Solace And Stable Interview

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

We are Solace and Stable from Kansas City, MO.  We started in August of 2008 when Gabe Fry left Toledo, Ohio’s From The Shallow’s to start something more progressive, and technical.  Like many other bands, there have been multiple member changes trying to find the right lineup.  Since then we have released 1 full length album; “Adaptation and The Seclusive Remedy” in which dropped in the summer of 09.  That album was completely written, recorded, and produced by Gabe.  We are finishing our second full length "The Systematic Erosion Of Integrity" and plan do as much support for that as possible the 3rd quarter of 2012.  

2. How would you describe your musical sound?
I think it's difficult to seperate our sound from many other extreme metal bands today in words.  We have elements of technical death metal, thrash, jazz, hardcore, and classical just like many bands do today.  Our songwriting is extremely focused, and is the aspect of most attention in this band.  We feel that there are many, many more imitiators than innovators in just about any genre, subgenre, or any classification for that matter.  So we do our best to write what we feel is missing, and or we would want to hear as a listener.  I think if you were to do the old 3-4 band mashup it would probably look a little something this like this.  For fans of "Between The Buried and Me", "The Red Chord", "Necrophagist", and "Misery Signals"

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
Well on "Adaptation and The Seclusive Remedy" the lyrical themes ranged from personal struggles, to persecution as a Christian, to lost love.  The lyrics were meant to have a personal and relatable touch, as well as to stimulate thought.  "The Systematic Erosion Of Integrity" is a much more focused album lyrically, and conceptually focuses on the shift that we believe to be taking place in which Christianity, and faith are actively pursued to be irrelevant, and erased.  In some songs we make a personal case for our faith, and it's relevance in which we believe in.  We are very passionate about our beliefs, and hope to inspire others spiritually, positively, and musically.  

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?
Solace and Stable basically derives from the concept of being brought through difficult times, and balancing stability after facing challenges.  Gabe came up with the name, and believed it to be a great anthem for the band, and a reminder that stability is the final stage of overcoming trials, and not the calm after the storm.

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?
We've played with some great bands and some that we looked up to when just starting out such as Living Sacrafice, War Of Ages, Stick To Your Guns, Shai Hulud, and Oceano.  We also have some great local bands in Kansas City we enjoy playing with time, and time again.  Our stage performance is probably more focused than alot of bands in our genre.  We don't really get to move around a whole lot as most of the music is fairly demanding, and technical.  Our focus when playing live is to execute, and interact when we can.  

6. Do you have any future touring plans?
Nothing is set in stone right now, but we plan on doing as much weekend touring as we can to support our latest release.  

7. Currently you are unsigned are you looking for a label and if so, what kind of label do you feel that would be a perfect fit for your music?
I think we are a little indifferent on this one right now.  We aren't really sure what's best in this current economy, and state of the music business.  DIY'ers have the most tools available than ever before, but the market is oversaturated.  Label's are offering 360 deals, and tightening up in which making a living as a touring metal band is next to impossible as it is.  We think we could make a good fit possibly on Sumerian, or Metal Blade.  I guess Victory would be another compatible label possibly.    

8. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of extreme metal?
It's been really good for the most part.  Our first record didn't have the best production, but I think alot of people felt like we had potential, and if they could get past the production greatly enjoyed it.  Because there is so much music out there, and I think just the times we are living in, people are very jaded (ourselves included).  It seems like it gets more, and more difficult to get new people to listen to your music, especially when social networks rise and fall.  The freshly released material from TSEOI has been very well receieved so far, and we are excited to hear the consensus on the full album.  

9. Are there any other projects besides this band or is this a full time line up?
Our vocalist is in another band called "Damp" in which we aren't sure how they got Meshuggah to give them rights to so many of their riffs.  KIDDING!  We love you Damp.  

10. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?
Well we definitely want to keep regurgitating the same stuff over, and over again.  But we feel that so many times bands experiment so greatly that the magic that was once there vanishes with new direction, and new releases.  If we have any magic, we hope to not stray too far, too quickly from what we do best, and what other's love.  I know we will do our best to focus on those aspects, and always keep them as relevant, and apparent as possible. 

11. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music andalso what are you listening to nowadays?
Between The Buried and Me is by far the biggest inspiration for this band.  The Silent Circus was a release that changed us as musicians forever.  In most of our opinions we believe it to be a perfect album.  We have, and always will look up to great prog/tech metal bands like The Red Chord, Into The Moat, Necrophagist.  We definitely allow some melodic hardcore influence in as well which we feel kind of helps seperate us a bit from the pack.  As far as what we are listening to right now we all listen to different things now days than what brought us together in the first place.  Fleshgod Apocalypse, The Ghost Inside, Spawn Of Possession, and Carach Angren have been some late favorites.

12. Outside of music what are some of your interests?
Most of us really enjoy sports anything from MMA to Baseball.  Most of us have a video game console to ourselves on off days.  Some of us dabble in wood work, and others are completely musically focused.  

13. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
Thanks alot for letting us do this interview.  We really appreciate any, and all means of support.  Please add us on facebook if you like what you hear, and check out "The Systematic Erosion Of Integrity" when it's released!  Thanks, and God bless!

** Any views regarding religion  is of the band and not the editors of the zine**

Solace And Stable/The Systematic Erosion Of Integrity/2012 3 Song Demo Reviewg

Solace  And  Stable  are  a  band  from  Kansas  City,  Missouri  that  plays  a  mixture  of  progressive  metal  and  deathcore  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  3  song  demo  "The  Systematic  Erosion  of  Integrity".

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  some  blast beats  being  thrown  into  the  music  at  times,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  is  coming  out  of  the  guitars.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  riffs  that  combine  progressive  metal,  technical  death  metal  and  deathcore  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  along  with  a  good  amount  of  melody  being  thrown  into  the  riffing,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  melodic  and  technical  sounding  guitar  solos  and  leads.

  Vocals  are  mostly  death/hardcore  style  screams  and  growls  as  well  as  a  brief  spoken  word  part b eing  utilized  on  the  last  song,  while  the  lyrics  cover  hateful  and  everyday  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  to  it.

  In  my  opinion  Solace  And  Stable  are  a  very  good  sounding  hybrid  of  progressive  metal,  technical  death  metal  and  deathcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  style,  you  should  check  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Design  And  Deceive".  RECOMMENDED.  
  

Empatic Interview

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

Hello, right now we're preparing for the performance at OstFest festival in our hometown OstroB - ka, and we're working on the material for our next album.

2.How would you describe the musical sound of the newer material and how is it different from the demo?

Our demo was recorded in an amateur studio at home and you can hear some automatic drums, for example. And when you listen to the art-house album there’s an amazing difference in every sound and tone.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

When making the album I decided to write about my beliefs, opinions on wars, death , suffering but also about positive aspects of our lives such as dreams coming true.

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

Well, the word ‘empatic’ does not exist actually, but it derived from an English word ‘emphatic,’ we just skipped the ‘h’ and the name seemed appropriate for the band. We all liked it. In Polish, there’s the word ‘empatia’ and it means the ability to imagine how other people are feeling and so understand their mood.

5.When can we expect a new album?

Who knows, even the Lucifer can’t wait(  but we’re working on it.

6.I have noticed that on the album you did a cover tune of OMD’s Enola Gay, what was the decision behind doing a cover tune of that song?

The event described in  this song is true and it changed the history of this world forever. We all have heard “Enola Gay” before, but never really paid such attention to the lyrics, just the melody was catchy. But when we got into details, it seemed clear that the song would be a good cover.

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

Every performance is a valuable experience for us and I think there’ve been a lot of good shows and the best are still to come. It’s hard to describe your own performance, you should ask the ones who saw us playing live.

8.Do you have any touring plans for the future?

Yeah!!! Of course all the time we are planning lives. We really like live performances. The Best way to promote our music is playing many concerts. That’s it.

9.The last album came out on Wydawnictwo Muzyczne Psycho, how did you get in contact with this label and how would you describe the support that they have given you so far?

If it wasn’t for a Psycho, the world would have never heard about Empatic. That’s all

10.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death and extreme metal?

We are surprised that all of the opinions, reviews  were so good. And it’s great. But we know that there is still a lot to do.

11.Are there any other projects besides this band or is this a full time line up?

Sesyl, our guitarist, has his own project, not really connected with metal music, and our drummer, Yopeque, is a real artist- he writes books, makes films and video clips, and many more. The rest of us are not involved in any other projects.

