Danish thrashers HATESPHERE have unveiled the cover artwork for their new album “To The Nines", scheduled for released through Napalm Records on the following dates:

March 25 - Finland, Spain
March 27 - Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Benelux, France, Italy, Sweden
March 30 - Rest of Europe
April 7 - USA, Canada

The follow-up to 2007’s “Serpent Smiles and Killer Eyes” was recorded at Antfarm Studio in Aarhus, Denmark with producer Tue Madsen (THE HAUNTED, MOONSPELL, DARK TRANQUILLITY, GOREFEST).

Check out the track listing for the album and cover artwork below:

01. To The Nines
02. Backstabber
03. Cloaked In Shit
04. Clarity
05. Even If It Kills Me
06. Commencing A Campaign
07. The Writing's On The Wall
08. In The Trenches
09. Aurora
10. Oceans Of Blood

Meanwhile, HATESPHERE have announced the dates for their European tour in support of “To The Nines” work. The dates are as follows:

ALIVE AND DRESSED TO THE NINES TOUR 2009 - part1

HATESPHERE (DK) www.myspace.com/hatesphere | Napalm Records
THE DYING (BE) www.myspace.com/thedyingmusic | Eyespy - Drakkar Records
ARTAS (AT) www.myspace.com/artasmetal | Napalm Records
SIC (FO) www.myspace.com/sic | Tutl Records

02.04.2009 BERLIN (D) K17
03.04.2009 CESKE BUDEJOVICE (CZ) Martys Club
04.04.2009 PLZEN (CZ) DK Serikova
05.04.2009 BRATISLAVA (SK) Randal Club
06.04.2009 LJUBLJANA (SLO) Orto Bar
07.04.2009 WIEN (AT) Viper Room
08.04.2009 MILLSTATT (AT) Bergwerk
09.04.2009 FREISTADT (AT) Salzhof
10.04.2009 DRESDEN (D) Titans Of Metal Festival
11.04.2009 ESSEN (D) Easter Metal Meeting w/ Gojira, Dew Scented ...
12.04.2009 OETTINGEN (D) Juze
13.04.2009 ROSTOCK (D) Motorship Stubnitz
14.04.2009 HAMBURG (D) Logo
15.04.2009 FLENSBURG (D) Roxy
16.04.2009 ODENSE (DK) Posten
17.04.2009 AARHUS (DK) Voxhall
18.04.2009 COPENHAGEN (DK) The Rock

ALIVE AND DRESSED TO THE NINES TOUR 2009 - part2

HATESPHERE (DK) www.myspace.com/hatesphere | Napalm Records
SIX REASONS TO KILL (D) www.myspace.com/sixreasonstokill | Bastardized Recordings
BLOODWORK (D) www.myspace.com/bloodworked | Dockyard1 Records
SIC (FO) www.myspace.com/sic | Tutl Records

24.04.2009 BERN (CH) Dachstock Reitschule
25.04.2009 WINTERTUR (CH) Salzhaus w/ Gojira
26.04.2009 MUENCHEN (D) Backstage
27.04.2009 FRANKFURT (D) Nachtleben *** WITHOUT SIC ***
28.04.2009 PARIS (FR) Glazart TBC
29.04.2009 BONN (D) Klangstation
30.04.2009 TRIER (D) Exhaus
01.05.2009 GRONINGEN (NL) Vera w/ Will Haven
02.05.2009 DEN BOSCH (NL) W2 w/ Will Haven
03.05.2009 LEIDEN (NL) LVC

Not to be mistaken with Relapse’s recording artists The End, the simply named End comes from France and practises a fierce, dissonant and labyrinthine sonority somehow indebt to Swedes Meshuggah and to a lesser extent their compatriots Gojira.
The way this French five-piece structure their compositions juxtaposing different and puzzling rhythms over the same song promptly recalls the polyrhythmic architecture of Meshuggah’s song-writing. Just take opener “Absolutely Nothing” for example, here End hurl out a vast amount of hypnotic, quirky and dissonant riffs, the kind Mårten Hagström and Fredrik Thordendal are renowned for, over a pallet of idiosyncratic beats just as challenging as Tomas Haake’s drumming. Throughout the following three themes, which are part of their EP “The Never Ending Whirl of Confusion” released in 2005, End adhere to such formula with firm conviction and notable results, sounding as if the world is about to go down to its final conclusion.
The remaining two songs “Existence Asleep” and “The Decline And The Fall” to be featured on their upcoming debut full-length, sees the band perfecting their production and song-craft, and also reveal a more personal approach, sounding sparser and less claustrophobic like a more technical Cult of Luna on some occasions. A good hint that suggests the best of them is yet to come. (7/10)

Band info: www.myspace.com/end1freefr

It’s rare to be confronted with a fairly good production on a recent Thrash-Metal release, especially if we’re talking about the very first recordings of an upstart band like Assassinner. The choice of Daniel Cardoso (Head Control System, Heavenwood, Ava Inferi, etc) for producer has definitely benefited the songs with a crunchy edge and a rich clarity.
Assembled a mere two years ago from the ashes of crossover act Strain, this three-piece from Oporto power away a punchy and straightforward Thrash-Metal that brings to mind the heydays of groups like Method of Destruction, Sacred Reich and Cryptic Slaughter.
On the three themes found on “Other Theories of Crime”, the Portuguese collective reveals to be a talented group using their technical expertise to blend catchy, Thrash-laced riffs with intense and furious Hardcore rhythms and anger-filled, shouty vocalizations that, although slightly monotonic, sound totally appropriated for such full-on metal racket.
It’s far from perfect, some arrangements seem to be far too stripped and lacking a more cerebral structuring, like for instance the third song “Dream Murder Song”. Despite featuring the intimidating voice of Sofia Loureiro from We Are The Damned, it showcases a mosh-core chugging that sounds pretty generic and uninspired.
Nevertheless, the two remaining songs “No Further Questions” and “I Against All” definitely displays some promise, both bursting into an aggressive, catchy riffing tailored for maximum kick on a live ambient. (6.5/10)

Band info: www.myspace.com/assassinner

It’s incredible to witness how far The Firstborn have progressed since their first release “Rebirth of Evil”, when the word Evil was still attached to their name.
While said album and the following output “From The Past Yet To Come” were drenched in the grimiest and rudimentary Black-Metal, their third work “The Unclenching Fists” saw the band largely distancing themselves from such origins, embracing a sonority that was gradually becoming far more innovative and singular, with influences of ethnic and progressive music cleverly integrated into their compositions that swayed between progressive Death-Metal and experimental Black-Metal.
New record, “The Noble Search” can be described as a natural step forward in their musical evolution rather than the giant leap of before, with the band delving deeper into Buddhism and its teachings for guidance and inspiration.
Essentially, the Portuguese group have sharpened and focussed their song-craft, resulting in a more stripped down record, without the somewhat superfluous embellishments that somehow hindered the impact of “The Unclenching Fists”. It’s also warmer and more organic in tone and feel, the fact “The Noble Search” was recorded at Foel Studios, an analogue recording facility located in Wales previously used by bands like Primordial, Electric Wizard and Napalm Death might have something to do with it. The organic nature of Rolando Barros’ drums for example, is remarkable and contrasts nicely with the guitar work of Nuno Gervásio and Paulo Viera, who pour out an endless stream of challenging and skilful riffs leaning on progressive and technical Death-Metal.
Each song on “The Noble Search has its own savour and distinct trait, incontestably unfolding The Firstborn’s inherent knack for dynamics and diverse textures, yet as whole the album sounds tremendously coherent and well-structured. For instance, while opening song “Illumination of the Five Realms” could be described as an incestuous marriage between Neurosis and Ravi Shankar, “Flesh to the Crows” sounds like composer Philip Glass conducting a peculiar orchestra made up of musicians from such disparate acts like Primordial and Enslaved. “In Praise of Reality” is also one of the album’s peaks, its darkly progressive complexity hints heavily at someone like Gojira jamming with sitars and the vocals of Bruno Fernandes exhibit an expressive and highly emotive quality.
“The Noble Search” was recently nominated Portuguese album of the year by Portugal’s leading publication for heavy music Loud, surpassing albums like Moonspell’s “Night Eternal” and Heavenwood’s “Redemption” and I guess that says a lot! (8/10)

