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fredag 24. august 2012

Borgne - Royaume Des Ombres

Out now on : Sepulchral Productions

Borgne started up in '98 and released a demo back then,and has since released 4 full-lenghts since then.
I'm new to this band so "Royuame Des Ombres" is my first experience with the band.

What you get here is depressive black metal.
It's overall very good sounds quality & has a very majestic & epic feeling to it.

With it's very long tracks,most of the tracks are actually over 8-10 minutes but totally worth it.

While I look at the cover it comes to mind that it actually suits the music ,cause the feelings you get when listening to this are like  watching everything turn grey on a windy autumn day.
It filled with a melancholic & dark sounsdscape witch I haven't heard in a while, not as good as this.
It has a cold feeling to it,and the synth is used in a proper way to get those melancholic melodies along with the guitar riffs.


It's mostly mid-tempo tracks here and I think that is good cause it suits the overall production very well.
One can hear they've used much time on producing the ambient parts here as they go along with the music perfectly and manages to create splendid sound that Borgne has.
 

It sounds like the drums are programmed ,but that dosen't really do any harm to this release at all.
This is overall a pretty good release with long lasting but good melodies and I would state that if you're into black metal and looking for a good release you surely should check this one out.


Recommended!!

onsdag 22. august 2012

Krakow (Nor) - Diin


Release date: 14 September 2012 Dark Essence Records

I have to admit that "Monolith" didn't really get my attention,not that it was bad.
More like I never got "into it" probably cause I didn't really listen that much to it except for some songs I found good. I found them to be better live at the time.
It was first when I listened to the single "Drifter" if found this band more interesting with the distorted guitars & synths kinda like 70's stoner rock.
While listening to "Diin" I notice that the sound overall is way more massive than the debut, the vocalist now sings and varies the vocals from clean to growly witch nicely fits better.

This is an album that needs a couple of listens before you get the whole picture.
And when you get into the album it just grows more each time.
It's very unpredictable & intense with lots of surprises within.
They have grown a lot as a studio band on "Diin" and really shows that they are capable of producing great long lasting tunes,that surely  will amuse old & new fans,cause the overall quality of this album music wise is much better than the debut.

And they have taken a step further into the unknown exploring new sounds and they've done a good job,cause I can't come up with any other bands sounding similar to Krakow.
I love the way they combine the heavy/intense parts with the more atmospheric and instrumental parts.

If you listen to "Mark Of Cain" witch is a gem in itself with the beautiful twisted synth starting the track & slowly builds up with drums and an extremely tasty guitar riff or "Into The Distant Sky" a great example of this and how well they are able to making quality of experimenting.
as they manage to capture the listener with their atmospheric and groovy tunes.

All in all I don't find any weak parts on this solid album,and when you hear it,you'll notice that there probably lies countless ours of working & experimenting just to get everything right.

That beeing said it's still Krakow only a more mature band if you like.

If my senses are right this album will be looked upon as a classic in a few years.
I could go on forever about "Diin" cause it reveals new secrets each time I listen.

While you listen to this I suggest you sit back relax and just enjoy the sounds while drifting slowly away into a world only Krakow can create!


tirsdag 21. august 2012

Blodhemn "I had the need to create something agressive"




I first noticed Blodhemn a while ago while listening to their EP "Brenn Alle Bruer" & found it to be pretty good,but maybe a bit monotous.

When they released "Holmengraa" in 2012 I was pretty amased how much better they sounded.

So I decided to take a chat with them to tell us abit about more about what going on in the Blodhemn camp these days.


When i listen to Holmegraa the first thing I notice is the brilliant production & much better songwriting,what happened?

-The great production is caused by two things, a bigger studio budget and gathered experience from the recording of Brenn alle Bruer.

When writing Holmengraa I had a clear focus on how I wanted the album to sound. I wanted it not to be as "straight forward" as Brenn alle Bruer but varied and with with elements not  often heard in black metal.


What does your lyrics deal with,do you have any agenda behind your lyrics/music?

The lyrics often evolve around hateful and violent themes. But there is also parts of history, nature and special sites around the world. I have agendas, but I'll keep them to my self.

When & how did Blodhemn start up?

I started Blodhemn in the summer of 2004. The reason for starting Blodhemn was that there were nobody with the same interest in this kind of music at the island where I lived at the time, so I found out that I might as well do everything my self.


