August the 10th marked twenty years since our good friend Nikolaos Spanakis, probably known to most of you as Wrath of Dødsferd fame decided that picking up the sword would probably do him more harm than using the proverbial pen to help battle his demons, and we the listeners have definitely benefited over these years through his output. Today we give you a brief run down on some of the stuff his label Fucking Your Creation Records (named after his 2007 release of the same name) have released thus far. Put simply, if you are a fan of very dark stuff, there is something here for everyone.
Wrath – we salute you, and your label. May you live ever long and share the foul demons in your head with us all, and any other things of such nature that we will enjoy.
Links for an interview The Great Mack did with him a while back and a review of Shattered Hopes “Vespers” release by Mr. Swine are down the bottom, so check them and all other links out too!
Isolert – “World In Ruins”
By: Hayduke X
Hailing from the fiery Greek scene, Isolert are yet another exhibit of the heat to be found in the Mediterranean. The quartet have been around since 2015, and already have six releases, including two full lengths. “World In Ruins,” released in 2020, is the second of those full lengths, and it demonstrates a monstrous blackened apparition in full throat. This album is damn near perfect. Nick S. (drums, vocals), Panagiotis T. (vocals, though also guitar on early releases), and Apostolos K. (guitar, bass) are absolutely relentless in their attack, no quarter given.
Certainly the pacing varies from time to time, just as sometimes a fire burns lower until it finds new fuel. Certainly there are beautiful moments, but aren’t the crackling flames beautiful, even as they leap a firebreak? And certainly there is emotional range across the album, from avenging rage to mournful hopelessness. No quarter given, but a very complete album nonetheless.
World In Ruins feels very apocalyptic, but a realistic apocalypse. A nihilistic worldview of how we humans are bringing about our own end seems to be what is presented here, though I admit, I haven’t been able to get my hands on lyrics. Album and song titles give hints, but more than this, “World In Ruins” feels visceral and personal. This album is the raging fire seeking to end the scourge of humanity before it is too late, and it burns with the intensity of pitch perfect composition, from the absolutely otherworldly drumming to the serpent bass lines to the caustic riffs to the invective filled screams of pain and horror spewing forth from the maw of this three headed entity. Collapse into the rot and ruin.
Leeches – “A Plague in the Heart of Light”
By: VUK
Leeches is a bit of an FYC supergroup. Wrath (of Dødsferd, of course, and Grab, as well as making appearances with both Isolert and Shattered Hope) takes an aggressive vocal approach, similar to Mork, or Panzerfaust. There is more anger and shamelessness present, as opposed to the suffering angsty attitude of more recent Dødsferd material. The drumming of Neon Dreamer (aka Nick S., who also plays drums for Dødsferd, Isolert, and Grab) stands out right in front with the vocals. The guitar work, also courtesy of Neon Dreamer, and bass playing (by Reactive, aka Apostolis Kotouzas, who also plays guitar for Isolert,) are subtle but effective, helping Leeches achieve a highly effective lo-fi, raw Black Metal sound. Less technical and polished than Isolert, but certainly no less expressive.
“Elevation to a Dead Dream” is a great opening track, getting to the point straight off. I’m reminded quite quickly of groups like Mgła, or Spectral Wound. Perhaps even early Bethlehem to a certain degree, especially when taken along with songs like “Luminous New Past,” and the title track.
Recorded as a demo in the Spring of 2020, “A Plague in the Heart of Light” is, indeed, a very dark EP, as is the vast majority of Greek Black Metal. Overcast by disinclination, yet relentlessly sincere, this is the kind of release that opens your eyes to new worlds. If for no other reason than its refusal to make-believe manic that depression, abhorrence, and nihilism are anything but trivial issues affecting the human condition.
Sarvok – “Cabin In Space”
By: Subliminal Ed
Created by m.Sarvok as a collection of sound experiments, “Cabin In Space” is a short but sweet, if not slightly frightening, journey into the mind of an artist. Not content with run-of-the-mill ambiance, m.Sarvok manages to quite successfully challenge the notion that Ambient music is static and lifeless.
“SA4d79” is kind of terrifying, with a brilliant use of the percussion. I also like the deep slow bass that gives it ambiance, and the snare-like ripple that happens gives it tension as well. I dig it!
The next tune, “SA54686f75676874,” is simple, but the sound that kicks around the 1 min mark is like a roar from the great beyond!
On our journey so far, this music makes me wonder what this person did to create those sounds. Kind of like watching a movie from the perspective of someone that knows what goes into sound engineering. A foley artist, perhaps. Extremely cinematic. Mysterious. Parts of this album remind me of a sci fi soundtrack. Something similar to “The Arrival,” with the water element that is present throughout. But this water sounds alien.
With the last track, “SA746865206162797373,” I wonder if I’m listening to the right album. There is a whistle. Hidden in the wind. And there’s the water again! This one freaks me out! I hear things all over the place! A harmonica… so many sounds!
