Interview with LUNAR SHADOW

The Band: Lunar Shadow

Country: Germany

The member of the band: Max “Savage” Birbaum, guitar and founding member of the band, the boss, to say it in one word.

https://www.facebook.com/lunarshadowband 

Interview by Vpower

Hello guys! Lunar Shadow is a German band of recent creation that hast just edited a EP and today I have the pleasure to talk to Max “Savage” Birbaum, the guitarist and master of ceremonies behind these Lunar Shadow, a very interesting guy, as you will check out during the interview. So, let’s start.

Hi Max, first of all, tell us about the origin of the band?

I raised Lunar Shadow out of the ashes of Acheron already several years ago, wanting to create with this band my very own vision of Heavy Metal. I was not content with most outputs of "younger" Metal bands, I had my own ideas and started to write songs. It took me some years, to find proper band members, which not only would fit personally to Lunar Shadow, but also are able to play properly. I first met Sven, our bass player and soon his twin-brother Kay joined on the six strings. Jörn on battery was also a friend of those two. Alex, our singer, is the "Newest" member.

You play classic Heavy Metal, what bands have inspired your sound?

I would say, that my main influences are bands like old(!) In Flames, Dissection, classic US Metal like Omen, Villain and Sanctuary and of course german classics like Stormwitch or Running Wild. The best young bands are Atlantean Kodex, Dark Forest, Attic and Borrowed Time.

Wow! I praise your good taste, great bands for sure, Omen, Villain, Atlantean Kodex....yeah!. I think  the guitars lead your sound, with powerful riffs and good and long solos

I agree. Those twin-guitar leads have always been a huge love of mine. Being a guitarist and writing all the songs, I guess one cannot avoid it, that the guitars are a little bit outstanding, but that's the way I wanted it to be.

I am also thankful that you don’t fall in the double drums attack, so typical of the Power Metal, your drums are very classic too, following the guitars work style

It is not about speed at all costs, drums carry a song and should be one piece of the whole mosaic, that, when put together, forms something, that is beautiful and true.

Triumphator is my favorite track in the Ep, because it has a darker approach, with thicker guitars and a little bit dirtier sound than the other songs, which make it very interesting. You prefer this kind of composition or something more melodic?

'Triumphator' is a bit more riff-orientated, that's true. But I do not prefer one song over another. All of them have something within them, that I like, otherwise I would not have written them that way.

You have edited this Ep by yourself, what is the reason for that and how to buy it?

We had the opportunity to record our EP with a good friend of mine, which made the recordings very pleasant, for there was no real pressure, no strict time schedule etc. It was mixed and mastered also by a friend and considering this I guess that we were able to form a good sound. Few things are worse, than a sterile sound, so we were able to sit down, smoke dozens of cigarettes and forge the sound, that we wanted to have.

And some beers I suppose... lol. How to get your EP?
Just write an email to Lunarshadow@web.de, you get all the details there. It is 5 Euros + shipping.

Do you expect to have a LP in the near future?

I can say, that "Triumphator" one day certainly will also appear on vinyl. But as you might know, there is long waiting-list at the pressing plants and right now we have other priorities, like shirts and patches, which will be released soon. But as I said, I think 'Triumphator', with this wonderful artwork of Adam Burke, deserves to be pressed on black gold one day.

It would be perfect, sure. What are the lyrics about?

Rather classic. I read a lot, I am a huge fan of such fantasy writers as Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard and C.A. Smith. 'When the last Grave has opened' fe. is loosely based on Lovecraft's "Dreams in the Witch House". 'Metalian' is a little tribute to Judas Priest, who are my favourite metal band of all time.

'Kobra Khan' is inspired by (of course) He-Man and Robert E. Howard's "The Shadow Kingdom". The title track then is again very old-fashioned. Heavy Metal is about greatness. It is about feeling strong, when you aren't. Listen to "Triumphator" and forget the world around you. It is awful anyways.

It is important to mention, that for this EP I picked rather solid lyrical themes, that are not in a metaphysical way "deep". This will slightly change on our debut album. There will be longer tracks in the vein of Solstice, probably two acoustic tracks and the lyrical themes will be more philosophical and thoughtful. But don't worry, there are still songs about Robert E. Howard and monsters.

Is there a date for the release of your debut album?

Our debut album will be released in Mid 2016. Basically all songs are written, if you already liked the EP, we won't dissapoint you.

How do you see the Metal scene in your country and what are your goals as a Metal band?

I cannot lie, it is good to live in Germany, when you are a Heavy Metal Fan. There is a solid scene, with lots of good shows, festivals and possibilites to play as a band. I do not go out much, so I am more a part of a "little circle", and certainly there are things, that

are going entirely wrong, like Wacken, but there are worse places to be, I guess.

I am not an ambitious person. It is naive and illusory to think, that you can still earn money with Heavy Metal in 2015. I just want to play. Record our debut album, have loyal fans, that support us. Smoke. Drink. Leave this world one day.

I totally share your vision and thank your sincerity. I have seen that you are among the bands that will perform on the Harder Than Steel festival, the billboard is really impressive, how do you feel about it?

We are very thankful, that we got this opportunity. Last year we went to the first edition of Harder than Steel as fans, to play there now with such a legend as Jag Panzer and friends like Iron Kobra is a wonderful thing. It reassures us to continue our way and gain new fans there along the way.

Do a little like Nostradamus… How will the Metal  look like in 10 years from now and what position will Lunar Shadow have  in that music universe?

I don't care much about my surroundings. And I don't pretty much care, what will metal be like in ten years. There will be trends, that come and go like tidal waves. Old idols will die, no new ones will follow.

Lunar Shadow will continue to play Heavy Metal or burst into flames and wither. Time will tell... Death to Life

The fucking apocalypse, carpe diem... Well, people this is the end of it. Thanks Max for your time and very interesting opinions. I look forward to listen to your debut album soon and hope to see you in some live concert (not in Wacken, hopefully, lol)