PHYLACTERY (EN)
1- Hello, thanks for answering to our questions. What are you guys currently up to?
K.T. – By the time people read this we’ll be getting well into writing for our next release, having just come off a couple of shows with Ares Kingdom and capping that off with playing the Covenant festival in Vancouver.
2- First off, could you make some history of the band?
K.T. – All three of us were in projects before Phylactery, and we all had been longtime and hardcore fans of Thrash metal, but none of us had managed to get a Thrash project off the ground. T.G and I, only being acquaintances at the time, went and saw the final Noctis festival in Calgary, where both Possessed and Sacrifice were playing. Mutual friends heard us both raving about both performances and pointed us in each others direction and everything flowed naturally from there. J.M. was a part of an earlier attempt of T.G.’s to get a thrash project going so he was naturally a perfect fit on bass to complete the set. We set to work writing our first album, and honestly that takes us up to about the current day.
3- How could you describe your sound?
K.T. – I think we approach deaththrash with a decidedly old-school sensibility, in that it isn’t enough for a song to be harsh or fast, it has to be memorable as well. When you listen to the classic deaththrash albums like “Seven Churches” or “Spectrum of Death” every song doesn’t just sound good, it stands out. Since we write in a collaborative and spontaneous way every riff and beat has to pass the initial gut-reaction test of “is this catchy? is this memorable?” Even though we end up adding things that are maybe anachronistic, like blast beats, this writing process and our own personal tastes ended up with us writing an album that I don’t think would be out of place being released in the late 80s.
4- What are the band’s main musical influences?
K.T. – While I think we borrow from as many different sources and eras as we can, again I would say our influences tend towards the more classic deaththrash bands, but even that leaves us with some variety of influence. For instance, I think my drumming is often very germanic, very much in the vein of Sodom or Kreator, but my vocal style is almost a high shriek like Pat Lind, and this variety also extends across time. T.G. is just as likely to be inspired to write something by Nocturnal Graves as he is Slaughter Lord.
5- How has the feedback for your new album been?
K.T. – Universally positive, which is equally humbling and affirming to hear. I think you need look no further than the other releases on our label, Unspeakable Axe Records, to see that there is clearly a hunger out there for this type of music, and my hope and belief is that we will still stand out amongst our peers.
6- And are you personally satisfied with the final outcome?
K.T. – Incredibly so. We all are quite self-critical people and it is tempting to nitpick a final product, but I think part of the beauty of this style of metal is imperfections can often add character to an album rather than detract from it.
7- How could you describe this opus in just 3 words?
K.T. – No bullshit deaththrash
8- How was the production process like for your new release?
K.T. – We banged it out over a single weekend. We made sure everything was set up perfectly and just started recording all together. Recording all instruments at the same time was definitely the correct decision for the “controlled chaos” feeling we wanted to create and it has that spontaneity which makes live recording so rewarding.
9- And how does the songwriting process work?
K.T. – As was alluded to earlier, we will all have rough ideas for a riff or a drumbeat or a song and we’ll all just get in a room and shoot them off of each other and the good bits survive and the parts that aren’t up to snuff are quickly forgotten. We end up starting with a drumbeat probably about half the time, which I believe is quite a high percentage and I think when you write drums first as often as we do it really helps the riffs to stand out from each other rather than just do the same beat over different riffs.
10 – Finally, what are you near-future plans?
K.T. – Off the positive feedback the album has garnered so far we’re trying to use that momentum to get more opportunities to tour, and to get our music into as many ears and hands as possible. We also are chomping at the bit to get back to writing for whatever release comes next, whether that be a split or an EP or what have you.
https://www.facebook.com/Phylacterydeaththrash/
http://unspeakableaxerecords.com
http://www.facebook.com/unspeakableaxerecords
