Bane/Esoteric Formulae/Black Market Metal Label/2018 CD Review

  Bane  are  a  band  originally  from  Serbia  but  now  resides  in  Canada  and  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  on  this  recording  plays  an  aggressive  and  melodic  mixture  of  black  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  album  "Esoteric  Formulae"  which  will  be  released  in  November  by  Black  Market  Metal  Label.

  A  very  dark,  epic,  orchestral  and  ritualistic  sounding  intro  starts  off  the  album  before  going  into  more  of  a  heavier  and  melodic  direction  while  the  vocals are  mostly  grim  black  metal  screams  along  with  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  bringing  in  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  which  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  raw  feeling.

  A  great  amount  of  death  metal  elements  can  also  be  heard  quite  a  bit  in  both  the  vocals  and  instruments  while  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and fast  parts  along  with  some  keyboards  also  being  added  into  some  parts  of  the  music  as  well  as  the  solos  and  leads  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style.

  Clean  chants  can  also  be  heard  briefly  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sound  very  powerful  and  there  are  also  some  quest  appearances  by  Giulio  Moschini  of  Hour  Of  Penance  and  Amduscias  of  Temple  of  Baal  along  with  the  two  closing  tracks  being  all  instrumentals  as  well  as  the  orchestral  elements  being  added  on  the  outro.

  On  this  recording  Bane  takes  their  musical  style  into  more  of  a  melodic  blackened  death  metal  direction,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  Occultism,  Satanism,  and  Esoteric  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Bane  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  melodic  blackened  death  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Calling  Of  The  Eleven  Angles"  "Into  Oblivion"and  "Reign  In  Chaos".  8  out  of  10. 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tk9v0J7FxWs  

Bane/The Acausal Fire/Abyss Records/2012 CD Review

  Bane  are  a  band  from  Serbia  that  has  been  featured  before  in this  zine  with  a  musical  style  I  would  describe  as  being  fast  and  aggressive  sounding  atmospheric  black  metal  with  a  death  metal  edge  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2012  album  "The  Acausal  Fire"  which  was  released  by  Abyss  Records.

  Drums  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  drumming  with  a  good  amount  of  brutal  sounding  blast  beats  being  thrown  into  the  music  at  times,  while  the  bass  playing  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  tone   with  heavy  riffing  that  dominates  throughout  the  recording,  as  for  the  synths  they  are  only  used  on  the  outro  and  they  bring  a  dark  and  atmospheric  sound  to t he  music.

  Rhythm  guitars  range  from  slow,  mid  paced  to  fast  black  metal  riffs  that  capture  atmosphere  without  using  synths  and  keyboards  along  with  a  great  amount  of  dark  sounding  melodies  and  death  metal  influences  being  thrown  into  the  riffing,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  melodic  sounding  black  metal  guitar  solos  and  leads,  as  for  the  acoustic  guitars  which  are  only  utilized  briefly  they  use  full  chords  and  finger  picking  to  enhance  the darkness  that  is  coming  out  of  the  music.

  Vocals  range  from  deep  blackened  death  metal  growls  and  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  as  well  as  a  brief  use  of  clean  singing,  while  the  lyrics  cover  satanic,  occult,  dark,  violent  and  hateful  themes,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  strong  and  powerful  sound  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  this  recording.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  recording  from  Bane  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  their  previous  efforts,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  End  Of  Humanity"  "World  Of  Desolation"  and  "Nights  Blood"  which  is  a  Dissection  cover.  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

www.facebook.com/baneband    

www.reverbnation.com/baneband

www.myspace.com/baneband  

Bane Interview

1. What is going on with Bane these days?


I am currently writing new material, although it`s going pretty slow at the moment. I have no intentions to rush anything, since I am pretty satisfied with the final result of our current release "Chaos, Darkness & Emptiness". There is still lots of work to be done with the promotion for that album. I am expecting more reviews, as well as live concerts in the following months.


So far we have promoted the album live in several European countries (Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Serbia...), and are preparing another European Tour for March 2011. All details & confirmations will soon be announced on our official MySpace page.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album, and how much do you feel you progressed over the years?


Our new album is pretty much based on Swedish Styled Black Metal from the mid 90`s, but with very strong Death Metal influences, and even Doom Metal elements. We also have ambient passages going in between the songs, since the album is done as a concept and everything is linked - everything has it`s own purpose. We really try to combine all essential things and put it all together in one package - it`s fast, brutal & aggressive, yet it`s melodic and pretty much easy to follow.


The progress of this band was without any doubt huge, considering that we have been a live and active band since early 2010, with a full line-up. So far we had shows all over Europe, and in 2010 released an EP, and after that a full-length album on several different labels & formats. Musically and production-wise we made a huge progress and added many other elements in our music which was not the case earlier, and can easily be heard when comparing previous releases to our new album.


3. Your new album has an interesting concept in the lyrics, what are some of the things that inspired you when writing the lyrics?


Glad you think that way. Basically, everyday life experiences and the stupidity, selfishness & abhorrence of mankind inspire me lyrically.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name Bane?


As described in Wikipedia: Bane is a Modern English word meaning "that which causes ruin or woe". Although the word "Bane" was used in many different variations, which most of them are very interesting, and none of them are positive.

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far, and how would you describe your stage performance?


