Cursed 13 Interview

1. Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the release of the new album?

Well, since it's just recently released, we haven't been having any time to do much. The plan is to first let this album settle, and then start the process of writing the next release. We have a great hunger for more.

2. Recently you have put out a full length album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on this recording?

If you take a blender and put in a whole lot of Scandinavian style black metal, add a pinch of old blues and country. Top it off with a fistful of fury!
It's really, really hard to describe Cursed 13, many have tried but they all failed. And so will I if I seriously try.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the new release explores?

The lyrics have been written over a time span of 15 years so they vary alot obviously. Mostly they deal with topics of aggression and destruction. Some have a more war like theme while others are of a more spiritual nature. Hatred and contempt are the key words.

4.The band started out as Cursed 666 but changed the name to Cursed 13, what was the decision behind the name change?

Yes, that is correct. I was a teenager and had a more uneducated view upon existential topics and I had some belief that I had to prove some point already in the bands name. An interesting fact is that the number 13 started to follow me everywhere. Shit happened on the 13:th of the month or at 1300 hours. If I was to go to some appointment I could be fucking damned that it would be on number 13 of the street. All that kinds of shit. It was like in that film "number 21" or whatever it was called. All in all I changed to Cursed 13 since it also has a better numerical value when it comes to the spiritual side of things.

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

We have actually only played live with Cursed 13 once this far. It was at a black metal festival in northern Sweden called Forlorn Fest.
I would describe us as aggressive, old school, energetic and in your fucking face. The music and message of Cursed 13 fits the stage perfectly and we are not new in a live sence (even though we haven't been out much with Cursed 13 yet) since we have been doing shows with bands like Grá, Spazmosity etc for a long time. Heavy as a freight train and bad to the bone!

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

Not at this exact moment. We are looking into it and are open for any suggestions you or your readers might have. Contact us at: kvalshop@gmail.com if you have any great ideas!

7.The new album came out on Carnal Records, can you tell us a little bit more about this record label?

Carnal Records have always been knows for quality in my eyes. They have released great material with bands like Arckanum and Craft for example. They are underground but very serious and we feel very well taken care of! I recommend you all to have a look at their back catalogue, it's impressive and filled with extreme amounts of quality.

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

Over the years it has been great! With this new album, we are just about to find out since it's still brand new on the shelves. I suspect that some will not understand it while others will completely love it. It is not the ordinary black metal album to say the least.

9.What is going on with the other musical projects these days?

We have just recruited a new live guitarist for Grá and are rehersing for some upcoming shows in Sweden. Domgård is working on a new EP, WAN just released an album on Carnal Records. Other than that it is quite silent right now. But the summer is over now and with the cold winter comes inspiration...

10.What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

That's a damn difficult one to answer. I have a couple of ideas for new songs and they are experimental to say the least. We prefer not to have boundaries but to roam free, to let the beast guide us. The next release can head in several different directions. We'll just have to wait and see. My mantra regarding Cursed 13 has always been; Patience is a virtue!

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

I'm actually listening to the new Carcass album right now and I must say that I miss the rock n roll parts from the Heartwoork and Swansong era. Always prefered that over the blast beat stuff. I listen to alot of different genres and I try to stay as wide as I can. One day I can be absolutely absorbed by The Doors or Johnny Cash and the next day I can be completely into old Greek 90's black metal for example. If you only let inspiration come from one source, you will not be able to evolve.

12.How would you describe your views on Occultism, Satanism and Paganism?

To completely describe my views on them I would need to write a book but in short I see myself as a practiser of all three of the -isms (since they are in several ways the same), or more specific; the dark aspects of them.
I am a religious man. To go further on this subject would mean that I wouldn't know when to start and where to stop. Please read my lyrics in Cursed 13 and also in Grá if you want a deeper insight on how I see things.
I will gladly answer any questions about them.

13.Outside of music what are some of your interests?

I am very interested in ancient history, religion and mythology. I also like to leave civilization and just roam the nature which we have plenty of here in Sweden.
I have spent many days and nights in the car, on the way to go and see some runestone or the like. There's so much history lying around in the open. You just have to know where to look.
Take care of your local treasures, tomorrow someone might build a road there or even worse, a church...

14.Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?

Thank you for the time.
Salute to you who understands what we are doing.
Hell Chaos!

