Really dedicated maniac! It was a real pleasure dealing with this guy, who still appriciate the old ways. Respect!
Intro: HELLISH FUCKEN CROSSFIRE!!! They are NOT your type of
pizzatrashcore new128kbpsmp3commers! Fucken hell... They are not even
newcommers! This is a band with glory 9 years behind it's back and if you
pretend to be in some kind of "scene" and you dont know them...well,
take this fanzine and bury it next to your dead turtles in the backyard. And,
yeah - kill yourself. In the beginning of 2010 those german horde released
"Bloodrust Scythe" - the 2nd assault. More about it and of course the
past/present/future of the band will share the guitarist Chris - one of the first members who started the whole
noise back in 2002...
Medarov:
Whats up, IRON INCUBUS! Where do i find your asses? Whats your play/drink list
right now? Present the band to the poor souls! What are you doing lately and
what are your current activities?
Iron
Incubus: Hails to you, my demonic comrade! Great to have the possibility
to answer some of your questions! It`s some kind of premiere to me, so to say:
I have never answered an interview for a Bulgarian fanzine, really great! – I
didn`t even know HELLISH CROSSFIRE is known in your country… I know there`s
some kind of following in Hungary, Poland, Serbia and Czech Republic, but I
didn´t know about Bulgaria, that`s really awesome! Anyway, everything`s alright here at the moment, although we got
a somehow “silent” period in HELLISH CROSSFIRE right now: Since May this year
we haven`t played live, and it seems as if playing concerts will start once
again not before autumn this year. Furthermore our vocalist Iron Tyrant and our
drummer Evil Possessor attend as many Iron Maiden shows as possible right now,
so we don`t come together too often to rehearse… Anyway, soon we`ll start once
again writing new songs for a third full-length album, but the release date of
this record is quite uncertain. First we`ll have to write enough good songs,
then we`ll have to record them, and then it`s gonna be unleashed… we`ll
see how everything will work out in the future…Right at this moment I`m
drinking some good beer from my home region Upper Franconia, where some of the
best breweries of the whole world are located, hehe! I got Exciter`s “Heavy Metal Maniac”, Judas Priest`s
“Painkiller”, Violent Force`s “Malevolent Assault Of Tomorrow”, Razor`s
“Executioner`s Song”, Cirith Ungol`s “Frost And Fire”, Scorpion`s “Virgin
Killer”, Accept´s “Breaker”, Rainbow`s “Long Live Rock `N Roll” and Brocas
Helm`s “Defender Of The Crown” on my turntable when answering this
interview…And, finally, “Hello” to all the readers of this fanzine, we`re
HELLISH CROSSFIRE and we are dedicated to ancient Thrash Metal with different
kinds of influences from genres such as old Death, Black, Speed, Heavy or even
Doom Metal. We don`t serve any trendy expectations, we just do what we want and
we do it with pride! What you get when listening to HELLISH CROSSFIRE is what
we represent to 100 %! Don`t expect any polished, commercial shit – here you
get the real deal, real intensity, real darkness and real filth!!!
M:
More common/annoying questions, but we have to. Going back to 2002...there
wasnt this "thrash resurgence" bulshit... what was the main idea behind the
band? Who were the first members? Back than - was it a serious project? What were
your main influences? Who came with the name? Seems like the logo was different
also.
II: There
ain`t no annoying questions, just annoying answers, haha! You´re right if you mention that back
in the days of the foundation of HELLISH CROSSFIRE there was not such thing as
Thrash “revival”: To me this kind of music has always been alive, no need to
“reanimate” it or whatever! Back then I had quit playing in a Death / Doom band
maybe one year before. I got to know Iron Tyrant, and one day he asked me if I
would like to play some hellish rehearsals together with him on the drums. So
that`s how we ended in the practice room after all: I got to know bassist Sick
and our former vocalist The Bone, and we started playing some covers of groups
such as i.e. Sodom, Slayer, Mayhem or Bewitched. But it was just me and Iron
Tyrant back then, just guitar and drums, to get a feeling for each other, to
try to adapt to one another. After a while we created our own songs that were
stilistically somewhere between Thrash, Speed and ancient Death Metal. In the
end fast and dirty Thrash Metal was our main influence, the basic character of
this group. We didn`t think of things such as fame or shit like this, we just
wanted to do our own stuff, regardless of what others may think or say…and
we`ve done this since then, so we bastards never changed, haha…! In the first
instance HELLISH CROSSFIRE is our outlet of feelings, of dedication – if there
are furthermore people that feel possessed by our kind of music, we feel
honoured…but remember, we would still do this kind of sound if no one out there
would like it, haha! There´s some kind of inner need to create something deeply
honest and outstanding…
Back when we first met in the rehearsal room we just wanted
to jam around a bit and see where all this would lead us to. We were still
searching for an own style in the beginning, we thought about maybe doing some
live shows and recording songs for a demo release – but that was it! There was
no plan like “we`ll have to release album after album to become as famous as
possible” or bullshit like this. Everything evolved in a very natural way…
Our main influence was the breath of the ancient Metal
legends, the heart and soul of real, dedicated music. Of course ancient Speed /
Thrash with heroes such as i.e. Sodom, Slayer, Violent Force, Whiplash, Dark
Angel, Living Death, Razor, Sacrifice, Mutilator, Kreator, Darkness,
Destruction, Assassin etc. was a major inspiration, but also old Death Metal in
the vein of Possessed, Poison, early Protector or Slaughter was very
influential. The spirit of old Black, Heavy or Doom Metal touched our dark
souls as well, but in the end we played some kind of aggressive, fast Thrash.
