Interview with guitarist Markus „Infernal” Kuschke on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Tyrants of the Netherworld.
So Infernal, would you say, that Desaster had made a name for itself due to its convincing previous outputs, such as the Stormbringer Ep and the Hellfire’s Dominion album?
Yes, the worldwide scene was small in those days, and we got great response from everywhere for the latest releases. We really had created our very own style, and back then Thrashing Black Metal wasn´t played on every corner like today!
Did the band built up a name as a power black-thrash act that is only growing with time?
I think so! When we started and even on our debut album we were more „Black” and especially Okkulto was orientated to and influenced by the scandinavian bands. But since our „Stormbringers” mini album our Thrash roots were growing stronger and stronger and this was a quite natural development after we also developed as a band and learned to play together better and better.
Before the releasing of your third album, you left Merciless Records and you were signed by Iron Pegasus, what was the reason of it?
Well, Volker of Merciless is a great guy who did a lot for the extreme Metal underground. But he´s also a very lazy and slow guy, harhar! So when our friend and Hellbangers´ comrade Costa started his own label Iron Pegasus we were thinking: ok, let´s bring some fresh air into it and give a new pussy a chance, hehe!
At which point did you start working on Tyrants of the Netherworld?
We are a band that lives in the rehearsal room! So we are constantly writing music, this was a fact 30 years ago and is still happening today! So soon after an album is finished we already collect new ideas, riffs and songs!
How long did it take you to come up with new material? Have you been working on new songs all the time?
Yes, and back in those times we had a lot more time for the band and spend a lot of time at the rehearsal place. I remember Tormentor was unemployed and I was still a student at university so we rehearsed 2-4 times a week!! So it was no problem to write new songs in a short period of time! Unfortunately nowadays this is not possible any longer, today we rehearse every 6th or 8th week!!!
Did the label perhaps ask you to hear new tunes?
No, we always had the freedom to decide on our own when the time for a new DESASTER album was there!! That was one of the most important things for us and even today with a label like Metal Blade in the back it hasn´t changed!!
You entered the Audio Artist Studio, Aichtal, Germany from July 14-19th, 2000, how did the recording sessions go?
Well, we liked the sound of some 7” recordings of our friends of MAYHEMIC TRUTH, especially the drum sound, so we booked the same studio of Roman Schönsee near Stuttgart. The recordings were done very quick and I remember Okkulto brought a lot of „inspiration” to the studio like candles, skulls and posters of Kerys King, Quorthon….haha! We also had time to visit the famous „Rockfabrik” in Ludwigsburg where in fact a lot of posers walked around! I also remember on the way back from the venue I was drunk and by mistake crushed the face of Roman´s girlfriend with the car door! After that he wasn´t very happy having us in the studio, so we really quickly finished the album, harhar!
Is it correct, that the album was produced bythe band?
Well, we had our own thoughts about how the album should sound, and with the help of the old mixing console, the old analogue tracking machine and the mixing guy we really managed to achieve what we´ve wanted!!
In your opinion, is a third album a crucial point in every band’s career?
No, I think the second one is the ”Make it or break it” point! Here you have to prove if the promises you made with the debut can be fullfilled!
By the way, did you have material written, that didn’t make up on the record?
No, we never have! Of course there are always some riffs or ideas which were not used, but I store such fragments in a huge database (I still have a lot of „ideas” on tape, hehe!!) and from time to time I re-discover some cool stuff which is then transformed into a full song.
Did Tyrants… show the band’s musical style fully formed for the first time, as black metal and thrash elements have been finally nearly perfectly amalgamated?
Well, I think already on Hellfire´s Dominion we had found our style, but on Tyrants everything fitted together perfectly: the mixture of Black & Thrash and atmospheric (medieval) elements, together with the iconic cover artwork, the dark photos and the magma-sound! Just listen to the title track: It has everything Desaster stands for! It represents our style much better than the title track „Hellfire´s Dominion”.
Did you truly outdid yourselves and every song is so carefully written?
Well, songwriting is a complicated art: if you overdo it with too many riffs, too much rythms etc. a song becomes too unnatural, without a „flow” or feeling if you know what I mean! So our songwriting is mostly very spontanously. But because we could spend so much time at the rehearsal place at that time we could work on many many details! We also involved our label boss Costa and he also contributed some ideas to make the songs even better!
