LHP: You also do Battle Kommand Records, which has released quite a few records covering various underground metal genres. What was your motivation for starting BKR and what does the label have planned currently?
I started BKR for a couple reasons. The most important reason being that I always wanted to own my own record label and be able to have the opportunity to work with bands I love and also to help out new bands that I’d discover in the future (which I’ve done thus far). It’s great that I’m able to make a decent living between the label and the band. It really allows my entire life to be completely revolving around music, which was always a dream of mine.
As for current plans, we just released a new record for our great friends Zoroaster (Atlanta’s godz of doom metal!) called ‘Dog Magic’, which is an outstanding album that we’re all very pumped about. Also just released a record from a killer Chicago band we’ve known for years called Exalted. Their debut ‘We Are The Grim Throng’ is out now. Total thrashing black metal madness. Really killer record and the band’s debut, so we hope to use this record to develop them a bit and ‘put them on the map’ so to speak. Releases to come in the near future include Lurker of Chalice ‘Perverse Calculus’ (new album), Godless North 2xCD collection (the band’s entire discography compiled into one release), Gloria Diaboli ‘Gate to Sheol’ CD/LP (ex-members of Godless North’s new orthodox black metal project), and there’s a few others in the pipeline at the moment, but these three are the most current priorities.
LHP: What artists/bands have you not worked with yet that you'd really like to?
Can’t really say. I’ve never gone after a band and not been able to do something with them. If there was an active band right now that I could release something for, it would be Necros Christos because I’m totally obsessed with their sick occult death metal purity. Really great German band, but I’m pretty sure that we won’t be working together as a band-to-label thing because they’ve got a deal in place already. This would be the #1 band for me right now, though, if I could ‘sign anyone’.
LHP: Has Nachtmystium's increase in activity put BKR in the back seat of your priorities?
Not at all. When I tour it slows down things around here. We take our distro offline, etc., but it’s always good to be out on the road and reach Nachtmystium fans that might not be aware of the label or the bands on it. I always sell BKR titles at the merch table and often times people get their first dose of BKR that way, which is very cool as we’re killing two birds with one stone…haha.
LHP: Finally, what records have you been listening to lately (metal and non-metal)?
Current playlist…
V/A – Heavy Metal Dub LP (old dub comp. LP…great stuff)
Necros Christos – Triune Impurity Rites CD
Lurker of Chalice – Perverse Calculus CD advance
OM – Conference of the Birds (obsessed with this record since the day I got it…)
Tom Waits – Real Gone LP
Dawnbringer - ALL
Check out currently available titles and news of upcoming releases at the Battle Kommand Records site: http://www.battlekommand.com.
