BlackThorn

Cannibalistic Masturbation

Emanzipation

Horrorscope

Hot Rockin'

Merciless Thrash

Metal Power

Metallic beast

Nagual

Necroticism

Nice Noise

Obsequies

Septic Desecrator

The NRG mag

Trechoma

Udbrud

Unchained Energy

Underground Mag

Welcome to my eyes

Wonderful rhythms

Bomb Squad

Caustic

Geronimo

Moratorium

Frozen Sun

Illdisposed

Nations of Death

Pixie Killers

Cyanotic

Dominus

Fallen Angel

Imperial

Sacrificial

Mercyful Fate

Decrial

Detest

Exhaust

Beyond Serenity

BJ's column...

As I'm sitting here, proud as a pope, watching the final result of almost 1 year's work, I have to admit that I'm glad that I'm now capable of releasing NAGUAL #2. It has been a burden, a good experience, but still occasionally it's been a pain in the ass. That has mostly got to do with the time and money pressure, it sure is expensive to do a 'zine! The good things are of course the cool persons you get in touch with, the stuff you get for review and all that. I'm still into doing NAGUAL and there will be more issues for sure!! I know that I'd promised/hoped to be able to feature some other bands too - with interviews, but there's been some difficulties, so... I was surprised to receive such good comments on the debut issue - I can only say: THANKS! I hope you'll like this one too! Feel free to get in touch - but PLEASE enclose some reply-postage (Danish stamp, 5, IRC, whatever) since the postage is killing me! That's it, that's that. 

Contributors:  
Bjarke Ahlstrand (BA)  
Karen Boe Hauggaard (KBH)  

All reviews, interviews, articles and lay-out by BA and KBH.  

All artwork by Vibeke Johansson, Ylva Herfjord and BA.

Reflections on Releasing NAGUAL #2

SACRIFICIAL "Forever Entangled" CD  
TRECHOMA PROD.

This is the debut CD release from both TRECHOMA PROD. and SACRIFICIAL. The result should be satisfying for both parts! At least it satisfies me! SACRIFICIAL have changed their musical approach since their "L.O.T." demo, they were more brutal back then. It's like they're aiming towards the more thrashy and technical approach now. The music is Death Thrash with some dark singing vocals! If you like Death Thrash a là INVOCATOR etc. this is a good investment. If you can't get this one from your local store, write to TRECHOMA! The price is 20$. -BA.

Unleashing Death Thrash: Sacrificial's Evolution in 'Forever Entangled'

BEYOND SERENITY "Behind The Silence" Demo '92.  
It's good to see that not every band plays DM nowadays. Watch out! This isn't brutal, it's harmonic, peaceful and surprisingly brilliant (Thrash) Metal. Not technical but catchy. Fair musicianship, excellent vocals! Yeah, the vocals sure are the highlight of this demo. They're varied and filled with strength! This gotta be heard. I really enjoy this! 6$ to BEYOND SERENITY, Carsten Holm, Drosselvej 7, 3600 Fr. Sund, Denmark. -BA.

Harmonic Thrash Brilliance: Beyond Serenity's 'Behind The Silence' Demo '92

BOMB SQUAD "Mental Frostbites" Demo '93.

Well... This is BOMB SQUAD'S first demo and it has four songs + an in- and outro. All the songs are a mixture of midpace and slow Death Metal. Somehow this is not powerful enough for my taste. The drummer is mainly to blame for that since he's not tight enough. The acoustic element(s) seems to be valuable for the band since they have a lot of them. This is a standard demo, nothing less, nothing more. I suppose 40DKr./6$ should do. BOMB SQUAD, c/o Asmus Thomsen, Hader-slevvej 34, 6760 Ribe, Denmark. -BA.

First Demo Review of BOMB SQUAD's "Mental Frostbites"

**CAUSTIC** "Timid Reality" Demo '92.  
Denmark's most promising band,  
CAUSTIC, have released what I'll call the  
BEST Danish demo ever! It lasts more than  
40 min. but still it doesn't bore you for one  
second. CAUSTIC have found their own  
style of slow/ harmonic/ catchy DM!  
They've grown away from their obvious  
P.L. influences (Almost..), they sure have  
something to deliver! This will give you a  
mental orgasm, so BUY! The demo comes  
with a glossy 4-col. cover, it could have  
been cooler, but it's OK anyway! 7$ should  
do: CAUSTIC, c/o Rune Andersen,  
Sejerevej 14, st. tv., 6705 Esbjerg,  
Denmark.  
-BA.

