Eternity
Black
Eternity Black is the new
musical endeavor of 3 former Helstar members trying to deliver classic
heavy metal with a fresh attitude and a modern sound. So, don't think that
these guys settled for the easy stuff. Instead or repeating themselves
and their glorious past, they chose to try and be amongst the pioneers
of the metal scene.
1. First of all, please give me a short
bio on the history of Eternity Black.
Larry and I started Eternity Black after jamming
together at his birthday party back in 2003. I had been bugging him about
putting something together for several years, but the timing was never
quite right. I guess he woke up one day and thought it was finally time
to pick-up his guitar again! A lot of people don't know this, but Larry
and I actually started a band with ex-Helstar drummer Frank Ferreira back
in 92' or 93', but it didn't last too long. Frank had an offer to play
in a gigging band and Larry and I just kind of gave up! We talk about that
sometimes, like "Why didn't we continue?!" It would've been interesting.
2. The band has three former members of Helstar.
Do you believe that this will push a little more the band?
Perhaps; it's hard to say, really. A lot of
Helstar fans may be expecting something similar to Helstar, but that is
not what Eternity Black sounds like at all. It really isn't our intention
to rely on that history as much as one might think; it is just that if
we came out trying to hide who we are, people would find out soon enough
anyway! We cannot, nor do we wish to, hide from our past, but we aren't
trying to sell ourselves with it either.
3. Your demo is astonishing; can you give me
some more details about it?
Thank you! Well, let's see. It was recorded
at Spyder Studios here in Houston, with Gregg Gill engineering and co-producing.
It was recorded in a really short time; we went in on a Friday afternoon,
recorded all of the drum and bass tracks, and most of my rhythm tracks
in about 5 or 6 hours. Larry came in the next day to knock out his guitars
and I returned on Sunday to complete my guitars. Ryan came in the following
Wednesday and belted out the vocals in an afternoon. So, it was a pretty
quick deal. We are very happy with the sound and performance on it. Gregg
is great; you may recognize his name from his stint in Distant Thunder.
4. I believe that your music has a base on
the heavy metal, but with a modern sound and you can see this in the last
song. Did you do it because you wanted have a fresh sound?
Our goal is to sound fresh, regardless of
each individual song's style. We have songs that sound more traditional
and others that sound more modern; it just varies. We have really taken
a lot of time working and re-working each song. We all have day jobs, families,
and other commitments, so it takes us longer for to complete a song than
it did 15 years ago because we don't have the freedom to rehearse as often
as we did back then! It also means that each song comes under more scrutiny
in terms of its structure, beat, rhythms, etc.
5. Your demo is out almost a month now. How
have the reactions been so far?
Overall, it has been well-received! We have
had some killer reviews in some webzines! Of course, we cannot please everyone,
but overall, great! Our web site has had a lot of traffic lately and we've
had positive comments posted on our guestbook as well as sales of merchandise,
so that is great!
6. Have you already played any live shows?
Yes! We had our debut on the 20th of November
2004 and we just had a show here on March 25. We have some live shots from
both of them on our web site. As for future shows, we are going to play
in San Antonio on July 16 for the Robb's Metalworks Showcase. We will be
direct support for Doom legends Solitude Aeternus.
7. How is it going with the recordings of your
debut album?
Well, nothing as of yet. We have to wait and
see what (if any) label offers we get. There has been some interest, but
nothing firm yet.
8. Do you have any offers so far?
Again, there has been interest, but it is
too early on to know...
9. Can you describe your music, in order to
give a general picture for the people that haven't heard your newest stuff?
Eternity Black music is in-your-face, aggressive,
and above all, heavy; tight rhythms, machine-like drumming, solid bass,
and aggressive vocals. I honestly don't think that we sound too much like
any band in particular as we have many influences, old and new.
10. Do you have any future plans?
Write, write, play, play, write. Right now,
we just want to push this demo and see if we can secure a deal with a label.
We do this for the love of the art; the creating and performing of music.
If something bigger comes of it that is great. If not, that's okay too.
We just enjoy making music and performing it for people. We gave up the
rockstar dreams a long time ago!!!
11. Thanks a lot for your time, I hope we can
speak more about your debut album in the future. As of now close the interview
the way you want.
First, I want to thank you Antonis for taking
the time to conduct this interview! To anyone reading this, be on the lookout
for Eternity Black in the near future. Visit our web site @ www.eternityblack.com.
We have a lot of cool pics, videos, and of course updates on the band as
things happen. Make sure to sign our guestbook so we know where you're
coming from! Lastly, to all of our friends worldwide, whether you know
us from Helstar or have just found out about us, thank you!! You are the
reason we make music!
Antonis Maglaras
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