INTERVIEW WITH CADAVERIA

 

The first is one questions that I have to make. Why did you leave Opera IX?

Hi Federico and all Music Extreme! Well, there is not one exact reason. Simply, around one year ago some problems started inside the band, regarding the direction the band must follow, the ideology, the music, the compositions. For these reasons the relationships among the band members began to deteriorate. Instead of wasting our time in stupid arguments, me and Flegias decided to take the only possible and intelligent decision and we left the band. Some weeks later we founded CADAVERIA, a new and free project where every member can discharge his metal instincts and express his ideas, without ideological restriction.

How did you choose Frank and Killer Bob to play with you? What have they brought to Cadaveria´s music?

Me and Flegias already knew Killer Bob and Frank and we were sure we could trust them as persons and musicians. All new members are experienced musicians: Frank and Baron Harkonnen have played often as tour men, while behind the name Killer Bob there is John, Necrodeath bassist. We already were in contact with Frank 'cause he is in the musical underground, he has got his own recording studio (the studio where we recorded The Shadows' Madame) and have helped us in the past, with Sacro Culto album. He plays since he was a child but, as I told, he always played as session man and he never had a steady band. For him CADAVERIA represents the opportunity to be really part of a band, to cooperate with other people to compose his own music, and to show his talent. Killer Bob is a person open to new experiences, and even if he already plays in other two band (Necrodeath and DyNAbyte) he was glad to participate to our project as bassist and sound engineer. They are all open minded people and everyone has a different musical background (thrash, classical heavy metal, nu metal). The brought a fresh air in the band and a new energy in our sound. The union of five different minds and of five different musical tendencies is the main responsible of the many contaminations you can find in CADAVERIA music.

What can you tell me about the way in which "The Shadows Madame" was composed?

Some songs from The Shadows' Madame came from my and Flegias' past musical experience. Some ideas we didn't expressed in Opera IX are now developed in CADAVERIA. Some songs have been built on some voice melodies I had worked on during the last year. These melodies have been the first point where to start from. Other ideas come directly in the rehearsal room, brought by the new members. When the main songs' structure was ready, we entered recording studio. Having a studio at our complete disposal, with no time restriction, allowed us to care about all details. Here the arrangements were set, some songs were modified and keyboards were added. Then we started studying the details of the sound and finally we started recording.

Why did you choose Scarlet Recs. to release the album?

Among the labels we contacted, Scarlet was the one that immediately showed to appreciate our musical proposal and to be truly interested in the band. We had already been in contact with Scarlet some years ago, when Opera IX had to decide for which label to sign for The Black Opera album. Even if the band had opted for another label, me and Flegias had maintained good relationships with Scarlet (that is also Necrodeath's label). The fact to already know Scarlet stuff made negotiations be more easy, and we quickly reached an agreement. They were positively impressed by our music, they trust our potentialities, they were ready to put CADAVERIA among the label's priorities and to give the band the proper promotion. With these premises, there wasn't the risk, for us, to be one of the hundreds forgotten and "left-to-their-destiny" bands of a big label's roster. These are the main reasons that led us to sign for Scarlet.

What are the lyrics in "The Shadows Madame" about?

Well, all lyrics have been written by me and they deal with my personal interests, with my believes, my memory, my dreams and nightmares, my credo. Darkness, magic, death, existence are the main themes. "Spell", for example, talks about a young witch who places trust in cosmic energies for her rituals, it deals with meditation and natural elements, while "Declaration of spiritual Independence" deals with the power of mind, it hymns to self confidence, to freedom and to action. "In memory of Shadows' Madame" is a sort of epitaph ante mortem, dedicated to a charismatic lady survived to the jokes of fate, while "Absolute Vacuum" contains my personal meditations about evil and death. Some sentences I wrote belong to my past, some other lyrics have been composed in a second time, after the most part of the music was ready. The Shadows' Madame lyrics can be considered as the mirror of my personality, some songs have been influences by my readings, above all by Charles Baudelaire and William Butler Yeats.

Are Baron Harkonnen´s keyboards one of the main points in Cadaveria´s music?

