Symphobia’s debut Hideously Traumatic is a savage plunge into nightmarish brutality. We spoke with the band about their vision, disturbing themes, and Indonesia’s rising dominance in the brutal death metal scene.
1. Your
debut album Hideously Traumatic is a relentless onslaught from start to finish.
What was the main vision or emotion you wanted to capture with this record?
For this
album, we wanted to create something new and fresh with our own unique style.
We envisioned introducing our musical concept to the world through our label,
Comatose Music.
2. The
imagery behind the title and concept is intensely disturbing. Can you tell us
about the narrative or themes that inspired these nightmarish soundscapes and
lyrics?
For the
lyrics and artwork, we tried to portray the dangers of the road, with all the
risks and consequences caused by various factors, creating horrific trauma for
those who witnessed these horrific accidents.
3.
'Hecatomb' opens the album like a bomb going off—how important was it for you
to set the tone immediately with that track?
For the
album tracklist, we deliberately selected several songs that we felt had unique
points in each part and lyrically.
4.
You’ve drawn comparisons to brutal death titans like Suffocation and Kill
Everything. How do you balance honoring those influences with carving out your
own identity in the genre?
As for our
influences in creating the material, we had a slightly unique approach, given
our members' backgrounds in technical death metal bands too. So, we quickly put
together the material for our album, mixed several parts with nuances of
Suffocation and Kill Everything combined with guttural vocal.
5. The
production on the album is scathing and absolutely unforgiving. What was it
like working with Tonebetter Soundlab, and what were you aiming for sonically?
We are very
happy to have collaborated with Tonebetter Soundlab for our debut album, and we
are very satisfied with the results. Because he's experienced in this field and
has worked with several bands with great results, we're very happy to be able
to collaborate on this project.
6.
Indonesia has become a real powerhouse in the extreme metal scene. How has your
local scene shaped your development as musicians and as a band?
Yes. I
think Indonesia's underground scene has grown rapidly over the past few years,
becoming much larger and more diverse in genre and character. We're also very
supportive of the audience here, and we're very happy to be a part of the
Indonesian death metal scene.
7.
Several members have been involved in other bands like Demented Heart and
Perveration. How did your experience in those acts help shape Symphobia’s
sound?
Yes, Humam
currently plays in Demented Heart and Orbital Element too as well as several
other projects. Jossi also plays in Perveration and Invigorate. Perhaps because
of the shared vision and mission of the three of us to create Symphobia, with
our own concepts and characteristics from the various bands we play, we tried
to mix them to create a fresh and different taste and materials from the other
bands we play besides Symphobia.
8.
Timbul Cahyono’s artwork perfectly matches the gruesome energy of the album.
How did that collaboration come about, and how involved were you in the visual
direction?
For the
cover art, we entrusted with Timbul Cahyono because we were confident he could
execute it very well and produce the art. It represents the song and lyrics,
which depict the deep trauma felt when recalling the horrific incident.
9.
There’s a very cinematic, almost psychological horror element to the music and
lyrics. Do any films, books, or real-life events influence your creative
approach?
Regarding
the elements contained in the lyrics on this album, we have seen several videos
and accidents that are very horrific and traumatic to remember. Therefore, we
tried to tell this horrific and traumatic feeling as a warning and to be
careful when traveling by motorcycle or car.
10. With
Hideously Traumatic dropping via Comatose Music, what are your next
steps—tours, videos, or even more new music on the horizon?
After the
release of our debut album, we hope everyone can accept and like with our
materials in this album and can be more careful when traveling by motorbike /
car after reading the lyrics. For the next step we are writing some material
for our second album and we might do some live performances at some music
events here. We are very grateful to Mr. Steve he has realized our debut album
and he is very kind and we hope he is always healthy and hopefully we can work
together again for the next stuff.
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