1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
Well, I (Naergoat) first founded the band back in September-ish 2018 when I was 17 as a solo project. At the start of 2019, with a lack of motivation to do things myself, I decided that it would be fun if I played this style of music as a group, so I contacted a few people I knew at the time to make it a full band, which pretty much happened instantly. Over time the lineup changed (except Liz, who has been in the band since the first lineup) and I’m extremely grateful with the current people that I can share this passion with.
We’re basically at core a black metal band, but we try to implement small pinches of other musical genres into our music. When I write my riffs, I like to sprinkle very subtle amounts of death metal tropes to add an extra layer of heftiness to the music. I also like to add an almost “rock- ‘n’-roll-type" feel into the tracks which I feel like a lot of bands nowadays seem to be missing, especially when playing live. One of the things I try to do to make us somewhat-unique in black metal is make sure that the bass stands out at some points. For example, in our track ‘Serenity through Scorn’, I purposefully added some interesting licks to create an extra layer of groove and to also make the bass separate from the guitars instead of just following the notes at a low volume (not that there’s anything wrong with that). Lyrically, we focus on subjects involving magick, witchcraft and occultism of most pantheons, but mostly that of luciferian currents since they tend to incorporate bits from other pantheons/currents anyway.
2.In December you had released a demo, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical style that you went for on the recording?
Like I previously stated, I tried to go for something that is traditionally black metal, yet adding subtle sprinkles of death metal for added heaviness and atmosphere. I tried to go for something that was extremely atmospheric, yet also great in a live setting and something you could “move to” and enjoy. It took a few years experimenting with different riffs and styles, and I think that I’ve nailed the style I’ve been after with these two tracks. I tried to add variety so it isn’t the same one or two riffs over non-stop blast-beats for the whole song to keep them interesting and engaging. As I had also mentioned before, it was important for me to make the bass stand out. When I was writing/recording these tracks, I wanted each instrument to have their own “moment” per-se, without affecting the music and instead add an extra layer of interest and uniqueness to make the songs sound less flat. It was extremely important to make the music very dark and atmospheric in nature, yet add a layer of variety, groove and engagement.
3.A lot of your lyrics cover occultism and esoteric themes, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in the dark arts?
Despite being a fairly cheery person most times, I’ve always been interested in dark and obscure things for as long as I can remember, which inevitably led to my interest in the occult. I’ve always felt that there was a type of beauty in darkness and all things macabre, and that there was meaning and consequences in/from everything around us. Upon researching these texts, I found parallels in how I saw these things and what the occult said about them, which made a lot of sense to me. I, personally, have been a practitioner only for the past few years, but my bandmates are not (or at least not in the same way as myself). However, despite the lyrical content from which I base on my views, beliefs and just general subjects that I find interesting in the occult, the band’s main focus is the music itself. You can have interesting and meaningful lyrics, yes, but in my opinion, it doesn’t mean shit if the music is shite.
4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Kelvikus'?
Funny story actually; it actually pairs with my original view of the band when I first created it as a solo project at 17. Originally, I wanted to go for a typical atmo-black, fantasy-themed project based around Dungeons and Dragons. Like most metal people, I’ve always been a massive nerd, and used to play D&D quite excessively. From ages 15 to 17, I created a whole world for my campaign at the time, including detailed hand-drawn maps of all of the locations. One of the landmarks was a volcano called ‘Mount Kelvikus’, which was a name I literally invented on the spot. When it came to coming up with the project name, I thought that ‘Kelvikus’ sounded “black metal” enough, so I went with it. Obviously, the original plan for the project never happened (mainly due to the little effort I had at the time), so I made it a full band. However, sometime in 2019 I created another project called ‘Shadowfell’ which basically has the same vision that Kelvikus originally had. I don’t really focus on that project too much, but do have things recorded on my computer for it. Anyway, nowadays I just consider the word ‘Kelvikus’ as a unique name for the band as if it was an unseen sentient being with its own name, almost like a spiritual deity if you would.
5.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the demo cover?
Sure! I made it in photoshop back in 2019 when I was about 17/18. It’s basically meant to be a decaying Pope Francis sitting on an unkempt throne. I kept hold of it whenever I’d release something for Kelvikus. I’m glad I did because I think it pairs with the music very well.