I don't think so. In the beginning we thought not to use keyboards in CADAVERIA, then, when the main songs' structure was already set, we decided to introduce some keyboards parts in order to amplify and sustain the atmosphere of the tracks. So keyboards strengthen the atmosphere of our songs but aren't the basis of our music. I think the main point are represented by the guitar and by the voice.

Are there any songs that were left out of the album and maybe will be released in a Mini CD ?

There were some ideas for a eighth song, just made of acoustic guitars, keyboards and voice and an half idea to make a cover, but finally we opted for a different solution. There are no project for a mini CD now and I don't know if these ideas will be developed in the next album. Actually we are just thinking about some new riffs and only in June we will start the composition process for the new CD, so now it is early to say which direction we will take.

Do you have any plans of touring to support the new album?

We will play some live dates is Italy in April and May. Another live show is in preparation for July and we received an offer to play at a festival in summer, but nothing is sure at the moment. Please, check out our website for any updates!

Any final words?

I would like to thank you for this interview and all old and new fans for their never-ending support! Keep the metal flame alive and let you be enveloped by the shadows of darkness.

 

CADAVERIA WEBSITE: www.cadaveria.com

REVIEW: BLINDED BY FAITH - VEILED HIDEOUSNESS

 

BLINDED BY FAITH - VEILED HIDEOUSNESS (Tuxedo Prods., 1999):

Technical data:

Recorded, Mixed and Mastered at Crunch Com by Martin Sr. Laurent.

Produced by Tuxedo Prods. And Blinded By Faith

Cover by Jonathan Robert

Track List: 1- Somber Harbinger, 2-Behind the Placid Mask of the Starlit Cosmos, 3- Veiled Hideousness, 4- My Burnt Wings, 5- Reptilian shudders, 6- A Slumber in Cobarebs, 7- Melania

This is black metal full of guitar melodies. This guys come from Canada and this album showcases their habilities in composing good black metal with a lot of feelings and an omniprescent dark feeling. One of the main things here are the keyboards, played by Tattoo which gives atmosphere, melody and harmony to the tracks (Check for example the beginning of "Behind The Placid Mask..." to see what I am talking about). The guitars play interesting rifffs, sometimes fast, sometimes more mid paced. I would like the band to explore more the more rhthmic riffs which are more original and give Blinded by Faith its own identity while combined with the keyboards and with Tom´s vocals. The overall sound of this recording is good, very clear, and really well mixed. I want to check this guys newest album to see how they have progressed. Favorite tracks "Behind the Placid Mask of the Starlit Cosmos", "My Burnt Wings" and "A Slumber in Cobarebs". Contact: http://fly.to/blindedbyfaith

REVIEW: BERGTHRON - JAGDHEIM

 

BERGTHRON - JAGDHEIM (Perverted Taste Recs., 2001):

Technical data:

Recorded at Studio Arts and VD Prods.

Track List: 1-Aus Edlem Blut, 2- Im Weissen Wald, 3- Jagdheim

What do we have here? This CD consists in three tracks from this guys from Germany. The first one strats as a nordic black metal band and within the first two minutes it turns into something completely different with voices that are closer to gothic and riffs that are more rhythmic than fast (some of them almost rocking). This is possible I think because this track is more than fourteen minutes long and allows this guys to develope some great ideas within the same song structure (there are also some twin guitar melodies in there too, some riffs in the old Paradise Lost vein, etc.). The second track "Im Weissen Wald" is the shortes with almost eight minutes. The main feature here are the vocals done in a manner that remind old pagan songs that are sung over some guitar riffs that are the basis of the track. Again the combination of vocals and guitars reach its climax. This is a great option for those looking for originality and something new within the realms of black metal. Favorite tracks: The three. Contact: www.pervertedtaste.de

REVIEW: BENIGHTED LEAMS - CALIGINOUS ROMANTIC MYTH

 

BENIGHTED LEAMS - CALIGINOUS ROMANTIC MYTH (Supernal Music, 1999):

Technical data:

Recorded at Ohombrid Welkins Studios

Recorded, Mixed and Edited by Alex Kurtagic

Artwork by Digitalis.

