Article treating about MACABRA new abum: "...To The Bone", in the DECIBEL Magazine [USA] next issue
Also, here comes the full interview which we both answered t
o, Mark & I, a few weeks ago. When the album just went out and caught the attention of this US solid metal reputed magazine.
MACABRA • Decibel Magazine •
How did you guys meet and what how did the conversation turn around to you deciding to do Macabra?
Mark: Macabra was initiated in 2011 when Adrien had commissioned me to
do some illustration work for one of his many bands, Alienante
Damnation. After completing the art and layout for his LP, Adrien
suggested the possibility of collaborating on a music project together.
After dwelling on it for a few days I decided to entertain the idea and
we moved forward with our first four-song demo tape, “Thy Entrails Rot.”
We were both very pleased with what we had conjured together so we
decided to adopt Macabra as an additional project to our already
existing bands.
Adrien: Mark has just summarized it up very well.
Also, we simply had the need to research the sound that death metal
represented while we were young, then when we just discovered these
untamed atmospheres, rage and dismal energy. It came very naturally
since we started it all. The band name and whole thing was quite like an
evidence as we both always have felt the need to create a damn good
authentic "real" death metal act and it's just what Macabra is all
dealing about, you know?
What is the working relationship like
with regard the division of labor—do you, Mark, handle all the
instrumentation, and you, Adrien, the lyrics and themes?
Mark: Yes,
this is exactly the case. I write and record all of the instruments and
Adrien is responsible for the lyrical themes and delivering the vocal
tracks. The band’s name was also Adrien’s idea however we both
collaborated on the logo illustration together in lieu of a previous
version drawn by Christophe Szpajdel.
Adrien: I loved working on
that logo together with Mark by the way as I'm usually very bad at
drawing something. But here the spirit led both of our hands, and this
collaboration matched really well again. I could compare our
relationship to how organs in the human body are depending on each
other. One cannot pursue anything without the other…it's a real osmosis.
Who engineered, produced and mixed it?
Mark: I did all of the production and mixing in my home studio, Dungeon
325. Macabra sets out to deliver music that isn’t over produced or
polished. The concept of the band is to adhere to the early 90s sound,
especially in reference to the demo tape recordings of that time period.
Adrien: For our first album, "Blood-Nurtured Nature," I took the
initiative to record all the vocals alone in an abandoned funerarium. I
felt the sensation that death should really be present just capturing
the lyrics for this opus.
Does ...to the Bone have any sort of unifying theme that ties it together lyrically?
Adrien: I think that the main difference in the new album, in contrast
with our former material, resides in its political and religious
purpose. It's not a simple "morbid" death metal thematic. Rather an
invitation to the conscious, like engaged bands such as Sepultura or
Napalm Death use to involve themselves since they started it all. It's
not what we could name as a "concept album" but yes, there are similar
ideas and themes coming along this new full-length that are recalling
one another.
It might just be the power of suggestion that the
title gives it but "Global Brainwash Conspiracy" seems to have a real
anarcho-crust feel to it—until the keys come in, obviously—and with that
guitar tone and some of the vocal patterns, I get a bit of an Amebix,
early Bolt Thrower vibe. Is that something you recognize in your sound,
too?
Mark: I’m in agreement that the album certainly has a slight
hardcore element to it. I believe this comes through more so via
Adrien’s vocal delivery; he has a background in this genre which I’m
sure he can speak to.
Adrien: Tracks like "Global Brainwash
Confederacy" and "Crucified Individuals Nation" denounce current and
media selfish-entertainment exploitation. Based on the social networks,
avid tools, and facilities to globally encourage over-exposure and
self-raping privacy, in our intimacy-prostituted era. So absolutely,
there is kind of protest manifest and activist involvement in regard to
the new album. For the example, "Death Speculation," speaks about the
worldwide threat that is terrorism today. As I wrote the lyrics for this
song, on the November 14, 2015, very affected by the then so recent and
dramatic events in Paris. And we all know, sadly, that a lot of other
treacherous as murderous attacks have occurred again since then.
Obviously there are ways and means of working across continents, and
it's easier than ever before to communicate and collaborate, but do you
think Macabra would sound any different if you lived in the same city?
Mark: No it wouldn’t sound any different. We are both so busy with our
other responsibilities that even if we lived in the same city we would
probably be sharing our recordings via email and doing our parts in our
respective studio spaces for the sake of convenience.
