Sanctus Nosferatu was founded in 2002 playing a style they like to combine as black, death, and thrash metal with a dash of female vocals from brutal to clean vocals. Through the course of their career they have released several albums including their most recent being "Samca". Bassist Nuno Terceirence discusses this release.
1. Please tell us about the history of your band and its members.
Nuno: Until early 2006, it had been a winding course for the band. In those old days, Sanctus Nosferatu saw several changes in the line-up, something which badly affected its evolution. Fortunately, it was only when the current line-up was formed that we finally achieved the necessary stability. We have been evolving ever since both as a band and as individual musicians with a solid foundation, and this is how we intend to carry on throughout this path. Releasing this album not only symbolizes our continuous quest for maximum promotion of our music with the general public and particular entities, but also represents the accomplishment of our common dream. Undoubtedly, it also implies an exponential increase of our sense of responsibility. The band’s line-up is as follows: Camila Morticia (clean and growl vocals), Felix Nelson (guitar), Helder Andrade (guitar), Nuno "Terceirence" (bass), and Nuno Costa (drums).
2. How did you guys come up with your band’s name?
Nuno: The band's name came up in a casual chat in a bar. The term "Nosferatu" alludes to the vampire mythology and the vampire clan, whilst "Sanctus" exalts the aforementioned vampire mythology.
3. Where is the band based in/where is the band originally from and what is your music scene like there? Are there any local bands you could recommend?
Nuno: The band is currently based on Sao Miguel Island, Azores… right at the heart of the Atlantic Ocean. There has been a dynamic Metal scene on this island for some 25 years, yet unfortunately this genre had never become the most predominant one. The good news, however, is that the majority of bands on Sao Miguel do play Metal. Among these I would highlight Stampkase, Anomally and Zymosis.
4. (Which) bands have influenced your band and its sound?
Nuno: Our main influences are: Cradle of Filth, Dimmu Borgir, Hecate Enthroned, Iron Maiden, Death and others. All of these, being coupled with the personal touch of each musician in our band, represents the formula for the composition of our songs. Sanctus Nosferatu tries to create strong dynamic variations between melody and aggression and these bases of our themes.
5. Which lyrical theme do you guys use in your music the most? What message do you want to send?Nuno: (See answer 8)
6. Tell us about the writing process for Samca.
Nuno: (See answer 8)
7. Which song would you choose from Samca to show potential Comasoft fans?
Nuno: To be honest, I would not choose just one song. In my opinion, I find it a rather limitative approach to define the character of a band by only one of its songs. In the case of Sanctus Nosferatu, I think the songs that would best define its sound and its potential are: Astarteia, Spiritus Magnus, and The Prophecy of Shackles.
8. Is there any story or concept behind the Samca title?
Nuno: The fact that the lyrics in this album address the vampire mythology makes the writing process rather slow. Primarily, this is because it involves an extensive research on the topic. The task becomes even more challenging when one has to link different thematic ‘pieces’ from several songs, in order to produce a mythological and timeless story. As for particular lyrical themes in our songs, "REVELATION" addresses a divine discussion ending in a prophecy, which in turn brings about a 'NOSFERATU JIHAD. The latter involves numerous deaths between vampire clans and the respective political games. This leads to the emergence of a powerful being, the "Astarteia", who shares a curse with Caine, "THE PROPHECY OF SHACKLES." Yet all efforts are ineffective against the Nosferatu clan, led by Samca. Thus in "Cannibalize CORPSE" they keep destroying everything on their way, and cannibalizing the corpses, whose souls are sucked by Samca, adding to her increasing annihilation power. This compels all other vampire clans to put aside their differences, and join forces in order to develop enough strength to turn the tide of war in their favour. At this point, Erzsébet Bathory, - the Darvulia'S APPRENTICE, uses all her power of magic, lust, and debauchery to try and destroy the IMPREGNATED DARK SOUL of Samca in an epic battle full of demonic energy and blood pacts. This is when SPIRITUS MAGNUS, the Creator in exile and the most perfect of all vampires intervenes, helping one of the struggling forces. Finally, REFLECTION provides a serene environment of mysticism, intended for the listener to reflect on the above-mentioned narrative. Thus instead of featuring a particular concept, the album offers a mythological and timeless story, which probably will be continued in our next record.
9. Select two songs from Samca and tell us about what inspired their lyrics.
Nuno: (See answer 8).
10. Who produced Samca and what was it like working with them?
Nuno: Samca was produced by Ruben Moniz, in the course of the recording process at NeburRecords, which was an important and extremely gratifying experience for all of us. We were already acquainted with Ruben since 2006, when we recorded the single Revelation, and decided to continue our collaboration with him ever since, especially knowing how hardworking and perfectionist Ruben is.
In seeking a particular sonic character for our album, we resorted to the expertise of Andre Tavares, who mixed and mastered this record. Often, in the course of producing an audio record, something which entails listening repeatedly the same tracks, one ends up becoming less sensitive to particular sonic elements and might not be aware of the alternative ways in which the record can be further enhanced. Hence Andre greatly contributed to bring the best out of the original tracks, and we are glad about the partnerships we chose to produce SAMCA.
11. Why should a metalhead buy your releases?
Nuno: Sanctus Nosferatu is a Black/Death/Thrash Metal band featuring a female singer with powerful and unique vocals ranging from guttural to clean ones, and whose instrumental dynamics focus on variations between melodic and aggressive dimensions It seeks to transport the listener to a blend of emotions and feelings ranging from lust and death to the sensuality and intrigue. Combined with our strong will and our belief in going much further, we therefore count on the support of both our fans and those acquainting themselves with our music for the first time. Clearly, it is by getting an original copy of our work that any metalhead directly supports our cause and helps us to get the means to produce our next record. We work with the fans and for them. They make us carrying on and keep Metal alive.
12. What plans do you have for the near future as a band?
Nuno: Our future plans are to continue promoting the album "Samca", to compose new songs for our next record, to get a record deal, and to promote our work at live venues before as many people as possible.
13. Where can we listen to your band and where can we buy your stuff?
Nuno: You can get the album SAMCA through our official Facebook page www.facebook.com/sanctusnosferatu. In Portugal you can also buy it in Carbono and Banana Art Factory stores. Some songs from this álbum are available on Youtube: http://youtu.be/m3aSwqXLL_c and http://youtu.be/jMtsZ09ot6U also check us out at www.reverbnation.com/sanctusnosferatu14. What would you like a listener to remember the most after listening to your music for the first time?
Nuno: I would like the listener to say he or she had just gone through an ‘extraordinary journey in the midst of a blend of emotions’. I believe that above all any music should be felt rather than listened, and therefore it should bring inspiration to our lives.
15. Any last words for your fans?
Nuno: Thank you all for your great support. We keep counting on you all to reach new heights. Stay tuned!
You can find us on Facebook www.facebook.com/sanctusnosferatu and follow us on www.twitter.com/sanctusnosferat
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