Track List: 1- Tenebrious Arcadian Dream, 2- The Snead, 3- Öillades into Penumbral Mirth, 4- Wood Nymph of Summer Twilight, 5- Caliginous Romantic Myth

Benighted Leams make music in the style called black- gothic metal with some ideas that are impressing and some that are not at all (beginning with the vocals that are not as good as should be...they are melodic but they are most of the time doing the same melodies and that turns the tracks a little bit boring). There are a lot of tempo changes which are really abrupt with omnipresent keyboards that are making the basement of the songs. One thing that I would like the band to change is the sound which is of very poor quality, specially the drums that are completely buried in the mix (also the vocals are sometimes so low and in the back that you can barely listen them). Maybe next time this band will focalize better their music and get a better result.

REVIEW: BASILISK - KYO JYA

 

BASILISK - KYO JYA (Independent, 1999):

Technical Information

Produced and Mixed by Yoshinori Miwa. Assist Engineered by Akinobu Adachi.

Recorded and Mixed at Studio Pao

Artwork by Makoto Ito

Track List: 1- Black Storm, 2- Blaze, 3- Bear one´s Sufferings

Directly from japan it arrives this band that plays black metal in a technical vein with a lot of breaks and tempo changes and there are a lot of different riffs on each of the three tracks contained here on this demo. The music is fast but at the same time melodic, that is the songs have parts that are extremely fast where the guitars do that phrases that are most typical of black metal bands,a nd then there are slower parts that is where the band is in my opinion better because they make more original parts and riffs and they let their music breath and become heavier. This recording is from 1999, I wonder how this band has evolved in this two years since then. The overall sound is good but maybe the guitars could be better equalized and the cymbals don´t be so loud because they cover some frequencies tat can be useful for the music of Basilisk. Contact: basilisk@pdx.ne.jp

REVIEW: ASHES YOU LEAVE - DESPERATE EXISTENCE

 

ASHES YOU LEAVE - DESPERATE EXISTENCE (Morbid Records, 1999):

Technical Information

Cover Art: Patricia Skender

Track List: 1- A Wish, 2- Never again alone in the Dark, 3- Desperate Existence, 4- Et Vidi Solem Evanere, 5- Momentary Eclipse of Hope, 6- Searching for Artificial Happiness, 7- Shadow of Somebody´s Else Being, 8- Outro

In this second album from Ashes You Leave, the band solidifies their reputation as an excellent band in the most deppresive style within the metal realm., sharing characteristics with doom metal, and some atmospheric metal. With the always wonderful vocals of Dunja Radetic singing the melancholic lyrics of the band and giving the songs a black aura to the tracks. The sound in this recording is much better than on its debut album, spacially on the guitars that are better mixed and sound much more fat than on that release. The extense tracks like "Never Again Alone In the Dark" or "Desperate Existence" allow the band to play with tempo changes (in the more than nine minutes that each of this tracks have) and multiple instrumental passages where each musician can explore the dark side of their instruments. There are also some eastern sounding melodies done with keyboards and violins and an interesting contrast between them and the growling male vocals. Favorite tracks: "Never Again Alone In the Dark", "Desperate Existence" and "Searching for Artificial Happiness. Contact: www.morbidrecords.de

REVIEW: ASHES YOU LEAVE - THE PASSAGE BACK TO LIFE

 

ASHES YOU LEAVE - THE PASSAGE BACK TO LIFE (Morbid Records, 1998):

Track List: 1- Salva Me (Intro), 2- The Passage Back To Life, 3- Thorn the Death Flower, 4- Drowning in my Dreams, 5- Lay Down Alone, 6- White Chains, 7- Tears

This is the debut album from that dark and sad band from Croatia called Ashes You Leave. This is a band whose music is filled with darkness, sadness, anguish and pain. And this is an ideal album to listen in complete darkness or with your eyes shut letting your feelings fly. The first thing that got my attention was Dunja Radetic´s vocals...they are in a mid range and they are deeper than in many of the female vocalist that most bands have. The guitar riffs are slow, extremely heavy and very dark (in the vein of the firstg My Dying Bride for example) and they make a big contrast with the vocals and the violin lines made by Marta Batinic. The keyboards here are not the main element, but they are used instead to make interest arrangements that fit the mood of the tracks. The sound is not very good, specially on drums and guitars but it allows to appreciate the music of the band. Favorite tracks: "The Passage Back To Life", "Thorn The Death Flower" and "Tears". Contact: www.morbidrecords.de.

