Despite being a veteran band, Horrified are not too much known in the European scene, maybe due to their disapparition a couple of years ago. But now the band is back, hungry as an Animal with a great new CD in their hands to offer the public. In this interview band member Adonis Kotzias speaks about the band’s past, present and future …
Haire, Adonis! Your new album “Animal” has recently been released. Could you tell the readers how was it conceived, recorded, produced and released?
It was conceived bit by bit during the last 2 years of our abscence, influenced by a b-movie called FUNNY-MAN and relative literature that i have studied our main character leaves throughout the album. Recording was at LIVE-STUDIOS where MORBID (NECROMANTIA ) and us did the production.
Despite Horrified is a long-known act, “Animal” is only your second official CD. Why has this release needed so much time? Your previous work “In The Garden Of Unearthly Delights” is as old as 1994…
Actually In the Garden ….. was released early 1993 in contrast to our misprint in our biography sheet. Anyway, the circunstances was right only by 1998 so that was the time that ANIMAL could possibly conceived, recorded, and finnally released
The reason by which it has taken 5 years to complete a new album may be due to your split up. Why did you split up, and what did you make re-create the band again 4 years afterwards? A lot of mysteries sorround your disaparittion and re-apparittion, maybe it’s time to sort things out clearly …
OK, some people where involved heavily into drugs and generally problmes with the law, some of uss had music and character differences, then again In The Garden …. wasnt promoted as we expected, i was personally haunting down the chairman of our previews Record company BLACK POWER (BLACK SHIT UP HIS ASS!!) to resolve the differences in lets say Animalistic way. On top of that some people got to the army, i didnt and i wont due to mental state reasons. I think now it is crystal clear.
What did each member of the band during those 4 years? Did you play in other bands / projects, or you just kept music apart from your lifes? 4.You have suffered several line-up changes. Can you explain why has it’s been so difficult to mantain a stable line-up? Can you explain the changes as well? Which is the current line-up?
Stavros was a member of Rotting Christ, during their first EUROPEAN tour, later he joined Septic Flesh but we decided to be again as Horrified so he had to abandon the above bands. Thanos played to some other bands which i do not recall, as for me, i played drums to Nordor and OLETHRIO RIGMA. I also played in some bands while i was to London but nothing special.
The promo-Cd I have from Black Lotus Records doesn’t provide the lyrics. Could you tell us what are the lyrics about? Especially, what do the lyrics speak about in “Evol Morena”, “Funny Man” and “Davolja Varos” ?
Generally the album title explain a bit of our stand, FUNNY MAN our main character is playing a role very discreetly to allmost all our tracks. Evol Morena is a track about Morena a servian goddess of evil and lust and is a song describing her in detail . She also plays a role in another song in the album. Davolja Varos it is about Knes Lazarus a leader of a 30.000 soldiers in Servia again. He took 30.000 man to a sure lost battle and everybody died, then Morena cursed him to be in Vlasina (village of servia) and move arround the islands untill he remember all his soldiers first and last name. The actual battle really took place, and there, there is a geologicall phenomeno that no scientist can explain, where small pieces of earth are moving into this pond the legend sais that Nes Lazarus is doing that to remember the battlefield and consequently his soldiers names. Funny man is the well known figure of the Joker cards he is the ironique killer a symbol of our animal ensticts that kills chops and laughs because he has to do it.
Black Lotus Records is a quite new label. How do you feel in such a young label (even though the guys behind BLR are well-known in the greek scene)? How did you contact them? Are you satisfied with the budget they gave you and the conditions of the deal?
They contacted uss and they offered uss a very good deal. Sometimes is better to be in a small company because you get the best possible attention, If you are in a big company is difficult to survive maybe in the future we will reconsider some of our views, but now anything we wish is provided by BLR and after all, all the guys are nice characters which is the most important think.
“Evol Morena” has undoubtely a Spanish flamenco touch. I congratulate you as it is one of the songs I like most, but what did you make compose such song with such a (supposedly) alien style inserted into your death metal? Which is the story behind this song?
The lyrics as i mentioned before is about a godess of evil, enormously beatyfull but at the some time seductivly evil and mysterious and basically with an easter churm surrounding her i think that answer your question, why the Spanish flamenco touch. As for the alien style it is one more new point of view of uss to this kind of music, it is an attempt for something new. I’m very pleased that people like you and athers enjoyed that song.
One of the things I have noticed more is the inclusion of great guitars solos and a more “happy” touch in several songs. You play death metal, right, but it seems to be with a fine sense of humour … Am I right ?
Yes you are. There is a sinister approach to irony, the evil grace of humour the darkness that surrounds characters as the Funny Man, i was very sceptical of how it was going to be received from the public. I didnt wanted to thin of it as a cheap joke, luckily it seems that the right message was passed.
What about live touring? You played quite a lot after the release of your old 7 “EP” The Ancient Whisper Of Wisdom “, are you playing live soon? If yes, where and when? Only in Hellas by now?
We just played to ATHENS RODON with Septic Flesh, we might also play in May with DIMU BORGIR again in Athens. There is also a European tour on plans with Rotting christ. We have an open offer though, to anybody that can provide tickets and a place to stay, we gonna be there and play.
Ok, that was all. Close this interview as you like most …
Hello to MARICARMEN SELMA-JUAN from Valencia, good luck to you and your magazine, and a big thank to all the people that listen to our music either you buy, or copy, our CD.