What was the reason you ended up playing the music you do,was it planned or did it just turn out that way?

In the beginning I had a need to create something aggressive. From there it has been a natural growth out of my hands.


What's the worst/best  imaginable thing you could end up with as a band now?

The worst thing would be to not have a complete live line-up and be unable to play live.

The best thing would be to have the possibility to play live-shows around the world.


Do the members of Blodhemn play in any other bands?

Blodhemn's live-drummer Felix plays in Fjordfader and Gorefetish.
Skroemt and Hauk has no other active bands at this time, as far as I know.


Where do you see Blodhemn in 5 years?

I don't speculate about that, but what I can say is that I will keep doing the same as always and           wherever that brings Blodhemn, I don't know.                                                                             


Are there any gigs/tours planned?

 We are planning a releaseparty for Holmengraa at Garage, Bergen the 28th of July supported by Dauden and Cockroach Agenda.

Besides that, no official plans at this point.


How did you get into metal and what inspired you to start Blodhemn and was there any bands you were inspired by?


There was alot of bands that led me to the metal genre, but I guess that the most important album was  Metallica's `Master of Puppets`.

I started Blodhemn because I had no one to play my kind of music with with back in the days. I lived on a isolated island at the time and there was no people with the same interests as me. Therefore I found out that I might as well do it all myself.


How has the response been to your latest album?

The response has been great! People obvious like `Holmengraa`. People from all over the world reveiws, buys and listens to the album. I find all this positive response motivating.

I've read some people compare you to Taake,do you see that as positive or negative?

It doesn't bother me. As an artist you will always be compared with other bands or artists to generate pointers to what style one plays.
 

What's your thoughts on the metal scene today and if you were to recommend an album to someone new to metal ,what would that be?

I am not too updated on the metal scene in Bergen but I think that Cockroach Agenda and Arvas are both promising acts and i am looking forward to hear their upcoming releases.

Dissection – The Somberlain/Storm at the light's bane

søndag 19. august 2012

Stephanie Rose Walsh - Tragic Stories And Tall Tales

Tragic stories and tall tales - 
A journey inside a beautifully disturbed mind.

This book is a journey through Stephanie Rose Walsh’s mind. She started her page sbribblesandshortstories.com, and was shortly found by a publisher, Amazon. One can only wonder what goes on in her mind after reading her stories. (Interview will be published later, with a peek inside Stephanie’s mind). 
 

As I started to read the book I felt skeptical by the thought of an author being able to write stories only in rhymes. I was afraid of finding rhymes containing clichés or a certain lack in the author’s vocabulary that would make her stories stagnate, which would ruin a certain flow that is important using such a difficult writing style, to remain able to show enough artistic freedom to write original stories without being stuck in a loop, repeating oneself.
It seems I was terrible mistaken.  I’m amazed by her stories. I’m amazed by how one simple mind can show us the complexity of the self contradictions in human feelings and the way we act. Where we live in a society where horrible things happens hour by hour. Almost every day we read about wars or murder in the news paper. We all sometimes feel discomfort in the way we live. Where we are not happy about what the universe has given us. But do we ever think about why these things happen or how it must feel for other people living in a world filled with pain and agony?
 

The author reminds me of a mix between Edgar Allen Poe’s darker sides and Tim Burton’s way of creating creatures you are bound to love for their gruesome yet beautiful, vulnerable and loving way, being trapped in the most tragic realities.
Her story “The soldier and the girl” is a powerful story showing us different sides in an incident about rape. It shows us strength in the people around us, the descriptions are horrible, but still she leaves us feeling pity for everyone in the situation, even the rapist. She shows the beauty of childbirth and the certain kind of innocence a child contains, which brought tears to my eye (yes I am a softy but this story is pretty powerful). The story shows us the horrors in war and what we are able to do to each other. It shows us how we in pushed situations act against our own principals. This story leaves us with the horrible truth about what we as human beings are able to do to one another. Being left with a new form of insight, dealing with the horror of what monsters we can be. If an author is able to do that, it can be described as a success.
 

Her story “Burn the witch” is heartbreaking. Her way of showing how the love of a mother is sent her to death (to save her sons), being forced to kill her daughter to spare her from pain, as they are being burnt alive. This could have happened in the 18th century, still some of the issues described as power abuse in religions and poverty is highly relevant today. People being forced to death for their kids are highly relevant today.
While her stories are pushed beyond the borders, they always contain a certain kind of truth, leaving us drawing lines between real life and her fantasy world.

I recommend this beautiful, yet gruesome journey through Stephanie’s stories, a book containing murder, rape, a zombie, Witch burning, and a little bird trading places with a man. Read her beautiful descriptions and let her tenderly and brutal paint pictures in your mind.

-Gerdi Olsgaard (Frøya Montezino)-


Here are links to check out & buy her works :

http://www.amazon.com/Stephanie-Rose-Walsh/e/B0089AWHI6

http://stephanierosewalsh.blogspot.no/

http://www.facebook.com/authorstephanierosewalsh

fredag 17. august 2012

Tantara (Nor) - Based On Evil






The relatively young band Tantara formed in 2009 has now released their first full-length through Indie Recordings and I guess the expectations has been high after releasing the pretty good EP "Human Mutation"  in 2010
At the first listen it's easy to hear that they are heavily influenced by 80's thrash acts like Dark Angel,Testament,Slayer,Destruction & similar acts.



With the epic opening track "Based On Evil" they force the listener to want more.
What they have done here is to take all the best elements from the golden era of thrash metal and continued into the future with their aggressive but still very melodic album, listen to "Mass Murder" and you'll know what I mean.
The riffs is outstanding ,I have to credit the guitarist for the outstanding guitar work & riffs on this release 'cause it's not everyday you hear something that actually is quality and made true devotion for the music.

I cannot find one negative aspect with this album really.
The production is solid and all the band members deliver with excellence.
This album will be worshipped by people into thrash and hopefully others cause this is a great piece of art we have here,I strongly suggest you take a listen to this 'cause the guitars impress very much ,with the classical playing alongside with the technical riffs.
At times "Based On Evil" reminds me of "And Justice For All…" But don't get me wrong,it's so much more than just a Metallica clone,but they surge as hell manage to deliver a solid album that I think will set the future for this band.
With a potential like this they are doomed to a great future & will probably be a big name in some years.
A hard hitting thrash attack,with aggresitivity & tension to cut the power combined with epic instrumental parts
 either you're a thrashead or not this will blow your mind out and take you on a sentimental journey from the past diving into the future leaving your brain with only two words left "HELL YES!
Totally worth every single penny!

Zonaria (Swe) - Arrival Of The Red Sun

 
Formed in 2001 by Simon Berglund, Christoffer Vikström, and Mikael Hammarberg, the band originally went under the name Seal Precious. Initially the band's style was power metal, with clean vocals. Several line-up changes prevented the band from recording, but after 2003, with the addition of second guitarist, Emil Nyström, and the band's name changed to Zonaria, they spent two years playing gigs in and around Umeå before recording and releasing, in 2005, what would be Evolution Overdose.



I'm not familiar with their first 2 albums so I can't compare it to those, but what we surely not get here i power metal luckily.
Most of you have probably heard it but I decided to write about it anyway,since I kinda forgot about it a while ago.
This is a good album from this swedish outfit containing ten tracks of melodic death metal in the traditional swedish style.
Arrival Of The red sun is overall a very good album,with catchy melodies.
They surely know how to create atmospheric tunes using samples & synths at the right places.
Worth mentioning is their use of choir on some of the tracks,very cool actually.
Musicvise I would say they lean towards traditional heavy metal & thrash in the song structures..
And at times it reminds me a bit of Keep Of Kalessin especially the chorus on the verses.

The vocals are more harsh than growly I would say & suits the production.
It's actually easy to enjoy this album even though many state that this has been before,but who cares,one cannot expect a new genre each time a band delivers a new album,so lean back stop moaning listen to this album and enjoy! Cause this is one of the finest death metal bands from Sweden that I can come up with these days & this album proves it.


Official Facebook Page

Released 23 Juli 2012 - Listenable Records

_Graute Sprudlarson_

Bernt Sunde - Bricks And Muds



Bernt Sunde was a part of Penitent an act that you might remember if you were into the Norwegian scene in the 90's and released on album "Songs Of Despair"
He was also a part of Forlorn as synth player and release the album "Hybernation" ,but now he stands on his own feet & we are eager to hear!

To my surprise I actually got a package in the mail with a cd and printed notes about the release on paper,that's nice,especially when it comes the genre this guy makes.
Listening to this it's important to have good sound quality.

It's his works from 1999-2003
It's also nicely packaged with a neat cover with pictures & lyrics to describe his art.
Cause it's not metal we're talking about here,it's electronically music.
I don't know what happened when I put the cd on,I heard some great music,then fell into another world so I have to give it one more listen so I can get the right words to describe how beautiful this release is!
 

 First of all I think you should look upon this as a symphony instead of just listening to one track ,start at the beginning & let the record while you dive into the sounds witch built nicely up throughout the whole album.
It starts out with a somewhat dark intro that makes you wonder what the fuck comes next,and that is actually some medieval sounding track with a very victorious feeling to it,note that this guy handle all the instruments himself and use only hardware witch is a plus in itself these days.
As I listen it continues into an empty realm,but while passing the track "Boots Of Justice" It's sounds like metal made with electronic instruments & pretty intense stuff.
It's built up like "Calm before the storm" music,you never know what to expect next. It's so nicely & chaotic done it1s hard to find words to describe it,the music is not chaotic though, just an expression.
The vocals are extremely cool & suits the music very well.
 

I can hear that he must have used a lot of time making these arrangements so good,if you listen to how nicely he has blended the guitars with the electronic parts alongside with sick beats & twisted breaks you'll hear what I mean as he has managed to get a lot of styles to fit in here without overdoing it. Many people fail when experimenting and making this kind music (I would probably gone mad before the output was ready) ,but this guy really made my day and hopefully yours to.
I do hope this release get the attention it deserves,so we can hear more from this brilliant artist.
I could go on forever & write a track to track review,but I see no reason other than to tell you to shut the fuck up and buy this album!

"The Category is Cognoscenti.
Not This Or That.
You will Enjoy The Album"

Contact :


Bernt Sunde : bsunde@bsunde.net
Bernt Sunde On facebook
You can also buy products directly from him >HERE<

onsdag 15. august 2012

The Dogs Divine - Size Of The Fight

A taste of your younger days
 

Do you ever miss those days listening to Motley Crue and Anthrax, filling your ears with the pure sound of heavy metal? Do you remember your first car hitting the road playing Motorhead, spiking up the surroundings where you felt alive, young and free. Let the dogs divine’s album trig the memories of hanging out with your friends, drinking beer, singing the lyrics of your favorite band with whatever voice was given to you . After listening to the first song of their new album I felt the urge to sing outloud, rocking around in my tiny apartment with the voice of Tom hart filling my living room. I wanted to hear more and I felt happy that I was given this album to write about.
After changing in band members, managers and booking agents they were found by Tim King (soil) who signed them to Mortal Music Inc after hearing they’re demo of “Hell Wouldn’t Have Me”  The Dogs Divine  find inspiration in bands like Motley Crue, Pantera Guns-N-Roses Ozzy ,Faster Pussycat, AC/DC, The Ramones, The Cult, Anthrax and White Zombie. After years with new forms of definitions in the metal/rock genre, where the new music that’s been produced have been nothing but mere shadows of the freedom old school rockers found in heavy riffs and drum solos (a way of creating music that takes a lot of energy and artistic freedom). The dogs divine have a nice way of mixing old school heavy metal/rock with the more modern version of heavy metal, which works well together.
 

They’re first song “Dogs” is an explosion of melodic and heavy metal riffs, that will make old school rockers smile, finally finding some fresh blood in the game. Tom hart did not want to make music that sounded like a bad replica of what has been given out by the bands they are influenced by. He has succeeded by breathing fresh air into the music by incorporating some elements from the modern heavy metal.  They’re song “Gypsy king “gives the album variation with elements of Texas blues/rock, reminding of the band Lynyrd Skynyrd known by songs as Simple Man and Sweet Home Alabama. Tom hart has proven variety in his voice by singing a soft song like gypsy king where his voice gets spiked up in the song “Join the crowd”. Singing like a true heavy metal vocalist making his voice sound even more “raw” by pushing the line between heavy metal and darker types of metal with something that almost sounds like a soft growl in his voice. They’re last song is inspired by the loss of Tom’s friend Shawn (who is mentioned in the first verse of this song) that killed himself In 2007. 

