Black
metal terror cult WROK formed in the Netherlands in the 90s. So far, they have
put out some excellent releases of supreme black metal filth that will appeal
to devotees of Barathrum, Bestial Summoning, Funeral Winds, etc. To gain some
insight into this fraternity of evil, we reached out to vocalist/guitarist
Azaghus.
1.
Hails! For those unfamiliar with your band, can you please tell us what WROK is
all about and which bands influenced your unholy sound?
Azaghus: The
band was founded late 1995. We listened to bands like Bestial Summoning,
Funeral winds, Countess, Apator, Bhaobhan Sidhe, and we felt the urge to make
some real filth ourselves. Primitive, sloppy, raw and straight from the heart.
To celebrate the vile rotten darkness that lives inside you. To wrench out all
those things a psychologist would contact the authorities for. And for all to
see.
2.
The band was inactive for years, then you resurrected it and recorded a
full-length album in 2017 called "De onheilsbode" - what prompted the
decision to record new material under the banner of WROK?
Azaghus: We quit the
band around 2001 when I felt there was not enough darkness in me any more to
make honest new songs. A decade and a half later Heidens Hart records had been
banging at our door to release the ´Ontgravenis´ demo on vinyl. At first I was
not interested at all but after some time due to some personal rather shit circumstances
I realised the darkness had returned. Mictian the drummer and I had always
stayed in touch and we thought it would be a better idea to release some of the
later and less wide spread songs and that simply pressing some demo and
rehearsal material on vinyl with such varying levels of quality would be a
cheap mess, so we decided to record most songs made after the first demo anew.
We met at a rehearsal studio in Amsterdam and it was as if we never quit. We
rehearsed every song once or twice and then recorded it to keep it spontaneous
and in style with our 90ties vibe. One microphone on the drums, one on the
guitar. And I added the bass after at home. And we knew that Wrok was awakened
from its coma.
3.
The sound of WROK is rather primitive and raw. Would a clean sounding
production go against the idea of what Wrok represents musically? What do you
think of black metal bands with a super polished production as if they're doing
a commercial for Pepsi?
Azaghus: I think the
INTENTION is the most important part of black metal. Sure, a filthy sound does
help to make your point, but it is not really important as long as you manage
to capture the right message and emotion. There are many bands who pollute the
genre with a vegan, social or environmental message that may sound a little
like black metal but are NOT black metal.
4.
You are a pretty prolific musician with a history of playing in other Dutch
bands like Chainsaw and Swampcult - do you consider music and recording as an
artistic outlet and what inspires you to be so musically productive?
Azaghus: It is a way to
stay sane I suppose. I immerse myself in musical projects to keep my mind
occupied. When I create a base for a new song or album I listen to it all week
or month on headphones and it drowns all other thoughts. I never look forward
to playing live, but it does make me focus on something in a rather intensive
way.
5.
The first demo by WROK was released in 1996 - how was it perceived at the time
and do you have any anecdotes to share regarding the early phase of the band?
Azaghus: Well back then
if someone ordered your demo tape and hated it, they usually would not take the
trouble to write you a letter to tell you so. I did however see a flyer that we
photocopied in vast quantities and taped to the walls of every venue we went to
that said: ´Wrok is the end of the human race, changed into ´Wrok is the end of
the human hearing system´ It was after an infamous show we did in the nineties
where the venue cut the power on stage while we were at it for about 15 minutes
because of our unwholesome slide-show presentation with a variety of victims of
violence. Deathcamps, Gulfwar deaths, soccer hooligan deaths and so on. And
that in combination with blood, needles, dead rodents and untuned instruments
was too much for them. We kept playing of course.
6.
Whatever happened to your first vocalist Hakeldama?
Azaghus: Funny story.
Where I stopped temporarily because I had a lack of darkness, Wrok got him
really confused. He became a Buddhist and disappeared from the radar.
7.
Is there particular reason why you sing in Dutch as opposed to English? Does it
enable you to express yourself better?
Azaghus: Not
necessarily. But Dutch is a much harsher language than English so better suited
for black metal.
8.
How has the response been so far for your albums? I really like your last album
"De Dood Roept".
Azaghus: People either
love it or hate it it seems, and that is great because black metal is supposed
to be extreme metal. When people who call Dimmu Borgir or other pop acts black metal
enjoy your work you have done something terribly wrong.
9.
What's 10 albums you can't live without?
Azaghus: Nastrond -
Toteslaut
Mutiilation -
Vampires of black imperial blood
Cultes des Ghoules
- Haxan
Impaled Nazarene
- Ugra karma
Beherit - Engram
Bhaobhan Sidhe
- Gas chamber music
Funeral winds -
Screaming for grace
Those would be
the essentials.
10.
You are also a painter. Can you tell us how long you've been doing artwork and
which bands you've worked with? Do you ever get any requests or get paid?
Azaghus: Nah, I do put
paint on canvas, but do not see myself as a painter. I once said to a friend
that his album covers looked like shit and he said: Well why don´t you paint
the next one then? That was the only time I did a cover for another band haha.
I got a case of beer and a bottle of whiskey. So it was definitely worth my
time. The other efforts are for my own bands. And generally I just use painting
much like the music to channel thoughts or to silence them.
11.
What can you tell us about the lyrics of WROK? Do you feel like anti-Christian
lyrics have become a cliché in Black Metal?
Azaghus: Wrok has
always been about suicide and the darkness inside. The things you think about
doing to the person sitting next to you on the bus but restrain from doing. But
about Christianity... I think anti-Christian lyrics are an easy score yes. Sure
there are people who will have a personal experience that will justify the anti-Christianity
theme. And we also do have one or two songs about it, but at least where I live
they do not force you to submit to their religion at gun or knife point, or
even force you socially. That is a thing of the past. But I can tell you who
are doing just that. And you may say: hey but YOU are preaching about death and
killing and genocide yourselves and THEY are doing just that! But think about it, they are procreating like
flies on shit and for every person they kill they spawn 3 new mongrels to
spread THEIR dogma. So if you really want to stand up to religious tyranny aim
your arrows at Islam, if you are not a pussy that is. It is as simple as that.
Christianity is not a threat like Islam is.
12.
Lastly, what's next for WROK, including your other bands?
Azaghus: Well Chainsaw
has been in a coma for many years now and will not likely recover. For
Swampcult I have recorded the drums for a new album but it may take some time for
the rest to be finished. With my band SPITZ, a doom band that focusses on a
doctor who experimented on babies to see if they could live without affection
(they could not) we are currently recording a new thing.
Wrok is most
active at the moment. After ´De dood roept´ we recorded three songs for a
compilation LP that has yet to be announced and I am working on new material.
Also we have our annual two Wrok live performances planned. Both in the
Netherlands in the coming months. So the future will be bloody and bleak.
Bedankt voor
je tijd!
Geen probleem
maat
