In this exclusive interview, we delve into the depths of MOLTEN's latest release, "MALICIDE." From its historical inspirations to studio collaboration with Greg Wilkinson, the band unveils the dark journey behind the album's creation, promising a groundbreaking addition to the extreme music scene.
1. Congratulations
on the release of your latest single, "MALICIDE." Can you tell us
about the inspiration behind the title track and what listeners can expect from
the upcoming album?
HB: Thanks!
We’re stoked on how it has been received so far. The title track is basically a
reflection (in a very condensed way) on the brutality of the crusades. A
subject matter that seems to be brushed to the side in today’s culture. We
touched on the religious wars that swept Europe for centuries; the genocidal
ways of the Christian church and the utter annihilation they had on other
cultures all over the world. The lyrics are very broad and generalized in
portraying those events. With with some brutality and intensity to match the
music.
BB: The
knights Templar boasted the unspeakable acts committed against their enemies
were for religious and holy reasons but anyone can see they were committing
atrocities and ultimately would be damned for these heinous acts. The second
part of the song focuses on the crucifixion of Christ and defying Christianity
for betraying the people via the Templar raids.
2. "Malicide"
explores various thematic realms, from war and corruption to inner turmoil and
fantasy. How do these diverse themes come together to create a cohesive
narrative throughout the album?
HB: For the
most part, we wanted to tackle real issues that we all experience regarding the
human psyche, war, isolation, history, Covid, and so on. It’s usually subject
matter that has negative connotations which go hand in hand with the weight of
the music.
BB:
Starting with the first track “Festering Anamnesis”, being in isolation leads
to thoughts of destruction mentally and physically creating an internal war,
eventually spilling over into “Malicide” which describes the horrors of the
crusades. “Scorched” deals with humanity relying too heavily on technology
until it turns on us and destroys the entire planet. “Prophets of Greed”
focuses on corrupt politicians, their money hungry agendas dragging the state
of public well being into poverty and death in the midst of a pandemic.
“Empires of Divinity” tells the story of archaeologists recovering the Dead Sea
Scrolls, reciting them and unleashing hell on earth. “Life of War” is a tale as
old as time where a ruthless tyrant plots to enslave anyone who detests his
evil regime, while a group of warriors band together to overthrow the evil
armies sent to eradicate them.
3. The
album was recorded at Earhammer Studios in Oakland, under the guidance of
acclaimed producer Greg Wilkinson. How did working with Wilkinson contribute to
the evolution of MOLTEN's sound, and what was the studio experience like?
BB: It’s
always a fuckin absolute pleasure to work with the Evil Wizard cause not only
does he know how to make heavy music sound even heavier with precision and
patience, he’s also the nicest dude ever, makes it feel less like work and
keeps it super fun. He’s very hands on and if you think you should do a better
take he’ll encourage you to do it as many or as few times you need for it to
sound proper. Some of the vocal tracks on this album came together in one or
two takes and we were happy with the sound and kept plugging away at finishing
the beast. As far as the evolution of our sound, we all enjoy a wide array of
music heavy or not but the things we write about create a dark atmosphere that
immerses the music with a sense of excitement but also despair if that makes
sense.
HB: Greg is
a legend. Working with him is always a blast. Not only is he an incredibly
solid dude, but he’s also super knowledgeable in various aspects of music. Not
to mention incredibly patient. He’s a pro and he always puts 100% into what he
does. He has a real passion for it.
He has
helped us a ton with tones, gear, effects, textures, and sounds. In the process
of recording more complex arrangements, he always had good insight regarding
performances and also with general recording techniques. He always guides us in
the direction we want to take our sound.
He recorded
the drums, bass and vocals.
He also
took the overwhelming task of editing and mixing the record, which was not an
easy undertaking. His engineering magic on this record is an awesome feature on
it’s own.
Chris
Corona, our guitar player, also had a lot to do with recording the record. He
basically recorded all the guitars (electric and acoustic) on the record that
he and Gary performed. He recorded me playing some acoustic guitars and piano
as well.
