Interviews: ARCANUM SANCTUM

On this new occasion, we have had the opportunity to interview the Melodic Death Metal band ARCANUM SANCTUM from Russia. Check out the interview and follow the band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

1. Where did you get the idea for the band name? Did you plan it or come out just like that?

Actually, the band was initially formed as a death/doom metal project, and the Latin name seemed quite suitable to us. However, very soon we realized that the music we composed was closer to melodic death rather than to death/doom metal. Nevertheless, the band name has remained unchanged through the years. I came across this word combination in an article about Paracelsus. This is how a panacea supposedly invented by Paracelsus was referred to by one of his disciples. So, it seems quite a good fit for a melodic death metal band as well.

2. Why did you want to play this genre?

As I have mentioned earlier, the band was formed to play death/doom metal. You can hear some death/doom vibes in ‘Moment of Death’ from our debut (Fidus Achates, 2010). This was the first song from the early days of the band that ended up on an album. However we all had a melodic death metal background by then, and the rest of the songs we composed were closer to melodic death metal. As the main composer and mastermind of the band, I feel very comfortable in this genre. Even switching to sci-fi and Space exploration subjects and changing the vocalist worked quite well within it.

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed?

I had known Kirill ‘Kirk’ Kulinichev (bass) long before Arcanum Sanctum. We first met when we were kids. Then he moved to another part of the city and we met again when he responded to an ad we placed in a local newspaper when my first band was looking for a bassist. Afterward, we played power/melodic death metal in another band and became good friends. As for the rest of the band — our city is not very big, therefore by the moment they joined Arcanum Sanctum, we had shared the stage with all of them. 

4. Each band member’s favorite band?

It's hard for me to name a favorite band of all time, but at the moment the band I listen to most often is Harakiri for the Sky.

Ivan Beschastny (vocals): Пикник (Picnic, art rock, psychedelic rock, Russia) and Rammstein

Roman Rysyev (guitar): Devin Townsend Project

Kirill Kulinichev (bass): Pink Floyd

Andrey Zotov (drums): Hypocrisy

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

After two well-received albums of catchy uptempo melodic thrash/death metal with traditional harsh vocals we decided to step aside from the beaten path and explore new grounds. This exploration turned into a breathtaking journey through space and time. We found our inexhaustible source of inspiration in the past. It's not a secret that things we encounter as kids leave the deepest traces in our souls. All members of the band were born at the end of a so-called Golden Age of Space exploration and caught its echoes in the form of sci-fi books, movies, cartoons, and associated soundtracks popular in our childhood. We realized that this theme was still exciting and inspiring for all of us. Moreover, most of us had become fathers by then and started thinking about bringing up worthy humans. And the Soviet era sci-fi addresses this issue as well. Opposite to what we have now, there were many good children's authors back then, teaching kids to be kind, sympathetic, thirsty for knowledge, and to love and respect labor. And the sci-fi element and adventures were always in place there - no kid likes boring moralizing.

6. Where was your last gig?

Our last gig was in our hometown. The venue's name is Inlife Concert Bar, and it is one of the best venues in the Russian Far East. By the way, its boss is our good friend and a great sound engineer. It is always a pleasure to play there.

7. Where would you like to act?

We are ready to act wherever our audience is.

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

We prefer to focus on our own band and do our best using what we have. I understand that having some big name featured may be good for promotion, however I have never thought about it. We will have to play live on our own anyway.

9 Whom not?

Ref. to the previous answer.

10. Have any of you ever suffered from stage fright? Any tips for beginners on how to beat that?

I think every performing musician faces stage fright one day or another even if he or she says he/she doesn’t. We don’t live in a vacuum, and there are many things happening around us capable of triggering this state of mind. The best solution (in my opinion) is to be in the moment and just enjoy it.

11. What bands have inspired you the most?

There are many inspiring bands with inspiring stories behind them. The band that brought me into heavy music was Black Sabbath. I was a 14-year-old schoolboy when my father gave me a video cassette with their bio (The Black Sabbath Story, vol. 1&2). I liked Scorpions back then (by the way, I was honored to be their interpreter at a press conference during their visit to our hometown in 2008), but Sabbath inspired me to play metal music. Later I discovered that Metallica had some stuff heavier than 'Nothing Else Matters' and 'The Unforgiven' and bought 'Kill ‘Em All', which became another big inspiration. After Metallica, there were many other inspiring bands, but nothing can beat our local band Distorted Smile (melodic death metal with a medieval flare). This band inspired me to form Arcanum Sanctum. I saw them live back in 2003 and it was the first time I experienced the magic of a live metal show ever. Still admire their songwriting. Unfortunately, the only recording they managed to do before their mastermind quit the band and moved to another city was a four-track demo. We were honoured to have their drummer Victor Reshetnikov as a session drummer on our first two albums.

12. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

During our China tour back in 2015 a fan in Jinchang city asked us to sign his belly. You can see it in a 'Beware the Dreamer' video based on the video materials from that tour.

13. What do you think of your fans?

Well, recently a guy from a major aerospace company ordered our CDs, and a T-shirt and thanked us for our music. Of course, this is not a typical portrait of our average fan. Nevertheless, I think there are many people that became our fans not only because they liked this genre of music, but because of the sci-fi and Space exploration subjects we address in our songs. So, you will be right to say they are capable of seeing a starscape in a puddle beneath their feet.

14. What do you think of our site?

It is always a pleasure to see the work done with passion. Keep on doing a good job!

15. Something to add?

If you're a real fan of metal - keep on discovering new names, support promising local bands, and promote them among your friends. Give them a chance to be heard by a wider audience. And if you're a fan of metal and sci-fi - welcome onboard!