Interviews

Heaven Shall Burn guitarist Maik Weichert remains one of the best interviews in metal-dom. He’s always dripping with insight, has a riotous sense of humor, and never presents like it’s a pain in the ass to be yapping on the horn, even if it’s after a long day in the trenches at his legal eagle day gig or after bringing the sounds of melodic death infused metallic hardcore over the course of nine studio albums, including latest Of Truth and Sacrifice.

Coming straight outta Reykjavik, Iceland and gripping on to the silver-plated reins of a bronco bucking to the sounds of wiry, technica, and melodic death metal comes Cult of Lilith. The sounds of the band’s debut full-length, Mara, marries influences from 18th Century classical music, 20th Century Gothenburg scene, and 21st Century tech-death, essentially keeping one foot in the past as they stretch the commonly accepted boundaries…

Aaron Thompson’s electric melodies and moody vocals are sure to capture the attention of darkwave and brooding synthpop music fans with his endeavor Empty Streets. This dark act is on the cusp of a brand new EP titled Age of Regret, entering the public soundwaves in June of 2021 on Cleopatra Records.

For nearly 20 years, the sonic steamroller known as Author & Punisher has continued to release a mesmerizing body of music. Inspired not only by the chaos of the pandemic but by the incendiary political landscape and the eerily prescient sci-fi novels of Octavia Butler, his latest effort, Krüller, sees Tristan Shone notching new creative highs across the board.

3TEETH is a band that is hard to ignore, with heavy riffs and ideological undertones, not to mention a stage presence that intoxicates a room. With the band right on the cusp of its forthcoming release Metawar, its first time sharing the spotlight with a major label, we were able to get right into the mind of 3TEETH frontman Alexis Mincolla.

Technical death metal band Nile has been churning out slabs of authentic Egyptian inspired metal since 1993. The band is on fire as of late with a renewed sense of brutality, which is on full display on its ninth full-length, Vile Nilotic Rites, its first album in four years. We spoke with Sanders about Vile Nilotic Rites, how he’s inspired by Egyptian history, and news on his future solo album.

Triptykon has just released the band’s live performance of Requiem, a project that has been in the works for over 30 years. Performed at the Roadburn Festival in 2019 with the Metrople Orkest, this recording brings Requiem to life and is released in memoriam of Martin Eric Ain and HR Giger. Requiem (Live at Roadburn 2019) consists of three tracks: “Rex Irae,” which was released on Celtic Frost’s Into the Pandemonium, the newly written “Grave Eternal,” and “Winter,” which appears on Celtic Frost’s Monotheist album.

Fates Warning once again turns a new musical chapter by adding another expansive soundscape by releasing its 13th full-length album, Long Day Good Night. Jarzombek talked about the new album, how he prepares for the studio, his early days with NY rockers Riot, and why he plays drums barefoot.

the Saarbrücken based quintet has been hammering mainland Europe over the head with a seemingly endless barrage of releases, their latest being 10th album Call of the Wild, which follows in the footsteps of last year’s “Best Of” album, Best of the Blessed. We caught up with guitarist Matthew Greywolf to discuss the unexpected fulfillment of rock star fantasies and staying ahead of the lockdown blues.

Since making their debut with Pain Again in 2017, it’s been quite the ride for the hardcore outfit. For Mitchell Rodgers, there was a time when the vocalist had different visions of what the future of Varials looked like moving forward.