Line Up:
Conner On Vocals
Matt On Guitar
Jacob On Guitar
Eric On Bass
Johnny On Drums
Well,Friends Of Aristocracy!
We speak again of our newsroom, where in a little while, we will have in all its emotions, the interview 166 of the Aristocracy.This time, we talked to an extreme metal band that does the opposite of what we usually see between bands of this style.Usually, we see bands looking for a way back to hell. This one, seeks to get out of it with dignity and determination. We're talking about Voluntary Mortification and they show us their debut album titled Suffer To Rise. Imperative for showing us this spectacular band.Let's go to a song of theirs so that we can start this unprecedented and spectacular chat.
A1:Talking about the composition work in Suffer To Rise?
Conner:Hey this is Conner, the vocalist from Voluntary Mortification.Thanks for the interview opportunity! The composition of "Suffer To Rise" embraces our experimental evolution of our sound. While we wrote this album,we were discovering and embracing our own unique influences, musical aspirations and how each of us, as an individual, would bring in our own contributions to the songs.
A2:What are the ambitions pursued in this album?
Conner:The primary ambition in this album is "story-telling".Not only does the album, through its lyrics and themes, tell a story of a man named Paul,but it also tells some of our stories as well. Each of us in the band relate to this protagonist and what he discusses in certain ways; our emotion comes out in the songs through the story we tell in "Suffer To Rise".
A3:What kinds of supports do you want to give your listeners in your music?
Conner:The only support we want to give our fans and those who may be listening to us for the first time is simple: you are not alone. "Suffer To Rise" dives deep into the pain that is felt by every soul on this earth. We want to appeal to those in the metal scene that are suffering from addiction, abuse, mental illness, you name it. We, in this band, each have our own stories and trials that we would share personally with our fans and some of it comes out in the album, but there is one thing that gave us hope and the strength to battle our trials: Jesus Christ. We want people to know that if they are suffering, it is not because there is no God, or that God does not love them. In fact, it is the opposite: if you are suffering, it is because God loves you. And no this doesn't mean God is a sadist. What it means is that He loves you so much that through our sin and suffering that we chose (free will) and have been stained with, He sent His only Son to come down to save us: and how did He save us? He could have saved us in any way. The way He chose to save us though, was by suffering and dying with us. If you are suffering, He is with you. Embrace it. He is the potter and you are the clay. In your weakness, you are made strong. Use it and grow from it.
A4:Who are the rebellious souls that the band refers to in their songs?
Conner:There are no particular real "rebellious souls" that we call out or would dare call out in any of our songs as we have no authority to judge or condemn any particular persons. That being said, we do call out, or I should say our protagonist calls out, multiple sins and fictional persons that afflict the world today that we would love to see change in. Our song "Valley of Slaughter" is about our protagonist Paul walking into the metaphorical Valley of Gehenna, taking people by the hand and pulling them out of the fire that binds them there. This has a deep connection to the ancient Jewish Valley of Gehenna (Valley of Slaughter) where people were burned and offered up in sacrifice to gods named Molech and Baal. The Jews eventually thought this place to be not only real, but spiritually real: a place of purging after death. When Jesus came, He referred to the fiery pit of Hell where condemned angels and souls go as "Gehenna".We also have a song called "Silence", which calls out the sins and scandals that we see in the Church, particularly the Catholic Church. The song lyrics came to me during the scandals of Cardinal McCarrick, who was a cardinal with a deep, disgusting history of abuse. At one point, and I will not name the particular bishop, said that, and I paraphrase, "the evil one wants us to be gossiping and talking, what we need right now is silence." This set me off in a burning rage as one would suggest that "silence" would be the answer to the raging scandals that have occurred and the billions of dollars they have cost in the Church. That being said, the song targets this fictional bishop and calls out his heinous sins and tells him that he would be better off with a millstone tied around his neck and tossed into the water (a wise man once said that about those who meddle with children). In the end, the Church will mend and return to its former glory without these corrupt men.Another song in the album is "Demoncratic Society", which ventures into the realm of politics, or should I say against the realm of politics. We firmly believe that politics has become a false idol for many people and it is embraced essentially as a religion. Politicians are worshipped and people believe that they are really making a difference through their votes and policies. At the end of the day though, we continue to our jobs, we still pay our taxes, and things are never going to be the way we want it fully. We titled it "Demoncratic Society" because even as many would believe that democracy would bring us so much freedom, in the end, we just vote ourselves into oblivion anyway. We are broken men and women. There is only one king who we should follow.We have a song called "The Cull", which is about the throw-away culture we live in, which includes even life itself. We believe eugenics is still an ongoing ideal that the elites in this world push and many people inadvertently support. They would see only the strongest and most worthy being blessed with a good life. There are so many people without food, water, or basic needs. Countless souls are starving to death, suffering from disease, mental illness, etc. Many souls don't even make it out of the womb, all while the elites in this world drive cars that are so expensive, the cost could feed an entire village for years.Abomination is the last song that targets a type of sin, and this is the sin of clairvoyance and mediumship which directly leads to a possession, in the case of the song. The protagonist, actually preforms an exorcism in this song and calls out the demons into the fiery furnace with the Hand of God. We believe everyone is searching for answers and many people turn to psychics, tarot card readers, astrology, etc. but we believe that these are all occult practices which go against protecting the divine mystery and reverence of God. After all, if it is not from Him, then it is from a demon.The songs "Wages of Sin", "Death Tremors", "Vindicator", "Suffer To Rise", "Into Your Hands", and "Crush the Serpent's Head" all are more focused on the protagonist and his own internal battles.