The legacy of the great, old scene, was and still is very much alive in our
hearts…!
The band name was chosen by my comrades, and as Iron Tyrant
said, it`s not only linked to Iron Angel`s debut album of the same name, but in
first instance to a lyric piece of a song of a quite famous German Black /
Thrash group… We thought the band name is kind of unique, it sounds good and it
represents our kind of raw sound quite well!
Our first logo was drawn by our comrade Mellhammer, a very
good friend since the very early days already. When we were about to unleash
our first album “Slaves Of The Burning Pentagram”, the artist of the cover
artwork of the LP version decided to draw a new logo, which we thought looked
quite well. From that day on we switched over to this logo, but live on stage
we still have an old backdrop with the early logo hanging behind the stage. In
the end we think that`s cool, it´s a tribute to ancient times and also a symbol
that not much has changed in our sound since the early days…
M:
Seems like you were 3-piece in the beginning. Where did you found Evil
Possessor? (Let me tell you about this guy - he means business...real MONSTER
who RAPED his drum kit in "On Pestilent Winds..." by EXCORIATE -
check'em out). The other things which is amazing...seems like you have never
kicked-out a guy from the band...is it true?
II: You
don`t have to tell me about the qualities of Excoriate, man, haha!!! – I know
that this was one of the most promising Death Metal groups coming from Germany
since a very long time…but luckily there`s a great successor in shape of
Venenum… And, by the way, Evil Possessor played / still plays the guitar in
Excoriate / Venenum*,
so the drums were / are handled by a different guy! But anyway, seems as if
Evil Possessor raped his axe on these recordings quite well, hehe…!
As said above, we were starting as four-piece actually: Iron
Tyrant on drums, The Bone on vocals, Sick on bass and me on the guitar. The
Bone soon quit the band, then Traumatic (former Witchburner) joined us for a
few months. After the split with Traumatic, we got to know Evil Possessor, he
took over the drums and Iron Tyrant switched to the microphone. – These were
all the line-up changes in HELLISH CROSSFIRE`s history so far… I think we can
consider the final formation of this long lasting line-up as the real date of
the foundation of this band! When it was Iron Tyrant, Sick, Evil Possessor and
me altogether, it was the ultimate start of HELLISH CROSSFIRE… From these days
on we recorded stuff and played live. There are just few rehearsal recordings
from those days with The Bone and Traumatic existing, but even I don`t possess
any of these tapes!
It´s true that we never kicked somebody out: If we would
have felt unpleasant with certain people, we wouldn`t have asked them to join
the band…I mean, we`re a bunch of fanatic maniacs and a dedicated unity, so
it`s hard for other people to adapt to this maniacal insanity, hehe!!! The Bone
and Traumatic left HELLISH CROSSFIRE due to various reasons and we all agreed
it would be best if we`d split with them. There are absolutely no negative
feelings, we still respect each other and, of course, there was no “kick out”
or anything like this ever in the history of this group!
(*-sometimes
its really difficult to read zines done by complete morons)
M:
In those dark years between 2002 and 2004 (the release of the 1st demo) what
was the band doing? Gigs, working, writing new songs, covers i assume...
II: We
wrote songs, worked on some covers such as i.e. `Metal And Hell` from Polish
Kat or `Iron Force` from Darkness. Furthermore we recorded songs for the
mentioned rehearsal tape “Unholy Tyranny”, which despite its poor sound, was a
first sign of life for HELLISH CROSSFIRE and a good way to spread our name in
the darkest pits of the underground. Back in this period we also played our
first live shows: Already back then we experienced that the stage was the
ultimate place to be for us! On stage our songs could unfold all of their
original power and aggression!!! Generally said, the first years were inspired
by finding a suitable style, a convenient line-up and gathering some early live
experiences.
M: Lets
talk about the first 2 demos. Where did you record "Unholy Tyranny"?
How many copies were made? Were you happy with the sound and what was the
feedback back then?
II: Concerning
“Unholy Tyranny” we just placed a tape recorder right in the middle of the
room, pushed the “record” button and started playing! – That was all, so
there`s actually no “production” at all, hehe! This tape should present HELLISH
CROSSFIRE in its earliest, rawest shape and introduce our name to the
underground. And it succeeded… Only 50 copies were spread, mostly to friends, maniacs
and some zines / labels / distros. Many people praised this cassette, and
“Unholy Tyranny” helped us to get more known in the underground. The sound was
ok for a rehearsal recording, I think. Of course it cannot be compared with
high-end professional recordings, but these songs got a soul, a certain
atmosphere and presented HELLISH CROSSFIRE in the early days in a natural
rehearsal room surrounding. If people think it`s too “noisy”, that´s their own
opinion, to us it was some kind of authentic way to present ourselves.
