With a surface area of less then 10.000 square kilometres, the mediterranean island of Cyprus is about 40 times smaller than Germany. Nonetheless the country is home to very active metal scene and since the year 2000 heavy metal veterans SOLITARY SABRED have been among its most fervent contributors. Marking their 20th anniversary, the band, which originates in Nikosia, will release its latest album „By Fire & Brimstone“. Because of this we reached out to vocalist Petros Leptos so he could fill us in on his bands plans.
Six years have passed since the last SOLITARY SABRED album came out. What have you guys been up to during this time?
Greetings, thanks for the invite! So we were quite active on the live front following the release of “Redemption through force” both in Cyprus and Greece. Then we had a change of personnel in the drummer position which was the main reason for the delay. The songs had been ready for a while, it was just a matter of getting the right person on board to commit them to tape!
Your new album “By Fire & Brimstone” is about to be released. How would you describe the record and where do you see differences to the previous effort?
I believe the best description is in the title itself: Pure heavy / epic metal on a mission to purge the universe in Fire & Brimstone! I believe it is the logical continuum of “Redemption…” : Both firmly rooted in traditional heavy / epic metal, the former of the more “manic” variety, full of rage from start to finish, while the latter incorporates a wider variety of pace and emotions. Also, the new one leans a bit more on the technical side. We love both equally of course and hope that the fans will as well! Different flavors but the metallic bloodlust is a key factor in both releases!
How did songwriting and recording for “By Fire & Brimstone” go down?
Whereas in the past Jimmy (Demetriou – guitar) and I would write almost the entirety of the material, this time round we all wrote together. Someone would bring an idea to rehearsal and we’d all develop it in a very organic way. When we turned and looked at each other in the eyes with excitement, we knew that each song was complete! Recording was done at our guitarist Nikolas Moutafis’ studio (Steel Fortress). Nikolas was the hero of the recording, taking care of the engineering, editing etc, and it all went down super-fast, as we had the album ready within a couple of months. Then our friend Paris Lambrou (Play on 10 studios) took care of the mixing / mastering, and we think he did a great job!
What about the lyrical content on the new album? What are the songs about?
Sword & sorcery with references to real life struggles. The topics vary, for instance “Assassins of Carthage” is based in the history of the rulers of Carthage, who had a tendency of being found dead in a pool of their own blood, “The Scarlet Citadel” / “Fyres of Koth” is based on the “Phoenix on the sword” story by R.E. Howard while “Blestem” is based on a real life encounter with a fortune teller, which we blew up into a haunting tale of epic proportions!
“By Fire & Brimstone” is your first record to be released on No Remorse Records. How did this collaboration come about?
Technically it’s the second, since No Remorse re-released “Redemption Through Force” after the original print sold out in about six months. Christos and Andreas have been friends for years, so when they approached us, we didn’t have to think twice. And thus far they’ve done a very good job promoting the new album.
With Fotis Mountouris you recruited a new drummer in 2018. How did this change come to pass?
Our previous drummer, Andreas Tapas, was a skilled musician and good friend but he wasn’t really into this style of music, so when the band’s schedule got more demanding there was a mutual feeling that it was time to part ways. So we went on a hunt for a new drummer and let me tell you it’s not easy finding someone who can play at the level required for this type of material, that is into classic heavy metal and doesn’t mind not making money off music! Thankfully the gods brought the mighty Fotis Mountouris our way, and he fit in the band as if he was a member from day one!
You have probably already done so many times, but could you please explain your band’s name to us?
Solitary Sabred loosely translates as “lone swordsman”. We like to think it’s one of those quirky yet powerful names like Slauter Xstroyes which it might be a bit difficult to remember, but once you do it’s very characteristic and unique for the band!
What about your upcoming live schedule? Will we have a chance to see SOLITARY SABRED in Germany any time soon?
Yes! We’re flying over on the 14th of March, to fight the corona-virus and spread our own metal disease at Swordbrother’s Festival!
Here In Germany not a lot of bands from cyprus are known. What’s the Cypriot metal scene like?It’s very lively and has a lot of killer bands! Our guitarist Nikolas also plays in Mirror and Hardraw (as well as a number of cover bands), our bass player George has the speed metal band Stainlesz, and there’s also many other bands active on the local circuit and abroad such as Arrayan Path, Rust_X, Vomitile and the list goes on and on! We also have several local gigs and festivals being held all the time, so even though we are a small island, Cypriots export quite a bit of steel!
Thank you for the interview! Please let us do a short brainstorming in the end of this interview. What comes in your mind first reading the following terms:
James Rivera: Instantly sends an album’s value through the stratosphere just for being in it! One of our favorite vocalists of all time!
Pay To Play: I believe it was always a part of the music business – smaller bands paying their way to get on a big tour. If you’re looking to make it professionally in music, it’s an unfortunate reality sometimes. For us it’s not really an issue that we had to deal with.
Streaming: I love it! I still get a ton of albums every moth, but just the fact that I don’t have to drag cd’s to the car, makes it worthwhile! And I only got into spotify a few months ago, so I’m still discovering stuff!
Vinyl: The true way to listen to music without missing out on half the soundscape! Well that or WAV, but the scratches are irreplaceable!
Underground: A very, very misunderstood concept nowadays. For us underground was what our heroes had to go through in the 80’s, where only a select few knew of your material and the mainstream press / media wanted nothing to do with it. Today we misunderstand the term “old school” for “underground” and it’s two very separate things. The internet left very few things still buried in the underground. But the term sells albums and tickets, so it is used ad nauseam!
SOLITARY SABRED in 10 years: Still here delivering pounding metal to your hearts and ears with the same passion and conviction!
Once again thanks for your time. The last words are yours – is there anything left you want to tell our readers?
Thank you so much for the interview and support and thanks to everyone for the stellar reception of the new album! We are honored and hope to travel the entire globe and play for each and every one of you! Chaos descends by fire and brimstone!
23. März 2020 Thomas Meyns
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