A5:Some literature or film inspire the band?
Conner:Definitely Dante's Inferno is an inspiration. I also would say that over the years, I have developed an appreciation and love for all literature and art that involves whether Greco-Roman, European, Eastern, etc a descent into the underworld or into the Heavens. All religions and cultures seem to point towards trying to achieve an understanding, and sharing stories about ones' metaphorically or believed travels into the abyss or the sky. All the guys in the band sort of just rolled with my idea for the concept album and we worked it into a beautiful piece of work!
A6:Why can we say that this album is a great odyssey?
Conner:Ahh,"The Odyssey" is a great piece of work as well! I believe you can say that this album is a great odyssey because it is just that: an odyssey. It tells the story of a man who lives a sinful life, dies, and faces a damnation that will forever scar him.He calls out to God and receives a second chance at life and comes back as a vindicator for God.He calls out sin and helps people while battling his own internal wounds and sufferings.He then faces death a second time, cries out to God one last time and dies, but this time receives eternal salvation. The last song on the album is his victory cry, and prepare yourselves: it is a brutal battle cry.
A7:Why the band have this name? Conner:The band has this name because majority of us are Catholic and mortification is a very important discipline of our faith. To mortify yourself is to either voluntarily or involuntarily accept suffering, whatever that may be, to calm the desires of this world and focus more on our eternal world. We all suffer from something. There is not one person in this world who has never suffered. How we respond to that suffering really shapes who we are and where we will end up in this world and in the next. As Maximus says in my favorite film "Gladiator", "what we do in life, echos into eternity."When you take mortification to another step and voluntarily mortify yourself, you are willingly opening yourself up to new growth. This may be part of accepting God's will that you are leery about. Perhaps you are a drummer who fell down steps and could barely walk, but felt a calling to join a deathcore band. Maybe he battled physical therapy and is in constant pain when he practices and plays sets, but he continues to do so. Maybe a way to voluntarily mortify yourself is to get on stage and scream, when you suffer from chronic generalized anxiety and social anxiety...even being around people can put you into a panicked state; but you do it anyway, because you believe it is God's will to follow. Or maybe, you have questioned Christianity and have had horrific experiences with Christians that made you repulsed by them; but you put yourself around them, and learn to love them, and find healing through it, even if it is painful. When you play it safe your whole life, where is there room for growth? When you mortify yourself and volunteer to take something on that may be stressful, or may be painful, isn't the outcome often great? In your weakness, you are made strong.
A8:How band know about the Imperative PR?
Conner:Imperative PR is our publicist through our label Rottweiler Records. Thank you Imperative PR for all the work you do for us!
A9:What´s the idea behind artwork´s album?