The band has stated this about the last song, and I quote: We all experience loss, but this is the type that we question why for the rest of our lives. The song is very melodic like the rest of their songs in the album. The dogs divine has made a song about something that touches a lot of people, suicide. Being left as mourners with questions like why. The song starts slow with the vocal weighing the most of the song were it takes up to heavy guitar solos and a soar intensity in toms so called “whiskey voice”. the riffs and Tom’s voice shows a mere desperation in ones feelings after being left back in such a tragedy, where the song fades away by the slowly dying guitar with the last words: One for the ages.
 

The band has proven for the skeptics; Old school heavy metal is not dead (only refreshend).  To quote AC/DC Highway to hell: Don’t need reason, don’t need rhyme, Aint nothing I'd rather do, Going down, party time, my friends are gonna be there too.


-Frøya Montezino-
 

In case you haven’t got it, I highly recommend this band to anyone who can relate to this review.

Hit 'em up on FB! For orders & merchandise.

tirsdag 7. august 2012

Dauden (Nor) - EP 2012



Dauden - EP

Black Metal .Sarpsborg, Norway


Dauden started up in 2005 & has released a few demos in the underground,I think one of them is still available if you contact the band.

I was so lucky to recieve a copy of their latest EP containing 5 tracks when they delivered one hell of a gig with Cocroach Agenda & Blodhemn in Bergen.
 Before that I had only heard one song "Forbannet Til Evig Jord" witch was pretty good.

Straightforward unholy black metal as they label themselves in the traditional vein is what we get here and Dauden actually manage to deliver a quality release, compared to many others labeling themselves the same term.
 

It's very tight and well played tracks you get here & the production is overall good
It's mostly fast forward all the way but slows down with some meoldic parts in beetween.
My favourites right now is "Sucked Into The Depths Of Hell & "Forbannet Til Evig Jord"
 

Photo by Raymond Storebo
Photo by Raymond Storebø
This band has all the right elements combined to make something big in the future.
Don't miss out on this act if you like raw but at the same time melodic black metal.

This is one of the best "new" acts to come out of Norway lately & I hope to see a full-lenght album with this band in the future.

If you have the chance to see this band live, do not miss out!
Live footage will appear here later. 

Contact & Merch : Dauden @ Facebook


 
                 

OBSCENITY (Ger) - Atrophied In Anguish

 Apostasy Records
 

Release date : 14.September 2012

The German death metal veterans Obscenity are back with their eight album entitled "Atrophied In Anguish" witch is their first release since 2006' "Sinners Bleed"
 

This is a brutal piece of work we get here, combined with stunning riffs & splendid guitar solos and blasting drums without overdoing it.
The melodic parts on this album is very enjoyable and blends perfectly into their brutality,and at times the album reminds me of 90's death metal when it was at it's best.
 

With the massive sound & twisted vocals this album certainly ranks high.
It's not often I enjoy a whole album with with the volume turned up to red,
but with this masterpiece is hard to keep the volume down.
 

Atrophied In Anguish" is one of those albums that grows for each listen.
The wait was for sure worth it, cause this release is a masterpiece of it's own.
This is brutal in your fucking face death metal the way it should be!

Meanwhile check 'em out here.

Remember to buy your copy this killer if you like it,support the real deal!!!

søndag 5. august 2012

Frostskogr (Nor) - Tamquam Lupum in medio Ovium


I usually have an open mind when listening to new stuff and so I did on this one.
This is labeled black metal, but I'm  not really sure what this band is trying to do.
Musically it's a bit messy & the guitar sound is terrible,the vocals are way louder than the music witch is very monotonus ,the screamy ones are not good,but the clean vocals are ok and could be used more if they had concentrated more on the ambient parts and developed more ideas and melodies before releasing this,it could maybe have been something in the future.
But for now I just have to say that this band needs some time before they release more. 