Timid Reality: The Unmissable Demo of Denmark’s Most Promising Band, CAUSTIC

CYANOTIC "The Chasm Within" Demo '92.  
Cool debut demo! Good sounding *floading* guitar riffs. Tight and massive drum playing, even jazzy high hats at times! Anonimous (as always) bassplaying, loud growling vocals - CYANOTIC! Yep, CYANOTIC purveyors three fine D.M. songs spiced with a little Thrash. Along with ILLDISPOSED and CAUSTIC my Danish fave band! The only thing to complain about here is the cover which is ugly... You get a lot for your money if you buy this one! 30dkr. / $5 to: CYANOTIC, c/o Martin *fips‐kagg* Olsen, H.C. Andersensvej 45, 2. TH, 4700 Næstved, Denmark.  -BA.

CYANOTIC 'The Chasm Within' Demo '92: A Promising Debut

DECRIAL "Desires Unfold" Demo '93.  
DECRIAL is a proportionally new Danish band. But they're certainly not a band to miss!! This, their debut demo is a real good one!! They play some damn enjoyable Death Metal which everyone into D.M. should like. A few "Swedish" touches shine through now and then, but this one is way above average!! A killer! Get it for 40Dkr./6$ at DECRIAL, Tommy Christensen, Tange vej 48, 6760 Ribe, Denmark.  
-BA.

Desires Unfold: A Promising Debut by Decrial

DETEST is a very energetic as well as successful Danish Death Thrash band. They've had A LOT of attention, and their "DeathBreed" demo '92 even got them signed to PROGRESS RED LABELS! One doomy evening in august '93 (who said up to date?) I went to John's (guitar) apartment and Peter (vocals) showed up. After Danny (John's son) had yelled "phokweed" 200 times, I started the tape recorder...

You've guys formed in the fall of '91, but you've been involved in the underground for quite some years, right?  
John: Back then I met Peter. I'd only played in a shitty band called CONSPIRACY for two years. I (John) have experience from other bands like HELLRAISER and FURIOUS TRAUMA.  
You've had a lot of recognition lately. "Band of the month" in Politiken, and you're on the air in Tv-Avisen, you've just signed to P.R.L... played at the Roskilde Festival... Don't you think that things have moved too fast?  
NO! We've struggled for all these years, with the other bands too, right?  
John concurred. He also got it. Is there a difference from playing with DEATH & CARCASS to play with MORATORIUM?  
Peter: We try to present "real things". It's important to be professional, but the most important thing is that the audience are into what you're doing!  
How do you view the Danish scene, especially the Copenhagen scene?  
It's getting better! I think that the musicians have always been there, but the musicians are young. If you look at the Swedish Death Metal scene, all the bands that come from the Swedish scene are a little bit older, so they have more experience. Maybe in one year, we'll have enough bands to compete with Sweden...  

It's no secret that you guys smoke A LOT, is that your biggest source of inspiration?  
I (Peter) don't smoke. It's only three of the members... It's my life (John). Reg går rundt tomary (John).  
John: Me and Peter said today that this tone album maybe will be part of a concept...? With its main roots in a science fiction cartoon!  
Peter: It fascinated me. Ehh... at first I was just going to write one lyric inspired by that cartoon, but suddenly it took the whole sound.  
I saw that I maybe could write a whole story about it. Then I had six songs - 4 things had been made into lyrics about that cartoon and the story. And now it's nine songs! It's not just a cartoon! I've also made something up that was more realistic! So, really it's some attitude coming up! I mean the CD will be different. I saw other Danish bands (no need to mention names) have not any attitude coming up!?  

Definitely! We don't expect the CD to be a big success, but if it becomes a success, it's great!  
What will you do after the CD has been released? I've heard some rumours about a European tour...  
Maybe... We don't really know... Hopefully...  
Ta, that's it! You really DETTEST the (in)famous last words!  
(John): War.. hole. I (Peter) really DETTEST Whitney Houston! Ha! John suddenly said a funny hat (John): Få nogle born, hahaha, hej jeg ved det ikke...  

DETEST's debut CD will be entitled "Dorval", and it will be out in October. I suggest you to buy that one!! DETTEST is a great band!!!!  
I can't wait to hear "Dorval" (they're recording it as I'm writing this, Who is writing?!?! ed.). DETTEST, c/o John Petersen, B.N.V. 72. 6.4. 2605 Brøndby, Denmark.

