Crescent
Shield
Crescent Shield is an amazing
band that has released a superb work! A work that will astound the fans
of the classic heavy metal sound. They may be a new band, but this combo
consists of some famous underground metal heads. If you wanna read their
story, then here we have Dan offering us insight!
1. HELLO DAN! HOW ARE YOU? WHICH ARE YOUR
EXPECTATIONS FROM YOUR DEBUT ALBUM WITH CRESCENT SHIELD?
DAN: I’m expecting it to sweep the world
by storm!! HA HA!! But seriously I am very proud of the record
so naturally I think people will like it. So far the reviews are
excellent, so I’m happy.
2. THE TITLE OF THE ALBUM “THE LAST OF MY KIND”
SOUNDS VERY PESSIMISTIC, ESPECIALLY IF YOU CONSIDER THAT THIS IS YOUR FIRST
WORK. DON’T YOU AGREE?
DAN: Well not really if you consider that
the title is representative of a science fiction story, and not anything
to do with the band or the world of metal.
3. PERHAPS THE TITLE IS A STATEMENT THAT YOU ARE
SOME OF THE FEW BANDS IN THE U.S. THAT STILL PLAY CLASSIC HEAVY METAL?
DAN: No, it has nothing to do with that really.
‘The Last of my Kind’ is based on a science fiction story from the 1930s
called “In the World’s Dusk” written by Edmond Hamilton. It’s essentially
a tale of loneliness. The main character is a super-genius who is also
the last man on earth. So the “kind” is humankind. Of course, he’s lonely
so he uses his super intelligence to come up with ways to repopulate the
earth – like reanimating the dead, building a time machine, etc. Unfortunately,
he ultimately can’t quite achieve his goal.
4. MOST OF THE SONGS THAT YOU HAVE INCLUDED IN
THIS ALBUM COME FROM YOUR DEMO. DO THEY HAVE THE SAME SOUND OR HAVE YOU
CHANGED THEM A BIT?
DAN: They are polished up a bit and
of course they now have a real drummer playing on them so they sound much
better, but essentially they are the same.
5. WHO WRITES THE LYRICS IN THE BAND? WHAT KIND
OF THEMES INSPIRE YOU TO WRITE ABOUT? CAN YOU TELL US IN A FEW LINES WHICH
THE SUBJECT OF EACH SONG THAT YOU HAVE INCLUDED IN YOUR NEW ALBUM IS?
DAN: Mike writes most of the lyrics,
but I write some of them. For my lyrics I often use literature as an influence.
The title track from “The Last of my Kind” is based on the Edmond Hamilton
story “In the World’s Dusk”. It’s a story from 1936! It’s so cool.
It’s about the last man on earth who’s a super-genius and able to prolong
his life indefinitely. The problem is he is lonely and he uses his scientific
skills to do weird and wild things to reform humanity. It’s perfect subject
matter for an epic song.
Mike is really the great lyricist of this
band. He can take an experience in his life, like seeing a red crescent
moonrise, and turn it into an awesome and poetic song, ‘Rise of the Red
Crescent Moon’. He can also write a rousing homage to heavy metal.
How about these lyrics from “Above Mere Mortals”:
Defending the faith, our mission
We will die before we ever fail
Our true regime, pure metal, one and for all
The spirit unstained, forever will we be!
When I heard that I want throw a fist in the
air and scream for the glory of METAL!
‘Slaves to the Metal Horde’ is based on The
War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells. It’s literally about a metal horde taking
over the earth but, it’s steeped in heavy metal metaphor.
‘The Path Once Chosen’ is about enjoying what
you do in life and not getting too caught up in life’s rewards. The journey
is what you should savor.
‘Burn with Life’ follows a similar vein. It’s
a positive song about relishing life and living to the fullest.
‘The Great Devoid’ is a polemic on religion.
‘North for the Winter’ is about the wrong choices
we make in life even though we know better.
‘Unfinished Ashes’ is an exaggerated tale of
never giving up, even in death. ‘Await the Champion’ is about gladiatorial
combat.
‘The Passing’ is Mike’s twisted take on death,
loosely inspired by the film Poltergeist.
6. IS IT TRUE THAT CRESCENT SHIELD STARTED AS
A PROJECT BAND? WHEN DID YOU DECIDE TO TURN IT INTO AN OFFICIAL BAND?
DAN: We started writing songs in 2000 for
fun. Michael recruited Melanie and Craig after Destiny's End and Onward
ended. He was friends with both of them. Once Destiny’s End an Onward ended
we had a lot more time to put into Crescent Shield.
