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Greetings my metal brother! Please introduce yourself and
describe your bands music for those who have not heard Denial Of God yet?
Greetings from the crypt of horror! I am Azter, the ghoul
behind the creepy strings of horror in Denial Of God...to get the feeling of
the musick it is best to listen to it yourselves, it is the soundtrack to
your worst nightmare, we are the essence of horror!
I have been a follower of the band since I tape traded for
your debut ’92 demo tape “Oscularium Infame”. The next couple years you
released the very good 7” ep “The Statues Are Watching” and “Ghouls Of Dog”
MCD (Never heard this one I’m afraid). What is your opinion on them looking
back now, are you satisfied with them?
Does the word ‘Dog’ in the “Ghouls…” title refer to or mock
the fact that god spelt backwards is dog? Looking back I always notice what
could have been done better, but I also remember the times when we recorded
them and they are all still of high value to me because we always went our
own way and the releases show that! I remember how we recorded them all with
great dedication and I can see that we are still the same band even if we
have become better. I am still very satisfied with all of them because they
are like my "children". They are still some of the most evil recordings
around and they have all proven themselves timeless which is the most
important thing. I realize what we achieved in the past, but I always look
ahead and see what we will do next because it will only be more evil horror.
About "DOG" - there are 2 meanings behind it and I think you should guess
for yourself what these meanings are...it is "DOG", not "dog".
Now your new excellent MCD “Klabautermanden” has been
released. Tell us how did you come in contact with Hammerheart Recs.? Are
you happy with their work so far?
I see them as a very good label who takes special care with
the underground scene and
fanzine promotion. How many releases have you signed for with Hammerheart?
You see them as a good label, but that's probably because you are not signed
to them! We first were offered a deal by them in 1995 when we had just
signed to Dark Trinity Productions, so back then we had to say no to them.
When things between us and the label later turned out not to be so great
anymore we decided to continue with HHR because in the meantime they had
called us again and asked how things were going with the old label. We have
known Guido behind HHR since the early 90s when we were trading demos of our
respective bands and I thought Guido and HHR were to be trusted but they
obviously have proven that they cannot be trusted!!! We are absolutely not
satisfied with them and let me tell you why: First they took a very long
time to release "Klabautermanden", but they had some explanations like the
change of the German distributor, so we kinda had to accept that. The
problems really start when we found out that they have released our "Klabautermanden"
mini-album (both the digipak-Cd and the picture 10" m-LP) without any lyrics
printed!!! Can you believe that?? They knew since day 1 that we wanted the
lyrics to be printed, but obviously they didn't care!! They told us that the
layout they had delivered was in the wrong formats and that they had a lot
of trouble with it, but if that is the case - they could have told us and
things would have been changed immediately! But, to be honest, nowadays I
believe that they simply weren't interested in "wasting" the money for the
booklet because they made the rest of the layout, so why couldn't they print
the lyrics too?? They simply released the mini-album without EVER telling us
that there would be such dramatic changes! Another thing that we are not
satisfied with at all is their shitty and unintelligent marketing! I saw
some adds with our mini-album mentioned, and it simply said "pretty ugly
shit" - what a stupid sentence and description is that?? It really shows how
little understanding they have of our music, namely none at all! When I
mentioned all this to Guido, he just said that they couldn't do much more
for a mini-CD...since when is it more expensive to write for example "Black
Horror Metal" than "pretty ugly shit"??? Also he suddenly spoke of not
releasing the next Denial Of God album because "Klabautermanden" got some
bad reviews (we never saw these ourselves, another fact that proves how they
don't care for us)! Can you believe that? That just shows how much the
reviewers have power over HHR and that they are obsessed with making money
and are not interested in the music anymore! They want to break the contract
because of some reviews...definitely the most lame attitude I have ever been
confronted with!!! They are so obsessed with making money that they will do
anything, but obviously they gave us no priority because they couldn't make
money enough on us!!! We don't give a fuck about that shitty label, we
prefer a smaller but honest label that really cares for us and understands
the music instead of a bigger label like HHR who have no understanding of
the music at all and only cares for trends!! They don't care for the
underground, only for the money!!! It's unimportant how many releases we
signed for because there is no way that there will ever be another Denial Of
God release on that shitty label!!! We are currently negotiating with a new
label for the release of the "The Horrors of Satan" LP/CD.
