INTERVIEW: Nick Sagias – Tribe Of Pazuzu

February 17, 2019February 17, 2019 Fraser Wilson

Though there is a perfectly valid argument that heavy metal, particularly death metal, is over-saturated with bands that don’t bring anything new to the table, sometimes a band pops up that performs a traditional style in such a blistering way that a lack of innovation is completely forgivable. One such band that has exploded onto the scene is TRIBE OF PAZUZU. Led by Nick Sagias (ex-PESTILENCE), the incredibly strong line-up is completed by John McEntee (INCANTATION, FUNERUS), Flo Mounier (CRYPTOPSY, VLTIMAS) and Randy Harris (ex-MACIFECATION). The quartet are have arrived with their debut EP, Heretical Uprising (read our review here). Prior to the release of the EP, we caught up with Sagias to discuss how this star-studded project came to be, the concepts behind Heretical Uprising and what can be expected from TRIBE OF PAZUZU moving forward.

Hey Nick, thanks for taking the time to talk today. As we’re getting closer to the release of Heretical Uprising, how is everyone doing?

Nick: Hey, everything is going great! John just came back from a successful tour of Indonesia, I think it was INCANTION‘s first time there. Flo just got back from a sold-out European tour supporting CRYPTOPSY‘s new EP [The Book of Suffering – Tome II] and Randy and myself have started work on the next EP.

How has the response to Heretical Uprising’s title track single been so far?

Nick: So far the response has been pretty amazing! I’m pretty blown away by the response, honestly! Everyone was excited about the project from the beginning and it’s exceeded our expectations. It’s been exciting checking out the responses to the song, and we look forward to the forthcoming reviews, we worked really hard on this all last year so we are very happy with the response. Black Element Productions has been amazing with getting the word out and connecting with the fans, letting them know we exist. We’ve been very fortunate to work with them and they’ve proven to be great at what they do.

Is there a concept or theme running through the lyrics of Heretical Uprising?

Nick: I didn’t initially set out to have a theme for the EP as a whole but when I started putting the lyrics together I noticed a couple anti-religious themes came up and it really fit in with the statement I was trying to put forth on this recording. Of course, that would be an ongoing theme and needed to be focused on as a central theme, so the EP needed to be called Heretical Uprising to convey the ideas we were relating in these songs. When you listen to the chants in the title track, it’s a call to arms, an uprising against extreme religious oppression.

Pazuzu was the King of demons in Mesopotamian. Are there plans to explore/retell legends surrounding Pazuzu on future TRIBE OF PAZUZU releases?

Nick: I’ve been obsessed with Pazuzu for some time now though I’ve never explored any lyrical subjects concerning our hero… I’m not ruling it out but I have some other subjects I’ve been exploring that I want to write about and take the anti-religious theme further into occult themes.

The stunning artwork for Heretical Uprising was crafted by Bahrull Matra. What was the concept behind the art?

Nick: I can’t speak for what Bahrull’s initial concept for this painting titled The Undertaker was, but when I first saw it I knew it was going to be the cover and the imagery was perfect for where I wanted to go lyrically. When I chose the name for the EP to be Heretical Uprising it all came together… it makes me think of the executioner and he’s coming for judgement among the barren wastelands, destroying tyranny.

With Flo Mounier (CRYPTOPSY, VLTIMAS) and John McEntee (INCANTATION), there’s some serious pedigree in the TRIBE OF PAZUZU line-up. How did this project come together?

Nick: TRIBE OF PAZUZU came together after years of being frustrated working with less than stellar musicians who didn’t share or trust the vision, or were basically incapable of playing. I was already working with Jason Deaville and Kim Baarda from Black Element Productions and after I left my last band, I came to Jason and told him what I wanted to do, and he immediately set out to find the best musicians at his disposal. John was the first one to be on board and there were some ideas being tossed around where we would record it. Initially we were going to go to Ohio and record at INCANTATION’s studio, which I was really looking forward to. But when Flo came on board he wanted to do his drum tracks at The Grid in Montreal where they do all the CRYPTOPSY recordings with Christian [Donaldson]. So, for the continuity of the recording, we decided to complete the rest of Heretical Uprising here. It was awesome to work with Marco recording the music, he paid so much attention to the details and really got the best performances from us. Christian did such an awesome job with the mix. It was a completely amazing experience and I wouldn’t change a thing. Watching Randy nail all the rhythms and those crazy solos in one take was totally mind-blowing. It’s so great to work with people you don’t have to worry about their performance.

Flo and John have pretty tight schedules with CRYPTOPSY, VLTIMAS and INCANTATION. With that in mind, will you be trying to secure some live shows with TRIBE OF PAZUZU, or will it remain a studio only project?

Nick: Well, realistically we only have the one EP worth of material so playing before the second EP is released might not seem like something that can happen with everyone’s schedule. I’m definitely not counting it out, though it may take some time to work out all the schedules. Hopefully, next year will see us out doing some festivals and tours.

Is there a full-length album, or a follow up EP to Heretical Uprising, in the works? If so, when can we expect it?

Nick: When I first approached Black Element Productions I told Jason that I wanted to release three EPs. I didn’t want to spend another year with the writing and logistics of recording to record a full album. And speaking for myself, I’ve noticed my listening habits have changed. I will download albums and EPs but when I have the music on it’s usually on random, so I go from band to band like you would hear on the radio. So, why waste twice the time to record eight-to-ten tracks and have longer times in between release dates? EPs seem to be a nice way to be constantly moving forward, keeping content fresh and getting new tracks in the ears of the fans.

What does the rest of 2019 have in store for TRIBE OF PAZUZU?

Nick: Like I was mentioning, Randy and I have already started working on the second EP, I would like to be in the studio in July. CRYPTOPSY go on tour in May and INCANTATION are going to Australia in June so hopefully we can go in by July/August, we should be ready by then. It will be another five tracks with a good mix of moods but focusing on the more ripping face melters!

Although with the quality of Heretical Uprising, TRIBE OF PAZUZU is certain to get a lot of attention in the coming months, at this early stage the band is still very fresh and underground. How is the rest of the Canadian underground death metal scene at the moment?

Nick: I’m really not sure. Canada is mostly an inhospitable environment for death metal, it’s all underground. In the past, I have really tried hard to support and help bands, local and out of town, but it wasn’t much reciprocated and made for lacking experience, for myself and the people attending the shows. The scene is built by people who want to be there and enjoy the music, not backstabbers who do nothing but whine and complain. Some people think too small minded and instead of trying to get better they would rather bring others down and ruin it for everyone because they didn’t want to put the work in. At the end of the day, it shows in the quality of the music and the quality of the playing.

Are there any underground death metal bands, either in your native Canadian scene or further afield, that you are particularly impressed by?

Nick: Jesus Christ, have you heard the latest CRYPTOPSY? Honestly, so many amazing releases came out last year, it was so amazing… I can list you about 20 bands just from last year, not even counting about another 20 from 2017 that are equally as amazing – CRESCENT, OBSCENITY, BLOODTRUTH, ABYSMAL TORMENT, TEMPLE, VELD, DEPRAVITY, WHORE OF BETHLEHEM, HATE MANIFESTO, ABYSMAL DAWN, ZEALOT CULT… Wow, so many more, it’s a killer time for the underground again!