furiously to one of our songs. Made my day. Sadly his parents were not amused, so he didn't see the whole show. Stage performance in one word: desolation. 

A: There's an element of meditative, almost transformative experience when things fall into place on stage, not just musical performance but a sort of dissolution..

T: We want to present the idea that experience with extreme metal is an extraordinary form of initiation.

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

A: We are of course open to any interesting opportunities when it comes to shows. As for the forseeable future however, the plan is to focus on composing and releasing new music.

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

T: Different. We’ve submerged into a very niche type of production, but there seem to be people who enjoy it.

S: When I talk to people that enjoy 0N0, they all usually agree on one thing: they don't know exactly what happens in our music, but they can't stop listening. It's like the charm of the unknown which is something I also prefer when listening to music.

9.What can we expect musically during the future?

T: Crushing and unearthly experience.

A: Our next full length album is going to be a logical successor to the past efforts, there's an apparent connection. After that, who knows..

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?

S: I've always liked epicness in metal music. Not the heavy or power metal sort, but the Nile, Type of Negative or Neurosis epicness, without pathetic and theatrical elements. Nowadays I listen to Caucasian and Persian folk music.

T: All kinds of metal and rock. Electronic music, mostly experimental. Pioneering, unconventional and boundless forms of music primarily. Nowadays, I often listen to various 20th century genres to understand the roots, development and interconnectedness better.

A: I find myself intrigued by all sorts of traditional music from around the world, field recordings, experimental production. Authenticity and element of surprise are some of the important factors in my listening selection these days. Occasionally I might still enjoy some metal, rock, electronic or even pop music, but it is a rare treat to find something fresh within the boundaries of any established genre.

11.What are some of your non musical interests?

S: I do comedy. Mainly stand up, but also some other projects. Need to balance out all the heaviness of our music.

T: Art in general. Literature, movies, painting, etc.

A: Very slowly getting into DIY electronics for the last couple of years, enjoying different art forms, in general being away from people whenever possible.

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

Thank you for this interview. Let the mind walk the stars. Those who crave will swallow their own eyes.

Official Bandcamp - https://ono0110.bandcamp.com
Transcending Obscurity Records – http://tometal.com