Hail Bror, first of all let me to congratulate for Unanimated LP “Victory in Blood”. As I’ve written in my Hungarian review in Kronos Mortus, your newest material will be my favourite release for 2021. How went the recording process? Who has/have been the main song- and lyric writer(s)? Italian painter Daniel Valeriani created a brilliant artwork for you. How did you meet him?
- Hey man! Well, it has been a long process for us. It has taking a great deal of time, the road has been difficult and hard. Nothing was easy. Just the studio time alone was over a year, mostly because of the Corona. The writing of all the music has been going through layers, sending songs and ideas to one and another, tearing it down and building it up. I think we all have a part in every song written, in some way. Also in the recording aspects, there´s a process going through.
We were so lucky we had Daniele Valeriani making his artwork, that was just perfect for the album. Richard contacted him, that's all I know really.
It's just awesome that Set Teitan has been involved on 2 tracks of “Victory in Blood”, namely “As the Night Takes Us” and Sarcófago cover “Satanic Lust”. How did happen that demonic alliance between Set and Unanimated? I joined a lot Unanimated lyric videos. Do you have any plans to make new one(s)?
- Yes, Set has been with us for some time now and involved in many ways for many years. He did a great work on the album as well, as he always do.
Yes, We have two videos out now, 'Victory in Blood', (visualizer video) and 'As the Night Takes Us' (Lyric video). And there will be a third video, coming soon..
Your awesome on-man Black Death band Contempt Of The Light’s “In the Darkest of Times” is another my favourite release of 2021. Where could buy the fans this excellent LP and in which formats?
-Well, At the moment the label and COTL is not working great together. There are some disagreements about copyrights etc. and so on. Nothing more needs to be said at this point except that COTL will probably look for another label to work with.
What is the situation with your other one-man band Born For Burning? Did you write any new tracks last time?
- Yeah, that is correct! Two new tracks has been written, and a new single will be released at Critical Mass Recordings sometime under 2022!
I’m so thankful for sending me your amazing songs of another project Daemonium Regni. When we could to listen to all the tracks of that Infernal creation?
- Oh I don’t really know anymore. I guess you can find some old tracks on Youtube, actually Contempt Of The Light is a further development of Daemonium Regni.
You sent me last time the link from Youtube where I could listen to all the songs of your The 13th Passenger’s “The Way of the Daemon” and I must say all of them are just brilliant ones. When and where will be released this excellent LP?
- Yes, I have finished the album. 13 tracks of Stoner/Metal/Rock/Psychedelic/Black Sabbath kind of sound. Its the same with this project, I need a label. Or maybe I don’t, and I just release it all by myself, and fuck all of you! Haha
Swedish Iron Fist Productions released on tapes of your killer Massive Destruction 5 tracks demo in August 2020. How were responses about it so far? Do you plan to write more Thrash songs and release then a full length in the near future?
- Yes I do have plans for that, I want to release a full length album for Massive Destruction! In progress..
Artwork/logo made by: Thomas Väänänen
In our latest conversation you mentioned my good old Swedish friend Tobias Fongelius’ Voodus. What is your opinion about their latest releases? Which hordes do you listen to nowadays?
- Yeah, their new album is great! Actually, I don’t listen much to anything new these days. It is very limited, I just can’t find anything that is as great as it was before. I don’t care for the new waves of BM at all, very few is great.
Do you have any favourite books/authors and actors and movies?
- Well, yeah I like old books about mythological creatures. And I read a lot about old Norse literature, and folklore.
One of my favourite author and illustrator is Swedish, Johan Egerkrans.
One of my favorite movies are Hannibal and Bram Stoker's Dracula, great movies.
Perhaps you know that I dedicated Archangel’s Lantern for the Eternal Memory of my poor bride Kate (who was a huge fan of Unanimated/Celestial Pain) and also to Jon Nödtveidt and this year Lars-Göran Petrov. I’m still so honoured that you were the first musician who answered me back in the day, 9th of August, 2013.
What are your favourite tracks/releases of Jon’s and Lars-Göran’s heritage? Are there any memories about Lars-Göran?
- Well yes. The obvious answers are of course everything recorded by Dissection and for me the 'Left Hand Path' by Entombed. I did not know L-G that personally, I have met him hundreds of times through the years, always happy and smiling. But we were not close.
Tack så mycket Micke, it was a pleasure to talk to you again. Your message to the readers…
Hail Luiz, I’m so honoured to make this interview with you for my small own inferno Archangel’s Lantern. Let’s start with your latest news of Vulcano:
The band recorded a new full-length in October. When will be released your new masterpiece? Tell the readers more about the recording process. Which label will be unleashed it?
