Interview with HANNIBAL
!!!OCCULT BLACK/THRASH METAL!!!
We had a conversation with Vok & Stormcvnt from HANNIBAL. Enjoy!
Welcome to the FILTHY DOGS OF METAL Webzine.
1. Tell us a few things about HANNIBAL (Members, Starting Year etc).
Vok : Stormcvnt and I started Hannibal a month or so ago after talking about some of our favorite bands, albums we both dug, and how things were going with our own projects.
After a while we both realized we had a shared love for Motorhead, Deep Purple, and sleaze.
Stormcvnt : I had been jamming some riff ideas while waiting for other projects to complete and Vok expressed an interest in collaborating on them, thus Hannibal was born.
Vok : In just a few days we were deep into writing the demo. I think it took a week tops, and that while both of us were working full time.
The whole thing came together really naturally. Even when leaning on 70's Metal we naturally gravitated to a Black and Speed Metal vibe.
2. You have recently released your new Digital EP ''Hannibal''. What is the Feedback from your audience as well as from the Press?
SC: Most of the feedback we've received so far has been reasonable, although we recently spotted a review saying we were shite so swings and roundabouts I guess haha.
Vok : I think there was a fair bit of surprise, given how far removed Hannibal is from either Axis of Light or Hag Graef.
SC: But it's that far removal from our usual bands that is currently exciting us about working on Hannibal, as it is a style of metal that neither of us have tried writing before.
3. Label or DIY and why?
Vok : There's a place for both. Getting yourself out there when you're going DIY from inception can be rough.
SC: I absolutely love and will forever support people going for the DIY approach, but at present I much prefer handing everything over to a label just because of how busy I am in my personal life.
For one of my old bands (Somne) I have memories of sitting down and hand assembling over 50 demos and it taking forever haha. It was a great experience back then but I do not have the time these days to do such things!
Vok : Honestly, fears around labels are non-existent in the underground. Labels are run by fans, not by suits. No one's trying to turn us into some stadium band.
4. Do you prefer Vinyl, Tape, CD or Digital Format and why is that?
SC: I have a mixed collection of all the aforementioned formats but I currently stick to Vinyl and Digital.
I love the convenience of digital as it means I can easily listen to new bands while I'm at work or driving but nothing really beats coming home, pouring a beer and spinning some wax for the rest of the evening.
Vok : I help run a tape trading group, so I'm a bit biased.
5. Your music style is Black Thrash Metal. Which are your main influences (Favourite Artists / Bands etc.)
Vok : For Hannibal? Fuckin' Motorhead! Deep Purple, Thin Lizzy, Midnight, Abigail, Sabbat, Jaguar, the first Megadeth and Metallica albums.
SC: When I first started jamming riff ideas for Hannibal my main inspiration for this sort of stuff was Absu, pre '86 Slayer and the first Bathory album.
For the next stuff we're working on I'm aiming to slow things down a touch and incorporate some inspiration from bands like Motorhead and Thin Lizzy.
Vok : He does most of the heavy lifting. If I was writing everything it'd probably just sound like Anti-Cimex.
SC : Hahaha!
6. Which things, do you think, a Band should sacrifice in order to succeed?
Have you ever sacrificed anything in your life for a better future of your Band?
Vok : I've sacrificed a lot of money.
SC: I think success is a personal definition really. For me personally I just like making tunes that I would want to listen to. If anyone else likes it than that is a bonus, but not the primary objective.
As far as sacrifices go, quite a lot of my free time goes into making a racket but I wouldn't have it any other way.
Vok : Again, this isn't a job. I don't think you're gonna end up sacrificing anything you weren't willing to set aside in the first place.
SC: If success is what you're after, then metal is not for you haha!
Vok : Seriously, find a time machine. This has been a labor of love since the early 90's.
7. Describe your ideal live show as a performance Band. Have you already experienced that?
Vok : Playing live is gonna be tough with me in the US and Stormcvnt in England.
SC: An ideal live show for me wold just be playing in a small venue to a small crowd. Unfortunately due to us living thousands of miles apart playing live isn't something that could be considered. Never say never mind...
Vok : Club full of 15 people, right?
