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dalia
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Ave
Dhilorz, so
we can say that Night Visit is an excellent work that has not disappointed any expectations! in particular are Aphazel and
GroM satisfied?
Dhilorz
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Yeah, we're all very satisfied... Night Visit sounds more heavy&aggressive than older albums but also there are some parts with very melodies...atmospheric and Dark....we went to studios with the songs finished but then we decided to
change some parts...
in the end when I heard the final mix I was satisfied but also surprised...'coz few before to start recordings I couldn't imagine that Night Visit could be so
powerful and various and homogeneous...
Night Visit has very nocturnal atmospheres too. do you agree with the quotation that says that history is done during the night?
Yes there are many nocturnal & Obscure atmospheres in the new album...
Night is very important... everything looks different and especially for arts the night is the
cradle of thousands ideas... I don't know if "History is done during the night" but for sure all members of Ancient mostly live during the night... especially for me, I don't like sun or summer at all... and especially night... especially for me, I don't like sun or summer at all... and especially during the night I feel very well!
I don't wanna say that I'm a depressed person... but I'm pretty far away to be the kind of person you'll meet in the sun, except obviously for an open air festival...!
You Dhilorz were responsible not only for bass but for acoustic, lead and rhythm guitars too, as well as Aphazel together with the lead and rhythm of Jesus Christ. how were divided the guitar tasks and in which point of the album there is the heaviest guitar carpet?
I started playing guitar before bass some years ago... but I almost played like bassist in most of my previous band. When me&Aphazel started with songwriting for Night Visit, I felt pretty normal to play guitar during rehearsals, and we worked like this for long till the beginning of recording, automatically also in studio I recorded some guitars...Rhythm, acoustic and also a solo in
"Rape the Children of Abel". We are basically quite different
guitarist, that's way I think was good to work together...'coz our ideas&influences melted together giving the sound you heard on the album... a mix of typical Ancient sound and Death, Thrash, Heavy, Dark... about the heaviest guitar carpet in Night Visit, I cannot tell you only one I think you can find some in the opener "Envision the Beast" or in
"Rape the Children of Abel" or also "Horroble" very "Horroble" very groovy&powerful and also in
Fuel the Flames..
Just reading the titles it seems that some concepts bound both to vampirism and
lycanthrope surface together? is it true? and if yes are they only symbols of nightmares?
Well, looking at the titles you can have this feeling, but it's just the
appearance, I think the listeners have to read the lyrics before to have everything clear or just their personal opinion, that usually is the most important thing...you cannot find the truth in something like this, but you can get own personal idea about it!
2 instrumental tracks and one of them is as cold as ice (the arctic mirage indeed), which was the inspiration for these 2 tracks? do you think that instrumental tracks ennoble the Black genre?
Instrumentals songs are very often to be found on metal albums, sometimes like intro/outro, sometimes because musicians like or need to give a "special" atmosphere during the album... we decided to put
"The Artic Mirage" and "Out in the Haunted Woods" as bonus tracks 'coz we found them very obscure and atmospheric... something like the real soundtrack of a night visit... "the artic mirage" is very cold and sounds like ambient...
"Out in the Haunted Woods" could be used for an Horror Movie.
I have the impression that the influences from Immortal are present: do you think that Ancient with their leader Aphazel can become the "new" Immortal?
Ancient was born in '91 in Bergen, the same hometown of Immortal, Aphazel
and Abbath know each other since long time... all in Ancient respect this band, Immortal was one of the bands who helped Black Metal to go out from a "cult-status"... but except for this I don't think we've any "Immortal" influences in our music, maybe it could be better to say that both bands have/had the same influences...
Ancient are international nevertheless the Italian contribution is very strong, so it is possible that Italians can do a very good Black, (even better if together a Norwegian like Aphazel!!)
Ancient is an international band almost from the earlier days, from Norway Aphazel moved to
U.S and after some years with different line up (with different nationalities...Kaiaphas is
brazilian for example...) he moved back to Europe, now he lives between Norway and Italy, I'm in Luxembourg, GroM in Italy and Jesus Christ is still in
U.S. but he's actually thinking about a possibility to move to Europe too... I think in Italy there are lots of good musicians, but with just few opportunities! In any case I think it doesn't matter where you are from, it's just question of who you are and what you really want from your life! If you "pretend" to be a musician instead of working hard to become it! Me and GroM worked hard for Night Visit and in the end you can hear our job in the album. About Italians doing good Black Metal bands like Necromass, Stormlord, Mortuary Drape ( check out the new album... ) Opera IX, Handfull of Hate plus some others already prove it and some bands such as Gosfort, The True Endless,
Amphitrion, I'm sure will do it soon!
Night Visit is not only a brilliant album as musical ideas but it has also a wonderful sound: Alex Azzali has done an outstanding work! which are the more amazing techniques and elements included in the sonic patterns. and what's about the female vocals on Out In The Haunted Woods
Yeah, we're very satisfied of the heavy&powerful sound of Night Visit, Ancient and Alex Azzali ( who is also our live sound
engineer ) worked to get it, the studios where we recorded are really professional with incredible equipments, mostly used for other kinds of music and the instruments we played are almost the best you can actually find... so with Alex we could get exactly the sound we needed, powerful but also natural and in the end what was very important was the
professionalism of a master such as Mr Fredrik Nordström in the very well known Fredman studios, he worked very well giving during the mixing a sound that really kick ass...!
About the vocals on "Out in the Haunted Woods" they were made by Omega, the language is Ukrainian... but i cannot tell you anything more... it's a secret!
What's about Deadly Kristin, where is she now?
Deadly Kristin lives actually in Sweden, somewhere around
Stockholm...but not very close... we talked together and we decided that wasn't possible to continued 'coz she couldn't always come for gigs... even before, when D.K was in the band, she missed lots of gigs 'coz of her old job, obviously fans always asked about her,
sometimes disappointed about it and this was bad also for the image of the band... I mean, I live in Luxembourg now but I'm still flying go&back from Italy (our official base...) for rehearsals before the shows... if in the future she'll be free to tour probably you will see her again on the road with us!
So "horroble" it's not horrible ;)....!
He he...this is a "play on words" is a mix between the word "Horror" and "Horrible" and in the lirics listeners will find the explanation of this concept.... by the way the song isn't "horroble" at all... most of the reviews or also simply the comments of the fans said that Horroble is one of the best songs of the album or the best at all!
Can you tell us about the side projects in which some Ancient members are engaged?
O.k, let's start from Aphazel, he had a side project called Dreamlike Horror together with Deadly Kristin but at this moment everything seems to be in pause... GroM is pretty busy with Hortus Animae (recording right now the new album...) his Prog-Metal project Psychorder and some collaborations as session musician... Jesus Christ is involved in Fullmoon Sideshow and Horroble ( again...but it's the name of his own band this time ) about me, when I moved from Italy to Luxembourg I had to quit with most of my side projects, I'm starting now to work about new stuff... Nihil Nation is actually the name of a band with some friends from Göteborg (members or ex of bands such as Sacrilege, Taetre, Nightshade, Morlocks and Immemoreal) than Iblis, Black Trip and than perhaps the rebirth of my really first band called Unreal... I've lots of ideas at the moment but I'll have to see if I'll have enough time to work on them!
Is it better to be possessed by Jesus, by Lucifer...or by money?
Honestly I think is better not to be possessed by anything, I've my own
thoughts and my way of life, I hate religions and I don't give a shit about money, of course I need just enough to live a normal life, I cannot imagine myself like a "shark" in the business word, just to be rich, so rich that I will never have time to spend the money I stole somewhere. Life is pretty much more than only money...!
Which is the more possessed crowd you ever met and in which country?
Hmmm that's a good question, I'd like to say the next one...he he maybe because in November we'll tour in Russia and I'm sure there we'll find a
completely crazy crowd! Anyway for sure the crowd we found in Mexico during the 4 shows we've played with Mayhem last year was amazing, have to say the same of Metalheads in Bulgaria (Sofia) probably because we were the first Black Metal ever band to play there... and for the same reason the fans in Israel during a great festival in Tel Aviv in October 2003, great shows were also Bartislava in 2000 or Porto during the same year... but for sure the huge crowd we had was in Wacken 2000! Well, I'll never forget it...!
Which are the bands Black whose concerts you attend with much interest?
