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Interview

An Interview With Tribulation Guitarist Adam Zaars

Swedish death metal outfit Tribulation recently signed to Pulverised Records for the release of their debut full length album "The Horror," which was unleashed on January 19th. Guitarist Adam Zaars let Metalunderground know about the musical direction of the band, their upcoming vinyl release, and their plans for the future.

xFiruath: When did you first get into music and what made you want to become a musician?

Adam: I started listening to Kiss when I was about six years old and knew right away that I wanted to be a musician. It's hard not to get influenced by a sea of fire and blood and by the energy and charisma they illuminated, when you are six years old, and I still get influenced by pretty much the same things today.

xFiruath: I’ve heard Tribulation be described as death metal, black metal, and even thrash. How would you describe the sound of Tribulation to someone?

Adam: We deal with dark expressions in the form of death metal. We play death metal in its purest form without being afraid to step into something new. A lot of people would call us "old school,” as we are influenced a lot by bands like Morbid Angel and Necrovore, but we still only call it death metal. I guess that I can see why people consider us to be a thrash/death band, or whatever, but I have never seen us that way.

xFiruath: How was the recording of “The Horror?” Where did you record at and did you work with a producer or self-produce?

Adam: The recording was very scheduled and thought through even before we entered the studio. We recorded it with a friend of ours that sort of could be named as the producer. It was his studio and we had pretty much as much time as we wanted.

xFiruath: What’s your favorite part of the album and why?

Adam: I can't say one favorite part since the album is supposed to be listened to from the beginning to the end. It's a whole.

xFiruath: The titles of the songs all obviously have horror and death themed elements. Do the lyrics generally stick with gore and death based subject matter?

Adam: I wouldn't call it gore lyrics. They deal with horror in different shapes, darkness, negativity and the romanticism of the beauty in death.

xFiruath: I understand that a vinyl version of “The Horror” is currently in the works, which is a rare these days. What prompted you to do that and are the band members vinyl collectors?

Adam: Is it rare? Even Iron Maiden puts out their new releases on vinyl. It is the most natural thing in the world for us, and for us the vinyl release will be the ultimate artistic expression.

xFiruath: Now that the album is out what are Tribulation’s plans for the future? Do you have any upcoming shows planned or are you working on new material?

Adam: First of all we are heading out on a European tour in April/May, after that we have plan on playing the material on the album live as often as we can. When we are done with that we are going to record a new album.

xFiruath: What has been your favorite show or venue that you guys have played so far?

Adam: We played a show in Berlin with Necrovation, Drowned, and Dead Congregation last year, and that must have been the best show so far.

xFiruath: How do you feel about the state of the metal scene today? Is there anything about the industry or metal bands in general that you’d like to see changed?

Adam: I would like to see pretty much the whole metal scene changed. It's a pool of useless attempts of bands floating around. But there are of course still highlights, and they are better than ever! So sure, there's hope.

xFiruath: When you aren’t playing music what bands or albums do you listen to most frequently and what do you dig about them?

Adam: At the moment I listen a lot to the new Funeral Mist album, as well as stuff from Mortuary Drape, Dead Congregation, Blue Öyster Cult and Dissection. When it comes to favorites Iron Maiden has always been on the top along with The Misfits, Morbid Angel and Tormentor.

xFiruath: That’s all my questions, so do you have any other issues you’d like to discuss that I didn’t bring up?

Adam: No, not really. Thank you for the questions.

Ty Arthur splits his time between writing dark fiction, spreading the word about underground metal bands, and bringing you the latest gaming news. His sci-fi, grimdark fantasy, and horror novels can be found at Amazon.