MORTEM (PER) (AQUELLARE MAGAZINE #5, 1998)

Aquellare Magazine was a Peruvian magazine written in Spanish, but down below there's an interview with the awesome band Mortem, translated to English.

MORTEM

After the second issue where we interviewed them, Fernan reappears here commenting on the great reception of their second album, "The Devil Speaks in Tongues." Pay attention, idiots who misinterpret the answers last time

Aq: First of all, I want to congratulate you once again on this latest production. I'd like to know what kind of reviews it has received worldwide, rankings, and all that?
Fernan: Thanks for your support, Raphael. Well, this second album, "The Devil Speaks in Tongues" (as well as "Demon Tales"), has received excellent reviews in the extreme metal and underground press In Sounds of Death magazine (S.O.D. #12) we received the highest score (10 fucking skulls!), in TERRORIZER magazine #58 we were described as a "cult" band and given 4 out of 5 points, and in issue #59 of this magazine we were also featured in an article about South American metal with Brazilian bands, etc. Likewise, the reviews have been very positive in magazines like GRINDER from Chile and TALES OF THE MACABRE, IRON PAGES, ABLAZE, and DEFTONE, which are influential magazines in Germany, and in countless fanzines in Australia, Italy, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Russia, etc., generally throughout Europe, parts of the USA, and even Australia. 

Aq: I think that with two good productions already (without forget the demos), you might be thinking about doing a tour in the the country and why not in South America, are there any difficulties? I think it would make you even more recognized and would be very useful for promoting this latest CD. 
Fernán: Of course, a tour would help consolidate the career of any group. We depend a lot on the organizers, and the financial aspect can also be an obstacle for them. In any case, the intentions are there, as well as within the country; what's lacking is better organization. Who knows, maybe in the future something will materialize. 

Aq: On this album, apart from the black metal lyrics, what else is talked about? Perhaps a story, an inspiration, a tale? Give me more details! 
Fernán: There's a song on the album "Demons Haunt Loudun" is inspired by a well-known historical case of demonic possession that took place in Loudun, a province of France, in the 17th century. A priest named Urban Grandier was accused by the nuns of the Ursuline convent in Loudun of having seduced them and of being the devil himself. Urban Grandier was captured, tried by the tribunal of the Holy Inquisition, tortured into confessing, and finally burned alive after suffering the most cruel torments. But he cast a curse upon those who had sentenced him, and the main priest died after a month. Likewise, another priest involved became mute forever while saying Mass and then died.

Whether fact or pure fantasy, we have always been fascinated by this story, and just as "A Demon Tale" told a similar story based on this case of Urban Grandier, on this album we decided to delve deeper into it The song "Devil Speaks in Tongues" (which can be translated as "The Devil Speaks in Tongues" or "The Devil Speaks in Tongues") is written in three different languages: Sanskrit, Classical Greek, and Quechua. The translation of these lyrics appears at the end of the acknowledgments on the CD. The lyrics of the song "Uma, Head of the Witch" are in the vein of "Unguy Maman..." as they are based on a true Andean legend about a witch's head that wanders at night in search of victims. These are some of the surprises on our new album, as we are interested in conveying the feeling of darkness and calling out to all those who share this feeling and are fascinated by the dark side. 

Aq: What concept do you give to the cover art of this latest album, and who designed it?
Fernán: Well, the cover only shows a winged demon that appears to be meditating. It looks like a stone sculpture and is a photo by the same German artist who did the previous cover for "Demon Tales." Inside the CD, we can see a photo of a wooden demon sculpture located in the Arequipa Cathedral. The album title expresses a paradox: supposedly, those infused with the Holy Spirit and divine grace "speak in tongues" because they reach a divine ecstasy, but in this case, we take it in a more literal sense: the devil speaks in all languages, since he has existed in all cultures and has different names in different languages.

Aq: Fernán, seeing as you are a lethally dark and brutal band, is there any interest in releasing a music video? 
Fernán: We have ideas for making a video, but for the moment there's nothing concrete since it's very expensive. There have been some offers, but it's not decided yet.

Aq: It seems like the relationship with the guy at MERCILESS Records is good, do you plan to sign for another album? 

Fernán: Well, we still have to discuss that, since now we're thinking of setting more conditions and there are other offers. For now, one of the offers we've recently received comes from South America. We're going to study the offers carefully since what we want is to move forward with respect to the previous contract.

Aq: Last time I asked you how you feel musically about this album compared to the previous one, "Demon Tales," and you told me it had the essence of old MORTEM, that is, a mix between the demos "Evil Dead," "Superstition," and "Demon Tales." Could you explain this in more detail?

Fernán: Yes, this album is more balanced and more harmoniously brings together the stages that MORTEM has gone through during these 12 years (12 wasted years?, hahaha) and at the same time it's more mature without having lost the essence of the original MORTEM. There are songs from "Superstition" and "Evil Dead" and new songs that show our strongest influences andalso demonstrate that MORTEM is not a band that's just following a trend. Trends are fleeting, only true metal prevails. There's also a cover of the band SACRIFICE that's only for true metal connoisseurs, because this Canadian band has already been forgotten by most. 

Aq: Fernán, are you one of those people who only like to listen to death metal/black metal, or do you also listen to doom, gothic rock, avant-garde, or what the hell?

Fernán: Well, honestly, I can listen to everything and I'm aware that there must be good bands in every style, but when it comes to recording music or buying records, I prefer classic Heavy Metal and Black/Death/Thrash bands from the 80s, which are the ones that fascinate me the most. With this, I don't mean to say that there aren't good bands now that have their own thing, obviously there are.

