Robex Lundgren virkblogg.

What´s the name of your band? Cryptos Granamyr Grimm: Spectral Manifest.

How was the band formed? CGG: Depravis and I formed the band in roughly 2005/2006. Ulfr joined the band on bass in 2011.

Where are all band members from?/Who does what in the band? CGG:  The three of us are from Houston, TX. Depravis Nocturna performs the guitars and vocals, Ulfr Thorvaldson plays bass and I handle the drums.

What was the ambitions of the band when you started? CGG: Just to make music and perform with our peers.

Could you explain your music to someone that haven't heard you? CGG: Well, we call ourselves wraith metal, at first it was kinda tongue in cheek, but now the name just fits with what we are going for. We have elements of death, black, thrash and even just straight up old heavy metal so instead of trying to call it a four part name, we just called it what we want.

Where was your first gig? CGG: Our first show was at Sound Exchange, a local record store here in town. It was filmed and released as the “Wraith Insurrection” dvd.

Where was the latest gig? CGG: Our last gig was at a benefit for a good friend of ours, DJ Metallord of Nuclear Rock Radio. We helped raise some money for his medical expenses.

Who writes your songs?/Who writes the music who writes lyrics? CGG: Usually, Depravis writes the riffs, brings ‘em to me and we jam ‘em to flesh out the skeleton. Some of the lyrics have been written by him, some by myself and many together.

Who has the best sense of humor in the band? CGG: We are collectively a pretty humorous bunch.

What's good/bad with the band?/What genre do you feel you are? CGG: We are Wraith Metal, as explained above.

Why did you pick that particular style?/What are your songs about? CGG: The style came naturally as we were raised on the best of the 70s, 80s and 90s. Our songs cover a wide range of topics, the depravity of the human condition, death, mysticism, etc. We tend to not explain lyrics and leave them open to interpretation.

Do you write your own material or mainly covers? CGG: We write our own music and have a couple of covers in our arsenal. Namely Darkthrone’s “Triumphant Gleam,” Entombed’s “Supposed To Rot” and Celtic Frost’s “Return To The Eve.”

Have you made any albums?/If yes what are they? CGG: We have a few underground releases, the only one still in physical print is the “Ritual Offerings of Eternal Chaos” split with Immolith from New Jersey. Our debut album is being released in October by Ossuary Industries. 

Do you have any clips on YouTube? CGG: We have a lot of clips on YouTube. Just search Spectral Manifest, the best ones tend to be found under the account named “pqlana.”

Best/worst gig you've played? CGG: So many gigs… worst gig would have to be at this place that no longer exists called Cains Ashes… it was an old swingers club, still had the couches and beds. They did not have a liquor license, the sound was run through a laptop out of a kid’s back pack and they sold Little Caesar’s Pizza slices for half of what a whole pizza would cost! Best gig, that’s tough, we got to open for Woods of Ypres before the passing of David Gold (RIP), in our early days opening for Vektor was pretty cool. But we have shared the stage with many amazing bands, many who have become dear friends.  

What places will you be playing in the immediate future? CGG: All over Texas in the immediate, hoping to get shows out of the country soon, plus we need to play some more in other states in the US.

Have you had any bigger tours from start to now? CGG: Not yet, it has been a slow climb, but now that we are signed we hope those opportunities will present themselves.

How big crowds do you usually play for? CGG: Anywhere from 50-200 usually. It is not the size of the crowd, however, but the size of their appreciation.

What are the plans for the rest of the year? CGG: Well, the album comes out in October, so more shows!

How do you get psyched up for a gig? CGG: That usually happens through natural energy. I like to have a beer or two before we hit the stage, and usually a doobie is nice, haha.

What are your goals with your music? CGG: To conquer and have fun doing it.

When did you decide to go all in for the music? CGG: We have been neck deep in music since we were kids.

Is it easier to get your inspiration from older bands or from bands more modern? CGG: Definitely more from the old school.

What are your sources of inspiration? CGG: Our surroundings, nature, both the good and bad… birth is chaos, life is chaos, so it makes sense our music would invoke chaos.

What's the first step when making a new song? CGG: Usually the riff is the catalyst. From there everything else is grown and molded into shape. Only a time or two have lyrics come before the music.

How do you feel about the downloading of music instead of buying albums?

CGG: If it’s a case of “instead of,” I do not support that. I download to see if I like something, if I like it, I will buy the physical copy, every time. Call it quality control if you want. But yeah, I would much rather have cds, lps and tapes. I mean, when you discuss music collections, how does one even engage in the discussion if all they know are files? One needs to hold an lp in their hands, stare at a gatefold, smell the booklet of a cassette, not to mention you are supporting a record store, thus even further helping in the cycle of the music food chain. There are pros and cons to downloading, but the major con to me is that it takes so many jobs away that used to be part of it all. Perhaps Lars Ulrich was on to something back in the day when it was just Napster…   

DN:I guess downloading’s cool if you wanna check out a band...but if you like the band, buy the album!

What would be your dreams for the band? 

DN: My dreams for the band at the very least would be to be productive musically and to have each song be better and heavier than the last...

