Welcome Zirocco! Please introduce yourselves
We are Zirocco, a metal band formed in Luxembourg in the summer of 2020. We consist of 4 members:

Sebastian Rengifo (vocals and guitar)
Marcus Dackner (drums)
Louis Guillaume Stiévenart (bass)
Nick Kellam (guitar)

The sound of Zirocco has been heavily influenced by various genres, including thrash, deathcore, punk, groove metal, the list goes on. We are indeed a metal band, but we are not afraid to experiment and push the boundaries of what classifies as “metal music” in the year 2021.

What is the origin of your band name?
Nick came up with the band name Zirocco during geography class at school, when his teacher mentioned a type of wind in the Mediterranean Sea known by the name of “Sirocco”. As soon as he heard the sound of that word, he knew it would have to be the name of the band. Nick thought to change the S in “Sirocco” to a Z to better reflect the band’s aggressive musical and thematic style as well as to turn the word into our own. We had also been looking for a band name for what seemed like an eternity at that point, so we were more than happy to finally settle on “Zirocco”.

It is always interesting to see musical influences evolve over the course of time. What are your current sources of inspiration?
As was stated prior, our music has no genre labels as it has been influenced by many different genres, due to all of our band members coming from similar, yet quite distinct musical backgrounds. However, if we do get into specifics, some notable genres that influence Zirocco’s music include thrash metal, groove metal, deathcore, and punk. But with that being said, we are also not afraid to bend boundaries and experiment with sounds outside of metal to create something fresh and new. A small selection of some bands that have influenced our sound would be Lamb of God, Gojira, Bring Me the Horizon, Pantera, and Ingested.

What is your approach to the songwriting process?
The songwriting process is very collaborative. One band member may come to band rehearsal with an initial idea, such as a riff or drum part, and then we all jam on it until the entire song is worked out as a band. This allows for a distinct sound as all the different influences from each individual member can blend together to create our best work.

Which are the main themes and messages of your lyrics?
That is a very good question. Before I tell you what our songs are about, I’ll tell you what they’re definitely not about. I am aware that saying this may upset some people in the scene, but then again, we’re not afraid to upset some people either. My point is, I have always believed that the whole concept of death, darkness, and tragedy in metal music has grown stale and horrendously repetitive over the years, which has lead to an endless cycle of bands feeling obligated to include these themes in their songs simply due to the fact that they play extreme music. But when you really stop to focus on your emotions and your mind while listening to some of these lyrics, at least for me, you realize that you don’t really feel anything.

It’s the same old story, this obligation of needing to write about death, darkness, and mindless negativity bullshit has become nothing but a depthless metaphor forced upon metal songwriters. I would even go as far as to say that bands writing these sorts of lyrics when they don’t feel or relate to these lyrics at all is just as meaningless as the lyrical themes in the mainstream music that we metal musicians love to despise so passionately, which is so painfully hypocritical, when we in the scene ourselves force ourselves to write dark songs even if we don’t really feel the lyrics, simply because this is the status quo in the genre.

What I am trying to do with Zirocco’s lyrical themes and messages is redefine what metal lyrics should and can be about, because the whole point of this music community is complete freedom, so why should I feel obligated to write lyrics about the same exact concepts every other metal band in the history of Rock N’ Roll has ever written about? The best way I would describe Zirocco’s lyrics is as a beautifully fucked-up, sometimes fittingly nonsensical and utterly abstract conglomeration of reflections on humanity and all its beautiful yet destructive antics and assumed purposes. The pain, the pleasure, the mystery of the soul, and everything in between that we can’t quite ever describe but can always feel and experience. This is the concept that we want to share with the world.

If you could play any international music festival, which one would it be and why?
To be completely honest, our dream festival would be our own festival, completely off the grid. How cool would it be to play a metal festival on a tiny island in the middle of Polynesia? Or in the Sahara Desert? Or in space, who knows?

What are your plans for the future?
We hope to continue what we’re doing and only to move forward. Playing gigs, small or large is always something to look forward to. We have been writing songs for a while now and we hope to come out with an album in the near future so that is something to look out for.

