Hello! What inspired your debut album, "Bound by the Wicked," and how did you approach its creation?
Bound by the Wicked originally began as a duo of songs tying in current events with post-apocalyptic features. Our songs "In Norms We Trust" and "Of Hierarchy" were themes based on a university project at CSUN that Allan completed. Building on the two songs, Allan began to create songs that incorporated fictional story telling along with current and past events. Overall, all the songs had a commonality, which was wickedness in one form or another. Therefore, Bound by the Wicked came to be as the album that it is today.
How has Anathemma's sound evolved since 2016, and what musical influences have shaped your style?
Anathemma's sound and performance style has evolved significantly since 2016. When we first began, we used amplifiers that were in our reach. These amps consisted of Blackstar and Peavey combos. Knowing that Exodus, Metallica, and Cannibal Corpse all use Mesa Boogie, we knew that was the direction where we needed to go. Adrian and Allan worked very hard to pull the funds together to obtain the best of the best Mesa Boogie. Also, our newest members Jose Gonzalez and Thomas Gonzalez have contributed to the overall sound and energy of our band. Our two newest members Jose and Thomas have evolved our stage presence through their raw aggression.
Can you share memorable experiences from performing with renowned artists like Warbringer and Metal Church?
A memorable experience we had with Warbringer was seeing members from Exmortus attend to support the show. Allan had the chance to talk to Conan, and they discussed how they have run into each other a few times in the past. Later on, Allan would run into him again at Grill 'em all. For every show, we always arrive early when we perform. This also granted us the opportunity to hold conversations with Carlos Cruz and John Kevill outside of the Whisky a Go Go. For Metal Church, we were present during their sound check, and we were able to see what approaches they take towards their live sound. After the show, Metal Church signed Vinyls, Posters, and CDs for everyone. When it was Allan's and Jose's turn to get their items signed, Allan took his chance to profess his love for them. The Metal Church show was very notable for our band because Thomas attended the show. After watching our performance, Thomas envisioned himself in the band, which coincidentally came to be!
Any favorite venues or standout moments from your performances in Southern California, Arizona, and Nevada?
Our favorite venue to play is definitely the Whisky A Go Go. We enjoy this venue in particular because of the stage's height. This allows us to see the crowd and take in the energy we feel from them. Their energy can be in the form of chanting with us, moshing, or yelling to the top of their lungs. We thrive off the energy we get when we play at the Whisky A Go Go. For Arizona, our favorite place is the Blooze Bar in Phoenix. Immortalized productions does an excellent job at hosting shows there. They were very kind to us there and did an excellent job at promoting the show. Also, the Blooze Bar has an excellent team working sound there as well. At that show, we enjoyed how energetic the crowd was. Rather than staying in their seats for the entire set. The crowd came close to us and got rowdy!
What themes does "Bound by the Wicked" explore? How do you incorporate social and political issues into your songwriting?
Our social and political issues are through a human rights lens. Rather than associating ourselves with a direct political affiliation, the album focuses on the wickedness that results from human selfishness, self preservation, and more. Our album's theme focuses on wickedness on a widespread level rather than being one sided.
How has the local music scene in Los Angeles influenced Anathemma's identity as a band?
Our local scene has influenced us to bring bands together and to support one another. Bands such as The Kaotics, ToXxXic, Vexxum, Silver Fire, Divebomb and Nox Sinister all work very hard to bring their very best performance. Therefore, we wanted to accomplish bringing bands together to showcase their talents along with ours. We are very privileged to have our residency at The Old Towne Pub in Pasadena because it allows us to provide a space where many bands can showcase their music with us. We believe in giving every band the opportunity to perform, and seeing their hard work inspires us to do even better. Our band identity is based on bringing people together through thrash. Therefore, we want to use our platform as a way to give back to others.
Any interesting stories from the recording studio during the making of your debut album?
During the recording of the album, we originally had it titled as No Rest for the Wicked, but one of our great supporters Krist had told us that that name was already taken! We completely forgot that Ozzy already used that title as one of his albums. We scrambled to find a new title for the album. After much thought and stubbornness, we developed our current title Bound by the Wicked. Whew!
Can you explain the concept behind the album title, "Bound by the Wicked"?
The concept of the album comes from human wickedness. Many people are attracted to wickedness because of glamor, monetary or social gains, and other reasons. Also, people may be pulled into wickedness due to their mental health. Our album focuses on how people are pulled into wickedness; therefore, bound to it.
How do digital platforms like Spotify and social media impact the way fans engage with your music?
Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube have had a significant impact on our fan engagement. With music streaming platforms, we have been able to reach wider audiences. Playlists from promotions such as NativeHeavyOfficial, Cutting Edge Metal, MetalFreaks, and media outlets such as Loudwire have significantly helped our music become more widespread. This brings more engagement to our pages, which then gives us the ability to interact with them on our stories or posts. Social media gives us the opportunity to get to know our supporters and how we can continue to be engaging as well as find ways to improve ourselves.
Are there specific musicians or bands that inspire your work, and if so, how do they influence your creative process?
James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich come to mind with arranging material. Allan adopted their style of writing music in terms of treating a song like a puzzle. Newly created riffs are connected with other riffs that were recorded previously on Allan's phone. Hopefully Allan doesn't lose his cellphone.....cough cough...Kirk. As for Jose's writing style, Gary Holt is an influence on him because of Holt's aggressive and punchy playing style. Jose enjoys Holt's sound as it inspires him to write music that is mosh-worthy. Lyrically, Jose enjoys writing music involving historical events, particularly war. Adrian's influence comes from Steve Harris of Iron Maiden. Adrian is inspired by Harris' approach to finger plucking and intricate bass lines. Therefore, Adrian will think outside of the box when he creates his bass fills and melodies. Thomas' drumming is heavily inspired by Dave Lombardo. Thomas does a fantastic job at adding flavors into the music that give the extra emphasis that the songs need. Overall, we have a long list of influences, which include Exodus, Testament, Slayer, Metallica, Death Angel, Megadeth, Metal Church, Iron Maiden, Helloween, Faith No More, Kreator, Sodom, Tool, Rush, and more.
Do you adapt your performances based on regional audience differences? Any insights on connecting with diverse audience demographics?
Normally, our setlists come predetermined before the show; however, setlists are always subject to change as to what the audience wants. We are very fortunate to have a band that is very flexible. If we notice the crowd consists of Megadeth fans, we will add "Skull Beneath the Skin." If we notice there are Iron Maiden fans in the crowd, we will add "Trooper." We are always ready to make changes if needed, but we like to come prepared as to what we will be playing that night. In terms of connecting with a diverse audience, our insight would be to sell the performance itself. Our music will always be our music, but the way it is played will be what everyone will remember. Passion must always be in the performance, and we are always prepared to give it 100%.
Any upcoming projects, tours, or collaborations fans can anticipate?
We are excited to share that we are already making progress with creating our second album! Our second album will be fast, heavy, and diverse! We promise an aggressive approach to this next upcoming album! We are also working on adding more merchandise. We recently have added enamel pins to our store! Be sure to keep a look out as to what comes out next!