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Belphegor



We learned to deal with idiots a long time ago



Prologue
Recently banned due to religious bigots, Belphegor's Russian tour continued the annoying “tradition” of extreme metal bands’ shows cancellations. Moreover, this time it happened in a very insulting way both for the band and for its fans. However, musicians don’t consider themselves as victims. That’s why we didn’t dedicate lots of time to this subject during our interview with Helmuth Lehner (Belphegor’s founder, mastermind and frontman). After all, everyone can read the statement on this issue at the official band’s page in Facebook. We’ve tried to make our communication more diverse in order to reveal more detail concerning the philosophy of the band and touching as many matters as possible. As a result, the interview is really complete and from some point quite provocative. Music, religion, death and lust formed in an expressive ‘painting’, exciting and frightening at the same time. Dedicated to all Belphegor fans...
Belphegor
Let's start with the recent scandalous events related with the cancellation of your Russian tour. Did you know that earlier by efforts of Russian Orthodox extremists were canceled concerts of Behemoth, Cannibal Corpse, Sodom, Marilyn Manson, Batushka? Have you been warned about it, and did you have apprehensions before Russian tour that Belphegor may have similar problems?

We ignored the warnings, we learned to deal with idiots a long time ago. I was aware many black and death metal bands were having trouble recently, but we still marched in and didn't stop after the St.Petersburg cancellation fiasco. We stood strong and traveled to Moscow and hoped for the best. Hope dies in the end, as we learned:
After a great tour kickoff in Minsk, Belarus [18th April], BELPHEGOR dealt with heavy opposition and censorship within Russia resulting in three shows being cancelled. We apologize to Russian supporters. The troop tried everything to secure the shows. The St. Petersburg concert was canceled just a few hours before BELPHEGOR was scheduled to enter the stage on the 19th of April. We arrived in Moscow hoping for the best on the 20th. We were ordered to remove the already hanging backdrop, then told that stage props such as sculptures and crosses were forbidden, and Helmuth was not allowed to do vocals for the track "Lucifer Incestus". During the second track, the sound engineer had been forced to mute the vocals for the rest of the show because of our lyrical content. We were outraged by the entire experience. Afterward, we were informed that we would be unable to play in Ekaterinburg [21st April] and Krasnodar [23rd April].

Are you planning one day return to Russia with concerts after the incident?

Yes, BELPHEGOR will return to Russia, we will do all that we can play great shows there again, as we toured years ago over there before this bullshit happened! We have nothing against the metal community a
Belphegor
nd have always had amazing trips to Russia. Next time, we will be better prepared to deal with the restrictions and other opposition we faced.

Was any reaction in Austria in connection with what happened with you in Russia?

Supporters of BELPHEGOR from all around the world have been on our side with dedication and enthusiasm. United we stand against moralizers and the simple-minded.

Have you ever had to deal with such cancellations and the aggressive actions of religious fanatics?

We've had similar issues that ended in shows being cancelled in Germany a few times years ago, and I also recall a cancellation in Sao Paulo, but nothing entirely comparable. We are used to death threats, confrontation and all of that. We don't see ourselves as victims, on the contrary. many enemies in this rotting Christian community is an honor- it means we are doing something right.

To tell the truth, given the specificity and provocative of Belphegor lyrics, you should be ready for an aggressive reaction from the religious institutions… Do not you think that such opposition is natural… in some ways?

Of course, we expect some opposition. That was not the first time we've been harassed by hypocritical moralizers. For every person who likes what we are doing, there is someone else who is offended and hates us, fine by me.

In Belarus, you have managed to play a concert. According to feedback, it was a great act akin to ritual – a real ceremony. So I want to ask, what for you is the perfect concert of Belphegor? As I understand, for you Belphegor live show is something more than just play music on stage?