12.What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

We will surely play metal music with a mix of other styles and some melody and we hope our next releases will be better than the previous.

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

Each member of Empatic is listening to different bands and you can hear their influence in our music. But we’re trying to work out our own style.

14.Outside of music what are some of your interests?

Sex, drugs and rock’n’roll!!!!!

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

Best Regards from fucking POLAND!!!Take care you guys, metal up your ass. If you want to know any news about EMPATIC, go to our websites

HYPERLINK "http://www.empatic.com" www.empatic.com
HYPERLINK "http://www.myspace.com/empatic" www.myspace.com/empatic
HYPERLINK "http://www.facebook.com/empatic.info" www.facebook.com/empatic.info
HYPERLINK "http://www.youtube.com/empaticofficial" www.youtube.com/empaticofficial

Sphere Interview

Answered: Th0rn - drums

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?
Th0rn: Hi! Currently we're looking for gigs. We're still practicing in our rehearsal room to make our performance better and better.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album?
Th0rn: I'd describe the sound of Homo Hereticus as a massive, powerfull and heavy march against christianity, hehehe. We were trying  to achieve the sound we had in our heads. Basically we wanted to get the powerfull but clear sound from every instrument.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
Th0rn: Generally if you read the CD inlay from our first album you'll see that our lyrcis are mostly anticlerical.
Christian ideology and what church gives people pisess us off. It's all a bunch of shit for massess. That's why we created Homo Hereticus. It's a message to open minded people. Heretic is a man who rejects dogmas of the church, a man who rejects what religion imposes – a man who is free. So the name homo hereticus is a wordplay

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?
Th0rn: 10 years ago when i established this band i had no clear explanation why i've chosen this name. I remember that i was listing some names at a party and then i crossed them out and Sphere was the one left. I meant something like a sphere from event horizon. A black mass-sphere in which no one knows what is.. and probably blackest hell. That's the best thing to describe this band.

5. When can we expect a new album?
T:Hehe. We've just released Homo Hereticus. It's a little bit to early for planning a new release. For now we're concentrating on promoting Homo Heretics, then we'll be making a new material. I guess we'll start composing some new stuff this summer

6. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?
T: I have fond memories of the Metalmania 2007 where we played as a support for Vital Remains.
Right now are concerts are different than ones from previous years. You'll be able to see for yourself very soon on some gigs. In June we play a gig with Cannibal Corpse in WrockBaw, we invite all maniax !

7. Do you have any touring plans for the future?
T: Just as a mentioned before -  promoting, then composing, then recording, etc.


8. On a worldwide level how has your music been recieved by fans of death metal?
T: We are really satisfied with the receive of our record. We get many positive reviews from other countries. Although everyone is suprised that no one released it and we had to do it on our own through Masterful Records. Well, I guess it was meant to be like that, at least we have everything under control. It's ok.




9. What is going on with the side projects these days?
T: I don't play in any band except Sphere. Analripper is also in Revelation of Doom but they have a break for now to focus on other things. But as far as I know they are planning to release something new. We have new guitar players, Vivi plays in Anthem which records album right now. Also they play many gigs, even outside the country. They play really good death metal – check them out! Diego plays in his Veehal. For now guys are composing material to start playing live then they'll record the album. I heard that it will be some really twisted, technical material so we keep our fingers crossed for them. Burning plays in Black Coven (doom/space rock). They are composing new material right now.

10. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?
T: I think we'll follow our current path. We have new guitar players and many ideas in our heads. But we already have our way of composing and point of view on Sphere's music. So i guess that not much will change. We'll definitely do what we assum as the right thing for us. I'm hoping that the third record will be even more extreme than our previous ones.

11.What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
T: Everyone of us has his favorites. But main influences for this band are : Vital Remains, Slayer, Deicide, Origin.

12. Does Occultism play any role in your music?
T: Not really. Lyrics, as i mentioned before, are mainly anticlerical. Occultism is of course connected with it but i am sad to say... we have no time to celebrate black mass... I prefer practicing on drums, hehehehe.

13.Outside of music what are some of your interests?
T: Everyone of us has his own hobby. Although we don't have to much time. You know, we need to go to work, some of us already have children... Anyway I personally, sometimes like to take my caravan and go to the lake, drink few beers, just take some time to relax.

14. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
T: Thank you for your time! We recommend you 'Homo Hereticus'! It's worth buying. Became heretics, be free! Greets.


Homo Hereticus - HYPERLINK "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJgb-usVYds" \t "_blank" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJgb-usVYds
Psalm to the Dark One - HYPERLINK "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rlOYrnKzR8" \t "_blank" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rlOYrnKzR8

MEMEBERS:
Analripper – vocals
Diego – guitars
Vivi – guitars
Burning – bass guitars
Th0rn – drums

DISCOGRAPHY:
Spiritual Dope – demo 2004
Damned Souls Rituals – CD 2007
Homo Hereticus – CD 2012

SPHERE
MySpace: HYPERLINK "http://www.myspace.com/sphereband" \t "_blank" www.myspace.com/sphereband
Facebook: HYPERLINK "http://www.facebook.com/damnedSphere" \t "_blank" www.facebook.com/damnedSphere
YouTube: HYPERLINK "http://www.youtube.com/damnedSphere" www.youtube.com/damnedSphere
Reverbnation: HYPERLINK "http://www.reverbnation.com/sphereband" \t "_blank" www.reverbnation.com/sphereband

MASTERFUL RECORDS
HYPERLINK "http://www.masterful-records.com" http://www.masterful-records.com
E-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:masterfulrecords@gmail.com" masterfulrecords@gmail.com


GODZ OV WAR PRODUCTIONS
management/press/promotion
e-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:godz.ov.war@wp.pl" godz.ov.war@wp.pl

Enthrallment Interview

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

Hello, my name is Ivo Ivanov and I am the founder and the drummer of Enthrallment. Frankly, these days we have been very busy .After our new album was released by United Guttural, we started working on some new songs .Actually, we have some new lyrics and music that we have to develop into new songs. We are working on this process now and I hope that we will be ready recording them until the end of the year.



2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how it differs from the older recordings?

The music sound of our new album?.. I don’t know… It’s complicated. Usually when I make up new music, every riff that I create is inspired by different feelings and images and therefore it sounds in a different way.
As far as the technical aspect is concerned, we want the sound to be more aggressive and dense. I think we succeeded in making that kind of sound.
We produced our album alone and that is why its sound differs from our previous albums. In our new album the songs seem to flow one after the other.
The riffs don’t sound separated from each other. The song starts and ends fluently. You should listen to the album.



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

It is a very good question. Vasil - our guitar player and Plamen - vocals are those who mainly write the lyrics. We changed our concept for the lyrics completely. The word I would use to describe our lyrics is “depression”. This depression is combined with feelings of aggression and rage. Our new lyrics are focused on interesting topics. I think that everyone can find a piece of themselves in these lyrics. In our new edition you can find our lyrics in printed version.
“People from the lands of Vit ‘is a little strange title for an album, isn’t it? In fact Vit is the name of the river that passes nearby the town we were born in. People who are prisoners of their own fears live on these lands. They are depressed and desperate and they can be very dangerous when they feel threatened. This is reality on these lands. One should live here in order to feel this atmosphere.



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

The name of the band is inspired by a song from Suffocation –“Torn into Enthrallment”                                                                            
The name of the band exactly describes out lives.




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

Every time that I play on a concert I think that it is our best concert. Actually the best audiences make the best concerts.
I have very good memories about concerts both in Bulgaria and outside Bulgaria. The Bulgarian fans are extremely wild.
I will never forget our first show outside Bulgaria in Bucuresti, Romania in 2004 in the center of Bucuresti we had 500 fans on the concert .Then even our first album Smashed Brain Collection” hadn’t been released yet.
Our stage performance is very important for us. I think the best way to perform on stage is to be natural. People like when we are natural .You can check out our new video in youtube “Fruits of Pain and Blue Sky” to see how we perform.


6. Do you have any touring plans for the new release?

Of course.We contacted an agency that is now working to organize a number of shows for us in Europe. We have plans to play on other continents too. We are working hard to organize as many shows as possible.


7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your newer album by death metal fans?

I can’t say exactly. What I see is that people like the album. I hope more and more people will continue to discover us and enjoy our music.