Luiz Carlos Louzada – Hey, Georgius! What´s up? Yeah, Vulcano recorded another studio album during this fucking pandemic times. No tours to support alive our albums, but we have health, so let´s work in new music! This time our new album “Stone Orange” will be out through Emanzipation Prods, from Denmark, a label from Target Group. We released our last studio effort “Eye in Hell” in 2020 through Mighty Music, a company also from Target Group. Emazipation Prods released 2 singles from our upcoming album (you can listen this stuff on Spotify, Youtube Music and a lot of others choices). We´ll have a 3rd single to be release soon and finally, we´ll have “Stone Orange” available on stores and streamings. We were working on this stuff since mid 2020 when our agency in London cancelled our European tour because the pandemic. We started to record on 2021/February and finished the mix on 2021/May. I think this new album is the most fastest Vulcano stuff from the last decade, and if you´re like Blackened Thrash/Speed bands, you´ll enjoy it!
You sent me an awesome track from Australian horde Putrid Hope, where you are involved as well. Enlighten us about this awesome alliance.
LCL – Putrid Hope is a new Death Metal band that starts activities in 2020 and the “boss” is my friend Pedro Bueno, Punctured Wound guitarist. He lives in Gold Coast, a city in Queensland Estate, Australia. When Zhema was working on new riffs to Vulcano, the others guys of the band had a lot of time to do another projetcs. So I was talking with Pedro about the bad times with covid and he told me that have a bunch of songs that he wrote but was no used in Punctured Wound. He send me 3 or 4 songs and I asked him to put vocals. He did a mix in his own studio and after that we planned to do an entire album. So he joined forces with other 2 Australian musicians and I invited my friend Ricardo Lima to do some guitar solos (he played with me in bands like Chemical Disaster, Predatory, Front Attack Line and Repulsão Explícita). With the line-up completed, we finished 10 songs, and released 3 singles (check it on Bandcamp and Youtube). Pedro are dealing with a Canadian label to release our debut album, soon he finish the mix.
Would you be so kind to talk about other band where you are playing, namely Hierarchical Punishment?
LCL – This band was formed in 1994 and always did a mix of Death Metal and Grindcore. I joined the band in 2001 as vocalist and in a few months we recorded our 3rd demo “Res Derelicta”. At that time we worked to spread our stuff in a lot of compilations through many underground labels. In 2006 we released our 4th demo “My Life is a Torture” and still being part of compilations-CDs and before our 1st album, we released in 2010 a 3-way split-cd with Forbidden Ideas… (Brazil) and Agathocles (Belgium). Then we finally released our debut-cd “The Humanity Walks This Way” in 2014. But in the end of 2014 the band had some line-up changes, and I went to drums. Our 2nd album “The Choice” was released in 2017 and it´s half studio songs (with me singing in 4 old songs), plus a live gig we did in 2015 (with me on drums). Our 3rd album “Psychotic Disorders” was released in 2021 and it´s our best stuff, totally into Death Metal! Check it out on internet!
Brazilian Front Attack Line will release its debut album. (You told me, you were their drummer some years ago and now you are the vocalist) Share with us all the important information of Front Line Attack.
LCL – I knew Front Attack Line when Allan Farias (guitar and founding member) give me a copy of the 1st demo “Mass Destruction” from 2007. In 2010 I played drums together Allan and André (Front Attack Line bass player) in a band called Intrisicum and some months after I leave this band, Allan asked me to join Front Attack Line to record a 2nd demo. So in 2011 we start to rehearse the songs to be part of “Conflicts of War” demo, that was released in 2012. In 2014 we start to record a 3rd demo, but Allan decide to move to another city far from Santos (where I live) and he reformulate the line-up with another musicians. At the same time he enter Circle of Infinite (a Thrash Metal band from Limeira city) and Front Attack Line was on hold. In the end of 2020, Allan asked me to rejoin the band as vocalist, so he bring back the songs he wrote in the past for the unfinished 3rd demo and wrote some more new stuff. I recorded all vocals in my home studio and the mix and mastering was done by Ivan Pellicciotti (ex-Vulcano bass player). We just release our 1st single “Brainwashing” from our upcoming debut-album and everyone can check the 2 demos and this new single on Spotify, Youtube…Thrash Metal as its best!!!!
What is the current situation with Chemical Disaster? (Your latest release was a split material “Pain of Chemical Sufferings” with Swedish old schoolers of In Pain 2 years ago). By the way what is your opinion about In Pain’s full-length “The Sound of Death”?
LCL – After the release of the split-cd with In Pain, we changed our drummer, and during the 1st pandemic year, Chemical Disaster release 2 songs in different tribute albums through Armadillo Recs (from UK): we did “Watchin’ You” (from 1974 Kiss 2nd album “Hotter Than Hell”) and “Wrathchild” (from 1981 Iron Maiden 2nd album “Killers”). At the same time we wrote 8 new Death Metal songs for our 5th album and recorded a pre-production of this stuff. In the end of 2021 we recorded a version of “More Than a Feeling” from Boston debut album (1976) that will be released in another tribute album through Secret Service Recs (also from UK) maybe in the middle of 2022. But things are harder, and we had some line-up changes after this recording process, and now our bass player are with covid-19, so we need to stop rehearsals. I hope we come back to finish 2 more new songs, and start the recordings. Let´s see… And about In Pain debut album is amazing! I love their typical Swedish sound. These guys are pretty awesome!