Band info: www.thenoblesearch.com
Label info: www.majorlabelindustries.com

Fans of Solitude Aeturnus, Memory Garden and the more dirgey-like moments of Nevermore will definitely find Divine Lust’s second full-length work “The Bitterest Flavours” to be a pleasant and rewarding listening.
The Portuguese group, who have been going since 1998, infuse their mountain-sized riffs with an epic and melancholic quality clearly redolent of classic Doom-Metal in the vein of Solitude Aeturnus and Memory Garden, and then add a clean, poignant and powerful vocal performance that comes across as a combination of Rob Lowe’s deep wails with Warrel Dane’s more poignant tones. Considering I’m a huge fan of all the aforementioned bands, I’d say it sounds great.
However, their Doom-oriented journey doesn’t feed solely from such classic set of influences since Divine Lust also reveal a tendency to incorporate elements of more contemporary Doom-Metal ala My Dying Bride and Draconian into their compositions, like keyboard-drenched melodies, violin sections and acoustic interludes. Each song on “The Bitterest Flavours” have their own flavour and particular traits, yet most of them stroll at a slumber, funeral pace with slow, traditional-flavoured riffs merged with dominant keyboard lines, occasionally tempered with choirs, female vocals, string sections that on the overall helps to radiate a mournful and desolate atmosphere. “Duskful of Bliss, Morningful of Misery” throughout its 12 minutes duration perfectly summarises all the characteristics of their consistent and compelling sonority.
Their blend of old and new sounds fairly accomplished, clearly Divine Lust have mustered enough experience and know-how throughout their ten-year existence, to grant “The Bitterest Flavours” with enough savoury and emotion to make the listeners sit up and pay attention. (7/10)

Band info: www.myspace.com/divinelustband
Label info: www.deadsunrecords.com

Built around the polyrhythmic and challenging nature of Meshuggah’s compositions, “Dark Matter, Energy Noir” displays a skilful and well-structured blend of technical Death-Metal and pummelling Thrash. However, despite the obvious reference it should be mentioned that Mencea don’t delve into excessive technical details and loose the notion of song-craft in the process like sometimes the Swedes get accused of, opting instead for a more streamlined approach not too distant in style with the Swedes’ most recent work “Obzen” and Gojira’s “The Way of all Flesh”.
The Greek collective don’t feel restrained to throw out a more basic, groovy riff when the song demands it, conveying an emphatic immediacy into the songs. Proof of that is the panoply of great hooks scattered throughout these eight themes, and second song “Ardad” for example boasts some incredible and highly memorable guitars harmonies coupled with a subliminal, yet captivating use of keyboard sounds. Swaying from an intensely fast riffing to more a mid-paced, chugging one, “Ardad” is definitely one of the album’s peaks right along with the 9-minutes spanning “When Strife and Greed Collide”, where Mencea unveil a remarkable knack for dynamics and different textures. Elsewhere, both “The Passing” and “Deep in the Under” lean heavily into puzzling Meshuggah-type rhythms, while “Eminence” sees the Greeks embracing a more brutal and vicious path close to Morbid Angel circa “Covenant” days, with a relentless double-kick drumming from Nick Prapas and deep guttural vocalizations provided by singer Andy Giolmas.
It may not be the most original thing that have emerged in recent times, but I’ll be damned of the quality of the song-writing doesn’t make of “Dark Matter, Energy Noir” one of last’s year highlight works. (7.5/10)

Band info: www.myspace.com/mencea
Label info: www.myspace.com/indierecordings

Operating in similar realms as Meshuggah and Gojira, Mencea is a new collective from Greece, whose debut work “Dark Matter, Energy Noir”, a 40-minutes worth of technically engaging-Death/Thrash Metal released by independent Norwegian label Indie Recordings is one of 2008’s most surprising and challenging releases.
Guitarist and music producer Stamos Koliousis have shared with us some of his views on their first release and their working ethics. Read on…


It might seem peculiar to see a Greek Metal group signed to a Norwegian independent label like Indie Recordings, whose catalogue consists entirely of Norwegian artists like Enslaved, Keep of Kalessin, Audrey Horne, Red Harvest, Vreid and so on, but then again Mencea aren’t exactly what we can call a conventional act. The idiosyncratic nature of their debut full-length record “Dark Matter, Energy Noir” absolutely complies with the push-the-envelope mentality of Indie Recordings, which is rapidly becoming a record label synonymous with irreverence.
Not that it matters now, but if I’m not mistaken it’s an unprecedented union that only threatened to occur once, when a few years back a certain Øystein Aarseth, better known as Euronymous declared his intentions to sign the Greek Black-Metal act Rotting Christ.
So, tells us how did Mencea end up signing a record deal with the Norwegian company?

“The guys behind Indie Recordings, had a copy of our promo album in their hands, very early on. Its something that happened completely by chance and they stated their interest right away. They offered us a fantastic deal for a debut band, and it was a no-brainer for us to go with them. Scandinavian countries have all been supporters of the metal scene, with a huge number of bands coming out of there, compared to the total population. They have the know-how of braking bands to the masses, and they have had experience in doing that for many years now. They tend to be more open-minded than German labels per say, and less hands on than most others. That is why a lot of the "authentic" new, groundbreaking bands, have been steadily coming out of Scandinavian countries. They support their bands, and are closer to the way labels used to work in the past, in the less infected music industry, than the state of things as of now. It’s an honour for a Greek band like us, to emerge through a Norwegian label, and given that Indie Recordings has only signed Norwegian acts so far besides us, it means a lot.”

Not many people are aware, but both Mencea’s guitarists Stamos Koliousis and Vangleis Labrakis are slowly building a career as music producers and engineers. Graduated from the SAE Institute of London, one of the most respected colleges for Audio Engineering in the world, the two Greek musicians have put together a studio in Berlin called 210 Studios and already produced a vast array of Metal acts like Funeral, Stonegard, Vreid, Scar of the Sun between others. So where does this interest for music production and engineering come from? Was it something that evolved naturally as you were becoming more seasoned and experienced musicians?

“No not really. I mean, we both were into studying music, since we were kids. Going the whole way, like attending music school every day, but also learning how to play various other instruments in our own time, parallel to that. Of course our infatuation with metal music was present at a rather young age, but the basis was set prior to that. At one point during our high school years, and as the digital recording - home studio setups were in their beginnings, we found it very intriguing to be able to do demos, and preproduction at home. On a comparative scale, studios were a lot more expensive especially for kids back then, so that was another bonus. Home studios, and generally the whole scene of "home-made music" was not so popular back then, however things progressed, and we chose to take some proper education on engineering and production in the late 90's. We are now based in Berlin most of the time, but also travelling to do freelance production or engineering work.”

