Atlantean Kodex
Europeans Should Concentrate on Their Common Roots

13.03.2020

We reached out to Markus Becker, vocalist of Bavarian epic doom metallers Atlantean Kodex, shortly after the Hammer of Doom Festival, where they were among the headliners. An agreement on doing an interview was reached very easily, but the actual conversation had to be postponed several times, as Markus was very busy with his work, family and everyday routine. Eventually we did manage to chat, and even though the interview turned out not very long, we managed to touch upon such things as Thomas Cole’s paintings, Robert Howard’s poems and even William Churchill’s speech in Zurich. Let alone the career of Atlantean Codex, who are turning 15 years old this year.

How are you, Markus?

Hi there. Doing very well, thank you. It just started snowing outside, great setting for an epic interview, haha.

Let me congratulate you on a great show at the Hammer of Doom festival! How do you feel about headlining such a festival?

Thank you. Well, what can I say, the reaction of the crowd was phenomenal, so of course we had a fabulous time on stage. It was our biggest headliner show to date. We had played bigger shows before, but not as headliners, so this was a new experience especially with Cora (Baier, guitar) playing her first official gig with us. Of course it is a great honor to headline a prestigious festival like this. We have been friends with Oliver, the promoter of Hammer Of Doom, as well as Keep It True, for a long time, he has supported us from Day 1. And then, to make things even better, Scald played an amazing reunion show right before us. They have been a big influence to Manuel’s songwriting (Manuel Trummer, guitar), so it was really a perfect night.

You've just returned from the Riddle of Steel festival in Marburg, Germany. How was it?

Riddle of Steel is one of those smaller but super-nicely organized festivals, with a very small stage and the bands playing almost on an eye-level with the audience, which stands right in front of you. When a venue like this is packed with 250 people, it creates a very special atmosphere and energy exchange between the band and the fans. Very intense stuff. We had not done a show like this for quite a while, and it was really great, despite some problems with the P.A. system.

A Russian band called Vendel was on the Riddle of Steel lineup. Do you know them?

Yes, they are a great band and nice guys. Unfortunately they played quite early in the line-up at Riddle of Steel, so I was not able to see their show, but I talked quite a bit with them backstage after the gig. It would be a nice package - Vendel, Atlantean Kodex, Scald…

Could you please briefly introduce Atlantean Kodex to the Russian audience and guide us through the main milestones of its history?

The band was founded in 2005 by Florian (Kreuzer, bass) and Manuel. At first they worked with an American singer (Phil Swanson), but of course it made things hard with regard to live performances and such, so I took over from Phil in late 2006, shortly after the release of the first split single. Then, we released “The Pnakotic Demos” in 2007, which was very well received in the metal underground community. We were lucky to have Ross The Boss (ex-Manowar) play a guest solo on that demo. Manowar and Viking-era Bathory have always been our biggest influences, which can also be heard on our first full length album “The Golden Bough” (2010). We then released “The White Goddess” in 2013, which again received overwhelming resonance from both fans and press. Finally, after playing shows all over Europe and a two year hiatus, we released our third album (“The Course Of Empire”, 2019) and returned to the stage, which is a great feeling.

What is the main concept of "The Course of Empire"?

In a nutshell it is about the rise and fall of human cultures and empires from the Arcadian state through prosperity to eventual demise and decay. And the fact that after the cycle is complete, it will start all over again. There is a series of five paintings by American painter Thomas Cole, called “The Course of Empire” which perfectly depicts this rise and fall and was the main influence on the album’s name and concept.

What's are the main differences between this album and the previous ones?

Not too many, really. Musically, the new material is probably a bit less accessible at first, but I think it contains some of the best songs we have written to date. Stylistically, it is still very recognizable as Atlantean Kodex, we did not do any experiments there. I would describe the material as “majestic” and heavy, probably not quite as dark as some of the stuff on “The White Goddess”.

Could you please tell us a bit about the recording process? I read somewhere that Atlantean Kodex prefers analog recording over the digital one. Is it true? Do you use tape?

That’s what our Wikipedia page says, right? Well, I think this statement is from the early days of Atlantean Kodex, and while we still produce a very “regressive” sound on our records, we certainly have adapted the recording process a little bit over time.

Who sang the choirs on this album? Is it you doing multiple double tracks or did you invite someone?

Yes, the majority of the choirs was worked out and sung by myself by using multiple tracks. Florian also contributed on two songs – “Innermost Light” and “Chariots”.

The band's lyrics are very colorful, sometimes even complicated. It is interesting to read them, it's not "fight with blood, fight with steel". Who's in charge of the lyrics:  you or Manuel Trummer?

Manuel writes 90% of the lyrics, Florian does the rest. I only do some minor changes if the flow of the song requires it, but I never change the content.

There is a line in "The Course of Empire" lyrics - "the drums of pictdom summon us back to the savage state". “The Drums Of Pictdom” is also a poem by Robert Howard, if I'm not mistaken. What is the connection between the song's lyrics and this poem?

Writers like Tolkien or Robert E. Howard have always been a big influence on Manuel’s lyrics. The lyrics to the song “People of The Moon” is basically an adaption of various Howard poems.

Let's speak about "The White Goddess" now. As far as I understood, the main theme of this album is the Myth of Europa and the fate of Europe. Am I right?

That is one of the leading themes, yes. But as you said, it is more a theme rather than a concept. There are other lyrical aspects such as local myths from our home region or some simple Lovecraftian storytelling.

There are insets of Churchill's speech in Zurich in "Twelve Stars and Azure Gown". Why did you decide to use them in this song?

These little snippets of Churchill’s speech complement the song’s lyrics about “the tragedy of Europe“ quite well, as it points out that Europeans should concentrate on their common roots and cultural heritage rather than political or economical interests. Only this kind of focus would truly unite Europe.

I overheard Manuel playing some notes from early Manowar during the soundcheck before your show at Hammer of Doom. What other bands inspire you?

As I said, main influences are Manowar and Bathory, but there are many more nuances to our sound, like influences by Solstice, Candlemass, Scald, Manilla Road and such. Plus, we all listen to very different types of music, from 70s Rock to Black Metal, which certainly also has an effect on our style.

You spoke mostly English at Hammer of Doom festival. In my opinion, it was very polite, because lot of fans came from other countries to see you and it is quite disappointing when some big German bands speak only German at festivals like Wacken. So what are you reasons for speaking English at German concerts?

I am glad you see it that way, because this was exactly the reason: to include fans who travelled from all over the world to see us, like you from Russia or this guy who came over all the way from Canada. I sometimes get criticized for speaking English at German shows, because people think it’s pretentious or a show-off or whatever. So I’m glad the gesture is appreciated by the foreign guests.

You're an excellent singer. How do you train your voice?

Thank you very much! Well, I guess you could call it “training on the job”, haha. Apart from the rehearsals or recording sessions, the only training I do is in the shower or in the car. I never took any real lessons, although I wish I did, because it would have certainly helped me regarding endurance and other aspects.

You also sing in a thrash metal band called Septagon. Is it difficult to switch between epic doom and thrash?

Well, the Septagon stuff is definitely more difficult to sing, especially live. For Atlantean Kodex my vocals are mostly very clean, whereas I try to sound a bit different in Septagon, which involves a different singing technique and quite a bit of shouting. But I really enjoy the challenge of jumping between the two.

Let's now talk about your recent lineup change - what happened to Michael Koch?

Unfortunately, Michael has some health issues that made it very hard for him to travel with the band and especially be standing on stage for 90 minutes. It was causing him pain, so at some point we discussed the situation and collectively made this hard decision. We are still good friends with Michael, and we have since jammed on stage together, and will continue to do so.

Why have you chosen Coralie Baier?

Our criteria was to find someone from around our area who would fit in with the other characters in the band. Mario already knew Coralie from one of his audio-books projects, and he also knew that she was playing in a thrash band (Antipeewee). So he suggested a meeting to see how we would get along. And what can I say, Cora convinced us at the first meeting, she’s a very down to earth person and was happy to accept the challenge. Oh, and by the way, she really knows how to swing that axe!

What are your future plans? Shall we wait for a new live album dedicated to "The Course of Empire"? May be it will be "Annihilation of Hammer of Doom"?

After the Christmas break we will hit the rehearsal room to prepare for next year’s live appearances. We will play quite a few mid to larger size festivals, e.g. Rock Hard and Bang Your Head Festival. We are also thinking about maybe doing some special gigs again, like the Theuern shows in 2015, but that is nothing concrete yet.  

I am running out of questions. Please say something inspiring to your fans here in Russia and to our webzine's audience.

Well, thanks very much to everyone supporting us and showing interest in the band! We would love to play in Russia some day, so anyone who would be interested in booking us, just find us on Facebook. And thank you for the interview.

Atlantean Codex on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Atlantean-Kodex/187524197964771

Interview by Paul Vlasov
Photos by Margarita Stefankova
December 14, 2019
(с) HeadBanger.ru