EPITOME – interview
- Posted on 15-03-2023
Interview with the Polish Grindcore/Death Metal act EPITOME, in which the vocalist Dyvan tells us about the band’s latest release, some hints about the ideas and inspiration for the music and future plans for the band
Introduce your band, and describe your latest release:
Hi! The band I would like to introduce to you today is Rzeszów-based EPITOME. My humble person is currently the vocalist in this band. The band was formed in 1992 and has recorded 5 full-length albums. It has played a ton of concerts around the world. On 09.09.2022 our last album was released with the title: “ROTend” (Deformeathing Prod). Who knows, maybe, as the title suggests, it will be the last album in the history of the band? Or maybe not
What’s the hardest part about being a band in this day and age?
I don’t think there is such a thing as the most difficult thing about being a team. On the contrary, I see more positives than negatives. First of all, because it’s not our goal to succeed in the lists of the most popular bands in the world, to sell millions of records. And this gives us, above all, peace of mind, the opportunity to work uninterruptedly on music, organizing concerts, etc. In short: to have fun with what we do
When did you realise that your project had the potential to be much more than just a fun idea?
When the band released the second demo “AutoeROTicism” there was a certain belief that a kind of legend was being created. It was 1994. You can say that the world wasn’t ready for such sounds Nevertheless, EPITOME became very recognizable, not only in its own country but also in Europe, Mexico, South America… Therefore, EPITOME played a lot of concerts, not only as a support, but also as a headliner. We often mention the tours in Mexico, which gave the band a lot. However, despite such great times, it was not possible to maintain a permanent line-up. And this influenced a very long time that had to be devoted to creating subsequent albums.
Tell us about your latest release, why should we check it out?
First of all, because it’s a very good album Yes, I know, it’s not for me to judge However, this rating comes from the opinions we get from people, reviews that appear not only in our country but also throughout Europe. Another argument is that this is my first album with EPITOME. The next argument is, as I mentioned earlier, it may be the last album in the band’s history, although we have no such intention. Besides, if you want to know what it’s like to have a broken, ROTting body, this album will allow you to achieve this state
How does a song typically come together for you?
There is no specific recipe for this. All in all, there were many recipes, as many as there were composers over the years. I can only briefly tell you how my lyrics for the songs for the new album were created. All in all, it was completely natural, I set myself some thematic context that I wanted to raise, and then I started writing in the background while listening to the song (in a loop). Of course, the thoughts that I put into words had to be modified to suit a particular part of the song. Once I was satisfied with how it played in my head, I started to practice vocally. Of course, once I recorded the vocal parts in the studio, I couldn’t avoid some subsequent modifications. But I achieved the effect I intended.
How would you describe your sound to an unfamiliar reader?
It’s the simplest: Pathological Sound Formula!
What do you want listeners to take away from listening to your band?
I would like everyone who listens to our music to get from it exactly what they need. It can’t look like I’m going to give the listener a specific feeling, a keynote. Everyone must be free to listen to music. If a certain music gives me nothing at all as a listener, I usually don’t come back to it after a one-time meeting. But there are situations that the albums I listen to don’t reach me at the moment of my first contact with them. But that doesn’t mean I won’t come back to it someday. For a simple reason. As everything around me changes, so do I. So what I am looking for in music is also changing, as well as what I need from music for myself! And so it happened several times. To one of the albums that didn’t suit me at all, I couldn’t even stand what it presented to me, I came back by accident 5 years later. And something happened that I didn’t expect at all. I fell madly in love with this album. And so it has remained to this day. And the record I’m talking about is “A Grand Declaration of War” by Mayhem.
Where would you really like to tour that you haven’t done so yet, and why?
Everywhere! Not only where EPITOME has not played yet, but also where it has already been!
How would you say that the sound of your band has progressed over the years?
It’s obvious that when the line-up changed, the composers of the music also changed. The music changed then, but remained within the same general framework of Grindcore. Often mixed with brutal Death Metal.
How excited are you for 2023, and what can fans expect from you?
We are very excited about what lies ahead! This year we will play some great concerts, including in Slovakia with the brilliant Rotten Sound! And for next year we are already working on more summer festivals, and of course smaller shows! As well as working on a new album is our goal!
Here are links to social media:
https://www.facebook.com/SupeROTic
https://open.spotify.com/artist/4tHVH1q8zd3PkuolrF7KEi?si=Isi0xIwoSUSFkXvxms5jxg