Hessian
Firm is one of those underground labels that stand 100% behind what
they do, including the fact that their roster contains highly varied
and excellent bands whose music tends to diverge from trends and
whatever is considered marketable today.
We caught up with Nick, the man behind the label, for an in-depth
discussion of everything from Hessian Firm's roster, standard
mainstream fare, to Grand Belial's Key.
Hails!
Tell us how Hessian Firm was conceived and the idea behind it.
When
Polemicist and Mefitis dropped their first albums within a few months
of each other, it awoke something in me. They were both playing
around with Black and Death metal and managed to craft really
interesting statements from styles that had pretty much seen it all
at that point. That melodic combination of Death and Black metal
wasn’t unheard of but was rarely done so fluidly. It’s now
referred to as Dark metal was something I was very interested in and
I’m lucky enough to have released their sophomore efforts two years
later. That discovery implanted the seed for the label side of
things. The zine/podcast element came from me writing for another
website that had an excellent initial idea that I was tasked with
keeping alive but a lack of support and foresight from the owner as
well as the dumb politics made it impossible to continue. I had
milked that cow as much as I could, it was time for something else.
Covid provided the necessary break in my schedule to make this come
together and my only regret is not starting sooner.
Can
you tell us about each of the bands currently signed to your label?
That’s
quite a lot of bands in the last year and a half, I will go through
each release as well as a few releases in the future.
Hosts
of Lord: I really liked the first one which was an inspired take on
the LLN style so I quickly hunted for Afflicting Blackness of Day
which intelligently combines the previous effort with some Emperor
like melodies to make a really enjoyable listen. People complain that
I
signed a
christian band but let’s be honest Satan larping is dumb if you are
over the age of 16 and a good Christian band is better than a bunch
of bedroom musicians who praise Satan every time they recover from a
cold and record plagiarized riffs that they can’t even play
properly.
Ancestral
Mourning: this one was a random grab, Scylfing is a smart musician
with a very difficult vision to realize, you can hear his attempts to
create music that sits between USPM and Black metal and he does a
great job of it. He can make epic songs without fluff and gets to the
point quickly. This isn’t Black metal with cheesy happy melodies
but blue collar ruggedness that seeks to find something greater in
life.
Ancient
Gate: the first one is a really unique combination of Greek grandeur
and French melancholy and it takes its time to conjure a dream world
that is beautifully detached from reality. The new EP that should be
out soon is even better, Ildrac keeps improving his process, shedding
off his influences slowly but surely to connect more closely with his
own voice. The interaction between the synths and the riffs is
genuinely jaw dropping. It’s crazy how this band keeps getting
better at refining their vision while never making a bad song. Go buy
the EP once it’s out.
Roudansirppi: This was a complete surprise, when I received this, I couldn’t
believe that something so simple and with such obvious inspiration
could be this potent. It’s as if early Gorgoroth and Darkthrone
took a detour into a hypnotic and oneiric direction with some really
creative leadwork and really evocative and varied vocals. They’ve
been at it for a while and have managed to carve a defined and
idiosyncratic album that can’t be topped in that microgenre.
Despondent
Soul: This is a band that really got the most epic parts of
Immolation and Incanatation memorized and regurgitated them in a way
that doesn’t sound derivative and boring. This is the first distro
release and I was happy to work with them. It’s not the most
original thing ever but it absolutely destroys all those OSDM bands
that came afterwards and just made boring derivative worship albums
because they got tired of metalcore.
Into
Oblivion: There are very few bands capable of weaving together such
long riffs to make Classical inspired Death/Black but without losing
any aggression. This isn’t fancy wank with random interludes but
well crafted music that isn’t in any rush to come to some hackneyed
conclusion. They also do long acoustic segments properly. This is a
band that took the notion of fully developing their ideas to make
sprawling epics that don’t get fall into monotony.
Goatcraft:
While we never released the mainline albums, we got to do two
releases with this metal adjacent project that is exclusively a one
man, one keyboard project. He explores Electronica really well and
focuses his approach for a Beherit like experience that segues
perfectly into the Plutonian Shore side of the split who they
themselves have some of the most unique vocals in Black metal and an
overall distinct sound. The second release is a collection of demos,
a new song and a live song that fully encapsulates the evolution of
this project. Not quite classical, not quite metal.
Asgardsrei:
Despite this being released in 2013, I just had to pick this up.
Excellent piece of Black metal and probably the best thing I heard
from the Philippines. See interview to understand why.
Mefitis:
Dark metal classic, go buy the vinyl once it’s out.
Sinoath:
First hidden gem from the 90s that we reissued. Sublime Dark metal
that leans towards Gothic music but without any cheese. Huge
emotional content and a lot of very creative ways of bringing various
influences into its Metal base. The riffs are for the most part very
simple but every note is felt and having an actual keyboardist that
does more than just hold chords really pushes this ahead of similar
bands. Let’s not forget that unlike a lot of supposedly hidden gems
nowadays this actually has memorability. They’ve changed into a
very different beast in the last few years and what’s about to come
next will definitely shock a few people.