8. Are there any other projects besides this band or is this a full time line up?

Yes… I personally play in other bands too. I play with one black metal band and a couple of grindcore bands. Our guitar player Vasil also plays in a few other projects as a guest musician. Our two new guys Andrei-guitar and Rumen-bass also play in other bands. They started playing in Enthrallment recently and they are doing just fine. But no matter in what other projects I play Enthrallment is my priority band.


9. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

It will definitely be death metal style. Now we are trying to find our individual and unique style, the Enthrallment style. We want to show our own style to the fans. I am sure that many bands have gone through this kind of process. Of course, we have big ambitions. As far as our future sound and style will look like depends on ourselves and our mood.






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

The 90s old school death metal has had a great influence on our music. These days I don’t listen to music as I used to listen as a teenager. Maybe this is because I spend a lot of time in my studio to record metal bands.
Recently, I heard songs from the new albums of Cattle Decapitation and Dying Fetus and I liked them a lot. I think that their new albums will be great.
As far as I know our guitar player Vasil has been listening a lot to Chris Rea recently.


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

All my interests are connected with music. Almost day and night I spend time working with music in my studio. At the moment I am preparing a compilation with Bulgarian death, black and grind bands .Until the end of the year I will release the compilation and you will hear these bands that you probably have never heard before.


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

Thank you for the interview. You can learn more info about our band in myspace.com/enthrallment and on our new facebook page facebook.com/Enthrallment.      Stay brutal!

Infected/Infected Generation/Metal Scrap Records/2012 CD Re-Issue Review

   Infected  are  a  band  from  Ukraine  that  plays  a  death  metal  with  a  grindcore  edge  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  1996  album  "Infected  Generation"  which  was  re-issued  by  Metal  Scrap  Records  during  the  year  of  2012.

  Drums  range from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming with  some  brutal  sounding  blast  beats  being  thrown  in  at  times,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  sound  with  heavy  riffs  that  dominate  throughout  the  recording  with  some  bass  leads  being  utilized  at  times.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  death  metal  riffs  that  incorporate  a  great  amount  of  thrash  and grindcore  influences  in  the  riffing,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  a  very  melodic  sounding  death  metal guitar  solos  and  leads,  as  for  the  classical  guitars  when  they  are  utilized  briefly  they  use  finger  picking to  add  some  darkness  to  the  music.

  Vocals  are  mostly  deep  death  metal  growls  with  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  as  well  as  some  clean  singing  being  utilized  on  one  song,  while  the  lyrics  cover  philosophical,  hateful  and  everyday  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  powerful,  strong,  heavy  and professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present on  the  recording.

  In  my  opinion  Infected  are  a  very  great  sounding  death  metal  band  with  a  grindcore  edge  and if  you  are  a  fan  of  this style,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Infected  Generation"  "Alcoholic  Storm/Flotsam  And  Jetsam"  "Pimply  Life"  and  "Sova".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

Neuronia/Insanity Relapse/Metal Scrap Records/2012 EP Review

  Neuronia  are  a  band  from  Poland  that  has  had t heir  previous  album reviewed  before  in  this  zine  which  was  a  melodic  death  metal  album  and  they  evolved  more  into  a  power  metal  band  with  this  release  and  this  is  a r eview  of  their  2012  ep  "Insanity  Relapse"  which  was  released  by  Metal  Scrap  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  not  much  in  the  way  of  blast  beats,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  dark  tone  with  riffs  that  follow  the  riffing  that  is  coming  out  of  the guitars.

  Rhythm guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  riffs  that  combine  melodic  death  metal  with  thrash  and  power  metal  with  the  style  being  different  than  the  previous  album,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  melodic  sounding  guitar  solos  and  leads.

  Vocals  are  mostly  clean  singing  power  metal  vocals  with  some  death  metal  growls  being  used  briefly,  while  the  lyrics  cover  everyday  themes,  as  for  the  production it  has  a  very  strong,  powerful,  heavy  and  professional  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on this  recording.

  In  my  opinion this  is  a  good  recording  from  Neuronia  and  while  it  is  alot  different  than  their  older  material  I  still  feel  this  is  still  a  good  mixture  of  power  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  into  this  style, you  should  check  out  this  recording.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Alone  In  The  Dark"  and  "Kick  The  Fuckers  Out".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.