Concluding words?
We are looking forward to playing throughout Luxembourg as well as wherever this project may take us.

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Check out Zirocco here
(available online presence at the time of the interview)

Instagram

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You recently announced the release of a new album and already shared one of the songs called “Ritual of Erosion”. When did you start writing for this album and what themes are you bringing into it?
The writing for the new album started more or less when Dr. Doom, the former songwriter, left the band four years ago. Some songs were ready ever since, others were written relatively recently. With the arrival of Pastor, the new album began to take a more tangible form since he wrote new lyrics, also to songs which existed already. The themes are pretty standard for the genre, death, (anti-) religion, sex. Musically, the search for a combination of atmosphere without losing a certain catchiness were key.

What are the differences in songwriting in regards to your previous releases „Demon” and „Vanitas”?
In regards to songwriting, the main difference is the master songwriter, Inquisitor. He has a very straightforward approach to writing, which never loses focus on the main song structure while every band member still gives their input to the final song. But for the song “Threshold” for example, the main songwriting originated from Lynx.

Where did you record “Ritual of Erosion” and was it any different to your other releases or was the process the same?
The drums were recorded at Unison Studios in Differdange, and guitars, bass and vocals were recorded in the rehearsal room. The big difference from earlier recordings is that Miguel Teixeira Sousa from Fusion Bomb supervised it all, both in the studio and in the rehearsal room. Furthermore, Miguel mixed and mastered everything, so that the whole outcome has his signature and a very professional feel, with which we are very satisfied.

What comes first, text or music? Do the lyrics enable you to write a fitting riff or do the riffs inspire the lyrics?
Both the lyrics and the music are usually about 80% ready, independent from each other, when we hit the rehearsal room. Then, by trying different stuff out and adapting, emerges the complete song

You’ve had some lineup changes in the past. How did it affect the band?
Speaking of lineup changes, you can say that Lynx (guitar) and Panzerfaust (drums) are the steady pillars, the foundation upon which Dreadnought is based. This isn‘t to say that the other band members don‘t have a say, but they are a guarantee that the spirit stays the same.

Can you lead us through the history of the band, from founding it until today?
The band has been founded in 2006 and has continuously been active ever since. The line-up changes slowed down the ascension to the black metal Olymp, but the climb never stops! (Lulz) But seriously, every band knows the struggle of line-up changes, forced ones and surprising ones, they are part of the game and it doesn’t make sense to list them all at this point, it’s enough to say that there were quite a few. We were and are still there, first for our own fun but also for the entertainment of the crowd. We are proud to say that in our actual constellation we are a real team, on every level, in spirit, friendship, and music.

What are your plans for the future?
First, we want to promote the new album and play some gigs, preferably both in Luxembourg and in the neighboring countries. Then, since there are already new songs, our goal is that the time until the next record is a bit shorter than the time between Demon an PTTU (9 years!). But we are in no hurry.

Concluding words?
Since there is no „Thank you“ list on the CD, this would be a good moment to thank all the people who were involved, directly or indirectly, in making the album. You know who you are, and you rule!

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Check out Dreadnought here

Facebook
Bandcamp
YouTube

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Tell us a bit about yourselves and how did you meet?
We are Gilles and Pit, two friends who would describe ourselves as big music lovers, mostly metal. We’ve known each other since high school, so almost 20 years now. Our common taste in music came a few years later though. Gilles is a musician himself and at that time he was already listening to genres like power metal or occasionally death and black metal, which were not my cup of tea at that time. I preferred listening to alternative metal, grunge or psychedelic rock. It was only a few years later that I developed a love for more extreme music. Since then, we have discovered a lot in the metal world and have always shown each other new genres or bands.

What kickstarted the idea of doing a podcast about metal music?
Since we have a lot opinions about the topic, the idea to start a metal podcast came quite early. However, nothing ever came of it, partly because we couldn’t find the time and partly because we were simply too lazy. During the first lockdown in 2020, the idea came up again and since we had nothing else to do during this time anyway, we wanted to create something productive. Within a week, we got some material, informed ourselves about the necessary stuff and were able to get started.

