Sure. The sorrow was founded about two and a half years ago in wstern austria and was formed out of diverse punkrock-, hardcore- and metalbands. In early 2005 we decided to hit the studio to record a demo, which was voted demo of the month in the german "Metal Hammer"- magazine. After this we made connections to our present management company and our label Drakkar. It went really fast, you see ;-)

Can you speak to us about your new album called " Blessings From A Blackened Sky "?

B.F.A.B.S. is the album we always wanted to record since the band exists. It combines a mixture of classical Gothenburg- death metal, modern metal in the vein of Machine Head, Pantera or Killswitch Engage but as well classical licks and stuff. It´s kind of a dark, misty record with the whole artwork and lyrical content. We are really satisfied with it and with the media response so far.

Who is responsible for song writing ?

Our guitarists andi and mätze, who is also our singer, are responsible for most of the songwriting. They know each other from childhood and they are a perfect team when it comes to riffs and licks. But in the end every single member of the band should be satisfied with the idea of the song, otherwise it will be kicked in the garbage. We try to work on a democratic basis, this is what keeps our sound open for a lot of different things.

How did you proceed for the composition ?

Most time it´s the same: there is a riff and we are jamming and discussing, what would fit best to this song. Lyrics and singing are made in the end when the song is finished. We are a rehearsing- room group, we don´t like to spend to much time alone at home trying to find ideas.

Can you speak to us about the recording sessions ?

The record was recorded in Münster, Germany. Caliban for example recorded their last record in the same studio. We had a great time during recording. Our producer, toni meloni, is a really good friend of us. He recorded already the demo with us, so the atmosphere was very relaxed and familiar. We had a little timepressure, but in the end it worked out really well….

What are the lyrics talking about ? Where do you find inspiration ?

The lyrics are dealing with the struggle of daily life, as well as love and hate. A big point in our lyrics is the so called media apocalypse. Everytime you turn on your tv or the radio you get to hear about the ongoing destruction of the earth. We just imagined some apocalyptic scenarios and described them in our words. It´s not a political album, the lyrics can be interpreted very individually and on a personal basis.

What are your favourite songs out of this new album? And what makes them so special for you ?

I would say we like them all, but each member has his favourites of course. Talking about my highlights, it´s songs like "Knights of doom" because it´s a bridge between the NWOBHM-era and the brutality of the new-school. "from this life" is a really great song because of the variety in heaviness and melody. plus: the epic chorus!

Which are the artists who influenced you or whom you appreciate particularly ?

Bands who inspired us in collective are definitely acts like judas priest, iron maiden, Swedish bands like at the gates, in flames or soilwork.
We highly appreciate the work of bands like Pantera or Machine head, which you probably can hear. But there are also people we appreciate for doing what they do for the love of it. It hasn´t to be metal artists, we admire people for being passionate and being genuine…

What's your opinion about the international metal scene ?

It´s really complicated to describe an international scene. In my eyes the metal scene is a little bit schizophrenic. As soon a band starts to be successful, nobody who calls himself a real metalhead won´t listen to the band anymore, even if they really liked you in the first. This problem does exist in the hardcore-scene as well but we really don´t give a shit. Most of the people we actually MEET (you only meet haters in internet platforms and other medias) are really, really cool. Metalheads are the best people to have a drink with or bang the night away. We really appreciate people who put up shows, have fanzines, run fanclubs or do radio shows and other stuff to keep the scene alive and real.

Do you have any funny or strange stories about the band you can share with us ?

there would be plenty of funny stories to tell, but they would probably only seem funny to us. Really funny was driving home from a show in Vienna where we made our van jump to a new song of dj ötzi (I don´t know if you know this guy, but he makes really bad music)! We were just jumping up and down and dancing an screaming like a bunch of disco chicks. The story when we were putting some mustard in our singers pants is funny as well, but to long to tell in whole ;-)
we are some party dudes and we like to have some drinks, so if we come to france you know what to do!!!

We are hitting the road for a full European tour this autumn, I just can´t tell you already who will be the other band. Hopefully there will be some dates in france as well, we like the French people and bands like dagoba or gojira are really cool.

What are your projects for the future ?

Most important is a good promotion for our recored. We want our music heard. Most important in this case is playing shows and playing shows again. This is what we want to do… so the next big project after releasing our record and playing our gig on the wacken:open:air will be the European-tour.

And as a conclusion, can you say some words for my radio show Metal Choc ?

Thanks ton Corinne for being so kind doing this interview with us and introducing us to the French metalheads! We hope to see you soon on the road and to have some drinks!