Molag Interview

 

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

 Velda - Molag is a raw, vampyric black metal band that I formed in early 2022. Our goal is to make soul crushing black metal and to spread the gospel of Molag. I wanted to show everyone out there that you can make black metal that is both atmospheric AND actually have riffs! On top of that, we ain't no nazi fuckheads either, proving we can break some of the black metal stereotypes. 

Hermaeus - The essence of Molag Bal is one of bloodshed and domination. This is an essence we're trying to recapture sonically.

2.So far you have released a full length and ep, musically how do they both differ from each other? 

V - For starters, they have different vocalists. Bal, the original singer, was only a guest musician and didn't want to commit full time to the band, which I respect his choices for that. Hermaeus, our new vocalist, is a fully committed member of the band, meaning he doesn't just sit there and do what we tell him to. He introduces new ideas and that's just going to naturally change how we write. His vocal style fits the more doomy atmospheric side of things, and they're not generic at all, so the instrumentals can't be generic black metal either. Metamorphosis Dark was entirely written by myself, music and lyrics and all, so it might seem a bit more consolidated with absolutely no outside input. Into the Saber Winds was a more collaborative effort and required me to change how I'm approaching songwriting. Don't worry though, the goal remains exactly the same, and that's to make the most evil, atmospheric, riff filled blasphemy we can!

H - I had no role in the first full length album. When Velda contacted me about providing vocals for the EP, I agreed immediately. I feel that the collaborative nature of the EP is very apparent.

3.A lot of your lyrics cover Satanism and Vampirism themes, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in the dark arts? 

V - Ever since I was a child, I've felt the call of dark forces, whether you want to call that Satan or not is up to you. In my opinion, that doesn't matter. Satan represents a lot to me; rebellion, love, hate, will, and much more. I'm a Thelemite first and foremost. The Vampirism themes came naturally, especially considering our namesake is the lord of vampires! We're far from the first band to mesh these themes together for our aesthetic, but I see it as a "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" kind of thing. We separate ourselves from most of the pack by actually having riffs anyway. 

H - I discovered Crowley at the age of about 14. From there, my interest in the occult grew. Even before that I would often practice rituals of my own. I couldn't tell you where the interest began, however. I've just always had that inclination.

4.You have also mentioned being anti fascist, can you tell us a little bit more about these views?

V - To me, anti-fascism is extremely important. I'm from the Bible belt, and they say familiarity breeds contempt. It sure did for me, Molag stands against Christian theocracy and fascism, both of which thrive down here. It's not exclusive to here, but it's more out and proud. We also want to make it easy for people to know where we stand. We're not some spineless dweebs who sit on the fence about this shit. Whether people like it or not, politics is ever prevalent in all facets of our lives, so you may as well take an actual stand. It never ceases to amaze me how metal fans, particularly black metal fans, think they're some kind of counter-culture and then proceed to support traditionalist Christian values, like bigotry against LGBTQ+ and non-white people, it makes me fucking sick. And these bands claim to be Satanic whilst upholding the current status quo! What a fucking farce.

H - So-called "Satanists" and "Pagans" who believe in the same things as Christian fundamentalists make me laugh. Also being from the deep South has shown me firsthand that these fundamentalists deserve no respect, and I truly can't think of anything more ridiculous than "Satanists" and "Pagans" believing the same things as those they claim to oppose. 

5.I know that the band was named after a character in the Elder Scrolls game, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these series? 

V - It's no secret that black metal fans are typically nerds at heart. I love RPG's, and Elder Scrolls is no exception. Hell, my other band is called Darkmoon Blade, which is in reference to a Spell in the Dark Souls series. To me, I find this no different than naming your band in reference to Lord of the Rings, the only difference is the medium. You're still finding inspiration in pretty well known stories. Molag Bal, in the Elder Scrolls series, is the closest figure to a "Satan" within that series. And him being the father of Vampirism, as well as being probably the only Daedric lord that you could easily call evil, made total sense. Everything I do as a musician amounts to "painting a picture" of sorts, so the aesthetic is very important. I'd wager it catches the attention of likeminded individuals who love these type of video games as well.

