We catch up with the guys from Homo Iratus (via email) for info on their forthcoming album and latest news.

It's been a while since we had any news from the Homo Iratus camp! Give us some info about the new album and its writing and recording process. When should we expect it to be out and what will follow its release?

First of all…the Homo Iratus camp has moved to Amsterdam, The Netherlands where we are busting our butts working and trying to start over again. We decided to move to a more central European location so that we can have easier access to nearby countries like Belgium, France, Sweden, Germany, UK…you get the idea.

As far as "Fall Of The Locust" is concerned it was composed during midnight hours, recorded by us and our Sound engineer George Brigos on various locations, mixed at the Rocksound Studio in Thessaloniki – Greece, and was finished (Mastered) at the West West Side Mastering studio in NY. The whole process took us 2 years along with exploring new musical territories with Bill, our new drummer. What will follow its release, remains to be seen…

Since the album hasn't hit the streets yet, how would you describe it? What reactions do you expect from your fans and the press?

We can't really describe the new album…what we can say about it, is that it is what came out after we let the music guide us as of what it would be, we did not want to confine our inspirations to stereotypes…so descriptions are up to the listeners.

We don't make music expecting reactions…we compose and play the music we like as it naturally comes out from our minds and the tips of our fingers, so reactions can be a rather subjective issue since they will be controlled by the listener's personal music preference…

I downloaded the 3 new tracks from your website and, from what I heard; your new songs seem to be quite different from your previous releases. How did this change occur and how would you justify it?

There was a line up change two and a half years ago in the drummer's position. And since the drummer's playing style affects the whole band, it was a natural occurrence.
We did not want to confine Bill (the new drummer) to the band's legacy of previous releases, and in general that's not something you want to do to any musician. You let him do his thing, and work your thing over it in a way
that everybody likes it….that's all!

Maybe it's early for now, but have you done any plans for your future musical direction? Is a return to your deathcore style possible?

We NEVER "plan" our musical direction! We hit the studio, jam a few ideas that come up at that moment and then evolve on them. A return to our Deathcore style will only happen if it comes naturally out of us while playing at the studio, it is not something we can or will ever plan!

Everything you do is directly connected to your surroundings and how your conscious and subconscious mind reacts to them….so as everything around you changes, so does the music. Plans confine ideas and inspirations.

Given that your new album is concept, could you give us some information about it? Is there some lyrical connection with your previous releases?

"Fall Of The Locust" was inspired by John's "Apocalypse" (The Revelation)… you see the connection eh ? It is separated in 4 thematic chapters that tread on the wrongdoings and structural faults of modern day society with its connections to the past and how it came to be created as it is today, by whom and for what reasons and the fine prints and lines between the lines we either fail to see or turn a blind eye to… after all…. faster is faster…

You can have a better insight on everything as soon as you get a copy in your hands and check the artwork etc… it's all there… at this moment all you can have a taste of, are the mp3s, videos and lyrics on our website.

Homo Iratus are one of the most respected bands in Greece, and are also known in the worldwide underground circuit. Apart from the music, what is it that you did (and do) right that helped you gain your status, while most bands don't?

We actually gave up our lives for it… We locked ourselves into our studio and practiced the hell out of our arms and fingers almost every day for many years now. No beer nights out etc… (only sparsely). We stayed concentrated to the band and let nothing affect our schedule with it, which means that we were unemployed for looooong terms and lived on a budget just so that we have the free time to practice. That also implies being in all sorts of social and everyday trouble all year around.

And lately, we took the final step and left our home country, friends and families behind, just so that we can open new doors and opportunities for us and our year long efforts. If there is status gained or to be gained by all this, we don't know…what we know is that all you have to do is push it forward all the time, sacrifice, practice, then push forward, sacrifice and practice some more… that's it…

Taking into consideration that Homo Iratus are a band with political concerns, how would you comment today's music industry and the role of record companies? In your opinion, is it possible for a band to become successful from self-financing and distributing its work, or record companies still have an irreplaceable role in the creation and promotion of music today? Will you attempt to circulate and sell your new work your selves?

The music industry has destroyed the music itself. It has become a band cloning industry that nourishes copy cat bands which in effect forces aspiring players to cling onto today's stereotypes and not letting them evolve into their own kind of music, playing by heart, and not have in mind to play "that" which will eventually land them a deal with today's labels….it's fashion music nowadays, concentrated on expensive looks and promotion and not on the music itself.

10 years ago you were getting hammered by a groundbreaking album almost every week! That was because all those bands were unique in their style of music, and at that time, if you dared "copy" a style…Oh boy…. you were going to get bad karma in return, what changed today? Why "copying" and not "creating", is so acceptable ?

And you know what pisses us off the most? All the bands that are so blatantly copying At The Gates' guitar style that has gone too far! Come the fuck on!!! As soon as a track from a new band's album starts playing and a killer riff is introduced through the speakers you unfortunately know that after the first couple a refrain with melodic vocals and Swedish style riff under it will follow. It's too goddamn predictable!!!! Change the fucking song structure for once!!!