I'm very interested in the comeback or "Rebirth" if you
prefer of Dissection, we'll play with them in the Tattoo the mind festival next Halloween... have to say that when I saw them twice in '98 I was really amazed of their shows, definitely one of the best live acts ever! Naglfar is a great band that I really like since Vittra, latest Borknagar albums are really
interesting, but I never saw them in last 4-5 years. I've seen few weeks ago Mörk Gryning and I think they are a killer live band, but if I can suggest you a band to see live I'd like to say my friends of Stormlord, very nice guys and also a great live band!
How is a bass player of a Black band in every day's life?
I'm quite normal person or maybe is better to say that I look like...I don't want that people around me could be
scared or shocked! He he, honestly I spend most of my time doing normal things surfing in internet, playing guitar&bass and listening music, I'm a music collector, I own about 2500cds plus many Lps and original old tapes/demo and I cannot leave them in the dust...! I also like books, movies and arts in general and when possible I really enjoy to travel in a place where I've never been before... especially in a place with wonderful
landscape and nature.
Sincerely, which is the most mysterious thing for you?
Life... everything is sooo strange... one day you're nothing and the day after you could be the king... or dead!!! Doesn't it sound crazy? There many things very mysterious but I don't think this is the right place place to talk about it...maybe somewhere else, face to face with some good wine, we could talk about it for hours...don't you think so...?!
..hehhe ok...moreover "in vino veritas" ;)! Can you tell me something about your bass and your technique?
I've an E.s.p 4 string, with very aggressive sound, a Yamaha TRB 5 Freetless, very good for the stylish parts but not exactly for usual Black or Death Metal...even if Steve Di Giorgio...he he!!! Then an Ibanez 6 strings that I've used&abused so much that now it needs to be repaired. I haven't particular technique, I play mostly with my fingers, 'coz the feeling is thousands times better than with a pic, I started playing bass when I was teenager but after I learned guitar... basically my first influences were Steve Harris, Cliff Burton and Geezer Butler then I studied for some time and I opened my eyes even in other directions. Steve Di Giorgio, Sean Malone, John Myung are some of many talentuous bassist I've really appreciated... but I'm far away to be a virtuoso or whatever, what I need is just to play my own stuff in the right way!
Ancient: can you mention to us in big lines the most enthralling projects for the future?
Actually we're working n booking for the tours during the next months, (Europe,
U.S, South America...) we'd really like to play almost everywhere if it will be possible, for example in few days the album will be released in Japan and this is one of the countries where I'd really like to play... soon we'll also start with
rehearsals for the composition of the new album, we already have some ideas but I don't know how much time will take the songwriting, if we won't be satisfied we'll wait till the inspiration will arrive... nobody in the band wants to write songs (especially bad songs) just to record another album... we need to have something really serious and we know that nobody cannot push or hurry it!
And now we have reached the GryphonTower: on a very high bloody sinister tower 3 bands are waiting for you. you can cancel from the face of earth one of them, making a favour to the hu-manity, kicking this band down pitiless. the 3 bands for you are Within Temptation - Nightwish - Stratovarius
This is a very hard question...honestly I'm not a fan of any of this bands but have to say that I respect musicians...when they play the music they like and not only for business... I can save Within Temptation just because they covered a song of an immense band like Seigmen... about Nightwish&Stratovarius have to say that both are quite ridiculous at the moment, Stratovarious with all the stuff concerning the fights with old line up and the split...true or false I don't know, who cares! Nightwish 'coz with (finding) Nemo they wrote one of the most useless songs I ever heard and also because I'm very tired of hear the song on German Tv for commercials about the weekly programs... hmmm I guess metalheads won't be disappointed if I'll kick down NIGHTWISH...!
The last word is left to you: you can tell your message
First of all I'd like to tell to everybody to keep your eyes wide open and think with your mind without any fucking intromission from outside, then I feel good saying thanks to everyone who have supported us through this years, without you any band is nothing (but it seems often many used to forget this...) then I'd like to say to all the guys who never heard Ancient or just our last album "Night Visit" to give us a chance, you can find the mp3 of "Rape the Children of Abel" and the edit version of the "Night Visit" video on our site... after if you'll be interested just get it! Last but not least thanks for everything to GryphonMetal!
Pay us a Night Visit on: www.ancientband.com
don't forget to sign the guest book!
Keep
High the Black Flame, Dhilorz.
Thank
you so much Dhilorz!
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10.10.2004 
ANCIENT : interview with Dhilorz
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