M:
The "Slaves of the Burning Pentagram" was also limited and came in
2005. Is it somewhere to be found along with "Unholy Tyranny"?
II: There`s
much confusion concerning this promo tape from 2005. So let me explain this:
Back in the early days a Dutch comrade wanted to put out a MLP of HELLISH
CROSSFIRE on his label Steelfire Invasion. We entered Rape Of Harmonies Studios
then to record 30 minutes of devastating speed. But Steelfire Invasion called
it a day after several months, that`s why we had to look for another label. We
put those recorded tracks on a blank tape for promotional purposes and sent it
to labels and zines. As already said, I`ve been in touch with I Hate Records
before, and I knew they were very interested in our music, but they wanted to
put out a full-length album. That`s why we returned back to Rape Of Harmonies
to record two further tracks (`Eternal Tyranny` and `Claw Of The Reaper`) to
complete a full-length recording. The cassette was limited to about 50 copies
once again, mainly sent out to labels, zines and distros.
I think it`s hard to compare these recordings with the songs
on "Unholy Tyranny", because our first tape was just a plain
rehearsal, and the songs on "Slaves Of The Burning Pentagram" were
professional studio recordings. But the song(s) `Desecrate...` and `Glorify The
Sin` were already featured on our debut album / on this promo tape as well, and
we even re-recorded `...Of Slaying Grounds` for our second full-length
"Bloodrust Scythe". We refused to re-record `Death Worship` and
`Hellish Crossfire` only, but all in all I think that "Unholy
Tyranny" marked the foundation of our sound and this kind of music has
evolved throughout the years without ever betraying the roots...
M: I
see you were approached by "I HATE" records back in 05/06. Did you
sent tapes and promos or they contacted you first? Are you happy working with
this swedish label? It seems pretty big nowadays...
II: I
remember I also sent "Unholy Tyranny" to Peter from I Hate Records,
in trade to a cassette of his fine group Terrorama. That was the foundation of
a co-operation with this label. I`ve been in touch with Peter before due to my
fanzine "Blood Of The Ancient" I run back then. He knew my band
HELLISH CROSSFIRE, and he`s been interested in working together with us, but
this didn`t take place until the aforementioned label Steelfire Invasion
Records split and we had no chance to release our stuff. Fortunately I Hate
remembered and signed us!
We were quite happy working together with them: They`ve done
everything possible to support HELLISH CROSSFIRE, and we`re still very thankful
for that. Furthermore I Hate Records got a very, very good choice concerning
the bands they work with, I just remember awesome names such as i.e. Nifelheim,
Pagan Altar, Crux, Root, Eidomantum, Lord Vicar, Forsaken, Protector,
Serpentcult, The Gates Of Slumber, Space Eater, Jex Thoth, Abysmal Grief
etcetc. I Hate got a general vision about underground Metal music, no matter
what kind of style, and this fits quite well with HELLISH CROSSFIRE`s
"philosophy" so to say... I said "we were quite happy working
together with them" as we are no longer on this Swedish label. After
having co-operated with them concerning our last two albums, we felt the time
was right to try a new step, which meant signing to Austrian Noiseart Records.
We don`t know if it was the right choice, we don`t know what to expect here,
but you never know this in life, unless you try it, right? Anyway, we`ll see
what future may bring to us...at least we`re thankful concerning the work I
Hate Records did for us and we`re really looking forward the co-operation with
Noiseart!
M:
The "Slaves of the Burning Pentagram"...ahhhh what a groundbreaking
debut! It invokes the spirit of the ancient teutonic metal and sands the
listener to hell. Straight forward, no bulshit metal...where did you record
this fuck? How many LPs did you sold? What was the feedback by the distros,
fanzines, maniacs and so on...was it promoted live?
II: "Slaves
Of The Bunring Pentagram" as well as "Bloodrust Scythe" were
recorded in Rape Of Harmonies Studios, together with our producer and friend
Patrick W. Engel. Working with Patrick W. Engel has always been great! He´s not
only a producer that knows our kind of music, the way we want to sound
individually very well, he`s also a great comrade! We knew him before
personally and we didn`t think too long about where to record our debut album.
We knew we would get the best possible result when we co-operated with him,
furthermore he´s a real Metal fanatic and knows our strengths and our weak
points. He manages to motivate us the best way possible, and always finds the
ultimate best fitting sound for our kind of music!
From our debut full-length there were all in all 500 LPs
pressed, all were sold out within just a few months...
The response concerning "Slaves Of The Burning
Pentagram" was, generally said, very positive. We were honoured that real
experts in underground Metal publications praised this piece of Metal, but
there was also the major press which was very curious about this piece of
utterly raw Thrash... I mean, we got features in mags such as i.e. UK`s
"Terrorizer", furthermore we hit sound check position #1 in Swedish
"Close-Up" zine, which was quite awesome! We never expected that our
work was quite much recognised even outside the "usual" underground
ways - without any support of a big label in our backs!
Of course we played many shows to promote "Slaves Of
The Burning Pentagram" live. For the first time HELLISH CROSSFIRE played
abroad back then, in countries such as i.e. Sweden, Portugal, Austria etc. I
especially remember that special night in Stockholm back a few years ago when
we experienced one of the best moments in our band history: All the people went
nuts and got wild during our set, what an awesome experience! Even mighty
Tyrant of Nifelheim joined us on stage on the guitar to play a devastating
version of `Sodomizer` together with us. So, all in all, many concerts were
played, many good memories...
