Interview with Faustoos Crowley of Mogh

Originally posted at Metal Spree.

Mogh, is one of the few true black metal acts to originate from India. Having released 5 full length albums, 2 live albums, one demo, and one split album this year, they have still managed to stay underground and serve the world with their awesome music. Here , we talk with Khaon Faustoos Crowley, the man behind Mogh.

Hello Faustoos, thanks for talking to us, where are you these days ?

Hail !

Right now, I am in Germany.

Were you basically from India ? And now moved to Germany ?

I am half Persian, half Israelian.

I was in India for some practical black magic and experimental chaotic life.

What exactly you were looking for ?

I was trying to find the roots of Zurvanism.

When the Arabs, and the Afghans and the Turks and the Russians, attacked Persia, all the Moghs run to the eastern part, as in India. 

So I was researching and travelling around to find out the real truth about the old moghs.

And that is when you decided to form a band ?

Yes, when I was in India.

The date was, 06.06.2006.

Tell me more about Zurvanism.. is that what was the main inspiration behind the formation of Mogh ?

Zurvanism, is the first darkness pure occult , coming from the Sumerians. 

There is no light or any such meaning as light in Zurvanism.

Its all darkness. Unity.

Because when you have light around, you have shadows.

From here we have a daulistic vision, and we need to choose...or its lost.

So when Mogh actually began, what were the core motives for its formation ?

It was huge genre, and still we are not focused...its so vast..but some areas we stray a little longer..and that makes the core.. things like Anti-Islamic theme, general Anti-religion , anti-human, anti-life..

Pretty sick sometimes..develop the historical events..family revenge..

We don't have a lot of Black metal bands these days with such a vision eh ?

That's out of my legion.

They does not exist for me.

I've read about Mogh Army , what exactly it is ?

We are an organisation, underground, around the world...a gathering of elits.

What does it stand for ?

We lead the people who join us, to carry the pain to be human. The whole concept is about Nihilism. A unity in silence..and do what we need to do..

We share our food, our money..our instruments and lifes...it's an army who is active and won't be defeated  that easily..its kind of a dream utopia..a dark brotherhood..schwarz network..

Schwarz is german for Black.

You've seen the movie Fight Club ? Somehow similar..

Ya I saw, nice movie..

Cool.

I don't see a lot of people standing up against religion, Islam in particular..I mean I myself is an atheist and it's hard for people around to deal with me..so was it difficult for you too..from your friends and family..

I lost my family in war...so I don't have.

Friends I can't call...that's the reality..

But I can say, my people, my army , my members, my group, they are everything to me, and we educated our self by facing the reality..so in one hand ..its all very easy.

We fight for freedom, and we know freedom is not free..

You see the Mogh logo...one sword in one hand, one gun in another..that's all.

Yeah about the logo, is that Shiva's trident on the left ?

Well, Mogh first was Magu, in the nail language you see down the logo called coneiform. Summerian its Magoo, then come to India, Maha, and back to Persia, Mogh, Europe, its Magic...so I use the global symbology. We call it Spawn in Satanism, Trishul in Hinduism, and Poseidon in Greek. Originally its back to the symbol we have in black arts called Caviconalox.

Is it something like the pentagram ?

No.

Alrighty, so what instruments you play ?

Bass guitar, Cello, Santoor, Tanboor,... check the Metal-Archives.

How does the recording of albums goes by ? I mean the music making process, riffs, lyrics .. everything. 

Some times, if we have money, we go to studios. Most of the time, some PC chitt...and in the end, I just cut the sound from the videos we have..and release..

I am not into technical stuff...for us, its just the meaning behind. 

I have written a book called Black Flame. Its kind of nihilistic journey I had in a small world and all achievement about occultism and..

So. Mostly I use main topics from the poems or essence of my writing..

The riffs, mostly when I travel somewhere, I meet real souls...than we make music or riff..

That book is available online ?

No, there is an underground publisher in USA.

Can you tell me more about the lyrical themes..?

It depends on tracks..some of them are patented stuffs..

Its kind of code..in Enochian languages...or kind of mixture with dead languages..

Personal revenge..darkness shitt.. In many songs I used the charm or thelematic course.

And many times its just screaming .. no words.. its just expression.

There was a split album released this year ?

Yeah..2012 is gonna be many split albums.

As the rumors are around..is 2012 the end of Mogh ?

Well, no infact..

But I think I found the final genre for the band..

And what that will be ?

Occult pagan mesopotanian black metal.

I have started to work on it, I have yesterday's practice room videos if you'd like..

Tracks aren't ready still..no vocals..its just a scratch.

Sure, and Thanks. So do you have a line up right now ?

Yes, drummer is a german guy,  called Commander.

Saxophone and female vocals is Bandir..

There are two guitarists, a violin and a flute too.. but it depends on each track..

That must be hard to coordinate..I mean so many instruments ?

Yes sir, but it comes by heart..most of us do not even know about notes..

There are no limitations here..

You are playing for any other bands ?

Yes, I am playing bass in two underground german bands.. Burning Cross and Khoshekh..which is hebrew for darkness.

What are you listening to these days ?

Lots of folk music..pure raw nihilistic black metal.. ofcourse. Whatever thats disturbing me, I like to hear that.. more pwerful.

There is a big scene of music in this planet..

..I have tracks, mostly in my PC archive..or part of the tracks..i was connected somehow with that part..

What have you thought about the band's future?

Gigs, live shows, clips, albums..

..hope we can play in armenia in persian metal festival 2012 

Are you planning to go in the open, or still remain underground like always ?

Well.. the end is near.

Now we are open to any kind of...

But generally  if we come open, no one will understand it..

Hmmm...How hard journey has been till now..for you..?

I've tried to kill myself 7 times..but I'm still alive..

For one month I was homeless..in Pune there is a Christian cemetery , I was sleeping there and feed myself from the front big trash box..

Couple of month I was totally fucked..In Varanasi, the Aghoris fed me..

Later in goa, I was washed dishes in a Russian restaurant, just to save my soul and serve my band..

Did they rob you or something ?

Yes, many times. They robbed my whole stuff.

They rape my soul .They put gun in my mouth,well whole chaotic system plus the corporate Police

I call it Indian Islamic bizzare reality..life.

Anything to say for the folks back in India ?

Yes, I would like to thank all previous Indian band members of Mogh..

Vruksha(guitar), Al masih Al dajal(keyboard programming) , Bob(bass and recording), Sidhi(drums), Arko(drums), Biswas(bass), Mayank(drums), Zeth(drums), Bapi(drums), Shaman(guitar), Ankush(guitar), Vish(guitar),Akshay(manager) and many great musicians I met at different places...

Alright, thanks for talking to us Faustoos !

Thanks a lot, have a sinful night !

You can follow them on Facebook, Mogh 

And here is the video for their practice session,

Practice Session: Mogh

There is a documentary that they made, based on their experience in India..

Doucumentary Part I

Documentary Part II

Interview with Paul Allender of Cradle of Filth.

Originally posted at Metal Spree

Hello Paul, warm greetings from India and Metal Spree team, how you're doing?
I'm very well thank you. I hope all is good for you there and everything is wonderful.


Starting off topic, you like Indian food ?
I love Indian food, its amazing :)


Can you name us a few that still wets your taste buds ? That will become your fan food in India.. ha ha !
Lol ok. I love Vindaloo and Masala, there very nice and to be honest i could live off of the stuff :) I don't eat rice with my meals, just chapatis and sag paneer.


Why guitars ? I mean, how did you picked up guitar as a child when there were tons of other instruments to play ? I'm expecting some interesting story here!
I started playing at 14, before my interest in guitars i wanted to play the saxophone because my dad always played all his 50s and 60s rock and roll 10" singles and i was majorly influenced by them. Then at 12 i was introduced to metal, Iron Maiden to be precise. The sound of the guitar got me really hooked and from then on i wanted to play. I did try bass once but lost interest straightaway.


