Relatively new to the scene, Sordes Dominum is a three-piece instrumental, horror, doom-metal machine that claims the city of lost angels as its home base. The band features bassist Zander Reddis, guitarist and producer Alex Crescioni, and drummer Jorden Mitev.
Sordes Dominum recently released their first single, “Exillium,” accompanied by a video which has been banned by YouTube without explanation. If that’s not enough, the video sharing—social media platform has gone scorched Earth removing just about everything related to Sordes Dominum begging the question, is it social media or UN-social media?
Not bowing to trends or censorship, New Noise Magazine are proud to bring you the darkness and doom that is Sordes Dominum, in their own words and infernal glory.
Is Sordes Dominum a project that all of three of you do when you have time or is it a full-fledged band with a commitment to each other to record records, sign to a label, and tour?
Sordes Dominum is a passion project. We all have other top priorities in life, ranging from other bands to careers that provide a livable salary. Having said that, we take the music, production, and vision very seriously. We are currently working on the second single and accompanying music video. We are planning to continue with singles, a full-length album, more videos, and possibly gigging and touring if the right opportunities present themselves.
Let’s go back to the beginning. How did all three of you meet, and how did Sordes Dominum come to be? Can you talk about your backgrounds, bands you’ve been in, etc.?
We all met from various musical projects and decided to create a new instrumental death/doom band in 2020. Zander and Jorden are both currently in other bands. Zander plays bass in the doom metal band Sixes, and Jorden plays drums in the doom metal band Yidhra. Alex is currently focusing on his production, mixing, and mastering career.
Who came up with the name, and what does it mean or signify?
We all decided on the name together. We wanted something very unique, so we went with latin. Sordes Dominum means “filth master.”
The music of Sordes Dominum is described as “cinematic, horror-style metal.” That’s a very unique style of music. Did the music develop organically out of jamming and rehearsing together, or was it something all three of you wanted to do from the outset?
The music did develop organically. We got into the rehearsal studio and just started improvising. We kept all the riffs that really resonated with us and compiled them accordingly. The synths, strings, and atmospheres were added later in the studio.
I’m curious. Did the films of Dario Argento—specifically, Suspiria—or the music of Zombi, possibly composer Angelo Badalamenti, have an impact or influence the music of Sordes Dominum?
They did not! Although, all very inspiring films and scores indeed!
Along the lines of the last question, what are the driving influences that ignite the creativity of Sordes Dominum? I understand that Cannibal Corpse, Behemoth, Rob Zombie, Fleshgod Apocalypse, and Korn have been cited musically. What about movies/TV, maybe writing or art? Do any of the aforementioned play a factor in how you write or envision the music?
Yes. Films are extremely inspiring, especially horror and sci-fi. We want the music to create a mysterious visual scene in the listener’s mind.
Your first single, “Exillium,” was banned from YouTube, in fact, all trace of your band has been erased from YouTube. As stated in the press, your video was banned without any reason whatsoever. What does the band think is the reason why it was removed?
We believe the reason YouTube terminated our account was because they took the video as us preaching anti-vaccination messages, and that it wouldn’t be safe for the public. The community guidelines are filled with lists of COVID restrictions. We in no way intended to create anti-vaccine notions or vaccination hesitancy.
Do you trust social media—including YouTube—moving forward? It seems like social media is a necessary evil musicians and content providers need to embrace if they want to reach and engage with fans, but in so doing, we’ve all become slaves to and are at the mercy of the almighty corporation and their personal and political ideologies. What’s the alternative, if there is one, in your point of view?
We’ve never fully trusted social media or YouTube, although it is indeed a necessary evil for musicians wanting to promote their music. There is no way around it. We have the debut video “Exillium” posted on our official website. If any of the future videos are banned, we will continue to upload to our site in which we can fully control.
Has the pandemic changed the way anyone in the band views performing live shows or possibly touring? Do any of you have reservations about being around large groups of people now?
We feel the same way we did before the pandemic. Now that venues are open again, things are looking up. During lockdown, a lot of bands were doing the streaming concerts, which seemed a bit depressing. Playing a gig in front of no audience is already all too familiar for most. We hope to get some great gigs going in the coming months and are open to offers.
What’s the rest of 2021 into 2022 look like for the band? Recording more songs, more videos, shows?
We will be continuing to record more singles, and possibly a full length album in the near future. Additional videos will be produced with Industrialism Films, as we have a great team dynamic to complete the visions for the music. No shows are planned as of now, but we are open to the idea!
Visit the official Sordes Dominum website to watch the banned single, “Exillium” here.
Visit Alex Crescioni’s official website here.
Follow Sordes Dominum on Facebook here.