Overall, I liked “Cabin In Space” in the sense that I wanted to study and hear more. I’d like to ask m.Sarvok exactly what he was going for, because it left me feeling intrigued. To know the emotion that was trying to be invoked would be wonderful.
I will be listening again more deeply to analyze, study, and contemplate the art. Which, at the end of the day, is what makes an album successful.
2TheBone – “Bless” EP
By: VUK
2TheBone is a two-piece Punk band from Athens, Greece. Shooting the listeners’ ears up with short bursts of garage-rock energy in the vein of bands like The Stooges, Social Distortion, and Buzzcocks, the “Bless EP” is all sorts of fun.
I don’t know a damn thing about the Greek Punk scene. A Google search only helps as proof that one exists, but nothing pops out right away that I can contrast with 2TheBone. They’re a bit like a mixture of ZZ Top, The Meteors, and The Cramps, which really makes me want to take a trip to Greece to hang out with these guys! I’d love to chat about their influences and what sorts of local talent I should check out.
These are just great songs, plain and simple. All six of them, excellently written Rock tunes. Catchy as hell, which Bon Scott told us ‘ain’t a bad place to be,’ and “Bless” is 2TheBone proving him right. A really great time, this one. Cheers!
Grab – “The Inevitable Filth of Mankind“
By: The Great Mack
This one is a personal favourite. If the first track “Standing Breathless from a Structured Space” doesn’t remind you of WHY you like Metal, then all I can say is you have missed the point. Riffs reminiscent of early Destruction, Kreator, even Exodus fucking pile all over you in a giant punch to the senses, and take you WAY back into the day that you first discovered this kind of stuff.
Vocals? Wrath of course, and you get his usual mix of hate, angst and bile with a few Death Grunts thrown in! The rest of the album is, as expected, fucking exceptional. Wrath screams his rage at us all, and you’d better fucking pay some attention!
THIS is what the spirit of Metal is all about. Kudos to the band for being able to deliver such greatness.
Dødsferd – “Death Shall Purify the Wounds of Your Fragile Morality“
By: The Great Mack
We had the honour of premiering the single “Deterioration” made specifically for this release of all of the more sombre moments that the band has done, and it more than showed what this all about. Pain, madness, grief and a slow descent into what could be described as hell. The whole release is an insight into the mind of a man going mad through what he has experienced during his life. Utterly dreadful, and yet somehow fascinating. Fuck your horror movies, this is far worse than anything you will ever hear, but somehow the music seems to lift you. A confusing state of affairs. Highly recommended.
Gomgoma – “Efflorescent Graveyards“
What’s the easiest way to fuck with a mans mind? Through his ears of course. Words, stories and propaganda have been doing it for centuries, whole nations have lived or died by them, and Religion as we know thrives on people listening and not looking. A song, or a story is as they say, more powerful than a sword. Gomgoma have been around for a while. Forming in 2010, and having released a demo and two EP’s, this is a collection of both shorter releases.
How is it? Well, it’s a sonic mindfuck to be honest, and a very solid one at that. Did you expect FYC to take on a band that wouldn’t challenge the senses in some way shape or form? Gomgoma use a very basic tactic of slow anguish followed by nauseating feedback that would make Sunn O)) feel jealous if they were listening. Then they mind rape you by doing it in the other order and fuzz your brain out with the fattest riffs Kyuss would have liked to achieve had they not been stoned somewhere in the desert..
Fucking great stuff hey!
Dødsferd – “The Parasitic Survival of the Human Race“
By: The Great Mack
An album that pretty much nails exactly how Wrath feels about the world we live in. This is Black/Punkish/D – beat/Angry stuff that has the man howling his frustration at a world that simply does not want to listen to reason or any such shit. It will also get that hair swinging and have that neck sore come the next day, and herein lies much of Wrath’s talent. He can scream at the world and make us move at both the same times. Never underestimate his message, but also never underestimate that the band are also here to entertain. Fucking fantastic stuff.
The first song “Statches” was made for the tape release of this album. Check it out below.
So there you have it. A brief insight into a man and his label and those he chooses as worthy to be on it. Yes we could have spent days on each release, but that serves no purpose. If you have not heard this stuff, here is a tease, a mere glimpse of the excellence contained within. Now the ball is well and truly in your court. Are a fan? Are you scared? Take the dive, take the leap of faith, eat that black pill. You can thank us later.
Many thanks to Nikolaos as well, for just being himself. A true warrior fighting the good fight.
Here are some links you should check out.
Shattered Hope review – https://themetalwanderlust.com/2021/06/23/album-review-vespers-shattered-hope/
Interview – https://themetalwanderlust.com/2020/11/21/interview-review-nikolaos-spanakis-
https://www.facebook.com/FYCRecords
https://dodsferdofficial.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/OfficialDodsferd
https://www.facebook.com/GRABRAWBLACKMETAL
https://www.facebook.com/mSarvok
https://www.facebook.com/Isolert
The Metal Wanderlust 
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