Why did you choose to do the podcast in Luxembourgish?
In the beginning, that was also an important question for us, we didn’t really know whether we should do it in English or Luxembourgish. We finally decided to do it in Luxembourgish, because we wanted to make it accessible for our local listeners and also because we wanted to respond to our local metal scene. We accepted the disadvantage that our audience would remain smaller.Our posts on social media (Instagram, Facebook) are mostly in English but the podcast will remain in Luxembourgish.

There are a few metal radio shows in Luxembourg but you might just be the first podcast that releases regular content in our small country. Where do you see yourself in regards to those already existing shows?
Radio shows have the advantage that they can play music and the talking time is usually kept short. A podcast is just talking, we just try to be ourselves and make it a bit funny and interesting. We found out that there was nothing like this in Luxembourg and we just wanted to share our passion for the music. At the beginning we didn’t know if it would be popular but we just wanted to try. Social media helped us to build up something and so we developed a small audience that remains constant and even grows, which makes us proud.

What is your mission that you set for yourselves?
We want to share our love for metal and maybe broaden the horizon for others and introduce new bands. Maybe even make metal more enjoyable to others in the first place. But what is most important to us is to support our local bands. Both of us were not up to date with the Luxembourgish metal scene at the beginning of the podcast, so I’m glad that we started the project and could discover how many different bands there are in our country. That’s why we had planned to do a kind of “interview” with bands that are interested in us, which has already worked out a few times. Such episodes are always very interesting for us, for the listeners and also for the band members themselves.

Are there any specific local bands that you are looking forward to seeing live again?
Absolutely! A lot has happened in our country in the last 2 years. Many songs, EPs and albums have been released. First and foremost Scarred and Miles To Perdition but we are also looking forward to Feradur, Parity, Asathor, Mindpatrol, Legacy of Atlas and many more.

Do you have any goals for the future concerning your podcast?
I think it is safe to say that naturally we want to evolve, try out different things in terms of spreading the metal scene across our podcast but at the same time we want to keep it as real and organic as we can. Meaning it doesn’t have to be perfect as long as we consider it enjoyable and entertaining and just go with the flow.

Concluding words?
The worldwide metal scene is evolving constantly and so is the local one. As long as there will be metal made in Luxembourg, we will be there to spread its glory.

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Check out the “Kaméidi” podcast here:
Spotify
YouTube
Facebook
Instagram

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(Editor’s note: Originating from Brazil, Arken has found a new home in Luxembourg)

When and where did Arken come into existence and what is the story/concept behind it?
Arken was born in 2015, after the split of my previous band. I felt the need of taking more action as a songwriter, I got the band together and we started working on scratches of songs from the late 90s, which I had stored, and after two years we finally had enough material to record a full length album. We recorded a self entitled EP with four songs, released in august 2018. The EP had great acceptance by the underground media and the fan base started to grow from that point on. In 2019 we had the Arken Opening Tour, playing songs from the EP and new songs as well. The tour hit the countryside cities of São Paulo, ending in a major festival called Metal Stock, in Botucatu city. In 2020 we released the single Hope, for the Roadie Metal 6 Years Heavy compilation.

The concept of the songs are about modern life as well as literature and cinema works that caused some sort of impact and triggered the motivation to write about it.

The name of the band was inspired by J. R. R. Tolkein’s book “The Hobbit ”, which tells the story of a quest that has in its center the Arkenstone. The song Arken is about Thorin Oakenshield greed and desire for the jewel.

Which are the albums and the bands that have influenced you the most during your musical growth?
I have to say, without a doubt, Iron Maiden. Their entire discography is a key influence to my style of writing songs. Other than Maiden, I could also name several bands from the nwobhm, like Tytan, Dark Star, Bitches Sin, Crucifixion, etc. Dio’s Dream Evil and Helloween’s Andy Deris records also have a great musical influence on me.