Can you explain the 4 year delay between your ’95 “Ghouls…”
MCD and the brand new MCD?
Has there been any, improvements in your line-up problems?
Are live shows possible at the moment? Is rehearsing and song writing
difficult without a full line-up in rehearsal? First off; it's "only" a
3-year-delay because "The Ghouls of DOG" was released in 1996, not 1995.
Anyway, Uksul (drums on "Ghouls) left the band in early 1997 and after that
we had Sorgh on drums with whom we recorded "Klabautermanden" in late 1998.
He took some time to learn the songs so that's why we didn't record the
mini-album earlier. Also we could not rehearse too often because of the
distance between us and Sorgh. After that it took a long time to get the
layout done and then for HHR to finally release it in October 1999! The
line-up between "The Ghouls of DOG" and "Klabautermandne" changed a lot.
Uksul (drums) left and also Fargel (bass) had been kicked out before that
because he was not the right person for the band. He was replaced by Isaz
who is still in the band. Sorgh left the band after recording
“Klabautermanden" because he thought it was too much for him with 2 bands at
the same time (a quite lame excuse because the other band was doing nothing
at that time anyway). We have recently used a session drummer with whom we
played our "comeback" show and we also have 3 more shows coming up during
spring, so live shows have recently been possible again, yes. However, the
drummer will not stay and we don't expect to do more that the 3 shows with
him, so we really need a drummer with whom we can record the full album this
year! We have no idea who it will be at the moment.
Please tell me more about yourself
personally. When did you get into metal? Also when did you discover the
underground? What were the first bands and fanzines you enjoyed? What do you
think of the state of the current scene?
I never speak of myself personally...well, I got into Metal
in 1986 and the record that did it for me was Venom's "Black Metal". I then
got into the underground in 1988 after seeing an add in the German Rock Hard
Magazine about a demo called "Death to this world" of a swedish Death Metal
band called Leprosy. I ordered it and that tape was amazing (and still is).
After that I ordered another Leprosy tape along with a fanzine called
Metallic Thrust that was done by the guy who sold the Leprosy tapes. It was
full of adds and flyers and I wrote to almost all of them! I got a lot of
tapes and this is really how things got started - from then on it just grew
and grew! I liked the state of the metal scene more back then because it was
much more underground. There were not so many bands around as now and things
were easier. You could have an interview in a fanzine and many people would
order your demo, it is different nowadays. I wish I had joined the
underground earlier (although this was hardly possible with my age!) because
in the late 80s there were not so many "evil" bands around. I always found
many bands with evil names, but mostly they were not so evil after all. What
I liked better back then was also that there weren't all these idiotic
labels like HHR around who are only in it for the money, they are consuming
everything because they have the money and because they control what gets
widespread or not. The true underground is much smaller today. And we are a
part of it for sure.
Denial Of God formed in 1991 and put
their first demo out in 1992. Does it bother you that most have seemed to
forgotten that Denial Of God were one of the pioneering bands in the 2nd
wave of black metal at the start of the ‘90s? Do you miss those early days,
like I do, when black metal had to be grim, raw, brutal, obscure and evil?
What do you think of all these disco-symphonic so called ‘black metal’ bands
with wimpy keyboards, violins, flutes and angelic female vocals!?
Well, let me start by telling you that people who have
forgotten about us should not bother listening to us because how could they
forget? The fact is that we were around a lot earlier than many bands out
there who have released several albums. The fact that they released albums
on big labels made them bigger bands (commercially that is) of course, but
it is also time that people start realizing that most famous bands who
started along with us have made so many compromises in the way their music
sounds, in their statements and the way theý present themselves. They have
all become softer and some of them are now so soft and cute in interviews
that they can be heard by everybody's grandmom! I will not mention any
names, but all these bands were signed to big labels and are now music for
kids who want something smart to show off with! We never made any
compromises, we never changed, we always stayed the same, but as you can see
this is not rewarded with record sales and fame. We don't care anymore,
because we will always stay the same and we will never sell out like so many
others have done before us. As long as we can respect ourselves, I doubt
many other bands can! I don't mind the instruments you mentioned as long as
they are used properly (they seldom are, though).
