Arghoslent interview

(Originally from 3/27/06)

Arghoslent is a band that has been surrounded with quite some degree of controversy over the past several years, due to their bold message of hatred and their unorthodox brand of death metal. We have been given the privelege of interviewing the guitarist and one of the founding members, Pogrom, as he fills us in on some of the latest happenings with the band...

Firstly, for those unfamiliar with Arghoslent, can you give us a brief run-down of how the band came to be and what it's purpose in music is? 

Pogrom: The bass player KOMMANDO and I started playing music in high school. We both played in a band called GENOCIDE in 1988, then the year later after acquiring other members we changed it to ASFYXIA. Both bands recorded death/thrash/speed metal demos but it wasn’t satisfying because we weren’t such good musicians back then, and the ideology of the band was not really extreme or even defined. We eventually recruited another drummer and called the band POGROM (played one show with that name in 1990) briefly just prior to recruiting GRAVEDIGGER on vocals (which we used to change our name to ARGHOSLENT). In 95, VON DEMONICUS joined as vocalist and has been with us ever since. A year prior to that, HOLOCAUSTO joined on second guitars as well during the recording of our “The Imperial Clans” demo. Our main goal was to play DEATH METAL the way we saw it proper. ARGHOSLENT’s mission has been only to generate prejudice, intolerance, and incorrigible bigotry, never to generate any income or profits. Our determination, our stance, our need to do things as we see them fit, has plagued us with so many mishaps and barriers while making us unique at the same time.

What does the name "Arghoslent" mean? 

The word ARGHOSLENT is a hybrid between the Greek root word ‘Argo’ and a derivation of the word ‘Slave’ being ‘slent’: Slave of the universe, pawn of a higher constellation, mercenary of the order, soldier of the ARGHOSLENT KOMMANDO.

What is your opinion of the metal scene today? 

What scene? The one that that prays for our disappearance? Our banner of hate stands alone. The scene gets a failing grade for musicianship, originality, and bravery. Labels are responsible for breeding and encouraging clones, posers, and rock-star attitudes. I hold labels primarily at fault for the degeneration of character and talent in the underground. Some labels have more culpability than others, but I am not here to expose the obvious. All I’m saying is that if you took up metal (and its profitable endeavors) to avoid the hardships of working for a living, you’re a fucking pile of dollar-green shit. Expose yourself and return to fucking Tel Aviv!

Arghoslent has a very unique and distinctive sound that is somewhat like nothing I've ever heard before and yet also like a combination of everything. What bands or musicians have influenced your music and lyrics the most? 

My very first guitarist influence was Eddie Van Halen, and from then on stuff like IRON MAIDEN, SCORPIONS, OZZY, KILLER DWARVES, ARMORED SAINT, etc… As I became more involved in the heavier side of things my tastes became more extreme and the old thrash/speed metal were my point of attention like METALLICA, EXODUS, and KREATOR, FLOTSAM & JETSAM, ANTHRAX, MEGADETH. As far as the band’s musical inspiration goes, its inspiration has roots in metal bands, and some hardcore/punk bands. CARNIVORE, POSSESSED, RAZOR, RIGORMORTIS, FORCED ENTRY, AUTOPSY, VADER, DARK ANGEL, FATES WARNING, SLAYER, CORONER, INCUBUS, WARGASM, BLOOD FEAST, and VIO-LENCE taught us how to play effective, violent, thrash/death metal. I cannot deny that as musicians we carry a bit of each band with us. There are of course bands we respect although I don’t think is reflected in our compositions. Touches of BATHORY’s Twilight…, MERCYFUL FATE’s Melissa, SLAYER’S Reign in Blood, VIO-LENCE’s Eternal Nightmare, RAZOR’s Violent Restitution, and CARNIVORE’s Retaliation are present in our music at all times. We do, however, strive to be original, and a step above all of our influences. We are not readily mistaken for any other band, and that’s our main goal. Nowadays, I’m not too impressed by much and it has been the case for a good number of years.