Is there
something to be said that projects like this thrive when there's that
distance there, with that distance taking some of the pressure off you
when it comes to committing to rehearsals et cetera—especially when
people have lives to be getting on with and are busy doing that?
Mark: The beauty of doing a collaboration like Macabra, or even a solo
project for that matter, is that you don’t have to depend on too many
outside factors to accomplish something. Adrien and I are both creative
individuals and we act fast when it comes to being inspired. We both
have families--as parents these obligations come first and preoccupy us
for the majority of any given day. Furthermore, Adrien has several bands
he is involved in, as do I, so this consumes much of our free time.
Moreover, I’ve been working on illustrations for underground metal bands
for the past 25 years and this keeps me extremely preoccupied in
addition to my regular full-time day job as a graphic designer.
Adrien: Amen, I feel 100 percent the same about it.
I mean, if the intention you had was to just create some old-school
death metal, you certainly did that, but your sound might be old-school
but it's hard to pin it to a scene. It's not Florida. It's not Sweden.
It's not Finnish. Your sound has a little of all of these scenes but
none in particular. Who is the biggest influence on your sound?
Mark: Musically, as I always do for Macabra, I focus on an old school
death metal approach. This is not so much intentional as it is natural
because I grew up on early 90s underground death metal bands. In terms
of inspiration, some of the bands I listened to religiously during the
recording process include early titles from Nocturnus, Pestilence,
Arcturus, and Sepultura, as well as bands like Midas Touch, Catacomb,
Incest, Cenotaph (Mexico), Horrendous, Cruciamentum, Howls of Ebb, etc. I
was certainly trying to steer away from being pigeonholed too much
because the idea was to deliver something familiar yet unfamiliar by
conjuring a haunting dose of originality to the mix.
Adrien: Our
goal is most of all to get our own sonorities. To be a band of one and
only kind, personal with a sort of avant-garde touch. This, of course,
without denying the ancient ones through our repertoire of influences.
But we also live in our times and we are turned toward the future. We
definitely don't live in the past, we only know for real where our roots
have grown from.
I said at the start, but it's worth repeating
as I think it's the most important part of your sound, the atmosphere
you guys create, especially ...to the Bone, is incredible. I love the
access-all-reverb approach to those single-note guitar melodies and the
arctic rhythm tone. Is that something that you guys talk about, that
atmosphere, and how best to get it?
Mark: The atmospheric element of
Macabra didn’t catch on until after the first demo tape, which was more
straight forward death metal in its approach. I began introducing
keyboards and dark ambient elements more frequently during the recording
of our debut full-length “Blood-Nurtured Nature.” I think the addition
of these elements added some depth and interest to the music, much like
you can hear on My Dying Bride’s first demo tape or even some other
bands like Master’s Hammer, Mortuary Drape, or Septic Flesh. The
atmospherics have become a defining element of Macabra and it will
likely continue in this direction.
Adrien: That's the magic in
something done with sincerity, in my opinion. It's not a technical or a
huge production that can bring that. Only when the chemistry makes it
happen, then it's a real miracle. And I think Macabra is one! Without a
doubt.
Some of those little synth swells and keys over the riffs
are kind of reminiscent of Filosofem-era Burzum. Did that record, did
black metal, inform your approach in how best to get that sort of
haunting, frigid atmosphere onto the record?
Mark: I’m personally
not a fan of Burzum’s music, I believe “Filosofem” is the only album I
own by Burzum and I listened to it one time and never spun it again.
I’ve been told that the Macabra album has a cold feeling to it; I have
to give Dan Seagrave some credit for this because I believe the painting
he did for the cover is the perfect complement to the music in terms of
the atmosphere it resonates. I do listen to some black metal, and I can
definitely reference Arcturus’ first album as a point of inspiration
for “…to the Bone.”
Adrien: Frigid, obscure, deliquescing,
horrifying…all words that are coming to mind just listening to Mark's
keyboard and it's probably what makes the trademark of our sound,
actually.
It's like you're layering a horror score across some
gnarly old-school Autopsy riff and grunt—is horror cinema an influence
when writing this sort of thing? Indeed, outside of metal, what gets you
in the mood to write and play Macabra?