Would you agree that the work of a producer doesn’t merely resume to a technical knowledge of the equipment, and most of the times have to stimulate and push the capacities of musicians to the fullest and still maintain a positive and focused atmosphere in the studio? Like for example someone like Rick Rubin, who’s mostly regarded as psychological mentor rather than a music producer/engineer per se?

“I guess the technical knowledge is the starting point. If it’s not present then nothing else can get you close to good results. Having the ability to "psychologically engineer" a musician is a big bonus. For example if someone like Rick Rubin didn’t have a team of insanely good engineers working on his albums, things might be different. It’s a great thing to be able to stimulate a musician's mind, but it can also lead to unwanted tension in the studio, as most artists have a pretty strong vision of what they want to achieve. Personally speaking, I try and focus on establishing an elastic mind frame when working in that style. It’s all about making small compromises, and slowly building up, as there are always more than one ways of reaching a goal. One should never get lost keeping a balance between what makes the artist happy, and what would make the label happy. Instead one should always step outside these constraints, and give life to someone else’s art and efforts, in the most appropriate way possible. Producers tend to be the studio divas sometimes, whereas in reality they are there to work for the band, regardless how big that band might or might not be.”

The pair of guitarists have engineered and produced “Dark Matter, Energy Noir” in their own 210 Studios as well, swiftly managing to recruit the renowned Daniel Bergstrand, whose credits include In Flames, Strapping Young Lad and Meshuggah to mix the record at his Dug Out Studios, in Uppsala, Sweden.
What made you decide on the Swedish producer to handle the mixing of your debut work and do you envision a new collaboration with Bergstrand in the future?

“That was prior to recording actually. Our preproduction demos found their way into his studio without us actually knowing that, and as soon as interest was expressed, we set the dates for mixing, which also dictated the recording dates too. Daniel has a certain style to his productions, that we we’re great fans of. He is very open-minded and we knew he was going to add another dimension to the album. Working with him was a huge learning curve for us, something that we’ll always be grateful for. After all, there are not that many debut bands that get the Bergstrand treatment, so that made it special. He is far more eclectic in the projects he takes up, compared to some other Scandinavian studios, he is a veteran in his job, and his way of going about things when mixing, is a school in its own. We take his work ethic as an example and of course the possibility of working with him again in the future is something we will explore. In fact he would be the first on our list. He has now moved on to a bigger studio as well I hear, so that should be very interesting!”

Another curious fact about Mencea is the geographical disposal of their band members currently divided between the UK, Germany and their native Greece, yet “Dark Matter, Energy Noir” sounds incredibly tight and focused, which begs the question of how does it work? How do you manage to function as a band living apart from each other in separate countries?

“It’s not so hard! Lots of bands have some of their members living elsewhere these days. Low cost airlines are the key to the question! And of course being disciplined and practicing without the rest of the band. When we’re in rehearsal mode, we just get together for two or three weeks, and rehearse our asses off every day. That's the only thing that does the job.”

With regards to creating music, do you usually approach the writing of the songs as a team effort or does any member take the lead role?

“It’s more like someone will present some ideas, sometimes more coherent, others not so much, and that’s where the rest of the band comes in. It’s nice to jam and try to write songs in the studio, but it’s hard for five people to be in a good creative space in their heads, simultaneously. We don’t want to take compromises in what we can achieve song writing-wise. Binding the ideas together is a better way of using our time together I think.”

“Dark Matter, Energy Noir” displays a highly potent, technical and groovy Death-Metal assault, whose most obvious reference point would be Meshuggah for its constant rhythmic changes and complex structures. However, Mencea doesn’t delve into overly technical details sacrificing the intent of good Metal song like sometimes it occurs with the Swedes, revealing a song-writing drive more akin to someone like Gojira. Do you think these two bands really hold an influence over the band’s sound?

“They certainly do, and we’re very proud of that, but when there are bands like Meshuggah where it’s pretty much pointless for anyone else to try and follow their path. It’s next to impossible, and it can never be as good... We don’t want to sacrifice the connection that someone might have with a song, or a part, by rushing into a technical overload. That can throw people off. We do take these bands as an example, as something to look up too, but we take a different approach. It’s the easiest thing to come up with a great riff, but put five of them in a row and try and make them work together. That’s the hard part when it comes to song writing as far as we re concerned.”

What tracks of “Dark Matter, Energy Noir” are you particularly fond of and why?

“We tend to have a common liking for the last track, “When Strife and Greed Collide”. It’s a track a lot less complicated than it might initially sound, but it has a certain vibe to it, that we would like to explore further in the future. It talks to different depths musically as far as I m concerned in comparison to the rest of the album. It takes some time to "sit", but once it does, there are things one can discover with every other listen.”

The enigmatic title of the record “Dark Matter, Energy Noir” seems to underlie a certain elaborated lyrical concept. Do you care to explain the thematic behind the album’s lyrics?

“The lyrics vary to some certain extent, as in that there is no strict concept that needed to be followed. Each song has its own life and character, which kind of dictates what direction the lyrics should go. We try and do justice to the feel that each track has, and then follow it lyrically. It’s a perception-based way to go about putting words and meanings on top of your music. The lyrics don’t play around personal demons. They are based on observation and experience of the ways that negativity could be turned around into something creative and cathartic. A sort of cleansing the mind through the art of music. We can’t overlook all the "darkness" that roams around our world in the times we live, but unless we do something about it, something positive, it will completely take over. It’s easy to point the finger and lash out on the anger and darker emotions that are a natural reaction to the state of the world, but we’d rather use our cognitive intellect, and avoid primal instincts. Nothing will come out by passing the blame on to others as we all have an equal share of blame for what goes on in our lives, society and the world in general.”

Mencea is confirmed to play at this year’s Inferno Festival in Norway, so what other activities can we expect from the band in the near future?

“We are on the lookout for a European tour at the moment. We don’t want to delay that too much, as we want to start writing material for our next album soon, and get enough time to do a couple of rounds of preproduction. Other than that, we are booked for the Metal Hammer UK sponsored Hammerfest in April, and also the Inferno Festival Kickoff Party in February, in Oslo. We will be shooting a video for the track “Ardad”, which should emerge around March as well, so a lot of updates and news should be coming soon from our part.”

More info at: www.myspace.com/mencea

“The Circleville Massacre” brims over with such a Southern-Rock vibe that it would mislead anyone to believe that Satans Revolver comes from some deserted, countryside region of California, yet they’re a super group of sorts featuring elements of well-known Portuguese acts like Twentyinchburial, Aside, Before the Torn and Forgodsfake. Though their low-tuned and whiskey-soaked grooves own something to North-American bands like Kyuss and Fu Manchu, their somewhat Punk-Hardcore pedigree also shines forth throughout these five themes.
Fuelled by an energised Hardcore-Punk fury that hints at the early periods of Corrosion of Conformity and Crowbar, Satans Revolver churns out some massive, downright nasty and catchy Stoner-Rock riffs and some thrilling leads ala Josh Homme that are catchier than flu on winter days. “Barfight’s”, is a song that perfectly exudes that raging attitude of their Hardcore roots with a faster, punchy tempo, a display of hefty and angry riffing and some throat-tearing vocals, while themes like the opener “Me, You and a Bottle of Jack”, “Golden Bullets” and the closing “Death on the Trail” encapsulate that fuzzy rocking fury with extraordinary results, specially the later with its amazing retro vibe.
If Satans Revolver were deriving from American soil I’m sure many of you would have heard of them before ‘cause “The Circleville Massacre” has all the ingredients to be a massive success, capable of rivalling with the best releases from Every Time I Die, Cancer Bats and Doomriders. (7.5/10)

