– Hello, lots of thanks for answering our interview. How is everything going into the ACHERON’s camp right now?

VC- Things are going very well, We are very excited to have a new album coming out on LISTENABLE RECORDS and to start playing some shows again.

– You have kept ACHERON going on for over 20 years now, even though the line-up changes, the changes on the whole music industry… Did you ever imagine when you started the band you would ever get that far?

VC- I never really put much thought into it. Ever since ACHERON was formed it has been an active part of my life. Even when I broke up the band a few times I couldn’t escape it. Nor do I want to. It has been an interesting ride and I still enjoy making new ACHERON music and playing live. I hope it lasts many more years.

 

– And now you are about to unleash your new album, «Kult des Hasses». How are you feeling about it?

VC- I can’t wait for everyone to hear it. The whole band is very proud of how it turned out. There are lots of catchy songs and the sound we got for the album is amazing. Very true to the old school.

 

– The album’s title is German, and on this release there are also song titles in Latin, Portuguese… Would you mind to shed some light on this?

VC- I always thought German was a very powerful language and was perfect for the title. The Latin title just fitted the story. And the Portuguese song is a dedication to our Brazilian fans,

 

– For instance, the song with the title in Latin, «Daemonum Lux», lyric-wise has a different vibe compared to the rest of the songs on the record, dealing with when Aleister Crowley invoked Choronzon. How did you come up with this theme for the track? How much of an influence has been Aleister Crowley for ACHERON?

VC- It was just an interesting story that I have knew about for years. I thought it would make a great concept for a song. I feel the lyrics and the music work very well together. As for The Great Beast, I think he has had influence on most bands drawn to the occult.

 

– On this release there are plenty guest vocalists. Could you please elaborate a little bit on this (how did everything arise, what was their input, etc.)?

VC- We just wanted to include some of our friends on the album, so many joined in doing some small parts and backing vocals. And we do have some great guest appearances, including Kam Lee (ex-MASSACRE) and John McEntee (INCANTATION).

 

– For this record you are still playing with Kyle Severn, and also got a new guitar player, Art Taylor, and on the studio you also had Ricktor Ravensbruc. How did everything work with them?

VC- I think the final result was great. Everyone did a great job and the music sounds very solid. I think the line-up worked well together.

 

– In fact I feel like this album is specially focused on guitars, there are a lot of shredding and interesting leads. Was this something you were striving for or is it rather the touch both guitar players brought to the opus?

VC- Actually, it was a little of both. I wanted to bring back lots of guitar leads, like their was in the Michael Estes era. I think we have some really interesting guitar attacks on the album.

 

– This time around the bass also has a bigger presence. How did you approach your bass work?

VC- Nothing new. I just got a much better sound on the record.

 

– In general I could say «Kult des Hasses» is a natural follow-up to your previous «The Final Conflict: Last Days of God», but more primitive and old school sounding. Was this the idea you had for this release or did you just let things flow naturally?

VC- I agree with you 100%! A perfect follow-up. We did have a direction for this album and I feel we got the raw sound we wanted.

 

– It caught my attention this is your catchiest album ever still being quite brutal. How important is to have catchy compositions in ACHERON?

VC- Thank you. That was indeed the goal we were after. I think ACHERON is known for our catchy tunes, so it is very important. When some bands thrive to be super technical, I think it is more interesting to write songs that stick in people heads.

 

– In fact that element enhances the good equilibrium there is between brutality and melody. Is it easy to obtain a good balance between both elements?

VC- Writing catchy songs is just as hard as writing technical ones. Finding a good balance takes a lot of work. But in the end it pays off.

 

– You recorded the effort in Cleveland so, how were the recording sessions like?

VC- It was hard because we had to do a lot of traveling back and forth, And we only recorded on the weekends, so it took up lots of our free time. But other than that I think everything went well.

 

– This «Kult des Hasses» has been your first release with Listenable Records. How did you hook up with them? I bet you may got offers from some other labels.

VC- Laurent from LISTENABLE RECORDS was a fan of ACHERON since the early days. He really wanted to breathe new life into the band by putting out a new album and actually promoting it and getting our music out to a wider range of listeners. So how could we pass up an offer like that? And also give us artistic and creative control of the band. As for other labels, we weren’t really interested in any of the other offers we received.

 

– All this about your new opus being said; how could you describe «Kult des Hasses in just 3 words?

VC- PURE UNDERGROUND METAL!

 

– Now, as 2013 is about to end; could you please tell us what are your 3 favorites albums of the year as well as the least favorite one?

VC- HAIL OF BULLETS, DARKTHRONE, and AUTOPSY were my favorites. I don’t waste my time on the bands I don’t like.

 

– And finally, what are now your near-future plans after these last busy months? How does 2014 look like for ACHERON?

VC – ACHERON hopes to start promoting the new album by playing shows. We plan to do some touring in 2014. And also start working on material for the next album. We don’t want another 5 year wait! So we hope everyone gets our new album and comes to see us when we come to their town. Ad Maiorem Satanae Gloriam!

 

Tania Giménez

tania@queensofsteel.com

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