Mark: I’m personally not a
fan of horror movies so I can’t give it any credit as an influence. It
had been a year or more since Adrien and I last collaborated before
doing the album. It all started when we did a bonus track for the
cassette edition of our discography release, “Necroverdose.” After that I
just started churning out songs; the inspiration was back so we wrote
and recorded an entirely new full-length in about a two-month time
period. In terms of inspiration for Macabra, I always turn to my old
demo tape collection from the early 90s and listen to bands like
Morbius, Phantasm, Putrid Decay, Catalclysm, Mortal Dread, Desultory,
Mass Psychosis, Carnal Dissection, Nuclear Death, Execration, etc. for
direction.
Adrien: My wife, just listening to the new material, told
me it could be the perfect soundtrack for the next "American Horror
Story" season...haha.
What were the recording sessions like for
this? Did you manage to get together for it? Did you have any company
even? And is it a little surreal when stuff you have worked together on,
from different parts of the world, are all put together and take on
their own life?
Mark: The recording sessions were a fast-moving
process. I turned around one new song per week over a two-month span of
time. Adrien has always been quick to deliver his vocal tracks too,
usually turning them around a day after I provide a new song to him. We
each come from a broad but similar spectrum of musical taste despite
almost a decade between our ages. What we’ve been able to execute with
Macabra is raw creativity and passion, much like the fulfilling work of
an alchemist brewing his formulas to attain the philosopher’s stone. In
terms of securing the release, most of what we’ve done with Macabra has
been do-it-yourself, which is an important part of being an underground
band. Almost all of our releases have been self-published under the
Morbid Visions Music moniker with some assistance from Metalhit for
digital and physical product distribution. We’ve also collaborated with
other labels like HPGD Productions, Chalice of Blood Angel Records, and
Apocalyptic Empire Records. This time we co-released “…to the Bone” with
the Canadian label, Vonfrost Records. Vonfrost is a relatively new
underground label but they’ve been extremely supportive of Adrien’s
other efforts so it seemed an appropriate arrangement for us.
Adrien: The process is working well from the start. It's really kind of
symbiosis; I get the music, and have some lyrics ready. Then I listen to
the instrumental a couple of times and there we go! The recording
process for the vocals is very instinctive.
Listening to the
intro to "Oppression Delegation", which has that sort of Goblin vibe to
it, the sort of creepy Captain Corelli's Mandolin vibe, so to speak(!),
it feels like something from a bygone era. We seem to have left behind
or forgotten the value of a creepy acoustic or clean tone intro.
Mark: The album, including the introductory passage to “Oppression
Delegation,” is an attempt to diversify and bring a level of
atmospherics to the album that can be heard on and off throughout and
between each song. The acoustic parts on the album were actually
performed using a children’s app on my son’s iPad. I really liked the
way the acoustic guitar setting sounded on the app so I wrote and
recorded the “acoustic” elements on the album by holding a microphone up
to my son’s iPad-mini and performing the parts by tapping the notes on
the display screen. It sounds a bit ridiculous but it’s doing something
out of the box like this that forces one to be creative in a new an
unexplored way. I’m very content with the result as it sounds very
natural and convincing in the overall mix.
That track in
particular is off-the-hook in terms of its arrangements; riffs come and
go, the tempo seems to shift, it's like almost Voivod . . . But most of
all it seems kind of instinctive and impulsive. Does this all come
together quite quickly and off the cuff or will you take a riff and
really take the time to piece together a song from it?
Mark: Thank
you for taking note of “Oppression Delegation,” it happens to be one of
the last songs I recorded for the album and is also my favorite among
the tracks. The song has a feeling reminiscent of Nocturnus but my
favorite aspect is the unusual tempo shifts you noted throughout the
song. If you ever have a chance to listen to Midas Touch, a little-known
Swedish trash band from the late 80s-early 90s, they did a lot of
killer thrashy-chugging riffs with great breaks and fills. They put out
only one album on Noise Records and it’s really an underrated
masterpiece in my opinion. One of the goals of Macabra is to draw
inspiration from underdog bands on occasion, it’s important to me that
bands like these are never overlooked. In terms of song-writing,
everything is off the cuff and never rehearsed or planned, one riff
follows the next. The songs are essentially written and recorded on the
fly and in chunks at a time. To add to the depth of atmosphere on the
album, I brought in Dawn Desiree, former lead singer of the doom metal
band Rain Fell Within, to provide some operatic female vocal tracks on
two of the songs. Her parts seemed to fit naturally in the mix and I’m
very grateful for her time executing these parts.
Adrien: Instinctive and impulsive could really well-define the whole concept of "...to the Bone.”