When you can't find a single positive aspect about the music even though you tried you know it's not worth bothering.
So I suggest you look elsewhere if you're not a die-hard fan.

torsdag 2. august 2012

Pagan Altar - The Time Lord EP 2012





Release date 9/11/12

Now re-released by Shadow Kingdom Records
Pagan Altar (UK), formed 1976 by Alan and Terry Jones in Brockley, England. Alongside Witchfinder General, they are one of the few NWOBHM bands to play doom metal. They never got a record deal back then so a lot of their stuff has been re-released since then.
This fine Ep containing 6 demo tracks is now available again for those of you who don't have them.
What you get here is doom/sludge metal with a good doze of heavy metal influences and also inspired by the masters Black Sabbath & Back Widow.

That beeing said this band has more of the energy Steppenwolf had at their best only,but this records is rougher both musically and soundwise.
This band has a very energic feel to it and delivers very enjoyable melodies and extremely cool guitar work & solo's in the old fashioned way,but with more up-tempo songs than lots of other doom bands,and the lyrics & themes are as important as the music to this band.When you listen to the guitar powerful riffs you can hear the heavy metal influences.
I suggest you take a listen to this cult release if you're into doom-metal.
This is a "hidden treasure" witch hopefully will gain more attention now.
This is one of the better NWOBMH albums and the first days of the band and deserves to be heard.

"The Pagan Altar",amp; "Highway Caviler" & "Judgement Of The Dead" are tracks to mention and also a good example of what this band is all about at their best! 
I would like to state that for me this will be seen upon as one of the important & best doom releases after hearing it for a while. If a friend asks what doom metal is a good way to start.
Imagine living free in the 60's riding the highway this would be the soundtrack.

Recomended!

Currently streaming >here<

Pagan Altar On FB
Shadowkingdom Records

onsdag 1. august 2012

Gravlund - Interview (Drunken Style)



You are relatively new band to the metal scene,what got you into playing extreme music?


Well it started as an idea the drummer had when he and I was drunk,listening to some old metal vinyl.Suddenly he bursted out:"We should start a metal band!!!" And I of course agreed.
And as the evening progressed (and we became even drunker),we suddenly had a lot of plans as how the band should sound like,and most importantly how it NOT should sound like.This meant of course not as how modern metal bands sound like,but rather the stuff that we liked from the 80s.
But some years went by and nothing happened.And every time we got drunk together, the subject came up.He would ask me:"Have you made any riffs yet?"And the answer would always be:"Errr no."
But then in late 2010(while making music for some other project) I came up with something that sounded VERY metal.and playing on this stuff,i suddenly realised "Hey this sounds GOOD!"And I came up with riffs for 3 songs.
We recorded those 3 songs for our first demo in VERY late 2010,and were kind of lukewarm to the results.(Mainly myself,cause i hated how the vocals sounded)But we played the demo to some people and EVERYBODY liked it.So we decided "Ok this kind of works,lets see if we can make something better."
In mid January 2011 we recorded the tracks for "Goat Funeral Night".
So the answer to your Question would be Extreme metal lps from the 80s,and beer !!!



The tracks on "Goat Funeral Night" is very inspired by old bands,but has a new twist to it,did it just turn out that way or are you inspired by older bands?




We are of course inspired by older bands,This seems to be the whole point of Gravlund.Celtic Frost/Hellhammer.Bathory,Mercyful Fate,Iron Maiden,Slayer ,Darkthrone,Burzum ,Mayhem bla bla the standard stuff.
The way we record is based on "gut feeling".I send the riffs to the drummer,2 weeks before we record,and then we record everything as quickly as possible.There seems to be no point in rehearsing the tracks,as this makes everything sound stale and boring. (First take is almost always best)
The "twist" you mention,is probably due to the fact that we really havent played metal before,and havent got a clue what we are doing!!!HA HA HA

Did you play in other bands before Gravlund?


-Yes me and the drummer have played in several bands before.Nothing well known.
But many of them with us both in the band.So me and him have played together for rs.
Actually, the last band we played in was a kind of a "psychedelic jam band thing",
with lots of improvistion.And we learned A LOT from that band.(Mainly to trust your "gut feeling")
But that was one of the(drunken) "ground rules":NO JAMMING IN GRAVLUND!!!! ( That's the spirit! Ed.)

How has the response been on the demo so far?


-Considering the fact ,that the only goal or ambition we had , making the demo,was to make some metal we could listen to while drinking beer,the response has been overwhelming.
We had NO idea people would like it this much.
One thing that is really cool,is that we get the "thumbs up " from bands that we ourselves are fan of
Peolple in Eastern Europe and South America like Gravlund,and this is mind boggling considering "Goat Funeral Night" is our SECOND rehearsal/recording!!!!





