Throneaeon
Wywiad przeprowadził Andrzej Papież
Let me ask you something... What do you think about Deicide last albums?? Crap? Shit? Yeap, those death metal gods are 'n the same band as they used to be. And do you know any band which can replace Deicide on teir broken throne? I know one! Throneaeon, Swedish death metal machine suprised me with their first cd "Neither of gods" released by Dutch Hammerheart records. Cheers Andreas! Andy form Masterful magazine here's asking. Hmmm, we both have the same names, I guess? Are you happy with your name?
"Hahaha, I guess I don't pay much attention to my name, never really though about it, but I'm pretty okay with it since it's better than Tony, Roger or Jens, hehe... Cheerz Andy!!!"
Throneaeon returned few weeks ago from tour with Benediction. How was it? Hope you've lost your hangover till now?! Anyway, there was one show planned in Poland, but it didn't work out, do you know why?
"I have no idea why it got cancelled, we didn't receive the message until we were halfway through the tour, and no explanation was handed to us. We heard some rumours about a big skinhead meeting in the same town and I don´t know if they were afraid of troubles cause of that. Both us and Benediction were really eager to visit Poland, so we were quite pissed about it, but I guess we'll make up for it next time. I've heard so many good stories about Poland so I can't wait to visit your country!
Otherwise the tour was just awesome, especially in Holland, where we met a lot of cool people and where the beer was flowing! We had some pretty crazy moments but thankfully the hangover is gone by now... I really enjoy getting all the beer & booze I want for free, all day long, it's kinda addictive, hehe. Some old geezer came to the show in Switzerland carrying a huge bowl of his homegrown weed which he gladly shared with all of us"
"Neither of gods" was released some time ago, so you know the press and maniacs opinions about it, right? Was there even one review without word "Deicide" among them?
"Hehe, well, the funny thing is, we didn't think that the new material was going to be that much connected with Deicide. Of course you can hear the influences, but I hardly think that we're ripping them off. I figure since our mini-cd and 2nd demo-tape kinda got us known as Sweden's answer to Deicide and the obvious reference to Deicide made in the adverts from Hammerheart Records could have something to do with this. Anyway, I'm sure that there are atleast 2 reviews where the word "Deicide" doesn't occur"
And what do you think about Deicide's latest releases? I think that that band is finished... They won't never repeat first two albums power and aggression...
"It's hard to say, I must agree that the first 2 albums are unbeatable aswell as "Once Upon..." but it's not up to me to judge if a band should cease to exist. I mean, as long as they stay true to themselves... Anyway, I haven't bought any of their later albums and the stuff I've heard isn't really my cup of vodka."
Has "Neither of gods" execute it's all tasks? Are you satisfied with it?
"That's actually a though one! I don't think it has gained us as much as we would have hoped for, but that can depend on many different factors. Personally I'm very satisfied with the album, but if I was 100% happy about it, then I would have a hard time recording a new one, you know, it's when you feel you can do better that you get the inspiration to continue. Besides, we've got great reviews from all over the world, we've got the chance to tour through Europe and I'm still answering several interviews each week even though it's been more than 6 months since the promotion campaign started, so I guess we can't complain. I really enjoy "Neither of Gods" and think it is one helluva record, but there's always stuff you want to improve with the next release and I'm not the kinda man that looks back at things, I like to look into the future."
And it's now high time to talk about "Neither..." successor... Have you any new material written? What's it's like comparing to your first CD?
"We are currently writing new material each day and we have a lot of new songs in process. I would say that we're trying out some new things to improve our song writing. The new album will definitely not be just another death metal CD, it will be something really interesting and very THRONEAEON. Comparred to our first cd... well, like years ahead of it. The new songs are more structured which is a natural evolution for us. I also think and hope that people will find the new material even more varied than before. It´s not only intense as "With sardonic wrath" and "Neither of gods", it´s more that we will let people relax and listen to the natural flow of the music. One of the new songs is even heavier than "As it has come to end" which was the last track on "Neither..."
Throneaeon plays brutal deathm etal, right? It's really strange in country where almost all metal bands play melodic death metal in vein of In flames or old-school death a'la Dismember...
"I wouldn´t say it´s brutal, more like agressive. This brutal deathmetal has become very common in the scene and every band says: "we play brutal deathmetal". We are more into the agressive form. Well what can I say? We perform the kind of music that brings us pleasure and this happens to be very brutal and aggressive death metal. We are definitely not any trend-hoppers, that's just not anything we would feel comfortable about, we do what we please and that's it. We have been playing this kind of music since the beginning of the nineties, through the times when deathmetal was called life metal and every little shitty band became blackmetal. So when people tried to stay "true" to the scene and started playing Black Metal, we stayed true to ourselves..."