Rise of the Underdogs: DETEST's Journey Through the Danish Death Thrash Scene

DETEST "DeathBreed" Demo '92.  
Yes, this is very headbanging friendly music as some of you probably have experienced at one of DETEST's gigs!!! This is very well played and well constructed Danish Death Metal with some Thrashy feelings. Definitely refreshing and powerful! Everybody should own this tape, so wake up and just order this now OK? 40Dkr./6$ is the price. Read more about these dudes in an interview elsewhere, and watch out for their debut CD! DETEST, c/o John Petersen, B.N.V. 72, 6. -4, 2605 Brøndby, Denmark. -KBH.

Death Metal Enthusiasm: DETEST's 'DeathBreed' Demo '92

EXHAUST "Escapism" Demo '92.  
What a prof. package this is - Killer cover/layout/free sticker etc. Great sound too. The music is somehow like a mixture of two other Danish bands: ICONO-CLASM (Heaviness, brutality) and AGONIZE (Technically, fast). EXHAUST do have their own identity though. Some Hellraising (five mode) intros are put in between the five dead songs on this demo.  
A good representation indeed. This is good - go on - buy it! Unfortunately the price is quite expensive...40Dkr/85-. EXHAUST, c/o Paolo Galgani, Møtisevej 33, 9210 Aalborg SØ, Denmark. -BA.

EXHAUST 'Escapism' Demo '92: A Danish Metal Fusion

FROZEN SUN "Difect Dimension of Souls" Demo '93.  
This band is VIOLENT!! Hailing from the same area as ILLDISPOSED, and guess what?? They're just as brutal! This has got nothing to do with the kind of Death Metal that used to come out of Denmark! F.S. has got BALLS (understandable since it's a 100% male band, ha!). Their way of playing is very "American". Perhaps they're the Danish answer to SUFFOCATION?? Without being as grindish that is! The sound is along with the vocals great! Buy! 40Dkr./ 6$. FROZEN SUN, c/o Michael Kopietz. Vesteraalle 12H 2. TV., 8362 Horning, Denmark.  
-BA.

Frozen Sun: The Danish Answer to Brutal American Death Metal

GERONIMO "A Journey to Oblivion"  
Demo '92.  
Whauh, this is strange, original and unbelievable great! This is damn hard to label, 'coz GERONIMO mixes a lot of different styles: Death, Thrash, Doom, Industrial (And a little bit of Hardcore touch) etc. This is pretty tough to describe, it's got to be heard!! This masterpiece of a 5-track demo has been recorded at a 24 track studio in Germany, and the sound is excellent! You should definately check this demo out! 6$ or 40Dkr. to GERONIMO, Malleskoevn 42, 9260 Gistrup, Denmark.  
-BA.

Exploring the Unique Sound of GERONIMO's 'A Journey to Oblivion'

ILLDISPOSED "Four Depressive Seasons" CD  
PROGRESS RED LABELS.

Without crossing my fingers I can say that this the best product/CD ever released by a Danish band!! ILLDISPOSED's demo tape was great and very promising. But this is more than I'd ever hoped for! Three old demosongs (new, better version) and six new ones. All being the most pure and brutal Death Metal tunes! These guys deliver so much energy/brutality with their straight-in-your-face gargling Death Metal that you won't believe your own ears if you buy this one - Which you should since it's a real killer!! The rythm section, the guitars, the vocals, they're simply taking away your breath! ILLDISPOSED even take their time to make fun of (Danish) KONKHRA. ILLDISPOSED is a killer band, but I don't appreciate their lousy (star + alcohol) attitudes! The production, by the way is one of the best I have heard lately!!  
- BA.

Unleashed Brutality: ILLDISPOSED's 'Four Depressive Seasons'

MORATORIUM "Innature Massacre" Demo  
Second demo of these Danish Deathsters. The first one wasn't really official, so this can be called their debut. They've done a lot to make this demo look real prof. Full coloured, glossy cover and so on, but the artwork could have been better/ more prof. Anyway, it's the music that counts! This band reminds me A LOT of the heavier material of American AUTOPSY. Yeah this really is dirty and a little bit primitive DM! It may sound strange, but the sound on this demo is better than the production on AUTOPSY's albums! What I miss about this band is a little identity. AUTOPSY freaks, get this one now! It costs 40 Dkr. or 8$, way too expensive in my eyes.  
MORATORIUM, P.O. Box 1147, Osted, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark.  
-BA.

Innature Massacre: A Promising Debut from Danish Deathsters

NATIONS OF DEATH "Wrecked" Demo '93.  
This demo was recorded at the famous SWEET SILENCE STUDIO shortly after MORBID ANGEL had completed their new album there.  
The sound on this demo is great, album alike!  
NATIONS OF DEATH plays Death Metal the good old way. Straight ahead, tight and unfortunately a bit monotonous at times. But don't get me wrong: This demo is listenable! It's just too ordinary at times... Anyway, the demo can be yours for 40Dkr./7$. N.O.D., Lavsangervej 3, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark.  
\-BA.

