Metal Heads every where, have you been looking for some serious, heavy, blast filled anger fueled death-grind done right? I’m talking an allstar lineup consisting of the precision power house human drum machine Adam Jarvis, the brilliant guitar and song writing skills of Björn Köppler, the vicious raw vocal delivery of Vince Mathews, laying down the bass is Julien Roos, and then on top of that you have, Deha, and Kevin Olazs also on guitars giving this band the added edge to absolutely blow your mind. Together they create some of the heaviest hitting artillery and making death grind like we haven’t heard in ages, unfiltered, and with meticulous yet brute force. I introduce to you, God Enslavement, the band that has come to do exactly what so few have been able to pull off. I had a chance to catch up with Björn Köppler and talk to him about God Enslavement, from the song writing, to the killer line up, and what we can expect from God Enslavement he was even kind enough to reply in both English, and German for all metal heads reading this. Check out this short interview and then get the first listen to GOD ENSLAVEMENT \m/
So Björn, what influenced you to create God Enslavement? You play for Maladie also, and just released a new album in 2015, so was the time just right, and is this something you have wanted to do for a while?
Hey Brian,
well, actually I had been writing this record for my old band Tombthroat. But after I had gotten very sick, we just couldn’t keep the band as alive as my past band mates had wished to. After much back and forth and with a heavy heart we eventually decided to bury the band after almost twenty years since its foundation. But we parted ways as friends and the guys have founded a very cool new Crust band named Hellknife. It really rocks as hell and you should definitely give it a listen!
Anyway, the songs have already been composed that way and I didn’t want to throw them in the garbage. so there had to be a new beginning. As personal and, above all, as important Maladie is for me, Death Metal and Grindcore were, are and will be a matter close to my heart and an important part of my life, so I thought about who would be most suitable to make this record real with me. The line-up as it is set up right now is of course a dream and the result in form of our debut album speaks for itself. And it won’t be the last album for sure.
You wrote all of the music and lyrics for this album, when you were coming up with the music, did you have people in mind as the ideas were flowing? Were you thinking “Drums need someone like Adam Jarvis, or I need Julien on Bass for this album?”
Yes, the lyrics and the biggest part of the music were made by me. One song was contributed by Déhà and one was written by me and Mark from Spheron. I also made the lyrics for those songs. That’s how it went with Tombthroat and it’s the same with Maladie. So this is really nothing new for me and just the way I’m used to do it. Of course, I was thinking of Tombthroat when I was writing the songs. But now that I was aiming for a new beginning, my favorite candidates were chosen quickly and I am very happy and proud to be able to work with such exceptional artists.
Where was the album recorded, and where did you guys mix and master?
Oh, it was many different studios. Adam was recording in the USA. So was Vincent. Most of the guitars were recorded here in my little project studio, the guitar solos in Bonn (a German city 250km away from here), the bass guitar in a different German place and Déhà was recording the guitars for his song in Bulgaria in his project studio. But regarding the mixing and mastering I was sure to hire Stefano Morabito from the 16th Cellar Studios in Rome/Italy from the very beginning. When it comes to hard Death Metal he is the spearhead of album production. And again he was doing a perfect job here. The record sounds just the way it’s supposed to. Also we were getting along great and it was as if he knew exactly what I wanted and imagined.
How long did it take to go from having written the music and having the idea, to acquiring all the members and getting them in studio?
Hm, to be honest, I can’t really remember, haha. After I was finally allowed to leave the hospital my life went haywire. In many respects it was a new beginning, also with reference to writing music. The whole thing seems to have influenced me, as I’ve been composing not only the new album of God Enslavement, but also one and a half albums for Maladie and one 45 minutes long EP in a few weeks. When the line-up was ready, things went real quick in the recording progress. Just a few weeks and everything was in the can.
I know Vince Mathews has gone on record to say this is one of his proudest achievements in death metal, Adam has gone on to say that if he is going to play in a band that it’s going to fulfil his personal interest and legacy and why he was blown away when he heard the rough material. What does this album mean to you?
Yeah, that really makes me very proud. Adam has always impressed me. He has that certain something, that many drummers in metal lack: a very own style which can easily be identified among many others. But still his playing is very direct and brutal. As you can hear on our debut album we fit together very, very well musically. With his ideas and his playing he improved my riffs several times over. And the same is for Vincent. Many fans will curse me for this, but for me „Stop at Nothing“ from Dying Fetus is one of their best albums. And what Vince is doing on this record is one of the best things I could ever listen to in Deathgrind. But again he absolutely went one better for God Enslavement and all of us are very, very content and happy with his performance in „Consuming the Divine“! That much anger and aggression just suited our songs perfectly. I’m looking forward to the next albums with these guys!
For me personally the album means a new beginning and I am really very proud of it.
Are you able to give us an idea of a release date, and how you will be releasing it? Whether its digital only, if you guys will do vinyl, pre-order bundles other merchandise etc?
Right now we don’t have a fix date yet, I’m afraid. We’re aiming at the end of spring. Earlier hopefully. We’ll see. But I hope we can show the album to everyone very soon. We’re all very excited about it, haha. Suddenly you feel young again, almost like with the first record you made so many years ago…
If there was one thing you wanted to say to someone before they are about to listen to the album for the first time, what would you say to them.
Oh, I would say: Brace yourself; we’re playing Deathgrind like it is being played far too long far too rarely. It brings tears to my eyes looking at what is being called Death Metal nowadays.
Thank you Björn for taking the time to answer my questions, I really look forward to the release of this album, and after listening to this album, I will be looking forward to anything God Enslavement puts out.
It’s me who has to thank you! It’s people like you who still make me believe in the scene away from the commercial tourism that is much too present in Metal nowadays! I am still a fan of the music and always happy to meet the same. Support the Underground!
With that we would like to welcome you to the world wide premier or God Enslavement and their killer track “Belial Within”
German Interview
So Björn, what influenced you to create God Enslavement? You play for Maladie also, and just released a new album in 2015, so was the time just right, and is this something you have wanted to do for a while?
Hey Brian,
nun, ich habe diese Platte eigentlich für meine alte band Tombthroat geschrieben. Aber nachdem ich 2014 sehr krank wurde, haben wir es einfach nicht mehr geschafft, die Band so am Leben zu halten, wie sich das meine ehemaligen Bandmitglieder wünschten. Nach langem Hin und Her, haben wir uns schweren Herzens dazu entschieden, nach fast 20 Jahren, die Band zu Grabe zu tragen. Wir sind aber als Freunde auseinander gegangen und die Jungs haben eine sehr coole neue Crust Band names Hellknife gegründet. Das rockt wie Hölle und ihr solltet da unbedingt mal reinhören!
Die Lieder waren aber nun mal komponiert und ich wollte sie nicht in den Müll werfen. Also musste ein Neuanfang her. So persönlich und vorallem wichtig Maladie für mich ist, war, ist und bleibt der Death Metal und Grindcore aber eine Herzenssache und ein wichtiger Teil meines Lebens und ich habe mir dann Gedanken gemacht, wer sich am besten dazu eignen würde, diese Platte doch noch mit mir zu realisieren. Das Line Up, wie es jetzt steht, ist natürlich ein Traum und das Resultat in Form unseres Debütalbums spricht für sich. Und es wird sicher nicht das letzte Album sein.
You wrote all of the music and lyrics for this album, when you were coming up with the music, did you have people in mind as the ideas were flowing? Were you thinking “Drums need someone like Adam Jarvis, or I need Julien on Bass for this album?”
Ja, die Texte und der Großteil der Musik ist von mir. Ein Lied hat Déhà beigesteuert und eins habe ich mit Mark von Spheron zusammen geschrieben. Die Texte habe ich ebenfalls verfasst. So war das auch bei Tombthroat und so ist es bei Maladie. Das ist also nichts wirklich neues für mich und ich bin es nicht anders gewöhnt. Als ich die Lieder schrieb, hatte ich natürlich Tombthroat im Sinn. Als es aber an den Neuanfang ging, waren meine Wunschkandidaten sehr schnell gewählt und ich bin sehr froh und stolz. Nun mit solchen Ausnahmekünstlern zusammenarbeiten zu können.
Where was the album recorded, and where did you guys mix and master?
Oh, das waren viele unterschiedliche Studios. Adam hat in den USA aufgenommen. Vincent auch. Die meisten Gitarren sind hier in meinem kleinen Projektstudio aufgenommen worden. Die Gitarren-Soli in Bonn (deutsche Stadt etwa 250km entfernt von hier), der Bass wiederum woanders in Deutschland und Déhà hat die Gitarren für seinen Song in Bulgarien, in seinem Projektstudio aufgenommen. Für den Mix und das Mastering war für mich aber von Vornherein klar, dass wir Stefano Morabito und seine 16th Cellar Studios in Rom/Italien verpflichten. Wenn es um harten Death Metal geht, ist er die Speerspitze, was die Produktion eines Albums angeht. Und er hat auch hier wieder einen perfekten Job abgeliefert. Die Platte klingt genau so, wie sie es muss. Wir haben uns auch direkt verstanden und es war, als ob er genau wusste, was ich möchte und mir vorstelle.
