HELGRIND hail from the Cuban capital of Havana and are one of the island's most notable metal acts flying the banner for heavy music, as their own interpretation of Black/Pagan Metal is nothing short of interesting and worth investigating.
Greetings! For those unfamiliar with your band (and I assume there's quite a few), can you please give us a background on HELGRIND and tell us what you've released so far?
HELGRIND is a Pagan Metal band founded in Havana in 2012, which have released two albums and one EP till the present day. The band was founded by the guitar player Jordy Fuentes and the bass player Daniel López. The vocalist Ernesto Riol joined the band a few months later during its foundation. HELGRIND is the only pagan metal band nowadays in Cuba and its former members are: Ernesto Riol (Vocalist), Jordy Fuentes (Guitarist), Daniel López (Bass Player and backing vocals), Ramsés Limonte (Guitarist) and Carlos Cepero (Drums and backing vocals).
You call your music Black/Pagan Metal, right? Can you please describe your music style and influences?
Cataloging the metal is a difficult task due to the many sounds and themes that exist today. It becomes so difficult at times that top bands have "mutated" so to speak throughout their careers going through 2 and even 3 different sub-genres and most likely they have not even been aware of it. Some prefer not to complicate themselves and group everything under the same name, but we are of those who call things by their correct name. Our way of seeing Pagan Metal is defined by 2 important points that are the neo-pagan or pre-Christian pagan theme coming not only from Scandinavia but from any region of our planet and the absence of folk instruments in the compositions since using them would make incursions in folk metal. Our first compositions had a strong influence of melodic Death Metal with a slight presence of European folk music in the riffs and choral arrangements, but aspects such as musical maturity, collective and individual experience and the contributions of the musicians who have passed through the lineup gave a turn at the helm. The melodic was displacing the rhythmic and the presence of Folk melodies gained more prominence on an increasingly rapid base of blast beats and cold and melancholic harmonies. Right under this banner is that our music flowed progressively and gradually, without forcing it, it followed its course and we all felt very comfortable and proud. We are influenced and admired by greats like Bathory, Falkenbach, Enslaved, Folkheart, Amorphis, Skyforger, Primordial, Graveland, Moonsorrow, Forefather, Windir, Thyrfing and many other great bands.
It is an excellent opportunity to clarify that our lyrics are not exclusively about Norse or Viking mythology. The cultural background of European peoples is so rich and broad that focusing on just one was never an option. We are fascinated by literature, history, legends, fantasy from the European continent. Who delves a little into our sources of inspiration will find historical battles such as the one fought by the Cheruscan prince Hermann against the Roman legions in the forests of Teoteburg, from the Finnish epic poem Kalevala the myth of the hero Vainamoinen, and from Slavic mythology the popular legend of the Rusalka, spirit or aquatic ghost in the shape of a woman that drowns unsuspecting travelers... just to give examples. We feel identified because in addition to being Cubans we are also Euro-descendants and we are united by strong cultural ties to these themes. Our ancestral heritage demands that this legacy does not die with us and is told to everyone who wants to hear it.
How has the response to your music been so far? Does it make you happy when you find out that someone from another country enjoys what you do?
The response to our music within Cuba and outside of it has been excellent so far and frankly we have no complaints. In the national arena Helgrind has been invited to participate in several of the best national festivals with good acceptance, we have the support and recognition of experts and bands of extensive experience and our live performances attract a growing public. It is true that there are aspects that still need to be improved, but in general we rate it as very positive. Regarding the international response, there is a curious factor that is always present: almost no one has heard about the small but talented Cuban metal scene and it is because for tourist reasons the image that has been projected from our island to the world is that of a sunny paradise full of palm trees, mulatas and rumba. Unfavorable? Many times yes, but it is in our favor that no one imagines there is a Cuban Black Pagan Metal band, so curiosity is guaranteed.
You are from Cuba, and as most of us know, there are restrictions on art there. Can you please give our readers a little insight into the life of a headbanger in Cuba? Are there any metal clubs/shows to go there?
Art restriction is very common in Cuba; it is something that artists have to deal with everyday. In the case of metal music: it is very complicated first because there are not many places to go or to play. Here in the capital we have a concert hall named Maxim Rock which is the core of the "Cuban Rock Agency" that only exist here in Cuba of course hahaha it is a place which mainly all weekends metal people could go there to see the bands playing and drink something, there were other places years ago of course that belongs to the government, and we can say that there are also places that by means of ourselves l we could rent for concerts and gatherings, but there are not any specialized clubs for metal, clothes stores, not music instrument stores, nothing. And another point to finish with it's that sometimes we must be careful with the lyrics and the attitudes we can have and that can be a risk in terms of freedom of expression when talking or acting.