I understand from an old fanzine I read in 1993 that the
names of the core original members Azter and Ustamallagam were names given
to you by a spirit you summoned, is this true? Do you still participate in
magick and ritual? Are your satanic beliefs and interest in the occult as
strong as they were in the past?
NOTE THAT THE NAME IS SPELLED USTUMALLAGAM!!! YOU ALSO GOT IT
WRONG BECAUSE HHR MADE THIS STUPID SHEET WITH SPELLING MISTAKES!!!!!!! The
names are the names of 2 (among more) spirits that Ustumallagam had contact
with before the band was formed. They were taken, not given. As for the rest
of the question: The answer is yes.
With the long period between releases I
guess the band must have a lot of material built up. So why did you only
release a MCD? Was it a MCD release because you wanted to get your name back
out in the scene, before releasing a new album? Tell us what we can expect
from your upcoming album “Horror Metal” and when will it be released?
Was/will it be recorded in the same studio as the new MCD?
We released a mini-album because we wanted to release a
mini-album. We didn't have tons of material ready, and we also thought that
"Klabautermanden" would be good as a mini-album. As for that "Horror Metal"
album...because HHR is such a stupid fucking idiot label everyone is now
asking for the "Horror Metal" album!! IT IS A FACT that we NEVER intended to
release any album with that title!!! It has been official for 3 years that
the album will be called "The Horrors of Satan" and so it will be! From that
album you can expect the most evil material ever! We will keep it in the
true Denial Of God vein, but there will nevertheless be some surprises. Some
titles will be "The Curse of the Witch", "The Iron Gibbet", "To the Devil"
and "The Book of Oíufael" and it will be a true horror album, it will be
really haunting! We are not sure yet when and where it will be recorded.
First we need a drummer to record the drums!
I also once tape traded for Ustumallagam’s one man project
Gigum xul with the demo “Mists”. Is this project still alive? I think you
were one of the very first in the metal scene to do this ambient/trance
stuff. I hate this style of music if you can call it that! I guess I can
blame you for helping start it!? Ha Ha Do you still enjoy this style of
music?
Gigim xul was just the "Mists" demo which was often added as
bonus on early Denial Of God demo tapes, it was never released and there was
never since recorded any new material. Well, back then nobody did anything
like it, and personally I never heard of the term "ambient" back then
either. I don't enjoy what people call ambient, most of it is so boring and
ambient is just a term used for boring keyboard chords put together to bore
the shit out of people. I believe I still like Gigim xul, but I haven't
heard it for years because I don' t have a copy myself.
I know this is a standard question, but
also a revealing one nonetheless. So please tell us what has been haunting
your stereo in the past few months? Are you a vinyl collector? If yes,
please list a few of your prize vinyl items?
Hm, I listen to so much, but some titles that have been
haunting the stereo are Kraftwerk "Expo
2000" 12" EP (finally a new track of these gods! It was worth the wait!),
Alice Cooper: Anything (the horror godfather will always prevail!!!), Paul
Chain: several albums (because he's so sick!), Necrophagia "Holocausto de la
Morte" picture LP (what a sick comeback), Stormwitch "Stronger than heaven"
(this band just ruled! The Masters of black romantic!) and others. I am
definitely a vinyl collector, and it is REALLY hard to pick out a few titles
that are special to me, but some of the most rare and obscure ones are the
following: Alice Cooper "The El Paso Show" bootleg LPs (2 different vinyl
colors, limited to 210 and 39!), Death SS "Guardian Angel" 7" (2 different
autographed copies), Kraftwerk "Autobahn" (very rare New Zealand pressing!),
W.A.S.P. "Mean Man" gatefold 12" (personally signed by Blackie and Chris),
Hellhammer "triumph of death..." demo (words are not necessary) and many,
many others in my evergrowing collection. It is impossible to pick out just
a few as there are many things I collect, but I have many rarities hidden in
the vaults!
The words “Black Horror Metal” keep
coming up. Is this some sort of personal philosophy or new sub-genre you
consider Denial Of God to have created? Do your lyrics just deal with
blasphemy in general or is there a wider scope to them (Sorry I was supplied
with only the disc + bio and not lyrics or booklet of the MCD)?