It`s very hard to pick shows apart from others, as they are all important and in each and every one of them the band gives 666%. But some of the "best" would be say in the Capital of Slovenia when we played as support band to James Rivera (USA), in Czech Republic on the Volyne Metalfest when sharing the stage with Root (CZ), and maybe on Adrenalin Fest Open-Air in Becej, Serbia.


Our stage performance is simply a ritual of the band that makes us complete in order to represent what we stand for. It allows us to truly express the point of our music.

6. Do you have any touring plans for the new album?


As previously mentioned, yes - we should have a 2-week European Tour in March 2011. After that we will be playing a few summer festivals if everything goes well, and then we will see if it will be possible to hit the road again in Autumn...

7. How have black/death metal fans worldwide react to your musical sound?


Judging by the reviews I have read so far, the support given from our record labels and the amount of e-mails/messages sent to me from various people all over the globe, I can say that the majority really enjoyed the new material. I guess it`s interesting for people to hear this kind of genre & production coming from the Balkans, as it`s definitely something that can hardly be seen or heard in this corner of Europe. Hopefully we will be able to put the word "out there" even more in the future...

8. What direction would you like to take the band into on future releases?


It`s hard to tell at this time, since there are so many influences and good bands everywhere. But it would definitely be a very strong and if possible unique mixture of Death, Black & Doom Metal music. I will try to push the limits higher on each following releases, but not in a superficial way. The band will continue to develop in natural ways, as we are not in any kind of competition of some sort. It`s just something that matter to me, and to us. If someone likes it - fine, if not - I don`t care, really.

9. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?


The three (3) main bands that had the biggest influence on me and my music are without any doubt Dissection, Dark Funeral & Saturnus. There are also many Death Metal bands I really like, listen & enjoy, but I just can`t express them all in Bane. That`s why I have other Death Metal & Grindcore projects where I intend to make more "brutal" stuff.


Nowadays I am listening to all sorts of different bands & musical styles. I have a very wide range of music I listen to. But in the last weeks or so I can`t stop listening to Anachroneaon - one of the most original and unique Metal bands I have heard over the years. They come from Sweden, so you should definitely check them out. Also a phenomenal young band you should check out is Sanhedrin. They just released their first full-length album, and it`s possibly the best stuff I have heard coming from the UK. And I just received the first album from a Russian band called Odem. That stuff is simply both insane and amazing - definitely worth your time & money.


I could go on and on with this, there are just too many bands nowadays, can`t keep up with them all...

10. What role does Satanism or Occultism play in your music, and how would you describe your views on these topics?


My views about these topics are quite personal, so I don`t really combine them with my music, although it is at some times inevitable. Satanism and Occultism are nowadays very often only a theme for kids who are into "Black Metal", and using it to be "true" to other people, not really knowing the true meaning behind those words...so that`s mainly why I try not to write too much about them, although as I just said - they are indeed a part of me. They represent my beliefs that inflict on me as a human being, but it`s very personal and I don`t really share my visions and thoughts about those things to the public, sorry.

11. Outside of music, what are some of your interests?

To be honest, nothing much. Apart from keeping a simple lifestyle with my beloveth and listening/writing music, I really don`t have any other types of hobbies. I don`t play sports, don`t play video games, don`t drink alcohol, don`t do drugs, don`t really hang out with people in general. I have a few close ones that I sometimes share time with, and that`s it.


12. Any final words or thoughts before we close this interview?


Huge thanks for the true support, it really means a lot. Thanks to all the people who took their time to read this, keep the underground alive! Support your local bands, don`t stop buying printed fanzines and keep on buying/trading original CD`s, MC`s & vinyl!


For more info & updates concerning Bane visit: http://www.myspace.com/baneband,
And for direct contact & booking, write to: banedeathmetal@gmail.com


Let Thy Chaos Forever Reign Upon Us...




-Branislav/BANE

Bane/Chaos, Darkness, and Emptiness/Abyss Records/2010 CD Review

  Bane are a band from Serbia that plays a form of brutal black metal that also has death metal influences and this is a review of their 2010 album "Chaos, Darkness And Emptiness" which was released by Abyss Records.

Drums range from slow, mid paced to fast drumming with a lot of brutal blast beats, while the bass playing has a very dark tone with riffs that follow the riffing that is coming out of the guitars and on some songs they sound very powerful, as for the keyboards when they are utilized they have a very dark and atmospheric sound that gives the music a lot darker and more epic edge with a lot of finger picking and full chords.

Rhythm guitars are mostly slow, mid paced, to fast black metal guitar riffs that also have a very heavy death metal influence to them and a great amount of melody and in addition one song has a very doomy feel to it, while the  lead guitars are very melodic black metal guitar solos that have a classic metal feel to them, as for the acoustic guitars when they are utilized they bring a very dark and melodic edge to the music.

Vocals are mostly high pitched black metal screams with some deep death metal growls being utilized a lot of themes with some occasional spoken word passages, while the lyrics are somewhat conceptual with the main themes being divided into Chaos, Darkness, and Emptiness and some of the lyrical subjects are about evilness and plagues, as for the production it has a very professional sound and all of the instruments come out with a very good sound.

In my opinion Bane are a very good amount and if you like black metal that has some death metal influences and a great touch of melody, you should check out  this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "The True Insomnia" "The Haunting Pressence" and "The Dawn No More Rises" which is a Dark Funeral cover. RECOMMENDED BUY.

www.myspace.com/baneband www.last.fm/music/Bane+(+Serbia+)