Polemicist:
Dark metal classic, go buy the vinyl once it’s out.
Kaeck: Jan Kruitwagen the riff master finally finds where his soul resides
and it’s a hideous place. The rare atmospheric record I would
release on this label.
For
the rest, wait and see. Lots of exciting stuff will be coming out.
Hessian
Firm is also a webzine/podcast if I'm not mistaken? How do you manage
all that under one moniker?
Hessian
Firm is a multi-faceted beast. It takes time and sometimes that
creates confusion as to what we actually do but once people see how
everything is related it quickly makes sense. This is a project born
out of insane passion for Metal and music in general. This is the
culmination of many years of work and it had to come out in some form
or another. While there was once frustration in regards to what metal
was becoming now we try to find the best metal and see what we can do
to push it forwards. Whether that’s a signing, an interview or
review, we will praise it. Am I expecting us to save metal? No not at
all but we are here to cultivate our little niche instead of
complaining and insulting people online.
You’ve
also interviewed some pretty great bands. Mind telling us which bands
you’ve interviewed so far and some of your most proud moments in
regards to journalism?
All
the bands we interviewed can be found on the website and the Hessian
Firm YouTube channel. We just reach out to anyone we find interesting
and now people are reaching out to us. The most important part is
getting to understand the mindsets that were necessary for them to
achieve their objectives while avoiding superfluous questions that
most interviewers ask “Hey dude, how bad did Covid mess up your
schedule, Bro what did this tour feel like”. Just the thought of
having to hear such questions should make anyone with respect for
artistry shudder. There have been too many highlights for me to name
any particular one but I always love it when the interviewee is able
to convey the non tangible conditions and passion that allowed them
to craft beautiful works.
What
are some of your albums of all time and how would you summarize your
music taste?
Breeding
the Spawn is my favourite metal album of all time, don’t let the
production fool you. This is Death metal of the highest form. I’ve
generally found the tried and true classics to be the best in Metal
but with a few exceptions. Morbid Angel is rightfully more revered
than some demo tier Death/Thrash band with 3 regular listeners but
inversely I would rather listen to Thorns than Satanic Warmaster.
Outside of Metal, King Crimson, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Depeche Mode,
Cream to name a few. Good music is good music regardless of genre, I
would rather listen to a well composed yet simple pop song than
Incantaclone 666.
In
your opinion, what are some of the pros and cons of the underground
nowadays?
Everything
is a lot more accessible which allows great classics to emerge from
the depths at one point or another. No one was pushing Demilich in
the 90s and now they are rightfully recognized as being part of the
best. On the other hand, everything being so accessible does seem to
encourage bands to use cheap gimmicks in other to stand out from the
wide ocean of music available. In a perfect world no one would feel
the need to release uninspired music. Ultimately there are more pros
than cons, with the way things are getting more and more segmented
now, as long as you find the right people, you can get whatever
experience you want from the underground. Also a message to all those
simps sharing pictures of girls that are barely clothed with band
merchandise: Sharing the picture won’t make her like you, all it’s
doing is attracting other desperate guys to message you.
You
also release tapes. What is it about this format that you like? Would
you expect it to survive for another decade?
Nick: Tapes
are a complicated thing and honestly I love the aesthetic of them
despite them not being the most practical format. I think with how
music is easily prevalent on the internet, physical formats come down
to having an authentic bond with the music. We will see what the
future holds for us and our future with cassettes.
You
are French, but I believe you went to school in England? Did your
studies abroad broaden your perspective on metal or journalism in any
way? Don't the Brits hate the French and vice versa?
Nick: I
grew up in England and spent a few years in Scotland, travel
definitely opens the mind but not as much as people think. You can’t
fully experience a foreign culture by being a tourist and no two
streets in any town are the same. Reducing people to culture is a
useful but somewhat limiting tool because certain cultural norms that
are thought to be true stem from a lack of proper translation or
laziness. The French and English pretend to hate each other but it’s
more a case of fascination and mutual respect that spills over to
slight competitiveness. Metal in France and England are very
different beasts, France has a lot of small bands and is very active
on the local scale but England has the bigger bands. It’s a weird
trade-off, does having access to expensive concerts neuter the need
to see your friends? Personally I always felt my place was in the
small to medium venues where a true connection between the performer
and the crowd can happen. Metal journalism in both places is very
similar at this point, both cover whatever will get them views.
What
do you think of musicians who throw hissy fits online whenever they
get an unfavorable review? Do people need to grow up and learn to
accept criticism better?
Nick: Not
everyone will like your music. It’s up to you as to how you deal
with that criticism. Crying about it in public is a terrible way to
deal with it though. Go find the old zine reviews where shade is
thrown at classic bands.