You’ve found a Brazilian Thrash/Death record label Violent Records in August 2004, if I’m not mistaken. How many stuff you’ve released through the years? Are there any plans for new ones in the near future?
LCL – I always was a tape-trader in the past, so when I start with Violent Recs I continue to promote underground music, releasing bands all over Brazil and as you know we are a country with more than 210 million people here, so we have a lot of cool bands to promote. With Violent Recs I released 84 pro-done albums and released demos (cd-r format) of my bands. But in 2012 I decided to starts a new label with a different approach (as Violent Recs runs to a more Death/Black/Thrash direction), so Bagaça Recs was born to release some bands in the vein of Punk, Stoner, Metal/Rock, Grind, Heavy styles, and we did 17 pro-done CDs. Both labels together, we released 101 albums. It´s a good number to an independent company.
According to Encyclopaedia Metallum, you are playing in such hordes, as KillMister (vocals), Predatory (drums), Preguh (drums) Repulsão Explícita (drums). Would you be so kind to tell some thoughts about these bands?
LCL – Yeah! I do the vocals in KillMister and we mix Heavy Metal with R&R but it is on hold since pandemic starts in 2020/March. Gerson Fajardo (guitar player) told me that he pretend to write new stuff. We released 2 cds with some killer bonus live tracks from a session tribute that we did for Motörhead. Gerson plays with me in Vulcano since 2016. Predatory was a Thrash Metal band that I play drums for 11 years; we recorded 3 demos and a “full-length” but this band no exist anymore since 2015. Preguh is a band that mix Hardcore with some Grindcore and Thrash influences; I was their drummer and we recorded a demo (“O Império e a Favela” from 2007) and participate in some compilations-cd. In 2013 we released a 3-way split-cd with Agathocles (Belgium) and Archagathus (Canada). I´m not playing anymore with Preguh, but the band recorded new stuff with another line-up. Repulsão Explícita was formed in 2001 and I was their drummer until 2015, recording all stuff that was released. We start doing Punk/HC with some heavy riffs, but after our 4th demo “Terra e Vida” (from 2006) the songs had more Grindcore and Thrash Metal influences. We released 2 albums (1st in 2011 and 2nd in 2014). After some years on holding, I was invited to rejoin the band and now we´re working in songs to be our 3rd album.
KillMister
Which vocalists and drummers influenced you back in the day and what are your favourite ones nowadays?
LCL – I start as a young fan of Bruce Dickinson, Bon Scott, Ronnie James Dio, Ian Gillan, Paul Stanley, Klaus Meine as singers, and Ian Paice, Nicko McBrain, Vinnie Appice, Nigel Glocker, Neil Peart as drummer, in the beginning of ‘80s. But when I start my own bands I was 100% into Death Metal, listening bands like Bolt Thrower, Grave, Obituary, Dismember, Morgoth, Unleashed, Pestilence, Entombed, and listen a lot of Brazilian bands such as Vulcano, Sarcófago, Panic, Mutilator, Korzus, Chakal, Attomica, Sepultura, Taurus, Holocausto, Psÿchic Possessor… Well, nowadays, I still listening all this bands but of course, as a musician, everyday we can discover on internet good new singers or drummers.
Almost 12 years ago (on the 27th of October, 2010) my good old Swedish friend Tobias Fongelius (ex-Jormundgand, Voodus) via his Burning Eye Productions organized in Gothenburg/Göteborg a massive metal evening when Swedish RAM, Nifelheim and Vulcano played. How do you remember that awesome event? Which Swedish bands are your personal favourites?
LCL – Maaaaaaan, this was our 1st time playing in Gothenburg and it was so fucking cool; a sold out gig!!!!!!! Vulcano & Nifelheim released in 2007 a split-ep but this time was our 1st gig together, and the guys was so crazy and friendly that we build a great true friendship. I think I had see about 36 Nifelheim entire shows from this 1st time in 2010. We toured twice in Europe with this motherfuckers (2013 & 2014)! About Swedish bands, I mentioned some cool bands in my previous answer, but I can include now In Pain (of course!), Dissection, Candlemass, Bathory, God Among Insects, Hypocrisy, Those Who Bring the Torture, Dark Funeral, Witchery, At the Gates, Krux… Sweden rules!
I’ve watched today Vulcano’s brilliant live performance (Live at Black Winter Festival) in Gliwice, Poland 21.XI.2019. Are there any memories from that evening? Did you play in other countries that year?
