Here is the first interview of the "new year," with Maelstrom of Angelcide, who my readers (all three of them) may recall from an earlier interview on the band Whorde - toxic waste isn't the only evil spewing from the Garden State!
I listened to Angelcide’s EP The Citadel, but by now you have a full album completed, do you not?
Yeah, the album is "Twilight Carnage." It expands on the sound started on "The Citadel" and is more technical and varied than anything Angelcide has done yet (as well as anything most other modern black metal bands have done).
In what relation do Angelcide and Whorde stand together, on which project do you focus more of your energy? It has differed from time to time, but most of the time Angelcide was the main focus (with the exception of when I was in Abazagorath, despite my lack of anything to show for it). I'd like to release at least one more album with Whorde.
The music of The Citadel sounds, to me, like it comes from the, so to speak, New School of American Black Metal (if I may coin a term). I am instantly reminded of bands like Leviathan and, to a lesser degree, Xasthur. This style never quite caught on with me, but then my experience with it is rather limited. Do you agree with my observation?
I don't think there are many decent modern black metal bands from the US, that have surfaced in the last decade. I see where you're comming from in certain characteristics in terms of style (such as choice of riffs), yes, more similarities to Leviathan than perhaps i noticed. It can be hard to take American black metal seriously because most Americans don't take it seriously like they do in other countries.
There were some dissonant parts with rapid drum programming and anguished screams which reminded me somewhat of Manes’ Maanens Natt. This is not so much of a question, is it?
It's a compliment, I liked that E.P. a lot. Yeah there were definitely some Beherit-styled riffs introduced on the citadel, and used on Twilight Carnage as well. I try to take riffs that were from different styles of black metal, and those kinds of riffs that Beherit uses- dissonant note/chord progressions, usually notes that are all next to each other- yeah I try to incorporate them into the sound as well. Beheirt was always one of my favorite and biggest influences, although Whorde is way more influenced by them than Angelcide is. I'm glad you mentioned that E.P. because a surprising number of people are not familiar with it, it's so fucking weird but so fucking good. Beherit rules!!!
What is your involvement with US Black Metal in general? Who are your collaborators and what other US bands do you perform with or contribute to?
I played in Angelcide, Whorde, Abazagorath, Grafvolluth, Misanthropy Legion, Malstrom, and contributed lyrics for Ouroboros Borealis. If you had asked me two years ago about my invlovement in US black metal, my answer would have been a lot different. I was set on establishing a name for myself within the scene, and was successful for a bit. But, the love I had for this scene grew to hate because of a lot of the people. In south/central Jersey, us black metal guys would just get wasted and raise hell and have a good time. Members of Grafvolluth, Norsekrieg, Misanthropy Legion... we were distant from any other part of the black metal scene, we created our own special hell. We didn't have rules, didn't try to impress each other, just lived by our own terms. No corpse paint, never. And so much drinking. So much drinking. Once I saw the scene on the outside though, it was different. Everyone had their guard up when I met them, and tried to play a stupid role. Fuck that, I'm sorry, that's not what black metal was to me. Now I have completely, completely withdrawn from the US black metal scene. A tragic end.
What are some non-metal musical influences of yours?
I'm glad you asked this. I explored a lot of other dark music genres, weather or not it was cool for a black metal fan/musician to enjoy them. Such genres include the obvious like dark ambient and drone, but also psychedelic trance, classical music, industrial, and other forms of electronic music. Also, and probably most importantly, hardcore! I'm talking about 80s and early 90s hardcore, the Boston and NYC scenes respectably (not that faggot metalcore shit, no no no, I hope people know better to think of that shit when they hear the word "hardcore"). There are so many raw, underground hardcore bands that whose sound is identical to black metal in all aspects except vocals. There was once an interview with Eurynomous long ago where he said Mayhem was "a hardcore band."
What is your label/distribution scenario? Are you signed? Where can I get your stuff?
I recently watched a documentary about snuff films, in which opinions were presented by those who believe and those who do not believe that snuff films exist; a former FBI agent denies that they exist, for example, while the creator of the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre avers that they do, and they he’s not only been offered them by mysterious Asians, but has seen one. Do snuff films exist?
I know, for a fact, that they exist. I have seen them, and with the freedom of information that exists today, there is plenty of real death available if you look hard enough. Censorship is no longer possible in todays world.
I asked a similar question of Marko K. (Deinonychus, Bethlehem), but, what are your thoughts on the digitization of music that is obviously superseding compact discs and other standard media? In that other interview, I explained that although I finally jumped on the digital bandwagon, after years of resistance, I absolutely continue to order original albums and merchandise from the bands I support. I sometimes buy digital metal albums through Mark Riddick’s excellent Metal Hit Records. All rambling aside, what are your thoughts on this issue?
I don't care about financially supporting bands. Sorry, that's not what music is about to me. However, their are certain albums that I do want a physical copy because of the great value it has. I own some vinyls, some tapes, lots of metal CDs. A lot of black metal isn't worth buying, but a lot of it is, too. It was important that I owned a physical copy of "De Mystiis Dom Sathanas" and "Hviss Lyset Tar Oss" but albums by random, unimportant black metal bands are fine just on a laptop. When concerning Angelcide, the lack of photos and actual copies leave more to the imagination... I want to draw out the dark world within you and have that be the reality you come to understand when listening to Angelcide.
Do you agree with my observation that metalheads, per capita, are proportionately smarter than representatives of most other musical genres? Of the people I am obligated to interact with on a daily basis, none that listens to (for example) modern commercial pop/rock, modern commercial pop/country, or (c)rap pseudo-music, demonstrates any higher-than-average intelligence or interest in intellectual pursuits. TV is definitely the common denominator with these people. I shouldn’t have brought this up, because I go on ranting about this for hours, but what do you think anyway?
This is a very hard question to answer but I think I have to disagree. In fact, a lot of metal heads are the most close minded, insecure and uneducated people I've ever met. I've met some really intelligent ones, no doubt, as the ones I chose to surround myself were some of the smartest people I've ever met, but I've met so so many that were just so dumb, ignorant, and so desperate for acceptance within the metal community that that is all they strived for. The black metal genre is a perfect example of this. Some bands- Burzum, Emperor- showed a great understanding of so many things far beyond the mere mentality of people- and perhaps that allowed them to be successful. However others have nothing to say but "HAIL SATAN FUCK JESUS'S ASSHOLE" and don't even have a good understanding of the satanism they are preaching! To understand a band like Burzum or Beherit requires a lot, and that in itself is a testament to one's intelligence. But I've met so many stupid metal heads that it made me want to just reject that whole community in general.
Last words? Mine would be: memento mori.
"Last words are for fools that haven't said enough"
Black Metal is now filled with trend whores....
ReplyDeleteHail the O.o.t.S.S.!
Delete