Interview with THE HERETIC ORDER

The Band: The Herectic Order

Country: United Kingdom

The Man: Ragnar Wagnar (vocalist/guitarist)

https://www.facebook.com/thehereticorder

https://soundcloud.com/the-heretic-order

http://thehereticorder.com/

Interview by Vpower

The Heretic Order (THC) are a brand new Metal beast influenced by the likes of Mercyful Fate, Black Sabbath, Dio, Motorhead or Angel Witch. Pagan and Satani philosophies thrown in for good measure, predicating good humour, peace and love to all. If you haven’t listen to it you are missing, mostly sure, the best album of the year. They have shared stage already wit big acts as Angel Witch, Candelmass, Saxon, Amon Amarth, Diamond Head… The best debut album for the last so many years… And they are here to tell us about it. Let’s hear the gods speaking…

Hello Ragnar, it’s a pleasure to talk to you. And congratulations for your fantastic debut album

Thanks

To put it plain: how do a band compose an album as “All hail the order”? Was your original idea to get something so fully crazy and handcraft?

Well I started ( Ragnar Wagnar vocalist/guitarist) to compose metal songs at the beginning of 2013 with no intentions or plan then , but as I started getting an album worth of material and having so much fun on the process I decided to put a band together and put this music out in some capacity , hence the idea of THE HERETIC ORDER was born.

How long did you need to get it done?

I had no time frame, but once I got together with Rotted Skull ( bass) and E (drums)  we started working towards making the album , we recorded all drums in Madrid @ Will Maya’s studio ( The Answer , Breed 77 , Adrian Smith etc ) and all the vocals, gtr and bass I did it at my studio in London ,was mixed that summer .

I think we are in front of one of the Heavy Metal albums of this 2015. Your music is complex but still adictive, old school but still modern, melodic but still dark, powerful but still doom... No so many bands can offer so many things is just one album

 Thanks very appreciated glad that you enjoyed THO. Well our music is nothing new, but its fresh, too many bands nowadays sound very similar and I wanted to achieve a classic dark concept with the modern metal sounds of nowadays, pretty much going back to basic’s and trying to compose good songs with a metal platform.

Well, let’s get back to the origin, how was THO formed?

Like I said before ,I started composing songs around 2013 and already had the idea and concept of the project  , Rotted (bass) was the first to join shortly after E on drums and then whilst we were recording the album The Count came to the family , we were ready for battle .

I see many influences in your music, something unavoidable taking in account so many keys as you touch. But one for me is very clear, the Mercyful Fate/King Diamond touch

Of course I am glad you mentioned it , we are big fans of the king and apart from Sabbath , Dio , Maiden metal classics , Mercyful Fate and king Diamond ‘s music have been the biggest influence on THO . like I said we wanted to sound classic but modern with good songs infected by ripping guitars  , METAL and proud ha ha ,but apart from the music horror and occult movies/books influenced us a lot , specially Hammer House of Horror 70s/80s movies /series classics .

And we taste in the album, no doubt. What are the lyrics about?

The whole concept of the band is centered around the occult, horror subjects, paganism Satanism and history. When I say Satanism as a more spiritually liberating level , using the word as its original meaning rather than the Satanism portrait by Hollywood in the 60s or medieval Europe, pure spiritual freedom duality in all ‘ do what though wilt ‘. The Abrahamic religious have been enslaving our minds and sprits for more than 2000 years to achieve their goals ’power some still do, I’m talking killing masses for an idea. The Christian church demonized all pagan symbols of the past when they got the power of Rome in the 5th century, the goat (fertility god), the pentagram etc they became evil when they were the opposite .The word Satan really means adversary in old Jewish texts, it described the duality inside all humans, good and evil , ying,yang not a bloke with a pitchfork and half goat tempting souls to be evil .Man already does a good job of that ,we don’t need help or scapegoats to commit atrocities it’s a guilt thing a human invention easier to blame than yourself, nature should be our mirror and there is no good or evil there , life is simple.

Yeah, life is simple, especially when you are THC. Good dissertation and very interesting concepts. All the guys are fantastic in their positions, but the guitar work on riffs and solos is beyond this planet. And the most surprising is that it’s just Count Marcel La Vey behind that, isn’t it?

 

Well got it wrong there, we started to record before the Count joined though he managed to record some solos and melodies at the end, we are a 2 guitar band. I really consider myself more of a guitar player before a vocalist.

Oh, that makes it more human, but still… Is it possible to perform all that in a live show without a second guitar?

This is a two-guitar team we have many double harmonies and shared solos live. Attach is our bio with all the info.

Hahaha, OK, I got it, it’s the Metal Archives mistake, as it says you are a three-man band instead of 4, someone should update that info… And talking about shows, do you have tour dates already? Will you take Spain by storm?

Yes, we are actually playing in Salamanca 16th Oct la Sociedad Hard Rock and Madrid Sala Live 17th Oct with Madrid metal bros Kaothic . It will be difficult bringing all our stage props etc to Spain (budget wise) but eventually we would love do a full tour there , promoters take note . We are trying to play as much as possible.

Great news for the Spanish metalheads. Two shows for the nest week, if you call yourself a devil’s servant you cannot miss it! If some day King Diamond knocked on your door and asked you to join him in a project what would you say?

Lets do it, I could handle those guitars ha ha ha

Hahaha I suppose you must be very happy and satisfy with the monster you have created, but you don’t feel your legs shaking a little whenever you think the level you will have to reach in your follow-up album? Call it fear to disappoint if it you want…

 Very proud of ‘ All hail the order ‘ its my baby but already moved on and as we speak we have the second album composed and ready to record , music is my opium I am always working in new songs , if you liked this album the next one is going to blow you away , you have been warned .

Wow, you leave me without words, cannot wait to get the second album… From the Metal Archives (again) I don’t get who is in charge of the vocals ( a wonderful work , by the way), clean or throaty. Please enlighten us…

All vocals are courtesy of Lord Ragner Wagner and his vocals depend on what spirit is in charge of his body at the time, there are many demons in hell’s Legion, ha ha seriously I love the way King Diamond has different vocals style for his different characters its my interpretation of that.

You have signed by Massacre Records, an important label, I suppose it was easy when they listened to this “All hail the order”…?

Very honored having Massacre handling our album

By the way, how did you come to name the band The Heretic Order? Is has some meaning or is just a phonetic matter or whatever?

A heretic is a person who holds religious belief in conflict with the Catholic Church. Our songs say what ever needs to be said whilst telling a story no political correctness even if it contradicts the commercialized lies we are fed so we are modern heretics in a way .

How do you see the Metal scene in the UK?

 Its good considering that like every where else the music business has less means to support new bands and everything is more D.I.Y, but in a way its good as you can be more original and creative as companies are less involved.

And last but not least, tell us the truth: you have a deal with the devil, true or not?

I have a deal with both , god and the devil , they are inside my head waging a war

I believe you. Thank you Ragnar for this interesting conversation  and for the awesome “All hail the order”