What do I think of the Waxen albums? Let's take a look.
After Onward's demise in 2003 I took some time off. I knew there was more music in me, but just wasn't inspired enough to start anything new. I lived in Sacramento for a few months and made a few demos with friends.... but we were high. Songs like "Magical Space Guy", "Septic Tank" and "Gum Drop Mummified Bird friend" just didn't seem like good follow ups to the Onward material. I had to go through this musical purging and childish behavior to put my brain in reset mode. Those Onward years were very intense after all.
Remember, Onward was derived from my Black Metal project, Darken. It seemed fitting to return to where I left off in 1998, plus I was full of hostile emotion. Thus, Waxen was born in 2004.
1. Fumaroth (2006 Metalbolic Records)
This might be my favorite. I worked on so many different versions of the songs, so many demos and rewrites. This one truly went through a long preproduction process. Any riff, drum beat or lyric that didn't absolutely thrill me got the axe. It was a good experience. I was sober and regaining health and determination and very much into the material. This album's success made it easy to get a record deal with Moribund Records several years later when I reactivated Waxen. Nuclear War and utter blasphemy. I think Primigenium and Lugubrum were my favorite bands at this time.
2. "Agios Holokauston" (2014 Moribund Records)
After Waxen's debut, I became very busy with other musical projects and life changes as well. I couldn't get back to a follow up for several years. This album required lots of rewrites and re-recordings. I was having trouble getting a truly cold and void atmosphere. I kept having to degrade the music. It was too progressive and had a good production. I had to kill all that shit off and strip it of emotion. Oh yes, all my organs were failing by the time I was finishing. I remember, before being rushed away by ambulance for a life saving surgery, telling my wife to make sure Moribund Records got the album and where the master cd was located. I'm glad this wasn't my last album. The influence of Xasthur and Leviathan combined with my quest for repetitive coldness made this a boring event.
3. "Weihung Auf Satan" (2016 Moribund Records)
On this album I was in a weird place musically listening equally to the guitar pyrotechnics of George Lynch and the grimness of old Burzum albums. I recorded it very quickly, mistakes and all and I decided to let the pieces fall where they may. I originally wasn't going to play guitar solos over it but while practicing the guitar one day, thought it would be interesting to practice soloing over the rancid rhythms of the album. It was kind of a head fuck but somehow worked. I recorded my guitar noodling and turned it in to Moribund Records. It received tons of positive and negative attention and sold pretty well. It's okay.
4. "Terror Decree" (2018 Moribund Records)
Another weird one, recorded during a bout with tendonitis to boot- so everything had to be simplified and recorded on first take. This is decent Black Metal with the Affliktor bonus tracks being the highlights. On the previous album I pushed everything into the red when mixing and on this I did the opposite. It's okay.
5. "Blasphemer in Celestial Courts" (2019 Moribund Records)
Unhappy with the previous albums, I worked very hard on this using Dissection, Emperor, Sigh, Algaion and old Rotting Christ as influences. Lyrically this was a pretty in depth firsthand experience of Hermetic Ceremonial Magick. I had a lot of knowledge on magic at this time and worked some real crazy shit into the music and lyrics. I played guitar solos on this but didn't overdo it. I think the title track is grand. This album hit the shelves just as covid was hitting the world. I don't want to be locked down with a fucking Black Magick Waxen album Godamnit. It's good.
6. "Die Macht Von Hassen" (2023 Moribund Records)
This is the new one and I'm always pleased with the new ones. This marks a turning point for Waxen as a real drummer (M Ahrin) played on some of the tracks which shows the true potential of Waxen with a drum God behind the kit. I was inspired to record this out of anger towards what is called "Red Anarchist Black Metal". What is that shit? Black Metal pushing for political correctness and social justice while launching molotov cocktails at the gigs of legitimate Black Metal bands? Antifa Black Metal? Is Kamala Harris secretly funding this movement? Well, if anything good came from RABM it's that it pissed me off enough to make a very pissed off album. The guitar solos are pretty cool too. This is dedicated to the old saying "Black Metal is for us, not for you".