Denouncement Pyre is ready to unleash the evil contagion

For seven years Australia's Denouncement Pyre been playing their trade on the Australian metal scene. Soon to be releasing their debut album "World Creamation" on Hell Headbangers this summer. This band is worth checking out. Here's my interview with Decaylust.

Oi mate, how you doing? How's things been going for the Pyre so far?

Things have been very busy of late. We are awaiting the release of the first album; momentum is building as we prepare to unleash this evil contagion upon the world.  Also currently working on new material for next full length.

I have been listening to "World Cremation" just about all day. It's way different from other Aussie bands.
Interesting comment. I think people tend too often to categorise all Australian bands under the same banner when in most cases it’s inaccurate to do so. Many reviews of Aus bands tend to have them described as the black thrash or war metal and other associated generalisations when it is hardly fitting at all, especially when very few bands have/do use these descriptions themselves. From our releases I think World Cremation has the least in common with what is dubbed the ‘Australian sound’, yet I still expect many will miss the point and label it this anyway. Not that we have anything against bands from Australia, but there has never been a goal to either fit or not fit into this scene.

The band will unleash their first full length "World Cremation" on Hells Headbangers. Do you have an idea when the album be released in the US?
Album will be released in late July. Keep on eye on their site…

Seems like Hells Headbangers has been doing a good job supporting the bands on their roster. What impressed you about the label?

They provide a good avenue to further advance as a band as well as allow for our art to manifest in its intended state. So far my experience with them has been all positive. They are professional & well organised, and support our cause which is also important.

Has the band put out any material on other labels before this one?

We have previously released a mini album & 7” on Forgotten Wisdom Productions (France). Before then our first 7” was released through the now defunct Aus label Apocalytor Records. Plus we have had a couple of tapes released through various labels.

If you have, how does this release differ from the bands previous material?

All previous releases have their individual aspects. Some have a different sound as they were recorded in different studios, using different gear, set up etc. I think with this album it’s a good step forward in all aspects. There’s a lot more diversity across the tracks, overall a more focused approach and I think the result speaks for itself. Though you can make your own mind up on this.

What is it about Australia that make bands put out nasty, filthy metal?

I really don’t know. Maybe because we are fairly isolated from the rest of the world, maybe not. But I think there are good & bad bands in all countries. We have both too.

During the bands seven year career has the band been given an opportunity to open for well known acts like Destroyer 666 or Pyscroptic?
We have only performed 7 shows in this time but not with either of these bands. We have played alongside Gospel of the Horns a bunch of times, and some others like Nocturnal Graves, Cauldron Black Ram, Destruktor, not much else worth mentioning. I’ve seen D666 a few times, great band. Psycroptic is worlds apart from anything that appeals to me.

What kind of impact did some of the bands before you in the Australian metal bands had on the band during your formative years?
As much impact as bands from anywhere else. There were some killer bands from the late 80’s to late 90’s that stamped their mark on the underground. The history of the scene here is quite known and not something I need to rehash.

Can you tell us more about the album "World Cremation", how long did it take to record the album?
The actual recording didn’t take too long. Maybe 6 sessions in total. It was spread across 5 months or so though, as I had to take some time out after the drums sessions due to other commitments. In the end my time away had no impact on the recording. The end result was exactly what we were after.

Who was the producer and what bands has he worked with before he did your album? And what kind of impression he left on you when you first met him?
We produce our own music so we do not work with a ‘producer’ so to speak. Here I take it you mean the engineer? The recording sessions were engineered by J.E, who is a former member of Denouncement Pyre. Actually he and I started the band back in 2003 but he left a couple of years ago to pursue other avenues.
He offered some good ideas during recording more related to studio techniques rather than with the music, in all it was the best recording experience with the band so far. We created a good atmosphere to work in and as we know each other well there were no problems in discussing ideas and either agreeing or disagreeing quiet openly. An important part of the process I think.

What is the band’s plan as far as supporting the album?
Hells Headbangers will unleash various merch in support of the release. We will have copies of the album & merch for sale also. Other than that we will let them handle distribution & the bulk of release activity as we retreat into the shadows to work on the next album.

What's your assessment of the Australian metal scene now these days?
A few good bands & a horde of shit that I don’t care for. I’m not too involved with the scene here so I don’t really have much to say about it.

Do you go out and check out other band's gig when you not busy with Denouncement Pyre?

Maybe a couple of times a year. Most other gigs are the same bands playing over & over to the same crowds, doing their boring thing.

You think that the label will try to get some of their act to do a decent tour in the States or Europe.
It would be cool to see some of these bands from Hells Headbangers come to Texas and do a show.
I really don’t know if they have plans like this. You would have to direct this to the label.

The band has any plans playing outside of Australia? Is there any possibility of band doing any shows in Europe or at least Asia?

There has been some brief discussion of the possibilities. There seems to be a lot of people wanting to see the band re-ignite on the live front, though with the focus now turning to the next album I cant say whether this will happen sooner or later, if at all. Playing live isn’t a focus at the moment.

Well I wish the band all the best is there anything you like to add?
Visit www.hellsheadbangers.com for album info & release news.

NEX EST SANCTUS

TOTBF