TECHNICAL MUSIC REVIEW
Prophetic Scourge released a killer album this year “Calvary”. It was a kick ass, groovy and proggy time. Get to know the band right below and check it out as well!
TMR: What is everyone’s favorite song off “Calvary”?
Hmmm, that’s not an easy question to answer, but probably THE HIEROPHANT – Bringing Lost Sheep Back To The Fold. It’s the song we spent the most time writing, and it ended up being a great distillation of our various influences. It’s also the song that we sent to KLONOSPHERE for their first listen. We’d already recorded a video for it (check it out on youtube) so it seemed to be a perfect introduction to our music.
TMR: When did the band start writing for “Calvary” and how long did the process take? Were there any difficulties?
I’d say writing started late 2015, the final song was finished just 2 days before the cds were pressed (the outro to THE CULTIST that’s only present on the physical album), so almost two and a half years. The only real difficulty we had is that we all live in different towns, and need to travel 300km for rehersals and writing sessions. As such, progress was made in spurts of intense activity, which in some ways actually helped as it means that we were always completely focused when we worked….
TMR: What shows does Prophetic Scourge have lined up for the rest of the year?
We’ve just returned from a tour of France, Switzerland and Spain, which went perfectly. We were very well received (especially by the Swiss!). We’ve got 3 or 4 shows still to come this year, in Toulouse, Agen and Montpellier. We’re also planning a tour next April, in France again, and probably with gigs in Holland, Belgium and hopefully England. We’re also looking in to the Summer Festivals, though nothing’s confirmed as of yet.
TMR: Any music prepared for a follow up?
Indeed there is, and it’s going to be awesome! I’d say the second album is about 85% done. The style is the same as CALVARY, with long average song length, complex structures, and a very progressive vibe. I feel we’ve gained a certain level of confidence in our writing, and I fully expect the second album to be a step up in quality all round….
TMR: How and where was “Calvary” recorded? Did you take any different recording or artistic directions compared to your debut EP?
We recorded Calvary in our rehersal space, with our good friend Xavier Collard and his “travelling” Steel Mind Studio. He’d previously mixed and mastered our debut EP, but we’d done the tracking ourselves. This time round he was involved from the very start of the process, the difference being immediately apparent in the sound of the album.
TMR: What influenced your band name and how did Prophetic Scourge become a band?
We became a band after a previous band called Scars On Mumansk (again awesome band to check out on youtube) split up. Romain and Jon played guitars and drums in it, and had developed a good feeling for each others playing style. They decided to start a new project. Robin had done some filling in for SOM, so they knew they could work well with him. At that point Robin and me (Josh) had been playing together for a while, and he knew I was desperately seeking a new band at the time, so everything fell into place nicely…
Before we chose a band name, the lyrics to 3 songs had already been written (THE CULTIST, THE GOD KING, and THE MAGUS), whose themes were ancient Egypt, ceremonial magic, and spiritual insanity. We brainstormed to those themes and came up with PROPHETIC SCOURGE as sounding like it coherently conveyed our style and themes – which both tend to be somewhat magniloquent.
TMR: What is the band’s favorite song(s) to play at shows?
Again hard to say, I can’t speak for the others (though I expect THE HIEROPHANT would pop up a couple of times). I’d personally go with THE ALCHEMIST, as I love embodying the characters I wrote for it.
TMR: Upcoming releases you guys are looking forward to? And what has everyone enjoyed from 2018?
Our favourite releases of 2018 are from Beyond Creation, Aborted and Conan.
TMR: Who got you guys into extreme music and eventually influencing the formation of Prophetic Scourge?
Well my Mum and Dad listen to a huge range of music: from classical, to polyphonic folk, to prog rock, Motown, Stax, and the list goes on (though funnily enough, not metal); so was I raised to be vey open minded about music. Amongst others were Pat Metheny, Jeff Beck and Joe Satriani – I used to love electric guitar, and I remember telling my parents that I liked “the fast music” (I was probably 4 at the time). I was also a huge fan of the cartoon Thundercats, and I don’t know if you’ve listened to the theme song recently, but that shit’s pretty much Speed Metal for kids!
Later influences were Origin, Limbonic Art, Ulver, Ageless Oblivion, early Panzerchrist (Battalion Beast FTW!), Deicide, and my all time favorite band Krallice!
TMR: Just under a month of “Calvary” being released how is everyone taking to your new album? I really dig it, and hope it sees more light in the metal community.
Cheers! I’m glad you’ve enjoyed it! It’s been pretty well received with mostly positive reviews (and some ragingly enthusiastic ones), and we sold a buttload of digipacks on tour. Obviously not everyone has been on board; a few journalists have not always appreciated the average song length and structure; but that was always going to be unavoidable playing 9 minute long Death Metal songs. Not everyone is in to a progressive approach to songwriting, so fair enough… On the whole though, things are good, and we’re looking forward to a lot more live shows to give people the full, close-up experience of our music.
Originally published on Technical Music Review. Republished with permission.