Wrecked in Death Metal's Golden Age

PIXIE KILLERS "One Size Fits All" CD.  
INTER MUSIC  

Eventhough P.K. have been around for some years this is my first experience with them. I'll call their music polished Thrash Metal à la you know, the 'big ones'. This is not my cup of tea I'm afraid. The vocalist is very hard getting used to. There's one song on this CD which I really like, "Strubesnitter­sangen", which is a nice ballad, but otherwise this doesn't appeal to me. Real devoted thrashers will without doubt love this one, but I can only shake my head. If the CD isn't available at your local store, write INTER MUSIC, Søren Frichs vej 42B, 8230 Åbyhøj, Denmark.  
-BA.

Polished Thrash with a Unique Twist: Pixie Killers' 'One Size Fits All'

DOMINUS "Astaroth" Demo '93.  
Second demo from one of my fave Danish bands! This sure blasts away their debut demo. With a new line-up and better musicianship they present four songs in the Death Metal vein. Rather catchy (I know I've used that word before...), well not as catchy as their debut demo, but better and more well structured. A demo I can only recommend! One of the best Danish bands around! 40Dkr/ 6-7$ to DOMINUS. c/o Michael Poulsen, Egevej2, 4100 Ringsted, Denmark. -BA.

Dominus 'Astaroth' Demo '93: A Danish Death Metal Gem

FALLEN ANGEL "An Omen to Apocalypse" Demo '93.

The cover says that the demo was recorded on 16 tracks. Hmm... that's strange 'coz the sound is actually quite bad on this demo. And that of course affects the music. I've seen these guys live, and I know that they're a powerful act, which this demo also indicates now and then. It has six songs in the Death Grind vein. I'd like to add that they're handling their Grind parts very well. This demo can be yours for 40Dkr./6$ at FALLEN ANGEL, c/o Thomas Friis Jørgensen, Holbækvej 33, 4220 Hvalsø, Denmark. -BA.

An Omen to Apocalypse: A Rough-Cut Demo Review

IMPERIAL "Old Sensual Beauty" Demo '93. IMPERIAL is the kind of band that entered the studio too soon since I'm sure that they can do better than this. Both sound and musicwise this could have been better/ tighter. The four death-Thrash songs on this demo are of course worth listening to, but it's just that they could have been a little bit better. I'm sure that their next release will crush! "Old Sensual..." costs 40Dkr/6$. IMPERIAL, c/o Ole Asserbo, Dr. Margrethesvej 113, 8200 Århus N, Denmark.

-BA.

Imperial's "Old Sensual Beauty" Demo: A Glimpse of Untapped Potential

Mercyful Fate

My God (!) the FATE has been MERCYFUL to us, fans of the legendary MERCYFUL FATE! Since I heard that M.F. had reformed I have been dying (!) to hear their new material, and to DO AN INTERVIEW with them! I thought it would have been easier, but… Well, it was a hard struggle, but finally I one day located guitarist Michael Denner! This is what he had to say…

- **Why did you reform?**  
It started because King visited us, he lives in the U.S.A., and we sat and listened to old tapes at my place. Then Hank played something that we had made, and we thought that it was just like old MERCYFUL FATE. After that he had another yummy idea over in his mind because he called me one day, and told me we should try to play together again. He had also made some songs that didn’t really fit KING DIAMOND, that was actually the beginning of it all.

- **Do you think that your success is bigger now than ever?**  
Well, we are probably a lot of fans that have been away, but on the other hand, we now also have some new followers, and importance is the fact that King has been active with his band, and that’s why he has gotten new supporters.

- **How was it like to record the old song “Return of the vampire” in ’93, and how did you get Lars Ulrich to play the drums?**  
Well, Lars called, he had just finished some concerts and had a weeks holiday before he should leave for Hawaii. He knew we were in Texas, and we have always talked about jamming together just for the fun of it. Then we tried some of the old MERCYFUL FATE songs, and that particular song was the one that was swinging, and that wasn’t recorded on an official LP. It fit perfectly to his drum style!

- **The sound is also completely different on that song.**  
Yeah, definitely! There’s much more foundation on the drums, but that has also got to do with the way Lars plays the drums.

