HATE (Eng.)
– Hello and first of all, thanks for taking the time. To start, please explain us what are HATE currently up to.
Destroyer: Hi! We are getting ready for upcoming weeks, we got big plans and lots of work ahead. There are a few headlining shows in Poland, shooting a video for “Alchemy of Blood”, finishing a documentary about “Solarflesh”, interviews, and lots more. The premiere of the album is coming really soon.
– You have recently released your new album, «Solarflesh». What are your expectations on it? And how is its fedback being so far?
As far as I know and read the feedback is just amazing. I haven’t seen any “bad” review yet, only positive ones, very positive. Our expectations are growing i must say. We start the new circle of promoting the band and touring, it looks quite interesting. We are focused on playing as much tours and festivals as it’s possible. At the moment we have booked the european tour with Hypocrisy. And this is just the begining.
– In fact if I’m not mistaken right now you are working on a documentry about the creation of this new opus so, could you please go a bit further on this?
We are working on it at the moment. It’s going to be something interesting for our fans, I think. The documentary covers the time between 2010 “Erebos”, and recording of the new album. It’s going to show us in recording studio enviroment, talking honestly about our past, future and philosophy of the band.
– Though «Solarflesh» is once more a great and straight-foward Death Metal album, all songs on the record have a distinct personality due to the different layers and the variety of elements are featured on all of them so, due to this, could you please tell us how do you use to work on the songwriting?
The core of our music is still ferocious, extreme metal, so it is based on guitar riffs very much. However, over the years our style has become quite capacious. You can hear influences of heavy metal, rock, choral music, industrial, dark ambient etc. We usually start from guitar riffs and drum arrangement and then we add ambient background and vocal lines to it. Solo parts come last when all the main arrangements are ready. On this álbum we worked in an extended team of musicians. Besides the main instruments you can hear female vocals done by Androniki Skoula- a Greek artist known for her involvement in Chaostar, Septicflesh and Rotting Christ, Polish guitarist Mateusz Szemraj (Arabic lute), and our friend Michal Staczkun with whom ATF made all samples and electronic backgrounds.
– Atmospheres and the overall dark vibe on this effort are also quite present this time around. How important are atmospheres for your music? And where do you draw inspiration from to create such rich backgrounds?
I think, the atmosphere is something that makes our music unique, it’s basical for Hate’s style. We started including all these backgrounds, industrial elements on ‘Anaclasis’ album, and we consistently use this way. As you said – ‘the dark vibe’ is very important for us. Inspirations, well, we just feel it, without the specific ‘thrill’ our music is incomplete.
– Moreover I’d dare say with these atmospheres and dark vibe you have managed to keep the listener interested from start to end, as you mix the beauty these pasages provide with your usual brutal and sick basis. Is this constrast something your music needs?
I like contrasts. Playing blastbeats from the begining to the end doesn’t make any sense to me. When i listen to music I’d like to be intrigued, involved into new dimension, follow artists’ way of thinking. It’s natural to me as an artist that I should provide something ambiguous, worth more than one listening. In Hate, we want our music to be multidimensional, far more than classic death-metal. This is why we include different music styles elements, atmosphere, arrangements.
– I could say this is your darkest record to date; was this something you were looking for? Does this fit the lyrics on it? What’s the main concept behind the CD?
‘Solarflesh’ is inspired by dark aspect of nature – something universal which doesnft belong to any religion or philosophy exclusively. It is represented in almost every tradition. Itfs not a concept album in strict sense but it has some main motives that appear in most songs – enslavement, suicide, suffering, illumination etc. The songs hold a rather negative, apocalyptic message. There is a notion that man is nothing but enslaved scum – enslaved in every meaning of the word. Nobody is really free in their decisions. You are slaves to the system you grow up in, , your religion, false convictions, other people who think for you, make decisions for you, etc. In todayfs world, we like to think that we are free and we have full control over our lives. Itfs nothing but illusion.
– And are the lyrics and the cover artwork linked? What did you want to express with the artwork?
If you ask me about the meaning of the cover, it shows a ritual suicide; one that is committed with ultimate dedication to an idea – fanaticism and self-destruction. It relates to the condition of human kind. The cover art is meaningful and holds more symbols that you can see at the first sight. We still collaborate with Daniel Rusilowicz (graphic designer and occultist) Daniel listened to tracks as a demo as early as in March 2012. He clearly understood that this album would be something much darker and more serious than anything we had done before. It was his suggestion that there should be a suicide act on the front cover and that idea seemed to match the whole concept well. We took pictures of a thin and tall female model. She is stabbing herself below the ribs on her left side. Her right hand is showing the gsavior gestureh. Above her head you can see the sun eclipse which symbolizes violent change and downfall. It also shows the ultimate dedication to an idea or god. The whole layout is carefully designed with all symbols having their magical meanings. Even the colors are there for a reason. Soon we will launch a special graphic website (www.hate-solarflesh.com ) dedicated solely to this album. It will contain more information about the whole concept, symbols and creating of ‘Solarflesh’
– You also know how to refresh your sound adding new elements but, is it easy to add new elements still keeping your own personality?
I think so. Including new elements is quite natural, without any epic brain-storm. It just happens more or less conscious. After some years together we have quite good feeling about what ‘Hate style’ is.
– So said that; does HATE have any limit?
This is really good question. And i cannot answer straight. We push our limits all the time, all of us. Another record, another tour – we try to be better in all levels. Constant progress, this is how I see our future. I think that we are strong enough to avoid all obstacles in our way. Let’s say: ‘Fuck limits’, this is my philosophy in two words.
– And all this about «Solarflesh» being said; how could you describe it in just 3 words?
Dark, furious, epic.
– This has been your first release with Napalm Records after some albums with Listenable Records so, how is everything going with them so far?
Very well. It’s still to early to conclude, but so far everything looks good. They accept our ideas and support us. They promote us widely, almost every day we got new intervievs. I feel, it’s gonna be a good cooperation
– Though you are not a former member, you have been some years now in the band so, after these years with HATE; what have been both the best and worst moments with the band?
The best were amazing shows we did feeling like a machine, united. Some moments in our carreer – first tour in USA, Brazil, Mexico, Russia, signing new contracts etc. Worst? Cancelling some shows on our tours, because of lame transport. Some frustration after long tours, feeling sick and exhausted.
– You are hailing from Poland, a country with several and really good extreme Metal bands but, how do you see it as an insider? What «unknown» bands could you sugget?
I’m not the best observer of our scene but I know is the good one. We have very strong BM scene with bands like Mgla, Infernal War, Voidhanger, Azarath. New band – Sammath Naur, they kicks ass and are very talented.
– And finally, what are your near-future plans?
Soon we are going to play four shows in Poland and Festival in Germany. In March european tour with Hypocrisy starts. Somewhere between we plan to record a video to the song ‘Alchemy of blood’. And it’s just a beginning of a very busy (I hope) year.
– That has been everything from my side, thanks once more for your time. If you now want to add some final words; feel free to do it.
Thank you for the interviev! See you on our gigs. Let the flame of Hate burn!