You’ve really harnessed all the power they’ve manage to build from the prior material to really bring it into their finest form, right?
Yes, I really think the album stands the test of time and the songs are all still very strong, even after 25 years!
Do you agree with, that the medieval elements, typical of the band’s early years are also present, although they play only a minor role on Tyrants of the Netherworld?
Well, we always have „atmospheric” elements and parts in our songs, sometimes more, sometimes less. I think on Tyrants they are stronger than on Hellfire´s!
Is this album more coherent than its predecessor?
Definitely! It´s perfect!
Did you turn the black metal influence down just a tad, and the thrash way up?
Compared to Hellfire´s where especially with „Metalized Blood” there´s our Speed Metal hymn included I would say that we „Blackened” the songs on Tyrants even more!
Is another thing characteristic of Desaster a consistent use of intro and outro which serve as a buckle bracing the album?
Yeah, on nearly every album that was the frame, but as we left out an outro already on the next album we won´t have an intro for the very first time! Sometimes it´s important to break with traditions.
Considering Nekropolis Karthago, Desaster has never sounded so violent and pissed off before…
Thank you! Yes, when the song starts it´s like hell´s breaking loose, but I think on the next album „Divine Blasphemies” the beginning was even more violent with the triple-growling of Mr. Sataniac!!
Did Disciples of Darkness perfectly balance weight between black metal and thrash?
Well, it´s more a flirt between Thrash, Speed and traditional Heavy Metal!
How do you view, that Sworn to Avenge show a diversity in the band that allows you to alternate from Sodom type of themes to Manowar ones?
Yeah, you got the point! Nethertheless if it´s our traditional Metal roots, our Thrash influences, Black Metal or even medieval atmosphere: we always try to combine all the elements to the typical Desaster mixture! Everything else would be boring!
Do you think, that Tyrants of the Netherworld find Desaster stepping up the slaughter with a warmly produced record of double-time German thrash ala Sodom with a decidedly blackened edge?
?
The record shows that the band are great musicians with a very strong understanding of what made thrash interesting from the begninning…
Thank you, but we are better fans than musicians, harhar! But I think that´s why our music is so interesting for others: we are still fans and don´t want to show our technical skills, but write kick ass songs!
Is the result brutal, yet somewhat catchy?
Very good description! Yes, it would be too boring to make 10 fast and brutal Black Metal songs without anything to be remembered after listening! For me it´s important to write songs with for example a good refrain, and I´m not speaking about „Can I play with madness” haha! I´m still very proud for example of the chorus of „Nekropolis Karthago” which was my idea! It´s great when the audiance is singing „NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKROPOLIS” with us! Goosebumps!
Tyrants of the Netherworld was the last full-length album Okkulto would sing on before being replaced by Sataniac on Divine Blasphemies, but before leaving the band, he did hit the studio with you one last time for the recording of Souls of Infernity EP, did you part ways on a friendly term at the end? Why did he leave the band at all?
Okkulto´s departure wasn´t friendly at all!!! He left the battlefield when we needed every warrior to win the fight!!! After the Tyrants album we got very good offers for festivals, touring and even played on the big Wacken open air! So when Okkulto came to the rehearsal place and told us he would leave us I was very very angry, I threw him out of the rehearsal room and smashed the wooden inverted cross which you can see on the backcover of the Tyrants LP nearly on his head! The ball had just started to roll for us, especialy Tormentor and me had invested so much time, blood and sweat into the band…and then the frontman decided to leave! We didn´t speak together for many years! There were several reasons for his departure, most of them were personal, but hey, we found a great replacement in only 2 weeks! With Sataniac we could reach everything we wanted! So in retrospective I´m glad what the nornes had spun for us! And there´s no bad blood between us an Okkulto any more. By the way: The Souls of Infernity songs were already recorded within the Tyrants session!
Is Tyrants Of The Netherworld the strongest Desaster effort considering the Occulto era?
Yes
Infernal, thanks a lot for your answers, what are your closing words for our readers?
Thank you for your interest, it´s always cool to revel in memories and remember the old times!