How long did it take to go from having written the music and having the idea, to acquiring all the members and getting them in studio?
Hm, Ich kann mich ehrlich gesagt gar nicht wirklich dran erinnern, haha. Nachdem ich das Krankenhaus endlich wieder verlassen durfte, ging es in meinem Leben drunter und drüber. In vielerlei Hinsicht war es ein Neuanfang. Auch was das Schreiben von Musik anging. Das Ganze scheint mich sehr beeinflusst zu haben, denn neben dem God Enslavement Album, habe ich auch anderthalb Maladie Alben und eine 45 Minuten lange EP in wenigen Wochen komponiert. Nachdem das Line Up stand, ging es auch ziemlich schnell mit den Aufnahmen. Wenige Wochen, und alles war im Kasten.
I know Vince Mathews has gone on record to say this is one of his proudest achievements in death metal, Adam has gone on to say that if he is going to play in a band that it’s going to fulfill his personal interest and legacy and why he was blown away when he heard the rough material. What does this album mean to you?
Yeah, das macht mich wirklich sehr stolz. Adam hat mich schon immer beeindruckt. Er hat genau das, was vielen Drummern im Metal mittlerweile fehlt: Einen sehr eigenen Stil, den man auch unter vielen sehr schnell heraushören kann. Und trotzdem ist sein Spiel sehr direkt und brutal. Wie man auf unserem Debüt hören kann, passen wir musikalisch auch sehr sehr gut zusammen. Er hat mit seinen Ideen und seinem Spiel meine Riffs um das vielfache verbessert. Und dasselbe gilt für Vincent. Viele Fans werden mich dafür verfluchen, aber für mich ist „Stop at Nothing“ von Dying Fetus auch eins ihrer besten Alben. Und was Vince auf dieser Platte macht, ist mit das beste, was ich im Deathgrind bisher hören durfte. Aber er hat für God Enslavement nochmal ordentlich einen draufgelegt und wir alle sind sehr sehr zufrieden und glücklich mit seiner Leistung auf „Consuming the Divine“! Soviel Wut und Aggression passte einfach perfekt zu den Songs. Ich freue mich schon auf die nächsten Alben mit den Jungs!
Für mich persönlich bedeutet das Album einen Neuanfang und ich bin wirklich sehr stolz darauf.
Are you able to give us an idea of a release date, and how you will be releasing it? Whether its digital only, if you guys will do vinyl, pre-order bundles other merchandise etc?
Leider haben wir im Moment noch kein fixes Datum. Geplant ist Ende des Frühlings. Hoffentlich früher. Wir werden sehen. Aber ich hoffe, dass wir den leuten das Album sehr bald zeigen können. Wir sind alle sehr aufgeregt deshalb, haha. Man fühlt sich plötzlich wieder jung, fast wie bei der ersten Platte, die man vor so vielen Jahren gemacht hat…
If there was one thing you wanted to say to someone before they are about to listen to the album for the first time, what would you say to them.
Oh, ich würde sagen: Mach dich auf was gefasst; wir spielen Deathgrind, wie er schon viel zu lange viel zu wenig gespielt wird. Was heutzutage so alles Death Metal genannt wird, da kommen mir die Tränen…
Thank you Björn for taking the time to answer my questions, I really look forward to the release of this album, and after listening to this album, I will be looking forward to anything God Enslavement puts out.
Ich habe dir zu danken! Leute wie du sind es, die mich noch an die Szene, weitab vom Kommerztourismus den es im Metal heutzutage viel zu viel gibt, glauben lassen! Ich bin immer noch Fan der Musik und freue mich immer, wenn ich ebensolche kennenlernen darf.
Support the Underground!
There you have it folks, you have just been the first group of people collectively to hear God Enslavement. So do yourself a favor and check out the links I have below for not only God Enslavement, but the bands that the guys are also a part of.
Maladie Shattered Pig Destroyer Fulgora Misery Index Asthma Castle Effloresce Deadborn Kaotoxin Sources of I Lebenssucht Yhdarl
-Badger \m/
Visit our FACEBOOK page \m/_(><)_\m/
http://www.badgersmetalbreakdown.com
The Metal Breakdown 