I'm sure that you know Soils of fate, Vomitory, Deranged and Spawn of possession? Will you agree with my opinion that Throneaeon with mentioned bands are creating something new/different on Swedish scene? Maybe even a new chapter in Swedish death metal music ...
"We've been in personal contact with all the bands you mentioned and I guess you could say that we're all doing something that is different from the usual Swedish scene. But my prediction is that this music is not going to be so rare within a few years, it's growing every day and soon brutal death metal will dominate the Swedish scene."
I there a possibility to buy your previous mcd and demos?
"Yes, Hammerheart re-released the mini-cd, so that one shouldn't be too hard to get a hold of and I actually have a couple of "Carnage" tapes in a closet somewhere... The "Demo-95" tape is totally sold out. You can visit our website at www.throneaeon.com to find out the ordering information, we have t-shirts, both cd's and "Carnage" for sale!"
Andreas, would you like to change instruments with your band members for a while? In another words, is bass guitar your favourite instrument?
"Well, I'm really interested in native instruments like the digeridoo, tabla drums, etc, but I'm definitely not a guitar-player. Well, I enjoy playing classical guitar but I don't like electric guitar at all, also I guess I'm not especially interested in beating the big drumkit either, so for me bass guitar is the best instrument. I believe that it's a very underrated instrument, there's so much stuff you can do on a bass and the sound of it is really cool. Besides, the bass-player is always the one that ends up with all the chicks, so..."
Do you have any special resolve for new 2002 year?
"Not really, we'll see what happens..."
Andreas, Your appearance looks little bit different then other Throneaeon members. You wear Black sabbath t-shirt, you've got side-whiskers on youre face. So, you don't look like typical death metal maniac. You're much more deep into hippie or even stoner rock, I guess?
"Haha, well, I'm not in labels you know... I don't mind much what people think I look like. I have a Sabbath shirt simply because they're one of the absolutely best bands that has ever existed, I'm a total Sabbath freak and collect all the vinyls and bootlegs I can find with them (the Ozzy years). I'm all for stoner too, but that's just like one of the different types of music I enjoy. My Morbid Angel "Altars of Madness" full-sleeve tattoo on the right arm and the Baphomet symbol on my lower left arm doesn't really look that much hippie though, hehe... I must say I'm totally into death metal like Morbid Angel, Vader, Dismember, Entombed, Nihilist, Carnage, Grotesque, At the Gates, Deicide, etc, etc, but I'm also listening to such varied stuff as Venom, Anthrax, Iron Maiden, Helloween, Running Wild, Primus, Fields of the Nephilim, Sisters of Mercy, Iggy and the Stooges, Velvet Underground, 60-ies porn soundtracks, etc, etc, etc, etc... Whatever provokes pleasurable feelings inside of me is interesting!"
Do you like poronos? I love them! Especially good quality american ones! Do you have favourite pornostar?
"Nah, I can't say I'm much into pornos, it might turn me on when it's time for sex, but I don't spend any efforts on those kinda films. Something that's definitely more interesting is the soundtracks from German and Italian 60-ies pornos, which I'm very much into, it's really cool easy-listening that fits for both parties as well as for occasional sex or just getting high to it."
You've made whole artwork for "Neither..." and bands webpage. I must admit, it looks very proffessional. Is graphics your full time job, or just a hobby?
"Yes, that's true, I handled the artwork for "Neither of Gods" as well as for our website. It's sort of a full-time occupation for me, I handle a lot of different stuff at my job, but graphics and design is definitely a major part it."
And that's all for now, Andreas. Please share Throneaeon's future plans with Masterful readres. And keep flames of metal burning!
"We've got a lot of things happening right now, but I'm not able to tell you too much about our plans since most of it is still uncertain..We're currently very busy with writing new material for the follow-up to "Neither of Gods". We're planning to enter the studio during the summer of 2002 and record the material. There are also some plans of doing a Scandinavian tour during April/May 2002 together with Dying Fetus (us), Lord Belial & Insision, as well as some gigs in perhaps Holland, UK and the states... We'll just have to wait and see what the future will bring. Our website is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, so please stop by and check it out at www.throneaeon.com for the latest news, merchandise, tours, etc. Thanks for this interview and good luck with Masterful Mag! I'll see you around mate..."