SC: I think you're over-estimating how many friends we have, more like 12. Maybe 13 if you consider someone's dog.
8. Which attributes, do you think, that a new Heavy Metal Band should have in order to gain identity and be unique?
Vok : Honesty. Play shit that interests you.
SC: ...and push boundaries!
9. Do you believe that Bandcamp and other Digital Platforms help the new Heavy Metal Bands? Which, do you think, is the ideal way for a Band to promote its work?
SC: I think digital platforms are brilliant personally, and make finding new music so much easier.
My taste in metal is rather specific these days so the use of tags make finding more of the things I like less of a hassle. Both as a fan and an artist I love Bandcamp and I really love the pay what-you-want-feature.
With my own projects I believe that music should be accessible to anyone that wants to check it out so I'll always have an option for people to download it for free. If people want to chuck in a few quid then that is always welcome, but not mandatory.
Like Vok mentioned in a previous answer, this isn't a job so there was never any kind of desire to make money off it. As far as promotion goes, being able to send people a single link that has all of your music on it is really convenient.
There have been a couple of times with previous bands where a single Reddit post to one of our songs generated a surge of interest.
Vok : I've had some stuff I've released hit Russian file sharing sites after going up on Bandcamp, and honestly, get a ton of traffic over night. It flattens the world.
While I'm not making tons of money off the releases anyway, this is a way for them to get traction they otherwise wouldn't. As a fan it means I'm buying shit from all over the world - it's great.
SC: Thanks to digital platforms there are plenty of bands I'd never have heard otherwise, including Vok's!
Vok : I mean, we did absolutely no promotion with Hannibal, and we've had people from all over the world buy it.
10. Tell us a few things about the New Underground Black Thrash Metal Scene in USA (Bands, Fanzines, Webzines, Metal Clubs etc.)
Vok : I don't think there's specifically a unified Black Thrash scene in the US. There's definitely a virulent Black Metal scene in North America that has a ton of bands and labels doing a ton of interesting shit.
You can't just tie it to Black Metal though, bands are putting out work in every style. Red River Family, Les Fleurs du Mal, Caligari Records, Greymatter Noise, Maggot Stomp, etc. For more Speed and Trad, definitely Rapid Fire.
We're past the days of scenes being monoliths - everyone listens to everyone else, everyone plays together.
With the way the world is now, a musician can easily have four or five projects to explore different sounds. It's a good time to be a Metalhead. What about in the UK?
SC: As far as the UK goes, I've shamefully been a bit out of touch with the local metal scene in recent years, but there is a relatively dedicated community over here.
I've been meaning for a while to make the trip to Cumbria (north UK) to one of the Blackwood Gathering events which regularly hosts underground black metal gigs.
As far as bands go a recent one I've enjoyed has been 'Peasant', who released a demo this year.
11. Do you know anything about the Hellenic Metal Scene?
Vok : You guys love Trad riffs.
SC: Other than the obvious choice of Rotting Christ I now realize that I know little about the Greek metal scene! I'm going to use this an opportunity to appropriately educate myself!
Vok : Rotting Christ, Varathron, Macabre Omen, Culf of Eibon, Septic Flesh. I'm not as up on Greece as I should be.
12. What are your future plans?
Vok : More Speed and Sleaze.
SC: We've already started work on another release, so a continuation of riffs, sex, and the left hand path.
Vok : We were asked to do a tape release through a US label, so expect the first demo to be released with whatever comes next.
Maybe we'll push for a vinyl release through someone. Beyond that, who knows. Neither of us is opposed to live shows, but coordinating it will be a pain in the ass.
SC: I guess one of us needs to convince the other to hop on a plane for 10 hours haha. Despite the distance you can definitely expect some more riffs from us soon.
13. Thank you very much for your time & Keep up the good work! The closure is yours.
SC: Thank you for inviting us to participate in this interview!
The only thing I have left to say is to keep your eyes peeled as both Vok and I not only have more Hannibal coming soon, but more material from our other bands soon.
Vok : Enjoy more occult bondage.
SC: That too.
By Steve the Filthy Dog.
HANNIBAL CONTACT: