Nigrum Interview

 

1. For those that have never heard of you before, can you tel us a little bit about the band?

Nigrum started up with the aim to express a path taken and to channel it's essence. The path is one of spiritual nature. It is linked to different dark traditions that I have been involved in. It is the guidance into the unknown, beyond life. It's essence, powers and teachings are translated into music using previously acquired skills and tools such as to play musical instruments of course, writing lyrics or doing artworks. Nevertheless the truth of it all lays within what the conscious or "external" mind cannot see. It's behind the mask of music. In between the space of the notes. 

2.You got your first full length coming out in December, musically how does it differ from your previous ep's and demo?

 

Both production and songwriting became more sophisticated, keeping the raw core intact. I think more and more ideas accumulated over the years and became impregnated into the structure, sound and riffing itself throughout the whole album. Of course the length of this record permitted that to happen as well. Demos and EPs have their obvious limitations. 

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects you explore with the newer release and also how would you describe your progress as songwriters over the years?

The lyrical topics cover various grounds. The ones delved in most vastly, are the way death is venerated and worshipped in south America,  in countries such as Brazil and Argentina. And the death worship in Mesoamerican cultures, which plays an important role, specially in the Aztec culture with the adoration of Tezcatlipoca or Tlazolteotl for instance. Other cultures that predated the Aztec in the center of México have also found their place in our lyrics but the focus remains on the culture's traditions first mentioned. 

I believe with time you become more aware of what you want to do with your instrument and music. And that reflects into the way you write songs. So it seems experience has brought some clarity. From when we started up rehearsing as a band located in Sweden each of us has learned a lot. We didn't just walk into the rehearsal place and just spat out an album suddenly. It was a learning process in every sense of the word for every person involved. 

4.You have also mention some interest in Aztec Mythology, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this topic?

I was born and raised in Mexico so all of those topics were very close to me since I have a sense of memory. You could say I wouldn't remember my life without what that culture left behind. But I must add, most of the western countries or even most of the world knows about the history of Mesoamerica, and with some little research one can find a lot of information. But the truth is that there is an immense amount of gaps and blank spots in that history. Most has been written by the Spanish who won the war at the end, and on top of that it was written through a christian - white - male dominant filter. The amount of lies written down by them is monumental.  A couple of the biggest are that the Aztec people believed that the spanish conscripts were gods and that Quetzalcoatl was only a creator god synchronized with their own. Most of what the so called conquistadores said was for the sake of their own propaganda and justification of their war crimes. So, the interest exists in the gaps, in what lies hidden, and in the actual existing adversarial forces that were the drive of their cult and worship. 

5.On one of your earlier releases you also covered some satanic topics, do you also have an interest in Satanism or the Black Arts?

Yes. Although it's hard to figure out what people mean when they say satanism. Apart from the deities associated to it for me it has become current of the origin, from where all traditions of a "sinister" character have come from. The names don't matter so much, but the aim and hidden essence do. Of course, this idea, I must say does not come from me but has been inspired and transmitted by different writings, authors and groups over the years. If you mean the black arts as of the practice of different traditions, yes I have an active and ongoing interest in that. 

6.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Nigrum'?

When I put together the first lineup ever, I came up with the name and the others also found it fitting. But I just saw it in a book and soon found out it means "black" or "dark" or "obscure" in Latin. It's also similar to the concept of "nigredo" the "darkest night of the soul". The darkest night of the soul refers to when the spirit is closest to the divine. If we trace back clearly written historical sources, if I'm not wrong it's a christian concept but other religions around the world have similar approaches but put down in a different manner. In other words the idea can be turned and applied to other belief systems unrelated to christianity. 

7.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover? 

Well, it's really a band photo we took around two winters ago. It was originally not meant to become a cover but at some point it became an idea, then it stuck. 

8.The band is originally from Mexico but now resides in Sweden, can you tell us a little bit more about the move?

The band was active in Mexico from around 2015 to 2018. At the end of this period the ideas within the band were going very much into different places, or maybe into nowhere, who knows. At the same time a series of personal struggles were peaking and I came to the conclusion that to survive and not being swallowed by my own rock bottom I had to hit the road again. I left everything behind or most of it, and during that time I got to know "M" the other guitar player and we started making new music and sharing ideas about what we had been wanting to do with a band like this. At the time I was living in Austria and the Netherlands afterwards. So when I moved to Sweden we already had our drummer "F" and we already were putting into shape two of the songs that you can hear in the full length album.  

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

I think we've really enjoyed Metal Magic and opening for Niflheim in Malmö. Back then, with the band in Mexico we played in Guatemala City with Inquisition from the States and Colombia. I'm not sure on how sober we were when we played or how good we played but we had a proper ride. Nowadays our concerts are way more focused and have a more mature aim. The music is clearly directed to something out there. Everything we do on stage, music, paint, blood and singing is meant as a calling.

10.DO you have any touring or show plans for the new album?

Yes, but it's too early to tell. If something happens then we'll be there. 

11.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black metal?

Difficult to say. It has been a rather strange experience. Some people have been extremely into it and interested in what we are doing and what is to come now with our album out. Others have acted with a lot of opposition as well, almost angered at times. For what reason exactly I don't know, but the middle ground in this for sure has been very shallow. Yet all in all I can say that we have reached with few shows and some hardship behind us a good place. 

12.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

We want to climb the same tree, that's a fact. For example, many black metal bands nowadays have adopted a very progressive and sort of "atmospheric" direction in their new releases in contrast to the earlier ones. We don't want to do that, the foundations have been built and they will always remain the founding pillar from where we will build. 

13.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

We have been inspired by many types of music apart from the obvious, such as folk music, blues, garage, latin american folk, prehispanic music, but always coming back to black metal in its raw and ravenous shape. Even if we can listen to many different types of music we don't have to put in the notes and scales of some of those genres into our songs. This kind of influence works in a more subtle way. When it comes to black metal I've been listening a lot to Xibalba's first album, Volahn, Forteresse and Possession. At least those have come to my mind first. 

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

I guess people who find interest in Nigrum are very welcome to buy our music, merch and come to our concerts. All that will always be appreciated. Other than that, thanks for the space and questions and hope to see some of you on the road. 

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