Band info: www.myspace.com/satansrevolver
Label info: www.myspace.com/ragingplanetrecordsportugal

It’s well-known the last few years have been extremely difficult for the Brazilian group Sepultura. The acrimonious split with former frontman Max Cavalera a few years back have triggered a number of ill-fated events that threatened the continuity of one of the greatest forces in heavy music. I’m referring to Roadrunner’s flickering behaviour, the release of less-accomplished studio albums, the abandonment of the other Cavalera member, drummer Igor. These were all factors that gradually resulted in a decrease of record sales and live spectators and lead many to question the validity of a Sepultura line-up sans the Cavalera brothers.
Sure, some of their post-Max Cavalera material don’t quite live up to their remarkable back-catalogue, and it seemed that the Brazilians would be cursed to live in the shadows of their greatest works, yet bassist Paulo Jr. and guitarist Andreas Kisser persistently refuse to throw the towel to the floor. Not that they can be accused of stagnating or rehashing the same formulas, neither they show signs of fatigue or lack of dedication, “Roorback” and “Dante XXI” were good albums on their own. It’s essentially a slightly different Sepultura from the one that brought us such groundbreaking releases like “Arise” and “Chaos A.D.” that some of their long-time followers are still having a hard time to cop with.
Well things have changed ‘cause “A-Lex”, their first work without the participation of any of the Cavalera brothers, not only is the best work of the Sepultura-fronted by Derrick Green it’s also one of the best things the Brazilians have ever penned. I’m sure many of you will disagree with such statement solely on the basis of the weight of Sepultura’s past releases and the fact that it doesn’t feature a Cavalera in their ranks, but give “A-Lex” a chance and I’m sure you’ll be surprised with the powerful and exciting compositions lurking within their eleventh full-length work.
“A-Lex”, a Russian expression that means lawless is, just like its predecessor “Dante XXI” another ambitious take on a literary novel, this time around Anthony Burgess' “A Clockwork Orange”, where the Seps attempt to both capture the essence of their past and also take a step forward into territories new to them throughout eighteen themes.
“Sadistic Values” is perhaps the theme that best embodies the spirit and vibe of the whole album, a dynamic song starting with slow and clean guitar chords coupled with a soulful performance from vocalist Derrick Green that gradually grows into a barrage of hypnotic and sledgehammer riffs with Green returning to a more anger-filled vocalizations. “We’ve Lost You” also sees them drifting into unconventional song-writing, a powerful and mid-paced rendering of monster riffs and earth-shattering bass lines that initiates with a gentle acoustic section.
“Filthy Rot” is set in a more traditional approach with tribal percussion and dissonant, skull-crushing riffs, with new member Jean Dolabella hitting the drums with steady precision and drifting skill. Elsewhere, there’s a number of rampaging songs that are bound to inflict some serious damage on a live environment like “Moloko Mesto”, “What I Do” and “The Treatment”.
Do yourself a favour and enjoy “A-Lex” for what it is, a prime example of intelligent and aggressive Thrash- Metal. (8/10)

Band info: sepultura.uol.com.br
Label info: www.spv.de

A mere year after they’ve introduced us their remarkable blend of Death-Metal fury with Black-Metal grimness, Swedes Devian are back with an album that, though somewhat more accessible and melodic than its predecessor “Ninewinged Serpent”, retains much of the exuberant ferocity, and the grit, cold and dark impetus that made their first output such a promising release.
“God to the Illfated” essentially sees Devian consolidating the sound explored on their debut work, honing their riffs somewhere to near perfection without compromising their characteristic malicious intent. I could state the mellower sections are more prevalent on the second half of the album, with the Swedish act gradually slipping into catchier songs slathered with succulent melodies and loads of guitar twiddling that verge on the more classic format of Heavy-Metal. On such occasions, like for instance in the title-theme, “Summerdeath” and “South of Halo”, guitarists Joinus and Tomas Nilsson constantly trade off harmonies that smack heavily of Murray/Smith notorious axe-craft, interspersed between a genuinely severe thrashy riffing. The bridges and the solos of “South of Halo” are perfect examples of such richly interplay between melody and full-on aggression. These instantaneous moments contrast nicely with the pummelling thrash-driven blast of opener “Mask of Virtue”, the virtuous aggression of the following song “Assailant” and the snappy and fast-paced “The Unspoken”, all of these songs could rival with the nastiest moments of later-period Kreator in intensity stakes.
All in all, “God to the Illfated” is instantly more convincing than its predecessor, brilliantly produced, flawlessly executed and genuinely puts Devian on a par with acts like Dissection and Hypocrisy. (7.5/10)

Band info: www.devian.se
Label info: www.centurymedia.com

Currently unsigned, Sickseed is one of the new breed of Danish Metal bands that are poised to raise some significant waves in their homeland. The Danes are currently putting the finishing touches to their debut work with an aim to issue it next year, yet they still have to fetch the attention of a suitable record label capable of giving Sickseed the right push to see them breakthrough.
So, how difficult is it to make a name for the band in Denmark nowadays, getting gigs, securing a record deal, etc?

“We have chosen not to focus our aim at Denmark to begin with. At the moment our focus is set abroad, Norway, Sweden, Germany and The States and so forth, before we come back to attack our home country of Denmark.
As far as getting a record deal we are trying our best to get a deal through with a label that can get us some exposure where there is a market for our type of music. And hopefully we will be able to have our debut album "The Beauty Before Death" in stores in the first quarter of 2009.”


How do you view the Metal scene in Denmark right now and the rekindled interest over the more brutal end of Metal music?

“The way we see it, Denmark has never been stronger on the metal scene than what we see today. There are a lot of great bands who are approaching the scene in a unique way, and are really making a name for themselves and Denmark on the international metal stage. The brutal side of Danish metal has always been present, Konkhra, Illdisposed, Hatesphere, Iniquity and Infernal Torment just to name a few. And today you find new brutality in bands like The Burning, Koldborn, Dawn Of Demise, The Arcane Order, Submission, Crocell, Scamp and The Pilgrimz who all have their own way of making their tunes uniquely evil "from their guts to your ears" Slow Death Factory R.I.P. We will always love you.”

Absorbing the bile of Death-Metal, the fury and quirkiness of Mathcore and other genres ending in core, Sickseed evades easy categorisation.
Their sound is too viciously brutal to be Hardcore and too quirky and diverse to be labelled as straightforward Death-Metal.
Where do you think Sickseed fits into the extreme music scene?

“We've asked our selves that question many times.
Our music isn't overly complex but it is tough to box it down to one genre. The tracks on our album reflect which bands we were listening to when we wrote them. They were written over a longer period of time because we, unfortunately, made a few bad calls before we found Thobjørn our lead singer. The long time span is also why we have so many different aspects in our music since our interests in music, like most people, is constantly evolving. So the music consists of a lot of different genres mixed into one sound. We always try to keep the tracks interesting so we try to avoid repetition as best we can.”

What reactions do you hope to provoke in your listeners?

“If we get some heads rocking then we are more than satisfied!”

So what’s next for Sickseed, are you currently negotiating with record labels for the release of your debut record?

“We have not gotten to the point of negotiating with any labels yet, but we have high hopes for the future.”

