Interview de Lost Soul de Janvier 2005

Is there only one bad death-metal band in Poland ? I’d really like to know it. Lost Soul is once again the proof of the polish magnificence upon the actual international metal scene. Obscur death-metal in its purest form, dark brutal & sincere occult music in the way of Morbid Angel & Immolation. That’s what offers us Lost Soul with its third & best recording to date, the great "Chaostream". Here’s an interview with drummer Adam Sierzega in january 2005.

 

>Hi Lost Soul ! You already released 3 full-length albums but i’m not sure that all french deathsters know you very well. Could we begin this interview with an history of your band ?
Ok then, we should go back to 1991 when it’s all started. Being fascinated with extreme music at that time, especially death-metal bands, we decided to give birth to Lost Soul. We were very young guys with a great will of creating, determination to find our own way in this kind of music. At the beginning it wasn’t so easy, I know that. The first two demo tapes “Eternal Darkness” and “Superior Ignotum” were rather a simple death-metal with a poor sound, nothing special comparing it to the music we play now. I think “Now is Forever” demo recorded in 1998 was really a milestone showing our true potential as musicians, composers etc… The four tracks included on this record was something fresh, something new to us. In those days we realized that it is the time for the full lenght album, to show what Lost Soul really is. The rest of the story is quite known, I think. First album “Scream of the Mourning Star” was realesed in 2000, the second cd “Ubermensch (Death Of God)” in 2002 (Poland) and 2003 (rest of the world). In the meantime we played on several gigs and tours mainly in Poland. I mean Thrash’Em All festivals 2002 with Monstrosity, Vomitory, Empire Invasion tour along with Dies Irae, Hate... and many others... That’s it.

 

>Your brand new album "Chaostream" is released on Wicked World. Can you tell us more about it ? What did you want to achieve different ?
I’m proud of this record and more than satisfied that it’s released on Wicked World. They are working hard to promote their bands and this is what we need. I’m an optimistic for the future. First of all we want to be more active, to play more gigs abroad. It’s very important thing and the best solution in promotion of this kind of music.

 

>For me, one of the main differences between your 2 last records is the absence of keyboards on "Chaostream". Why did you decide to abandon this instrument ? Is it because you wanted to sound even more extreme & in your face ?
Actually, we thought about some keybords line for “Chaostream” when we started working on this album. But we quickly realized, there was not enough room for keyboards. The songs sound much better without it. Their structure is very thick and very fast. Yeah, there are lot of extremely fast parts on the album. “Chaostream” is pure fuckin’ destruction. We are the band trying to avoid of repeat ourselves. Each album is a little bit different than previous album. I believe it makes our music more interesting and fresh.

 

>The other main characteristic of "Chaostream" is that it sounds heavier, deeper & lower than your previous one. Which studio did you choose this time ? Have these recording sessions been a cool experience or turned into a total nightmare ? Are you the kind of guys who want to control each detail in order to regret nothing ?
Oh, definitely. The sound is one of the strongest points of this record. That’s for sure. “Chaostream” sounds really deep and heavy, because we used 7 strings guitars during the recording session. It was a good choice. New quality of our music. It gave us new possibilities, fresh view about the arrangements, riffing. I would say that we’ve found ourselves on different level as the composers. About the studio we choose for recording the album, the whole session took place at Hertz studio which is one of the best places for metal music in Poland. We spent almost three weeks there and it was very productive work. Spending time in the studio is always huge experience. We learn a lot and it’s not a wasted time. Of course, when we decide to enter the studio, then all songs are complete and we are ready in 100%. We aren’t working on arrangements in the studio. There’s no time for it. Instead we have enough time for mixing, to think how the album should sound as a whole. I think it’s better way...

 

>Lost Soul is clearly influenced by Morbid Angel but you’re not a copy at all. Is it important for you to propose some death-metal your own personal way by bringing fresh details, dissonant riffs & dark atmospheres ? What do you think of those bands who copy each others without shame ? Do you think originality comes through years ?
Well, there are different bands, different needs and expectations. To be clone nr. 1000 is enough to some, but the others want to do something else, more than this. Being in the shadow is not our goal. Lost Soul is the band where we create our own visions, ideas. Yeah, we are infuenced by many bands, Morbid Angel is one of them. I’m not saying that is not true. But we don’t want to follow them or others blindly. We have too much respect for their music, you know what I mean? A lot of things give us inspiration when it comes to music. We listen to different styles, not only death-metal. There are some of black-metal riffs, even industrial parts, especially you can hear it on our previous album “Ubermensch”. So, I think to call us as about death-metal band is too simple... Yes, originality comes through years, if you are looking for it... to find your own way. But being original must be something natural it can’t be the aim. Because sometimes quality of your music is the price you have to pay. I mean, there are lot of bands mixing so different styles just to be original. Ok, maybe they are, but tell me who cares if it sounds like shit.