Denial Of God is to be seen as a horror act. All lyrics are
based on horror and this is also the atmosphere that the music creates. We
usually call it "Black Horror Metal" because it is Horror Metal but it also
shows sympathy for the Devil, and is therefore Satanic, ie. "black". We for
sure have our own concept and the lyrics are small horror stories that cover
all kinds of aspects in terms of horror, for example ghouls, vampires,
zombies, spirits, grave desecration, Devil worship and whatever we come up
with that is evil enough. Yes, I know that the promotional copies were not
including lyrics, but it is really bad that also the sold copies have no
lyrics because they are an essential part of the concept and people should
know the lyrics to get the full horror effect from listening to Denial Of
God. We always strive to have the lyrics printed, but sometimes labels fuck
it up. People who order the vinyl version of "Klabautermanden" from us will
have the lyrics included and they can also be ordered separately for $1/1
IRC.
Please tell about your live show. I have heard it is quite
extreme and horrific. I read it was a cross between the live shows of old
Mayhem and Death SS, is this true? Are many wimps and posers forced to leave
the hall in fright during your live shows?
Well, the show is based on the concept of undead horror and
therefore all muscicians are dressed up as zombies/undead. The stage is
decorated with funereal props like candlelight, cobwebs, funeral bands and
even grave stones and the show delivered by Ustumallagam is very dramatic
and reflects the atmosphere of the songs. We have used raw meat and living
maggots and I can tell you that many people leave the edge of the stage and
seek refuge at the back when hell starts going! I also heard of people who
left because they were sickened by the band's look itself! Anyway, I can
tell you that our "comeback" show caused us to be banned from ever playing
at that place again! In the future we will develop the show as much as we
can financially!
Would you agree if I said the music on the new MCD me of a
bit of Blasphemy+Australian warring death mixed with influences like
Darkthrone, Venom, (early) Bathory, and Anvil (“Forged In Fire”era) with an
own sound of course?
 What
influences do you see that helped shape a small bit the sound of Denial Of
God? No, I don't agree, but at least people always compare us to tons of
bands instead of just a few. Hm, the Anvil comparison is new to us, haha!
There is no way that the bands you mentioned influenced us, except for Venom
and Bathory which were among out main influences along with Death SS, Mayhem
and even Alice Cooper. These are just a few because we always listened to
many different bands, but of course the evil ones were the most important
ones. Oh yeah, we should not forget Infernäl Mäjesty too! I don't think we
sound inspired by those you mention, probably you got that into mind because
HHR wrote that we sounded like a mixture of Scandinavian Black Metal and
Australian Death Metal. That's again typical, they just try to put us into
categories that didn't even exist when we started out!!! We have been going
for a long time and to be honest I am very tired of comparisons with other
bands that we have nothing to do with...
How is the scene in
Denmark? Are there many true and extreme black and death metal bands to tell
about? Will you be touring Denmark? Also has Hammerheart set up any tours
once your LP “Horror Metal” is released? Name some bands you would
interested in touring with?
Denmark never had many
great bands, but at least the few good we have/had are/were great. I
recommend bands like Feikn and Strychnos because they really stick out of
the masses, also I like Apollyon, Brandpest, Koldborn and Blazing Eternity.
We have no plans to tour Denmark as the places to play are so few anyway,
but we will play 2 shows in late March in Denmark. I don't expect HHR to set
up any shows as I don't consider them friends anymore. We would prefer to
tour with great bands with their own style and good personalities as I'd
hate spending a tour with a bunch of morons with shitty music.
Hails for taking the time out to do this interview brother! I
hope it was not too boring. Please leave some last words for the readers and
reveal the future plans of Denial Of God?
Thanx for the interview, it is appreciated. If you want to
buy Denial Of God material or just info, contact us and write for the truth
as you should not expect to get it from Hammerheart Records. Send 2 IRCs/$2
for booklet containing the complete info on Denial Of God. I want to say
that we have been through so many disappoinments with labels in the past,
but we are momentarily negotiating with a new one and we will release "The
Horrors of Satan" once things are settled for it. Expect only HORROR!
DENIAL OF GOD
http://www.denialofgod.net
http://www.horrorrecords.com
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