What  were your major influences in those early days when you were just beginning into playing music ? Any particular inspiration from the early days ?
My dad use to play his 50's and 60's rock and roll 10" singles when i was a child, i totally loved it so i guess my main influence would be from them if I'm honest. then i got into metal and the likes of Iron Maiden and so fourth
took over as my influences.


The genre you play is quite off the genre that you describe as your idols to be, I mean old school thrash and extreme metal ? Quite a difference right ?
No not really, if you look at it and sit and really listen you will hear I put a ton of groove into the music i write and if you listen to my influences you can hear the same type of groove but that's as far as my influences go. When i write i just let the music and ideas flow out of me, I don't listen to anything to get inspiration because i don't want to sound like someone else.


You are one of the founding members of Cradle of Filth. Do you think the music has changed from what it was before ?
Back in the day people classed us as a black metal band but we have never tagged ourselves, we kinda let people make up there own mind about us. As we have got older tastes have changed and hence the music we write changes. Personally i prefer where the band is now, it sounds more mature and more like us, its more thought out and not so messy if that makes sense. There truth in the saying "Less is more".


Have your guitar playing techniques changed over time ?
Yes my playing has become more precise and solid. Back in the day it was way too scratchy which wasn't good. I use my guitar to write songs, not just riffs, I'm more of a producer than a guitar player to be honest.


I'm assuming, in all these years, you must have made some mistakes while playing live on stage. Can you share some of those, and also some tips to deal with them for young guitarists out there ?
Lol yes tons and tons but now i don't make any mistakes live or in the studio. All i can say is that when playing try to do your best every time and when writing write whats in your heart and what you think sounds good, not whats hot in the scene at the time. Oh and remember that music come from the heart and soul and its not a SPORT!! Unfortunately there are a lot of people out there who class playing guitar as a sport.


Does the line up changes affect your jam sessions and recordings? As you and Dani might be more coordinated than the rests.
No not at all because i pretty much write everything and we only get together when we are either going on tour or going in the studio.




What Cradle of Filth is upto right now ? Studios ? Jamming ? Recording ? Drinking beer ? Or blood !! Also, how's the set list coming up for Wacken Open Air concert ? Anything new for the fans to look forward to?
Well i have just come out of the studio from recording the new album and am practicing ready for the up and coming shows. Yes we have a set list worked out for Waken but I'm not going to tell you what it is lol :P

What kind of music are you listening to these days ?
I'm into anything and everything as long as it has a sick groove :) I brought the new Kreator album, its fucking great, i love it :)


Alright Paul, thanks for talking to Metal Spree and best of luck with everything. Any last words for our readers and your fans out there ?
I just want to say hopefully we will see you on the road and thank you so very much for all your support and understanding. Peace.


Thanks again Paul ! Have a great day !

A word with a musician: Abhimanyu Singh Negi of Abraxas

Abraxas is a 5 piece Melodic Death Metal outfit from Pune, IN. Recently their vocalist Karan Pote shared the stage with Demonic Ressurection in the All Star Gig. Here, we talk with their lead/rhythm guitarist Abhimanyu Singh Negi about music , life and beyond. Enjoy !!
Originally written for Metal Spree.

Raul: Hello Abhimanyu, how are you?Abhimanyu: Hi there man. I’m doing just fine.

Raul: To begin with ,how and when you started playing Guitars? What was the response of your family in your early days?
Abhimanyu: I started playing around 8 years ago at the age of fifteen.
Initially, my family was actually glad that I was applying myself to something constructive! Later on they probably realized that guitars/guitaring took almost all of my time. They’ve been very supportive throughout though.

Raul: Playing metal music is a neck breaking job. Do you agree?Abhimanyu: It’s fun, inspiring and extremely intense. It doesn’t feel like a neck-breaking job even if your neck snaps in two!

Raul: Performing live is one of the best experiences you can have, as I've been told. How do you guys manage the onstage mistakes, if there are any?
Abhimanyu: Performing live is an experience every musician owes themselves. It’s a release and a party onstage. It’s madness! The atmosphere at gigs gets me high by itself whether I’m playing or not.

