If there is one thing that cannot be taken away from Metal music, well to be honest one cannot take anything, is the sound. Even though the American version of Death Metal has its own richness, the Swedish HM-2 chainsaw signature is undying and it prolonged by young bands that never lose touch or the taste for that cutting edge. Organic from Italy, which sound like die-harders of the Swedish persuasion, continue their journey, gazing upon the eyes of Death, on "Where Graves Abound". Steinmetal had a talk with Benni Leiter of the band about the album, the feel of the sound and more…
Hello Benni, it is good to have you for this conversation for Metal Temple online Magazine, how have you been doing?
Hi! Everything is fine here, the first shows after the pandemic are going great. So that's everything that matters at the moment!
It was my first time getting to know Organic, and if there is something that is pleasing for the ear is the fact that there is a continuous, apparently endless until the next best thing, admiration and love for Swedish Death Metal. Was it a sort of love at first sight kind of situation or Organic was rather caught in the web?
Organic was tied to the chainsaw sound from the very beginning. It could have never been different, the comparison to the Stockholm sound can never be avoided!
Let's talk about chaos for a little bit there. Since the pandemic hit Italy, and hard, on the first wave, and afterwards the country slowly had been recovering, perhaps until to this day, how did it affect the existence of Organic? Where did you guys find the motivation to push on forward and remain stable in your lineup?
Everything happened in the best of timings, the lockdowns gave us the perfect opportunity to start writing our new album and it could have never gone better! Never have we ever been hungrier and more motivated.
Listening to your sophomore album, "Where Graves Abound", and other than the artwork, which we will talk about later, it felt like a warzone, somewhere between the carnage and the aftermath. Therefore, I ask, where do you lead the listener on this record? What is the surrounding? Is it war related as a narrative?
What we want to achieve with our music in general is to deliver complete chaos, we try to emulate the situations that bring mental insanity especially in war. To completely understand what I mean you should come to one of our shows.
It is rather easy to find fine lines between the pandemic and the core of the album, in particular when it comes to the loss of life. True, there was no savagery from the pandemic, and let's hope that there won't be, but it feels the same. What is your input about that?
There is absolutely no connection between the pandemic that is happening and this album. But yes, you could compare it to life and death reigning on a battle field. Starring into the eyes of death will always be as frightening.
Concerning the artwork, the generated impression is the trench wars of WWII, more like the symbol of Death, which haunted the pathways of these death traps. What was the initial vision for this artwork? How do you perceive it yourself?
Absolutely, we wanted to depict the quiet after the storm. We already had this image in mind as the writing process was still happening, it turned out exactly as we wanted it to be and this thanks to the inimitable Vladimir Chebakov!
"Where Graves Abound" tells quite several of stories, each getting into ghastly details as far as imagination could muster. However, other than being graphic and portraying the sensation, let's call it, does the record also provide a way out of these occurrences or maybe a lesson for the future?
Unfortunately, the message behind the album is not truly positive. It tells the story of pure death and it lasts to the very end, the words „No escape" appear all over the album and I think that this could sum everything up pretty accurately.
As I mentioned earlier, it is not a secret where your heart lies in regards to the musical direction that guides you. The HM-2 effect machine gunning continues with an onslaught of massive riffs alongside deep and guttural spews of vocals and energetic rhythm section that has enough juice in it for continuous rampages. Therefore, I think it is logical to ask, how do you differentiate the efforts made on "Where Graves Abound" to the swarm of Swedish driven Death Metal bands that have been taking on the market?
There are so many great HM-2 bands out there and I think that it's doing only good! The world of chainsaw death metal has become what it deserved, great people, great bands and a big bond between them!
I have you ask you, as a guitarist, probably my first time asking this question, what do you find so blissful, sinister and magical about the HM-2 effect, and if not the effect itself, but its sound?
Personally, this exact guitar sound is very nostalgic to us and gives you that one feeling that could literally bring you back to the time it was born. It's like going back to that place you used to spend so much great time after a long time and it fills you with that exact feeling again you always experienced.
Following your debut album, which is no less of a savage beast than the current album, what form of lessons did you learn from the earlier experience and put it into work on "Where Graves Abound"?
We learned a lot this time, it was a very different experience than last time. Mainly because we have two new members who did absolutely legendary jobs. We were completely immersed from start to end, we gave everything to make it the way we wanted it to be!
What did you find about yourself as both a musician and a songwriter while working on "Where Graves Abound"? Would you say that it took you forward as a songwriter, perfected your riffs as a guitarist?
I think we all grew a lot as musicians and people too. I think that you only realize what truly happened as soon as we will write the next album, seeing yourself in the past gives you a lot more perspective!
Working on an album, whether while writing the songs, or recording in the studio, has its number on the chemistry of the band. How would you say that the record took on its effects on the band's inner relations?
We're brothers, writing this album was the only thing we had in our minds and we partied really hard during this time, we had the time of our lives and that's what truly matters!
Lawrence Mackrory, also known from Darkane, mastered your record, did that fine cutting and made the end result. No doubt that you needed a Swedish touch other than sounding like a Swedish band. How do you find his work on the album? How did your sound improve in contrast to the previous record?
Lawrence was the last thing we needed to perfectly complete the album, he's truly a master. We immediately knew that he would let us find our true style and sound. His touch added a magical feeling to everything. We couldn't have been happier with what he has done.
A song that builds itself up well is the self-titled, "Where Graves Abound". The combination of fast paced tempo and slow-mid tempos, generating different emotions of pain, is a sure advantage of this track. What is your appreciation of this song? What do you think is its impact on the entire record?
We call it the classic. It has everything that should depict the whole album, that's why we chose it as the title track. The whole song was written by Daniel, we were blown away the first time we heard it.
A song that is also related to this magnificent mixture of fast and slow paces, is the utterly heavy "Schizophrenic Execution", which I believe that it develops pretty well, at times a little bit more diverse than the former mentioned. How do you relate to the chaotic nature of this track?
"Schizophrenic Execution" was the very first song we wrote for the album and it's very lunatic, it's the song that reminds us of the „Carved In Flesh" days. You can still hear a younger Organic in it.
What goes through your head when you listen to the entire record, from top to bottom? Where do you find yourself, as you are fully concentrated on the havoc that you created?
It reminds me of all the insane moments we had as a band, we're a very chaotic troop ourselves so the memories come up very easily! It's truly a trip every time I hear it.
I can assume that your plans to actually perform live were terribly cut short last year and most of this year. What are your plans to take "Where Graves Abound" for a proper support?
We really hope to recover the time we couldn't play this past year. It's our number one priority at the moment and to be honest it's looking quite well! We will play as much as possible, and we can't wait to see people's reactions to the new music live!
Benni, your time is appreciated for this conversation. Thank you for delivering the goods with a fine record. All the best
Thanks for your great questions, it was my pleasure!
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