Interview for DEATHTHRASHER MAGAZINE by ARMANDO MUTILATOR : 

Sorry guys for the late reply but I was too busy.
I will send u the CD as soon as possible
thx so much

DT: Hello RAWAD, how are you?.
Rawad: not bad

DT: When & why the band was formed? (current line – up).
Rawad: The band was formed in 2003
The band has three major members:
RAWAD ABDEL MASSIH: guitars (and bass)
BASSEM DEAIBESS: vocals
BAHIJ GHATTA: drums

And two guest players:
SALIM ZAHRA: bass
NAREG: keyboards 

DT: Your influences?.
Rawad: I started listening to Metal when I was like 12 with “Fear of the Dark” of MAIDEN and I was so much into this band and other famous bands like METALLICA. Then a friend of mine introduced me to many Metal band like TESTAMENT, CANDLEMASS, SAVATAGE, ANNIHILATOR, KING DIAMOND, DEATH….
My major influences as a song writer are for sure MAIDEN and SAVATAGE in the first place. METALLICA and CANDLEMASS also appear a little bit on To the Land of the Free. But of course I listen to all styles of Metal. Gothic like HEAVEN WOOD, TRISTANIA, Doom like SOLITUDE AETURNUS. Black like DIMMU BORGIR, and of course Metal classics like SABBATH and PRIEST. I love ANATHEMA a lot also, I worship these guys.
U know there are like a 100000000 bands we can’t list them all now. As a guitarist, I love these guys who use harmonics a lot, like CRISS of SAVATAGE, RANDY and JAKE of OSBOURNE. (2 of them are dead eh?)
And guitar harmonies like MAIDEN, QUEENSRYCHE and THIN LIZZY. 

DT: When did you start playing?
Rawad: 1995

DT: What can you talk me about your "The Land Of The Free" 2004?.
Rawad: U know traditional Heavy Metal songs’ length are in average 4:30 min. only Denial is more than 8 min cus it is a play not only a song. The album is full of nice guitar solos and harmonies. Bahij played nice double basses in the album especially on Deceptive Light. Basem’s voice is very strong on Final Departure Stamp and Planet of Cockroaches he was incredible. For those who didn’t listen to our CD yet, u can check 2 songs on our website (which is still under construction $$$$$$) www.ancienthope.com It is not a complete concept album but most of the songs r based on a short story I wrote called Ancient Hope and it has three parts, based on a book written by a Syrian writer called Sa3dallah Wannous. 
The story in brief is about a family who is living in crypts underground and promised by its elders that it will reach out to the sun one day. It is a very nice story and I recommend each one who bought the album to read it. The intro Pilgrimage the second track Trapped the sixth Ancient Hope: part 1-Denial and the last The Land of the Free are based on this story the rest have different subjects. The forth track Planet of Cockroaches is about a dying planet after a thousand year which turns into a deserted place where only cockroaches live in. it is about the extinction of man kind after a nuclear war. I got the idea when I read in The Readers Digest that the cockroach is 
the only being that does not get affected by nuclear reaction.
The eighth track Final Departure Stamp is a true story of a Palestinian refugee, named David Demiany, who is living (or dead) in Beirut. He ran away from Haifa in 1947 after the massacres that the Haggana did. This is a conversation between a Jewish business man and the father of David and David himself. The story is taken from Pity the Nation for Robert Fisk. A book about the war in Lebanon. And the rest of the songs have different subjects, track nine Deceptive Light was debatable here in Syria b/w some religious people. But as I said my songs are symbolic, u r allowed to understand anything u like from them.The photos the we took are inspired for the story, we’re playing the characters. All the art work is based on Ancient Hope, that’s why I chose the booklet black and white, cus this family is living underground and never seen the sun, putting red and green in the booklet is not suitable at all. 

DT: What do you think about Religion?.
Rawad: Well this Q needs 2 hours to answer and usually i like to speak the whole thing or shut up (which is not possible now) so people won't understand me wrong. but in general i have read a lot about religions, and a lot in the 3 books, I think they are all the same at the end, they have bad side and good side like anything else in the world, not like what religously obsessed people say that their books are infallable, not at all actually it is so easy to proof how Harry-Potter- like are these books. Joshua is concidered a saint while in the his book in the old testament he murdered hundreds of people "as his lord has wanted", and in the Koran u can read things like "sieze the pagans and slay them where ever u find them". so I think these words and behaviours can't be of saints or god. about god himself(or herself), I don't deny his existans nor approve it simply cus I don't care much. why? because I am good cus i believe I should be this way not for selfish reasons that there is a god who will reward me at the end.so religions HAD effect on moral behavior a lot in the old days but I think that civil code (which is inspired by religion also) is more civilized and perfect.

DT: Do you think that wearing chains, blood, make-up and all that stuff is important for you image?.
Rawad: I wear non of these and I consider them shallow and pointless

DT: What topics do you consider in your lyrics?.
Rawad: Well, this is a very hard question that people always ask me. Most of my lyrics are symbolic, I mean I don’t give the meaning directly I leave the listener to understand whatever he/she wants from the song. Maybe Holy Rage is the only direct song on the album with lyrics like MANOWAR. But basically politics and religion have a nice share of it. (hehehehe)

DT: How is a gig with THE HOURGLASS?.
Rawad: Our vocalist is in the military service so simply there are no gigs now.

DT: What do you know about Peruvian Scene?.
Rawad: Absolutely nothing but I wish to learn more

DT: Your fave European bands?.
Rawad: IRON MAIDEN and CANDLEMASS

DT: What do you think about the Norwegian Black Metal scene?.
Rawad: I’m not so much into it but I think that they over do what they do sometimes anyway but when music is nice I don't mind at all I love Darkness Enthroned for Borgir

DT: Who designed THE HOURGLASS logo?.
Rawad: It is my idea but 2 friends of mine did it, the H which includes THE HOURGLASS with the baby and the skull is done by KHALED BARAKAH a painter I know who drew the front and back cover of “To the Land of the Free”, and the rest of the letters are designed by SHANT HAGOPIAN of NU.CLEAR.DAWN, a Syrian band who released an album too.

DT: Which one do you consider the best Metal band from Syria?.
Rawad: Actually there are 2 who play originals, THE HOURGLASS and NU.CLEAR.DAWN and we are the only ones who released a CD

DT: Your future plans?.
Rawad: Another album, named mostly “Resurection of the Horrid Dream”, it will be a continuety for the debut and here are some of the titles of the Songs The Book (about what we were talking about) Distortion of Thought (about religious schools) Suicidal Form The Great Fall of Reason (this song is dedicated to the 'forbidden love' of a Muslim girl and a Christian guy)
Murder of Rotten Traditions and Beliefs
Ur happy now??? ;)

DT: Your last growl for DT. Readers….. where can they find your stuff?.
Rawad: No where, we don't have a label now and I have released the album with my own money in Syria and Lebanon. if u need any CD tell me.
thx for the interview
mentally yours

Rawad