Aq: Where did you record the album? And, since "Demon Tales," do you think your playing technique has improved? 

Fernán: We recorded the album again at El Techo Audio Digital by Amadeo Gaviria. He's known our sound since 1992 when we recorded the demo "Vomit of the Earth." I think we have progressed technically, but our aim isn't to be a 100% technical band; feeling is above all else, we're not virtuosos, nor do we pretend to be. 

Aq: What happened with the previous guitarist? Was there a misunderstanding, a falling out?

Fernán: Sandro simply told me he no longer had time to play in MORTEM because he wanted to dedicate himself fully to setting up his rehearsal space and giving guitar lessons. I don't know if there were other reasons beyond that. In any case, he didn't tell me anything else. But there definitely wasn't any falling out with him, and we're still friends.

Aq: Besides playing in MORTEM, I think you're also studying. This rehearsing and spending so much money, doesn't that hinder your studies, or do you make time for them? Seeing the situation in this country, it seems like everything is difficult, although Peru isn't the same as it is today. It's much more modern and cleaner than before!

Fernán: I finished my degree in '96, and currently I have some odd jobs related to my specialty.

It's true that the band takes up quite a bit of time and money, but you can't complain if you really enjoy playing and making metal. The MORTEM CDs recently arrived at customs; they issued me a bill for approximately 320,000 pesos, so I could pick up the 50 discs. These discs are royalties sent by the record label, and I shouldn't have to pay anything for them, but Peru has the highest customs tariffs in South America, so even though I don't want to, I have to contribute from my own music to the public treasury. In other countries, especially in Europe, I understand that the state supports musical groups and finances their demos because it has a duty to support "culture," however, here it's the other way around.

Aq: Some time ago you told me that you were going to change the band's name to EX-MORTEM, but you never told me why

Fernán: That was a while ago, and it was just an idea that came up when A. Amduscias left the group, but it's been discarded now, and besides Amduscias is still composing in MORTEM, so it's all good. The name we were going to give the band was AD MORTEM ("towards death" in Latin), but in the end we didn't. 

Aq: When it comes to making a recording, are you too perfectionistic, especially about your experience playing concerts? Tell me about it.

Fernán: We're not that perfectionistic; we just aim for an acceptable sound. There are always problems live; the last time, when MORTEM was playing, someone mysteriously unplugged the soundboard and everything went to hell, but that's how it is, it's part of the job, as they say

Aq: I think MORTEM is better known in Europe than in the rest of the world. The guy from MERCILESS moves them across continents. This might be because of their country and continent, am I right? And here we clear up any doubts: from which part of the world do they receive the most correspondence, emails, etc.?

Fernán: Yes, that might be true, but we receive letters from everywhere: Malaysia, Turkey, Australia, Norway, Sweden, Italy, England, Russia, etc. We also receive emails from the U.S. and we also take care of the promotion through the record label. It moves well throughout Europe.

 There, although you're right, the guy from the...  What happens is that here the immensity of the underground metal movement isn't known; people are only thinking about the most well-known bands like Cannibal Corpse amd more commercial magazines and they get carried away by MTV. But luckily we have the support of the national scene, and that's important for us, since no one is a prophet in their own land, but although it doesn't give us any benefit in material matters, the response from the Peruvian scene does comfort us emotionally and gives us satisfaction, that's why we thank the Peruvian metalheads who support us. 

Aq: And do you answer all the letters? 

Fernán: Yes, as much as possible, because sometimes some fanzines ask for promotional CDs and the shipping is expensive, so I have no choice but to send them with the record label.

Aq: There are many bands in our scene these days. In your opinion, which ones generate the most buzz and attention?

Fernán: In general, all bands that put in the effort to produce their demos or CDs deserve attention when their music is genuine. But I don't agree with forming cliques and not giving other groups a chance to show what they're capable of. There's a bit of everything: groups that talk a lot and end up doing nothing, or groups that simply don't have the support or the opportunity. Sometimes, organizers think they have the right to choose which bands are worthwhile based on their own criteria, or if they have friends among the band members, and all that nonsense. Besides the bands that have more support, like us, Kranium, or Disinter, Estigma, and Masacre, there are groups I particularly like, such as Repugnancia.

It's disgusting that this is a fantastic band that doesn't have the support of the organizers, and there are many other groups like this who are denied the chance to play with decent sound. But on the other hand, many bands don't stand up for themselves and are dying to play, even in the worst conditions, although in our scene it's very difficult to get respect from organizers who only want to be seen or profit from the concerts and don't care a bit about supporting the Peruvian scene. But someone should tell them that if they want to make money, they should find other ways because in metal there never has been, isn't, and never will be much money to be made, unless it's by scamming people and disappearing with the ticket money.

Aq: Well, Fernán, thanks once again for granting me this interview, I hope they manage to tour to promote the album, and I know that this latest record, as well as the previous ones, has been and will be appreciated by true connoisseurs of underground metal, and they will have great satisfaction worldwide. Is there anything else you'd like to add for the AQUELARRE readers?

Fernán: On the contrary, thank you, Rafael, for giving us the opportunity to appear again in your magazine, which is one of the few that takes this seriously and keeps going despite one setback or another. Just support real metal, don't be swayed by fads, and support the Peruvian scene. No to piracy! Death to fake metal!

MORTEM P.O. BOX 210035 Lima 21, PERU E-Mail: mortem1@hotmail.com