CGG: I want to see that we play overseas. I wanna see some of the world and this is the vehicle.

Besides your own music, what genres and bands do you listen to?

CGG: My tastes are all over the board, one day you might catch me listening to Electric Light Orchestra from the 70s and then in the same 5 hour span I will jam some 90s black metal, early 90s death metal, thrash metal, prog rock, ambience, again, all over the map 1974 was a great year to be born in… (laughs)

DN: Metal for the most part is all I listen to...

What do you hold most dear?

DN: Family and friends...you got nothin without those...

CGG: Depravis hit the nail on the head.

What would be your greatest fears for the future?

CGG: My only worry for the future is what kind of world will my two daughters inherit… too much worry though stresses the mind and the body, so I try to avoid that. 

DN: I try not to dwell on any fears or woes of the future or things that I have no power to do anything about...instead I live for the day that I'm in right now...

When you are on stage, what do you fear most then?

DN: I don't go on stage with any fear because that is part of what I live for! However it would suck to break a string! haha!

CGG: On stage there can be no fear, just keep plowing forward.

Have you been part of any other bands/projects?

CGG: In 2010, the band Demoniac Vengeance was looking for a drummer after the departure of Duane Timlin and approached me about sitting in. I agreed though I hated the band name, lol. So, I came up with the name Axis In Collapse with the vocalist, Lazaro, also of Funeral Rites. Was with them until early 2011, after we opened for Helstar, I was kicked out due to disagreements. Then, last year Jeff Gruslin, original vocalist for Vital Remains asked me to join his band Godless Rising, for their next album Coven of Secrecy. And I performed with Emperial Massacre at the Building Temples From Death fest III with no rehearsal ever, after their drummer bailed on them. That was insane!  

DN: No projects or bands from the past worth mentioning other than INFERNAL DOMINION back around '99...

What do you work with outside of the band and the music? CGG: During the day I supervise logistics for a music instrument retail store. I also host two radio programs on Nuclear Rock Radio. One is called The Epic Hour and airs Mon-Fri. 8am-9am central time. The other is a three hour program called The Lair Lounge and it airs Wed. nights 9pm-midnight.

What would you do if there was no music? CGG: That’s a shitty thought, probably shrivel up and die.

How important are your fans? CGG: When it comes to playing shows, very. We feed off that energy live. When it comes to writing there are plenty of times where we will take into consideration how the crowd will react to a certain part live.  

How often do you rehearse? CGG: Depends on what we have going on, of course we all play our instruments all of the time, but there are times where we won’t see each other for weeks. We’ve even had shows where we just could not get together to rehearse beforehand. Fortunately, we’ve waged war with these songs so many times that it comes quite naturally.

Where do you rehearse? CGG: At the moment we rehearse at the Lair, a loft/office in my house.

What do you feel is the best live band you've seen? CGG: Man, that is a very tough one and one that I am going to cop out on answering! (laughs) Just too many great bands over the years.

What drives a band that isn't all that famous and renowned to try to make a living on their music and to keep playing? CGG: I would say the need and love for it. Not much in making a living in underground extreme metal, unless you are Cannibal Corpse, day jobs are pretty much required for now.

Do you have any webpages? CGG: www.facebook.com/spectralmanifest

www.reverbnation.com/spectralmanifest

Those are the two main ones, and if you google Spectral Manifest there are some interviews/articles from over the years as well.

Any pearls of wisdom for all other bands out there? CGG: Stay focused in your vision.

Describe your show, visually and musically CGG: Some have said it’s like getting hit over the head with a ball pin hammer. Raw, grimey, heavy as all fuck.

How do you view the music industry of today? CGG: In a state of disarray. I think more people probably should have listened to Lars Ulrich back in the day and figured out how to avoid what it has become. Hindsight is 20/20… sure you can use the net to reach people you couldn’t before, but at what price? And once you have reached them, will they buy your music in support or will they just stream it on youtube or download it for free?

What are the biggest obstacles for a band? CGG: Locally I would say the cliques that exist when it comes to shows, that is one big reason we do a majority of our booking ourselves.

What is best/worst with playing the clubs? CGG: The best with playing the clubs is the intimacy, the worst is when the sound systems are not up to par and the show suffers.

Tell us about upcoming gigs and why we should be at them? CGG: In August we are doing a two day quickie in Austin and Houston, TX with our good buds in Demoniacal Genuflection and Whore of Bethlehem. On Halloween night in Houston we will be doing our cd release show at our favorite record store, Sound Exchange, which is going to be massive. There are some other things in the works, best to stay tuned via our sites for those announcements. 

How would you describe your sound in one sentence. CGG: A monolith wall of old school heavy as fuck chaos.

Whats your Pre-show ritual? CGG: Smoke a bowl, have a beer, stretch the muscles. Evil, huh? (laughs)

Do you have anything to add?CGG: Thanks for the interview, we appreciate the support and coverage. To everyone out there, be sure and check out the track “Spiritual Gallows,” from our upcoming self titled debut, which will be available via Ossuary Industries. It is up on our ReverbNation page. And if you want us to come play your area, get in touch!