H - The Elder Scrolls was one of the first RPGs to ever connect with me. Oblivion, specifically. I would spend hours locked in my room. Needless to say, I have quite an affinity for it and it continues to be a source of inspiration for me.

6.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork on both album covers? 

V - The original cover for Metamorphosis Dark is simply an older picture of myself that was originally for a very, very old black metal project of mine under the name of Morbosus. It never really went anywhere, but I still had all those pictures lying around and it stuck. I felt it didn't really properly represent the album though, and commissioned a friend of mine for a new cover. I wanted the cover to have a sort of nightmarish feel to it, almost intangible in a way, and I felt she nailed it. The cover for Into the Saber Winds was done much in the same way. If I remember correctly, she had arranged an actual skull for the redone cover for Metamorphosis Dark but purposefully changed shapes around to make it less obvious as to what was going on. This way, listeners can gleam their own demons from it.

H- (no answer, Velda summed it up really well!) 

7. Has the band done any live shows or open to the idea? 

V - We have never performed any shows. I'm open to the idea, but simply showing up and playing isn't going to cut it for me. It would have to be an entire ceremony that, truthfully, just isn't sustainable for a new up and coming black metal band with no money. The aesthetic is extremely important to me, and I refuse to half-ass it. There would be fog, blood, and everything else that would appease the Daedric Lord of Domination. That said, eventually I hope to actually be able to pull it off. It wouldn't be a lot of little shows, but fewer BIG shows. And I refuse to do it any other way.

H- As Velda said, our ideal for a live show would be elaborate and expensive. It isn't out of the question for me, either, however. 

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

V - It's been a lot better than I thought! I had honestly assumed Molag would've been lost in the sea of ever flooding bands that pop up every 20 seconds. But we've had people tell us they were really loving it! And some hate it! Which is perfectly fine for me, this tells me we're doing something right. Ive no doubt some bootlickers hate that we spread the gospel of Satan while also advocating for issues such as trans rights and black lives. This separates us from the pack and only furthers our resolve. The scene has become too comfortable with bullshit like white supremacy for the longest time.

H - Honestly I'm a little surprised at the level of attention we've been receiving. It's humbling. 

9.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? 

V - I mentioned Darkmoon Blade earlier. That's my more traditional heavy metal focused project. We're currently in the process of recording our follow-up release. And then there's Somat, my black /death band, and we're currently in the process of writing our third album. As you can see, I am in a constant state of writing and recording music. This is why I prefer not playing a lot of shows, so I can focus more of my time on actually writing and recording this music I love.

H - I have a few potential things in the works. Stay tuned for that. 

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

V - Expect more raw, vampyric black metal! I didn't create Molag to experiment with progressive ideas, I wanted to make evil, atmospheric, riff filled black metal, and that's not changing anytime soon!

H - We're going to continue bringing you riffs and ferocious, bloody black metal. 

11.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? 

V - I listen to a very wide variety of music from metal to gothic country and everything else, though my heart still stays with metal mostly. My favorite artist of all time is King Diamond, which influences everything I do, no matter the project. Celtic Frost is also a massive influence. Some new-ish bands that I've been digging lately are Zatyr, Ashbreather, Bewitcher, Hellripper, and Heavenfield (shout to Severin from that band, dude is a phenomenal artist).

H - Summoning are probably my single biggest influence; the first time I heard Old Mornings Dawn, I knew I NEEDED to make music. Otherwise, Sigh, Till, Hekseblad, Ungfell, and Saidan have been in heavy rotation for me. 

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

V- Keep your ears out, our sophomore album is coming soon, titled Orgies in the Vatican of the Blood Lusted Lords! This will be our first album featuring a new member as well, and returning vocals from Hermaeus! From yours truly from the Bible Belt, Fuck the Fash and Hail Molag!

H - Gatekeep black metal; keep our scene free of fascist scum.

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