Summon: How did the band get started?
Ron: Bloodred is a one-man-project so it’s hard to tell when it all started. I had played in bands for several years but over the time it became clear, that my musical direction was changing to a more extreme sound and the other band members at the time didn’t want to follow. So I started writing music just for me and I think it was 2009 when I first recorded a song under the name of Bloodred.
Summon: What kind of music do you play?
Ron: I always find it difficult to label my own music but I think “Blackened Death” fits it well. If you want to broaden the genre “Extreme Metal” is okay too.
Summon: How has the fan response been?
Ron: The response so far is very good, I even got very positive feedback from some established and well know musicians. I think it will take some time until the EP is known to a wider audience and then more and more responses will come in.
Summon: Where did the band name come from?
Ron: I wanted to have a simple but memorable name. My musical roots reach back to the years when bands with similar simple names like Death, Dismember or Destruction where “big” and so I decided to go with Bloodred.
Summon: Introduce the band members and what they do in the band.
Ron: This is easy because it’s only me š I play the guitar and bass, I am the vocalist and for the home recordings I also do the programing. However for the recording of the EP I was lucky to recruit Joris Nijenhuis from Atrocity for the drum recordings. HeĀ“s an awesome drummer and did a really, really great job on the record but he is no member of the band.
Summon: Who writes the music? Lyrics?
Ron: That would of course also be me. It took quite a while to change from being in a band to write and record music on my own, because now I had to take care about everything. But I got used to it and on the plus side I can make all decisions regarding the music and the band on my own.
Summon: And where do the lyric ideas come from?
Ron: The lyrics cover a wide range from diverse literary sources to contemporary events and topics. On the one hand I really like to dig into archives and find some poems which words and subject fit to the music. I like the idea of giving those old text a new live by using in my songs. On the other hand there are some songs with a more philosophical approach. “Death” is a huge and fascinating topic, as is religion and all it’s poisonous influences on society. Last but not least some ideas simply come from walking in a misty forest or watching clouds racing on a stormy sky. The beauty of nature is always inspiring.
Summon: What is your view in Satanism and Occultism?
Ron: I’m an outspoken atheist and “disciple of reason”, so Satanism and Occultism – like any religion or believe system – isn’t something I take serious in any way. But of course both are a part of metal for ages now and using them as an artistic expression to create a certain atmosphere is absolutely okay for me.
Summon: How many albums/CDās have you released?
Ron: The first EP “The Lost Ones” was released on June 20th 2014. This is the first “official” release but I regularly release new music on my SoundCloud page.
Summon: Tell me about some the songs on the latest CD?
Ron: The first song is the “The Lost Ones” and this one is a more mid tempo song with a certain Thrash feel to it, although it starts with a really fast part. I think this song is a good introduction into the music of Bloodred since it has speed, melody and groove. The lyrics are based on a poem by Samuel Bamford. The second song is called āSpirits Of The Deadā. The lyrics are from a poem by E.A. Poe and this song shows the Black Metal side of Bloodred. It was fascinating to watch Joris playing all this ultra fast stuff in the studio. It’s unbelievable how hard he hits the snare drum even at high speed.
Summon: Do you have any side projects?
Ron: No, Bloodred is my full time job.
Summon: Who are some of your musical influences?
Ron: My music is rooted in Black and Death Metal but there are also some Thrash influences. Sometimes you can even spot some (British) Doom. So to name a few: Emperor, (old) Amorphis, Moonsorrow, My Dying Bride, Dissection and Metallica.
Summon: Which current bands?
Ron: That’s not so easy, but I think I could name Vatnett Viskar and Skalmƶld.
Summon: What is the band like when you play live?
Ron: As mentioned earlier Bloodred is a one-man studio project. It seems to be impossible to find other musicians with the same musical taste and the necessary skills in my area. Playing live would be awesome and I think the songs are fun to play, but at the moment this unfortunately is not possible.
Summon: What do you think of the US Black Metal/Death Metal scene?
Ron: The early US Death Metal was a huge influence for me. I still remember listening to the first Death records or “Altars of Madness” from Morbid Angel. Being a Thrash fan (mainly Metallica and Slayer but also Kreator and Destruction) the Death Metal sound was a real eye-opener for me. This was the more extreme sound I was looking for and it left a big impression on me. Regarding the current scene I think that there are some excellent bands like Agalloch, Wolves In The Throne Room or the fantastic Vattnet Viskar, but my main focus is more on the European scene.
Summon: What do you think of the Overseas scenes?
Ron: The European scene – which IĀ“m a part of – is near and dear to me. Especially the bands from Scandinavia had and have a huge influence on me. I can’t name all the band I’ve been listing to over the years or which I saw live. IĀ“m under the impression that the European scene is more diverse in their music than the scene in the US, but I might be wrong. And despite living in the internet age it’s easier for me to discover European than American underground bands.
Summon: What are some of new favorite black metal/death metal bands?
Ron: I don’t know if you can call them Black or Death Metal, but Skalmƶld from Iceland are one of the best bands I discovered in the last year or so. They’re more a viking metal band, but they are able to mix a certain rawness with great melodies. Another band I really like are Eldkraft from Sweden. To me they are the righteous heirs to Bathory.
Summon: When do you guys plan on writing any new material?
Ron: IĀ“m always writing. Check out the SoundCloud page once in a while for new music.
Summon: What does the future hold for the band?
Ron: That’s a hard question. First of all I’d like to here what everyone is thinking of āThe Lost Onesā. In a next step the EP will be sent to all relevant labels and obviously I’m curious what they have to say. Apart from that I will continue writing, recording and releasing my music. There might be even a second record with Joris Nijenhuis on the drums and Alex Krull as the producer.
Contact them at:
https://www.facebook.com/Bloodredofficial
http://bloodredband.bandcamp.com/
https://soundcloud.com/bloodred_de
https://twitter.com/Bloodredband