More info at: www.myspace.com/sickse3d

Copenhagen’s The Cleansing have a highly impressive pedigree, boasting former members of the Brutal Death-Metal act Usipian along with current members of well-known Danish bands like Corpus Mortale, Submission and The Arcane Order.
Loaded with the same vicious and brutal Death-Metal drive and intent of the defunct Usipian, “Poisoned Legacy” is the quintet’s first output, which is on the verge of being unleashed by US label Deepsend Records.
Given that Death-Metal style of The Cleansing isn’t too far removed from the one their former band used to practice it would be reasonable to start asking what kind of motives made you bury Usipian in the first place.

”You really have to see The Cleansing as a completely new band and not as a continuation of Usipian. I was only in Usipian for six months before we decided to call it a day, so I never really became a big part of Usipian. But we really wanted to try something new and that meant a new name and a new line-up. Jeppe, Toke and I wanted to push the envelope and also try to work with much faster tempos and make things a little more “crazy” if you will, which some Usipian members weren’t into.
To make a long story short we just felt like creating a new band and start from scratch, a new and fresh beginning and that was how The Cleansing was born. It just felt like the right thing to do.”

Comparisons between the two bands will certainly be made and are reasonably understandable, both owe their fair share to American Death-Metal drawing influences from bands like Morbid Angel and Immolation, yet something that listeners will notice is that The Cleansing plays a decidedly more technical style.
What was the band’s approach to the writing of the album compared to previous endeavors?
Did you brought any old riffs originally crafted for Usipian into the rehearsal room and rearranged them with the remaining members or “Poisoned Legacy” only features new material?

”We just wanted to make the best Death-Metal album that we possibly could! Everything just had to be right, the music, the lyrics, the musicianship and the production. The music for the album was written by Jeppe and me.
The first two songs we wrote together were “Insects in the Void” and “The Prodigal Son” and especially “Insects in the Void” with pretty fast and technical parts is a very, very good example of where we wanted to take things.
Since I only got to be a member of Usipian for half a year, it wasn’t until The Cleansing was born that Jeppe and I really sat down and started working on songs. We quickly realized that we worked very well together. When we started on “Insects in the Void” Jeppe already had two songs written that actually were meant for Usipian, but he had a hard time trying to make them work with Usipian. We spent about eight months writing the remaining eight tracks. So, about 80% of the album features completely new material.”

It’s known that while The Cleansing were at Hansen Studios recording “Poisoned Legacy”, vocalist Toke Eld was held in custody by the police and was unable to lay down the vocal parts.
Due to the tight studio schedule, The Cleansing have opted to let bassist Martin Rosendahl do all vocals for the album and even considered to re-record the vocal lines with Toke Eld behind the microphone on a future occasion, which ended up not materializing due to some problems with the singer’s voice.
Do you care to mull over such awkward episode and explain us what happened?

”Well there is not much to say about the situation that we haven’t already said. The official statement on our website and on our MySpace explain what happened and we are gonna stick to that.
Even though some people might remain curious I don’t see a reason for getting into details.”

There’s a whole new generation of Death-Metal bands emerging recently in Denmark like The Burning, Crocell and Dawn of Demise that are making some significant waves and revitalizing the Danish underground scene.
Although The Cleansing cannot be called exactly newcomers due to their vast experience in previous acts, do you still see yourselves as part of such promising movement?

”It would certainly be cool if people would consider us a part of such a movement and I do think The Cleansing has something to offer the death metal scene. Not just the Danish death metal scene but also internationally I think The Cleansing has something to say.
Not to say that we are offering some completely new elements to the scene, but we can offer well played, brutally sounding, aggressive and in-your-face death metal with catchy elements. Especially the catchy elements are something we have been working on. If you can mix brutality with catchy elements it’s a good thing, at least in my opinion. But I think a lot of death metal bands ignore that and that’s a shame.”

What do think it triggered or rekindled the enthusiasm of Danish musicians towards a genre that was once very promising with bands like Panzerchrist, Invocator, Illdisposed, Iniquity, Konkhra, Thorium, etc?

”It’s hard to tell. The scene never died but maybe there is a new wave of Danish death metal coming up. A lot of the bands you are mentioning are not that active anymore and some of them are gone by now. So naturally a lot of new bands are taking over, that’s just the way it works. Maybe Danish metal musicians are now more aware of the fact that you need to be damn good in order to be on an international level.”

If nothing fails and let’s hope not, The Cleansing already had enough bad luck with the recordings of the album, “Poisoned Legacy” is scheduled for release in early 2009. Is there a concrete date for its release, what can we expect from the band in the future?

”I can’t tell you the concrete release date for the album, because we simply don’t know yet, we will of course make it official when we know the date. I can only tell you it’s going to be in early 2009. The artwork was completed just recently and it looks amazing! Really cool stuff! We are going to play shows supporting the album in 2009 and we are really looking forward to that! And of course you can expect more quality death metal from The Cleansing in the future!”

More info at: thecleansing.net

When an album comes with a cover artwork depicting some sort of ghastly demon in an embryo or decomposing state and has song titles such as “Death Knell”, “We Are The Dead” and “To Those That I Shall Kill”, you known straight way it isn’t going to be beautiful songs about birds and flowers. Therefore, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to witness that Denmark’s Crocell belts out some crushing, fierce and slightly melody-charged Death-Metal that displays some affinities with the more visceral releases of Edge of Sanity, Hypocrisy and Necrophobic.
Throughout 45 minutes the Danes sway from deathly fast and intense Death-Metal riffing with a somewhat groovy edge to slow, gloomy-driven riffs denoting some affection towards a genre like Doom-Metal, all packed with some serious punch and diversity. The levels of intensity reach their highest peak on songs like “Apotheosis”, “God We Drowned” and “Death Knell” with a vicious, catchy and hard-hitting crunch, while themes like “Winter is Coming” and the instrumental “Culling” favour a more slow-paced and melodic approach, with the first smacking heavily of Hypocrisy circa the “Abducted” album.
With an array of remarkable releases from Exmortem, Thorium and Dawn of Demise recently issued, it looks like the Danish Death-Metal scene has never been so alive and kicking and Crocell are another surprising addition to that fast growing movement, whose music is definitely worthy of further investigation. (7/10)

Band info: www.myspace.com/crocelldk
Label info: www.coprorecords.co.uk

It can’t be denied there’s a Death-Metal revolution taking place in Denmark during these last few months, not only there’s a resurgence of old veterans getting back into combat like Illdisposed, Thorium and Konkhra there’s also a growing stream of fertile new blood spearheaded by groups like Dawn of Demise, The Burning, The Cleansing and Crocell reinvigorating a scene that was once extremely promising.
Do Crocell, whose debut record “The God We Drowned” is receiving accolades for being a surprising and solid Death-Metal release, see themselves as part of such enthusiastic movement that is arousing in their homeland?

“Danish death metal has definitely had resurgence in recent years and I can't remember the underground scene ever being as active as today. I don't know if we're part of a movement as such, even though we're friends with a lot of the guys from other Danish bands. We help each other out in various ways, get gigs, offer advice and comment on each others' music, but ultimately, the creative process is our own. I can't speak for the others, but the new Danish death metal scene, whatever you want to call it, hasn't been a source of inspiration for me at all I don't listen to a lot of death metal. However, I must say that the diversity of the bands is great; we've got NY-style (Dawn of Demise), mid-paced and groovy stuff (The Burning) and so on. I don't even know where we fit in, haha!”

What do you think of the current crop of death metal acts in Denmark? Which bands would you stand out right now?

“There's some good, very inspired stuff going on, the new Exmortem record “Funeral Phantoms” for instance is absolutely great, and everybody should check it out. The only real stand-out band, though, would be Crocell, I think.”

