Robex Lundgren virkblogg.

Have any of you played in other bands? Yes, for example in my case I’ve played with Lagarto (thrash metal), Imber (Black Metal) and at this moment I’m playing with my first band, Apolion (blackened death metal). I’ve been playing with Apolion for about 10 years and my newest personal project whose name is Sëoj (Black Metal). Thule, the guitar player, heads Grey Forest (Black Metal), plays the electric bass in Perishing (Death Metal old School) and Kerch, the bass player , plays in Fiurer (alternative rock) Finally, Volkov, the other guitar player has Fethuruz, his personal project and also Lord of the Flies, a Dark Ambient project where Carlos (krueger) does the lyrics and singing. So, as you can see, we have a lot of activities.

How is it that you started playing music? Well, all of us started years ago and in my case, I studied music for 3 years and a half. I think it has been something natural in the band, we’ve always had contact with music and we play at least 3 musical instruments.

What are your names? / Who plays what? / How old are you? My name is Jose (Vezzmar), I’m 28 and I play the drums and sing. The other members are: Miguel (Volkov), he’s 24 and plays the electric guitar and sings, then we have Tulio (Thule), he’s 25, plays the electric guitar and sings, and finally we have Juan (Kerch), he’s 22 and plays the electric bass and does the clean voices.

Where are you from? All of us are from Venezuela. We live in different states but very close to each other.

What year did the band form? The band formed in 2007.

What's your style of genre? Sometimes it is quite complicated to define our genre because at the beginnings the band was very raw in sound, but then we developed new skills until reaching what we have nowadays, I would say that we play Atmospheric/Ambient/Black Metal. Some people say we play Post Black Metal, but I personally do not believe in post stuffs, so yes, I would say that we play Atmospheric/Ambient/Black Metal.

What inspires you? Nature, hate, life, death, depression, our nation, spirituality, elitism…many concepts related to life itself, but nature as a main vein.

How often and where do you rehearse? We normally rehearse once a week, on Sundays mostly, but sometimes we have to stop for 15 days if one of us has to do something personal related to our families. We do it in Aragua state; we go to In Da House C.A studios and rent 2, 3 or 4 hours in order to prepare every single detail. These people have been so nice with us and they’ve given us a lot of support.

How have you developed since you started with the music? It’s been a growing process; we have been advancing in all the aspects that we have wished, from getting better musical instruments to play better every day. I would say that we’ve developed great skills and it has made us grown from the inner part of our souls, personally and professionally.

Are you looking for a booking agency, and what are your thoughts around that? We’re not focused on that but, if it comes, it’s going to be very welcomed, it always helps a little more. We live in a country where things change every day and we have to work 5 or 6 days a week, pay taxes, take care of ourselves and our families and be focused on the band and the other projects; so, the only thing that can happen to us is to receive good news from a booking agency.

Are you looking for a label, and what are your thoughts around that? I would say the same of the answer above.

What made you decide to make this music? I think that the union that all of us have with nature... and in my case, I’ve been into black metal for a lot of years and I find it as the only way to express all the hatred inside me…more than the rest of my projects.

What are your songs about? Nature, depression, life, death, elitism…

Who does the composing and writes the lyrics?

Gutiroth itself…all of us compose, I play the drums but also the guitar…so if I have a riff or something I normally show it to the band and they continue working on it in order to improve it and get it better. All of us sing and that is what makes it more interesting for ourselves.

Do you start with the music or the lyrics?

Normally with the music…but could be the other way around.

Do you compose in a certain environment? Well, we would like to go to the coldest mountains ever…which we have near Aragua state, in La Colonia Tovar, but as I said before, we work and we have to do lots of things, so, normally we do it at home…but there are some lyrics that were born while having contact with nature.

Have you done any covers live? Yes, Transylvanian Hunger from one of the most important bands for us, Dark Throne.

What language do you sing in? Spanish and English…normally in Spanish!

What are the least and most people to attend one of your gigs? Well, nowadays Venezuela is going through a process where something called “La movida metalera” is taking place, so a lot of different people are attendance to the gigs. Those who follow the band are always there…always!

What ages are most of your concert attendants? I would say between 18 and 40…

Do you always play the same songs live, or do you vary?

We vary a lot…it’s part of our philosophy!

