The world needs more blackened heavy metal bands. While it’s become something close to a scene, most bands tend to lean closer to the black than the heavy. Thankfully, that’s not the case for the Bay Area masters in NITE. Their sophomore release, Voices of the Kronian Moon, out March 25 via Season of Mist is the first with SOM, and it highlights the power of a band uniting three decades of heavy metal (‘70s, ‘80s, ‘90s) and modernizing it. Unlike a lot of retro-styled acts, NITE feels like the sound of tomorrow rather than yesterday—blazing leads, arena-ready melodies, and harsh soundscapes abound. The icing on the cake is the harrowing Arthurian tale at the center, sprinkled with nice messages about being a better person and conquering darkness.
Everything about this album is a step up from their debut. Voices of the Kronian Moon just kicks so much ass. Guitarist and vocalist Van Labrakis is appreciative and notes that it took some time to get here:
“If we were not getting better then something would be wrong [laughs]. Yeah. I mean, I think that we got to know each other better because we didn’t really know each other before we started this band. So, I moved to the U.S. from Germany, actually, back in 2015. I met the guys in 2017 so, you know, it took a little bit of time to get to know each other, how we like things done and what kind of songs work well for all of us.”
“[This record] kind of happened at the same time with the pandemic,” he continues, “so we were kind of cornered because we were all isolating when the pandemic started, so we didn’t see each other for a long time, for like nine months or so. So, it was kind of weird because we were still practicing, in a way, but it was isolated. We would have all these Zoom calls, and we actually worked more on this than we would do if we were in the practice space for all the months. Practice spaces, you know, we tend to also chat about other things and have fun and stuff, and this was very, very focused.”
You also just learn things about yourself and what you all want only through experience and trial and error, right?
“In the first album we were also trying to get things going. We were kind of trying to workshop this thing and get it out there. We did that first album with absolutely no budget, and then Creator-Destructor Records was kind enough to do a great job with the first album and he put us on the map. And here we are now, and we have the backing of one of my favorite labels of all time, and the perfect place for us to do what we want to do. And things are a little different, like having an actual budget for an album is different.”
It sounds like NITE had one of the most productive Zoom sessions going on. I don’t want to skip over the fact that few traditional heavy metal bands are doing what NITE are—not only the blending of uber-melodic leads with blackened vocals, but also taking in influences like The Scorpions, Thin Lizzy, ZZ Top, and mid-career Megadeth. Labrakis acknowledges that finding the right sonic recipe isn’t easy:
“I really find me being in a band doing exactly what other people are doing, I really find this pointless; I find it uncomfortable. With this one, we felt more comfortable doing what we set out to do on the first album, but on the first album, I think I feel we were a little bit more hesitant to go crazy with our traditional metal influences. That album was recorded before we even played our first show, so we have gained a lot of experience seeing which songs actually work and which songs don’t really work live. I mean, they might be great to listen to in your bedroom, but that doesn’t mean that people want to hear them live. So, we kind of took all those insights and we applied them on this album and tried to make songs that work, but I’m sure that some of them are still not going to be great live (laughs). What we all set out to do was something that I was really adamant about from the start: try to make music that is exactly what we like and exactly what we listen to when we are home or in the car.”
Labrakis even echoes the great Lemmy with his vocals.
“I mean, that’s a compliment, thank you, but I really cannot compare myself to that legend. I wish I would manage to sound the tiniest bit like him before I die. What happens with the voice is basically that’s the voice that I can do. I’ve been working on it for many years. I’m still working on it. I think the clean voice in that type of heavy metal, is not working for me, anyway. I cannot imagine heavy metal in 2021 or ’22 with the same clean vocals. I feel that the legends like Dio and Dickinson… it’s been done so well and, I don’t know, I can’t really see a clean voice in this landscape.”
Watch the video for “Kronian Moon” here:
For more from NITE, find them on Facebook, Instagram, and their official website.
Photo courtesy of NITE and Rob Williamson
