Irish metal gods – Primordial – made a mini-tour at the end of the year 2003: Storming The East. I and my college Mr. Mirgilus have talked with vocalist Alan Averill Nemtheanga after the cathartic gig they played down here in Romania. Nemtheanga was assaulted with our questions, but he resisted very well. Here’s the result:
Congratulations, the show was great!
Thank you!
So, how did you reached to play here, in Romania?
Basically what happened is: I think Satyricon was supposed to play here and Satyricon cancelled the gig. I’ve been emailing with Negru from Negura Bunget, because I liked the last Negura Bunget album.
So I just emailed them a bit to talk with them and they sad, that “hey there’s a possibility and maybe you could come and play” and I’ve said “yeah, OK, well, let’s try and sort it out” and then together with this girl Beta and Korgos (the organizers of the Bulgarian gig- ed.) we just all sort of managed to figure it out and it all just kinda came together.
Is that simple?
Well, it wasn’t simple. I mean it wasn’t simple for them, because they had to pay us. We just sad “look, we’ll just fuckin’ try and get here and figure it out”.
And how did you travel? Do you have a minibus or something…?
Yeah, we came with a minibus. We came from Sofia up to here and everybody is fuckin’ tired, because we slept maybe five ours since Thursday, but fuck it, just sleep when you’ll dead as we say.
It’s all just an experience and it’s a cool experience for us, because we are not as big as Satyricon or big as some other bands. It’s cool to be big enough to be able to come and play two cool shows in Bulgaria and Romania, where a lot of bands not go.
And you enjoyed the show?
Yeah, of course.
This is your first time in Romania? I mean for personally you not for the band…
Yes, I’ve never been here before. I’ve been in Greece, we played gigs in Greece, Czech Republic and Poland.
This was the tour with Rotting Christ?
Yes. We were supposed to play in Hungary and Slovakia too, but the gigs were cancelled.
And we were supposed to go to Hungary to see Primordial live… What were the reasons of the canceling?
Well, the first time we were supposed to play with The Kovenant and then we’ve got an offer to tour with Immortal, so obviously we went with Immortal rather then with The Kovenant.
Then we’ve had a tour with Dismember and that was cancelled and then at the end of the Rotting Christ tour our drummer got some bad news from home and he decided to go home. And so there was no point in us going to last two days with no drummer.
Did you have time to see the city?
Not much. No, because it took us ten and a half an hour to get here from Sofia to Timisoara. You know, all these fuckin’ passports, border controls…
And how was the gig in Sofia?
Cool! Very big sports hall and there were maybe 350-400 people, or something. It was cool. All these things are interesting, and you can meet some cool people.
You are the only in the band, who’s using corpsepaint. Why is that so?
It’s kind of…I guess it’s a bit like Mercyful Fate. I’ve been doing it for 10-11 years and some people think it’s not gonna fit with Primordial, but I like that kind of paradox.
It can look brutal and sound melodic, but yet still brutal lyrically. Yesterday I’ve had pig’s blood and they lost the bubble on me… (?)
I would like to ask about your sword. You used a sword on the Spirit The Earth Aflame tour. Where is it?
Hahaha, basically on that tour when we were with Immortal and the second day I bought a sword in Belgium. It’s too much trouble to bring it over here. The border guards would have an excuse to stop us even more hours.
A question about your record label. Hammerheart Records now turned into Karmageddon Media. The next album will come out on Karmageddon? How’s your contract?
Generally, all record labels are complete bastards, completely repulsing, completely full of shit. Somebody like me, no matter who the label is, I’d be difficult to deal with, because I think art and business can’t work together. People start off with the best intentions and they say “I’ve never gonna become like this…” and then soon as money gets involved they become everything they’ve said they wouldn’t become.
And any record label that we have ever dealt with, with the exception maybe of Misantrophy Records they always have done the same thing. I mean I tell people that we should have interviews in countries like Romania or Bulgaria, but they didn’t care. All things like this have nothing to even do with them.
The Karmageddon doesn’t care about licenses, because they don’t make any money and so I just say bootleg everything, do whatever you want. It’s more important to get the music out there. Karmageddon they are just the same as any other label.
I’ve read on your website that you have some new songs and you will record a new CD. What can you tell me about it?
We are all writing songs, we’re gonna record another album, but we have a lot of stuff to sort out before that.
And it’s going to come out on Karmageddon Media, or at another label?
I can’t really say to be honest. Our contract is not expired, but there are a lot of negotiations happening.
Did you have offers from other labels?
Yes, but I can’t say who it is, haha. I’m sure you could use your imagination.
What happened to your hand? (Alan’s hand was broken and “plastered up”-ed.)
Oh, my hand. I’ve got ten stitches in my hand. Now I could say something cool, like “because I was fighting somebody”, but it’s not that. It’s from playing sport.
What kind of sport?
Hockey.
Ice-hockey or field-hockey?
Field-hockey.
It’s a traditional sport in Ireland?
No, in fact it’s completely the opposite.
(Everybody laughs).
It’s something I play since I was a little kid and it’s sort of something that English brought to Ireland and I’ve just happened to play. But now I smashed my hand a bit and I have ten stitches, which is quite hard now on stage, but I’m trying not to grip my hand as hard.