7. CONSIDERING YOUR PAST, YOU HAVE PLAYED IN GREAT
BANDS, BUT THEY DIDN’T HAVE THE CHANCE TO HAVE A LONG LIFE, AT LEAST CONSIDERING
THE RELEASES… DO YOU CONSIDER CRESCENT SHIELD AS A CHALLENGE TO MAKE IT
THIS TIME AT LAST?
DAN: I think it will be a lot easier
to make Crescent Shield last. Mike and I are really good friends. We also
see eye to eye on how the band should be run, and we are both in the same
frame of mind regarding the music. Mel and Craig are also really committed
to this band and love the music.
8. THE COVER ARTWORK IS VERY INTERESTING, HOWEVER
VERY DIFFERENT FROM THE USUAL HEAVY METAL COVERS THAT WE ARE USED TO SEEING.
WHO IS THE ARTIST THAT PAINTED IT? AREN’T YOU AFRAID THAT PEOPLE WHO WILL
SEE THE COVER WON’T UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU PLAY?
DAN: The cover was done by comic artist
Gerry Alanguilan. He’s worked for some major comics companies: Image, Marvel,
etc. To me, the cover screams heavy metal! So I don’t think people will
mistake the type of music we play although I have heard otherwise. Some
people say it looks like a death metal band’s artwork. I don’t see that
really. It reminds me of the old Heavy Metal Magazine. I’ve loved comics
for a long, long time and I really like that style of art. I really wanted
a cover that was unique in style for the heavy metal field but still very
metal. I did not want something modern looking or obvious computer graphics.
9. BY THE WAY HOW HAS THIS METALCORE MADNESS THAT
HAS BECOME A MAJOR TREND IN THE U.S.A. AFFECTED BANDS LIKE YOU THAT PLAY
CLASSIC HEAVY METAL?
DAN: Well I guess it crowds the market
with shit so there’s less of a chance for other forms of metal to get exposure.
10. WHICH COMPOSITION THAT YOU HAVE INCLUDED IN
YOUR DEBUT ALBUM WAS THE EASIEST TO COMPOSE AND WHICH ONE THE HARDEST AND
WHY?
DAN: ‘The Last of my Kind’ was probably
the most difficult to arrange and get it to flow nicely. ‘Await the Champion’
was pretty quick to arrange but we had a harder time getting the vocal
melody set. ‘The Path Once Chosen’ perhaps was the one that fell into place
the easiest.
11. HAVE YOU COMPOSED ANY NEW SONGS? WHEN SHOULD
WE EXPECT YOUR NEW RELEASE?
DAN: We have two songs completely done and
many others in various stages of completion. We are still writing so I
don’t think the album will be out until next year.
12. HERE IN GREECE THERE ARE MANY PEOPLE THAT
LIKE YOUR MUSIC AND YOU ARE QUITE KNOWN FROM YOUR FORMER BANDS TOO. SO,
IS THERE A CHANCE TO COME AND PLAY OVER HERE?
DAN: I would love to but nothing is scheduled
as of yet.
13. IMAGINE THAT YOU HAVE A BIG BUDGET TO DO AN
EXPENSIVE VIDEO – CLIP. WHICH SONG OF YOURS WOULD YOU CHOOSE TO VISUALIZE
AND HOW DO YOU IMAGINE THE CLIP?
DAN: Definitely the title track. There
is so much imagery in that song. It could tell the story of the super-genius
on the dead earth as he reanimates the dead, moves people through time,
and hibernates deep within the earth until the human race arises again.
14. IMAGINE THAT ON A CROSSROAD YOU MEET THE DEVIL
HIMSELF. WOULD YOU BARGAIN YOUR SOUL WITH HIM? IF YES WHAT WOULD YOU ASK
IN RETURN?
DAN: I’ll take whatever I can get for
my soul since I don’t believe in devils and souls anyway.
15. WHICH ARE THE EMOTIONS YOU THINK YOUR MUSIC
CREATES TO YOUR FANS? IF IT WERE A PAINTING, WHAT WOULD IT SHOW?
DAN: I think it runs the gamut from uplifting
to depressing and from energetic to gentle (usually not gentle for very
long though).
16. WHAT’S THE IDEAL TITLE THAT COULD SUM UP THE
WHOLE CRESCENT SHIELD ESSENCE?
DAN: Melodic metal, song-focused, no
gimmicks.
17. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME ANSWERING MY QUESTIONS!
GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR NEW BAND AND ALBUM. THE LAST WORDS BELONG TO YOU…
DAN: Thanks for the great review Behind the
Veil! Metals heads can give us a listen at www.crescentshield.com.
Download the whole album for free.
Nick “William_Kidd”
Parastatidis
|