Daemonlord has spent a considerable amount of time on splits, albums and generally staying out of the spotlight. 2011 is different, with the release of their fourth album _Godless Prayers_. Johnathan Carbon discusses the new album with guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Kepa, as well as perhaps the most important topic related to Daemonlord: Spanish speaking detective novels.

CoC: First of all, who is Daemonlord and what instruments do you take responsibility for?

Kepa: Daemonlord is only two guys: Egnar doing vocals, and myself doing the rest of the music.

CoC: In various Internet articles and reviews (including my own) your music is referred to as raw black metal. Do you see your music as more unrefined than your contemporaries? Is this subgenre a particular goal for the band?

K: Not at all. We don't play raw black metal exactly, if you understand raw black metal as something similar to Judas Iscariot or Darkthrone. You can hear various influences in our sound that don't really fit a raw black metal band. Of course you've got the typical blastbeat parts, but our guitar work is more oriented to something like old Dissection, old Rotting Christ...

CoC: Please tell me about the metal climate in Spain. Are there any particular cities which take to your music better than others?

K: As usual in other countries, metal is more popular in "big cities" because more people live there. However, you can usually find metalheads anywhere in Spain. Our main support though has always come from Germany, due to our involvement with German labels.

CoC: How was recording _Godless Prayers_? Was the process any different than _Hellfire Centuries_ or previous efforts?

K: Yeah, totally. The same guys are always behind the music, but this time there was a different way of working. During _Hellfire_ every song was composed and recorded in the same day (later re-recorded for the final album version). For _Godless_, I spent a month completing the album, recording different parts of different songs individually. Each one was different, depending on the feelings I had at the moment. The result is more complete and well structured.

CoC: I have to ask. Why the spelling change in 2002 from Demonlord to Daemonlord?

K: There was a trouble with another band that called Demonlord. This was before our first album, so the label and us thought it was the best way to get out of problems. It wasn't something we have thought too much about, as we find Daemonlord proper at the moment.

CoC: What are your views on religious philosophy? Have you found Daemonlord useful in processing certain theistic questions?

K: Religion is the biggest plague in the world since the beginning of the earth. The only god I pray to is myself, no other rules to live with. I can't tell you anything about philosophy, since I really don't read anything about it, just some basic things in highschool.

CoC: You have recorded numerous material for splits. Is there any favorite among the splits or bands you were exposed to because of the collaboration?

K: Yeah, maybe Gravewürm. I like all the splits we have done, but our best track was on the _Bonded by Hatred_ split with Gravewürm. There was a great friendship between the bands and we worked together to release the split. With other releases the opportunity appears at our doors, but that time we started the project at the beginning.   CoC: It has been over a decade since your 2000 demo. Do you have any insightful reflections regarding Daemonlord's history? Was there any particularly fun year or any period which could be considered a low point?

K: I've got a lot of good memories from the first years. You know, you release a demo, start to trade with people, receiving tons of trade packages in your mailbox, that was really great. I got out of the scene during a period in my life that could be seen like the lowpoint. I had some issues and things to solve before focusing on the band. The tour through Europe was like a dream came true, really good times for the band.

CoC: I would like you to recommend me a book recently read and your favourite Spanish speaking album (metal or not).

K: Fuck, I really read a lot, but all the books are in Spanish, so I don't know the English titles. I like black novels... is that well said? You know, there's a crime or something, and some detective starts the investigation. You will not learn anything special, but they are enjoyable to read. As for Spanish speaking metal, well, I think Soziedad Alkoholika's _Soziedad Alkoholika_. It's a killer thrashcore album that I enjoyed a lot.

CoC: Alright, now I'm interested -- please tell me more about your detective novels and more specifically, your favourite one and its plot.

K: The last Spanish written book I read was Julie Navarro's "La Hermandad de la Sabana Santa" some months ago. It's something like "The DaVinci Code" but in a Spanish way, enjoyable though. The book I'm into at the moment is "Se Lo Que Estas Pensando" from John Vernon, it's pretty interesting.

CoC: Do you have any tours or more splits planned for the immediate future?

K: Not at this moment. We haven't played many gigs recently after the European tour in 2005. We just want to see how people reacted towards our new album. There is no plan for anything.