I have a demo tape of the Dark Romanticism demo and the cover is different from which I’ve seen on your website. How’s that?
Originally there are 1200 printed tape covers, which have a sort of crappy logo on the front. That’s what we did. Then Cacophonous Records did about 200 with a different cover with the lyrics white on black. If you got white lyrics on black that’s the Cacophonous Record’s and if you got black lyrics on white, then that’s the original one.
There were some talks about the re-editing of your “Dark Romanticism” demo…
Yeah, that’s coming out now.
I’ve liked your logo from the Imrama CD.
You did?
Yes, I liked it. Why did you change it?
I don’t know why we changed it. I think…ahh…that’s a good question! I don’t know why we changed it, really. I think maybe it just didn’t fit in the cover of A Journey’s End.
How are the new songs? What we should expect from the next Primordial album?
I think the next album should be longer, maybe 60-70 minutes, going from total acoustic guitars and singing to completely grim and everything in between. The most grim black metal we’ve ever done and also the most melancholic dark stuff.
Something like A Journey’s End?
Some bits of that with layered singing and acoustic guitars and traditional, but also really grim black metal.
I know that you’re not that much into folk music, I mean not as much as the others in the band…
Me? A bit, I do a bit. But the other guys are more into it. I’m that kind of Judas Priest, Manowar, Mercyful Fate, old thrash, but I do listen to some Irish traditional music, but not as much as the other guys, that’s true. But enough, you know… more then probably most people would think, but not compared to the other guys in the band.
My personal favorite album is A Journey’s End and I’ve always been interested who wrote the Dark Song?
It seems that A Journey’s End was really popular in this area. There is a friend of mine, who played the second guitar for Primordial for like two years, we did the Immortal tour with him.
Me and him had a band together, just doing acoustic guitars and singing and we had a sort of melody of the song, you know… (Nemtheanga actually sings here the melody line of Dark Song-ed.) and we’ve never made it into a song and then when we made A Journey’s End, me and Ciáran sort of took it and made it into the Dark Song, so I guess it’s originally like 20-30% belongs to me and that guy making it up and the lyrics are by this Irish pagan poet (Amergin Glangel), supposed to be the first druid in Ireland.
And what about The Cruel Sea? This is a traditional Irish song. In which age was written?
The Cruel Sea is just a traditional like Illian Pipe Air (?). We lifted a small part of it from, I think it was Seán O’ Riordáin, an Irish traditional Illian Pipe player, I think from the 15th or 16th century. We just took a little bit of the melody of that in and made it into a song.
Are you deep interested in the history of Ireland?
Yeah, but history of everyone’s is interesting.
And what do you know about Transylvania?
I know bits of countries down here. I know of things about First World War or 19th century history of these countries. I know of course the usual books about Countess Bathory and Vlad Tepes and all that kind of stuff, the usual black metal reading…I’ve read all about these stuff.
I used to mail Adrian of Mourning Beloveth and Sentinel Records. He said you’re good friends and he used to share a house with you. Are you still in contact with him?
Oh, Adrian of Mourning Beloveth, yeah. I used to live with him. I see him every week. He’s a cool guy. All from Mourning Beloveth are cool guys.
How’s the scene in Ireland. Are there many good bands?
Yes, but there’s not many fans. But the bands are kind of closer together in the last years, then before.
What about Geasa?
Geasa, yeah. It’s the same drummer that plays in Primordial. They have a new CD, but it’s only at a small Irish label.
Acheron Records…
Yes, that’s it. Fates Lost Sun is the title of their new CD.
It’s a great album and its sounds a little bit like Primordial…
A bit maybe, yeah. Those guys went to school with me and we all know each other like for 10-12 years.
And can you play any instrument?
I can play the bass and the guitar. I don’t really write stuff for Primordial, I’m doing another band: Void of Silence.
Yes, they’re from Italy and I wanted to ask you about it.
I’m doing the singing for Void of Silence, but I’m also have been writing some songs with Keith from Destroyer 666, so maybe we are gonna do a band together. They’re good friends of mine.
There will be just grim vocals on it?
It’s like big, epic Manowar-kind of metal.
Do you like old school metal?
Yes, that’s me. All that shit, like Desaster, Destroyer 666, Razor, Pentacle, Gospel Of The Horns, that’s cool stuff. I’m really into Exciter, Razor, Destruction and that’s kinda stuff.
So I guess it’s a little bit annoying for you when Primordial is compared to bands like My Dying Bride, or early Anathema. You’re nervous when you’re heard such comparisons?
No, but it’s just bullshit. People who don’t understand music just hear clean singing and they think its sound similar, but Anathema don’t play any chords like we do.
With My Dying Bride I can understand, they have that melancholy too, and the tone in his voice is a little bit like mine, but he doesn’t really sing, he just (Nemtheanga is imitating Aaron’s grievous style of singing-ed), very quiet you know, he doesn’t project his voice.
I mean we are friends with Anathema and My Dying Bride, but I don’t think its sounds similar. I think it’s just because there’s the melancholy. When we did the tour with Immortal some people said that Primordial doesn’t fit with Immortal, but I think Primordial is more like Immortal then Anathema.