6.Originally the band started out as a solo project, what was the decision behind expanding into a full line up?
Essentially at the time, I wasn’t skilled enough and lacked the proper motivation to make music myself, so I asked people if they wanted to join the band. Obviously over the years my skill and attitude changed since I wrote/recorded the tracks myself with full support from the rest of the band, despite the fact I may have heavily procrastinated at some points between making the tracks. However, due to the surprising amount of support we’ve received the last few days because of our demo, we’re determined and extremely motivated to create more material. More may or may not be in the writing process as we speak...
7.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Well, we’ve only played one gig, so I’d say that's the best one hahaha. No but seriously, we did surprisingly well that one time we played. It was October-ish 2019, just before covid first hit properly. Back then we only played covers and shared around the odd riff or two which are long since forgotten. Anyway, after the full set of bands played, we had a bunch of fellas with shaved heads and Burzum longsleeves come up to Liam (our guitarist) and tell him that we were the best band there, which was extremely flattering despite the fact we only played Immortal, Dissection, Emperor and Mgła covers. Yeah, anyway it turned out that they were Nazis which we found out later, which was concerning due to the fact that there were Nazis in Liverpool of all places, especially at our first performance, but we took the compliment and had a laugh about it later. As for our stage performance, I honestly couldn’t tell you due to the fact that we’ve only ever played one gig, but maybe our opinion of our stage presence will change by the end of this year.
8.Do you have any touring or show plans for 2023?
Oh definitely! No huge plans like touring, but we’ll definitely start gigging again this year, mainly in local venues around Liverpool and possibly on the Wirral. It’s been way too long since we’ve performed last and we’re all itching to do it again!
9.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
We’re not actively seeking a label at the moment since we’ve only released one demo, but we’re not against the idea of one. We’re probably going to release another demo and play a few shows first before we try to find a label. No one has contacted us as of yet.
10.On a worldwide level, how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black metal?
Honestly, it’s been amazing. I didn’t expect a few tracks that I recorded in my bedroom with Audacity to gain the traction that it did. It’s been great reading the reviews on different socials/websites and the positive feedback in comments, and the fact that over twenty people at this point have been generous enough to put their own money towards a demo available for free has been amazing. And of course, we are extremely grateful to those who gave 22 minutes of their time to listen to our demo. Don't get me wrong, it’s not massive support by metal standards, but it's way more than we were even remotely expecting and for that we are extremely grateful.
11.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?
Well, I tend to occasionally record things for my other projects such as ‘Shadowfell’ and ‘Stretched’. Currently, my main priority is Kelvikus so those are on an unofficial “hold” for now; I’ll get round to them when I get round to them. Our drummer James, however, has recently started a hardcore band called 'Shrapnel Wound' which is showing good progression. They actually recently played a very small exclusive show on New Year’s Eve in a proper grimy hardcore fashion. I honestly wish the best for his other band and look forward to its further progression.
12.When can we expect a full length and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
I unfortunately can’t properly answer either of those questions at this time. Despite having a few more songs in the works, we can’t promise a time for a full-length release; we’ll most likely release another short demo this year however. Musically, I can’t say much except I hope to expand on the harshness and atmosphere in a greater way.
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?
All sorts have inspired my music. I used to listen to and play a lot of Immortal as I was getting into black metal and whilst I don’t listen to them much as of now, they definitely had a huge impact on my playing style. I’d like to say there are also bits of Emperor, Akhlys, Dissection, Mgła/Kriegsmaschine, Misthyrming, Leviathan, Zhrine and Wiegedood in my inspirations, but I can’t say for sure. I tend to subtly pick up things that I like over the years which eventually translates over to my music.
I tend to listen to all kinds of shite so I can’t specifcally say what I’m listening to nowadays without overthinking and exceeding the bible in length of words. However, I can say that the new Ritual Death and Misthyrming albums fucking slap.
14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
I just want to say that I’m excited for what this year brings us as a band, and that we would all like to thank you for the opportunity for us to provide some insight into what we’re about. Now, it is 7am over here, so I’m going to go and pass out in my bed now.
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