VIRCOLAC

Who are you and what do you do in your band?

Its N.H here, I am the drummer for Vircolac.

When/where was your band formed? 

We formed in the dying embers of 2013 in Dublin Ireland, 

Why did you choose to play Death Metal?

JG had been working on some music on his own initially and he mentioned it to Laoghaire and began discussing this and the idea was born. They had been in contact for many years stretching back to the old 90s tape trading days. They then asked myself and K to come on board. We all had connections through previous musical projects over the years also and a common bond and relationship to the music we strive to create. We began rehearsing and it became very apparent early on that there was a good connection between each member and a growing energy in what we were looking to achieve and create. Death metal was something that had been a part of our lives for many many years and it felt right for us to choose to play this style and to craft our own take one it. Personally I felt that a lot of the dark atmosphere of this type of music from the late 80’s/early 90s had become almost a lost art and we felt it was time to try and create that feeling again through our music and for Us Old Dogs to teach some new tricks so to speak.

How do you compose your music? Does only one guy do everything or does everyone contribute?

JG is the main writer/composer in the band, He writes most of the riffs and then we work together to structure them and create songs. K and myself contribute to this aspect with structure, Timings and idea’s for extra instrumentation etc to create the atmosphere we are looking for and we will work through different pieces and ideas until we have finished songs. Laoghaire writes the lyrics and arranges the vocal patterns.

Tell us about your lyrics, writing, inspiration etc.

Lyrics are generally from a different place than the music despite the flow and feel of the music having an all round effect on how they are pieced together and connect with the feel and atmosphere of the song. There are many different influences for the lyrics be they history, life, existential horror, fear, terror and the arcane, There is no one thing that influences how the lyrics are written. 

Inspiration is found in many forms for us. Be it music, Written Word, Art, Movies, Historical places and people, Landscapes of importance to us and our surrounding environment on this Dark, Dank beautiful Island.

Musically we are influenced by many styles of music certainly not limited to death metal. We all like quite different types of music but have found much common ground usually rooted in the classics and many types of Dark and atmospheric music, from Swans to Autopsy, Samhain to Morbid Angel, Misfits to Tiamat, Discharge to Masters Hammer or Twin Peaks meets Nocturnus or Voivod. The List is endless. If we had existed in 92 a label like Peaceville/Deaf for instance would probably have been a perfect fit for us.

Is there an ideology behind your band?

The band name is Romanian for werewolf and was found by guitarist JG in a book called The White Devil: the Werewolf in European History. Given our penchant for gothic horror, the arcane as well as the symbolic concept of transformation through the channel of music, figuratively speaking Vircolac was perfect. The ability for music to transform Man into Beast so to speak and the primal connection that lays dormant in us all waiting to be awoken and the music acting as a Host for this.

The title for the demo Codex Perfida is a Latin title meaning Book of the Faithless which is a concept we all as individuals and collectively can relate to.

How do you see the state of Death Metal music these days in your country and in general?

I think Death Metal is going through a resurgence again over the past few years which is great to see, There are a lot of killer newer bands all over Europe and further afield working on some very interesting takes on this style and putting their own mark on it and bringing back the feeling and atmosphere again rather than continuing down the stagnant path of technicality and speed of so called brutal death metal and the same is happening here also, 

Death to Digital Death Metal…..

What are your long term plans as a band? What do you want to achieve?

The cd version of Codex will be released in the coming months by Dark Descent Records and we have some shows lined up at home and abroad including our first festival appearance at this year’s Chaos Descends Festival in Germany. We hope to have a vinyl version of Codex released also in the future. We have begun working on some new tracks and hope to record again possibly later in the year and see where we can take this next.

Name an other Death Metal band from your country that everyone should hear.

Of the current crop I would advise you to check out Malthusian and Zom. Both completely different and excellent takes on Irish Death Metal. There are rumblings of some other interesting new projects on the horizon so keep your eyes peeled. Ireland is producing some incredible music in the realms of Doom and Black Metal also amongst other forms at the moment. Search them out.

Free word

Thanks for the Interview and Support, Please feel free to check out our bandcamp page for info on releases and merch. Keep an eye out for the CD release of Codex Perfida in Mid Summer of 2015 and more to come. As wolves we have wandered…………..