Having formed in 2007 by current and former members of acts like Compos Mentis, Slugs, Adversary and Demolition Inc. Crocell besides their short lifespan have found themselves receiving rave reactions, including a prize for "Metal Talent of the Year" at this year's Danish Metal Awards.
Do you think such accolade is bound to have a positive effect on Crocell’s popularity? How did the band react to the news they were winning?

“Yes, definitely, it's just about the best promotion we could possibly get for "The God We Drowned". We've had a lot of people going "why have I never heard of you before, this is great!" after winning the award. We weren't exactly taken aback by winning, some of the other nominees wrote us and said that they believed that we would win hands down but still, we were very happy to get the news.
As for the show and receiving the award, I've absolutely no recollection. Apparently, someone decided that the order of the day was intoxication. But we need to do a lot more promotion, top of the list being playing as many concerts as possible.”

Musically, the band bursts forth a blend of vicious influences ranging from the intricate Death-Metal brutality of Florida’s Morbid Angel and the pummelling drive of Sweden’s Unleashed to the melodious approach of Peter Tatgren’s Hypocrisy.
Clearly, Crocell have opted for a more brutal and complex path when compared to past ventures in Slugs, whose sonority had an increased focus on groove and straightforward riffs and Compos Mentis’ fusion of melodic Death-Metal and symphonic Black-Metal. What made the band delve deeper into a more brutal and old-school Death-Metal sonority?

“When Ken and I decided to start the band, all we knew was that we wanted to play pure death metal, but the exact style of the band has been formed pretty much by the chance meeting of our various musical ideas. When we're writing songs, there's only one rule: If we like something, we use it. We quickly found out that what we all really liked was the old-school, heavy stuff and Snaps.
We've got no main songwriter, Smukke Ken and Prinsessen write about half of the riffs each, which helps keep things varied and fresh. We've never decided on a song-writing concept or anything, it's all pretty random. We're making some pre-recordings for the next album and some of this stuff is unlike anything on "The God We Drowned". I'm working on the lyrics right now and I think they're going to be quite different to "The God We Drowned".”

Do you consider the names aforementioned to be influential for Crocell?

“For me as a singer, Peter Tägtgren and David Vincent are definitely influential, but our tastes in music are so varied that it would be hard to find a few main inspirations. Mor is into a lot of black metal, Onkel Kusse listens to all sorts of insane Swedish punk music, I'm into classic 70's and 80's heavy metal and so on.”

Even before Crocell inked a deal with Casket Music, a subsidiary of Copro Records, the band recorded their debut work on their own means without passing through the usual demo phase.
Do you believe there is still a true underground with demos circulating or nowadays is it based mostly around the internet? Do you think MySpace a big help for underground acts to reach a wider audience?

“The demo-tape trading days are over in most circles, which is pretty sad as it got a certain charm to it. Today, most people listen to new stuff on the Internet as it's the easiest way of checking something out. MySpace is an easy way of getting your music on the Internet without having to make your own webpage. Shame about the sound quality. But just putting your music on MySpace isn't gonna get people to listen to it, even if it's amazing. You need serious promotion.
We felt confident that our music was good and quickly decided to skip the demo phase as making a good demo is a lot of work and often without a lot of payoff. If we were going to record a demo with a proper sound why not just record an entire album? I'd definitely recommend any upcoming band to do it like that, but it does require that the band is confident in their qualities and willing to spend a lot of time and money.”

Now that “The God We Drowned” is out for purchase and is garnering excellent reviews in their homeland, what kind of plans Crocell have in mind to breakthrough their nation’s borders?

“Getting played by Bruce Dickinson on his BBC radio show has probably given us some attention in England. We're trying to arrange some gigs in Germany and England, but nothing is set in stone. Touring is very expensive, so the main obstacles are economical, but I'm sure we'll work it out and get out and meet some foreign fans and introduce them to the wonders of Danish metal and liquor.”

More info at: www.myspace.com/crocelldk

When it comes to pure and bludgeoning Death Metal brutality few records can touch Suffocation’s “Effigy of the Forgotten”. Its innate ferocity, accentuated with unrelenting blast-beats, incredibly sick guitar solos and an inhuman growling proved to be highly influential and spawned a whole new generation of groups trying to emulate such brutal intensity.
It’s extremely difficult to find a more brutal Death-Metal act who don’t cite the New Yorker’s debut as a favourite and that’s evident from the flux of covers that have surfaced over the years.
Denmark’s Dawn of Demise belongs to that vast array of Death-Metal units taking cues from Suffocation’s seminal work and don’t deny it. The Danes even included a cover of “Infecting the Crypts” on their upcoming EP “Lacerated”.
So, how influential is “Effigy of the Forgotten” to Dawn of Demise’s brand of brutal Death-Metal?

“... HAHA... We've been asked this question loads of times. And the truth is my friend, very, very influential. Well, not only that album, but basically Suffocation in general. “Pierced…” and “Effigy…” are big inspirations to us all in the band. I myself listen to “Pierced…” on weekly basis and have done so since it came out in ’95.
We listen to loads of other bands and have loads of inspirations, but to say that Suffocation is one of our biggest influences wouldn’t be far from the truth.... SUFFOCATION RULEZ!!!!”

Besides Suffocation’s theme, “Lacerated” features two new original themes and two other cover themes, At the Gates’ "Blinded by Fear" and Obituary’s "Turned Inside Out". Do you consider these two names to be influential for Dawn of Demise as well?

“No, not at all! Well, maybe Obituary a little, little bit, only for their heaviness and “old school-ness”. I mean, we don't sound like them at all...so?
As for At the Gates, we wanted to do something different and our drummer Kim loves the band, so why not. We all like that song, and he loves that stuff... so, that's just the way it panned out. I am looking forward to hearing what people think of that particular track, because it isn't our style and some people might think that we suck for doing it...let's see.
We are 100 percent satisfied with the Suffocation cover, so I'm sure we won't get shit for that one (hopefully?).”

“Lacerated” follows their highly successful debut record “Hate Take Its Form”, which garnered a vast amount of kudos, including no less than four nominations for the 2008 Danish Metal Awards, Best Debut, Best Album, Best Production and Best Live Band.
Unfortunately, Dawn of Demise hadn’t won any of the prizes, but nevertheless being nominated in four categories in no mean feat. I guess the band was thrilled by the nominations alone right?

“Of course... There are so many great bands here in Denmark, so the competition is tough. To be nominated four times is a great win for us. Remember we are a Death-Metal band, not a “gay” metalcore act...haha!!!! We won the “Best Live Act” last year and we’re still riding high on that win.
Maybe next year we'll strike gold, with a new album out and all that. We plan to have our next album out by next summer.”

Dawn of Demise along with groups like Crocell, The Burning and The Cleansing are an integral part of a whole new generation of Death-Metal acts drawing a lot of attention and revitalizing what was once an extremely promising underground scene with bands like Panzerchrist, Invocator, Illdisposed, Iniquity, Konkhra, Thorium, etc.
How would you describe the Danish metal scene of today and what do you think it triggered this renewed enthusiasm towards Death-Metal?

“Hmmm??? I don't really know. All I know is the Danish metal scene is stronger than ever. Ten, fifteen years ago we had like four, five good bands, now it's more like twenty. Concerning Death-Metal, I don't know what to say... Sometimes genres fall out of fashion and then somehow return to popularity. I don't know why. Your guess is as good as mine.”

So now that “Lacerated” is in the pipeline, what do you think is the next step for the band?

“The next step is to play shows, loads of them. We want to go across the border and kick the shit out of the rest of Europe. We are also trying to get festival gigs next summer. We would love to play at some of those cool metal and death fests that are being held all over Europe.
Yeah, that's basically it. Live shows and more live shows.”