Conner:First off, I must tell you how happy I am with how the album artwork turned out. Thanks to mohammedanam759 on Fiverr, he took my chicken scratch drawing and ideas and worked diligently with me to create a magnificent piece of art: both brutally scary, and brutally redemptive as well. It is ying and yang. Hell and Heaven.What is so cool about the artwork is that the scenes that you see in the artwork directly correlate to our songs. What I mean by that is that you can see our protagonist in the center with a ray of light from God on him. This is the focal point of where the album begins after the intro of "Wages of Sin" and onto "Death Tremors" and then "Vindicator".You can also find a bishop impaled on a pillar in Hell: this is the fictional bishop we hear about in the story "Silence".There is a pit of doctors in Hell where one of the carved "regret" in the pit covered in blood. You will hear a reference to this in "The Cull".That is all I will give away, but as the listener headbangs to our album, they will find direct correlations in the artwork via the songs.Should you choose to order a physical CD, our album artwork booklet is an 8 page booklet that will have all of the lyrics and pictures focusing in on the certain points in the artwork that are directly related to the story told.
A10:Is it a little contradictory to be a Christian and at the same time see beauty in horror?
Conner:Absolutely not! The entire basis of and architecture of metal and brutal music can be so Christian in nature. Momento Mori, gothic architecture, Deus Vult, Hell, suffering, the passion of Christ, God's wrath found in the Old Testament, etc. The list goes on and on.Christianity is not and should never be broadcasted as a "sign up and you will be happy and have sunshine and rainbows for the rest of your life." No...to be a Christian, is a hard thing. Try dying to yourself, dying to your flesh and earthly desires. Putting others before yourself. It is not an easy task to sign up for.The beauty of this struggle and these "horrors" we may face, is that the Christian that suffers, but remains rooted in Christ and faith...will find joy, even in hardship. We pick up our crosses and carry them.
A11:Why this album is conceptual?
Conner:I've always been a sucker for concept albums! I love albums that you can listen to all the way through and feel a journey happening. And the guys in the band liked this vision I had for the concept album, and we worked together to bring it to fruition.
A12:Fighting and saving yourself can be a real mess.However,what are the fights we must save ourselves that the band addresses in this work?
Conner:So this kind of ties into question 3 about those suffering and fighting with addiction, mental illness, abuse, etc. I guess, in my own personal experience, and those of some of my band mates, is that when I finally received some peace and understanding is when I stopped "fighting" so hard. I didn't have the greatest childhood, and I don't need to go into too much detail, but a big turning point in my life was when I was going through a rough suicidal depression. I suffered from debilitating chronic depersonalization disorder for a couple years. It was like a living nightmare every day. I had fallen away from any faith for quite some time or just practiced the semantics, but didn't truly have that belief that seems to save. I remember in the midst of my sufferings I finally at one point stopped fighting it and said to God, "alright, if this is your will, I accept it. I am not going to fight it anymore." At that point, I felt a peace. I felt a calm and an understanding that shaped much of my future. I still struggle, as we all do. We are all fallen and sinners, but I have learned through that experience and many more that sometimes we need to just let go....let God do His work. Mortify ourselves by accepting His will, and just maybe things will get better.In the future, the other band members will take lead on interviews and they can share some of their personal experiences. Stay tuned.
A13:How is Voluntary Mortification different from your previous bands?
Conner:I personally was in a garage band deathcore band about twelve years ago.We played many local shows and wrote an EP, but that was a totally different time and the music scene in general was very different back then. It was the Myspace days! Our drummer Johnny and guitarist Matt also have been out of the scene for about as long as I was and experienced the same things.Our guitarist Jacob, is the only one with no previous band experience, and he absolutely slays! Eric,our veteran bassist has been in so many bands and played so many shows he probably has lost count. He has played so many different genres of music: the man is just an instrument himself.
A14:What are the modern death metal tones placed on this album?
Conner:I couldn't point to a particular band or influence for modern death metal tunes because honestly,we haven't been in the scene for a while! Our sound, I would say, is probably going to be received as pretty old school, because that is what we know and what we love!
A15:Why shouldn't we sleep listening to this album?
Conner:Because this album is unique, experimental, brutal, well-produced (Josh Schroeder who produced Lorna Shore's latest albums) and it tells a cool story with amazing themes and composition. We are not here as a band or individuals to condemn anyone or force our faith on anyone. We are just regular dudes who love brutal music and want to unite with our brother and sister metalhead with some headbanging! We just happen to be Christians and that is the fuel for our music and emotion. All musicians need a fuel for their art!We are still "finding our sound" as a band, and I believe that is a good thing, and maybe it will always be that case! Thanks, God bless. Stay metal and jam to "Suffer To Rise"!
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