-Have you played live yet? Or have any plans considering that?


We have not played live yet.We have to get some extra band members to play live.
There are only 2 members in GRAVLUND,so for now there will not be any live performances.
Saying this,we have to note that there have already been a couple of really good offers,but we regrettfully had to decline.
But we are thinking about getting a couple of guys helping us play live,but we dont know when.
We also have to write some more songs to flesh out a set list.The songs are usually kind of short,and we need some more to play a full gig.(Or maybe we should start doing guitar solos?) (If you want the audience to fall asleep that might be a good idea. Ed)



What does your lyrics deal with? Do you have any favourite writers yourself?


The lyrics are not stories Per se,but rather random negative thoughts put together to create a "mood" or atmosphere.(Trying to be vague here,see???)
But i have to say that i usually brainstorm like a motherfucker when doing the vocals,
cause the vocals are always improvised.
Favorite writers?As in lyrics?
Fenriz comes to mind,Especially the lyrics for the "A Blaze in the Northern sky" album.I think it has lost none of its powers over the years.(You of course have to include the other two albums from the "Black trilogy")
I still remember the feeling i got when listening to "A Blaze.." for the first time.
It felt like you where participating in something ILLEGAL or something. (Indeed,he has written lots of great lyrics throughout the years. Ed)


How's the metal scene in Tromsø,any bands worth mentioning?



Oh i dont know.I thought until recently,that it was non existent.
But then i met some guys this summer, who told me the scene is getting a little better.They actually wanted us to play some gigs here,but i dont know.
If there is a metal scene here in Tromsø we are not part of it.
What i DO know,is that we are the ONLY ONES,doing this kind of stuff.
(There are actually a couple of other Black metal bands here,but I have never met them)


You are now signed after only one demo,that's not happening every day,did you just send demo's around or?
Well,we recorded the demo 21-23 January 2011,and mixed it on the 24th.
And then we uploaded the songs "Witches Tit"and "Mark of the Beast" on February 1st on youtube,and then posted links to these songs on the Scream Magazine forum.
And a lot of people(to our surprise)liked it.And after a week ,or so, we were contacted by UNBORN PRODUCTIONS who wanted to release the demo.
We were dumbstruck cause we did not anticipate this at all.
I mean,we knew the demo was good,but had no plans to release it.
We of course said "yes",and i guess this is the reason we are doing this intrview.
(I have to note Raymond ,that you were one of the first people that was interested in the band,even before we knew we would release anything.)
Have to say that working with UNBORN PRODUCTIONS was a breeze.
That guy works FAST.
Just like us HA HA

PS:
Forgot to mention that Gravlund have a"secret" member : NEMESIS MAXIMUS. He sometimes help us write lyrics.
We would like to Thank Unborn Productions and Joakim From Devil for making the cover/artwork look so cool.
Thanx for the interview

GRAVLUND

Stian





Agael / Lebensnacht - Split



Naturmacht Productions July.19.2012


 Agael rose from the ashes of Skepsis and Demento as a solo project in 2008 & has released one album before named "Hybrid"
Lebensnacht also started in 2008 ,but was never really active until 2011.
They play "ambient black metal" with dark and bright themes.
Agael plays very melodic mid-tempo what I would call maybe progressive as well as ambient.
It's a very relaxing & warm feeling when listening to this record.
The guitars build nicely up & creates a nice soundscape, I love the sound of the guitars on the acoustic parts especially.
They use some vocal samples that fit's nicely into the music & the synth is blended nicely in the tracks without overdoing it. The electronic parts is also a very tasty adding.
This is very nice & relaxing to listen to and they for sure manage to take me away a while with their haunting and monotonous guitars. Even though tsome tracks are 6-7 minutes they feel shorter.
Both bands have pretty much the same style,but Lebennacht lends bait more towards metal with their screamy vocal & guitar sounds.
Personally I prefer Agael as they don't use that much screamy vocals as Lebensnacht witch I don't think fit into the whole package but besides that it's a great record and would advice you to check it out,cause they are onto something great here and when the record stops one yearns for more!


Agael FB Page
Lebensnacht FB Page