Do you think it's important to connect ideologies with music and vice-versa these days? 

If there is no message behind the music its just abstract noise. It is crucial for our band, and any band, to perfectly portray the lyrics through the music. Total negativity, misanthropy, and divine extermination are important ideas expressed through our music. Death metal means DEATH, destruction, nuclear terrorism, depravation of human rights, violence, slavery, biological warfare, genocide, arson… Our music deals with paramilitary adoration, religious abnegation, androgenic colonization. Our message is that of a ‘TRUE’ death metal spirit; extreme, aggressive, and anti-religious.

How does the band typically go through creating and recording a song for a release? What steps are involved in the writing process? 

Most of the members contribute to the songs one way or another. Holocausto and I come up with riffs on our own then really brainstorm to combine them and make them into one piece. The most difficult part of this is not writing the riffs, but assembling them and knowing how many times to play them. It is a huge task really to piece all of this music together to make it sound coherent, entertaining, unique, crude, and offensive. Sometimes the song structures are modified by our drummer. We approach writing lyrics in the same manner. Perhaps myself and others come up with a raw idea of some lines before the vocalist polishes them up and places them in our music. It is quite interesting as well to hear the final product. On a couple of occasions, we’ve written songs while in the studio, for example the song “Archaic Invincibility” was assembled in minutes right before we started recording our second album. Some other songs contain riffs that have been lying around for years, literally, and finally find their place. At the moment we may have about 2 album’s worth of material written and ready.

It struck me as a little odd that a band which stands so firmly and proudly in its beliefs would censor the eyes of the members on it's website and practically all online photos. Was this just a precaution or has the attitude towards Arghoslent really been so threatening at times? 

The journey has been treacherous at times and it’s better to remain visually anonymous for our jobs’ sakes, and our families. Photos are not necessary to create good albums. If someone purchases an album based on the band photos, then we’re speaking different languages altogether.

Of all the songs you've recorded so far, is there one which is your personal favorite? What about a favorite album? 

One of my favorite songs has to be “Banners of Castile” from our first album. Another song that deserves mention is “Heirs to Perdition” from our second album. As far as whole albums go, I’d have to say that Incorrigible Bigotry is our best album as far as length, musicianship, lyrics, and concept go.

Even though it rarely happens with the band's controversial content keeping you guys out of certain clubs and bars, are there any plans for Arghoslent to tour or play many live shows this year? 

Yes, the plan is to return to the stage after a 6 year coma. Another possibility is also to play some selective shows in Europe with the help of some comrades, not to the same 10 drunks that have gone to our shows in the past.

Any plans for new merchandise or other releases coming soon? 

We’re working on about 12-15 songs, most which will be recorded for our 3rd full length album this year. The rest will be used in splits, 7”eps, or compilations. Some new songs are “The Grenadier”, “Atop the Crags of Recalcitrance”, “Once Upon a Shoah”, and “Fragrance of the Octaroon”.

Is there an interview question you've always wanted to answer, but no one ever asked? 

Yes. “How come your guitar leads on live tracks are different from the recorded ones on albums & demos?” Our answer: Because most of the guitar solos on all our recordings have been improvised and on the spot, and we don’t know how to play them again. Our live sets are usually graced with different solos each time.

Finally, if you could give some advice to aspiring musicians/bands, what would you say and why?

There have been thousands of shitty bands for the last 17 years that I can think of. The albums keep getting worse, and worse, but there is no difference now than in 1992 or 1995, or 1999. If you plan on becoming one of these folk, I would suggest dropping your guitar off at the local pawn shop. If you strive to be a Xerox copy of another band, don’t even bother.

Thanks once again to Pogrom for providing this opportunity and to all the guys in Arghoslent for producing quality music. You can visit their official website at www.arghoslent.cjb.net.