My buddy Tito messaged me a few weeks ago to say, “Damian, you’ve gotta check out this band DEIVOS!! I know you’re gonna love them!” Well, it turns out he was right, and since then I have been jamming the new album Theodicy (February 17, Selfmadegod Records), their fourth, almost nonstop. Once again, Poland is showing why they are a force to be reckoned with in the Death Metal world! So my next step was to contact the band about an interview. And vocalist Hubert was good enough to answer my questions and be genuinely appreciative of the support. So here it is, my interview with Hubert from DEIVOS:
Amps: I am a brand new fan of DEIVOS, but I have to say I LOVE your music. Tell me, what is the writing dynamic in the group?
Hubert: Glad to hear it. The music is written by our guitarist Tomek, then he works on the arrangements with the drummer, Wizun. Some rehearsals are recorded, and finally the rest of the band does their part in composing.
Amps: This new record is very, and I mean very in your face aggressive. Was that by design or by accident?
Hubert: There was no coincidence – the genre we’re in requires these particular form of expressions. We’re all fans of the brutal music and we’d like to create such. To answer your question – the aforementioned aggression was definitely intended.
Amps: What is a DEIVOS live show like? I imagine it being like a car crashing through a wall!!
Hubert: We’re trying for our gigs to be as crushing as possible. We’d like to see the people ripping their limbs off and beating the others with them. Of course if the sound engineer takes us by surprise and makes us sound bad, things tend to get a little trickier.
Amps: What are your tour plans for this release? Any festival dates? Do we have any shot at seeing you in the U.S.?
Hubert: There’s a plan to promote the new album on our live shows. So far there are some dates confirmed in our country, but we’re open to any offers, so we’d like to encourage promoters to contact us in that matter. The same goes for the festivals. As for performing in the U.S., it’s the trip that we can’t afford at the moment, but like I’ve said – if a promoter shows up that’s willing to get us there, we won’t say “no”.
Amps: Theodicy is album number four. Getting into history a bit, how did the group come together?
Hubert: The beginning would be dated around 1997 or so. The band was formed as a trio (Tomek is the only one left from the original line-up) and then more people have kept coming in, and here we are with the current line-up. So far we’ve recorded three albums: Emanation From Below (Empire Records), Gospel of Maggots and Demiurge of the Void (both released through Unique Leader Records). Our new album Theodicy will be released by Selfmadegod Records.
Amps: Do you have any favorite tracks on this album?
Hubert: That would be “El Shaddai”. I think it’s the most diversified one. And the funny thing is, it was my least favorite track up to the moment we actually recorded it.
Amps: What singer/singers or player/players influenced you most growing up?
Hubert: At first it was Max Cavalera. The first time I ever heard SEPULTURA I couldn’t believe one could scream like that, until I heard of CANNIBAL CORPSE and DEICIDE that is. I still love the work of Chris Barnes or Glen Benton, but I have to say that George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher is my idol in that matter. This guy’s amazing.
Amps: What albums were the ones that you think shaped you musically? You know, the ones you couldn’t live without…
Hubert: NAPALM DEATH Scum, CANNIBAL CORPSE Tomb of the Mutilated, DEICIDE Deicide, SEPULTURA Beneath the Remains, ELECTRIC WIZARD We Live and so on, I could go on for hours…
Amps: What do you like to do in your free time away from bone-crushing death metal?
Hubert: I don’t have much free time, but I like riding on my bicycle, video games, books, movies, or meeting my friends at the bar or a gig. Nothing special, I’m like the others.
Amps: What would you like to say to all your fans in the world?
Hubert: Buy a lot of CDs, attend a lot of live shows, and support your local bands!
DEIVOS will release their new album Theodicy via Selfmadegod Records on February 17 in the U.S. and it is a fucking beast of a record that simply must be in any self-respecting Death Metal fan’s collection, plain and simple.
