With their new album, Rise of the Black Fang, the Greek metallers Killgrave have proven that they’re here to shake things up, blending crushing riffs with punk defiance and storytelling that feels ripped straight from the underworld. But who are the minds behind this sonic chaos, and what drives their unique sound? We sat down with Killgrave to uncover the stories, the madness, and the plans fueling their journey.
For those who might be hearing about Killgrave for the first time, can you introduce the band and its members? Tell us about your roles, your sound, and what makes Killgrave stand out in the metal scene.
For those who might be hearing about Killgrave for the first time, can you introduce the band and its members? Tell us about your roles, your sound, and what makes Killgrave stand out in the metal scene. Greetings to all your readers and thank you for giving us the chance to introduce ourselves to all the Music Anvil magazine fans. We are Killgrave, Stelios bass , Christos guitar, Vasilis drums and Stathis vocals . Our roles in the band are diverse as we all push, support, motivate, and help one another to manage this ‘thing’ we’ve created called Killgrave. We believe Killgrave is a band with its own character. What we are trying to do is to bring a controversial feelings to our listeners and not serve them something mainstream or any usual melody coming from a specific genre
“Rise of the Black Fang” has such an evocative title. Can you tell us about the inspiration behind it and how the theme shaped the album’s sound?
Rise of the Black fang is the first song we created. Spiros Vatikiotis (<<brother from another mother>>) is the founder of the songs main guitar riff and the song was developed during Covid 19 first quarantine before Killgrave was really created. Shortly after, the band was really happening, The sound was promising, and Stathis’ lyrics opened the gates to fantasy, marking the path to Mordor.
Each track on the new album seems to have a unique identity. For instance, songs like Blaviken and The Grey Manor suggest vivid narratives. Could you share the stories or ideas that inspired these tracks?
In Killgrave, the creation of lyrics follows the mindset behind the song composure. Similarly, the music isn’t an avant-garde groundbreaking element but rather a reinvention of the sounds and influences we’ve been listening to and playing over the years, the lyrics pay homage to other forms of arts that inspired us too. so, listening to the first composition we link the very first and raw feeling to a specific scene or part of a book or comic that comes to mind, creating the suitable atmosphere and then comes a narration of the events from our perspective. it’s often a characters view and mindset, an unfolding of events as an imaginary viewer, things we understood consuming the certain artistic product, etc. its a loan that we take by force , with the creation of a meaningful artistic debt to pay back.
Your early interviews highlighted a love for contrasting atmospheres. How did the recording process for Rise of the Black Fang reflect this, especially given it was your first full-length release?
The recording of the album itself was done in contrasting atmospheres, as it was recorded in two different studios! The black side was recorded in Bombtrack Studios (an underground room), and the white side at Guissepe (above ground). We wanted to share our first album and make it this way . As you pointed out correctly, controversy doesn’t frighten us at all.
With your sound blending metal, punk, and hardcore influences, where do you see Killgrave evolving musically in the next few years?
Blending more influences, still performing together, recording and being creative!
Greek bands have carved a unique niche in the global metal scene. How do you feel Killgrave fits into, or stands apart from this tradition?
We’re not trying to fit in anywhere, and we’re certainly not standing apart either! We will do our best so that many people can hear our music. If the global metal scene will open its arms, accept our music and offers us the chance to play in big festivals, then we will feel proud of keeping this tradition alive!
The Greek metal scene has always been supportive of emerging acts. How has the local fanbase reacted to your debut album, and do you feel it’s resonating with international audiences?
The album is quite new! We are also a new band and we hope that this positive feedback we already have from people seeing us playing live or listening to the album will grow bigger and bigger. We hope that Killgrave’s sound will resonate with Greek metal fans and international fans also! We believe that our sound can approach listeners from other cultures or music genres as well.
Conceptually, Killgrave often walks a fine line between humor and existential dread. How do you balance these elements without losing the emotional weight of your music?
We walked the Plank, we walked the line and humor will always be a part of Killgrave. There’s a lot of emotional weight within us all, so humor helps bring balance. In our music though, we don’t let humor stand as a burden against this emotional bomb we try to deliver to the listeners.
With tracks like To Become a Crow and Severus, it feels like storytelling plays a huge role in your songwriting. Do you see Killgrave exploring more concept albums in the future?
Everything is somehow connected to our stand in life or personal stories that are expressed through fantasy scenarios of existing animation or science fiction movies and games. We see Killgrave exploring all kinds of attractive concepts that will make us feel the authenticity in what we are doing. Staying happy while creating music and evoking emotions through our storytelling is our future plan.
Now that the album is out, what are your plans for live shows? Any dream venues or festivals where you’d love to bring Rise of the Black Fang to life?
That’s exactly what we are going to do and we are always trying to find the right chance and place to Bring the Black fang to life. We will perform in Kalamata, Athens and Thessaloniki beginning 2025 and you can find all the details in our social media profiles. We hope that 2025 will be a productive year and we will have the chance to announce more and more events
Looking beyond the release, what can fans expect next from Killgrave? Are there already plans for new material, collaborations, or experimental directions?
We already plan to do our new video and we have set a date to start recording some new material. Collaborations are always welcome and our directions were already experimental from the beginning. Our fans should expect a good live performance and music is coming raw.
Finally, what would you like to say to the readers of Music Anvil? Any messages for those who’ve followed your journey or are just discovering Killgrave?
Our love and respect to all the readers and metal fans out there! We promise Killgrave will always deliver Killgrave!! No boundaries in music and no mercy for the mainstream!!
