SEPTICFLESH

My Body, My Blood

I won’t bother about high-flown introduction, I’ll just go into facts. After a few years of hibernation SEPTICFLESH (yes, that’s right!) came back confirming it with absolutely amazing album. Thanks to mysterious connections I had pleasure to familiarize with “Communion” long before the promo material fell into journalists’ hands. I also managed to organize a preview interview with Sotiris Vayenas, the priest of Hades and guitarist/vocalist of SEPTICFLESH. I herewith invite you to read our extensive talk.

- Just to start with, I must scream out that your comeback is for me one of the best news of recent months!

Thanks! We really enjoy that we’re together again as well. When we split up a few years ago none of us was in good mood. The better feeling is to be together again and hold a new album which is, in our opinion, the best album in our career (laugh).

- You split up in pretty vague circumstances, in addition just after „Sumerian Daemons” release – the album which left most of your fans and journalists slavering over. It was hard to understand…
Yes, from market point of view it was madness, total paranoia! For so many years we’d been working to make SEPTICFLESH a great band and when we finally achieved the level on which most people admire our music we shook hands and said adieu! I must comfort you that hardly any person from our surroundings could understand it (laugh). But it was a moment in which we put our personal plans first. Each of us wanted to realize oneself in some way. For instance Seth wanted to devote to his paintings. For some time now his covers are popular, greater and greater bands turn to him, this guy simply couldn’t make it. And Chris for some time hadn’t gone to Greece at all, he was busy with his work in England when he was making a soundtrack to a new videogame. He also had other things on his hands, more personal ones. As you can see our ways became to diverge not because of some arguments or quarrels about money as it often is in music branch (laugh). We simply got absorbed by life. Continuation of SEPTICFLESH activity without Chris or Spiros was ruled out of course. This band is a result of work of a few people not one man. It’s not a private act of any of us. No one here is more or less important. SEPTICFLESH can’t exist if anyone of our Big Three is missing. I mean Chris, Seth and myself. It’s us who have been giving a tone to this band for years, we are the body and blood of SEPTICFLESH. Actually I’m absolutely convinced that the lack of anyone of us would be immediately noticeable in music, it wouldn’t be that good. There’s something more between us, kind of particular chemistry, brotherhood. As you know Chris and Spiros are biological brothers but they treat me like brother as well and vice versa. They are the most important for me. Even after SEPTICFLESH split-up we kept in touch all the time.

- On the remains of SEPTICFLESH a new project – THEDEVILWORX - was created. The brothers engaged in it without you. But I can’t be 100% sure as the baldy in the first pics reminds me someone…
(laugh) No, I can assure - it’s not me. The guy you’re talking about simply resembles me very much. Coming back to question – yes, Chris and Spiros set up THEDEVILWORX without me but the reason is simple – I wasn’t interested in playing this kind of music. I don’t feel hardcore and stuff so I’ve never thought about joining them. There’s also SEPTICFLESH’s drummer Fotis with them. The band still exists and gives gigs from time to time, they also have recording CD in plans. We’ll see.

- And what you were up to during this time?
To tell the truth I retreated from playing for some time and engaged in usual daily life. It didn’t last long however, as I’ve always been a restless soul, almost all the time I’ve been composing new things so I didn’t even notice when I found myself sitting with guitar and thinking of new stuff. Music is my poison, drug, I’m totally addicted to it. It was obvious, as SEPTICFLESH didn’t exist - a new project had to come into being and so I created AENOS. But when I gradually started to get down to the nitty-gritty I was called by….Spiros (laugh). At once he piped out that they needed me because they wanted to reactivate SEPTICFLESH. I felt very strange but the decision on entering the deal wasn’t particularly difficult. In fact, very soon we felt the same magic that was with us for years. SEPTICFLESH again came to the fore. Although THEDEVILWORX still exists, it doesn’t interfere with SEPTICFLESH. AENOS matters I cast aside but I hope to come back to this idea some day. After all I spent 3 years or so working on it (laugh).

- And why did you actually decide to come back? What turned the scale?
We came back to our fans who almost demanded it. But first and foremost we did it for ourselves. The lack of this band was painful. Besides, each of us wanted something more. We were sure that we could record even better album that “Sumerian Daemons”. Also the conditions were favourable which we treated almost as the sign from gods. For some time now Chris again lives in Greece which is a key factor that makes our work easier. Whereas Spiros has already built up his great reputation as an artist and it can be said that he found fulfillment in what he does. So currently he can engage in band’s matters as much as necessary. Today we’re all involved in SEPTICFLESH on 100% and only in such system this band can function properly.

- It’s not a secret that you clashed quite often in SEPTICFLESH as it’s combined of artistically strong personalities. Did you find it easier to get on well after a few years?
As I’ve already said we’re like brothers, like family. In general, conflicts are inescapable but as long as we can reach a consensus - this all can work. We spent a lot of time together, we know each other perfectly and we know when you have to pass up, where’s the boundary which - when overstepped – leads to waking an infuriated animal in each of us (laugh). We don’t have any ego-problems despite the difference of opinions and not even for a moment we lose a respect for each other. The results of these clashes are sometimes very interesting like for example our newest album “Communion”. It’s probably the first such team album in SEPTOCFLESH’s discography. Also our drummer Fotis got much involved in the process of its creation which certainly added many new nuances to its content. He was responsible not only for drums but he contributed to lots of riffs and melodic lines as well. Today it would be almost impossible to point at his, mine, Chris’s or Spiros’s ideas. We actively took part in the creation of this material, we were working almost as a group of surgeons on an opened body. Thanks to this “Communion” is definitely teamwork. Very compact, mature and varied album. Exactly as we wanted it to be.

- Comparing its content to „Sumerian Daemons” your music isn’t that melodic today; however, it became darkest and more aggressive. You also reinforced it with excellent choir parts and a dose of remarkable orchestrations playing one of the major roles on “Communion”.
I agree with what you’ve said. SEPTICFLESH creates its own music. These are the factors differentiating us from other metal bands also being under sympho-classical influences. We’re different in this case, our parts are far richer and compositions more original. I’m saying this with full responsibility. All this adds to more solid result. Chaos, strength and brutality on the one hand and characteristic for this band epic melody on the other. This all creates a picture as if from a battlefield. String parts, horns, powerful storms of sounds, all this has its exact meaning in our work. This album is like a punch square in the face. Despite the presence of choirs our recent album had more death metal character. It emanated with a bit different form of brutality. This time we created music with more occultist nuance. Darkest and more sinister. Here everything becomes with time a real hell for a listener (laugh).

- What marks this album out as well is the fact that the construction of some tracks has distinctly classical origins. I guess that this is mainly Chris’s work?
To a large extent yes, he stands behind it. You know, he’s a professional musician, the man who perfectly knows sounds not only from practical point of view but also theoretical one. That’s why he can show us many solutions when composing, we ourselves probably would never came up with them. His advice and suggestions are very valuable. Also Fotis has his input in this material. He’s in band for a short time but earlier he was our great fan and was passionately listening to our albums. Somebody like him has more objective point of view on the whole which I, Chris and Spiros definitely lack. It was him who often suggested that something should be done in a different way or that we should resign something. Actually also thanks to him there appeared melodic vocal parts on this album which the previous one was lacking.