Numa Rios

Two Face Sinner

It is understandable why some bands have been feeling disconnected from the nerve center of things, especially when you are far from it, which is at the moment, Europe. Covid-19 or not, bands from all over the world will still try to reach to the unholy grounds of Heavy Metal in the small continent. Two Face Sinner, an emerging Black / Death Metal from Peru, has been proving themselves worthy in their local ground, and felt the need to go forward. Signing with the Dutch Non Serviam Records, their goals known, they set out "Spiritual Nemesis" with a promise that Europe is next. Steinmetal had a chat with the band's leader, Numa Rios, about an opportunity given, trends in Black Metal, the new album and more…

By Lior "Steinmetal" Stein

• April 23, 2020

Two Face Sinner's Numa Rios: "The artwork has the perfect iconic shocking message for everything I was looking to express and resume

Hello Numa, it is great to have you for this interview for Metal Temple online Magazine. I hope that you are passing your days with ease, especially with the Covid-19 pandemic still on the rise and a threat worldwide. How are you doing?

Hi, I'm doing fine, thanks a lot for this interview, you guys are important to establish a good point of communication with the fans and people in general, I appreciate it, and yes, hard times at the moment, nothing that we don't deserve I think, it's time for a purge.

South America is barely noticed in this pandemic, what is going on down there? How is the reality looking in Peru? Are you taking strong measures to prevent infection and sorts? How are you handling it yourself?

Fortunately, our government is working hard to keep us safe, the number of diseases goes on more than 200 and the number of infections beats 1800 at the moment, we are on social isolation since 1 month ago and they say it will long until the end of May, everything is closed except supermarkets and drugstores, I am of course abiding by the lockdown, approaching time to move the band in social media, responding to interviews, also working on lots of new music.

One of the main issues with the Covid-19 is that it single-handedly stopped everyday life from going, with music being on the main attractions for fans. Meaning, no shows, no festivals, no clubs. How has Two Face Sinner been handling itself when it comes to promote its music? Perhaps streaming a performance online from your rehearsal room and things like that?

Of course, we already made a plan for the whole 2020, which includes home shows, and when the lockdown ends we plan to shoot a videoclip, reviews and interviews like this helps a lot to have our public in touch with updates, everything helps to get this through.

After being pretty much a local band, your new album "Spiritual Nemesis" gave you a chance to take the next step and head out of the local market into the European counterpart, or let's be frank, the centre of everything that is Metal. With the signing with Non Serviam Records, can you feel the change in exposure to the band's music? In general, what is your input regarding the rather broad change going for the band, I guess it was a necessary move to make?

It was our next move, after more than a decade of work, hitting "the centre of everything" was our main challenge, We feel extremely pleased for this chance, South America is not the land of opportunities for metal bands that are trying to open a path on their careers, we feel very thankful with Ricardo for giving us the chance to prove the world what we are made of and we will not disappoint. I dedicated all this year to spread the band's music around Europe in social media so we have a small base of fans so now will increase with this move.

Philosophically, "Spiritual Nemesis" strongly feels like an onslaught, a coordinated straightforward attack on everything, and it appears everything religious, as the band's legacy suggests. How do you see the happenings on the album in terms of the themes that you are reaching out two within your hatred towards religion?

I feel fulfilled, I mean, nothing like spreading the message stronger than ever, the band got stronger philosophically on each album, so it feels like our demon is roaring louder and louder every time de make new music.

The Slovakian Hans Trasid made quite the artwork for you, deadly and provocative as possible in order to signify your beliefs in a matter that those would be easily noticed. What is the vision behind this artwork? Is this a sort of a wicked unification between the Devil and Christ?

I was looking for a cover art that reflects the "Spiritual Nemesis" meaning, I was carefully looking into many art portfolios so I found Hans's work and automatically the voice inside me said Yes. The artwork has the perfect iconic shocking message for everything I was looking to express and resume, plus you see a demonic Christ, the perfect duality also like Two Face Sinner's dual meaning.

Covid-19 or not, our daily lives can be a source that affects a songwriter's thought patterns while trying to create a message. How do you find yourself connected to the blackened spirituality of the lyricism within the album?

I have some inner patterns when it comes to write lyrics, but I also take freedom to talk about another topics like my existence or some tribute to my ancient roots.

After listening to several tracks of your previous works, and comparing to what is going on within "Spiritual Nemesis", more or less, Two Face Sinner remain constant in its music, remaining under the same blackened wing. However, with every clinging to a path, there is always a process, whether maturity or simply a wish to put in a few changes to achieve a goal. Where do you think that the band's music went on this new album?

