Good evening, thank you very much for answering these questions, how is everything going in Australia?
Greetings & Hails from the Great Southern Land! Life, at least on the surface, has resumed with some degree of normality now, post CoVID. The last couple of years I think, if I were to sum them up in one word, would be ‘tumultuous’.
1. At what point did you decide to create Krvna? Why did you choose the name Krvna and what does it refer to?
I’d been compiling riffs for almost a decade & many of these had made their way into the consciousness that is now ‘KRVNA’. However - the mitigating factors, or more precisely catalysts for its awakening were two fold, a death in my immediate family and an accident which left me with a broken shoulder. These two things happened almost simultaneously and it felt like a collective kick to the guts by the universe. So my music was a way of me kicking back, so to speak, haha.
There is a phenomena in the Balkans (where my family originates) called ‘Krvna Osveta’, translated into english this is what is considered a ‘blood fued’. Krvna was taken from this phrase, and it loosely translates to ‘blood’, within certain Slavonic linguistic contexts.
2. “Sempinfernus” is your first full-length, an album that gives continuity to the demo “Long Forgotten Relic”, how has the composition and recording process of this first album been? Can we see any evolution in Krvna's sound? between both releases? And what brands of instruments have you used for recording and composition?
Whilst much of the music was composed within the similar time frames, the two releases manifested in differing ways, with varied end results. I am happy with how they had both turned out. There’s a great Walt Whitman quote about ‘containing multitudes’ and I think we’re all subject to this. I often consider my music to sit somewhere upon a scale of two extremes, on one end is melody and atmospherics, and the other end of the scale, aggression. ‘Long Forgotten Relic’ sits closer to the melodic and atmospheric side, whilst ‘Sempinfernus’ is definitely a swing toward the aggressive. As for brands, I’d used ESP, Alesis, Marshall, Universal Audio, Suhr & Jackson products to record with.
3. A rough and raw sound is present throughout “Sempinfernus”, what main influences from other bands have inspired you when shaping the sound of the album? How would you describe the sound of the album for those who still haven't you heard?
I really didn’t use anything as a benchmark for the overall ‘tone’ of the album, or for the demo, to be honest. There are probably good and bad things about doing things this way, but I think I am lucky in the sense that both productions turned out reasonably well, each with their own unique character that suits the music. Generally speaking though, I’m a fan of mid to late 90’s black metal production, favourite productions coming mostly from Dark Funeral.
4. The vampire theme is present throughout your music, both in the lyrics and the setting. Does this vampire theme have something to do with your Romanian and Slavic origins? Why do you consider it important to capture the history and folklore of your country in your music and why do you consider it appropriate for black metal?
Yes, my interest most definitely stems from my ancestral origins. The Balkans have been a hot bed for stories relating to vampirism for centuries, and I think (to some degree, at least) many of these superstitions and beliefs have helped shape the psyche of the ‘Balkanite’. My own mother has stories of being accosted by a vampire in her youth and was allegedly cured by ‘healers’ who lived in her village. I suppose it could be argued that these superstitions should well belong in the past… that we’ve evolved beyond these stories; but I think there’s a certain importance in keeping these superstitions alive, or at least our cognisance of them. As much as there are efforts to retain certain linguistic and cultural values, preserving the ‘darker’ side of culture should in turn also be undertaken. I think it is just as important. We may laugh at these stories now, and wonder how people could have believed in such things in the past. Yet here we are in 2022 and humanity is still plagued with folly and stupid beliefs. Are we really any better than the people who preceded us?
I think the very nature of vampirism, be it either from an astral or ‘street level’ superstitious perspective, is a perfect fit for subject matter in Black Metal. The existential aspects of eternal life, particularly permanence obtained by devouring human life & blood is of extreme interest to me. Blood has been used in ritual appeasement for millennia, and we see remnants of this ritualistic behaviour in the vampire, too.
5. In some way the theme of vampires has been present throughout history, first reflected in the figure of Vlad Tepes, and more recently in the cinema both in its most classic form with Bela Lugosi and more recently adapting the work of Bram Stoker, without forgetting of course the most youthful literature, for you, what concepts suppose a more credible inspiration of the figure of vampirism? What do you think there is of reality and fiction around vimpirism throughout your history? And what bands do you think have best captured vampirism in their themes and music?
I think writers like Stoker, Byron and Polidori brought aspects like romanticism to the vampiric sphere. Their input via intrinsic complexity & contradiction helped shape the tragic and existentialist nature of the psyche of the modern day vampire. However - I am drawn more to real life stories of vampirism, stories which are found throughout much of medieval europe. A good example (of what is of interest, to me) is the curious case of Jure Grando, from Kringa, Istria; probably the first documented case of vampirism in all of Europe. I could keep going and talk about other cases from Bosnia, Serbia, Romania, Germany and even Czechia; but I’ll leave these for our readers to google. As for reality vs fiction in my history, well, as previously mentioned there is the story of my mother being accosted by a vampiric figure called ‘Morana’, according to her healers at the time. I think I need to set the scene a little more by explaining that my mother’s background is what is called ‘Istro-Romanian’, we are descended from people who had apparently fled Romania some 600 years ago due to Ottoman incursions, and found safe haven in Modern Day Istria, Croatia. They’ve lived there ever since their migration, and kept their language, culture and superstitions alive, up until recently. These small towns were under-resourced, people had scarce access to modern appendages or utilities and superstitions were rife, even up until a couple of decades after the last world war. Advances in health, living standards, education have obviously left many of these superstitions in the soon to be forgotten past. As for what I believe, well… call me an old romantic, haha.