- **Do you often meet people you recognize you on the street?**  
It’s more widespread in the U.S.A. than it is here. ‘Well, people here visit me in the shop or say “Hey, aren’t you…” and so on. I also know that from other musicians outside the United States are really surprised that you can walk really unmolested in the streets.

- **Is that good or bad?**  
Yeah, for my part that’s good really! I like that VERY much!

- **Are you aware of the cult status you have in the metal underground?**  
Yes, but back in the old days we were kinda like the first band to play that genre, and lead to a big success. And perhaps not as widely spread as now when we have the name most people associate our music to metal.

- **There are still many who regard M.F. as their biggest MERCYFUL FATE, and look up to M.F. as their biggest METAL band! So what do you feel about that?**

- **Do you like the Death/Black Metal bands?**  
Yes, I’ve listened to a few bands where we intro their each person of these bands personally themselves told me that they had formed a band in the beginning of the ’80’s because they had listened to our stuff. But I don’t really see MERCYFUL FATE play music like that because I know they are what some people would call Satanists. Well, it's a little hard with all these definitions! It's hard to know what it is gradually, because at a time there were seven different names on what I would call Heavy Rock. I like energy as a band like SLAYER which is at a well-reputed band now, and METALLICA and stuff like that. MEGADETH too. I like bands where you can hear that they can play! That they’re good musicians. - How would you compare your new material to the old?

There are certain parallels! But some of the songs lean a little towards KING DIAMOND's style. Then the sound is of course also more modern than the old stuff.

- Are you not afraid that some of the songs will get too close to the KING DIAMOND style?

No because especially the songs Hank wrote, they're very loyal to the old style. "Egypt" is a standard song. But the reason why we chose that song for the video and the first song you had to hear by us was it's a song that is very easy to listen to. Hank's songs are much more complex. You have to listen to them more than once to know what's going on! And that's the reason why I also like about MERCYFUL FATE. That's the style I've always liked the most.

- Is it the same things that inspire you now as back then?

The difference now is that we are not 24/25/26 as we were back then. You look at things a little more sober-minded now, and we take much more time working on things. The band is much more secure and better musicians. We have better equipment and everything. We are much, much more inspired by a lot of different guitarists. Now we hear the sound of many various guitarists.

- Isn't it a problem for you that you live in different countries: I mean, you can't rehearse that much or what?

No, because we rehearse private. Andy and I practise on the bass together in Copenhagen. The bass player and the drummer are closer together, Skane. They can practice all the time on their own together. King does the lyrics and stuff, so it's actually no problem.

- Who has the most projects? King has KING DIAMOND, Snowy has MEMENTO MORI, and you two (Denner + Sherman) have the ZOSERS, right?

We play a lot together, when we have the first time enough for a MEMENTO MORI (exit, but I'm not sure if Snowy is playing with them anymore because he wanted to do other things). He's totally uninterested in MF as is easily seen.

- So MERCYFUL FATE is now only a project?

No, it's a full time band and we've signed a contract for 4 more albums on METAL BLADE.

- Are you satisfied with what they've done for you this far?

Extremely satisfied! They've really been behind us. It was different with ROADRUNNER, there were often problems with the payment and so on.

- Did METAL BLADE pick you up immediately after you had reformed?

Yes, because the president of the company is an old MERCYFUL FATE fan, so to him it was very smart. That's the biggest advantage because the management of M. B. are enthusiastic M.F. fans, so they are totally behind us all the time, and in all they way, it's all about merit.

- Any liveliness here at the concert?

Ah, hehe... Well, yes it has because from the point where we played about fifteen minutes until I changed over, everything has been about new openings and new stories. You could hear it, and we were headliners on the festival in Eindhoven. We have had a serious deal here. Already the record has already sold more than 10,000.

- Can you soon be playing in the band?

They'd mean nothing just yet, yes, we can and that will also add some of the shows. For the U.S., they are thinking about a tour to the U.S.A. on the road alight with FLOTSAM AND JETSAM and CATHEDRAL for three weeks. Also the Canada area.

- There will be more help here compared to last fall before touring Europe. I think it will be around the early second Dec.

Well, the "Mercyful Fate" alone again; L.A. and bits.

- Have you material for a new album?

I think till 1995 we already have some material for that album. It will be around the same area as what we've done so far.

- What about your live set? Only new songs?

No, the most recent songs! But we'll almost play all of the most recent, and then there will be more than two hours of music.

- Any last words?

No special last words? I'm looking forward to play live again, because it's been a long time and it's a real pleasure to be on the stage and play old songs.

When/if MERCYFUL FATE play near you, I suggest you to go there, and don't forget to check out their new album - The legend returns!

Nagual # 2