In
addition to music and your label, what else interests you? Do you
enjoy history, sports, wine, etc.?
I
play Rugby at the moment and read a lot of stuff on science in
general. I will spare the details as it’s tedious for someone not
interested in this stuff and unless I bring it into Hessian Firm,
it’s of no interest.
What’s
the last album you bought?
Slayer
- South of Heaven. I was looking through a shop while waiting for a
friend and I found it for a low price. I like to have as many
classics as I can at home though navigating through all the different
reissues is tiring and the prices vary too much for me to go out of
my way constantly to buy CDs. I buy from labels online and whenever I
see an album I like for a good price without any ridiculous fluff, I
don’t try to artificially expand my collection for style points.
What’s
your favourite albums of the year so far?
Ad
Nauseam and Laetitia in Holocaust have been the newer bands I’ve
listened to the most this year outside of the HF roster. Both polar
opposites, LiH is classically inspired progressive Black metal with
three guitarists and a bassist who goes all over the place. It’s a
very interesting listen, Ad Nauseam on the other hand is probably the
best band in the Gorguts hyper dissonance niche. They don’t dwell
too much on atmosphere and actually have purpose instead of
dissonance for the sake of dissonance. Ascète have a lot of
potential despite the messy arrangements. Serpent Column and Psionic
Madness have also piqued my interest with the former trying to
overcome dissonance into musical “noise” and the latter using it
to contrast their melodic moments. Overall it’s been a year for
dissonance which isn’t my favourite way of composing metal but the
aforementioned bands were good enough for me to listen to more than
once.
What
do you think about cancel culture and how it perpetuates political
correctness? Has the need for validation reached unprecedented levels
of stupidity?
As
far as Metal is concerned, the main issue is how mainstream norms
have dictated as to what constitutes acceptable metal. Metal and the
mainstream have always been at odds with at the best of times a
strenuous relation, now because metal has entered the mainstream
consciousness it is becoming what it set out to initially revolt
against. If we were really to hold bands accountable for certain
actions or words, there wouldn’t be much classic metal left as
those bands spat on what society considered good behaviour. It comes
down to a popularity game, your past “misdeeds” can be forgiven
or overlooked if you have the influence to pressure the metal press
and if your fanbase is rabid enough to defend you no matter what(see
Behemoth vs Metalsucks). This can be damaging for smaller bands with
important releases like Infester as they don’t get the attention
they deserve. The only way to really progress is to understand that
Burzum whether you like it or not is better than any band in that
style and is one of the few pinnacles of metal. Also both RABM and
NSBM are hilariously bad genres. I’m betting on the divide between
mainstream metal and the underground getting wider so it ultimately
means that people won’t fight for social credit as much. Music is
independent from the musician and the experience of hearing an album
is that only thing that truly matters, the rest is superfluous.
Your
thoughts on the following:
Kerrang!:
They’ve been trendsters for a very long time now. They claim to be
devoted to metal too but don’t seem to understand what it is. I
didn’t even know they were still around, I quickly took a look out
of curiosity but it’s nothing that interests me.
Seth
Putnam: The best comedian in metal. Never strayed from it even
when close to death and had the right amount of “anti-musicality”
without going overboard to make it work in his songs. Everyone else
should stop copying there is only room for one comedian in metal and
that spot is taken.
Dream
Theater; First record has moments and is above average power
metal. There are four of five parts on Images and Words I like but
the rest is just Metallica styled chugging with weird time signatures
and random riff transitions. They even stole the Blackened riff for
one of their songs. Technique is good but not worth much if you can’t
write a song.
Grand
Belial’s Key: Cazz is a fantastic vocalist with a varied and
very distinct palette that he uses very well. The band are great at
chaining anthemic Mercyful Fate inspired riffs together but the songs
are often too long and tend to drag on once the better riffs have
been used up. One of those bands I would enjoy a lot more if their
songs were shorter. Lyrically there is a very close familiarity with
the bible that is surprising for an album that mocks it so much and
there are some really good tongue in cheek puns for anyone familiar
with Judeo-Christian theology though anyone who takes the lyrics
seriously has completely missed the point.
Emanuel
Macron: The new Covid variant is called Omicron and Macron is
referred to as Micron by his detractors which has spawned some of the
most insane conspiracy theories in this country. I don’t trust
practitioners of partisan politics in general and his case is nuanced
and complex with a lot of chapters and it’s impossible to look at
what he has done without the necessary hindsight that only time gives
us. We will see what consequences his actions have had on the world
but for the time being I am not going to pass judgement yet.
Thanks
for your time! What’s next for Hessian Firm and for yourself?
A
lot of Hessian Firm releases are stuck in production as the factories
are completely jammed so the schedule is heavily distorted for now so
getting these great releases out as they come is the most important.
Stay tuned, there is a lot of worthwhile music that will see the day.
As for me, I’m slowly but surely finishing my EP that should be
released on the label.
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