MPM: Please introduce yourself and what you do for the band.
KRAANIUM: What is up everyone, my name is Jack and I am the vocalist of Kraanium and Septic Congestion.
MPM: Joining Kraanium since 2017, how was the reception from the fans and media when you became the new vocalist?
KRAANIUM: Oh man the response has been absolutely heartwarming! The fans have been super nice, and I could not ask for a better reception. But it is a bittersweet feeling, people lost a friend, son, brother and idol when Martin passed away, and it has left a huge pair of shoes to fill out. The man was an absolute beast on the mic! I was lucky enough to be able to call him a friend (he helped with the layout for Septic Congestions debut album ‘’Souls to Consume’’), but before that he was also my idol.
Seeing the love people show for ‘’Slamchosis’’ makes me certain that Kraanium lives on and I am sure Martin is looking down on us with pride <3
MPM: With Kraanium originally from Norway but now a International project featuring members from Norway, United Kingdom, Finland, Denmark, and Switzerland how do you guys manage to write music together being so far apart from each other?
KRAANIUM: The musical aspect is a writing process between Jason and Mats, they kinda make up the backbone of the writing process, and then the rest of us fills out the gaps to make the full song. Mats and I split up the lyric writing between us, and that seems to work in our favor (if one person has a writers-block, the other one can inspire).
MPM: The last time Kraanium released new music was in 2018 titled Slamchosis which was received very well from many brutal death metal fans. Could you tell us how the songwriting, lyrics and everything else came together?
KRAANIUM: When I joined Kraanium, most of the album was already written, I was lucky enough to contribute with lyrics for 2 songs for the album. Themes for the albums are discussed before writing, and as a lot of people figured out pretty fast, Mats was very much into ‘’Mindhunter’’ (Netflix) when he was working on the album 😉.
MPM: With the band signed to Comatose Music, how’s the roster been treating you guys?
KRAANIUM: Steve and Comatose has been treating us so damn good, Steve is an amazing guy who lives and breathes for the brutal scene, an absolute legend, and we are so happy that we have been able to work with him, and bands that work with him on Comatose are super damn cool (Looking at you guys NecroticGoreBeast 😉) and can consider themselves super lucky to be able to work with Steve!
MPM: Since joining Kraanium the band is known for writing some of the filthiest, nastiest, and torturous lyrical themes from Gore, Cannibalism and Sodomy. Whom are some of your inspirations into writing lyrics for Slamchosis?
KRAANIUM: Well as I said earlier ‘’Mindhunter’’ played a big role in the lyrics of Slamchosis, but in general what we do to make the lyrics as sick and repulsive as possible, is to use whatever people have done in the past (serial killers, religions, horror and stuff like that), and add some music to it. Honestly people are fucking sick, and we do a lot of fucked up stuff, so finding the inspiration is pretty straight forward hehe.
MPM: How do you feel about the brutal death metal scene in this current era of music compared to what it was decades ago?
KRAANIUM: Hmmmmm good question. Obviously new music is getting released monthly these days so there is never a shortage of new stuff to dive into. The scene is younger (young new bands and the crowds are younger) so naturally new inspiration fuels the newer bands. But I think the biggest change in the scene is this new trend where people get butthurt when you start categorizing bands, especially when it comes to the term SLAM. That term is tossed around too much in my opinion. Too much deathcore label themselves as ‘’Slam’’ these days, but its deathcore not slam XD I know I might sound old, or like a ‘‘Boomer’’ but a bicycle does not become a motorcycle just because label it a motorcycle (if you know what I mean 😉).
MPM: What are some of your favorite Kraanium songs to perform live and if so, could you tell us what the lyrics mean to you prior to the track?
KRAANIUM: ‘’Blob of inhuman metamorphic transfusion’’ is a fun one for sure witch is pretty much about a biological experiment that went rouge hehe. But my favorite to play live is ‘’Midgetfucker’’ and the title kinda says it all 😉.
MPM; Are there any upcoming releases that you’re anticipating for 2020 and onward?
KRAANIUM: I am looking forward to see what Shaun puts out with Putrid Pile, and also what Pyrexia is cooking up.
MPM: When you’re not doing vocals or touring with Kraanium, what are some of your favorite hobbies to do to kill downtime?
KRAANIUM: At home I have another band that I spend time on called Septic Congestion, we are actually gonna release a new album on Rotten Music this year so look out for that !!!
Other than that I play Basketball and try to stay Healthy (when I am not having beers with my friends and going to concerts).
MPM: What are some of your favorite genres of music that’s not just extreme metal that others might learn about yourself?
KRAANIUM: I am a HUGE fan of East Coast Hip Hop and Midwest Hip Hop + some Danish artists as well, but Hip Hop is amazing man <3
MPM: In your opinion, what would you consider to be the ultimate lineup for Kraanium to go out on the road and tour with?
KRAANIUM: There are so many bands I wanna play with so it is a TOUGH question man haha!!! But one lineup that would be fucking epic would be
Devourment.
Kraanium.
Cerebral Incubation.
Abominable Putridity.
MPM: What can we expect for Kraanium in 2020 and is there new music coming in the horizon that can be discussed?
KRAANIUM: Oh man, so much going on right now, but we are working on new material as we speak + a lot of touring this year, bigger shows and more shows as well.
MPM: Lastly, are there any last words you wanna say to the fans worldwide reading this Interview?
KRAANIUM: Keep on supporting your local scene as well as the international scene, remember that without your local scene, the international names will not be booked for your areas, bookers need to know that the underground is thriving in your areas so go support your friends playing the local shows, and who knows, when we are gonna visit your backyard and tear your local scene to shreds.
Keep on doing what you do Jake, people like you is the people our scene needs! <3
Interview by Jake Butler
