Kvelertak Interview

answered by Erland:

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



Hey. Yes, we just released our album in the US and have just gotten back from a short (& sweet) tour over there. The next item on the agenda is going on a European tour with Comeback kid before playing shitloads of summer festivals.



2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album?



It's kind of hard to describe because there is so many different elements in the mix, like hardcore, punk, 70s rock and even some bits of black metal, so nowadays I just call it rock to keep it simple.



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



So far the subjectmatter has been mostly old nordic mythology, devilworshipping and even some personal subjects. I basically just sing about things that interests me and I think sound badass. I might do something different for the next album, I haven't decided yet.



4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?



Kvelertak means chokehold in English. There's not much meaning behind it other than it sounding good and being short, straight to the point. I don't know who came up with it, Bjarte thinks it was him. I think it was me, hehe.



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



I think the shows we just did at SXSW in Austin were among the best shows we have done, especially the one we did at a place called Prague. They had cheap gin and tonic, and the stage was basically like a big junglegym with pipes to climb in the ceiling and so on, so that was perfect for me. The crowd was really into it.

To describe our stage performance, I'll just say that we're six sweaty guys who play every show as if it's the last one. At least that's what we aim to do.



6. Are there any plans for a U.S tour?



Yes, I think we're planning on coming back over in October for a eastcoast tour. Join our facebook to keep yourself posted.



7. On a worldwide level, how has your music been received by extreme metal fans?



Extremely well (pardon the pun)! Ofcourse you always have the tr00 elitist forum-nerds talking shit, but it seems a lot of different kinds of people including extreme metal fans are into the music, which we appreciate.

So far the album has been getting nothing but good reviews, so we've been pretty lucky in that aspect.



8. How wuld you describe your musical progress over the years and what direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?



We started out as a shitty punkrock basementband in 2006, so we spent about three years rehearsing, figuring out what the hell we were doing and finally getting a proper line-up together. So I'd say there's been a huge progress, concidering where we started to being the place we're in now.

As for what musical direction the music is going to take in the future, that's really a question for our guitarist Bjarte. He makes all the music, but I'm sure the future releases also will sound like Kvelertak.



9. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?



Another question for Bjarte, hehe. I've said this probably a thousand times, but he has everything between Marvin Gaye to Gorgoroth in his car and is influenced by almost everything he listens to. To him good music is good music (regardless of genre), which I think is a good approach.

Personally I've been listening a lot to Djevel lately, a blackmetal-band that I'm in and just finished recording the debutalbum with. The album should be out in June, check it out on myspace if you're into old school norwegian black metal.

10. What role does Asataru or Satanism play in your music and how would you describe your views on these topics?



Like I said earlier, I basically sing about subjects that interests me and make for good lyrics. I'm not that heavily into the subjects in my personal life, other than it representing my nonbelief in christianity.



11. Outside of music, what are some of your interests?



My hobbies? Not that interesting really, I like chilling out with videogames, movies, reading and music. In the weekends I get drunk, hehe.



12. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?



Check out our album, though it's not occult black metal, and thanks for the interview!



Erlend Hjelvik

https://www.facebook.com/Kvelertak/

Summon The Crows/One More For The Gallows/Southern Lord Records/2011 CD Review

  Summon The Crows are a band from Norway that plays a mixture of crust/punk, thrash and black metal and this is a review of their 2011 album "One More For The Gallows" which will be released by Southern Lord Records.


Drums range from mid paced to fast with a great amount of blast beats being utilized, while the bass playing has a very heavy sound with a lot of crust/punk style riffing.

Rhythm guitars range from mid paced to fast riffs that combine influences from thrash, crust/punk, and black metal while the lead guitars are very distorted sounding punk/metal guitar solos.

Vocals are mostly deep growls that have a black metal feel to them with some high pitched screams being used at times, while the lyrics cover everyday type themes with some songs being influenced by mythology, as for the production it sounds very heavy and raw but still professional enough to the point where you can hear all of the musical instruments.

In my opinion Summon The Crows are a very good blackened crust/punk/metal band and if you are a fan of this genre, you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "The Slavedrivers Of Ur" "Black Hole" "Beasts Of The Night" and "The Trojan Whores". RECOMMENDED BUY

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Metalomorph/2010 Demo Review

 Metalomorph are a band from Israel that plays a mixture of black, death and thrash metal and this is a review of their 2010 demo.

Drums alternate between slow, mid paced and fast drumming with some blast beats, while the bass playing has a very dark sound which follows the riffs that are coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars alternate between slow, mid paced to fast riffs that combine thrash, death and black metal together with a lot of a primitive edge, while the lead guitars are very primal sounding guitar leads.

Vocals are mostly black/death growls in the early 90's vein with some spoken word passages, while the lyrics cover dark themes, as for the production it is very primal sounding and brings a classic extreme metal feel to the music.

In my opinion Metalomorph are a very good band that brings back memories of early 90's black/death/thrash metal and if you are a fan of that style you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "The Great Attractor" and "Metalomorphosis". RECOMMENDED BUY.

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The Amenta/Vo1d/Listenable Records/2011 CD Review

 The Amenta are a band from Austria that mixes death and black metal together with industrial/experimental and ambient music and this is a review of their 2011 album "Vo!d" which was released by Listenable Records.


Drum programming is a mixture of slow to mid paced beats that have a very heavy and mechanical feel to them, while the samples and synths bring in some very dark and drone sounding elements to the music with a lot of remixes being done on this recording, as for the bass playing it has a very dark tone which is kind of mixed down low in the mix and seems to follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars range from slow to mid paced riffs that have influences from death, black, thrash and industrial metal with a great amount of heavy riffing and there are little to no guitar solos or leads present on the recording.

Vocals are a mixture of screams and growls that have a lot of influences from any different styles of extreme metal without being limited to one genre and on one song there is a small amount of clean singing, while the lyrics cover occultism, nihilism, drugs and some hateful topics, as for the production it sounds very raw but heavy and at the same time.

In my opinion The Amenta are a very good and original sounding industrial death/black metal band, and if you are looking for something different, you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Ache" "Erubus" "Junky" and "Vermin". RECOMMENDED BUY.

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The Prophecy23 Interview

Interview with Hannes (Thrash Vocals, Guitar) from The Prophecy²³

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

We are four brutal thrash maniacs from Germany, born in the 80ies and here to burn some moshpits down. After thrashing the underground for years, we've signed our first record deal with massacre records to release our debut album "...TO THE PIT".

2. How would you describe your musical sound?

It's a mix of thrash and death metal with moments of surprise and a touch of humour.
The songs are catchy. Both old school fans and those who love progressive music like our songs.


3. What is the meaning behind the band's name?

THE PROPHECY is inspired by Iron Maiden's song with the same title. But somehow, these damned "23" sneaked into the band name and nobody knows why. Unfortunately, we don't know what this number means. Since then, we all are desperately looking to find the answer. Maybe you get a couple of valuable information on the new Album "...TO THE PIT"?

4. How would you describe the lyrical content of the music?

We have a couple of fun song, such as A BACKPACK FULL OF FLESHSNACKS but also very serious lyrics about the shit that happens on this world. In general, we do not want to restrict ourselves to certain themes and styles, we are quite open minded. The most important thing for us is to have fun with our songs.

5. Have you had any opportunities to do live shows yet, if so what are some of the best shows that the band has played so far, and how would you describe your stage performance?

Our stage performance is 100 percent fun and action in the pit. Thrash and death -- fast and groovy! Maybe naked girls. Watch some of your live videos on www.theprophecy23.de. During the last month playing live gigs, we learned a lot and supported bands such as "Die Apokalyptischen Reiter", "Debauchery", "Brainstorm", "Death Before Dishonor", "Dark Age" and many more. The audience was always great and celebrated a non-stop party with our songs, moshpit action and stage diving.

6. What are some of the other projects besides this band?

We all live for THE PROPHECY. Beside Tobias also sings in the death metal band SKEPSIS, Hannes plays in a country/stoner/comedy project called "John Zero&Band" and Florian is a highly demanded session drummer for various bands and projects.