Is there a specific country or region that the band would like to perform at?
Definitely Europe. With the recent change from São Paulo to Luxembourg, now the band is based in the heart of Europe and has access to a variety of worldly famous venues and festivals, which were the goal all along. We also have plans to hit the USA and Japan as soon as we can.

What´s the songwriting process? How do you usually come up with your ideas?
The inspiration usually comes at bed time, during dreams… So I get up and write everything down in order to not forget anything. In the next morning, I start to develop the ideas into themes and then into actual songs. The first riffs are usually more linked to inspirations that come from life situations, emotions, films and books. After that there is the technical process of assembling ideas into structured songs. As a composer ever since, I rarely discard an idea, even when I don’t use it right away, I keep them so I have a lot of material stored that I use to arrange new compositions.

How has the whole situation with the pandemic affected your creativity and mindset?
The pandemic had a huge impact, because we were in the final stage of recording and preparing a South american tour to support the full length album. In order to keep our fans, family, friends and ourselves safe, we decided to focus on writing new material. At the same time, we had enough time to rethink plans and decide to move on to changing the band location. It felt the right moment to do it. As a result, we had an increase in compositions, so there is a lot of material to work on for the next two albuns.

Who would you most like to collaborate with?
I would love to collaborate with local bands, get to know the Luxembourgish metal scene and build partnerships to thrive here in Luxembourg and expand to our neighbours.

What’s next for you?
We are making final adjustments for the release of the first full length, yet for this year, and preparing the tour of 2022. We are very excited to be able to show all the work we are on and have a great time onstage again, specially to new audiences. It will be an awesome experience.

Final words?
I would like to thank Earthbound Collective, I am very excited to be able to get in touch with people involved with metal in Luxembourg, I always wanted to bring the band to Europe to develop it in a thriving environment as Luxembourg offers, with its venues and festivals. I am sure that as we leave the pandemic, all bands and artists will get back on touring and have great times with fans.

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Check out Arken here:
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube
Website

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You guys changed your name from “Mercy Shot” to “Suffocate”. What is the story behind the new name and does it have any influence on the vibe of your music?
Since the name Mercy Shot was already taken, we decided to change our name to avoid misunderstandings, our newly presented band name “Suffocate” came to us after brainstorming different ideas. From all the potential band names thrown around, we finally agreed upon the name Suffocate, since it represents how a big percentage of the society feels. Depending on which song we are playing a few of our songs also have moments which can be breathtaking.

Hugo Nogueira Centeno, who is mostly known for being the frontman of “Lost In Pain” and “Praetor” recently joined your band as your drummer. Do you think that it will change the dynamic of the band and the songs?
Yes, after Hugo joined our Band, we kinda felt that our songs became more dynamic and as a songwriter himself he brought a new spirit and an overall sense of arrangement to our music.

How does it feel for Hugo to take over the spot behind the kit? Given that it is his first time playing the drums in a band.
It feels good but also challenging since it is not his main instrument. Suffocate is his first band as a drummer.

You brought out two songs during the pandemic: “Pills Addict” and “The Day I Lost My Life”. Was the songwriting process any different under these special circumstances?
The lack of concerts forced us to concentrate on our songwriting. We wrote new stuff and polished the older ones.

The Luxembourgish hardcore scene was quite strong a few years ago. Do you think that this changed during recent years, as some bookers who were really pushing the genre (such as Dying Blood Crew) are not currently active?
We miss the hardcore scene but on the other hand we feel like the next concerts will be booming with new faces!

Having members who were active in bands all across the metal genre in your group, what do you think is the biggest strength and do you think there are any drawbacks to that?
For now, we’re digging that kind of mix. We love the approach of different styles in our band, that’s something that actually helps us keep things fresh.

If you could play any international music festival, which one would it be and why?
Dare to dream but at the moment we would already be happy to play as many gigs as possible.

How did you guys handle the pandemic, and have you got anything planned post-Covid?
We used this gap in our life to rehearse and work on our songs and to melt ourselves as a band. Plans after COVID-19? Album recording and to play a max.

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Check out Suffocate here:
Facebook
Instagram

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