Verwesung Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the musical project?
Verwesung is a black metal project that I founded in 2015. The only member is me, Paha Henki, although I sometimes get help by guest musicians. Even if this project basically is my second solo-BM-project (I already founded Todesnacht a year before), I had the visions for this project long before and so e.g. the lyrics of the first demo already got written in 2013 and I sadly just wasn't able to record them until late 2015.. But this project for sure is something like the center of my art, meaning that I got much more plans with it than with any other project I'm involved in and so spend the most of my time and energy into Verwesung...

2.In 2016 you had released 4 demos with this project, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?
Well, it really depends. I got some recording problems at every demo and also each one got a different concept. The first demo was a nihilistic tribute to the norwegian necro sound of bands like the almighty Sort Vokter, the second demo more was a chaotic hate-filled massacre of raw black metal and was the most inspired from bands like early Absurd, Goatmoon and Satanic Warmaster..although I also experimented with some Noise elements and got a guest part by a Horrorcore rapper; the third demo is a story of vampyric suffering and also much influenced by Satanic Warmaster/The True Werwolf but even more through mighty LLN bands like Mütiilation; the fourth demo still is depressive vampyric black metal but this time I was more influenced by Saatkrähe/Sale Freux. And of course you can't play vampyric black metal without a obvious Darkthrone (Transilvanian Hunger-era) influence, haha!

3.You refer to this project as being 'raw vampyric black metal', can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in vampirism?
Blood is life, so consuming blood is a act of anti-life worship for me. Especially if it is human blood then it can be very misantrophic, I mean just think about how many Vampyres killed humans just to drink their blood. If this isn't a total act of misantrophic death worship then what is? Also, who could suffer more than someone who is condemned to live eternally?

4.What are some of the other lyrical topics and subjects you explore with this project?
My hatred for mankind and religions & my interest in nature, nihilism, death and dark art. And all the suffering of my soul...

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Verwesung'?
It's German for "putrefaction" and I guess this name just fitted the best to describe the sound of the style of black metal I play. Rotten, melancholic, raw, depressive,... With lyrics about death and similiar topics...

6.With your projects you release a lot of material, do you spend most of your time creating and writing music?
Yes. I think that, beside listening, I spend the most time with creating music and other forms of art.
7.With this project what are some of the things you are able to bring out musically that you have not been able to with your other musical projects?
I guess I have projects for every thing that goes with me in my life, haha..
Depression (Per La Lumon, Todesnacht)
Anger/Misantrophy (Teufelskopfstreitkolben, Per La Lumon, Todesnacht)
Vampirism/occultism (Per La Lumon, Verialttari)
Experiments with other genres (Kindstod, Enbilulugugal)
Verwesung just units it's all as my main-project.

8.PahaHenki Productions recently re-issued one of your demos on cassette, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
That is a wrong information. There is no label called "PahaHenkiProductions" (yet), that's just the name of my bandcamp page..so if any you could call it a netlabel. And all my demo tapes of this project got released by different labels yet, I only self-released the third demo as a CDr limited to 16 copies. The following other demos got released by this labels: Narcotic Necro Nihilism - Narbentage Produktionen
Crushing Thy Existence - Barbatos & Wulfrune Worxx
Tiefschwarze Todessucht - Wulfrune Worxx (also as CDr on Deadly Maelstrom Records)

9.How have black metal fans worldwide reacted to the musical style of 'Verwesung'?
Mostly positive if they are familiar with my influences and like them. Of course if you don't like rotten underground black metal and only listen to plastic commercial metal that is made by and for posers then you will hate Verwesung..and I welcome that!
I only produce art for myself and the very few true worshippers of darkness out there...

10.Where would you like to see this music hea1d into musically during the future?
It depends, the 2 upcoming splits will have the sound of my last 2 demos. The next, fifth, demo is finished to 33% and for now the sound is very fucked-up and the most similiar to the second demo..filled with more hatred than vampirim; but who knows how the finished release will look like, haha. Other planned upcoming releases are some EP's that could end up very different but I don't wanna reveal too much information to them now.

11.Are there any musical influences that are able able to bring into this musical project that you are not able to do with the other groups you are a part of?
Yes, I have or play in some other projects, but only with Verwesung I reach the rotten, vampyric, suffering, melancholic sound that I love so much. Last year I released a demo of my side-project Verialttari and that also has a very similiar sound but I did some experiments with the vocals, drums, etc and so even there the sound is different from Verwesung. I mean, even the sound of every of Verwesung's demos is different but I must say that it got better and more like I intended from release to release..so it just can get better in this way I guess and seriously hope with my whole ghoulish heart...

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Visit my dungeon at pahahenkiproductions.bandcamp.com and await more stuff soon! Some splits are planned and also a fifth demo and a promo tape!
Also thank you for the interview and I hope I reached some rotten souls with it.
Hail DarkneSS! Hail Death! Hail Nihil!
-Paha Henki, MMXVII

Facebook