Nadir Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?
We’re enjoying the success of the latest record right now. Well, joking apart, the responses we’ve got thus far are really amazing. But it took more than we originally planned to make and bring out the album so we thought it would be wise to put the brakes on for a while. Some of us must resolve private life or health issues so that we can get back into action afterwards. We’re celebrating our 25th anniversary as a band this year. We never really took a break until now but we’re friends, we know each other quite well, that’s why we thought it was important to do so this time, although it wasn’t planned beforehand, especially not with an album like this.

2.Recently you have released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
This is definitely our most mature release to date. Besides sounding really heavy, we want our songs to be catchy and memorable, that’s been our approach to songwriting for quite some time now. So it’s not just about aggressive riffs and growling vocals, there are lots of melodic guitar parts and guitar solos on this record as well. And our sound has never been so harmonic and rich before. Drummer Szabolcs Fekete did his absolute best from both aspects since it’s guitarist Norbert Czetvitz and him who wrote the songs together and the mixing has been done in Szabolcs’s home studio.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?
Our most important recurring topic and subject is nature, our natural environment and mankind’s relation to it. To be more specific, the constant destruction of the environment done by mankind. All this from different aspects. Our last two records, Ventum iam ad finem est (2015) and The Sixth Extinction are both concept albums. Ventum… is basically about the way humanity has gone astray from the ancient harmony with nature and the last album is the sequel of the previous one, so to speak. This one deals with the latest massive, human-induced wave of extinction of species that is still going on in the world, at an increasingly alarming rate. In the album lyrics, we are citing environmental destruction, pollution, diseases, invasive species and overhunting as its main causes. It’s also worth mentioning that the Ice Age in the Immediate Future trilogy has been inspired by the play of Hungarian author Imre Madách (1823-64) The Tragedy of Man, while in the closing track, Les ruines, we are quoting French philosopher and historian Volney (1757-1820). Deep, meaningful and thought-provoking lyrics are almost as important for us as the music itself, they’ve always been.

4.Originally the band was known as 'Dark Clouds', what was the cause of the name change and also what is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Nadir'?
‘Nadir’ was the title of the very first full length album of Dark Clouds so that’s how we tried to make people see continuity. It’s not like Dark Clouds have split up and then we have started a brand new band. What happened was that our music has gradually changed with time and it has evolved on from the doom / death metal of our early years to an extent that it had nothing to do with the band name anymore so we thought it was the right time to change it. Besides the initial influences of the Scandinavian and British doom bands of the early 1990s such as Tiamat – their Clouds album in particular, that’s where the name comes from –, Paradise Lost or My Dying Bride, we began to incorporate elements from death metal, doomcore / sludge or hardcore (Bolt Thrower, Obituary, Crowbar or Merauder) and it became our main source of inspiration as time went by. The original meaning of the word „nadir” is the point on the celestial sphere directly below an observer. The opposite of “zenith”, that is. And figuratively, it depicts the lowest or most unsuccessful point in a situation or a state of great depression.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
The most important shows for us are the ones that we play as the opening band for some of our major influences (e.g. Crowbar, Merauder, Entombed, Pro-Pain, Krisiun or, most recently, Suffocation) or the ones where we can stand up for a cause that really matters much to us (e.g. a benefit show to support the local Animal Rescue League). When we get on stage, it’s the same feeling as if we would hang out like we do as a bunch of great friends in everyday life so Nadir is not just about making music, it’s something much deeper and meaningful for us. That’s how we would describe the overall atmosphere of our gigs.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?
Compared to the older times, we must organize our shows more carefully and thinking further ahead now as some of the band members live and work abroad. Nevertheless, we still keep getting offers and keep looking for new opportunities, too. To play as many gigs as possible is no longer the most important thing for us. If we can play less, it’s all right, as long as the shows are really worth doing and they go great.

7.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your newer music by fans of extreme metal?
Thanks to the incredibly efficient online promotional activity of NGC Prod. & Grimm Distribution we’ve been getting the most awesome fan response and reviews ever from all over the world now.

8.What is going on with 'Our Existence Is Punishment' these days, a band that also shares some of the same members?
The activities of Our Existence Is Punishment always depend on what’s going on with Nadir at the given moment. Norbi and Szabolcs are never out of ideas, they have already written enough songs for the next OEIP release in the usual industrial doom vein so it’s just a matter of time until we put the final versions together. In the meantime, Norbi is active with Ghostchant, vocalist Viktor Tauszik is involved in Enter The Void and bass guitarist Ferenc Gál is a member of Step On It. All these bands feature well known Hungarian underground musicians and play different genres in underground / extreme music.

9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
It would be probably too early to tell you anything about it specifically but we might not make another concept album next time and come up with something equally raw and straight to the point but sounding more like death metal. Until then, however, we are planning on celebrating our 25th anniversary with a special release that might contain both re-recorded versions of some of our older songs and a few new tracks.

10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
A lot of different stuff. We love all kinds of metal. We’ve been constantly drawing inspiration from bands like Crowbar, Bolt Thrower or Paradise Lost for twenty years now, as you can probably hear it. And our further influences are quite diverse, from classic death metal (e.g. Gorefest) to Merauder and Earth Crisis.



11.What are some of your non-musical interests?
Some of us are huge soccer fans and we still occasionally attend the games of the local team whenever we can. And earlier this year, we finally made it to Liverpool where we went to see a game of Everton FC. England is where they have invented soccer, right? So there is nothing like watching a soccer match live, in the most authentic environment, surrounded by the atmosphere of classic old school games. And, in our everyday lives, we are fully committed and dedicated to protection of animals. We all have pets at home most of which are rescued animals and we raise our voices against cruelty to animals whenever and wherever we can, both as private persons and as musicians. We have featured on a compilation album that’s been put together in order to support the local Animal Rescue League and played at the benefit show that we’ve already mentioned here. Both initiatives have caused quite a stir on the local scene so we really hope it will go on even more efficiently.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Check out our newer records on Bandcamp and do something for animals to the best of your ability.


https://www.facebook.com/Nadirhungary
https://nadirhun.bandcamp.com