Interview with Metal Priest of BESTIAL INVASION
Tell of your departure from your previous band Violent Omen, and how you formed your current band Bestial Invasion.
I founded Violent Omen in 2009 and in five years we achieved good results. We had three albums, frequent concerts and media reviews. In April 2014 I left because of a destructive and depressing atmosphere in the band. We could no longer get along and it was time to make a change. I moved to another city and founded a completely new band.
Name the three full lengths Violent Omen have out, and where can they be streamed and/or purchased on the internet?
Infernal Express, Lunatic's Revenge and L.U.N.A.C.Y. are available on Ebay and on independent labels.
Are people still ordering Violent Omen’s albums on Ebay? Were those albums released independently?
I don’t follow Violent Omen’s work so it’s hard to answer. Those albums have been released in Russia and the USA and I suppose they’re still available for purchasing.
Were you involved in any bands before Violent Omen, or was Violent Omen your first working band?
Violent Omen was my first group. But before them I played in a local band Crucifix. We even had a demo and performed on a local town contest. It was funny; we were so loud people remembered me as the Crucifix bass player for years.
Are copies of any of Crucifix’s releases still available to your knowledge?
The Crucifix album hasn’t been released on CD. I can’t see any reason it’s going to be out someday.
Where did you move to found Bestial Invasion? Was this band founded with local musicians?
I lived in Zhytomyr and Violent Omen was founded there. Then I moved to Sumy to live with some lady and formed Bestial Invasion. So there are completely different musicians.
How many local clubs are active in Sumy at the time of this writing?
Not many. It’s hard to say now but people almost don’t visit concerts so it’s difficult to put on live shows.
Many of the bands that influence Bestial Invasion have been active since the 80s. Explain why you wanted to play technical thrash.
We took the name from Destruction’s song. Initially we were supposed to play fast and raw thrash metal but eventually our roots and way of thinking affected on us to play technical thrash.
Why did you decide to name the band after Destruction’s song Bestial Invasion? What appeals to you about that song?
We considered it an excellent name for a band at the time and have no regrets. It sounds like it can be easily remembered.
Name the band’s lineup and indicate the instruments and equipment each member plays?
The band is V. Zadiev on vocals, Metal Priest on bass, Evgeniy Maestro on guitar, A. Klapchov on guitar and I. Semenchuk on drums. We use MP Custom Bass 28, Gibson Studio, Tama Drums.
How much input does each member of Bestial Invasion have into writing and composing songs?
Every member of the band is involved in creating songs, but basically I bring the main ideas and music and then we all work on it and improve it.
Who writes the band’s lyrics and from where does the inspiration come?
The lyrics on the first album was written by our first singer. I wrote the lyrics for our EP and the upcoming album. This time I tried to make the music and lyrics much closer than ever before. We missed that on the first album.
You have a Youtube channel where you write reviews of your CD collection. What was the reason for starting it?
Recently I made a new channel for amusement where I am supposed to do reviews on my favorite CDs and vinyls. Pretty funny thing.
How did you get the idea of reviewing your collection on Youtube? What do you usually review for your channel?
I got this idea in 2014 but I didn't have much time. Then the idea came out a few more times as a joke. And finally I started making reviews this year. I don't review my own albums. I review albums from my music collection.
Which of your albums from your collection have you reviewed so far? How many viewers have watched your videos?
I have made eight videos so far. Besides album reviews I review all kinds of thrash literature like books, magazines and so on. I have already reviewed Iron Maiden, Dark Angel and King Diamond. Since it’s a new channel each video has around 1k-2k views so far.
What book and magazine reviews are posted on your Youtube site?
Nothing yet. But I have planned to review many others. So it's kind of a secret for now.
How many demos have been recorded since Bestial Invasion formed? Are they available either on CD or online?
We don't have any demos. We got some rehearsal footage and stuff. But now it's just for personal use. Maybe someday we will release it as the bonus materials.
How many full length releases does Bestial Invasion have out at the time of this writing?
We have done one album, one EP and a few singles. Hopefully at the end of 2016 we plan to release the second album.
Tell the readers about Bestial Invasion’s debut album. Which songs appeared on it and how well did it do when it came out?
It was recorded in 2015 and contains eight original songs and two cover songs. It was our first release so we had a lot of trouble before we actually started recording, and some troubles with the band members. But we have gotten through this and done a wonderful and spirited album.
The band recently recorded a cover of Destruction’s instrumental Bestial Invasion. How did this come about?
Yeah that was a great idea! For ten years I’ve been hearing that idea from my friend Faunus. And finally I decided to make it! To make a kind of exclusive thing which has never been done before. So we took random lyrics from a few Destruction songs and mixed them. And then recorded vocals. I think it was pretty cool.
Are there other songs by Destruction or other bands you may be interested in covering? You mentioned on Facebook that Raven is one of your favorite bands.
I think there will be no more covers in the future. We have already covered Raven’s “On And On” which you can hear on our first album. And we also are going to do a cover version of one of the Toxik songs.
How many new songs does Bestial Invasion have written and arranged at present?
Eight songs from the new album are written and ready for recording. There will be different songs with a different atmosphere and mood. We got songs inspired by Edgar Allan Poe, Caligula, about Dreams and Caravaggio and so on. It's gonna be interesting I think. The songs are: Inception , Prisoner of Miserable Fate, Repudiating the Power, Caravaggio Specular Vision (Camera Obscura), Enigma (Bass Etude), Zodiac: Crime World Mystery, Thy Own Soul Terror and Caligula: Salacious Age.
What inspired you to write about Edgar Allan Poe and Caligula for the next album?
Different life situations and literature inspires me to write. Caligula was an odious ruler. And Edgar Allan Poe has also inspired me.
Will the band be recording the new album at a professional studio or do you have your own recording studio?
We don’t have our own studio. So we have to use other options. But a studio will be definitely professional. Although our drummer’s father owns a studio it does not fit our style and the features of our music.
Are you working on vocals for the new album at present?
At the moment we are recording drums for the new album. That video was a demo rehearsal. We will start recording vocals in two months.
How will the band be promoting the next album when it is released?
Most likely we will release the new album in the beginning of 2017. We decided there’s no hurry and we will take our time to make great work. So wait for the new album in January/February. It’s gonna be stunning and blow your minds!
-Dave Wolff
No comments:
Post a Comment