1. Mānbryne was born in 2017, why did you decide to create the band? Why did you choose the name Mānbryne and what does it refer to?
Renz: I was sending some of my demos to S., we knew each other long before the band was being founded. He found my music interesting enough to make some songs together. The name is an Old English word meaning „destructive/incendiary fire”, or „a fire in which men lose their lives”.
2. The components of Manbryne in one way or another participate in bands like Massemord, Odraza, Voidhanger, Blaze of Perdition, Oremus, then Mānbryne appears, what does Mānbryne bring you with respect to all these bands?
Renz: Manbryne is a kind of a spiritual successor to Oremus. A simple black metal music with existentialism-related lyrics.
3. “Heilsweg: O udręce ciała i tułaczce duszy”, your first album is the result of the work of the last three years, with all that the restrictions of the pandemic could also bring, How has the process of composing and recording the album? Were you clear from the beginning about the sound you wanted to offer? What brands of instruments did you use to compose and record the album?
Renz: Well, the musical part of the album was being prepared between the November of 2017 and summer, 2018. It was a relatively smooth process, I barely had any outtakes in the end. Then it took a while to set up the details and start with the proper recording session, I haven't recorded guitar parts until December 2019. The music itself is pretty easy in its structure - mostly there are two panned guitar tracks, each one recorded twice using two different instruments, then filled here and there with some leading parts. Speaking of the sound part, we had some specific examples of how we'd like to sound like, and we showed them to our producer.
4. Poland has always been a country with a very rich extreme metal scene and specifically with bands with a very particular sound, whether we are talking about death / black, experimental or avant-garde, how does Manbryne fit into the Polish scene? What do you think makes you different from other proposals? How would you describe the sound of the album for those who have not yet heard it?
Renz: I don’t think we care much about the polish metal scene, not many bands out there seem to share our specific point of view on that music. It’s okay though.
5. In your lyrics you somehow develop themes related to death and struggle, however you also use the movie "The Seventh Seal" as inspiration for the album. What has inspired you from this movie to decide what would guide the lyrics from your album?
S: All the struggle you've mentioned, as well as questions the movie has been asking for decades are just as important now as they've been in the past. Even more now, perhaps. The feeling of emptiness, futility of existence and the lack of direction or meaning in our lives as well as in society in general is ever present and doesn't seem to go away anytime soon.
6. For the lyrics of the album they have used your native language, Polish, why this decision? Do you feel more comfortable with this way of expressing yourself?
S: It's natural that we think in our native languages, thus it's much easier to appropriately express ourselves this way. Manbryne's lyrics are rather emotional and passionate and they need a proper output. I wrote them in English at first, but they were lacking exactly what I'm talking about - this natural emotional weight to carry the essence.
7. Etbast Purgato has been in charge of the artistic part of the album, how did you contact Etbast to carry out the design of the cover? What does the cover of the album represent and how can it be related to the music of the album?
Renz: We had an idea of a drawing cover art, but we didn’t want to reach for any artist that is well-known in the genre. Etbast Purgato is a friend of S., and a fantastic tattoo artist; I guess that making that cover art was a quite new experience for her. She did a great job and we didn’t expect any less of her.
8. Malignant Voices and Terratur Possessions have dealt with the release of the album in its different physical formats. How is contact with both labels to carry out these releases? Are you satisfied with the work done by both labels?
Renz: Again, both Radek of MV and Ole of TP are good friends of S., so it came quite naturally to get in touch when we were looking for a label. We’re extremely happy to be working with them, and I guess they deserve most of the credit for the overwhelming reception of Heilsweg.
9. What have the restrictions imposed due to Covid-19 meant for Mānbryne? How have you been affected? How have you maintained promotion and contact with fans during this time?
Renz: Surprisingly, the lockdown in Poland had a quite positive outcome on the album. S. wrote all the lyrics for Heilsweg in English first, but then, when we couldn’t record the vocal parts because of covid restrictions, he decided to rewrite them in the native language; it was a brilliant idea. Also, because the album is partially inspired by both „The Seventh Seal” and Ken Russels’ „The Devils”, and these two take place at the time of plague, I don’t think we could release Heilsweg to any more fitting circumstances.
10. With two bands under your belt like Blaze of Perdition, Oremus who are fully respected on the scene, how do you think the black metal scene in Poland has evolved over the years?
S: It got much worse in my opinion. While the names I admire are still there, majority of relatively new bands from Poland are completely beyond my interest.
11. How were your beginnings in music: first concerts you attended, first albums you bought? What did you do in your lives that made you want to be musicians?
S: My older cousin used to flood me with the music he liked and I got gradually more and more interested. At some point during my mid/late teenage years I started feeling the urge to express myself this way. I had a band with him and that's where I started. It was a completely amateurish entertainment with no artistic value whatsoever, but it was enough for starters.
12. Which album represents for you the essence of black metal? What last albums have you bought?
S: There are way too many albums I love to mention just one to be honest. I wouldn't be too original about it anyway. I love the first/second wave of black metal as well as the originators of the so-called orthodox black metal scene. Also, I rarely buy records and they are usually not black metal.
13. What future plans do you have for Mānbryne in terms of concert, upcoming releases or reissues?
Renz: We’re currently waiting for the new pieces of merchandise, and also expecting a vinyl repress in due time.
S: There are more interesting plans as well, but It's still too early to share anything.
14. Thank you very much for taking the time to answer these questions for Black Metal Spirit, if you want to add something for Mānbryne fans, this is the place. I hope the questions are to your liking.
Renz: Thanks.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mion's Hill – Torture 12,99 €
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario