Accurate destruction

Helsinki-based Amoral offer accurate playing, but with proper metal attitude. Technicality, excellent compositions and joy of playing come together in this young band's music. Death and thrash metal mix nicely in amoral's skillful hands (and feet). A.M. sent a few questions via internet an guitarist Silver Ots together with vocalist Niko Kalliojärvi answered them. This interview is translated from Finnish.

A.M.: Amoral must be unknown for many a metalhead as yet. Would you shed some light upon Amoral's past first? Who are participated and what have everyone done (previous bands, how long you've been playing etc.)?

Silver Ots: Amoral was born somewhere during 1997-1998, when two teenagers, who had found metal music, enthused and started playing together their favourite bands' songs in a school's musicroom. Ben Varon (guitars) and Juhana Karlsson (drums) started this all and then I joined the band as the second guitarist and after a few member changes Niko Kalliojärvi is the vocalist now and bass is played by Ville Sorvali.
Myself, Ben and Juhana haven't had other real bands. Niko has some projects and Ville is in Moonsorrow. We've been playing our instruments some 6 years. Ville has more of this band history, but he started playing bass only in 1999. As Amoral, we have released two self-produced demos, 'Desolation' (2001) and 'Other Flesh' (2002). Quality-wise these two differ a lot from each other, so there's some development. With 'Other Flesh' we got a recording deal.

A.M.: Congratulations! You have signed the recording deal with English label Rage Of Achilles. They have some more Finnish metal in their ranks, namely Omnium Gatherum. What kind of deal you signed and what do you wait from the label?

Niko Kalliojärvi: As I understood, the deal seems good. We have been following how the label promotes its bands and it looks good, at least with Omnium Gatherum.

Silver: Yeah, Ben handles the business side of the band. Two weeks worth of studio time at Sonic Pump and no need for ourselves to pay anything for it. Well, maybe bus tickets... Omnium Gatherum lowered a threshold for us to get that deal, at least we've got one ally if the deal fucks up.

A.M.: When are Rage Of Achilles going to release something from you? Are you going to record a full length album or something else? What can you tell about your recording? Is any demo material going to be re-recorded? When should metal people expect Amoral stuff in the shops?

Niko: I understand we have a studio booked for December and we will record a full length album. It should be available early next year.

Silver: Right. Title song and 'Nothing Daunted' from 'Other Flesh' will be included with older and newer material. We're working on new shit right now.

A.M.: Okay, waiting for that new shit, because no more information given!
Your metal is technical, but still enjoyable for any metalhead. I think your metal is made of death and thrash, Death and Opeth are the bands coming into my mind when listening to Amoral, but not directly. How is Amoral's music created and do you have any influences? What do you want to tell with your metal?

Silver: Thus far I've created some kind of a riff-a-thon with a computer, that we play and turn around with Ben and Juhana. When we get it into the satisfactory shape, Niko writes lyrics to go with it and we handlebass tabulatures to Ville.
Yes, Opeth is a big idol and influence to me, I admit. Lately, I've got bloody excited with brutal death metal. Especially Immolation, who I need to praise here!
There's truth in that comparison with Death. Ben and Juhana dig Death like hell and I think Juhana has some Gene Hoglan's marks of sticks in his playing. I quess we all have a place in our hearts for heavy and technical stuff, even though there's pop and jazz in our record shelves, too. As mentioned earlier, technicality is there to keep us interested, and I hope all of our listeners too.
What we want to tell with our metal? That gets too profound for me.

A.M.: What do you tell with your lyrics?

Niko: The lyrics include some traditional stuff:feeling annoyed , hate and bitterness, but only as a spice. Every song is a story of their own, to keep up even a slight development. Themes have been confined on the negative side of things, what else. If there's any red thread going in the lyrics, they are weakness of human mind, fallibility and stupidity.

A.M.: How's gigging, I mean have you played for live audiences? Are you going to go in any festivals this summer, and if yes, playing or listening?

Niko: We've played some gigs and they've tasted good. Festivals are included in our plans for this summer, in both ways. Our first festival gig will Rocklinna Metal Fest in Hämeenlinna, which is a one-day metal storm with well known and less known bands. As listeners, whole Amoral will be at Tuska Metal Fest, Helsinki, right Silver?

Silver: Sure! And this time you'll come to after party, too.

A.M.: Be careful out there. And here's the rest of the band:

06/24/2003 10:26