Helgrind is an apolitical band. Politics only brings fragmentation and disunity between peoples and reminds them that the civilizations that are the authors of these ideas have collapsed precipitously, taking out the lowest and most perverse of human morality. Whoever sees a little beyond their noses will notice that it is a plot hatched to divide, weaken and keep us pitted against each other while a plutocracy and an invasive religion imposed and perpetuated by centuries of iron and parasitic blood in power increasing their weight every day. coffers with the resources of our planet. Politics is the blindfold that keeps us from seeing the real enemy.
Do you consider playing music as a kind of escape from everyday bullshit?
Of course playing music it's a way to get outside of our reality, it's a way to escape our daily life and our daily routine in this country. When we play music we are being free and we are sharing our freedom with people. We are relaxing from the stress of a whole week of work and from any professional or personal problem. We share our feelings with the audition and at the same time the audition is shared with us. That's the reason why this last time of the virus has really affected us a lot being without playing for more than a year and a half. Music will always break chains, will always set us free, that's the only reason we will always fight to protect metal and our kind.
Can
you please tell us about any side-projects or bands the members are
in that we should check out?
In Helgrind all members have different projects and at the same time some of them also share the same ones. Ernesto and Jordy have a common project called: We Bite!!! which is a horror punk band in which Jordy plays all the instruments and Ernesto sings. I write all the lyrics. Jordy is also the session player of drums in the thrash metal band Infector. Ramsés is the guitar player of the death metal band Congregation and Carlitos and Daniel have Folklorica – a folk death doom band, and of course we can also say that all Helgrind's members have contributed to many bands' music during its creation time such as: Dark Naberus, Saloma, Aventis, From The Graves, etc.
What are some of your favourite subgenres in metal and what styles do you dislike? Do you consider yourselves open to different genres, even outside of metal? I ask because I get the impression that people in Cuba are more appreciative of art than most people from sheltered first-world countries.
In general, we listen to extreme metal, whatever it is death metal, black metal, pagan metal, thrash metal, but also heavy metal and even power metal. In addition, many of us like Punk and hardcore as well. We listen to other genres out of metal music and rock music such as: folk, maybe some old pop but not any dance music style except for our drummer that likes Timba music maybe for the rhythm in the drums hahaha.
We we have been following some bands mostly of pagan and black metal bands such as: Havukkrunu , Emyn Muil, Keys of Orthanc, Marras, Iron Woods, Land of Fog, Mirkgrav, Beleriand, Burden of Ymir, Odal and many ones. Also some horror punk bands due to the evolvement we recently have the style, we listen to some good bands: Dragnum, Grave Robber, Left Hand Black, Bliztkid, etc.
Can you tell us a little about some of the labels you have worked with so far? Have you received your share of merchandise from the labels? Have you ever traded with people or ordered stuff from foreign labels?
Until this moment we have only signed with the British label Black Spark Records and they have sent 25 CDs as a payment of their release of our album: Return To Motherland unfortunately due to the virus situation and the mail service in Cuba they have no arrive, another point is that our contract with BSR does not take into consideration merchandising as a payment for that reason we don't have our own merchandising and we can't trade anything we try to make our own merchandising with some friends out there in Mexico and United States of America but for now it has been very very difficult for Cuban fans there's nothing and that makes us very sad we will see what we can do in the future maybe with a release with a bigger label can help to trade cds and merchandise and with other ones, there are labels that have been interested in Helgrind but for now the future is unknown.
What are 10 albums you can’t live without?
Amorphis - Tales from The Thousand Lakes, Bathory - Blood on Ice, Misfits - Famous Monsters, Falkenbach - Heralding The Fire Blade, Kalmah - Swamplord, Satanic Warmaster - Carelian Satanist Madness, Dissection - Storm Of The Light's Bane, Beherit - Drowning Down The Moon, Destruction - Infernal Overkill and Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas.
To
wrap things up, if anyone out there is interested in getting some of
your merch or contacting the band for interviews, how should they do
it? Also, I wish you guys all the best and hope that you will get
more recognition for your excellent music. Thanks for your time!
Thanks a lot for this wonderful interview and for your time. It is really important to us when people take into consideration a Cuban band for an interview or a review we really appreciate it. For now people can find our merchandising and CDs in the Black Spark Records store and of course in our Bandcamp and can follow us on Facebook as Helgrind Pagan Metal, on YouTube as HelgrindCuba. Thanks again and hails from Cuba!
