by Daniel Hinds
When it comes to metal in Poland, they
take the shit seriously there. There seems to be that extra ounce of
aggression in most of the bands I've heard, from the ultra-heavy death metal
bands to the most misanthropic black metal you could hope for. Behemoth
has succeeded in combining those two camps and creating their own sound that
is extreme yet technical and their latest, Zos Kia Cultus
, is a killer record that demonstrates just how good the band has gotten
over the years. Vocalist/guitarist Nergal is the only original member
and really the driving force in Behemoth, so it made sense to track him down
for a few questions…
You guys have really evolved your own style
over the years. How would you chart the band's progress from the beginning
up until now?
In the beginning, we started as a black metal band, that's a fact.
Today people try to say that we used to be black metal but are now death
metal, but I don't fully agree with that opinion. We made a transformation
and that transformation was so complex. There were different influences
on different albums. It would be easy to say that the first three albums
were black metal and the last three were death metal, but it's not like that.
In my opinion, on Zos Kia Cultus, there is still a black metal approach
to our style. As a matter of fact, I used the first opening riff from
our rehearsal demo tape which was released even before our first official
demo tape, the opening riff to "Endless Damnation" from that demo in 1992.
I used that on the song "Here and Beyond" on the new album, exactly the same
riff, just to prove it's the same band, it's the same music. It's just
a matter of production, a matter of maturity. We grew up, but we're
still the same people. So we kind of made a circle, you know.
Do you feel like you are more in the black metal realm in terms of the lyrical ideology?
(laughs) Again, it's the same thing. In the past, we were pretty
much into all this nature and black metal topics, but since then we really
grew up and we deal with so many different topics - different philosophical
systems, different ideologies, different mythologies. Whatever we find
attractive, whatever we think fits perfectly to the concept of the band,
we just do it. I would call Behemoth a culture shock band. It's
just so many things going on. The same goes for labeling the music.
A lot of people call it death metal but I'm like, come on - it's so complex,
it's so varied, so many different things coming at the same time. Cannibal
Corpse is death metal. Black metal is Darkthrone. We are neither
Cannibal Corpse or Darkthrone, so just make up your mind, read our lyrics
- its' very deep, so many different things. Some are very manifest,
down to earth, very straight in the face kinds of songs. Others are
very much into occult and very complex, so I can't really say this is white
or this black. It's all the same. It's the difference in being
25, which I am right now, and being 15 which I was when we I formed the band.
You see everything - your band, everything that happens in your life - in
a much wider perspective. It definitely has a strong impact on me and
the music I play.
From your experiences, what are some of the challenges of playing in a band like Behemoth in Poland?
When I was 14 and had the first thought of forming a so-called professional
band, I didn't really. I was just so much in love with metal and I
loved Blasphemy, Beherit and Samael, these very dark and underground bands.
I just wanted to sound like them, I just wanted to have a black metal band
and go that way. That was the priority for me, just to form the band,
get a steady line-up and just do good songs. Years and years later,
when the demos were released officially and then the albums, I just started
to realize that the band was something more and could really become something
more significant to my life, for whatever reasons, from material to spiritual.
And so it is now.
Did you ever have any problems due to the anti-christian stance of the band?
Not really. We were pretty lucky. There were a few shows, some
organizers or some club owners just refused to let us play here or there.
We shot a professional video for the song "As Above, So Below" from the new
album and there were three places that we wanted to use as rooms for the
band. And I know some people refused due to the name of the band and
were scared. But I don't see it as a problem, because we still have
tour opportunities coming. We're not that strange or satanic of a band,
although in Poland we're probably the most extreme band in message.
Your lyrics deal a lot with religion.
How much of what you write directly reflects your own beliefs and how much
is just storytelling?
(laughs) I would never say we are a fantasy band. I always stand
for what I'm saying. It's part of me and same goes for the music.
I can't really deny anything I've written ever. Even when I was singing
about the forest when I was 16 or 17, I was really into that. Today
I think our lyrics are much more about life, about who we really are, they're
much more philosophic. I'm fed up and bored with bands singing about
things that aren't true, that aren't really about them at least partly.
We don't sing about horses and warriors and that kind of bullshit because
I was never attracted by those topics, especially lately when I've begun
to realize what is going on in life.
Are you ever conscious of how your music will be interpreted by people when you are writing it?
No, no, I just do my job, I just follow my instincts and tastes. If
there is a feeling, then I just go for it. Same goes for music.
I hardly ever consider if people say this or that about it. I've always
said what I wanted to say and expressed myself, both musically and lyrically,
so no, never.
I saw you do management for the band. Is it difficult handling the business side of things as well as the artistic side?
Yeah, in a way, but I'm just the kind of person that has to be everywhere.
I'm very hectic kind of guy and couldn't really stand by doing music and
not caring about the business. Lately I read an interview with Mick
Jagger where he was saying that the business is just bullshit, but if you
don't want to be screwed, you have to do it yourself. You have to keep
your eye on all the business side of your job, especially when you're an
artist or musician, because so many people who want to fuck you. So
I had to do it. It had to be somebody from the band who keeps things
going the right way. I just have to make sure that all the guys have
their money and that the promoters will pay us and to get a good deal.
It was actually me who signed all the shitty deals in the past that I still
have to pay for them somehow. I was so naïve to sign such crappy
deals, so it's high time for me to finally do it professionally. It
would be so stupid for me to give my work, my eleven or twelve years of work,
to a professional manager or whoever, somebody outside of the band.
It's better this way and the guys trust me.
Do you enjoy getting out and touring?
Yeah, especially like today when you take all the magazine that are out -
all the reviews are great, all the bands are great, all these nice, big color
adverts, everything is perfect. These days hardly anybody believes
that and the only thing you can do as a band is to go onstage and prove that
you are a quality band. That's what we do, it's our way. We put
out records and we believe that it will kick ass, but then we follow this
record and support it with concerts, proving that we are the band and not
just some artificial form of whatever.
Was there any one particular album or band that really inspired you to start your own band?
I don't know it, it was changing. At one time I liked Kreator and Sodom
but after a time I started listening to other bands. I was a great
fan of Blasphemy and then I loved Morbid Angel, it changed so much.
I would say that not as a kid but as a grown up guy I would say that Danzig
is one of the most important bands of nowadays, one of the most influential
bands on me personally.
I see you've worked on a couple of band projects outside of Behemoth. Do you have any future plans for other projects?
Actually I had to put it all on ice because I don't have any time.
It's just so much time consuming, doing all the management, writing all the
music, write the lyrics and deal with the media, with promoters, so it seems
like each day is dealing with Behemoth in one way or another.
What do you do to keep your voice in shape on the road?
Nothing. I just try not to drink cold beer and then go outside when
it's freezing or stuff like that. Beside that, nothing really.
To be honest, I never rehearse. At our rehearsals I never sing the
songs and I've never done it in our whole career. I have things all
prepared when we go into the studio and that's the first time I can hear
what the songs sound like with the voice. It's pretty cool because
you might rehearse new songs for half a year and it might get a bit boring,
but then when you add the vocals, it's very fresh sounding.
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