6. In Krvna, as the only member, how do you face the mission of having to record all the instruments and voices? Is there any aspect of this whole process that resists you more than others?
It is quite a cumbersome and time consuming effort, having to do everything on my own. I think the perfect storm of CoVID and lockdowns definitely helped set my path, ensuring that KRVNA was going to be a ‘one man band’. Of course there are pros and cons with the topology or the nature of this setup. I very often under-estimate the difficulty of having to write, arrange, record, edit, mix and master releases. All I can say is that I take my time and my almost OCD like attention ensures the results you’ve heard on my releases. I think I generally tend to put off lyric writing. This is probably the most time consuming of all aspects of the music making process, for me.
7. You have never given up on the possible incorporation of other musicians in order to take Krvna to offer a concert. Is this idea still valid? And if so, what musicians do you have in mind to be able to carry out this idea?
Yes it’s still something I am considering - though I am in no rush to make this a reality at current. I’ve been in talks with a few people about a prospective line up & things are heading in the right way, in this regard.
8. With a very atmospheric and ambient sound in your demo “Long Forgotten Relic”, taking a step towards aggressiveness and rawness in “Sempinfernus”, is this rawness and aggressiveness the line to follow in future releases?
I’ve literally just completed my second album, this week. Generally, while I have an idea of how I want my releases to turn out, it can at times evolve in completely different directions. What I will say is that my music will always sit at some point between melodicism and aggression. Some releases will sound more aggressive & some more atmospheric and/or melodic. Either way though, opposing traits will always weave their way into the fabric of the music.
9. For some time now, several bands have emerged that adopt the vampire theme in their texts, are you aware of these new bands that have emerged in recent years? Do you consider that this may be a passing "fashion" or has it come for to stay?
As for whether the influx & interest is ‘transient’ or ‘passing’, I suppose time will tell. Every good band will have their motivations and subsequently will have developed their philosophy behind their music. I’m well aware of the burgeoning sub-culture and whilst I consider my music to be vampiric in philosophy, at the least, I think sonically & tonally I am trying to do achieve different things to most other vampiric BM acts.
10. On the cover of “Sempinfernus” there is a great wealth of elements and nuances. Who designed the album cover? What does it represent and how does it relate to the content of the album?
Absolutely! The artwork was done by ‘Scourge’, who is of Pestilential Shadows fame. It was the perfect artwork for the album, and really helped define its overall vibe. The image is of the night attack in Targoviste - the famous attack where tens of thousands of people ended up impaled by the great Vlad Tepes!
11. The Australian record label Seance Records has dealt with the release of the demo and the album, at what point do both parties contact each other for the release of your work? Are you satisfied with the editing and promotion work carried out by part of Seance Records?
I’ve had a long standing friendship with the owners at Seance Records. It was essentially a natural progression having the first couple releases go through the label. They are fantastic people, ’salt of the earth’, and lastly, yes, I was absolutely pleased with their efforts regarding the promotion of the releases.
12. How were your beginnings in music: first concerts you attend, first albums you buy? What happened in your life pushed you to want to be a musician?
I’ve been playing guitar for the better part of 30 years. So I was indoctrinated into music quite young, by my cousins. The first few bands that piqued my interest were obviously bands like Metallica, Slayer, and then it very quickly went onto bands like Morbid Angel and Napalm Death. The out of nowhere the black metal scene exploded in the early 90’s and consequently my tastes led me down this road. My first concert/gig would’ve been something small & local, there is a doom band here in Sydney called ‘Cruciform’ and I think I can actually pin point this show as the first ever metal gig I’d attended. This was a very, very long time ago, now, haha. Prior to finding the guitar I was involved quite heavily with martial arts & looking back picking up the guitar was probably something I’d just thought I wanted to do, seeing certain friends and family playing.
13. What album represents for you the essence of black metal? What recent albums have you bought?
I think this music is created by and for people who are of a certain persuasion. Most of us tend to have a great dislike of humanity, of certain theological, social and economic systems we’ve created that in essence belie our core attributes as a species. Intrinsically, and unarguably it is this said misanthropy, alongside an irreligiousness, be it via Luciferian, Satanic and/or other occultic philosophies that underpin what Black Metal means, to me. If the music doesn’t have these hallmarks of complete and utter hatred and contempt for existence, then it fails to be convincing, I think. I am sure other people have their ideas, but the borders of what defines Black Metal have always been tightly guarded, without much room for sway. The most recent releases I’d purchased are the new Αχέροντας & DSO. Both amazing releases.
14. Thank you very much for taking the time to answer these questions for Black Metal Spirit, if you want to add something for Krvna's followers, this is the place. I hope the questions are to your liking.
Firstly I’d like to thank Black Metal Spirit for taking the time to organise the amazing interview questions, and for the opportunity. Secondly - thank you to everyone who had managed to stumble across my releases, and to those who’d managed to find some magic among the ruins that is my music. Thirdly - for those who may not yet have heard my music, there’s still plenty of time to check out my previous releases, and soon enough, it’ll be time to check out my second full length album. Thank you!
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Nexul – Scythed Wings Of Poisonous Decay 17,99 €
Vinyl, 12", 33 ⅓ RPM, Mini-Album, EP, Limited Edition
Limited to 500 copies:
100 on gold vinyl and
400 on black vinyl (this).
