Born Hungry

My life has always been all about questioning things, and this album doesn't give you [many] answers,” Adam 'Nergal' Darski remarks offorthcoming disc The Satanist, Behemoth's first LP since 2009. “All the experiences I've collected throughout the years after [previous record]Evangelion, there's been so much stuff happening that it's all there in the music. That's why we create music, to incorporate all of those feelings and emotions into notes and riffs. It's metaphysics, it's not mathematics, you know?” he laughs.

Considering the ferocious death metal crafted throughout two decades fronting the Polish crew, the opening sentence of the aforementioned quote seems a no-brainer. Factor in events of the past half-decade and it's even more striking, because the obstacles encountered would have left many desperately scrambling to comprehend their misfortune.

There was Nergal's five-month bout with leukaemia, eventually overcome in 2011, and the dissolving of his relationship with fiancée, Polish pop singer Doda. He also faces another trial and possible imprisonment in Poland on charges he insulted religious sentiment when he called the Catholic Church “the most murderous cult on the planet” and tore up a Bible during a 2007 performance.

“It is what it is; I take it day-by-day,” he reflects. “There's advantages of the fact I'm Polish and live in this country. This country makes me so hungry for being an artist, for travelling and being creative and inspired. But at the same time, it's give and take. There's a lot of opportunities that this country gives you... But it's very conservative. But then I'm thinking if it wasn't conservative, would I be into this at all?”

It's not solely his homeland the vocalist/guitarist believes is resistant to change either. “The way I see extreme metal is it lacks the danger factor. The majority of bands, they just lack real, true emotion and something that can move you. Extreme metal these days is just a definition. It's very friendly, and not being friendly in the way I'd like it to be. It's not challenging, it's not stimulating.

“Extreme metal should be about being something that puts you into a very uncomfortable position. It's like with any form of extreme art. When you go and see Antichrist by Lars von Trier, you believe that the actor is disturbed. That's what I consider extreme. These days, bands think that when they put all the pieces of the puzzle together, they become extreme. But they hardly ever fucking do anything. What we seriously stand for is that Behemoth is a 100 per cent real band, made of real humans, with real relations, blood and emotions. I'm proud of being part of this band. I know that we stand opposite to the current, on our own, and we are inspiration for ourselves solely. That's what makes us stand out and special in these days' metal business.”