Cerebrum

interview by - Wouter Roemers

Greece is becoming the new haven for excellent death metal. One of the most promising new acts in the scene is Athens-based Cerebrum. Combining the best traits of Death, Atheist, Cynic and Watchtower, this Greek act is amongst the most potent of its kind. "Spectral Extravagance" – Cerebrum's Lacerated Enemy Records debut – is a whirlwind exercise in death metal that is both classic and modern in approach. Masterful Magazine caught up with Apollon Zigomalas (vocals) and Mike Papadopoulos (guitars) to talk about their upcoming debut album, the involvement of Nile drummer George Kollias and their influences.

First off, I'd like to thank you for taking time to speak with me today. Since this is your first time on Masterful Magazine, would you care to introduce Cerebrum to our readers. The sort of brief history, kind of thing, you know?

Thank you for the interview. Well, Cerebrum were formed in Athens/Greece around 2002 by Mike [Papadopoulos] and Jim [Touras]. Apollon [Zigomalas] came to the band the same year through our first drummer. We recorded a 3-track demo in 2005, then in 2007 travelled in Bled, Slovenia to record the album. After some search and discussions with various labels, we eventually signed a record deal with Lacerated Enemy Records in 2009 and here we are now with the release of "Spectral Extravagance".

The cerebrum or telencephalon, together with the diencephalon, constitute the forebrain. It directs the conscious or volitional motor functions of the body, sensory processing (including smell) and is responsible for language and communication plus learning and memory. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that the band plays a more cerebral and technical form of death metal. Influences from Death, Atheist, Cynic and Watchtower are pretty much all over the place.

You've done some good search huh? Isn't it impressive? That's why we chose that name for the band, because it represents exactly what we express through our music. It's order from chaos and the weirdest part of all is that in different kinds of 'tuning', the brain acts completely differently and unimaginable! This together with our DNA are the 2 most mysterious parts of the human body. All these bands you mentioned are among our favourites along with the psychedelic/prog bands of the 70s. It's basically the music we d like to listen to, together with many other different stuff.

It was recently announced that Cerebrum had signed with Czech Republic-based Lacerated Enemy Records. What led you to sign with this particular label in the first place?

Zdenek, the owner of the company really liked our music, believed in us and also proposed the best offer, so it was an easy choice eventually.

The album is graced with an incredible organic and warm sounding production that is very easy to listen to while retaining enough grittiness. The majority of the album was recorded at DB Recording Studios in Slovenia with producer Dali Sternisa while the drums were recorded at George Kollias' own studio in Greece. I take it you are satisfied with the studios you've worked with to produce and mix this record?

Yes, we are really satisfied with the final result. Dali is a really cool and hardworking person and we're very satisfied to have worked with him. The whole travel to Slovenia was a great experience and helped us concentrate more on our purpose... It was the sound we were looking for, exactly as you described it.

"Spectral Extravagance" was mixed by Rotting Christ guitarist George Bokos. It seems no expenses were spared to make the record as sound as optimal and professional as possible. In what ways has the mixing of George Bokos improved this already impressive recording?

We never settle for anything less than the best for the band, no matter what. That goes for the music, lyrics, production, artwork...everything. We do exactly what we feel with no compromises. Jim and Mike are also sound engineers so they worked together with George and created the sound we had in our minds. The mix and mastering gave that extra boost to the final result. We wanted the listener to be able to hear everything clearly because many lines go on at the same time, and we think we had a good final result.

For this record, you've hired current Nile drummer George Kollias (ex-Sickening Horror) to lay down drums for "Spectral Extravagance". Was he familiar with Cerebrum prior to his session work for this album?

No, we didn't hire George. George is a very good friend of ours and really likes our music, so he helped us out. He's the best at what he does, very professional and creative. That also meant that we were going to have a very hard time finding someone else capable of performing his drums, but we eventually found someone to help us on tour.. Fortunately. George's probably doing the drums for the 2nd album also.

The logo and stunning digital artwork were created by Xaay, who did work in the past for established acts as Behemoth, Nile and Necrophagist. How was it working with him?

He is a really good guy and amazing artist. We gave him all our ideas, lyrics and visions and he perfectly transformed them into the cover and artwork you see. As we speak, we work with him on a new design that is to be featured on a yet crazy and psychedelic t-shirt. Again, we're so pleased to work with him, the results are perfect!

As said previous the artwork, design and lay-out of the album is amazing. What exactly does the cover represent and in what way is it tied to the album? Does it represent the album as a whole or any tracks in particular that were of inspiration to Xaay?

The cover, together with the whole artwork & design, is an interpretation of our cosmo-theory (through the music & lyrics of course). It's all about the lives we live on this earth, the appreciation and quality of our way of living, our disrespect for mother nature, human values and ethics and the worldwide corruption. But it's also about harmony and dreaming and altered states of consciousness. Perception and reality. Time and space and finally about the power and capabilities we all have within us and deserve to release. We believe that the title of the album "Spectral Extravagance" defines exactly our whole concept.

This new album is a perfect little death metal record that harkens back to the genre's earlier days, yet it does manage to surprise here and there. Do you use a lot of time on trying to vary the music or is it something that just comes naturally?

Thank you very much for your kind words. It all really comes out very naturally. It's not that we do anything on purpose to sound technical or anything. It's just the kind of music we want to listen to. We never think like "we must have a slow part or clean part here", etc.

Prior to this recently released debut, you self-produced a self-titled promo EP in 2005. Do both differ greatly as far as the band's direction is concerned?

No. As far as our direction is concerned, what we liked then is what we like now. Those three songs are included in the album, altered a bit for the better.

"Spectral Extravagance" comes to us by way of Lacerated Enemy Records. Are you happy the way they handled the record, regarding distribution, marketing and promotion? How has the label been accommodating the band's needs?

We are very happy up to now. They do the best they can and really believe in us. We also have an opinion and choice in everything they do, so that gives us more trust and comfort with the label.

Thanks for the interview! Good luck with all your future endeavours. I would like to extend my praise for your persistence in keeping the ancient flame burning. The last words are yours.

Thank you very much for the interview and your kind words. Well, we just play the music we like and through our lyrics we express our worries and concerns about today's life... And especially in our miserable-modern Western societies, where people are so misled and away from the true values and meaning of life. TV, medias and lifestyles are controlling everything and the sheep-with-no-shepherd are so lost in their programmed-routine lives. It's so sad and it's now. We are soon to go out on a European tour, so keep an eye on our MySpace page for news (myspace.com/cerebrum). We hope you enjoy the album and we're looking forward to meet and talk with you all, viva!

Info/booking: www.laceratedenemy.com

Cerebrum

interview by - Wouter Roemers

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