WAXING LYRICAL: SOREPTION

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Jan 192019
 

 

(In this week’s edition of Waxing Lyrical Andy Synn elicited thoughts from Soreption vocalist Fredrik Söderberg.)

If you don’t know, and love, Soreption, then you don’t belong on this site.

There, I said it. Now get out.

Of course if you’re still reading this then you’ve clearly either a) realised I was joking with the above statement, or b) are a total contrarian who has decided to carry on just to spite me.

Anyway, to cut a long story short, it was just over a decade ago when I stumbled across Soreption‘s debut EP, Illuminate the Excessive, in my local record store, and I’ve been an avid fan of the band ever since, following their progress through all the ups and downs of their career, even to the point of selecting their second album, Engineering the Void, as one of the best albums of 2014.

The band’s latest release, last year’s Monument of the End, continued their run of top-notch, high-octane Technical Death Metal mastery, so I’m particularly pleased to have been able to get hold of the group’s long-time vocalist Fredrik Söderberg for this latest edition of Waxing Lyrical. Continue reading »

WAXING LYRICAL: OMNIUM GATHERUM

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Dec 222018
 

 

(In this week’s edition of Andy Synn‘s series of interviews focused on lyrics in metal, he poses the questions to Jukka Pelkonen, vocalist of a favorite band we never lose interest in — Omnium Gatherum.)

If you’re one of those strange, yet oddly wonderful, people who’ve been reading this site for a while then you’ll probably be aware that the entire NCS crew has been “ride or die” (that’s right, I’m hip) for Omnium Gatherum since at least 2007, meaning that our collective love for the band actually predates the site’s very existence!

And though that love has been tested at times, we’ve kept the faith with the Finnish sextet through thick and thin, and been richly rewarded for our dedication.

So, for the last edition of Waxing Lyrical for 2018, I caught up with OG’s long-serving vocalist Jukka Pelkonen to get the skinny on the in’s and out’s of his lyrics and his writing style over the years. Continue reading »

WAXING LYRICAL: “SPIRES”

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Nov 032018
 

 

(In this week’s edition of Waxing Lyrical, Andy Synn posed the usual questions to Paul Sadler of the U.K. band Spires.)

Hopefully I’ve managed to make it more than clear at this point just how bloody fantastic I think the latest (and greatest) album from Mancunian Prog-Metal quartet Spires really is, and so it probably won’t surprise you to learn that I’m already thinking long and hard as to whether to give it a spot in my annual “Critical Top Ten” list, a list whose purported purpose is to provide a wide and robust overview of the year’s best Metal albums… or, at least, as wide and robust a snapshot of the year’s releases as can be made using only ten albums.

One of the reasons the album is so damn good, in my opinion anyway, is the intense focus and attention to detail which the band have clearly lavished on each and every part of each and every song, up to and including the concept-driven lyrics which ultimately play a major role in helping to tie the whole record together.

So, as way of acknowledging the vital importance of these lyrics to the album’s overall success, I managed to convince the band’s vocalist/guitarist (and main songwriter) Paul Sadler to put together a few words for today’s edition of Waxing Lyrical. Continue reading »

WAXING LYRICAL: “ARSIS”

 WAXING LYRICAL  6 Responses »
Oct 202018
 

 

(In this new edition of our series devoted to lyrics in metal, Andy Synn posed his usual questions to James Malone, vocalist/guitarist of Arsis, whose new album Visitant will be released on November 2nd by Nuclear Blast and Agonia Records.)

If memory serves, my introduction to Virginia-based Technical/Melodic Death Metallers Arsis was way back in 2005 when I stumbled across the shamelessly epic, ultra-bombastic title-track from their recently-released EP, A Diamond for Disease.

Unsurprisingly, I was instantly hooked by the band’s mix of scorching intensity, fret-melting technicality, and shameless, scornful swagger – a sound that was part Carcass, part Death, part Motley Crue – and immediately went out to pick up a copy of the EP as well as their debut album, A Celebration of Guilt (which still stands as, arguably, one of the best Technical and/or Melodic Death Metal albums of all time).

In the years since then I’ve followed the band closely through all their ups and downs, watching as they honed their craft across multiple albums, sticking by them through all their struggles with ill health and line-up changes (including a period where it felt like the group was serving like a boot camp for guitarists looking to level-up their skills before joining bigger, more famous bands), and have always felt like they deserved far more critical acclaim and commercial success than they received.

I am therefore extremely pleased, and more than a little proud, to have (somehow) convinced James Malone, the band’s vocalist/guitarist and prime mover, to participate in this edition of Waxing Lyrical, where he talks about his love of King Diamond, the unexpected influence of Catholicism on the band’s early records, and the surprisingly deep emotions underlying their new, Horror-themed album, Visitant. Continue reading »

WAXING LYRICAL: “HADAL MAW”

 WAXING LYRICAL  1 Response »
Sep 222018
 

 

(This week the Australian band Hadal Maw answers Andy Synn‘s questions about lyrics.)