Do you have a regular place you play live often? Yes, Maracay… in Aragua state!

What was your first gig like? I did not play with the band for that moment, but they always say that it was quite good for them.

Have you had to cancel a gig?

Yes, a lot of times…because someone gets sick or because the organization changes something at the very end…

Where have you played live this year?

Maracay, Caracas and Amazonas…Amazonas is very very very very far away…more than 20 hours by bus…it was amazing!

Where do you plan to gig the coming year? We expect to go outside…but these are things that take time a lot…for the paperwork. But Europe is a possibility and also Colombia!

When did you start to sell merchandise, and what do you have for sale? We started like 2 years ago; we have sold shirts and caps.

Where can people buy your merchandise?

They can visit https://www.facebook.com/Centurionprod?fref=ts and look for it!

What do you think of my work?

I think is more than amazing! These spaces should prevail…FOREVER!!!

How do you think and know that this interview will help you in the music business? It’s definitely an important jump for us because we are going to be read in the old continent and we could get more contacts and stuffs related to our future. Just THANK YOU!!

Do you have any role models or idols? We admire a lot of bands for what they have done in music itself, mostly for the Black Metal scene… But I would not say that we have idols, it is a word that demands a lot of things. In my case there are some bands from USA that I like because of the atmosphere they are able to create on stage, but when it’s about their political point of view, we have nothing in common. Music is amazing, so I just take that into account…of course, taking a deep look into the lyrics because I wouldn’t like to get a surprise about it… for me, lyrics are important into black metal. But the band listens to bands such as Drudkh, Khors and Kroda…bands that manage a similar concept, or well, we manage a similar concept to them…because they are pioneers.

Is it easier to find inspiration from older bands, or bands that are more active today? I think that we find inspiration in many things…the old bands are, for me, a big inspiration to keep doing this until the very end, as I always say: “until the sun stops shining for me”, but lots of new bands and projects are doing a great job…at the end, inspired by the old bands, because we have to accept that these old bands open a big road for what Black Metal scene is nowadays, so, to answer your question my dear friend, I would say that we can find inspiration in all bands and in new ones too.

What have been your biggest obstacles? Right now, to face our political situation! This communist government is killing us, they’re doing their best efforts to get us on our knees and we have resisted for years. Today, the economic situation has positioned Venezuela as the country with the highest inflation in Southamerica and our people are afraid, some friends have died in battle and even with this never-ending situation, we keep rehearsing, playing and more than this, we keep believing in what we do…Venezuela will change and we are part of this coming future. That’s why we always say that our music is part of this struggle…because it’s a kind of rebellion against these murders.

What advice would you give other bands or artists? Keep playing, keep doing what you love, keep developing your music and never give up. Get mature and try to grow up as a compacted family, face the problems as a wolf pack and devour them in order to make them disappear. It’s never easy, but we have to prove ourselves that we’re able to continue in this road that has been created for few. Just never give up!

How do you get psyched for a gig?

In my case, I get apart from everything minutes before the show…I need it all the time. I normally go to the backstage and listen to our songs while warming up with my sticks and try to be focused on what I want to give on stage. The rest of the guys have their own way…but it’s mandatory for us to warm up and concentrate before the show.

Do you have any new material?

Yes, we are about releasing our first live album; its title is “Deshojando Paisajes”, it was recorded in a concert we gave in Maracay, the name of the concert was Big Mosh Attack, organized by In Da House C.A, the owners of the company where we rehearse on weekends. It’s going to be one hundred copies in jewel case format and it’s going to be released on September 20th. It’s going to be released by Centurion Productions, a label headed by Luis Morket, a very close friend to the band.

What are your web sites?

You can visit these two links:

http://www.gutiroth.com.ve/                   

https://www.facebook.com/Gutiroth?fref=ts

How can people reach you? They can send an e-mail to: [email protected] and my personal one which is: [email protected]

What are your plans for the future? To record our first full length album and release it in Mexico and Europe, then  to start working on the new merchandising and of course give as much concerts as we can. Europe is a destination we wish from the deepest part of our souls….jajajajajajaja!

Do you have something to add? Yes, I would like to highlight that this is one of the most amazing ideas I’ve ever seen. Keep working on this! THANKS A LOT!