LCL – This gig in Poland was amazing! The festival was full of true headbangers! We played together Profanatica (from US) and I remember that we drink a lot of shots of Vodka ‘cause was a freezing night! 2019 was our 6th European tour and this Poland gig was in the middle of the tour. We also did gigs in countries like Netherlands, France, Belgium, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Germany, Czech Republic, UK, Spain, Portugal… We did the tour between November/December 2019.
As far as I know you are from Santos. I’ve seen some beautiful photos about your nice city. (Unfortunately I’ve never been in Brazil so far) What interesting places could you recommend me to visit in Santos? Brazilian cuisine is very rich and tasty. Which local drinks and foods are your recommendations?
LCL – Santos is a city in an island, so we have cool beaches and a lot of sunny days. In our region (called “Baixada Santista”) we have 9 cities and Santos is the city with most inhabitants (about 434.000 people lives here in Santos) in 281.000 km2. We have one of the most important ports of the Latin America. But about tourism there´s a lot of cool places to know like museums, aquariums, tours across the island, or boat trips, and if you like football, you should visit the Santos F.C. team stadium (where Pelé played for many years). Brazilian cuisine is influenced by the many different nationalities of the immigrants who colonized our country. If you like chicken you can try “Frango à Passarinho”, that is crispy pieces of fried spices chicken, with French fries. Or you can taste any fish options, that is very common here.
Perhaps you know that my small blog is dedicated to the memory of Jon Andreas Nödtveidt and after the departure of Lars-Göran Petrov I put a dedication to poor Lars as well.
What is your opinion about them and share with us your favourite tracks and albums from their heritage. Did you meet and play with them live?
LCL – I didn´t have the chance to share the stage with Jon or Lars, but their extreme art will live forever in the hearts and minds of fans around the world. Lars recorded a lot of stuff, with different bands, but his most important album for me is “Left Hand Path”, from 1990 (the title track is incredible). And 5 years after this classic album, Jon released the 2nd Dissection album “Storm of the Light’s Bane”, an amazing full-length that mix melody and mid-tempo parts (like in “Where Dead Angels Lie”) and brutal stuff with insane vocals like in “Soulreaper”. Jon also recorded many work with different bands, but I think he was so young when decided to finish his time on Earth… Just 31 years old…
Brazilian underground scene is has a lot of amazing bands. What hordes are your favourites since the beginnings and in our days?
LCL – Wow, another question that I already listed some cool bands before, but l need to say that I like very much bands as Dorsal Atlântica, Paura, Tortured Squad, Ação Direta, Krisiun, Oligarquia, Sociedade Armada, Infector, Clamus, Suffocation of Soul, Rotten Penetration, Mata Borrão, Atropina, Thrashera, Daimonos, Morfolk, HeadKrusher, Justabeli, Visceral Slaughter, Evil Empire, Reffugo and many other bands!
Obrigado/Thank you very much Luiz. Send please some thoughts in the end to complete this interview.
LCL – Georgius, I really enjoyed the interview! And I like to say to everyone that read this, to check on internet all my bands and the releases I did with Violent
Recs and Bagaça Recs. You can find a lot of stuff on Youtube, Bandcamp, Soundcloud, Spotify, and social medias like Facebook, Instagram…
How did you both come up with the idea of creating a metal band?
Sasha & Sonja: The band Hellcats was formed by the two of us, we are also the authors of the lyrics and music, while Sasha also manages the band. Due to the small size of Slovenian music space it took us a while to find the right female musicians willing to play and create music in such a genre. The thing that motivated us and still does is love and dedication to the music in general. We started to perform together early in childhood when we were still in music school. Sasha played classical guitar and Sonja flute. Later on she switched to drums and Sasha to bass guitar. We started searching for the other band members in 2003, but we needed some time to realize it, and in 2006 we had our first gig and that is the real start for us.
I guess you both must be very proud to be the only female metal band in your country; and the first metal band from that part of Europe. Do you both feel any added pressure on it?
Sasha & Sonja: It is not easy to form a female band, especially in the country of 2 million inhabitants. There are not a lot of girls who play instruments such as drums, electrical guitar and bass. We are the first and still the only all-female metal band in our country. We have a lot of supporters, but in the past there were some skeptics among metal men in Slovenia who thought that women can't be as good musicians as men. Rockers are more enthusiastic about everything we do. But as we can see, the things are getting better in Europe, there is many more female musician and our supporters, especially in the northern countries.
How did you both come up with the name of the band?
Sasha & Sonja: We were looking for the name for quite a long time, for about two years. Then the name came out by our good friend Bico who is a guy who knows an awful lot about airplanes. He named us after The Grumman F6F Hellcat, a carrier-based fighter aircraft. But for us the name means much more than just an airplane.
You both have had several changes in your line-up in the band, especially to the vocals. What did each of them bring to the band? How was the choice of Karmen, the current vocalist?
Sasha & Sonja: Since the beginning of the band there was several changes in line-up. It is hard for some people to discover what the thing they want to be dedicated to is. For us that was never the question. We always knew we want to make music and Hellcats band is our life project. Anyway, every member of our band brought something in and the band developed. We learned a lot about relationships. We know from the beginning what we want from our members. But in such a small country is hard to find always the right person, with similar ideas. So we stopped limiting ourselves and started to look outside of the box. If someone truly wants to be a part of our band, there is always the way to make it happen. We met Karmen in 2014, when she came to our concert with a friend we also knew. At first we became friends. At that time we had a singer and didn’t really think about changes. But with Karmen we became better and better friends, we spend a lot of time together and found out, we are good for each other. We have great time at rehearsals, share interests and are all dedicated to music.
Karmen, like every musician, everyone has their own style and way of doing things; but what can you say about the work of the previous vocalists? Apart from Hellcats have you previously been in any other band? Also as a vocalist?
Karmen: About the work of previous vocalists I’d say, that everyone has their own style and way of doing things ☺
Music is a big part of my life, so I did have quite a few bands before Hellcats. I’m also a singer of Slovenian band called Rock Partyzani, for more than 7 years now. I think my singing and performing experiences are also the reasons, Sasha and Sonja invited me to be a part of their band, besides friendship.
Sasha, you studied and played classical guitar in school , why the change to playing bass? Do you still play the guitar?
Sasha: I still play the classical guitar, the classical education helps me while composing new songs but in a band I love to be a bassist.
What can you all say about the female music scene in metal music in your country? What do you all think about the female music scene in metal music in the world? Is there a female band that has inspired you all?
Hellcats: In Slovenia the female music scene in metal music is really poor. We are still the only all-female metal band here. There are only few female metal individuals in male bands, but we think it should be more of them. Girls love to go to metal concerts, they just don’t decide to start playing instruments. Or they start and soon they quit, when they see it is not as easy as they thought it would be. Having a metal band is still mostly male occupation here. When we started in 2003 there were no other bands like us in this part of Europe. But we are noticing that there are more of metal female musicians all over the world that it used to be, when we started to play. There are some female bands and female musicians that had influence on us – Rock Goddess, Vixen, Girlschool, Pat Benatar.. We were and still are inspired by their power, music writing and dedication.
I understand that to encourage and promote the women of your country in music, you both have created a festival dedicated exclusively to female artists. Whose idea was it, how was the process? Has it been well received in your country?
Sasha & Sonja: Dan Rock Žena (The day of woman in Rock) is a music festival which has an all-female line-up, that means that for one day only girls are allowed to hit the stage. The festival supports female musician by giving them the place in music they deserve and encourages them into music and also helps them to present their original music. Dan Rock Žena takes place in Ljubljana around 8th of March - the International Women's Day which is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women and is a focal point in the movement for woman's rights.
We are supporting women in music, we are always glad to see girls who play electrical guitar, bass and drums. That was the main reason to create the festival back in 2015, to dedicate it to women in music. It was always well visited and well accepted by the audience. Last year we had to cancel it due to the Covid-19 restrictions but we already make plans for this year. We hope we could make it, since the Covid restrictions are still present.
Like many bands you sing in your language, Slovenian and English as well. Have you both been inspired by bands to sing in your language, since normally, almost all the bands usually sing in English?
Sasha & Sonja: When we started to create songs we had some songs in Slovenian and some in English language. Since we have a lot of fans here and in other countries, we decided to make everything in both languages. It became important to us to be able to create music in Slovenian language and show it to the world. We are proud to have our own language since we are a small nation. Some fans prefer English, some Slovene. The meaning of the songs in both languages are the same.
In 2011 came out your first EP, "Hellcats"; and later, in 2013, your debut album "Divja Pot" was released (in my opinion it's a great old school Heavy Metal LP. Among my favorite songs are "Heavy Metal", "Prerojena", and the title track: "Divja Pot". I would like ask you both to talk about how the whole process of creating the album was? (what inspired you both to compose, the recording stuff...)
Sasha & Sonja: The authors of the songs are both of us. The thing that motivated us and still does is love and dedication to the music in general. But the main thing is that we, besides that we are sisters; we are also the best friends. We are motivating each others from the childhood when we started to perform together, when we were still in music school. We always listen to each others and talk about everything what we wanted to do.
The process of creating starts with the lyrics and the classical guitar actually. We both, have classical education in music and that really helps in the composing process. So we sing and play till we like it both. We work by the feeling and inspiration. A lot of songs were written at the seaside where we like to go as often as we can. We need peaceful environment, where we can create without disturb. When the song is written we record a demo and send it or go to rehearsal space and show it to the girls. We rehearse until we are ready to hit the studio. The two of us are present at each recording, we always record everything by ourselves, we don’t hire professional musicians to record songs instead of us, which many of people do.