More info at: www.dawnofdemise.dk

One of the most anticipated releases for 2009 in Denmark is Submission’s second full-length album “Code of Conspiracy”, which follows a highly successful debut titled “Failure to Perfection”. Released by French label Listenable Records, their first full-length work received a hatful of plaudits including winning the categories for “Best Debut-Album" and "Metal Track of the Year” at the Danish Metal Awards of 2006. A feature that is becoming quite standard for the Danes considering they’ve already received a similar prize before. Looks like Submission will better start looking for a bigger shelf to store those Danish Grammy-equivalent awards for Metal, right?

“Ha ha ha...yeah well, let’s see if "Code of Conspiracy" will bring us another award. I must say that "Code of Conspiracy" is our most discussed album, and it has been underway for a long time, due to many unforeseen events, such as personal problems, problems with labels and such. You can almost say that we have been struck by bad luck these past few years, things just did not work out, like we wanted it to be.”

Although “Failure to Perfection” have garnered strong and amazing answers in their native Denmark, the sad reality is that Submission’s debut work with the exception of outstanding reviews in various magazines, have made little impact outside their nation’s borders.
What do think exactly happened in that camp, have Listenable Records failed to promote it to the maximum of their possibilities?

“Yes we think exactly that, because we felt like Listenable Rec. didn’t wanted to help with the booking area, and yes we know that they are not a booking agency, but there was so many other things they could have assisted us with, to get the music out to the listener, live, videos and commercials, you can say that they left us in the cold, with regards to that.”

Meanwhile, Submission has opted to leave Listenable Records and look out for a better deal. Initially the band was planning to issue the record thru Mighty Music, a subsidiary of Target Distribution, the biggest independent metal distributor in Denmark, but a recent turn of events have seen them switch to Blistering Records.
So, tells us what happened and how did Submission end up signing a record deal with the Swedish company?

“Yes, well we were on the lookout after the split with Listenable, but none seemed to be the right one for us, so things were put on hold for a while, and we fumbled with new styles of music, but ended up where we started, but on a whole new level. Then I contacted Michael from Mighty Music and he was interested, so we talked back and forth about a deal, and we finally got an agreement, and started recording "Code of Conspiracy".
But then Steven our former frontman decided to stop due to personal stuff, and that happened while the guitar recordings has started, so we were hit in the face again. We had tracks for an album and recording dates, but no frontman. Then we had to speed up an audition and in the nick of time we found a new frontman, Lasse Sivertsen. We recorded and finished "Code of Conspiracy" and everything was ready to go, then we came across a disagreement with Mighty Music and choose to part ways. Then I got a mail from Lars from Blistering Records who had heard the album on the "Popcom Messe" in Germany and was really interested. So we talked about a new deal with him, and we finally have, what we feel like the right deal for Submission.”

Bestowing a powerful and striking production, once again courtesy of Jacob Hansen at his Hansen Studios, “Code of Conspiracy” also introduces their extremely talented new singer Lasse Sivertsen, who takes over the position left vacant early this year by former vocalist Steven Qvist.
What led to Qvist’s departure and how did you find Sivertsen as his replacement?

“The main reason Steven choose to leave Submission, was due to personal things. During the recording of the guitars, we had to make an audition for a new frontman, and that was really in a bad time, but we held the audition, without Lasse showing up. And none of the guys who attended the audition had what we wanted for Submission, then a few days after I got a mail from Lasse, asking if he still could enter the audition. I then sent him two tracks from “Code of Conspiracy”, which he recorded REALLY quickly some test vocals on, and right away I knew we had found the right guy for us!!!”

Following several spins it’s safe to state that “Code of Conspiracy” is a bit more melodic and diverse when compared to previous work “Failure to Perfection”, in your perspective what are the main differences between the two works?

“During the “Failure to Perfection” time we didn’t really know which way we wanted to go and where we wanted to be, due to our differences in musical styles. But after our fumbling, we tried off very different styles and the end result is what you’ll hear on “Code of Conspiracy”. It seems that “Code of Conspiracy” is what Submission is all about and the way we want to go.”

There’s a particular theme that stands out for being something that Submission have never tried before, which the acoustic-driven “An Illusion of the Perfect Forever”.
So tells us how did the song developed into such of kilter signature?

“Yes.... Well, I have always wanted to do a song like that for Submission, just to move things a bit, and tryout some new stuff, there aren’t that many people that does that stuff in this genre. It’s actually a good story....It started with me having my 30th birthday, and my parents made me a scrapbook about my life, and included some old school photos and at that time I had already recorded some test songs for the acoustic track, but nothing seemed to have the right feeling, I then saw an old girlfriend in one of the pictures, and she was actually my first love!!!! Yes that was you Jeanette!!! (If you read this) That got me into the right mood and feeling, so the guitar parts is a tribute to the “long lost love" I had. I really missed her in my youth years, because she moved away, so the theme of the guitars is somewhat sad.”

Is there a theme running throughout "Code of Conspiracy "?

“No not really, just daily challenges and problems....And about all of the fucked up people that this earth houses.”

Submission's band members are also involved in other bands as well, like The Arcane Order and The Cleansing. How did you manage to find the time to work with all those different bands, especially Morten Løwe who drums for countless bands?

“It's a matter of priority, Submission was first around before many of the other bands that houses members from Submission, and surely that will cause some problems with time and tours, but again it’s a question of priority. If let’s say like The Arcane Order has a tour and Submission only have a few dates in that time, the priority goes to The Arcane Order of course, cause that’s the band who has three Submission members. Morten plays in lots of bands but usually as a studio musician, he is like a dog with a stick!!!!...Fetch the stick Morten...Ha ha.”

How would you describe the Danish metal scene of today? There’s a whole new generation of bands emerging in recent times like The Burning, The Cleansing, Crocell and Dawn of Demise that making some significant waves and revitalizing the Danish underground scene.

“Yes, a lot of those guys are on the climb and it’s really great to see all those Danish band move up the ladder, I’m sure that at some point Denmark will kick Sweden off the throne as the Metal country, but again this is not a contest, it’s all about music!!!”

How do you explain the fact that Denmark still hasn’t seen a metal act reaching a similar cusp of commercial success of someone like Mercyful Fate despite the immense talent displayed throughout the last decade?

“Well, those days were special, but everybody knows that time has changed as well as record sales, which I think is the main reason for the lack of Danish super bands like Mercyful Fate, etc, etc.
Everything costs money, and if the piracy users keep downloading there will not be any bands left to create music for them, so I would say the internet has done something. Plus the number of bands trying to breakout, is also a fact you have to incorporate, it’s really easy to record an album, with today’s home recorders.”

Which Danish metal bands would you stand out right now?

“My personal favourites are Scamp, The Arcane Order, Crocell, Vira, Dawn of demise and The Cleansing.”

What are the future plans for Submission?

“Making music, and try to get on some more tours outside Denmark, cause with “Code of Conspiracy”, Submission has taken a new turn and beginning!!!”

More info at: www.myspace.com/submissionragecage

It’s been a long time coming, six damn years to be accurate, but the sixth full-length work from Denmark’s Death-Metal veterans Konkhra are finally arriving on 26th January 2009 thru their own label Chopshop Records and Target Distribution. Following a period of inner turbulence with a wide number of revolving line-ups and record label hassles, Konkhra’s leader, guitarist and vocalist Anders Lundemark returns with a revamped line-up and a strong comeback record entitled “Nothing is Sacred” that coincidentally or not will also marks the celebration of the band’s 20th anniversary. I guess the obvious thing to enquire about is exactly what the band has been up to for the last six years?