REVIEW: APOPHIS - HELIOPOLIS

 

APOPHIS - HELIOPOLIS (Morbid Records, 1998):

Technical data:

Artwork by Joachim Scheffler

Track List: 1- The Serpent God, 2- Choirs of Bitterness, 3- Reincarnation of the Serpent God, 4- Tear Down Your Walls, 5- Resurrection, 6- Ein Meer Aus Tränen, 7- Dominion, 8- Behold His Arrival, 9- Nobody Will Miss You

Some issues ago I interviewed this German band and they seemed to me a very interesting death metal band. Now, while listening to their music I am not dissapointed, they are powerful and they have very good skills as musicians to make their music very interesting to the listener. One good thing that I listen of this band is that I feel that they have worked a lot on their guitar riffs making some of them very glorious in the vein of some very technical band s like Megadeth in their "Rust in Peace" album but all in a death metal context (I mean, with a heavier sound and a lot of brutality added). That is, this guys have learned a lot from other styles and from their influences and then they have transformed, adapted and thrown everything into their music making it sound very original. This is also one of the CDs of the month. Contact: www.morbidrecords.de 

REVIEW: ANTROPOFAGUS - ALIVE IS GOOD, DEAD IS BETTER

 

ANTROPOFAGUS - ALIVE IS GOOD, DEAD IS BETTER (Beyond Prods., 2001):

Technical data:

Recorded, mixed and mastered by Paolo Valenti and Antropofagus at Lord Studio

Photos by Jose Taglia

Track List: 1- Fucking a Baphomet Made of Flesh, 2- 1: Chainsaw Sterilizing, 3-L´aldila...e tu vivrai nel terrore

Here is Antropofagus new MCD (with a cover art that is a tribute to Carcass "Symphonies of Sickness"). There are three tracks here and the music is a pure holocaust, pure grind. But the guitars sound much clearer than in any grindcore album (almost like an industrial band...they are mixed quite loud here). The drums are well programmed trying to make it sound more natural and it makes some interesting break and passages. There are plenty of hyperfast guitar riffs and vocals that are extremely guttural, everything surrounded by a horror film atmosphere with voices, noises and sounds that are extracted from movies of the genre. Favorite tracks: "Fucking a Baphomet Made of Flesh" and "Chainsaw Sterilizing". Contact: www.beyondprod.com

REVIEW: AMEN - WE HAVE COME FOR YOUR PARENTS

 

AMEN - WE HAVE COME FOR YOUR PARENTS (Virgin Records, 2000):

Technical data:

Produced by Ross Robinson

Track List: 1- OK Killer, 2- Refuse Amen, 3- Justified, 4- The Price of Reality, 5- Mayday, 6- Under the Robe, 7- Dead on the Bible, 8- Too Hard To Be Free, 9- Ungrateful Dead, 10- Piss Virus, 11- The Waiting, 12- Take My head, 13- In Your Suit, 14- Here´s the Poison

New Metal, Modern Metal. Call it as you like. This style has become a one on its own, loved by some people and hated by others with the same intensity. Here comes Amen, a band that practices this style but in its most aggressive form as it is shown since the beginning with the short and explosive "OK Killer" . In fact they are not taking influence from bands like Korn, etc. I think they have some Machine Head influences (even though the music is completely different, specially the vocals) because of the guitar riffs that are more hardcore crushing with some artificial harmonics here and there. I prefer the bands that are like Amen to those that have too much hip hop in their music. A powrful album. Favorite tracks: "Refuse Amen", " Under The Robe", "Dead On the Bible". Contact: www.amen-us.com