Kronos
Wywiad przeprowadził Wouter Roemers
French death metallers Kronos released their second album "The Hellenic Terror" on Spanish underground label Xtreem Music a couple of months ago. This record sees the band opting for a brutal death metal sound that is both groovy and overtly technical, quite reminiscent of bands like Decapitated and Yattering, while keeping their recognizable traits intact. As on their previous album "Colossal Titan Strife" this new album also deals with ancient Greek mythology and lore. All this was reason enough to ask guitarist Richard Chuat - whose answers weren't as elaborate as I'd hoped due to his weak mastery of the English language - a couple of questions about their new album, their lyrical concept and their deal with Spanish label Xtreem Music.
First of all, congratulations for releasing such a great album! How are things going now? Are you receiving a good response?
Thanks a lot to you for your compliments! We are now waiting for a lot of reviews from the whole world. The first ones are great, so we expect it will continue for the other ones!
How would you compare the last record with your two previous works?
Richard : The new record is a little bit different... In general, songs are faster, more technical and intense. All tracks sound more professional and I think that we have reached a new level up with this CD in term of composition. In the same time, I think that we have kept our basis too. Fans can easily recognize the band. We always mix brutality with melody and fast songs with slower songs... There are a lot of guitar solos too, more than on the two previous albums. At last, vocals are richer. We have worked a lot on the articulation and there are more backing vocals on the new record. To conclude, I can say that this album reflect a modern KRONOS which have conserved his style and incorporated some news elements born from our actual influence and philosophy...
I understand you recorded the album at Hertz Studio in Bialystok, Poland with producers Wojtek and Slawek Wieslawscy. Tell us something about the recording process. In my opinion you've achieved a fat and full sound that fits the music perfectly. Did you exactly know what kind of sound you wanted or did this sort of materialize along the way?
Yes, we are very happy with the result. The album sounds exactly like we had expected! All instruments are clear and powerful at the same time. All sound very professional, so yes we're really happy with the result!
How long was the process of putting the album together, as far as writing the music, the concept and arrangements is concerned?
Well, in fact the process was strange and new for us. The reason is we live very far away from each other. So, we have used the Internet to compose this album. We sent each riff at each member to see if it was ok or not and we have made the music this way. This was the only choice for us because we see each other just for gigs! So, the all process was about 7 or 8 months, and we finished some arrangements, drum parts and solos in studio. We didn't rehearse the songs before we arrived in Poland!
With regards to creating music, how do you usually go about writing songs? Do the ideas begin with riffs, lyrics, or a mix? Does any member take the lead role over another?
It could be just a riff that gives another idea and so on... But now we compose more with lyrics or rhythmic patterns, and fine-tune the riffs after.
When working on this new album, were there any elements from your debut album that you wanted to keep and were there any particular things you were looking to improve?
We didn't really think like that. This album is the result of what the members of Kronos were in 2006. So, we have composed without asking real questions. What to keep? What's not to keep? No, we have just done what we want. In the music you can find some old stuff and some very new stuff.
Unfortunately I do not have any lyrics in front of me, so I would like to tell us a few words about the themes you treat in "The Hellenic Terror".
This time we have chosen to speak about mythological creatures: Centaurs, Cyclops, sirens, shynx, minotaurs... Each song tells the story of one of these nice beasts... in old Greece and their fight with the great heroes of ancient times.
As you pointed out lyrical inspiration is derived from Greek mythology - where does this interest in the particular subject come from? I take it you are well read on the subject matter, unless you do a really good job of fooling people.
At the beginning it came from Mike who was student of ancient history. We developed the concept more and more and I think that's a good point for the band. It gives a real identity to Kronos.
At which point of time did you make the decision to form the Kronos concept and how did things develop from there?
The name existed since very long time, not since the beginning. But on the first album "Titan's Awakening" there was just no Greek mythology. There was some mythology for all tribe. For the second one "Colossal Titan Strife" we decided to speak a little more about Greece and the last one is only refers to ancient Greek mythology. That is a real choice to write only on this subject for a better identity.
What are the main musical and lyrical differences and improvements on "The Hellenic Terror"? What has changed compared to the last album "Colossal Titan Strife"?
Tempos are a little bit faster and the music is more technical. There are more guitar solos and backing vocals too. The vocals are clearer than before, because we wanted more pronunciation in the lyrics for more power and I think the result is here! We have done a lot of work to be able to record, so we are better now.
Musically, Kronos is the kind of band with a lot of diversity, with this new release being no exception. I like the balance that the band has between the intensity and the aggression but with an emphasis on technique and structural melody. How difficult is it to find that balance?
We want an aggressive music that goes straight in the face but we don't forget to make some pause with solos or some melodic passages. We try to find the best combination between brutality and something more tranquil.
In my review I compared your new promo to established Polish technical death metal bands such as Decapitated, Yattering and US monument Suffocation. Do you feel this comparison does the material justice?
It could be worse! All theses bands are great. We all like these bands - so you can certainly find something of them in our music. That's not a problem. And with a Polish production.
This is your second record for Spain's Xtreem Music. Do you feel satisfied by the sales of the album so far and the promotion/support of the label?
Actually, the promotion for "The Hellenic Terror" is not so good. It was better for "Colossal Titan Strife". I don't know why exactly and I am disappointed. So, we don't sell a lot even though people want to buy the album, but can't find it!
Can you tell us what Kronos has planned for the remainder of the year?
We will be on tour in France for 10 gigs in October and November with two great French bands and friends: Benighted and Receuil Morbide. Some fests in Germany and some others gigs. We begin to compose new songs too.
Thanks a lot for your time. I would like to extend my praise for a killer third album. Last words are up to you.
Thanks a lot to you and to our fans for support all around the world.
Booking: richard.chuat@wanadoo.fr
Site: www.kronos-titan.net