I think, and I feel it all comes in the right moment, so for this album was a moment of musical maturity that put us in the right circumstances so everything fills in the right place, in the moment were we had learned a lot, challenging ourselves as musicians and also learned more about music industry. The process of only record (not write) this album took, two years, and believe me, we been through a lot of shit, but you know it sometimes that makes you wiser.

With the process of the riff writing, and in overall, the music itself, there is always a room for dilemmas and sometimes, inner band issues, concerning the upcoming result. Were you all one with the band's path and where it is headed? Did you have second thoughts after the end product was already finished?

We used to have that issues in the very beginning, but then we reached a kind of dynamic and mutual understanding that let us work in harmony, every riff I show the guys turns into a rational debate when sometimes they make me see some aspects of the ideas I have that would not work or maybe yes. About second thoughts, not really, sometimes I think how it would sound on acoustic version, but just for fun.

While writing the album, what were your main influences while coming up with the music? Did you find yourself taking examples from sources that you didn't even think of?

I keep listening to the same 60's, 70's, 80's and 90's rock bands so I think my influences vary around that, I'm a huge Black Sabbath and The Beatles fan, and of course I listen a lot of extreme metal, but I avoid to take influence of it, we all have a dark Side and dense of brutal sound, that can be reflected at the time to make music, so yes.

Which elements within Two Face Sinner's music were enhanced so to speak on "Spiritual Nemesis"? Those aspects that gave an edge to the record in contrast to its previous?

I think the band's takes always a new level inside its own kind of work, in this case I think I focused more into rock vibes, that can be present as brutal and raw as the song can be, rock n roll is always what captures your soul, so I believe this album would project that mysticism.

The market is flooded with Black Metal or the fusion of Black and Death Metal, it looks like an unstoppable mighty wave. What do you think makes "Spiritual Nemesis" a special kind of album that is uncanny from others?

I'm pretty sure we have achieved our own sound, you know that Two Face Sinner part, like most of our fans mention, so especially on this album we have reached the best version of the band, and it comes in the right moment, when we got the opportunity to prove it to the world.

Talking about the market, and it is a rather general question, what do you think of this fashion of masked musicians playing Black Metal? To be honest, it is a gimmick that is a bit hard to understand. Why cover and not be out in the open? Is corpse paint, which has been an integral part of the imagery, a done deal?

I totally despise it, I'm a very traditional person in a lot of aspects, black metal is what I most respect, for its meaning, and philosophy, so I don't like that "millennial new wave of Black Metal", that's how I call it, black metal has its very mark roots lifestyle and no new trend will stain it, it might be very good music played, but black metal goes beyond that and if someone modify that claiming is black metal, it is a fake trend.

What can you share regarding the songwriting process of the album? Any different agenda set for this particular album, or it went all natural as it has been always with Two Face Sinner?

It was a very natural process, I'm always witting stuff, so I had this amount of songs I wrote a while ago finely selected for this album, the lyrics was the last part and to be honest each song projects that mystic feeling to find the right words.

"God of the Masses" is too short of a track to be honest, in particular how it develops into being a slaughtering melodic brutality. What is your appreciation of this track? I guess that its meaning is a sort of a two edged sword, good and evil?

I find this song like the very hybrid of my creativity, it has a lot of what you mentioned, and that portion of rock n roll at the end of the song, it reflects my strongest side of musical taste and of course is two edged sword of musical styles, lyrically it has the perfect subject, the down of the celestial beast, beaten down to death by its deceived crowd.

"Mother Death", finishing the album, may as well be one of your greatest works, not because it is a kind of an epic, yet because it shows an additional dimension to the music. What can you tell about the creation process of this song?

This song is a very touching Song, talks about some mental illness I struggle with, and every time I'm facing these crisis, I feel the Death around me, dealing with medication everyday sometimes put me in a rare state of mind so I finished the lyrics under those effects, but having a clear concept of seeing Death like a mother that stare at her children's agony. The only way to stop that suffering is to kill her own children to provide them peace. I made sure to build the right structures for the song to be felt in few stages, so I might be agree with the idea of it could be one of the greatest songs wrote at the moment in the band's career

Although you can't really fly to support your new album at the moment, are there plans to invade Europe any time soon?

As I told Ricardo (Non Serviam Records), we are so ready, I'm really looking forward, that this album has the impact I know it will have, so the opportunities will come along and finally we will show what Two Face Sinner is made of on European stages!

Numa, I wish to thank you for your time for this interview. You have quite the record right there, not letting anything stand in your way. All the best, and keep it healthy

I want to thank you for your interest in the band, means a lot to us, I appreciate it, and congratulations for your work, stay safe