He also
worked really hard to get those tones and awesome performances spending
inumerable hours adding effects, mixing tones and experimenting a lot with the
engineering part of it. A big part of the sound of the record is thanks to
Chris too.
Chris and I
worked with Greg on the production side and the overall vibe of the album.
4. The
visual aesthetics of "Malicide" are complemented by artwork from Noah
Cutter Meihoff. How does the album's artwork reflect the intensity and depth of
its musical compositions, and what was the collaboration process like with
Meihoff?
BB: I think
the central theme “if you do evil things, evil will find you and you’ll pay
much more for your acts” is represented by the Knight on the cover having part
of his face removed in a cross shape by a demon taunting him nailing it on the
wall to show his hideous actions have brutal consequences. Working with Noah
was a breeze and he is one cool dude for sure. We wrote back and forth and he
sent us a couple different ideas before we finally chose what would be the
insanely beautiful and morbid piece of artwork that is “Malicide”. He will be a
household name in metal art very soon, mark my words.
HB: He did
an amazing job portraying the general vibe of the album in that piece of art.
5. "Malicide"
marks a significant evolution in your sound and artistic vision. Can you
elaborate on the influences and creative process that shaped the album, making
it both melodically captivating and viscerally intense?
HB: For
this record, it was obvious to all of us that we wanted to create something
heavier but with more substance. In a lot of ways we wanted a more
straightforward approach with more complex arrangements. Like Dystopian
Syndrome, we basically incorporated all of the music we love into our sound. We
also started working more collectively; experimenting a lot with different
rhythms and harmonic approaches.
Involving
everyone in the band instead of 1 or 2 guys writing the songs and showing them
to the rest of the band. Consequently, it all was molded into a more cohesive
stream with input from everyone in the band.
BB:
Personally I take a lot of influence from classic Florida death metal bands
like Death, Morbid Angel, Obituary, Deicide and old European bands like Bolt
Thrower, Asphyx, Entombed and Napalm Death when it comes to vocals, style and
lyrical themes. War, oppression, depression, mental/body horror, and corrupt
political climates are all featured in our lyrics which can be derived straight
from the news and daily life.
6. Your
previous releases, the 2019 EP and 2021 debut LP, "Dystopian
Syndrome," received acclaim. How does "Malicide" build upon the
success of these earlier works, and what new elements does it bring to the
table?
BB: I think
for this album we just wanted to get darker and heavier with a few shorter
songs that punch you right in the gut before you get into the meat for a song
like “Empires of Divinity” that I lovingly refer to as our “Satan’s Fall” (by
Mercyful Fate). I feel like you can look at the killer artwork, read along to
the lyrics and make a mental landscape of what’s going on for each song. One
thing I really try to focus on is annunciation so you can hear what I’m singing
instead of it being muddy and indecipherable (which I love those bands too
don’t get me wrong).
HB:
Malicide is just a continuation of us trying to put all of our influences into
our sound. In the process of writing this record we tackled more complex
arrangements and we experimented a lot more as a band with different ideas we
had not tried before. We had a very melodic sound on DS with a lot of melodies,
harmonies and clean parts. With this record we experimented more with different
rhythmic and harmonic approaches that incorporate an eclectic array of
influences.
Unanimously,
we also did not want to repeat ourselves so there was a lot of discussions on
how to prevent rehashing elements we’ve touched on the previous records.
7. The
press release mentions that "Malicide" promises to push sonic
boundaries. In what ways do you feel the album challenges conventional norms
within the death/thrash genre, and what experimentation can fans look forward
to?
BB: I feel
like each song in the album stands apart from the other which make for an
interesting listen each time you listen to it but at the same time they also
work together to bring a story as old as the 1300’s up to current times. If you
read each song I think you’ll find the common connection.
HB: We love
all kinds of metal, but it’s hard to create new and refreshing sounds that
don’t sound contrived or derivative of something that’s been done before. Aside
from the obvious metal influences, what we tried to do is add elements of other
types of music that are not typically regarded within the death/thrash
parameters. There’s some prog and classical influences on the record. We also
have a doomy side to our music. The black metal influence is there too.
A lot of
the music was written as an amalgamation of genres, per say. With a metal
sensibility always.