After such a long time, I guess all of you already have new ideas and new material for your second album. Can you give us any news about it?
Sasha & Sonja: We are working on a new album and some other projects. As soon as situation about Covid19 will be normal, we will release a single with a video. Then we will release a new album. If it will be full-length or EP is too soon to tell. After that we are going on a tour.
What are your musical influences? What musical styles do you like? What bands/musicians inspired all of you to be a musician? Your top10 all-time favourite bands/albums are?
Sasha &Sonja: There was numerous of Thrash, Heavy Metal and Hard Rock bands that had a big influence on our band. Our favorite bands are Pantera, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Mötley Crüe, AC/DC, Sepultura, Warlock and many more. We grew up with them. They helped us to become who we are today.
Karmen: I grew up with with classic rock bands like Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, The Rolling Stones, Queen, CCR, Dire Straits, Eagles, Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, The Beatles, ZZ Top etc. For me It’s so nostalgic listening to those bands. I was also always a huge fan of 80’s glam rock bands, like Mötley Crue, Skid Row, Whitesnake, Def Leppard etc. In high school I discovered Iron Maiden and since then I’m in love with heavy metal. Iron Maiden is still one of my favorite metal bands. I also love Pantera, Slipknot, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, Dio and many others. To be honest, this world has so much of amazing music, It’s really hard to pick just a few bands☺ I listen to other genres too. Can’t imagine my playlist without classical music. Tchaikovsky for example is one of my favorite composers since I heard his music for the first time, which was in Disney movies, when I was a child.
Has the public left aside all the prejudices they could have about your image and focus solely and exclusively on your musical quality?
Hellcats: Actually we didn’t really hear prejudices about our image. We were always showing people who we are, why we are and what we are showing to them. And that has always been our dedication to music. We are always saying: “We are Hellcats from Slovenia- all female Heavy Metal band, who writes, records and performs the music by ourselves!” We believe we are always taken serious, because we are serious about what we do. We are thankful to everyone who gives us opportunity to be able to go on with our work. We would like people to be optimistic and to enjoy life, to be more aware of their values and to believe that they have a right to do whatever makes them happy. This thinking helps to get rid of all prejudices.
This damn Pandemic has upset everyone's plans. All of you, like any band, already had plans and dates confirmed (in U.K. and some other place). And it seems to be (at least that's what we hope and wish everyone) that in 2022 "normality" will return and events and big festivals will return. Do all of you still have, at the very least, the same plans and keep the dates all of you had confirmed? Have all of you added more dates for Europe?
Hellcats: Covid-19 affected musicians and everybody in music industry. All the events are being canceled again, so there is no live performances in which we enjoy the most. We just hope all this will end asap, so it will not affect musician industry too much in a long term. We had to cancel quite a lot of tours this couple of years – UK tour, Switzerland, all Europe tour, Croatia etc. But fortunately they are still waiting for us, so nothing was cancelled, just postponed, so we are looking forward to do it in near future.
All of you have played in small pubs, local radios and televisions, and also in big festivals. Where do you all feel most comfortable playing? Where do you all like to play the most?
Hellcats: We played in many clubs and in festival all over Europe. Each one of them has its own charm. Small clubs are more intimate/personal, you connect with public more, but on the other hand big stages are attractive because of you can really show a performance and see how crowd reacts. It is wonderful to hear bunch of people sing your songs. We like both. Small and big venues.
Do all of you have any special hobbies?
Hellcats: We have our own special hobbies and one in common which is dancing. Since Sonja is a dance teacher she formed a dancing group named Showcats and we were all training every week. It is great to do more things together, it brings us closer together. And we do something good for our bodies and souls.
Which places and metal festivals do all of you recommend us to visit in Slovenia?
Hellcats: We recommend the best club in our country named Orto bar which was kind of a ‘second home’ to us in one period of our lives. We played there numerous of times and it is the best place to relax and drink a beer with a friend as well as going to a great concert. It is a rock bar, but also has metal nights and concerts in different genres. The best and biggest festival in Slovenia is Metalcamp/Metaldays festival which is held annually in Tolmin a small town near beautiful Soča River, since 2004. The festival has been more popular every year with more media coverage and in order to not let it grow too big, in 2010 the tickets were limited to 12,000. It is best relaxation, metal vacation for many people from all over the world. We performed there twice. In 2010 and in 2011.
Do all of you keep all equipment from what you started with from the very beginning?
Sonja: I still have my first set of drums which are waiting to be renovated. But I’m still saving them.
Sasha: Yes, I still keep my equipment and my first bass guitar Ibanez 1989 RG 760 special edition.