M:
Talking about live desecrations...you've played around Germany and France (for sure). Where else? Have
you had offers playing outside Europe? Where was your best and most memorable concert in the past 9 years? Where was the best crowd? How is the typical
HELLISH CROSSFIRE concert going? I hope the cunts are KILLING each other in
front of ya!
II: So
far we`ve been playing in Germany,
France, Sweden, Portugal,
Austria, Italy and Czech Republic.
Lots of other countries should be discovered in future, I think. A show in
Barcelona / Spain should be realised in a not such extremely distant future, I
hope... Anyway, we`re always willing to play anywhere at anytime!
There were no offers to step on stage outside Europe yet
(except of a tour offer through East Europe and Turkey), but we hope to be able
to play on other continents one day as well. I mean, we got fans in countries
such as the USA, Mexico, Chile, Brazil, Israel, Malaysia etc., so I think it
would be a must to visit these lands to offer our intense kind of real Metal to
the maniacs! Maybe one day we`ll get a good offer to play on a different
continent - maybe also with the help of our new label Noiseart Records and our
booking agency Rock The Nations...we`ll see what future may bring!
Best concerts? - Damn, there`ve been some very special
events, such as the aforementioned first visito to Sweden in Stockholm a few
years ago. But also the show in Leipzig / Germany early this year was great as
well: We shared the stage with our friends Witching Hour and Division Speed,
and it was a total thrashing holocaust, a bestial desecration, one hell of a
great celebration of the ancient Metal cult!!! Furthermore I also like to
remember that fine show in Portugal a few years ago: People were nearly
destroying the whole stage - although the sound (and, I guess, also our
playing, hehe) was very bad, the audience got so extremely wild that we thought
apocalypse has already come...furthermore we experienced friendly, dedicated
people, so it was a very intense, great weekend! Additionally we also enjoy remembering
our appearances at festivals such as i.e. "Hells Pleasure Open Air"
or "Thrash Assault". These were the shows in front of the biggest
crowds for HELLISH CROSSFIRE till now, and generally said, we both like small
club gigs as well as bigger festival appearances.
Hard to say where the best crowd is: People in Southern
countries such as Italy and Portugal are, generally said, more hot-blooded than
people from the North. But somehow you cannot compare this, because we also
experienced awesome, intense shows in Sweden, Germany, Austria, France...real
maniacs are everywhere on this planet, and it seems as if music is a univeral
language that unites people of different races from different places... By the
way, we would like to check out how Bulgarian people are - generally said, the
whole East European territory seems to be quite interesting to play, we`d like
to make this experience one day...!
No cunts have killed each other in front of our stage yet,
haha! The typical HELLISH CROSSFIRE concert is just four people standing on
stage living every single note, every single rhythm. Much beer flows in our
mouths, the passion for our songs is always there... In best cases this passion
transforms upon our audience, so the people are going wild as well. Headbanging,
body slamming and crowd surfing / stage diving are things you can experience
then... This leads to chaotic, savage sceneries, with a whole bunch of human
minds going insane and celebrating a dedicated raw Metal worship!!!
M:
In 2008 you released your demo material along with Violent Attack via the mighty
chilian Proselytism distro. Are you happy with this release? How does it appeal
to you...to see the old desecrations on LP?
II: After
Proselytism Records released our first album „Slaves Of The Burning Pentagram“
on tape, they asked if there was still any never before officially released
rehearsal stuff of HELLISH CROSSFIRE to put on a split with mighty Thrashers
Violent Attack from Paraguay. Deathmessiah of Proselytism was a huge fan of
those dirty, early recordings, furthermore he told us that there was still some
demand from Chilean maniacs to check out HELLISH CROSSFIRE in a live /
rehearsal situation, so it seemed to be kind of logical for us to re-release
those recordings on special 7”-shaped CD (no LP) especially for the South
American market. So, in the end it was a useful release, as also Proselytism
invested a lot of work in the layout. Furthermore you received real value for
your money, both concerning quality and quantity: You got ten songs of each
band, which means the tracks of our first rehearsal “Unholy Tyranny” as well as
tunes from a later rehearsal which has never been released before –
additionally there`s also a cover of Kat´s classic `Metal And Hell` as some
kind of tribute to the spirit of the early East Metal heroes… It`s a strange,
but good feeling to see this early rehearsal stuff on CD. Of course Proselytism
put a warning sign on the inlay, stating that all recordings of both groups got
a very basic underground sound…so all buyers have been forewarned, haha…!
M:
There was a gap of 4 years between the albums...ok, you are NOT Nunslaughter,
but what did took you so long? Seems you are perfectionists in studio...
II: We
cannot come up with a new album every year or so, we need time to develop good
songs! We are very critic concerning our song writing, and unless we`re not
totally satisfied with a track, we won`t record it! Furthermore we all got our
jobs and cannot afford to stay in the rehearsal room for weeks to work out new
music... But the major reason why it took us four years to come up with a new
album after the release of our debut, is that we definitely take very much care
for the fact that everybody in the band can stand behind every single note on a
new record to 100%! The major part of nowadays` albums features many fillers,
and we try to avoid this...however, till now we`re all very satisfied with
every single track HELLISH CROSSFIRE has ever released!
We are by far no perfectionists, as we definitely do take
care for a very spontaneous feeling in our music. But whenever we hit the
studio, we give our best, we try to achieve the best result possible...a good
preparation is needed to achieve high goals, so that´s another reason why it
always takes some times for us to come up with new releases...we don`t care for
how fast or how slow other bands are, we just got our own "time
feel", our own "release rhythm" so to say - whenever we feel
songs are ready to be unleashed upon mankind, it´s time for a new HELLISH
CROSSFIRE release...!
M:
How is the process of creating your stuff going? Is there a "chief"
in the band or you just gather, and everyone is spewing his ideas? Who writes
those filthy riffs? Who writes the lyrics and what are they about? Some are
anti-christian for sure...also who deals with the "art" Both albums
looks hilarious!!!
II: Mainly
it`s me who comes up with riffs and song ideas. In the rehearsal room we gather
and try to find fitting drum parts. We alter riffs and ideas, change rhythms
and different song parts, try this and that, and in the end there`s something
totally different standing there as the actual new HELLISH CROSSFIRE piece of
audio aggression! There`s no chief in the band, as we all contribute to the
song writing and we all make decisions on a democratic base. The lyrics are
partly written by our vocalist, and partly by a good comrade of us called
Mellhammer. They are inspired not only by anti-Christian thoughts, but by real
Metal topics, so to say: I mean, we don`t care for if there`s a real deep message
in our songs, we only care if the words fit to the music – it`s as simple as
that! We would lie if we would try to tell that there`s a hidden meaning,
although it`s also a fact that the lyrics personally mean very much to the ones
that created them. The words are for sure typically in the Metallic vein, but
beyond those “clichés” you also got a more individual statement.
You think the “art(work)” of HELLISH CROSSFIRE is hilarious,
haha? – Do you think it´s too traditional, too primitive? However, we hate all
those nowadays` very popular computerized versions of booklets, covers etc.
That´s why we once and for all decided to co-operate with dedicated artists:
The CD cover of “Slaves Of The Burning Pentagram” was done by the label owner
of Steelfire Invasion, the LP artwork of our debut was created by an artist
called Goatscythe. The artwork of “Bloodrust Scythe” was done by a guy
called Marko "Mäd Mäxxx"
Neumeister, whereas our producer Patrick W. Engel was responsible for the
awesome layout of the LP version of our second full-length. I guess it`s a
common opinion in HELLISH CROSSFIRE that the LP version of “Bloodrust Sythe”
comes closest to our own imagination of how a record of our band should look
like – we`re quite satisfied with the vinyl layout, definitely!
M:
Moving forward...(question no.13...god damn!). "Bloodrust Scythe" is
here to ANNIHILATE! It continues the line of SOTBP and i still cant decide
which i like more production-wise. This one is better produced, but i kind of
miss the raw integrity of "Slaves..." What do you think is the main
difference between the 2 albums? Where did you record this one and how was
it received worldwide?
II: It`s
funny but past weekend somebody told me absolutely the same: “You know, both
albums are great, but I prefer the first one due to its raw production”… Hm, I
can hardly understand this as I think that the sounds of both records are very
similar. We recorded both albums in the same studio (Rape Of Harmonies), but
maybe we experimented a bit more on “Bloodrust Scythe”, maybe we dared to try
out more things. When we were recording our debut, HELLISH CROSSFIRE was in
studio for the very first time, so everything was kind of fresh and we wanted
to get this spontaneous feel in our songs. Being in the studio for the second
time, we already knew what to expect, so we could focus more on making things
sound better than on “Slaves Of The Burning Pentagram”.
What is the main difference between both albums? – Well, as
already stated above, compared to our first record, there are much more small
details featured on “Bloodrust Scythe”. Furthermore I think our second
full-length offers some better playing as well as some better arranged songs.
Additionally there`s a distinct Heavy Metal edge to some tracks, something that
can hardly be heard on “Slaves Of The Burning Pentagram”. At the same time
there`s even a much more aggressive, much darker approach to the tracks in
general. So, “Bloodrust Scythe” is a very extreme record sounding much more
aggressive and much more melodic at the same time. It`s hard to explain, but
that`s what I think about it and what most of the reviewers and listeners
agreed on. We received nearly exclusively very enthusiastic, rave feedback
concerning “Bloodrust Scythe”. Not just the underground was very positive about
this record, also major zines such as i.e. “Rock Hard”, “Terrorizer”, “Scream”
etc. praised this piece of utter bestiality and offered interviews to us. In
“Legacy” mag we reached sound check position #2, in Swedish “Close-Up” we once more
entered sound check position #1 (for the second time already). Despite some
mediocre and one very bad review (for the very first time) the response
concerning “Bloodrust Scythe” was definitely unbelievable! Of course fans from
all over the world praised it as well – some of them liked it more than “Slaves
Of The Burning Pentagram”, others still prefer our debut…in the end everything
is a matter of taste, of course!
M:
Speaking in contest of all your releases there are a lot of various influences
on your musick! In "Bloodrust" Scythe" i can here a lot of dark
heavy metal influences, also speed, death metal parts and a lot of energy! What
bands are you listening lately? Is there a difference between the bands you are listening now and back in 2002 when you started with HELLISH CROSSFIRE? (Hold ya hats!)