7. How has your music been received by death/thrash fans worldwide?

We are totally overwhelmed about the international feedback to "...To The Pit". We received very positive reviews from magazines in UK, Canada, Denmark, Netherlands, France and Austria. This was a perfect surprise as we were mainly known in Germany before.


8. How would you describe your musical progress over the years and what direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?

In the beginning, we had three guitarists and played very melodic music with clean vocals.
Since Tobias joined the band in 2006, we have found our very own style with the mix of thrash and death metal. It was a process for us to find ourselves and our unique music style, especially since it is one of the first band experiences for us all. At the first two demos, we were not very mature yet, and had to deal with two line-up changes. Now we are fully loaded and 200 percent motivated! Our fans say it was definitely worth waiting a couple of years for our first album.

We already have developed some cool ideas for our next album, however have no final songs yet. We will remain true to our style and of course our songs have to rock when playing live. There will be one or another funny surprise -- stay tuned.

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

We love old school thrash and death bands as well as modern stuff. Every band member has a slightly different taste in music. Flo listen to a lot of old hardcore, Tobias is a typical death metal freak, Dennis and me love all those thrash bands. You can feel that this variety in music tastes influences our songs.

10. How would you describe the support from Massacre Records so far?

It is a stroke of luck for us as newcomer band to sign a contract with Massacre Records. Here a lot of famous bands have "their home", also those which we love since we listen to metal. Massacre is full of energy and the guys there love metal, that's why this is perfect for us.

11. What are some of your interests outside of music?

We all are big fans of comics and all the action hero stuff. Hannes is collecting Marvel comics and Dennis action figures (in original packing). Tobi and Flo are more the sportive guys. Flo is doing endurance biking and Tobi is a big wrestling fan.

12. Any final words or thoughts?

Thank you for the interview! Check out our debut album "... TO THE PIT" -- out now. We hope to see you soon in a crazy moshpit !

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Obsidian Interview

1. Can you update us with what is going on with the band these days?
At the moment there is a lot going on around the band because we welcomed two new members to the family: our bass player Gerben became a dad, and a couple of months before I did the same! So that is the main focus for some of us at the moment. But, as Candlelight released our second full length Point Of Infinity in November, we are receiving a lot of positive feedback in the press and that is absolutely great! We are planning to do some shows and touring as soon as possible!

2. Currently you are signed to Candlelight Records, what expectations do you have of the label and how do you feel about the support that they have given you so far?

Just getting picked up by Candlelight, being one of the metal label icons, is very cool. A lot of the bands that really got me into metal were also signed to Candlelight – that we might end up being label mates with them is something I never expected! As the reviews and interviews are getting in from all over the globe, it seems like they stood up to their end of the bargain concerning promotion of the record – and that’s great, because we would be nowhere if people never heard our material.

3. How would you describe the musical style and lyrical content of the new album?

Every metalhead seems to interpret a subgenre in his or her own way , so throwing around subgenres to pin down a style is mostly a futile occupation. But to give it a try: it’s a crossover between death-, math- and progmetal with a juicy tinge of trippy guitar freakery in the background. We tried to give the tracks on ‘Point Of Infinity’ a bit more consistency, as we felt that the tracks on our previous record ‘Emerging’ had a bit too much of everything in every track.
All in all the new album feels as a more solid work, still containing a lot of different elements, but more jelled together. As you can see in the beautiful artwork – done by Robbe K and Sjaak – the atmosphere is very dark and fiery - very metal indeed! The lyrics deal with images and impressions of what a human being might experience during the journey through live. It’s a mental and emotional exploration of the different sceneries too which your mind is exposed and of the way the mind works to create the world you live in. Are you a victim of circumstance or just an overwhelmed conductor in front of the biggest orchestra you ever experienced? Something like that. Anyway, in the end it’s just what you guys, the listeners, make from it. So don’t be misguided by my blabbering, just check it out for yourself and see what you find!