Chris is
super into legendary guitar players like Jeff Beck, Gilmour and Hendrix to name
a few, and he adds a lot of textures and arrangements that are not super common
in a metal context. Damon has awesome swing in his playing, not to mention the
punk rock attitude he adds to his drumming. So the overall feel of the songs
have a different vibe than the traditional metal style.
Bristol is
always incorporating different kinds of vocals in the songs, with different
ranges and styles.
So it’s a
plethora of influences meshed together.
It’s also
important to point out the tones involved in the music. With drums, guitars,
bass and vocals. We added a lot of 12 and 6 string acoustic guitars on the
tracks.
Our tuning
is also another factor.
For
instance, we were partly denied by a record label because our tuning was not
low enough for the low register of Bristol’s vocals. Nowadays it’s almost a
norm to record guitars in a lower tuning, specifically with extreme metal. And
since we recorded the record in Eb it might be off putting to some death metal
purists.
8. As a
band, how do you balance the aggressive and immersive aspects of your music to
create an album that is both intense and captivating?
BB: We’re
not trying to reinvent the wheel but we’re also not trying to be some cookie
cutter band that’s just one dimensional. Instead we pick the best things from
genres we love, blend them in a way that’s familiar, yet our own sound and keep
pushing to create tunes that are memorable and fun to listen to.
HB: We also
like to push ourselves as musicians and artists. So it’s always fun to
experiment with different ideas. Our influences are so vast there’s always
ideas thrown into the mix from everyone. The well is never dry.
9. The
journey through the darkest recesses of the human psyche is a central theme in
"Malicide." How do you approach lyricism and instrumentation to
create an experience that is haunting yet exhilarating for your listeners?
HB:
Lyrically Malicide is more of an observation of events that went down during
the crusades. But we’re talking of centuries of events here, of course we’re
going to generalize and be very broad on the subject matter.
We do have
a song on the record called Festering Anamnesis and the main theme is focused
heavily on the dark recesses of the human psyche for sure. Both lyrically and
musically.
Ultimately
when we write music or lyrics we wanna create things that seem interesting and
exciting to us.
BB: I tend
to write about the horrible things happening in the world as well as mental
horror and fantasy to tie together a story style way of writing lyrics.
10. Can
you share any memorable anecdotes or challenges faced during the creation of
"Malicide"? How did you overcome these obstacles to deliver the
groundbreaking addition to extreme music that the press release promises?
BB: Well
Covid put a huge limitation on us getting to tour for the first time so we took
to writing about what was happening around us. It seemed like it took a lot
longer to get things done back then and now it’s finally seeing the light of
day thanks to Greg at Earhammer, Justin at Trakworx and James at Transylvanian
Recordings.
HB: We’ve
had a lot of memorable moments, specially playing shows, recording in the
studio with Greg, or simply hanging out at practice. We had a blast making the
zombie’s curse mini horror film.
We try to
always have fun doing this.
It took a
lot of hard work and persistence to get this album out. Greg, Justin, Noah and
James were a big part in helping us create this album and to put it
out. As far as it being groundbreaking I’m not sure. But we are
extremely proud of the record and it’s definitely been an improvement from our
last album, in our opinion.
11. With
the anticipation building for the release of "Malicide," what can
fans expect in terms of live performances, tours, or other exciting plans from
MOLTEN in the near future?
HB:Yeah,
we’re definitely gearing up to hit the road and play more. We’re already
writing new material too. So playing shows with cool bands and meeting awesome
people is definitely a highlight for us.
Overall we
wanna have fun and play some sick metal that will hopefully bring something
refreshing to the table
BB:Anytime
we get on stage we bring the intensity in our music to you and interact with
the crowd. We want to have good fuckin time with the fans because they drive us
to keep making music that’s gonna make you bang your head and feel it in your
chest. We are in the works of lining up some tour dates so if you want to see
us in your town, tell your local venues, promoters, hell even email us and
spread the word cause we wanna come melt your faces, Molten style.
Molten (@moltenthrashingdeath) • Photos et vidéos Instagram
Dystopian Syndrome | MOLTEN (bandcamp.com)
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