HELL-BORN
One
of the things I like a lot in the bands is the fact that they know where
they are heading and they have specific goals. Well, this is what I admire
in Hell-Born as well. They know what they do and why they do it.
1.TELL US IN A FEW WORDS THE MOST IMPORTANT
MOMENTS OF THE BAND'S HISTORY. WHICH IS TODAY'S LINE UP?
Let me think... The foundation
of the band, back in '96, the recording of the "Hell-born" MLP, the resurrection
of the band, A.S.2000, the recording of the "Hellblast"MLP. The first shows
for the band on a tour with DAMNATION, the american tour, and last but
not least- the recording of "The Call of Megiddo" LP. The present HELL-BORN
line up is:
Baal - bass & vocals,
Basti - baterry,
Jeff - guitar ,
Les- guitar.
2.WHY DID YOU CHOOSE HELL-BORN AS A
BAND NAME? ISN'T IT A LITTLE "ORDINARY" AMONG THE EXTREME METAL SCENE?
Is it really? Honestly, I've never
heard of a band under this name except for us. By the way I think it fits
perfectly to our music style and to our lyrics as well.
3.WHICH ARE YOUR INFLUENCES? WHICH
BANDS DO YOU LOOK UP TO? HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR MUSICAL STYLE?
Hell fuckin' metal. As for the
bands who influenced HELL-BORN - I can name a couple: DESTRUCTION, POSSESSED,
VENOM, DEICIDE, KREATOR...
4.WHY DO YOU USE NICKNAMES AND NOT
YOUR REAL LIFE NAMES?
I'm the only one who uses a nickname.
The rest uses their usual names in short version. My name comes from the
times when I was BEHEMOTH'S drummer. It was obvious to use a nickname being
in a blackmetal band, and I decided to hold on to this name to be recognized
easier. My real name is Adam, and I'm pretty far from being ashamed of
it.
5.WHY DO YOU PAINT YOUR FACES? DO YOU
THINK ALL THESE ADD MYSTERY TO THE BAND'S PROFILE?
Yes, in deed. But as you probably
noticed we dont use typical blackmetal corpsepaint, 'coz we ain't no blackmetal
band. We want to add a touch of grimness and horror to our image, and that's
the main reason for wearing corpsepaint. When you look upon our lyrics,
you find out, that death is one of the most important topics there. We
enjoy looking like mean and terrifying dead people, he, he...
6.TELL US SOME GENERAL THINGS ON THE
BAND RELEASES. COMPARE THEM. WHAT DO YOU OBSERVE? IN WHICH FIELDS HAVE
YOU PROGRESSED AS A BAND?
First of all I'm done with with
playing drums for good. Basti is a much better drummer (you can check upon
His skills on DEVILYN'S "Artefact as well), we also gained a lot by collecting
a full line-up, as we've become able to play live. As for the studio releases
I must tell you, that "The Call of Megiddo" is the best Fuckin' thing I've
ever recorded. You can see the progress in all the aspects, though it's
still HELL-BORN style.
7.WHY DO YOU HAVE ANTICHRISTIAN LYRICS?
DON'T YOU THINK THAT FROM A POINT ON THIS HATRED WITH CHURCH BECOMES A
LITTLE CHILDISH?
You see, when you grow up in a
christian country, which is a very opressive enviornement, you start to
hate this religion and the church as well - it's a natural and logical
response to what those assholes did in the past and to what they're still
doing. I agree it's childish to write antichristian and satanic lyrics
without the necessary knowledge and, mark my word's, you need lot's of
it! I'm proud of being a thorn in the ass of christianity, and I shall
remain there until the Reaper calls my name.
8.MANY EXTREME METAL BANDS EXPRESS
RACISTIC IDEOLOGIES. WHICH ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT? BLACK METAL WAS CHASED
A LOT IN THE PAST. SHOULDN'T THIS MAKE THE BANDS AND THE FANS MORE SENSITIVE
IN SUCH MATTERS?
I didn't form this band to write
about such items, and I don't fuckin' care about what some bands say about
their problems with other races. I got my own ideas about it, and I share
them only with people who want to discuss seriously about them. I dont
make statements about it as a HELL-BORN member, 'coz it's got nothing to
do with our music and our lyrics either.
9.MANY BLACK METAL BANDS SAY THAT THEY
HATE PEOPLE AND DON'T WANT ANY CONNECTION WITH THE REST OF THE WORLD. HOWEVER,
THEY RELEASE ALBUMS AND SO THEY "NEED", "SEARCH" FOR THE RECOGNITION OF
THE FANS. ISN'T THIS A LITTLE STRANGE?
Yes, it is. Did I ever say something
like that? I don't think so. I hate foolish people, and I try to avoid
them as good as I can. That's all. And, as I said before, HELL-BORN is
NOT a blackmetal band.
10.AND SUDDENLY BLACK METAL BECOMES
POPULAR! MORE AND MORE NEW BANDS POP OUT SIGNING WITH BIG LABELS. HOW DO
YOU FIND ALL THIS? WOULD YOU RECORD AN ALBUM FOR A HUGE LABEL IF YOU WERE
GIVEN THE CHANCE?
We've got a contract with Conquer
Records signed already, so I'm not thinking about a new one. A huge label?
Well, why not.
11.WHY DOES METAL KEEP INVOLVING RELIGION,
MYSTICISM AND THE OCCULT?
Because it fits to brutal and strong
music. And such music is a good background for writing such lyrics
as well. Easy, isn't it?
12.WHICH IS MAN'S BIGGEST TEMPTATION?
The temptations of the flesh are
the strongest ones, but the mind is stronger than the flesh, so it's easy
to keep them under control. This is the way to what I call the "inner freedom".
13.WHICH DO YOU THINK IS THE BEST AND
WHICH THE WORST PART OF YOUR MUSIC? WHERE DO YOU THINK TO NEED IMPROVEMENT?
As I told you, our new LP is the
best thing we did so far, and I don't see anything to improve at the very
moment.
14.WHICH WERE THE REACTIONS OF THE
FANS AND PRESS FOR "HELLBLAST"? WHICH WAS THE BEST AND WHICH WAS THE WORST
REVIEW?
The reaction of the fans was very
good. I was suprised with the fact, that many of them remembered our old
Mlp, especially in the USA. We got good reviews worldwide pushing us
further to carry on with our evil art.
15.HOW ARE YOU PLANNING TO PROMOTE
YOUR WORK? WILL YOU DO ANY LIVE SHOWS? CAN YOU DESCRIBE A TYPICAL HELL-BORN
LIVE?
We played a couple of tours so
far, and some single shows as well. We'd love to play live as much as it's
possible. You ask about a typical HELL-BORN show; Well, see you down the
stage...
16.IF SOMEDAY YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO
MEET THE CREATURE THAT CREATED THE UNIVERSE, WHICH WOULD YOUR BIGGEST QUESTION
BE?
17.WHAT PROLOGUE AND TITLE WOULD YOU
LIKE THIS INTERVIEW TO HAVE?
It's up to you. This is your interview...
18.THANK YOU!HAVE I FORGOT TO ASK YOU
ANYTHING AND YOU'D LIKE TO MENTION?
I don't think so. Thanx for supporting
HELL-BORN. Check out our full lenght album, stay metal and bang your head
for Satan! http://www.hellborndirect.com/
Baal Ravenlock
Christine Parastatidou
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