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

Obsidian is a volcanic glass that through history obtained a lot of mystical and mythical characteristics – especially in the Inca and Aztec tradition. As the name of the band was already chosen before I became a member, I’m not really familiar with the initial motivation to choose the name. I think that because of the dark but translucent, mystical quality of the material and its sharp cutting properties when worked, the name suits the band very well.

5. Do you have any plans for a U.S. tour with the new album?

Touring the US is one of the things we really would like to do! We hope that the attention the album is gaining in the media will enable us to make the transatlantic jump! At the moment we are exploring ways to make it happen – the possibilities with booking agents etc. – but if anyone reading this wants to see us play in the US: help us make it happen!

6. How have extreme metal fans worldwide reacted to your musical sound so far?

Over all the reactions are very positive: some people directly and totally tap into the Obisidan vein but some are a bit more reserved. Our style is not that easy to get into if you’re not already inclined to listen too experimental and progressive acts in metal. On the other hand, fans of the really extreme stuff think we are not extreme enough and fans of math-tech stuff think we are not mind bending enough. It’s very difficult to please everyone and still do what you feel like doing – unless you are a prefab pop industry robot whore.

7. What direction would you like to take the band into on future releases?

We would like to continue to get our music out there more and more, which should be possible with the help of a label like Candlelight, providing international exposure. We all are working guys with families and what not, far from able to live from our music. So we’ll have to balance music and private live, but – as said – we are aiming to get out into the world, play and tour in Europe and hopefully the US because that’s what we really would like to do!
Music wise I have no idea what will happen. We tend to surprise ourselves with the compositions that turn up and we never know how they will develop before they end up on stage or a record. I personally think that the slower, heavier, darker groovy stuff is what we are good at. So I would like to dive into that side of the band a bit. But I can’t resist a well placed blast beat or a battering polka, so we’ll see what happens.

8. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you
listening to nowadays?

Death, Opeth and Cynic are some of the bands we almost all listen to. But we also have very different tastes and likes. Robbe and I really like the Dave Matthews Band for example, while Sjaak and Simon and Robbe too also really dig the more experimental styles of music. Gerben has a hidden lust for funk rock (Primus and the Chili Peppers) which I really share. It’s all in the mix and I couldn’t really tell you exactly how it all influences, but it does. Chilling to some Ravi Shankar on a Sunday morning might lead to a very interesting jam the following evening in the rehearsal room.

9. Outside of music, what are some of your interests?

Also very different! Sjaak and I are into running, Robbe is very creative and just as Simon working in audio engineering and production. Gerben likes to travel and he has his sporty streaks now and then. Nothing special to be honest, we’re all pretty ordinary guys. Except for Simon because he is a ninja, but you can’t tell that to anyone.

10.Any final words or thoughts before we close this interview?

Thanks a lot for giving us a chance to voice ourselves! If you did not already: check us out and if you like what you hear, spread the word!

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Kvelertak /Self Titled/Indie Records/The End Records/2011 CD Review

 Kvelertak are a band from Norway that mixes black metal/rock with punk and thrash metal and this is a review of their self titled album which was released as a joint effort between Indie Recordings and The End Records.

Drums range from mid paced to fast drumming with a good amount of blast beats, while the bass playing has a very heavy and distorted feel with a lot of punk rock riffing.

Rhythm guitars range from mid paced to fast riffing that mix black metal, thrash, punk and classic rock together with a lot of energy and psychedelic distortion and at times there is some 70's rock style  acoustic guitars, while the lead guitars are classic rock style guitar solos.

Vocals are a mixture of high pitched black metal screams mixed in with some punk rock style shouting and gang vocals and on a couple of songs there is a small amount of clean signing, while the lyrics are written in a mixture of Norwegian and English which cover Norse Mythology and Satanism, as for the production it has a very heavy and professional sound to it.

In my opinion Kvelertak are a very good band that mixes black metal with punk and classic rock, and if you are looking for something original, you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Mjod' "Blodtorst" "Offernatt" and "Sultans Of Satan". RECOMMENDED BUY.


http://www.myspace.com/kvelertak