Mistakes during a set must be avoided at all costs but whenever I screw up, I keep playing the song unaffected by it, without further interruptions. Personally, it’s pretty irritating to hear a mistake, even if it’s me who’s fucking up! You must ignore the mistake totally and keep playing in the natural flow and order of the riffs/pieces in the song.

Raul: Which guitar are you using right now? Or should I ask guitars?
Abhimanyu: I currently play an Ibanez Prestige RG 2027x VV with a Dimarzio Liquifire in the neck and Dimarzio D Activator in the bridge position. It’s a seven string guitar with a mahogany body, 24 frets, 25.5” scale, Ibanez Lo-Pro floating bridge/trem and a gorgeous Vintage Violin finish. It’s got the LR Baggs Piezo Acoustic pickups and dual jack output.

I have a really old Washburn six stringer and a GB&A acoustic as well that I keep twanging on every now and then.

Raul: As a musician, what genre other than metal interests you?
Abhimanyu: Dubstep has encroached upon the territories of Metal and is exciting to listen to these days. I like to listen to a lot of Hard Rock and Blues Rock, which is what inspired me to start playing the guitar. Also funk, bluegrass, trance and a whole lotta Metchul! I’d like to learn to play Jazz soon as well, given the chance.

Raul: Talking about Abraxas , it really has come up exponentially as a band in past few years. What was the different path that you guys take, which most of the other bands didn’t?
Abhimanyu: I don’t know if I’ll be able to answer this question correctly but I guess it was our ability to not compromise on a number of standards we’d set initially for ourselves as a band. It took a certain amount of will, focus and social inactivity for all five of us to create our music devotedly and playing it out loud with conviction every single time.

While composing, we all structure our riffs and songs with everyone’s accordance and decide upon a theme/direction towards which the whole song will progress. It’s a grueling, rewarding process.

We spent a lot of time touring India as a band too – we’ve played in Goa, Cherrapunjee, Indore, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Mumbai & of course Pune.

There’s still a lot more to be done and we need a lot more ‘growing’ that we need to do as well!

Raul: Abraxas has released some epic OC’s, and Eyes OF Disgrace is one of my favorite tracks, but still no EP or album? What is keeping you guys from releasing one? Anything in store for your fans in near future?Abhimanyu: Thanks a lot man! I think we focused on composing, playing a lot of gigs and just generally being fuckin’ lazy! We’ve been hitting the studio after half-yearly intervals almost every year so it’s been a slow process. We’ve shifted gears now and it’s all going smooth so you guys will be hearing about our Full-length album soon enough.

Raul: How do you manage your studies and music and gigs and all? And I’m personally interested in coping with the attendance part, mine is short too, ha ha.
Abhimanyu: Haha dude we don’t manage anything at all! I think once the ball is rolling everything falls in place. There have been several clashes where it was clearly college versus gig where we had to decide carefully. I think we made the right choices mostly.

You need to manage your time and money resourcefully and prioritize important agendas whether its college, office or music. It all looks good on paper though and easier said than done!

Raul: What is the band up to right now?Abhimanyu: Chilling, catching up on college/work, composing in bits and pieces and tracking the album.

Raul: Recently Karan shared the stage with Demonic Resurrection, in the All-Star Gig. How was it for you guys?Abhimanyu: It was great to see Karan back in the game again man. It was a great initiative on DR’s end and I’m sure a number of DR fans got a glimpse of his talent. We’ve been worried at different levels over the past few months regarding his injury and he laid everyone’s doubts to rest when we headlined the SIMC gig in Pune last month; and this is when he hasn’t fully recovered!