With Macabra, you're not afraid of throwing in those curveballs, with
little down-tempo sections. Is that a reaction perhaps to rigidity you
get in a lot of death metal, where, as awesome as it is, it can want for
a little variety, and want for a little surprise?
Mark: When
writing an album, each song should have its own identity without
straying too far from the overall approach. It’s important to me that
each song be great in its own right, in terms of song-writing and
interest, because filler tracks are unacceptable. The songs on “…to the
Bone” are mostly based around a 200 beats-per-minute tempo but the riffs
remain varied enough to keep the listener engaged, shifting from slow,
mid-paced, and fast riffs in various parts of each song. It’s also
important to me to have breaks or breathing room in a song and at other
times build up tension or teases that leave the listener wanting more.
These elements coupled together can make for an entertaining and
engaging experience for the listener, something I’m mindful of when
writing songs for the band.
Adrien: Variety is life!
From the
production, from the arrangements and that sort of instinctiveness that
mention above, I get the impression that you don't want to over-work it
or over-perfect this, I guess, for fear of taking that sense of danger
out of it and having it too rigid. Is that something you are conscious
of?
Mark: Yes, as I mentioned, the writing and recording process is
very fast. There isn’t too much time spent overworking or overthinking
each song; it’s very much a fluid approach from each member.
Adrien: The music, when good, doesn't need further artifice.
The artwork for the album is awesome—few people can capture these sort
of fantasy worlds like Mr. Seagrave. What direction did you give Dan,
and, Mark, were you not tempted to do the cover yourself? Do you have an
all-time favorite Seagrave cover (you're allowed to say this one, for
sure!)?
Mark: Though I’m an illustrator myself and draw for most of
my bands, I view Macabra with a bit more creative freedom in terms of
visuals. The only reoccurring theme in our artwork is the consistent
green, black, and white color palette prominent on most of our titles.
The limited color choices speak to our visual brand as a band. Most
underground bands from the early 90s only had access to photocopied
products. In some cases, a band would front enough money to do a black
and white offset printing plus one spot color to give their product a
more professional look. I try to capture this idea with Macabra’s visual
approach, essentially treating the green as a spot color. Although I’ve
done a handful of illustrations and art collaborations for Macabra,
including additional illustrations for “…to the Bone,” we’ve also hired
with other artists like Halsey Swain, Toshihiro Egawa, Justin Stubbs,
and Vince Locke in the past. I decided to hire Dan Seagrave to work on
the cover of “…to the Bone” because I believed the album would suit this
approach, giving it the feeling of a true early 90s release. I gave Dan
minimal direction on the album cover and after a series of thumbnail
sketches settled on the final concept. The end result was beyond my
expectations, reinforcing that Dan was the appropriate artist for this
album. Macabra, just like my other musical endeavors, pays much
attention to the art and packaging aspect of each release. It’s vital
the art be an extension of the music and act as a gateway to the
auditory experience. I believe Dan successfully captured the overall
presence of the album accurately and we’ll be working with him again in
the near future.
Adrien: As Mark knows a lot of great artists, we
had the opportunity to work with Vince Locke and Dan Seagrave. I
personally suggested these collaborative ideas initially.
Do you have any plans to tour or is that just impractical?
Mark: There are no plans for Macabra to tour or play live. I seriously
doubt this will ever be a reality given our busy schedules and the
impracticality of playing live due to physical distance and recruiting
session members, etc.
Adrien: No closed door but not something we are preparing for at the moment.
What does the immediate future hold for Macabra and for your guys individually?
Mark: Macabra will be releasing a split CD later this year with the
band, Nucleus. After that, Macabra will take a break so Adrien and I can
focus on our other endeavors. We will reconvene when the inspiration
comes. In the meantime, I will be shifting my attention to publishing my
next art book through Doomentia Press, an over 400- page hard cover
tome entitled, Morbid Visions. The sixth full-length from my solo
project, Fetid Zombie, will come out soon via Transcending Obscurity
(India) as well as several split releases with bands like Dispellment,
Necrolepsy, and Hellripper. 2016 has been, and will continue to be, a
very busy and prolific year for me. Lastly, thank you very much for your
time and feature in Decibel; Adrien and I are very grateful and honored
by your support for Macabra.
Adrien: Thanks to Decibel Magazine for
the interest and welcoming as well; very much appreciated. And remember
that metal is…TO THE BONE!!