Ex-Anathema bassist Duncan Patterson is also a friend of yours…
Yes, he lives like 4-5 minutes away from our house and we always hang out and stuff.
What do you think about his current band Antimatter?
It’s OK. Some things I like, but I don’t like the female vocals. I like only Mick’s vocals, I’m not into female vocals.
Primordial is a popular band in Ireland?
No, not really. We probably sell the most of any Irish metal band, but it’s only maybe 200-250 copies in Ireland, that’s all. We don’t have a big scene.
And where do you sell the most? Where do you have the biggest fan-base?
Germany and Greece of course. We can sell 15000 in Greece. We do well in Holland and Belgium. It’s easier to say the worst countries, which are like France, Finland and Denmark. Italy is not so great too, but it’s OK and England it’s quite OK as well for some reason. And I think we are OK in Australia too.
You play only in Europe or will you have some tours in Australia, America and countries like that?
Well, we have talked about going to play in Australia and we tried to play in America too, but that’s just hasn’t happened yet. Maybe next journey.
We just really trying to move the band on, like a new album for new people and just trying bring it up a little bit. The label where we are now, I think with the current situation we have we just can’t get there and play in these areas. So, we’ll see.
Primordial shows are theatrical a little, I mean it’s like you’re acting on stage…
It’s not acting, it’s just me. For that hour, hour and a half you just live those songs. You put your soul into them when you wrote them, so if you are pure in your intentions towards writing music it should be no problem to put yourself into those songs whether it’s 25 people or 2500, or 5000. You just do your thing, that’s what we do.
A lot of bands don’t really seem to believe what they do. It must be hard when the music means nothing and when it’s about fuckin’ zombies, or fuckin’ cartoon satanism like Ancient, or something. It’s just bullshit Hate Eternal and that kinda stuff. (Nemtheanga pointing at Mr. Mirgilus’ Hate Eternal T-shirt.-ed.) No offence, but its stupid lyrics.
Yeah, that’s death metal lyrics…
Yeah. But, you know, when music it’s from a pure place and actually means something to you, then it’s much easier to do what we do. No matter what are the circumstances, it’s 100% we’re not gonna complain about the amps of the drum kit on the stage. We played here and it was cool.
I suppose you’re not making a living from music. What do you do in your personal life?
What I do in the moment: I paint backdrops for bands to put behind the stage. So I do backdrops for Cirith Gorgor, Death Angel, Necrophobic and just doing things for Irish bands and local bands. I have a job, but it’s not really important what I do. Things like “what you do” I don’t think are important for people. I don’t mean it in a bad way and I don’t want it to look like arrogance or mysticism, but it’s just not important for people to know this.
OK. And the other members of Primordial?
I know what they do. Everybody works and everybody can make a living and it’s OK, but not from music.
How much time do you spent on practicing?
We are not a band that practices very often. We couldn’t practice 5 nights a week, it doesn’t work like that. We practice when we have to do something, or when we have ideas.
You have LP versions for each Primordial record. Are you a fan of LPs, a collector maybe?
Yeah, of course, from the old days. I have 500-600 LPs, or something.
And what are your all time favorite 4 albums?
It’s fuckin’ hard man. Weird number is four… It’s difficult, but if I had to pick 4, it would be…maybe…
Candlemass – Epicus, Doomicus, Metallicus
Iron Maiden – Iron Maiden
Manowar – Hail To England
Judas Priest – Screaming For Vengeance
Well, something like that, but, you know, it could be also Exodus – Bonded By Blood, Holy Terror – Mind Wars.
And what are your favorite drinks, food, books and movies…?
I like to read, at the moment I read a lot of II World War books about Stalingrad, then Spanish Civil War, The Fall of Berlin and right now I’m reading a book about IRA.
Do you get inspiration from these books?
Yeah, I take, but inspiration can come from anywhere. From people and from where you go, from experiences you have and so on…
It’s easy for you to write lyrics?
Yeah, when I want to I can put my thoughts into words quite well.
And you are also composing music?
I do write music, but not for Primordial. I don’t know yet for whom, it could be the band with Keith from Destroyer 666.
Your favorite drinks and so on…
Drink? Is got to be Sodden Comfort (?) and red lemonade sort of drink… Sony and red we call it. I hate to say, but I like Coca Cola as well I guess…
Food: anything with meat in it.
Movies: It’s hard to tell you what I like. I can tell you what I hate, it’s easier. Most American Hollywood bullshit fuckin’ commercial movies are what I hate.
And I like nasty black and white underground Finnish road movies. I like stuff like Akira Kurosawa and Japanese black and white movies.
Do you like David Lynch…?
Well, yeah, it’s OK, but not my thing really.
And what about the Lord Of The Rings?
Oh, yeah, that’s cool! I like that. There you go! It’s easier to say what you hate, than what you like. Every commercial capitalist American movies, Hollywood crap like explosions and fuckin’ tits…Well, not like that…
Well, I guess that’s all for the moment.
Contact: www.primordialweb.tk
by Robert Sun & Mirgilus