Interview with Blackened Horde Zine

Summon: How did the band get started?
Greg: Well, the band was started by our guitarist, Theo. He had that songs and ideas dating back to 2005 and eventually found Jim to play the drums. I’m not sure when during this period the original vocalist, Liakos, fits in, but I can tell you that I joined shortly after Theo and Jim recorded the tracks on our promo (2-3 August, 2008). Theo just called me up one day and asked if I would be interested in doing vocals for Birth of Depravity, I of course was. He sent me the tracks, which blew me away, and that’s that.

Summon: What kind of music do you play?
Greg: Straight up brutal death metal, man. Enough said.

Summon: How has the band response been?
Greg: The response has been great, nothing but positive reviews and comments from both sides of the spectrum, from friends to total strangers.

Summon: Where did the band name come from?
Greg: The band name is Theo’s conception.

Summon: Introduce the band members
Greg: Well, Theo’s our guitarist and bassist on recordings, Jim is our drummer and I’m Greg, on vocals.

Summon: Who writes the music? Lyrics?
Greg: Theo writes all the music while Jim ties it all together on the drum set . Lyrics are written by Theo and me, mostly together, some on my own.

Summon: And where do the lyric ideas come from?
Greg: From general disdain for things and situations that are prevalent around us to various thoughts on society. There are definitely some personal feelings and thoughts in the lyrics, as well as one song which is about something totally different, namely about a super-massive black hole devouring our corner of the universe. I think it can be said that we just write about our interests and what’s on our mind while trying to take some inspiration as to direction of the lyrics from the actual music itself.

Summon: What is your view in Satanism and Occultism?
Greg: Personally, I couldn’t care less. But, to each, his own I guess.

Summon: How many albums/CD’s have you released?
Greg: As of this the moment of this interview, just the promo, but we are in the finals stages of our first full length album, Coming of the Ineffable.

Summon: Tell me about some the songs on the latest CD?
Greg: Our debut is still unreleased, but I can tell you that the tracks on it are more brutal than the promo. I also think as songs they show more maturity than the promo. We’ve got ten tracks, nine new and one re-recorded from the promo (Dehumanization by Hellfire) that we’re very pleased with and anxious to share with everybody.

Summon: Do you have any side projects?
Greg: No, not really. I did vocals for a band, Comatose, prior to Birth of Depravity as well as a very brief period with Jim in another band, Remnants of Flesh, as live members. I’ve also done some stuff with Devastation of Life, and I think Jim might have played drums for some other bands during the same period of Birth of Depravity, but I’m not sure. Basically Birth of Depravity comes first and foremost.

Summon: Who are some of your musical influences?
Greg: Well, we obviously listen to a lot of death metal and brutal death metal. Not to mention grindcore and just metal in general. But we listen to all kinds of music, even if we only draw inspiration for Birth of Depravity from the same and/or similar genres.

Summon: Which current bands?
Greg: Too fucking many to name…

Summon: What is the band like when you play live?
Greg: We’ve only played live once, but I can tell you it was a blast. We’re friends that happen to be in a band together, and we like to have a good time, so that’s what we do.

Summon: What was the best band you played with?
Greg: Ummm….

Summon: Have you guys ever played in another country?
Greg: No, unfortunately not. But we would definitely love to sometime.

Summon: How big of crowd shows up at shows usually?
Greg: Haha…during our one show, I really don’t know.

Summon: How is the crowd response when you play?
Greg: Once again, during our one show, it was great.

Summon: What is your opinion on the conflict of Black Metal Vs Death Metal?
Greg: I like both styles myself, even if I do prefer the latter, so personally I fail to see the conflict.

Summon: What do you think of the US Black/Death Metal scene?
Greg: Strong.

Summon: What do you think of the Overseas scenes?
Greg: Strong, just like the US scene, although I’ve always felt there’s a totally different vibe to at least what’s coming out of the European scene in comparison to the US counterpart. Not to say it’s better or worse, just different.

Summon: What are some of new favorite Black/Death Metal bands?
Greg: “New”? I’m drawing a total blank here. I love a lot of classic bands of these genres, some still playing and some not, but once again, way too many to start naming.

Summon: When do you guys plan on writing any new material?
Greg: Theo is pretty much always coming up with new material. Even now, nearing the release of our debut he’s already working on a couple of new tracks.

Summon: What does the future hold for the band??
Greg: Good question. For starters the release of our debut, from there on, new material and hopefully some live shows eventually.


blackenedhorde.com/birth_of_depravity