INTERVIEW: Lvcifyre

From the burgeoning underworld of subterranean UK Black / Death Metal comes longstanding stalwarts LVCIFYRE! Having recently released their 3rd album (read my review HERE), it seemed an opportune moment to discuss their diabolical craft.

1. Let us get the niceties out of the way, Lvcifyre is a respected name in the Extreme Metal underground. For the unaware, what do you do and why is your music something the readers should hear?

I am T.Kaos of the Death Metal entity Lvcifyre. Taking the lead on strings and vocals, I set myself as the driving force behind this fiery chariot. I will certainly not please everyone with the Chaos I tend to control, as we are the voice of the old ways, therefore modern Man is likely to be disappointed.

2. Now that the pleasantries are out of the way, let us jump to the present, name the release of your new album, “The Broken Seal”. What manner of creative process took shape on this album and are you satisfied with the result? Is it the bands greatest triumph to date?

Yes, we are satisfied. Taking into account our dedication and hard work, we have not failed ourselves and delivered another Darkness emanation into this world, exactly the way we planned, which was the focal point for us.  To deliver “The Broken Seal” it has taken us exactly 7 years of harsh rehearsals – I believe that the pain of devotion is strongly visible in this record, as is the natural progress of the band within the song writing and the sound itself. I do consider this record to be the best Lvcifyre effort to date. 

3. From your cult EP “Dying Light Ov God” through 2 full lengths and the “Sacrament” EP you have had a fairly sturdy lineup with only a handful of changes. What qualifies someone to deliver the LVCIFYRE sound? 

I can only speak from experience, but I have also noticed the same formula working for many band. In most of the bands who manage to create their own trademark, there are only 2 main songwriters: the Seer and his Artillery. We have had different musicians throughout the band’s history, but they did not last. There is more to Lvcifyre than just the music and, if you decide to ride this chariot, that power will install itself within your existence one way or another, and when your devotion weakens, it will start to suffocate your will and desires. That could easily transform into self-destructive nihilism. Perhaps the key is to not lose the consciousness of your inner fire.

4. Talking of releases yonder, I am sure many would agree that “Svn Eater” (2014) is a very important release in modern underground Death Metal. Please can you elaborate on the background, meaningfulness and significance of this LP?

“Sun Eater” was the first recording where we finally captured what we had been looking for; those visions are alive, there is a substance or spirit manifesting without great effort, really. With this album we have finally managed to build a gateway between the dimensions we had been longing for. The music became less naïve and started acting as a sort of medium.

Even though I may be humbled by the fact that the world acknowledges the importance of this record, I do recognise this as something fabricated by the  underground. I don’t recall deriving pleasure from the attention – but rather from completing the tasks that led to ‘Sun Eater“, and enormously so.

5. LVCIFYRE live shows are few and far between, something that presumably causes a great deal of interest when you do hit the stage. Is there any reason for this? Do you prefer to keep it minimal and go all out at shows, or do you simply not like playing live much? 

In all honestly I think it is a bit of both. I’d like Lvcifyre shows to remain special, something beyond standard entertainment and we are also fairly picky when it comes to the line-up. In the past we have shared the stage with less substantial acts, and that takes away from the artistic view we are trying to project. If you decide to go beyond the mere standard, you may as well put all your effort into it, and turn it into something outstanding.

6. Back to the present, how is the reception of “The Broken Seal” thus far? Do you feel satisfied with the efforts of Dark Descent Records (USA) and Norma Evangelium Diaboli (Euro) and their delivery of your new conjuration?

The response has been very good so far and there are a few things related with “The Broken Seal” to come, it is not all done yet. The selling figures would probably answer your question more specifically, but we still don’t know those numbers. Perhaps the gents from either side of the Atlantic could be of more help here.

7. The artwork on all of your releases is eye-catching to say the least, as is the bands imagery in general. What part does aesthetics play in the world of LVCIFYRE? In Heavy Metal and all of its off-shoots, obviously there are certain staples in appearance, so where does this fit into your own image? Furthermore what does the artwork on your albums showcase from the bands own point of view? Of course this can be left to interpretation of the listener / observer if you wish.

The idea and the execution came from Daniele Valeriani, a very talented Italian painter who is well known from his work for Mayhem, Tryptikon or Candlemass, to name a few. He created Samael – or rather, based on his description Samael revealed Himself to him in a dream, after Daniele lost himself while blasting “The Broken Seal”. His amazement and ideas for the artwork were so incredibly honest that I had no further objections. I have always acknowledged the artwork as an emblem of the album. I can only speak for myself here, of course, but for Lvcifyre it is the image of the sound, it must look as it sounds and be coherent with the general concept that is being transmitted.

Daniele captured the gnostic vision of Samael, the song called “The First Archon” was his gateway.

8. Lyrically and sonically you fall into both the Death Metal but also the Black Metal camp in many ways. Do you identify more with one style or movement over the other or see them as equal parts of your identity? 

There is absolutely no need to look for a schism here, both styles are the only ones that relate to and could carry the Lvcifyre entity.

9. Now, I gather you have connections to many killer bands. So which bands do you feel are settling the Heavy Metal world ablaze today? Feel free to spotlight friends, your own creations or just stuff that gets your heads banging! 

Cultes Des Ghoules and Funeral Mist did a great job. I bought lots of records last year (again!) as a result of a bad habit of collecting albums. It is fair to say that I am rather bored with what is happening musically these days and naturally I leant towards 90’s stuff, so it will come as no surprise that I prefer bands that glorify the older sound. I‘ll throw a few titles I was spinning today to give you an idea…

Nehemah – Requiem Tenebrae

Dissection – The Past is Alive

Cruciamentum – Convocation of the Crawling Chaos

Triumvir Foul – self titled

Ofermod – Mysterion Tes Anomias

10. Finally, with the unveiling of your new LP, I presume LVCIFYRE has plans for what happens next, be it live shows or something else. Now is your chance to announce / prepare our readers for the diabolic onslaughts ahead!

Our mini-tour with Triptykon has just been cancelled, to start on a negative. We are in talks with a few promoters, but as you can imagine the situation is so blurry at the moment that no one will risk purchasing plane tickets just yet, so there’s no point in teasing anything. In the meantime we have been focusing on the video for “Headless Rite”, so keep your eyes peeled as it will be coming soon.