II: Puh,
it`s definitely too much to mention what we are inspired by! On the Metal /
Hardrock sector, I´d say it`s maybe Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Motörhead,
Coven, Writing On The Wall, Icecross, Lucifer`s Friend, Black Widow, Possessed,
Pentagram (USA), Mercyful Fate / King Diamond, Candlemass, Infernäl Mäjesty,
Onslaught, Venom, Hellhammer / Celtic Frost, Bathory, Slaughter (Kanada), old
Slayer, old Metallica, old Samael, Death / Mantas, Sacrifice (Kanada), Oz,
Heavy Load, Morbid Saint, Exciter, Necrovore, Zemial, Hirax, Merciless,
Incantation, Blood Feast, Immolation, Morbid Angel, Rigor Mortis, old Judas
Priest, Desolation Angels, Pokolgep, Korrozia Metalla, Treblinka, Ossian
(Ungarn), Aria, old Manowar, Saxon, Cirith Ungol, Intruder, Revenant, Atomic
Rooster, AC/DC, Rose Tattoo, Morgoth, Violent Force, Darkness, Assassin, Liege
Lord, Count Raven, Sparta, Militia, Minotaur, Formel 1, Iron Angel, old Nuclear
Assault, Deceased, Autopsy, Tinieblas, Entombed, Rush, Stress, Old Funeral,
Blasphemy, Morbid, Agressor, Carrion, Necronomicon, Cynic, Kat, Saint Vitus,
Trouble, Exumer, Exodus, Dismember / Carnage, Détente, Toxik, Acid, Tudor,
Root, Pentacle, Turbo, Agent Steel, Blitzkrieg, Luciferion, Mystifier,
Nifelheim, Virgin Steele, Exorcist (Polen und USA), Tormentor / Kreator,
Taurus, Poison (Deutschland), Sathanas / Bathym, Sodom, Darkness, Holocausto,
Iron Butterfly, Blue Cheer, Sadus, Massacre (Chile und USA), Tormentor
(Deutschland und Ungarn), Sarcófago, Törr, Slaughter Lord, Massacra, Pagan
Altar, Unanimated, Bestial Warlust, Beherit, Dissection, Trespassed, Rainbow,
Virtue, Cryer, A-II-Z, Warpath (Chile), Inquisicao, S.A. Slayer, Warfare,
Samson, old Overkill, old Sepultura, White Spirit, old Tygers Of Pan Tang, Dio,
Mutilator, Slauter Xstroyes, Samhain / Deathrow, Expulser, Black Knight, Order
From Chaos, Sadistic Intent, Dark Angel, Num Skull, Omen, Manilla Road,
Grotesque, Bulldozer, Vulcano, Death SS, Necrodeath, Shub-Niggurath / Tormentor
(Mexiko), Violent Force, The Black (Italy), Grave, Inquisitor, Sextrash,
Destruction, Witchfynde, Witchfinder General, old Mayhem, old Darkthrone,
Living Death, The Obsessed, Angel Witch, Cyclone, E-X-E, Headhunter D.C., old
Debustrol, Master (Russland und USA), Satanic Rites, RetroSatan, Hell, Hydra
Vein, Onslaught, Mortem (Peru), Messiah, Sabbat (England und Japan), Incubus
(Florida und Louisiana), Asphyx, old Pestilence, Infernäl Mäjesty, Protector,
old Vader, Mercy, Warhammer (UK), Morbid Saint, Dorsal Atlantica, Terrorizer,
Hobb`s Angel Of Death, old Mortal Sin, Gun, Dust, MC5, Deaf Dealer, Anvil
Chorus, Stos, Thrasher Death, V8, Sadism, Metalmorfosis, Chakal, Fantom,
Arakain, Heavy Metal Army, Voivod, Crux, Iron Angel, Tudor, Diabolic, The
Chasm, Grim Reaper, Blasfemia, Astaroth, Insulter, Paralex, Cloven Hoof,
Damnation (Schweden), Ostrogoth, Ancient Gods, Infinitum Obscure, old Usurper,
Reverend Bizarre, Attomica, Martire, Vomitor, Transmetal, Necroschizma,
Necromass, Black Hole, The Rods, Warlord, Brocas Helm, Destructor, Medieval
Steel, Tysondog, Golgotha, Tyrant (UK, Deutschland und USA), Leprosy
(Schweden), Pentagram (Chile), Resistencia, Satan, Jaguar, Razor, Voor, Silent
Death, Bloodlust, old Destroyer 666, Sir Lord Baltimore, Warrant (Germany),
Unleashed / Nihlist, Crucifixion (UK), Demon, Tank, Holocaust, Atomic
Aggressor, Death Yell, Diamond Head, UFO, old Scorpions, Uriah Heep, Thin
Lizzy, Accept, Deathstrike, Centurian, Abhorer, Sexfago, Atheist /
R.A.V.A.G.E., Dead Head, Sorcery, Savage Death, Savage Grace, Led Zeppelin, Tokyo
Blade, Girlschool, Tröjan, Overdrive, Wolf (UK und Schweden), Terror(Sweden),
Hammerhead, H-Bomb, MC5, Budgie, Samurai, Praying Mantis, Arc, Warpig, Gospel
Of The Horns, Legend, Sarcofagus etcetc.
But that`s just a “small” selection, haha! I always had a
the widest musical taste in HELLISH CROSSFIRE, also listening to stuff such as
classical music, Blues, few Jazz, Progressive and normal Rock, Punk etcetc.:
Good music is everywhere! As long as music is authentic and real, it`s worth to
be listened to! Of course, when I`m writing riffs for HELLISH CROSSFIRE, I`m
mainly inspired by raw and aggressive Metal, be it Thrash, Speed, Death, Black,
Doom or Heavy Metal! But as a listener, I`m very open-minded, although I listen
to 98 % of my time to Metal.
My personal taste hasn´t changed throughout the years: Even
in the very early days when I got addicted to Heavy Metal music, I got a very
wide musical horizon and I could listen to so different acts such as i.e.
Slayer, Led Zeppelin, Motörhead, Iron Butterfly, Pink Floyd and Massacre in one
row! So nothing`s changed actually: I worship real, authentic music and hate
plastic, commercial or mediocre trend stuff – it doesn´t matter what kind of
music we`re talking about…! However, there are still genres I hate completely,
such as i.e. Rap, HipHop, Techno or stuff like this…
M: I
wont bother asking you about the old german bands, cause everything is said but
what do you think about the last SODOM?
"In war and pieces". Also...which are your favorite new bands in Germany
and worldwide? Tell us some unknown but worthy hordes from your region
(Nuremberg, Franconia). Also one question which im asking everybody...whats
your opinion about the so called "New Wave of Thrash Metal"? It gets
pretty diverse reactions.
II: First
of all, I don`t like the new Sodom
album “In War And Pieces”, honestly said. There are good tunes on it like i.e.
`Knarrenheinz`, but in the end this record sounded much too modern to me,
furthermore the speed of the songs was a bit lame... Already the album before
was far away from being an album in the good, old Sodom way. The last really
good album from Angelripper & Co. was for sure “M-16”. However, that`s only
my personal opinion…
There are tons of newcomers around these days, but just a
few are really appealing to me. Concerning younger groups from Germany it would
be for example Division Speed, Witching Hour, Cruel Force, Venenum, Sworn Iron,
Petrified or Earth Flight. World-wide I´d mention Force Of Darkness, Ejecutor,
Korgüll The Exterminator, Children Of Technology, Space Eater, Evil Army,
Castle, Christian Mistress, Procession, Capilla Ardiente, Enforcer, Züül,
Promiscuity, Ghost, Dragontears, The Brew, Crippled Black Phoenix, Riotor and
Blood Ceremony for instance. In
our Franconian area there are still some groups worth to check out: Just listen
to Venenum, a great Death Metal group where our drummer plays the guitar! If
you want some dedicated, raw underground Thrash aggression in the vein of early
Hellhammer, listen to Pestilent Screams, if you`re looking for 70s Rock, get in
touch with Earth Flight. Furthermore Deathronation play some good Death Metal,
whereas our comrades and long-term Black Metal legend Ungod are still very
active nowadays – maybe more active than ever before, hehe! And hey, check out
my other band Cosmic Wasteland as well: Everything is still very much in the
beginnings, but if you want dark Doom Metal in the vein of Black Sabbath, Saint
Vitus or Count Raven in a raw rehearsal sound, check it out!
“New Wave of what?!?” – Damn, to me there`s not such things
such as “waves” or shit like that! Real Metal has always been here, no matter
how many other people listened to it or not! I mean, as already stated above,
HELLISH CROSSFIRE has been founded way before the Thrash Metal trend, and we`ll
still be there once the huge hype is over! Most of those wannabe groups will
turn away and change their style then, but we`ll still be there, you can
believe that!!! Like every trend I experienced during my lifetime, also Thrash
Metal will grow weaker and one day only the real, honest acts will be left –
which is good, of course, to cleanse the “scene”. However, we`ve never felt
HELLISH CROSSFIRE was a part of a certain “scene”, we just do what we want and
we do it with pride!!!
M:
Ary you still in trades/buying tapes/LPs/CDs/Fanzines? Also about
internet...some youngs are mp3 obsessed and reject the old ways (fuck them).
But there is the other thing - some are totally rejecting the web counting ONLY
on letters, which sometime never arrive or takes so god damn long. I think it
never hurts to have at least an e-mail. Whats your opinion about the web? Helps
you or puts obstacles?
II: Of
course I´m still trading stuff, I still buy LPs, CDs, fanzines…but my
activities concerning this have clearly decreased throughout the years. I mean,
I only buy stuff to complete my collection, but there are rarely any new
records that are worthy to have. Much of nowadays` music is just a plain
rip-off of vintage sounds, nothing new is added. If you love this kind of noise,
it´s ok, but why turn over to the copy if you can get the original? Anyway,
concerning internet activities, I think that a good mixture is acceptable: I
also use email and stuff like this, HELLISH CROSSFIRE even got a myspace site.
We decided to avoid an internet presence at any time, but we reached one point
when we realised that having a web place helps you to get in touch with people
and offers fans the possibility to get aware of latest news, let the people
listen to your music and helps fanzines to get logos, photos and other stuff
for layout. The internet makes many things much more comfortable than in the
past, you named it. But beware that you don`t get addicted to this virtual
world! We`re still living here and now, and life has much more to offer than
staring on a screen 24 hours a day…! Furthermore there´s an overkill of
information on the web: Everybody has to comment on every little shitty topic,
it´s really a shame! It`s hard to get ahold of the real worthy part of
information, and for young Metal heads it`s especially very hard to grab just a
vision of the real spirit of this kind of music. I grew up with tapes and LPs,
and I know the feel when you`ve been waiting for weeks / months to get certain
records in your mail box (a real one, not a virtual one!). Nowadays people surf
on the net and download everything they want – they`re easily fed up with
everything and turn over to the next “sensation” out there… But as long as the
real spirit still beats in the hearts of maniacs world-wide, the authentic
essence of Metal never dies!!!