How is everyone enjoying the “Waxing Lyrical” series so far? Hopefully you’re all finding it as interesting and enlightening as I am, and hopefully you’re all still curious as to which artists I might have lined up for future editions.

Today we’re lucky to be receiving a message all the way from Down Under, as Sam Dillon, vocalist/lyricist of Technical Groove titans Hadal Maw, joins us with some intriguing thoughts about his tenure with the band, and what their music, and lyrics, mean to him.. Continue reading »

WAXING LYRICAL: PHANTOM WINTER

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Sep 152018
 

 

(In this week’s edition of Andy Synn’s WAXING LYRICAL the focus is the lyricism of the German band Phantom Winter, as discussed by vocalist/guitarist Andreas Schmittfull.)

The name Phantom Winter should be familiar to most readers of our site as we’ve written about the German quintet several times, heaping a large amount of praise on their visceral brand of Blackened Sludge Metal over the years, as well as engaging in numerous discussions about their rigorously shaped and savagely delivered philosophical and socio-political lyrics.

It should be no surprise to learn then that the band’s vocalist/guitarist (and primary lyricist) Andreas Schmittfull had a lot to say and a lot of interesting insight to offer when I (finally) managed to pin him down for this edition of Waxing Lyrical.

So, without further ado… take it away Andreas! Continue reading »

WAXING LYRICAL: EYE OF SOLITUDE

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Sep 082018
 

 

(In this new edition of Waxing Lyrical, Andy Synn posed his usual questions to Daniel Neagoe of the UK-based funeral doom band Eye of Solitude.)

As far as I can gather, we’ve been writing about Romanian/British Doom lords Eye of Solitude for well over five years now, and have featured articles on their work a number of times (such as here, here, here, and here).

This, however, is the first time in quite a while where we’ve had the chance to speak to one of the band members directly – in this case vocalist/lyricist Daniel Neagoe – and learn a little more about what makes him tick! Continue reading »

WAXING LYRICAL: OAK PANTHEON

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Aug 112018
 

 

(In this week’s edition of WAXING LYRICAL, Andy Synn presents the results of his interview with Sami and Tanner of long-time NCS favorites Oak Pantheon, whose new EP Sol was released last spring.)

Anyone who’s been a regular reader of NCS for any decent amount of time will undoubtedly recognise the name Oak Pantheon, as we’ve been writing about and supporting the band practically since their inception, and have covered practically everything they’ve released thus far, to a greater or lesser extent.

The one thing we haven’t really had much chance to go into detail about, however, is their latest EP, Sol, which sees them breaking from their established pattern and pursuing a calmer and more contemplative, Neo-folk-influenced sound.

Thankfully I was able to corral guitarist/vocalist Sami Sati and guitarist/backing vocalist Tanner Swenson to participate in this latest edition of Waxing Lyrical, where you’ll find a wide range of information about all stages of the band’s career, including the mindset and process behind their newest and most unusual release. Continue reading »

WAXING LYRICAL: INGURGITATING OBLIVION

 Interviews, WAXING LYRICAL  1 Response »
Aug 042018
 

 

(In this Saturday’s edition of WAXING LYRICAL Andy Synn posed the usual questions to Florian Engelke of the German band Ingurgitating Oblivion.)

Germany’s Ingurgitating Oblivion have been making dark, dissonant waves in the European Death Metal scene (and beyond) for a number of years now, with last year’s Vision Wallows in Symphonies of Light not only majorly increasing the band’s worldwide fame and notoriety, but also expanding their sound in ever more complex and progressive ways.

If you’re unfamiliar with the group and their work, then this edition of The Synn Report should make for a good primer, or you can just dive straight in with the following interview with the band’s guitarist and primary lyricist Florian Engelke! Continue reading »

WAXING LYRICAL: GIANT OF THE MOUNTAIN

 Interviews, WAXING LYRICAL  1 Response »
Jul 282018
 

 

(Andy Synn’s guest in this week’s edition of WAXING LYRICAL is vocalist/guitarist Cody Daniels of the Texas band Giant of the Mountain.)

Texas metalloids Giant of the Mountain have been a band we’ve followed here at NCS for quite some time, and our very own DGR recently reviewed their latest (and probably best) album, Nature’s Wrath, describing it as a complex and creative piece of Prog/Black Metal that “takes on a hypnotic quality as it traverses down the multitude of twisting and winding paths within each song”.

So I thought, why not keep the coverage and momentum going by getting the band’s guitarist/vocalist Cody Daniels to sit down for a few moments and pen us some thoughts on his lyrical process, his love of hooks, and the important contributions of H.P. Lovecraft and Spongebob Squarepants to the band’s conceptual evolution? Continue reading »

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