“Well, we broke up again. “Reality Check” was done with the “Spit…” line-up, and I think there was some disappointment with those guys, that it could be at all possible to write and release a record that fucking good, and get those reviews and STILL get fucked on tour, with statements, no tour support, no promotion, fucking just nothing, except what we could scramble for ourselves. I don’t blame them, although maybe our past exploits had created an expectation of a certain standard, when touring and so on, but as you know the competition has been ever increasing and if a band from Poland can tour for 10% of what would even half pay our rent in this expensive country your bound to get less than what you got in the past. We had a little heyday in the 90’s, and I think some of that spoiled us a little. Johnny was facing tribulations in his private sphere, matter of fact, so did I, and eventually we left it alone. We could not tour and we could not write. So, I forgot about it for while, as I moved my studio twice, and started a new company, also in music, that has spaces for studios and rehearsals in Copenhagen. This was a lot of work, and it kept me busy and grounded for a while.”

With a total of five studio albums spanning over their twenty-year career, Konkhra despite the constant instability around their line-up, have conquered a strong following outside their native Denmark and experienced the highs and lows of the music business. A particular high was their “Weed out the Weak” release from 1997, which displayed the talents of Chris Kontos formerly of Machine Head on drums and James Murphy of Death/Testament fame on guitar and revealed to be major success on an international level. However, due to various circumstances things didn’t evolved into higher leagues and the following two works “Come down Cold” from 1999 and “Reality Check” from 2003 although both exhibited a better and improved song-writing skills, haven’t quite reached the levels of success garnered by “Weed out the Weak”. Do you think the status gained with that work exercised any kind of pressure on Konkhra’s shoulders to top that record and reach similar lengths of notoriety?

“We are an underground extreme metal band and I have no problem with that. Actually sometimes, I had some serious problems marketing myself, and I’m not a good business man when so emotionally attached as I am to this band. I've been doing this my entire adult life and some as a kiddie too, haha. I consider myself fortunate that KONKHRA has become what it is, and honestly I don't concern myself too much with our level of success compared to other bands or other people. I am very happy that things are they way they are and even the tribulations and downtime has been very fruitful to me on a personal level. I got scared when I found out that some of my biggest idols were small and ignorant little people. I got wiser when other idols once known on a personal level were incredibly "human" and in so many ways just like me or the next guy. James and Chris are fantastic people, we made a great record together, James is on “Nothing is Sacred”, and I count both of them among my few personal friends. The label situation when we released “Weed…” was full of touring promises and such, and we had a fair share of recognition with that record in the States too. Maybe it could have been bigger, and I often hear that from people. However, given the level of promotion and touring activity I don’t think we could ask for more than what we got, really.”


During all these years dealing with labels and management companies, etc you have obviously gained the perception that the ugly side of music resides in its business part. Looking back on the band’s career, is there anything you would do again differently if you had the chance? Those dubious relationships in the past were the principle motives that lead the band to release the upcoming work on their own label under license to Target Distribution?

“To take the last question first, yes. It’s definitely nice to be holding all the reins, and essentially be the final decision maker. As far as looking back, it’s not the constructive you know, I am prone to be looking forward, and to be honest I really think the tribulations we have been through has been educative and evolving for me personally. You could say that the downs are actually more rewarding in some ways than the ups was.”

Judging by the themes already heard on the band’s MySpace page, “Nothing is Sacred” is neither a return to the pure Death-Metal origins of Konkhra nor is it a repetition of the sonorities explored on “Reality Check”, so I guess it seems pertinent to ask what can we expect from “Nothing is Sacred”?

“It’s a new thing for sure. It got tempos far exceeding the old stuff, at the same time we try and maintain the heritage so to speak, and there are conventions we are not going to fuck with but at the same time new stuff will definitely something different from the past. It’s a fine line we are balancing and it’s like we’re fighting the ghost of Christmas past here a little bit while trying to maintain a fresh and new approach. Lyrically, I've been through some things that made a lot of what I talked about in the past a little clearer. However, the further you get down that rabbit hole the more questions you are bound to ask, and finally it becomes a bit spiritual. It’s a bridge building between science and spiritual as it would naturally have to fit like Legos in order to coexist.”

As its title suggests, the lyrical theme of “Nothing is Sacred” revolves around religion and its institutionalized dogmas, subjects that are not new ones to Konkhra. The new album however was influenced by a particular episode that provoked an international conflict between Denmark and the Muslim world. I’m referring to the cartoons published by a Danish newspaper satirizing the Muslim prophet Muhammad that enraged Muslims and stirred up fierce and violent protests all over the world. How do you recall those incidents, did the people in Denmark felt threatened by the escalating conflicts that broke out in consequence of the cartoons?

“People here are fucking dolts, man. They willingly join the "coalition of the willing" and start sending kids off to be slaughtered. The people that mandate a war on false principles or start believing the bullshit of exporting philosophy and a specific form of government are sadly uneducated and ignorant. IF you are picking a fight with people that take their inherited religious bullshit dogma so seriously, you are guaranteed war to the bitter end. That means pretty much, eternal war. The controllers like war. It is the engine of the profit maximizing economy, which is in my view, equal to slavery. These days, there are no excuses. Information that will set your mind free is readily available and to me that erases all excuses and if you find these words offending, frankly, you need to read up on some homework. There will be links to eye opening material on the Konkhra page soon, and I hope that we can maybe make people curious enough to go watch “Soldiers of Conscience”, “Zeitgeist”, “Loose Change” and tons of material like that will hopefully make people realize that time is running out. WE are in the 2nd of the five stages of collapse and I sincerely think people need to go find out what interest rates, inflation, financial speculation and control really does to everybody's lives. The cartoon crisis taught a wise man that there is integration the day there is religious emancipation. I think we need to make religion a personal matter, so much as freedom of religion also means freedom FROM OTHER PEOPLES religion. WE cannot have a discussion if anybody patents the TRUTH with pretty much excerpts any religion from an adult conversation. Your priest, guru, father, teacher, leader, president needs be FUCKING excused from this global peace talk right the fuck away, as they are the uneducated kids fighting over a corner of the sandbox. Excuse me fuckers, there are 2 billion people starving right now, and you talk about overpopulation when some of the most educated people of the planet say we can feed 60 billion people here on this planet with current technology, given that peace and coexistence existed? Should I trust the physics professor from MIT when he questions 911 or the born again Baptist pro life "left behind" believing religious president when he says anything?”

Although Denmark has produced its fair share of top-class metal acts throughout the last two decades, the Danes contribution doesn’t reach the torrential flow coming from their Swedish neighbours. However, the scenario seems to be slowly changing in the last few years with a great number of aspiring metal bands like Crocell, Exmortem, Dawn of Demise, The Cleansing, etc making some significant waves in the underground along with the contributions from well-established acts like Submission, Hatesphere, Koldborn that are coming in the following year. Due to their longevity and impact, Konkhra are now considered true veterans of the Danish Metal scene and an influence on the upcoming and aspiring metal bands from Denmark. What do you think of the current crop of Danish metal acts? Which bands do you stand out right now?

“I would mention Corpus Mortale as they are fucking cool and have been for a while. The Cleansing sounds very promising, so I'm happy!”

What is the best piece of advice you could give to those who are just starting out and considering making a career in the music industry?

“Get the fuck out while there is still time, hehe."

More info at: www.konkhra.com