1. Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that have never heard of you before? (Answered by Josiah) I would describe Shadows In The Crypt for those that have never heard us before as a harken back to the black
metal of old, when it was mysterious. Cold, unforgiving, no compromise. When bands were not afraid to speak of subject considered forbidden by today's standards. When idealogy as well as music mattered when you were considering black metal as your path. All of these things which are today surely lacking in today's black metal.
2. How would you describe your musical sound? (Answered by Josiah) I would describe our sound as a mix between Orthodox and Unorthodox Black Metal. Obviously, with Lawrence being a master shredder, there is just as heavy an emphasis on the leads as there is on the rhythms, being as there is always an urgency on the rhythms in Black Metal.
Lawrence has written all the guitar parts (sans bass on Cryptic Communications) since the beginning. There is just as much of an influence of Horna & Emperor as there is of atmospheric leads, drawing influence of shredders such as Tony McAlpine, Marty Friedman, and Jason Becker. We are following in some amazing Germanic/Scandanavian footsteps, but Lawrence has written some ground-breaking material that shows an equal influence of composition/atmosphere and raw talent/discipline.
3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band exploreswith the music? (Answered by Josiah)
The subjects we are interested in don't necessarily align with some of the lyrics that George writes. We are about exploring the dark nature of the individual, and finding the beauty within said darkness.
We seek knowledge and we want a resurgence in Black Metal that is as musically proficient as it is philosophically sound. We have no interest in drama.
4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?(Answered by Lawrence)
When it comes to the band’s name, we were originally just going for something mysterious and creepy, because in the beginning I was influenced by bands that remained anonymous. I thought the idea was really cool to have all of the fans wondering who the hell was in the band. Stuff like that usually makes people keep thinking about it because of their desire to know. However, I decided to sacrifice the idea of our band using that as a gimmick because I wanted to play local shows since they were fun. The problem with that was, they were small venues where we had to leave the light on and everyone already knew who we were anyway, so I gave that idea up, but I still wanted a creepy, mysterious band name. The band name came to me when I was helping my ex-girlfriend clean my grandmother’s house. She lived in an old stone farm house out in the sticks. I walked down into the cellar to grab some supplies, and that’s when I looked around and noticed how eerie it was out there away from society. I saw the shadow of myself on the wall with my hood on as I heard owls, and the rustle of leaves in the background. The image stuck in my mind for a while and the band name came to me on the ride home that night. I asked the other members of the band at the time if they liked it and they all approved.
5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance? (Answered by George)
So far I have only played one show with Shadows, and that was on 8/6/12 in Philadelphia at JRs Bar. Definitely was memorable though because it gave me for the first time in my musical being the chance to just be a vocalist, as opposed to doing guitars and vocals withDecieverion. Mainly because I wanna be the person involving the
audience with the show instead of just performing for them.
6. Do you have any touring plans for the new release? (Answered by Josiah)
As of now, there are a couple of shows planned, but no plans for a tour due to time constraints and real life, but you never know.
7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by
fans of black metal? (Answered by Josiah)
With the help of PR and Mike Julianos’ awesome up-and-coming label, HPGD, we have gotten a wide array of feedback. People like that we are trying to represent the Black Metal spirit in the truest vein. We are heavily influenced by European Black Metal and we try to contain that same vibe and atmosphere that those bands have. We don’t want to cover
familiar realm, but we want to do our take take on Black Metal (see answer #2) that adds to the legacy rather than butchering it, like"Indie" Black Metal and HHH/Liturgy. We want to align ourselves with USBM bands who take the the music seriously. We don’t have a need for image, because the music speaks for itself.
8. What is going on with the other musical projects these days? (Answered by George)
Well, Decieverion is growing stronger with each year, and have plans to record a full length this upcoming fall/winter before taking a long deserved hiatus to let others concentrate on their individual projects.
9. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases? (Answered by Shadows in the crypt)
I hope to add to the creative process very soon. I have some very good ideas that I feel can add to the mix. The project might go into a more thrashy direction.
10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays? (Answered by Shadows in the crypt)
Definitely a lot of old school black metal/death/doom/thrash, and providing a list of bands would be too long. Now though, I am a little more diverse in what I listen to, because in Philadelphia there is a lot of cross breeding of genres. Still sticking to my metal roots, but I do also like neofolk/ambient stuff like Death In June, Dargaard,
etc.
11. How would you describe your views on Occultism and Anti Christianity? (Answered by George)
I am no expert on the occult, but some of my friends dabble here and there with rituals and so forth. I am more of a nihilist by philosophy and blame humanity and religion for the woes this planet now faces. We have gone far beyond our own destruction and we need to just surrender to death, because the only purity is just that these days. We are part
of a never ending circle of life and death, and all religion does is pollute and pervert the curiosity that all beings have about their existence.
12. Outside of music what are some of your interests? (Answered by George)
Besides working full time, nothing really. Just hanging with friends of like minded nature or whatever I feel like doing at the time.
13. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview? (Answered by Josiah)
"Support music, not rumors" - Chuck Schuldiner
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