Karmen: Well my first wish actually wasn’t singing. When I was about 5 years old I wanted to play the piano, because I saw on TV, how Jerry Lee Lewis did it. And I thought It was amazing, with setting the piano on fire and playing with feet haha ☺ In Slovenia you can’t start studying in music school before you’re 7 years old. So I had to wait for another two years, to get my piano. I will never forget that huge pink bow on top of that black piano, that I got for my birthday. I finished music school with that piano and it’s still a part of my living room. With singing there’s not much equipment, except microphone and IEMs. Unfortunately I don’t have my first stage microphone anymore. I also got it as a birthday present from my band members but somebody stole it, after one of my gigs. I have to admit, my heart was broken.
What has been your favourite gig from all these years?
Sasha & Sonja: Our favorite gig was at Metalcamp festival 2010 and later in 2016 at Metal Frankonia festival near Würzburgh in Germany.
Karmen: It was one of the smallest, but was a very special gig for me. We were playing in some village in Austria, but it was such a nice adventure. We were laughing all the time on our way there and we had a special guest on stage, who spiced the music up a bit with keyboards.
Which bands from your country would you recommend to me?
- Laibach.
Well Sasha, Sonja, Karmen; it has been a pleasure to be able to do this interview with all of you. I leave all of you these last lines so that all of you can add and say something else. Thank you very much for your time.
Hellcats: We would like to thank our fans who are supporting us all these years: Thank you all! Stay as you are, believe in what you do, don’t listen to people who want to change you too much and enjoy every minute of it!
Hail brother Vandal you are very welcome to my small own inferno Archangel’s Lantern! First of all my congratulations for your latest killer album called “Psychosis”, it’s an awesome Death/Thrash metal attack! Would you be so kind to tell the readers your new LP track by track in your own worlds? (song and lyric-writing process, guest musicians and more)
Vandal: Hails brother! Thank you so much for your patience and dedication!
And also, thanks for your kind words about the album.
Uh, it’s difficult to discuss tracks separately, as they all together create a whole.
They are all focused on a mental health problems worldwide, and people who actually act mental to make some sick ideas come true.
Each song shows a different perspective on mental illness, and I tried to make it personal, as much as I could. I see it all the time how people with severe mental health challenges receive inhumane treatment, which makes me sick. False morality, corrupted systems, human values are lost, ignorance… that’s the world we are living in.
Psychosis is about a fight among different personas within one person. Who’s going to win, makes the future questionable.
"Hail Fire, Hail Death" is about eternal discrepancy of live and death, of fire and water, good and evil. Sides of a human nature when it comes to the burning point can be changed in a second. Igor Miladinovic was a special guest in chorus, with his killer voice, and I really believe that he is one of the best singers on Balkans.
Another track, "The Last Cremation" is a song about depression and suicidal thoughts of a young man. Ross Dolan & Bob Vigna from IMMOLATION were our guests on this track. Their contribution was of immense value to us, as they brought more power and energy to the song that emphasizes the importance of the theme it was inspired by.
Nuclear Deathrash is a legacy to new generations and our old friends, brothers, fans and warriors all around the world. It’s a salute to all the people who are keeping the flames alive.
But as I said, all the songs create a path for the listener to walk through and contemplate the meaning and complexity of mental illness. This is in many ways a harsh and neglectful world, and we should keep eyes on each other as much as we can. And when we add religious interventions with their hypocrisy and blasphemy, you see a world full of shit.
That’s why we tried to make a parallel between religion, mental state, hypocrisy, atrocity and lack of humanity, all in one, to make a message clearer.
Unfortunately I had no chances to have a trip to Hódmezővásárhely/Hungary (Lowland Fest) to see and meet you live in August this year. How do you remember that show?
Vandal: It was a great pleasure to be there and be a part o such a great festival. The moment we arrived we realized that it was going to be the one to remember. People were so crazy, moshing all the time, and after we finished the show, there was a huge party in the tents, so it was a long night. Promoters were amazing and they gave their best to make it the best for us! I really hope we will meet soon in Hungary and have a beer!
Infest played with Nemesis and Legendary Bombarder on the 2nd of October in Belgrade last time. I just suppose how it was amazing that event… Share us please your experiences.
Vandal: Uh, playing in our hometown is always special. The occasion was also very special, because it was 20-year anniversary of GROM RECORDS, which we is family. Bombarder was such a blast! Neso and the boys are really killing it, and listening Bombarder playing live is always a special event!
Nemesis is all-girls Death metal band, and if you still haven’t had a chance to listen to their music, please do, you will not regret it! They have the attitude, skills and sound better than many all-man bands ☺
As I’m an old headbanger I have a big respect to Bombarder for a long time. Infest joined together with other great hordes to play some covers for the honour of Legendary Bombarder on
a “Tribute to Bombarder-Hail to Bombarder” (Grom Records) in 2013. I like a lot your “Horde” cover, it’s just excellent! Let’s talk a little bit about this unique release.
Vandal: Oh I agree. Bombarder is a special one to all of us! Thanks for your words about "Horde"! I like that song a lot, and I believe it really fits in properly, with all the bands on the compilation.
All of the bands on the compilation should be given credit for making it sound so brutal.
Through the years Infest shared a lot of times the stages with Swedish Turbocharged. What are your favourite tracks/albums from them? Are there any interesting/funny stories from your common tours?
Vandal: Turbochared are family. We have so many funny moments with them, that we could make a book out of them ☺ From the alco-devastation every night and fart competitions in the van, up to all of the shitty stuff bands usually do on the tour ☺ I am a huge fan of Turbocharged, and it would be hard to pick a favorite song or album, but I could only say that, wherever you go, keep in mind that THIS IS AREA 666!
If I’m not mistaken Infest has been formed in 2002. Tell us briefly the history of the band. Which musicians (guitarists and vocalists) inspired you in the beginnings and have you any favorite ones nowadays?
Vandal: When I hear it was 2002, I feel quite old ☺
Hmm, I am really open-minded to different genres of music, but modern age music isn’t really my thing. I was a huge fan of Hard Rock bands, and heavy metal from the 80’ and death & thrash metal from the 90’. Extreme metal was always fascinating to me, since I was a kid. I remember I was the only kid on the block listening to extreme music, and then you get to know more people that have the same interests. Later on, you either choose to quit and treat it as a phase or you commit to it as a lifelong passion. Back in the childhood days, I can say that Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Slayer, Metallica, WASP, Sepultura… and many more, were my favorite. As I was growing up, my respect and love for those bands haven’t faded, but I have also discovered a lot of new bands, like Immolation, Grave, Dismember, Vader, Unleashed, Cannibal Corpse, Suffocation, Dissection, Asphyx, Desaster and many more, all of which really influenced me greatly.
I must be honest and say that I am still trapped in the 90’ music, and I am not a fan of modern metal, so I haven’t discovered some new bands, but I really like the progress that old school bands make with the sound, production and stage performance.
Serbian underground scene has a lot of great hordes. How do you describe your scene back in the day and our days? Let’s speak about your past activity in different hordes. Are you playing currently in other band beside Infest?
Vandal: Serbia has a lot of great quality bands! Really, people could not believe that these bands are from the Balkans. The biggest problem is the lack of support from the media – almost non-existent. Only a few dedicated maniacs are trying with webzines and magazines, which run mostly on love for the music since they too struggle to get financial support.
I also sing in a band named “Gavranovi”. Back in the days, I was a session bass player of the band The Stone, and before that, I was a guitarist in Decrepancy. Also, I was a part of Bane, Serbian Black metal band, and a few more projects, but Infest is the most precious and long-lasting one to me.
It is a bit hard question, I know but what are your eternal top 10 favourite releases?
Vandal: Uh, I hate this question ☺ but, let’s try:
Black Sabbath – Master of Reality
Iron Maiden – Somewhere in Time
Dismember – Like an Ever Flowing Stream
Immolation – Shadows in the light
Vader – Litany
Sodom – Agent Orange
Malevolent Creation – The Ten Commandments
Suffocation – Pierced from Within
Desaster – Hellfire’s Dominion
Morbid Angel – Altars of Madness
Do you have any favourite authors/books and actors/movies?
Vandal: Well, when we talk about the books, I must say that I am a fan of Dostoevsky and Salinger. And for the actors, let’s say Robert De Niro, Robin Williams, Tom Hanks, Jack Nicholson and many more ☺ The last thing I was blown away by was the Peaky Blinders series.
However, I’ve studied for 4 years in Szeged/Hungary but unfortunately I’ve never been in Serbia. What interesting places could you recommend to visit from your country and area?
I visited many times in Szeged a local Serbian restaurant and tried your tasty cuisine. What kind of Serbian foods and drinks are your recommendations?
Vandal: Serbia is a great county with many beautiful sights to be seen. Castles, rivers, monuments, many historical treasures. The main problem is that the system is rotten, and the nature is severely abused by foreign and domestic companies. And about cuisine, the best thing ever is Karadjordjeva snicla ( YOU MUST TRY THAT), and rakija, of course ☺
Also, Sarma, podvrarak, cvarci, and many more ☺ talking about it makes me hungry now ☺
Hvala/Thanks a lot brother! My best wishes to you, hope to see live Infest and meet you personally very soon! To complete our conversation send please some thoughts to the readers.
Vandal: Thanks a lot brother! I really enjoyed answering your questions. I also hope that your readers enjoyed it too ☺
Guys, try to keep eye on each other, keep the flames burning, never divide, keep the spirit of rock n roll alive. United, we can do it! WE ARE LEGION!
