Khors

1. Hail Khors! First of all, please, introduce the band: like who do what and in which bands they played or still playing? Describe everybody in some sentences and tell us, in normal life who is how years old and what are their jobs?

My warmest greetings to the readers of Nuskull!

Here a short introduction of the band and I will start from myself:

KHORUS — bass-guitar, music, lyrics, production etc.

Previously in the period from 1996 to 2004 played in ASTROFAES. 

Age: 34

Occupation: small private business

Personal skills: goal-oriented, sociability, cautious

Marital status: married, two kids (a boy and a girl)

KHAOTH — drums

Previously (1997 to 2000) was with ASTROFAES, in 2001 with HATE FOREST (R.I.P.).

From 1995 and up to now is the driving force of TESSARACT.

Age: 30

Occupation: sales manager

Personal skills: honesty, straightforwardness, independence.

Marital status: divorced, one kid (a girl).

HELG — guitar, vocals, music, lyrics

Previously (2002 to 2004) played with RUNES OF DIANCEHT (R.I.P.).

Age: 25

Occupation: purchase manager

Personal skills: hard-worker, gaiety and some sort of uncontrollability under alcohol 

Marital status: married with one kid (a girl)

NORT — guitar

From 1996 and up to now is member of NAGUAL.

Age: 29

Occupation: public servant 

Personal skills: kindness, responsibility, compliance

Marital status: divorced, one kid (a girl)

I've tried to expose only our positive features, the negative ones are left out. Ha-ha.

2. What winter means to you? How much the days are cold there? Reputedly the global warming sensible eases the minuses at the really cold parts of the world too, if apocalypse come, then because of the human impurity or the heaten clime? Or because of something else?

Winter is really adorable season. If you go away from the dirty and dusty city you’ll find picturesque views of snowy forests and valleys. And it’s being really cold during 3 and a half months when it’s showing down to minus 30 degrees. But the situation has recently changed, per instance last winter it was cold only for two weeks or so, and apart of that it was not colder that minus 5. Probably, it’s because of global warming coming to us. Apocalypses doesn’t suit me at all, I have kids growing up and I want peaceful future for them, and we have enough apocalypses in our country besides that. But I can distinctly feel that this world is going down and it doesn’t really who will be the reason for that apocalypses. May be that will be humankind playing with nature, may be the nature itself getting us into ice age and not as funny as it was in the cartoon. 

3. A band is always about the self-expression, where the effects and the necessities of the weekdays are unavoidable. Politics, art? (rightist-leftist, favourite painter, book, film, cover)

I agree, that influence exists in some sense. But to my mind more likely it exists somewhere on subconscious level. I can that it’s mostly about music and books. I like a wide variety of music styles: from metal to post-rock. If we talk about my favorite bands I would first of all recall  W.A.S.P., Celtic Frost, The Cure, Fields Of The Nephilim, Lycia, Ikon, Monumentum, Tulus,  Kampfar, Anathema, God Is An Astronaut. I can go on further more since I don’t have any single favorite band, As for literature I prefer fiction or documentary books. Currently I’m at Leo Gumilev Ancient Russia and the GreatValley. I don’t pay much attention to politics. And I dont have any special favorites in fine arts, although I like pictures of Aivazovsky, Bosch, Dali. I’m also fond of watching football and ice-hockey broadcasts.

4. On the entire world the effects of the global economical crisis are perceptible, there how much is the unemployment a big problem? Homelessness, alcoholism, drug cemeteries, prostitution, corruption?

Our crisis hit very much in advance to Global one just after the collapse of Soviet Union. The number of hobos, alcoholics and other “high-society” representatives is beyond imagination. Despite that there are many very reach people and that shows the huge misbalance in our society and disruptive government’s work. Minimum salary is about $100 when 1kg of meat is $6, 1ltr of gasoline if $1, monthly household running costs (such as electricity, hot water, gas etc) are at the level of $40. Thus living at our land is hard but as it’s said: the most difficult challenges are meant for those who can suffer them with pride and dignity.

5. And if we are at this point, i was always curious about how the people living there thinking about the dissolution of the Soviet Union and how is it effected them or still effect them?

It’s all different. Since after the collapse of SU living became much harder from the economical point of view many people think that it didn’t make a good deal to Ukraine and they claim to maximal reconstruction of former relations. Others are satisfied with the given independence and try to get away from communistic past. This is mostly about younger generation, who haven’t suffered from the influence of Soviet morality. I think former Soviet people have many memories about their recent past both positive and negative from the feats of the soldier at World War Two to the famine in 1930ths.

6. What are the circumstances like in your environment? What is your city (Kharkiv) like and what kind of local bands you know. Could you recommend some name, who outstand from the black metal scene and whit who are you keep a good relationship?

Kharkiv is famous at the world scale with his black-metal bands for a long time. We mostly communicate with the guys from Nokturnal Mortum and Tessaract. The times when we were in close contact with other bands have passed away and nowadays we don’t meet each other that often. I can hardly recommend anyone and besides that all really good bands are already familiar to you and they have issued several albums, for instance Drudkh and Astrofaes.

7. Which bands were very determining in your life? Which musical styles are typical in Ukraine? As i know there are plenty of black, doom and death teams, from this viewpoint it is similar to Poland. Which polish and hungarian bands do you know? haha.

Yeah, we have lots of black-, doom- and death-metal bands, other styles are not that popular.

As for the influences, I can sat that the last drop which influenced my entrance into the world f black-metal was visiting the concerto of Nokturnal Mortum in autumn of 1995, they played “Lunar Poetry” program. And in the beginning of 1996 Thurios and me got into first rehearsals of Astrofaes. Our favorites that time were Norwegians Enslaved, Emperor, Immortal, Mayhem, Burzum, Gorgoroth. All the classics in one word. And I’m familiar with a lot of Polish bands, for example Sacrilegium, Graveland, Christ Agony, Behemoth (by the way Khors played in one concert with the latter this May) and so on. As for Hungarian bands — my indisputable favorites are Sear Bliss. I’m familiar with them since 1997, their “The Haunting” album is real masterpiece. And of course I cant but mention amazing Attila.

8. Mayhem or Burzum?

Their mutual relationship doesn’t bother me much. But if we talk about music I choose Burzum who haven’t issued any failure albums. At the same time apart of “De mysteriis Dom Satanas” I can outline any other album from Mayhem.

- Day or night?

Night. Very atmospheric time of day. And although I usually try to sleep at night, it’s the most productive time from the point of view of creating music and lyrics.

- Sunrise or sunset?

All the same equally beautiful moments of Solar activity. I can’t choose anything particularly. 

- Werewolf or vampire?

Never met them myself. Ha-ha.

But judging from movies I prefer the variant of “Interview with Vampire” and “Bram Stocker’s Dracula”

- Venom or Bathory?

Venom were one of the very first metal bands I’ve listened to. And “Black Metal” itself for a long time meant the name of their album to me rather than the whole music style. I like even their albums from the late 80s- early 90s. And I can’t say that about Bathory in the period after “Twilight...”

- Celtic Frost or Infernal Majesty?

Celtic Frost, definitely. It’s my favorite band from three Black Metal founders(+Venom and Bathory), as it’s used to say now. I even listen to “ColdLake” that was slated everywhere. Their reunion “Monotheist” simply knocked me down . I haven’t heard anything better in metal music within last two years. Ingenious innovators!!!

9. The band is three years old, even so two albums were issued by Oriana Music. What is good to know about the record label? What kind of critiques did you receive of this two album? How long will this project be 'alive'? Whatsoever do you think of it as a project? Will it be continued?

Yeah, just August we’ll selebrate our 3rd anniversary. We’ve really made great work during this time and our label has truly helped us in promotion of our music as much as it can be done by a small independent label. The critiques we get are mostly positive and that’s cool. Ha-ha. Surely there are some negative reviews, but I try to digest them with patience and comprehension. I can’t say how long we will stay on, the only thing I can say is that Khors is not a project, it’s a real band with all the things that come out: concertos, regular members (I hope so,ha-ha!) and new albums.

10. The big question, which is asked by people is not that what is the meaning of life, rather what's the use of this whole thing, how do you see this?

I don’t pay much attention to this global-problematic question. But to leave good heritage, I think, is common fro any humankind. For me it’s first of all to grow up my kids healthy. To teach them to live in this cruel, or better say, shitty world, to live the way that will let them be honest to themselves, to be proud of their Motherland and to be just in what they do. All the rest “world treasures” and “wonders of the civilization” are not of big interest to me.

11. Whose idea was the cover and booklet incredibly nice workout, which really meets the high standards? Watching your pictures and the cover i see nothing of the black metal's cliches or traditionalities (make-up, pentagram, conversed-cross, things, which are against the church, etc). Why is that?

The concept of the cover and the booklet belongs to me and our designer Sir Gorgoroth, a very talented young man. Sir helped to embody my thoughts and ideas in the shape that you can see on the cover of the album. As for so called “black-metal clichés” — we don’t care of it much. And I think you wouldn’t have enjoyed, having seen in our booklet daub-painted faces with reversed crosses on the foreheads, several females with the blood on their bodies and other stuff.Ha-ha!

There are there bands who need that things.

12. Religion? Satanism has loads of interpretation, how do you live it?

I’m not interested in modern religions. I care only about the faith of our ancestors. As for Satanism . I never was fond of it. Although I’ve read some literature (like Satan Bible) for some informational need, just like the Koran and Christian Bible. I don’t want to judge them since these scriptures haven’t raised my attention that much.

13. What does paganism mean to you? Many people speak of it as the NS, but there are differences.

I really respect the faith of our ancestors. Paganism was and will be the most transparent, actual and natural religion. Modern paganism to my mind doesn’t assume that thorough condction of all the ceremonies as it was in the past. Today we live in modern and technically equipped world. The main thing is to remember our routs and the history of our Motherland. The notions of national-socialism and paganism today are really mixed up. As for us  Khors is not a political band. We try to foster with our music a new generation of people for whom such things as patriotism, pride ad honor were the most important in their lives. On this fundament the county can make crucial steps towards recovery of the society spoiled with drugs, LSD, MTV-shit and so far. It’s much more important than raising transnational conflicts. It’s more important to create rather than to declare hate and antipathy.

14. Naa, then a moron question, what's your message to the readers of Nuskull?

Be careful of what you do. Think of the fundament that you will leave after you so that your kids and followers have solid ground beneath their feet.

Don’t forget about your roots, your history is very reach and covered with flare of great deals and achievements.

15 aand, another one, haha... What would you do if happiness would be an apple?

a, bite it and eat it.

b, make it shine and put it away.

c, cut it up into little bits and eat it if i'm sad.

d, trade it for a pear... :)

I wish, that the ukrainian white frost and chill will bite the hungarian atmosferic and depressive listeners' cheeck into red at the earliest possible moment too.

Thanks for the answers and for the interview very much!

I’d choose another variant  I would leave that apple to my kids, since the real happiness is when you see your children happy.

Thanks for interesting questions, I’m glad that our band is interesting in your country. All the best and take care!