Yes, the ritual in Minsk was great. Our live performances have an atmosphere and energy you cannot get from listening to a record. These shows are almost like religious ceremonies...without the religious
Belphegor
bigotry. For the record, I describe myself as an atheist and some of my views are more nihilistic. We never, ever said we are a satanic or a true Black Metal band. We've always been shredding brutal Death Metal with raging Black Metal influences, never the opposite. Also, the NWOBHM made a big impact on how I create tracks. It's just some magazines that always label us like that. Anyways,..it's extreme musick for the elite.

Belphegor has a very intense and saturated sound. Bands with a similar sound are often have problems with the live sound, which merges into porridge. How do you usually solve this problem? Some kind of special technical requirements?

Always depends on the gear, such as backline or PA system. We are all humans, some shows sound better than others. Primarily, the main goal always is to always work with the best equipment we have at each show and give the audience a very special Ritual…musick/ show and soundwise of course!! They support us by showing up, so they only deserve the best.

Now tell us about your work on a new album… How much you have progressed in the work on it? According to a recent video (“Totenkult – Exegesis of Deterioration”), your music became more brutal.

Yes, our most brutal and obscure album so far is in the creation process. We are nearing the end of that stage. The new album will be unleashed in April 2017! We had released a live rehearsal video of a raw version of the track “TOTENKULT-EXEGESIS OF DETERIORATION.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMT9xxBpFK4
I never wrote and recorded a track with guitar tuning this low. It's brutal, magick-al and uttermost evil. Exactly what we wanted it to be. We look forward to our supporter's reactions to the upcoming release.

You often call your music “sound collages”. You know, it seems to me that this is not a good definition, because it implies certain artificiality,
Belphegor
like “Lego”. However, every time you manage to record excellent albums!


In this case, every instrument and atmospheric effect are written to go with one another cohesively, like a collage. I didn't get the same impression as you did from the word "collage", it seems. Plus, I do not really care what other people think about our creative output. If they like it, highly appreciated here, of course, but in end, we do it all to please ourselves first. We always try to get better, more intense and raise the dynamics and intensity in the name of "the devil" and spreading Miasma, worldwide!!

Don’t you think that many, many other bands doing collages literally? They are creating music solely by studio technology and computers, hundreds of times rewriting doubles and collecting small pieces into one composition. What do you think?

Anyways, if you want to call it that, sure. We actually write all of our own musick from the bottom up. I don't really care what anyone else is doing. I support what I like, and I ignore whatever I don't like. I never saw the point in wasting my life on shit that doesn't interest me. I live in my own world with my own rules, im not a follower nor pray to the sculpture of hypocrisy,that’s what I'm trying to express.

How does the writing process and creation of new stuff for Belphegor? I mean the creative process in general. Not only writing process of a new album. I want to know about your creative philosophy, if you prefer.

I find inspiration everywhere, especially from my travels. Our "rehearsal bunker" is up in the cold mountains of Austria. The natural landscapes are stunning and serve for great muses.
As far as the musick goes, mostly, I start by creating riffs in the bunker late at night. I'm night owl, I prefer to sleep while other people are up, that way I do not have to deal with all thier crap. Happy artists ( mean when there live
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is great, etc…) can't create dark art...you need to be 100% focused. Only sufferers can create art, in silence and hermetically. Since I'm also responsible for the vokills, I know in which direction I want to march. In the rehearsal room, we work in the details and check all riffs, and practice until we are absolutely content with the track. Sometimes that can last1 month, sometimes years, sometimes we drop a song and don't use it.

Early Belphegor albums were more straightforward and “dry”. Over time, your music has become more saturated, more diverse, epic and more multifaceted. In this regard, do not you want to record your magnum opus with Belphegor (maybe one day) - a concept work which would have absorbed all the experience and skills you have achieved over the years?

Yes. It's about when you practice a lot on your instrument, which I demand from each musician who plays in BELPHEGOR- you get better over the years.

And now let’s turn to philosophy once again. It seems to me that in some ways it is thanks to extreme metal some taboos have been broken in the last 10-15 years. How do you think this result is a direct merit of extreme music, or the message embodied in music just coincided with “the spirit of time”?

We always crossed boundaries regarding verses/ artworx and musick and broke taboos. All of that is über-important within art. This kinda musick is not here to calm people down,..it's full of fire and archaic eruptions.