/Heljarmaðr on behalf of Cursed 13

Some basic band contact etc:

Website: www.cursed13.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cursed-13-Official/478871268804066
Youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCccUAhlj0XRw2bUwXATe0w
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/cursed-13-official

Cursed 13/Triumf/Carnal Records/2013 CD Review

  Cursed  13  are  a  band  from  Sweden  that  plays  a  very  heavy  and  modern  form  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2013  album  "Triumf"  which  was  released  by  Carnal  Records.

  "No  Return"  begins  with  some  nature  sounds  before  the  heavy  guitar  riffs  and  drums  kick  in  and  after  awhile high  pitched  black  metal screams  are  added  to  the  song  and  after  awhile  the  music  goes  into a  more  mid  paced  direction  and  towards  the end  sound  effects  and  melodic  guitar  riffing  are  added  to  the  song.


  'Dead  And  Gone"  begins  with  some  black/thrash  style  guitar  riffing  and  drums  along  with  some  vocals  and  then  the  music  slows  down  for  awhile  while  also  remaining  heavy  at  the  same  time  along  with  the  thrash  elements  coming  in  and  out  of  the  song  and  halfway  into  the  song  there  is  a  brief  use  of  primitive  sounding  guitar  leads.

  ''Death'n'Roll"  begins  with  some  heavy  and  slow  guitar  riffs  and  drums  and  then  the  vocals  start kicking  in  and  then  the  song  goes  into  a  black  rock  direction  along  with  some  back  up  shouts  and  you  can  also  hear the  bass  guitars  for  a  few seconds.  

   ''I  Love  Cyanide"  begins  with  some  slow  and  heavy  guitar  riffs  along  with  some  drums and  vocals  and  then  the  music  goes  into  a  more  fast  and  primitive  direction  along  with  some  blast  beats  being  utilized  for  a  few  seconds  before  going into  a  more  mid  paced  direction  along  with  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  and  melodic  guitar  riffing  and  at  times  the  music  slows  down  in  certain  sections  while  also  returning  back  to  the  fast  and  mid  paced  parts  throughout  the  song.

  Aska  till  aska  (preludium  till"  begins  with  some  avant  garde  sounding  synths  and  drums  and  serves  as  an  intro  for  the  next  song.

  'Fralast  av  Eld"  begins  with  heavy  guitar  riffs,  drums  and  grim  sounding  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  and  a  few  seconds  alter  synths  make  their  way  into  the  song  as  well  as  some  background  voices  before  adding  in  some  thrash  influenced  guitar  riffing  for  a  few  seconds  before  slowing  down  again.

  "Nar  Marona  Kaller"  begins  with  heavy  and  catchy  guitar  riffs  and  drums  before  the  vocals  start  kicking  in  along  with  some  technical  elements  as  well  as  black'n'roll  style  guitar  riffing  and  after  awhile  there  is  a  few  seconds  of  blast  beats  being  utilized  along  with  some  melodic  parts.

  'Seductress"  begins  with  some  slow  and  melodic  guitar  riffs,  drums  and  black  metal  vocals  and  you  can  hear  the  bass  guitars  in  certain  sections  of  the  song  and  after  awhile  the  music  gets alot  more  diverse  and  after  a  minute  some  melodic  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  added  into  the  song  fro  a  brief  while.        

  "Requiem/Victory"  begins  with  some  heavy  and  melodic  guitar  riffs  along  with  some  drums  and  grim  black  metal  vocals  and  after  awhile  you can  hear  the  bass  gutiars  in  certain  sections  of  the  song,  halfway  through  the  song  the  music  goes  into   a  cleaner  direction  for  a  few  short  seconds  before  getting heavy  again.

  'Agitator  (upptakt  till  Vrede)"  begins  with  some  industrial  and  ebm  style  synth  sounds  and  after  a  few  seconds  programmed  drum beats  are  added  into  the  song  along  with  some  melodic  guitar  riffs  halfway  through  the  song.

  "Vrede" begins  with  some  heavy  black'n'roll  guitar  riffs  and  drums  along  with  some  grim  sounding  black  metal  vocals  as  well  as  some  melodic  guitar  riffing  and  as  the  song  moves  on  their  are  some  industrial  elements  added  into  the  music  for  a  few  seconds.

  Song  lyrics  are  written  in  a  mixture  of  English  and  Swedish  and  cover  hate  and  blind  fury  along  with  some  Scandinavian  Mythology  and  Occult  themes,  while  the  production  has  a  very  strong,  powerful  and  heavy  sound  to  it.

  In  my  opinion  Cursed  13  are  a  very  great  sounding modern  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "No  Return"  "I  Love  Cyanide"  "Seductress"  and  "Vrede".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhesQrrWjFQNär