Dark greetings and welcome. After being hit by “Come, Reap” I received this fantastic 2xLP entitled “The Time Of No Time Evermore”, first album of The Devil’s Blood, and simply a recollection of great songs. How much satisfied are you with the result and how has been the response so far? Did you ever feel a band of your kind would receive such a good response when you released your demo? Selim: No, to be honest, we did not. It has always been The Devil's Blood prime motivation to create worthy Art that speaks the words of Satan. NO more NO less. And it seems many ears have found the vibrations potent enough to enjoy. Some of them shall undoubtedly stay hooked to the music only but a select few might find what it is we have hidden inside. In this way we have crafted all our releases never releasing a note of music or a whisper of a word before we are completely and 100% satisfied with the results. I first listened to The Devil's Blood with “Come, Reap”, your first MCD, which totally captured my attention with its dark and occult Heavy/Rock, rarely present in nowadays musical scene. Could you please explain us a bit how did you come with the idea of creating this band and it's whole sound/concept? Was it only to deliver your taste for seventies stuff or all the shocking Rock 'n Roll show was a part of the plan since the beginning? Selim: We never planned anything. Everything connected to The Devil's Blood is a completely spontaneous occurence. We do what we do and that opens some doors and closes others. In this way a natural progression forward or unilateral might arise and we take the new options that go along with it. This music is simply what happens when Satan's Water flows through the landscape of our souls. There is no saying at all what the next album might sounds like even IF there will ever be another album. All these things are as unknown to us as they are to you... You seem to be quite related to Black Metal by the way, not only because you’re usually wearing shirts of bands like Watain or Urfaust (awesome band!) but having those and some other bands of the style on your top friends of myspace, for example. Did you take interest in occult Rock going back to the roots of the occult Metal or was it on the opposite way? Do you feel close to those bands in a musical or maybe more in a philosophical approach? In which way? Selim: All music that is inspired by the Serpent Messiah is of interest to us. We feel a connection to bands such as Watain and Urfaust do to this "kinship" we feel. Born of fire and dementia. On the last decade there was a lot of hype around all the occult thing in the Metal (mainly because of Black Metal), but I have the impression some people exaggerated the “evil” side of it all, becoming more of a mockery than something serious, even if all that comes already from the 70's and 80's bands, and I still feel there was more realistic interest on those things at that time than nowadays, now it's more about the image and the visual thing. What do you think about this? How is The Devil's Blood interpreting that message and how close do you feel to the occult? Do you really follow some kind of philosophy connected to that and take that path seriously? Selim: I believe that Satan has influenced my hands and heart for a long time. I think that says it all. I have no interest in bands who are only out for shock value I prefer content and clarity of essence. Enough Satanism now, let's speak a bit about music. I think we can already say there's been some evolution in your sound from the first recordings to your new album, as, although already showing a big influence of seventies occult and psych Rock, there were some Heavy Metal remnants (could it be DIO and the very first Iron Maiden for example?) which diminished, leaving more place for a Rock focused ambience. What's your opinion about this? How would you describe The Devil's Blood's music for somebody who is not into those sounds and which major influences would you name? What do these bands have that you didn't find in extreme Metal? Selim: We have never shunned the influences of any genre. Heavy metal, psych rock, and what have you... We simply do not care about where the inspiration comes from. If I had to name one great inspiration it would, as always be, Roky Erickson, his way of writing songs has inspired us a great deal. A certain devilishly playful cleverness that seems to have made it into our sound as well. I must say that probably the thing that attracted the most my attention from your music, apart of it's dark side, is how groovy and hypnotic, even charming, it sounds perfect for dancing around a fire under the light of the moon as witches used to do, even if it sounds cheesy, and reminding me a bit to what The Doors achieved with their songs. Am I wrong or simply dumb saying this? Was it hard for you to introduce that aspect into the songs or you didn't have any problem with it? Isn't that an important part of the result? Selim: If you feel like praising Satan in a bloody rite to our music we are more than a little successful. If you see, through our words and sounds, the essential Godforms of the Nightside, such as the moon goddesses and tempestuous serpents we have opened a gateway and we rejoice. Apart from that it is not for me to say what kind of images or feelings our music should or should not inspire. When you listen to the music it becomes yours and is no longer in my province of influence. You become the Nexus. I guess in a way this is the most important of the creative process. Satan gives us his brilliant chaotic light, we refract it through our souls into a solid and controlled entity and from that point, the listener, YOU, may return these things that have become solidified to their chaotic state of being by applying all the force in your subjective nature. “Come, Reap” seemed more focused on occult an dark poetical imagery and movies, while this time there seems to be some kind of message on many of the songs. First I’d like to speak about the title of your first LP and its meaning. Time is without any doubt something that controls our lives nowadays and the effect it has on them, just like a god, we are totally obsessed by it's oppression. Does this have any relation with it? What happens when there's no time evermore? Selim: Never ending singularity. Total death, total freedom. Time is nothing more than the intrinsic clock through which we realise our confinement in the world of flesh. Time and Space have, since the mad spasms of the demiurge been our prison. When they are broken down we shall become free and wild as we were intended to be. I’m particularly interested in one of the tracks of this new album, “Christ or cocaine”, my favourite track on “The time...” without any doubt, and maybe one of the grooviest you've done. How should we understand that title and what's your oppinion of religion used as a faithblinding drug? What about the use of drugs as source of inspiration? Do you agree to it or even use them that way? Selim: I cannot comment on your interpretation of the lyrics. They are not mine. Christ or Cocaine is a point of change. A realization of self through self destruction. You've had a lot of care on all the visual aspects of the band, from the artwork of all your releases to your myspace profile, logos, etc... even the visual side of your live ceremonies, which is always great coming from a band, and this also fits very well with all the concept of The Devil's Blood, where the theatrical aspect has a huge height. On which degree do you think this is needed and helps the music to create an image in listener's mind? Could you completely avoid that part and stay the same band? Isn't Rock'n Roll some kind of circus in the end? Selim: What is circus? The replay of various traditional steps in the form of a theatrical presentation. All art is Ritual. If not, it is not art. These last years we've seen the rising of some excellent women-fronted bands, like Jex Thoth, Blood Ceremony or Serpentcult, and yourselves, for sure. I see all of them showing a different point of view of women leading Rock/Metal bands from the one we were used in the past decade, especially from Gothic Metal bands, focusing mostly on the charming and girly imagery aspects and pretty oriented for adolescents, in my oppinion. When you started the band, did you plan having a female singer, for its effect on the music and visual aspects or it simply came like that? Do you think The Devil's Blood would have the same charming and theatrical effect without her vocals? Selim: It is the voice that matters, not the vagina. Thanks a lot for your time answering these questions , we can close this interview here. I wish you good luck with the upcoming events for The Devil's Blood and hope to hear something new from you soon. If you want to add anything else, go on... Selim: Thanks for the interview and the forum from which to speak! Hail Satan
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About ...Gia Thanatos is a webzine dedicated to music for the apocalyptic times. No matter the scene or genre it comes from, and mainly chosen according to its author's taste. Archives
September 2016
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