M: You
are/were involved also in bands like OLD, Anael, Excoriate, Venenum (a MUST).
How are the things going with your side-project?
II: Our
vocalist Iron Tyrant has been playing the drums in Old for a while, but that`s
already been a few years ago. As far as I know this group has been put to rest
after a long time of silence! – Sad but true…it`s also sad but true that also
Anael is no more! I`ve been playing the guitar there, and after the release of
our third full-length “From Arcane Fires” we decided to take a break to gather
new inspiration…and this break unfortunately lasts till this day! Also
Excoriate ceased to exist a few years ago, but there´s a new, hopeful dark
Death Metal monster called Venenum where our drummer Evil Possessor is active
in. They released their first EP “Venenum” this year and it was appreciated
very much in the underground! They`ll be playing some devastating live shows at
“Hells Pleasure Open Air” as well as a small club show over here in Nürnberg
together with Tribulation and Negative Plane. Additionally I also got a
side-project / band called Cosmic Wasteland, as already stated above – Doom
Metal the traditional way…we only released a rehearsal / promo CD so far,
nothing really spectacular, but a good start, as I think…
However, there are no other side projects at the moment –
maybe I´ll be doing something with some good friends in future, but it`s too
early to tell you some concrete details about this…
M:
Whats in the future for HELLISH CROSSFIRE? New album/demos, concerts and so
on...or just fucking around, spending the MILLIONS you made on "Bloodrust
Scythe". he-he...will you ever record a video clip?
II: Yeah,
we`ve recently ordered all our Rolls Royces and swimming pools for our villas
in sunny Hollywood…!!!
Of course we want to get richer, that´s why we`re writing new songs at the
moment to release another chart breaker, haha!!! Sincerely, we really write new
tracks meant for a third album which is gonna be released by our new label Noiseart
Records. At the moment we just got one concert to play in autumn this year, we
really hope there`ll be more! The named gig will take place at German “Way Of
Darkness” festival which we are really looking forward to – info see below this
interview. Would be great to meet one of you maniacs at this special event…!
Hm, we`ve never thought about ever recording a video
clip…there`s some live footage from us at youtube available, but we never
planned to do a real clip…if someone would offer us to produce something like
this, and if the concept would make sense and would fit to HELLISH CROSSFIRE,
we would go for it, of course. But if it would be just one clip among many
other similar ones, we wouldn`t see the necessity doing something like this…
M:
Where the fans could score some merch form HELLISH CROSSFIRE? Sand us also some
contacts where the maniacs could sand you their words.
II: Below
this interview the fans got all the information: Just get in touch with us if
you want some merchandise, if you want to insult us, if you want to argue with
us, hehe!!! – We`ll always answer any mail, that´s for sure!
M:
OK...thats it from me! Anything to add...like favorite football team/best porn
act/favorite "bathtime" song? Anything - let us know!
II: My
favourite football team is for sure our local club 1. FC Nürnberg. In the band
everybody supports this team more or less: I mean, we all come from this era,
this is our home, this is where we belong! And we all grew up with mighty 1.
FCN, hehe!!! Did you know that Nürnberg has won most of the German Soccer
Championships right after Bayern Munich? And hell, we HATE Bayern Munich, this
money-printing machine…! 1. FCN FOREVER!!!
Best porn act?!? – Damn, I don`t read their names, man! –
I`m just watching the movies as you have be very careful to come along with
what happens actually there, hehe…! Good looking girls are for sure Aria
Giovanni or Asia Carrera. Generally said, I prefer those dark brunettes, those
exotic girls to all those Kelly Trumps, Gina Wilds or Dolly Busters… I`m not
too much in this scene, I enjoy watching some certain girls, but mostly I don`t
care for their names, hehe…!
What is that, a “bath”, what is that, a “shower”?!? – Haha!
Sincerely, it`s hard to tell you about any special bathtime song because I
never raise my voice as I`m a very untalented singer. Most of the time certain
melodies or refrains come into my mind, which is mostly something of The
Beatles, The Doors or other relatively old stuff like this…mainly it´s not
Metal, just something that gets quite easy into my mind…
Finally, thank you very much for your questions! I really
hope that HELLISH CROSSFIRE will be able to thrash down Bulgaria and Eastern
territories in general one day! Just invite us, offer us some good beer as well
as a savage celebration with some nice, devastating real Metal fanatics, and
we`re ready to desecrate!!! Let`s see what future may bring…!
On Speed we die,
For Thrash we cry,
In Black we rule,
Slaughtering the fool!!!
Contact:
Christian Wachter
Hauptstraße 2+4, 1. Obergeschoss, Wohnung Nr. 3
93346 Ihrlerstein
- Germany -
Outro: THEY ARE HELLISH CROSSFIRE! Their moniker stands for hellish
speed/thrash of death and nothing else! I hope someday we will have the
opportunity to see those guys on the Balkans and to share the aggression which
they spread with their live incarnations! Thats it! Fuck you. Good
night....night....night...NIGHTOFTHEPOSSESSED!