And there are labels that support ONLY these kinds of bands and music… to what end? And to what cost against the evolution of music?

If you don't provoke the bands to do something new you are at a standstill. A most profitable standstill for the labels though since the aforementioned musical style has the tendency of becoming more POP than Michael Jackson!

Self financing and distributing your work? It is possible, yet there are some serious implications. Running a band and a label is like trying to work two full time jobs, you won't do a good job on either of them and you will eventually collapse. Lets face is, all a musician should care about, is the music.

Undertaking other tasks involving promotion etc will just eat up valuable time, so yes labels have an irreplaceable role in music. Consider them as banks. You get a loan to record, release and promote your album, and then pay back with extra % interest. You can replace that with recording your album on your own and save loads of promotional $$ you would owe to a label by busting your ass doing live shows, if your music is worth attention there's no promotional campaign that can top that!

As far as "Fall Of The Locust" is concerned, we haven't made any plans of self financing its official release and start distributing it ourselves, at the time being at least. We are still in the process of contacting labels.

What is this Asian-looking symbol (?) that you use so often and what is its connection to the band?

It's a rendition of our band's name in letter shapes inside a gear. It's an H and an I if you take a closer look.

Could you state some of your favorite bands and musicians, regardless of musical direction? What were your influences when you started Homo Iratus and what bands are you into now?

The band was initially influenced by, Napalm Death, Carcass, Brutal Truth and Terrorizer which still remain to be in our list of favorite bands.

Our personal favorites regardless of musical direction are: Neurosis, Godflesh, Anthrax, Konkhra, Mr. Bungle, Breach, Coalesce, Victor Wooten, Suffocation, Primus, Faith No More, Marcus Miller, Metallica, Testament, Loreena McKennit, Atheist, Clawfinger, Ministry, Amon Tobin, Fugazi, Aphex Twin, Buckethead, Clutch, Forbidden, Gorefest, Entombed, Tool, Down, Pantera, Demolition Hammer, Jaco Pastorius, Meshuggah, At The Gated, Dismember, Grave, Killing Joke, COC, Evade, Voivod, Coroner, Consolidated, Helmet, Lenny Kravitz, Stevie Wonder, Kyuss, Sepultura, Living Colour, Maceo Parker, Strapping Young Lad, Channel Zero, Prong, Mayhem, Soilent Green, Slayer, Nirvana, Beck, Soundgarden, Haji's Kitchen, In-Quest, Erectus, Alice In Chains, Cypress Hill, Burnt By The Sun, Nailbomb, NIN, Das EFX, Believer, Radiohead, Black Sabbath, Sleep, Stuck Mojo… is it enough?

Please give us some info on the musical training of the band's members and the musical instruments you currently use.

We are all self taught musicians and our music teacher all these years were the bands we listen to, the shows we've seen and the shows we played. The most important lesson is to learn to actually listen to the music whatever it is or however strange it may sound at first. Our gear…

Bill uses Tama Drums, Zildjian, Sabian, Meinl and Paiste cymbals, Pearl Drum Pedals, Good Wood drumstics (Nice cheap drumsticks!), Evans and Remo drumheads… oh… And a large quantity of Natural Iodized Sea Salt… monthly.

Alex uses a Mine custom Guitar, Rocktron Piranha Tube Preamp, Rocktron Velocity 500 Power Amp, Marshall Plexi (1970's) all tube amp head, Standard Marshall 1960 4x12 enclosure, Old Orange (Greenback Speakers) 4x12 enclosure, Monster Cable…cables, Dunlop Tortex 088 picks Ghs strings and loads of chocolate bars.

Angelos uses Esh 5 string fretless basses, Ampeg SVT CL all tube amp head, Ampeg Classic 4x12 enclosure, D'Angelico Low riding concept bass strings, Spectraflex Cable, lots of quantities of food but rarely junk food or fast food)!

Homoiratus also use, Immense Quantities of Coffee, Jameson and Jasper Newton Daniel's, Sierra, Ps2 MK 4, Heineken, Johnny Walker, The GodFather Movies and anything else that will come in handy at any time…

This all (and we mean ALL) is actually what we used to record the new album. We use it for rehearsals and live shows occasionally, but these all change from time to time.

Yours are the last words! Thanx for your time and I wish you all the best. Look forward to hear your new record a.s.a.p.!

First of all thanx for the interview. The questions were really interesting. We are looking forward to that everybody listens to our new record soon too. We want to leave you with one question though. How would YOU describe the music of "Fall OF The Locust" from the taste you got out of the mp3s on our website ? Cheers.

Well, if you ask me on the last one, I'd say (with some circumspect) their music is the meeting point of atmospheric rock soundscapes and death metal's fury, while keeping equal distances from both. But more on that when we get the new album on our hands. Many thanks to the Homo Iratus guys for taking the time to do this interview!