How, when and why you began your personal war against religion? What are your motives?

I was very young when I began to oppose religion. The church had quite a lot of power in Austria, where I grew up and continue to live today.
Religion, in general, has always been and continues to be a dangerous thing. All religions are problematic no matter where they originated and where they are practiced toda
Belphegor
y.
It is of the utmost importance that artists have freedom of expression. Throughout history religions and governments have and continue to censor creative works all around the world.

What is for you the image of the Devil - is this a real character for you, or just a metaphor?

I am not a Satanist. I have said this a hundred times. The press/ media often try to label us as Black Metal. I don’t know why this happens. Its just incorrect. BELPHEGOR´s legacy is and always was diabolical Death Metal.
Don’t get me wrong, I dig Black Metal, mainly the bands that hailing from Scandinavia, but musickwise BELPHEGOR does not have anything in common with the "orthodox" BM genre. That is why I call our sound "Diabolical Death/ Black Metal".
As I stated above, I am Atheist. The devil is a powerful figure. I use the philosophy about Sathan/ Lucifer - the Light-bearer in our lyrical content as a proud, exalted, majestic figure who resisted against all influences. A seducer, tempter. One to make his own decisions, walk his own path as a rebel, a mocker against the masses. Freedom the most important aspect of life.

From time to time Belphegor music riddled with lust and desire. How do you think (maybe you had a personal experience), can the lust and eroticism give rise to new ideas in music and be part of the creative process?

I was and still am fascinated by the darker aspects of humanity. I'm thrilled by everything that is different and non-conformist, also “evil”/ anti-god concepts. All this fascination started when I was a kid watching Vincent Price and all the Dracula/ Boris Karloff Frankenstein stuff a very long time ago.
I found out about MARQUIS DE SADE around 1996 big inspiration til mid 2000. So, we mixed up our blasphemous ideology with BDSM and sadism, guess no extreme sounding band before us did that. Anyways, some people liked it some people didn't..at th
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e end I don't give a damn, as I say we do what we want and when we want. I could fill books of what I've had the pleasure to see and to live through during the last 2 decades.

You know, I think your music would be a great soundtrack for hard orgy! Don’t you think so?

No comment!

Actually, the theme of pleasure, lust and the female body - is an ancient fertility cult, the Knowledge of Divinity through flesh and pleasure. Back in ancient Sumer was such a thing as a ritual, temple prostitution connected with the cult of Ishtar. I want to say that all this does not even Satanism from a Christian point of view, and has much deeper roots. Have you tried to think about it from this point of view?

In the end, art is all about passion, pleasure, and lust. Yes, it has a big ritualistic impact. Through centuries, people practiced insane orgies, be it outside in nature or hidden in churches. Read loads of books, just amazing, would be interesting to be a part of such an archaic celebration or even watch such a ceremony.

As far as I know from his statement, you “have already been dead for six hours, hanging on only by machines followed by open-heart surgery”. Please, tell me more about this experience, and how it affected you and your beliefs?

I had caught Typhus while in Brazil some years ago. The intense surgery and following recovery I went through had been the hardest, most painful ride in my life. If you get that sick, you are unable to go to the damn restroom alone, you don't know if you will survive and fear falling asleep for weeks because you think you won't open eyes again. You then see many aspects of life differently and you become thankful for small things you had taken for granted before.
Also, the fact I became a strong alcoholic over the years didn't help very much. Anyways, It gives you a new perspective on life, you appreciate it more if you were that down and got back on track. The guitar, my band, the musick, also helped me a lot to stand up again. Don't misunderstand me, I definitely don't feel like I am reborn as a Christian or anything like that, on the contrary...

Well, let's finish. Thank you for your detailed and interesting answers (I hope so!). How would you like to finish this interview?

Thanks for the space. It was a great interview. Also, thanks to everyone who supports us by attending our live Rituals, listening to our Musick, and buy our merchandise and LP's. An honor - this horror!!

Interview by Alias
7 июн 2016
the End


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