Summon: How did the band get started?
Aggreash: I was disappointed when all my former bands failed due to lack of motivation and reliability of some members. So, I started LYFTHRASYR as a solo project back in 2002. I recorded some songs and found good colleagues like Insorior who accompanied me from 2004 until 2012 as guitarist and producer.
Summon: What kind of music do you play?
Aggreash: I call it postmodern black metal. There are many elements coming from black metal such as the guitar and drum arrangements. But there is a strong edge of modern death metal along with more and more prominent influences coming from electro music.
Summon: How has the fan response been?
Aggreash: We’ve been pretty active between 2005 and 2009, so there was a growing fan base. Since the new album was heavily delayed, it seems that this caused a step backwards regarding fame and support, unfortunately. However, each of our albums got really good reputation from both press/media and fans.
Summon: Where did the band name come from?
Aggreash: The band name LYFTHRASYR originates from Nordic mythology. On the one hand it stands for the heritage of our music which is Nordic black metal. On the other hand, the legendary figure of “Lifthrasir” is one of only two survivors of the apocalypse “Ragnarök” and, hence, stands for a new beginning and something totally new. Creating something new is one main goal for me when writing songs. Finally, replacing the letter “i” with “y” guarantees the clear identification of this name with the band and not Nordic mythology.
Summon: Introduce the band members and what they do in the band.
Aggreash: The permanent line-up currently consists of only two members: drummer Nefastus and me, Aggreash. I do everything besides playing the drums.
Summon: Who writes the music? Lyrics?
Aggreash: I write all songs and lyrics.
Summon: And where do the lyric ideas come from?
Aggreash: The concept of our latest album “The Engineered Flesh” is transhumanism. Transhumanism is the philosophy of artificial enhancement and preservation of humans by nanotechnology, genetic engineering, and robotics. I’m totally fascinated by the opportunities of such technologies. I got really good inspiration from the authors and researchers of the Machine Intelligence Research Institute (MIRI) such as Ray Kurzweil.
Summon: What is your view in Satanism and Occultism?
Aggreash: I’m an atheist.
Summon: How many albums/CD’s have you released?
Aggreash: Three full-length albums “The Final Resurrection” (2005), “The Recent Foresight” (2007), “The Engineered Flesh” (2013), and one demo “Beyond The Frontiers Of Mortality” (2004).
Summon: Tell me about some the songs on the latest CD?
Aggreash: As already mentioned, the concept of our latest album “The Engineered Flesh” is transhumanism. In each song a specific topic or question of this concept is discussed and set to music. Some of these questions are: Can we heal mortal diseases by modifying human genomes? Can we artificially improve a person’s abilities, crafts, or even personality? Will we still be ourselves after human-made soul transition from one body to another? Can eternal life really work for the whole body and mind – or just for some parts? Does it still make sense to believe in a higher power when we can escape from our own fate by nanotechnology and genetic engineering?
Summon: Do you have any side projects?
Aggreash: No, I don’t have the time, unfortunately.
Summon: Who are some of your musical influences?
Aggreash: Modern metal such as Rammstein, Marilyn Manson, or Turmion Kätilöt, Nordic black metal such as Dimmu Borgir, The Kovenant, or Immortal, modern death metal such as Machine Head or Fear Factory, electro music such as The Prodigy, Apoptygma Berzerk, or Feindflug.
Summon: Which current bands?
Aggreash: All of these bands are current, but mainly The Prodigy, Rammstein and Turmion Kätilöt influenced me a lot for the latest album.
Summon: What is the band like when you play live?
Aggreash: There are 2-3 more members: keyboardist Vethys, guitarist Zethos and usually a second guitarist who is not a permanent live member. We put a lot of effort in our shows not only to perform our songs well but also to provide something special with our appearance and light show.
Summon: Have you guys ever played in another country?
Aggreash: Yes, besides Germany we’ve played in most European countries, Russia, and Ukraine.
Summon: How big of crowd shows up at shows usually?
Aggreash: When there is no famous headliner band, usually about 100-200 people show up.
Summon: How is the crowd response when you play?
Aggreash: Generally very good since we work hard to perform and play our high-speed songs well and put on a good show with extravagant outfits and programmed lights.
Summon: What do you think of the US Black Metal/Death Metal scene?
Aggreash: The US have a big and famous death metal scene. I’ve always been impressed by the technical skills, the professionalism, and the live shows of these bands. Unfortunately, I don’t know anything about the US black metal scene.
Summon: What do you think of the Overseas scenes?
Aggreash: I spent some time in Southern California and Florida but I had the feeling that the alternative scenes such as metal or gothic are not as present and big there as they are in Germany. However, this was just a personal and local impression.
Summon: What are some of new favorite black metal/death metal bands?
Aggreash: Since I’m currently not really following the scene, I can’t recommend new bands at the moment.
Summon: When do you guys plan on writing any new material?
Aggreash: As we just released a new album, we first will do our best to promote it before writing new songs.
Summon: What does the future hold for the band??
Aggreash: In 2014, we will concentrate on playing concerts and maybe a tour if there is a good offer with well-fitting bands.
Contact them at:
https://www.facebook.com/Lyfthrasyr
https://myspace.com/lyfthrasyr
http://www.reverbnation.com/lyfthrasyr
https://twitter.com/lyfthrasyrmusic
http://www.youtube.com/user/LyfthrasyrOfficial