 

>Your previous album’s title "Ubermensch – Death of God" was coming from Nietzsche. Are your new texts also inspired by his philosophy ?
Not exactly, I mean his philosophy is something special to us and it’s still very close to our way of thinking. This time the source of inspiration is a little bit different, when it comes to lyrics. They are more into dark side of mankind, magick, supernatural themes... It’s pretty to descibe it in one word, because lyrics on the new album are multidimensional not just in the face. It’s like a dark poetry, very symbolical...

 

>Did you meet some problems by using this term "Ubermensch" which can be misinterpreted ?
Well, some people wanted to find some connection between this title and fascist ideology or something like that. I know this title was very strong and could be misunderstood especialy if someone live in the world of superstisions and poor knowledge. But fortunately, we didn’t have to explain those things too much.

 

>Spreading some anti-catholic ideas is really courageous in a religious country like Poland. Did you already met some problems with the polish church during all these years ?
Frankly speaking we didn’t feel any special pressure. Ok, there is maybe one or two places that refused us to play or we couldn’t use our logo on the bill because of the pentagram there in... But we had no big problems, you know.

 

>Poland is really well known for its prolific death-metal scene. You have of course many excellent bands apart Lost Soul like for instance Decapitated, Trauma, Behemoth, Vader, Sceptic, Yattering… Do you know why death-metal has such a huge popularity in Poland, is there something special in vodka ?
(laugh) Yeah, maybe you’re right... Vodka gives you a deeper feeling and different sense of gravity, that’s for sure... So, maybe there are some connections. But seriously I think death-metal or extreme-metal in general was always very respected in Poland. Polish metal maniacs are very spontanous, energetic. Extreme-metal has great power so, probably that’s is the reason why so many people here listen to this.

 

>Your first album "Scream of the Mourning Star" on Relapse was really primitive & brutal, while "Ubermensch…" sounded more melodic. Did you feel like it was an error & wanted to bring back the more extreme style ?
Not at all ! I am very satisfied with “Ubermensch”. In my opinion it is still an extremely good album, though it sounds not like typical death-metal record. But that’s the point. We wanted to show us in some different light. We are very open minded musicians and “Ubermensch” was some kind of collage of our personal inspirations. I know this album is not easy to understand for many listeners, but first you have to feel music. This is the essence. To feel, not to understand. Yeah, “Ubermensch” has its own, unique atmosphere, venomous sound and it is almost majestic. It is very important album of Lost Soul.

 

>Outside Poland, all your 3 albums have been released on 3 different labels. Recently you left Osmose productions to join Wicked World. Were you disappointed by this french label in a way or another ?
We have expected something more than releasing the album... But to be honest I don’t want to look back, I prefer to look forward.

 

>You didn’t tour outside Poland very much. Being signed on a prestigious label like W.Wolrd/Earache, do you have plans now for touring more in the coming months ?
That’s true. Now we are working on some dates in Europe and UK as well. I don’t know details yet so, please be patient. I want to talk about facts instead of plans, you know. By the way, for more info check out our official website www.lostsoul.metal.pl

 

>"Christian Meat" is the slower song on your new album. Does it represent something special for you, that you wanted to make it sounded so different ?
Yes, it’s very powerfull track and probably the slowest song we have recorded so far. I love to play it live. The beginning of this song sounds almost like a soundtrack... It’s great. Well it becomes like tradition to have one slow song on the album. Besides it’s great combination between the title and so slow music. Total hopelessness and decay... Very interesting, don’t you think?

 

>Before 89 & the end of communism, metal was really underground in Poland, people used to listen to tapes… etc. Personally how have you lived the arrival of capitalism & all the problems it can bring ?
It was a strange time... I remember there was only one punk/rock festival in Poland, one in a year, so it was a big success. Metal scene was in deep, deep underground. We were very young guys when we started so, we had not enough money to buy a good instruments and equipment of good quality. Shit ! There wasn’t any equipment of good quality... Also, I remember so great relief with the end of comunism and first big hope and then dissapointment about first years of capitalism. It’s because of unemployment, high prices for everything... Well, I don’t want to go more into details. I’m not into politics. I don’t get it sometimes...

 

>Well thank you very much for your answers, last words are yours. Naz drovié !
Oh, that’s pretty good ! Thanks a lot for the interview and support. Praise the Beast !