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   Winds of Plague

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   20 Bulls Each

   Blotted Science

   Adrenicide

   Through the Eyes of the Dead

   Bereavement

   Wolves in the Throne Room

   Dawn of Retribution

   Ex Dementia

   Gorefest

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   A Second from the Surface

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   OLDER INTERVIEWS

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Album Review

Stigma-When Midnight Strikes!
( Pivotal Rockordings, 2008)

While Stimga might share similarities with The Black Dahlia Murder the amount of energy on display and the horror themed lyrics make this a unique take on blackened death thrash. It's a frantic clashing of melodic and visceral energy that leaps from the speakers with a bite that would make Dracula himself nod in approval.

The foundation of the bands sound is catchy melodic riffs that run the gamut from slow to downright train wreck speed. The overall approach of the band is haphazard and the chaotic nature of the band gives it a fresh edge when compared to the endless number of melodic death metal bands around right now. The vocals snarl while the drummers arms flail recklessly. This is a violent and melodic slab of metal that manages to distance itself from its influences enough to have a slightly original sound.

The production doesn't really sit well with me. It has a digital sheen to it and the drums seem a bit low in the mix at times. That said this is far from being a bad sounding album honestly. I think in the future the band might benefit from a slightly warmer production. For a debut album this sounds quite good, but it might not be the ideal sound for the band.

With energy to spare, killer riffs and a unique lyrical approach, Stigma manages to stand out in a sea of clones. Fans of The Black Dahlia Murder, Himsa, and As I Lay Dying should have little trouble getting into this Italian bands debut album. If you enjoy fast ass kicking metal this one is for you.

 

  
 



UN: How did the deal with Pivotal Rockordings come about? Did you guys get in touch with them or were they familiar with your previous EPs?
Vlad/vocals: Their A&R guy got in touch with us after he listened to the Epitaph Of Pain EP I sent him after just a few weeks we were in the studio working on our debut. We were really worried, because weve being ripped off by an Australian label when the studio was already booked and so we had to start recording When Midnight Strikes! with no guarantees about the release. When the guys from Pivotal Rockordings showed us their offer we decided to put the confidence and relationship at the first place, and so we waited till we were sure they have our same motivation and interest in our music. In the meantime we received other offers, but we decided to choose them and now were more than happy with what they're doing for us!
UN: How long did the writing process for When Midnight Strikes take? Have you writing since your last EP was released in 2004 or was the majority of the music written recently?
Vlad: We started to write those songs after we played Wacken Open Air in 2005, so basically we spent 14 months in our rehearsing room writing down the songs and trying to work on our skills and improve as song writers and musicians too.
UN: Do you feel like the band has progressed since the last EP? Does the album show more of the sound you had always envisioned for Stigma?
Vlad: Yeah totally, we've improved a lot since 2004, mainly because we started to approach at music with a professional attitude, discovering weaknesses and try to solve them. As for your second question, to be honest, yes, this finally sounds like the music I wanted to write with this band from the first day of our adventure. Any way, this is not a point of arrival, but just the beginning of our plans as a band!
UN: How has the response to When Midnight Strikes been thus far? Has Pivotal been doing a good job of pushing the record and making sure people are seeing the name.
Vlad: Yeah totally, they've worked super hard for us, and this is proves that they're serious and hard working guys, but also big fans of our music! So far press is very positive and seems like people are loving the album too So we're really super excited to start promoting it live at the best!
UN: Was the recording session for the new album the longest the band has ever been in the studio? Did Ettore Rigotti capture the type of sound you were hoping for with the album? Was it a tough recording session?
Vlad: Well, I think that was the longest recording session ever! Ahah! In the end we worked for eight months in Ettore's studio, dividing the whole work in two sections in order to have the proper time to do everything at the best and in the same time give Andrea the right time to step in the band and write some parts to add in the record, mainly solos and melodies. One thing we wanted is that When Midnight Strikes! had to sound professional, evil and not as plastic, and I really think Ettore found the way to mix his style with our requests, giving to our album one of the best productions I've ever heard on a debut release!
UN: The artwork by Davide Nadalin is quite awesome I must say. Did you guys give him a rough idea of what you guys wanted? Obviously it was important for him to capture the horror aspect of the band. Do you think he created the perfect visual accompaniment for the album?
Vlad: Davide is a great talent, and he's really down to earth, so we just had some chats with him trying to let him feel what the concept was all about, and then give him white sheet on how to and what to feature in the design! One important aspect is that we wanted to have an artwork which shall transmit the original feelings of that type of horror movies, plus the grotesque sense of humor of some of those characters, so we decided to add us as the zombies in the cover, just to show Metal also means cool guys who shall not take it all too serious! ahah!
UN: Did you guys have a lot of fun filming the video for I Am Dracula? It has a really cool look and matches the feel and themes of the band perfectly. How long did it take to shoot?
Vlad: Yeah, it was fun even if we spent the two most stressy days ever ahah! We got the permission to use that church as location, but we didn't have much time because of the time schedule of the director and main characters, so we had to work 13 hours a day for two days and then finish it in the last morning, just a couple of hours before everyone had to leave! We love the final result, considering also that we had just a little budget for the shoot, and we're very pleased to have cool guests as Metal Girl, the killer breaker you shall see kicking Draculas ass, and our art teacher at the high school doing the Count!
UN: You guys recently dropped off of a planned UK tour. I read that you guys will be playing a European tour this summer and also plan on hitting the UK around the same time. Are you guys planning to tour a lot for the new record? Any plans for any North American dates?
Vlad: Yes, unfortunately we had to drop, just because two gigs got cancelled just one week before the tour, but as you read we already have plans to come over during summer and autumn, plus try to play everywhere in Europe before the end of the year! At the moment we don't have plans to tour the US, even if we received an offer a couple of weeks ago, I can tell you that touring your country is totally one of the goals we'd love to achieve, so we really hope to make it sometime soon, maybe as soon as the next album will be out!
UN: Do you think the horror element of the band helps you guys have a unique edge? Are you guys big horror movie fans? How did the initial idea to have the horror themes first come about?
Vlad: Well, a lot of people are showing interest in our choice to speak about early horror movies, but at the moment I can't say if we'll go on this way or just change subject in the future.

Obviously we think could be helpful to create a unique edge between music and lyrical concepts, but at the same time we think we have enough bullets in our machine-gun to let the music speak, and not just to be remembered because we play horror music! The idea came in my mind after I saw for the 10th time Dracula featuring Lugosi, I remember I thought: "That is pure evil, he is Dracula!", and so I spoke with the guys and asked their thoughts on that! I think new horror movies are fun, but if you want to taste the real feelings and check out what horror is about, 20's and 30's movies are a must!
UN: The band has been together for 8 years and yet this is the first full length album from the band. Do you think bands tend to rush things these days? It seems bands form, release one album and then break up. There isnt much longevity anymore it seems.
Vlad: Yes, I totally agree with you! We decided to take our time to release our debut, because we wanted to do everything at the best, so many bands just try to take advantage of the trend and release as much music as possible in a little short time, Stigma is not that case, we love what we do and we hope most of you will do the same! Thanks a lot for your interest and support, it really means a lot to us!

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