Raul: Anything you have to say about the present Indian Metal scene?
Abhimanyu: There are bands in the Indian Metal scene that are pushing the envelope and making huge strides everyday even now and it’s truly inspiring to say the least. The International scene is truly opening up to Indian Metal as of now and we’ll soon be riding the wave. The bands ready for it in every possible way –art, music, production, composition, live performances and sticking around – are the ones who’ll make it through. It takes a certain amount of guts and dedication for any and every metal band in India to play their shows consistently. So any band that has ventured outside the country, or has been playing shows for more than 3-4 years or has an album or two out – Respect. They deserve it.

Raul: Thanks a lot for your time Abhimanyu , anything for your fans out there?Abhimanyu: You guys effin’ RULE! If there’s anyone else we make music for apart from us – it’s you guys!
Keep listening to Metal at full volumes, coming to gigs and supporting what you truly feel and believe in. Adios!

Alien Gods

Alien Gods from Itanagar released their their debut EP in May'11 entitled Lunar Blackened Death. The EP consisted of tracks which were composed and written during their early formation days. Here is a small conversation we had with them recently.

Raul: How is it going Alien Gods ?

AG: Alien Gods is pondering upon mysteries of life, zeitgeist has not helped enough.

Raul: There is always an interesting story behing the formation of a band. Tell us about yours.

AG: Nah, for us it's the same cliched series of events : As kids Listen, read, watch the music and lifestyle of big rock stars and become a wannabe, then fortunately find the right guys things click and in the course of becoming big rock stars find out our inner selves and things begin to take the other path, some have left the band coz music won't feed them or their families , others were forced to leave, some has joined for the love of music , some for the profits it give and few to create magic that they seek.

Raul: Alien Gods? Something to do with religious views or just a catchy name?

AG: Actually it's a bit of everything that anyone thinks.

Raul: About the genre, how did guys end up playing blackened death?

AG: For pleasure, pain, pride, reverence, strength, freedom and pure insanity.

Raul: Tell us something about your EP "Lunar Blackened Death". The hurdles on the way and stuffs and yes I'm personally interested in the track "Kapyo Nyima".

AG: "Lunar Blackened Death" is our first effort at recording our stuffs that we have written over the formative years. This is not a proper album more of like a collection of different experiments or exercises. The fans have demanded it and so we have been obliged . Now that we have understood the mechanisms of recording, song writing is going on for the debut LP and its going to be one brutally epic bastard.

"Kapyo Nyima" is the last straw in the so said experiment or exercises that we have been fooling around with. Please do enjoy the song.

Raul: Do you guys think that Indian bands should have Indian themes in their songs?

AG: If you say "should have" then it become something like a rule or law, and I am sure everyone knows ".....are meant to be broken". Hahaha... see nothing is to be dictated, if it comes naturally then good , if you have to do it for the sake of doing it than it;s all fucked up.

Raul: Performing live has been your specialty, how was it to perform for the first time on stage?

AG: Nervous as hell , but the crowd fed me and Y become a very happy glutton on stage, I mean I loved the excitement and sense of power that the stage , sound , lights and the crowd give... just love it man.

Raul: Can you briefly describe your music making process for us?

AG: It's all about the theme man, the music has to be based on the stories, events etc.

Raul: "Church Ov Blood" , is that a side project? Anything to expect in near future under this name?

AG: Church Ov Blood is Doni and Tenzin's ( Guitarist and Bassist ) primary band. It's not a side project. The two had joined Alien Gods coz the original members had untimely discontinued with the band. Church Ov Blood as far as I know is working on their debut EP.

Raul: How is the metal scene in Itanagar? Any underground movements that we're unaware of?

AG: Itanagar is very good for metal bands, the crowd out here is crazy, and unfortunately we don't have that many bands.

Raul: Northeast metal scene, do you think its exposed enough?

AG: Exposed ?? What exposed?? Nothing... zero. Other forms of music are doing well maybe but Metal...thumbs down.

Raul: What makes Alien Gods different from the rests?

AG: I don't know.. may be cause we come from Arunachal Pradesh... quite different huh

Raul: Something for your fans?

AG: Keep moshing but no pushing ( term we use out here for injecting drugs)

Raul: Something for us?

AG: Call us when you are free metal freaks.

Originally written for Metal Spree.