The Metal Crypt - Lost Society Interview

Interviews

Interview with vocalist and guitarist Samy Elbanna
Interview conducted by Luxi Lahtinen

Date online: February 14, 2013

Four young Finnish lads who shared a love of Heavy Metal, Thrash in particular, met and formed a band, daydreaming they'd someday follow in their heroes footsteps. All they needed was a bit of luck. Lost Society, featuring those young, energetic and devoted musicians, all twenty years of age or less and possessed completely by old school Thrash Metal, Iron Maiden and such, got that break one day when one of the staffers from Germany's Nuclear Blast label found the band's video clip online and offered a record deal almost immediately.

Fast Loud Death, the debut album by of these young thrashers, is scheduled to be released on March 15th 2013. The Metal Crypt wanted to learn more about this young act that now shares a home with bands like Anthrax, Testament, Death Angel, Destruction and so on. Read on...

Luxi: First off, congratulations on your deal with Nuclear Blast Records. It must feel pretty good to have a contract with one of the biggest and most well known Metal labels in the world, right?

Samy: Thank you so much! It definitely is an awesome feeling. It is crazy that bands I've idolized for years and years are now what I can call "label buddies"!!

Luxi: How did you manage to catch Nuclear Blast's attention? Was it your powerful and highly energetic performance at the Global Battle Of The Bands or was a longer process?

Samy: The whole thing actually happened due to the G.B.O.T.B. video. Sometime after the Finnish finals of the G.B.O.T.B. competition, the live video of "Trash All over You" was posted online, and the guys from NB had checked it out. They contacted us and we started making the deal!

Luxi: Were you the only Metal band performing in the finals or were there other similar bands performing at The Scala in London on December 8th 2012?

Samy: Out of the 13 bands, there were about 4 playing Metal but we were the only Thrash band in the competition. Those other 4 bands played a variety of genres, i.e. Metalcore. Out of all, we were the fastest band, haha!

Luxi: What's your opinion about events like G.B.O.T.B., where music industry people always seem to be hunting down the next big thing?

Samy: I think competitions like this one often give a small time band that crucial break. For instance, after we joined the G.B.O.T.B. competition we started getting a lot of publicity here in Finland and thanks to the video, we joined the NB team! So I'd say that if you have a kick ass band who's struggling to get that big break, check out some suitable competition, you might just get out there!

Luxi: How has the relationship started with NB? Are you satisfied with what they have done for you thus far, or do you feel like they could be doing more to promote Lost Society?

Samy: The cooperation with NB has started awesomely! They have got the band OUT THERE for the people to see and people have started to get more and more into the band after checking us out in multiple places. The label takes care of so many things and they promote us more than we could have even hoped for! We all look forward to working with the label in the future too!

Luxi: Everyone in the band is very young; 17, 18, 19 and 19. Despite this it sounds like you have played together for years. How long have you known each other, and when did you decided to put this band together?

Samy: The band was put together at the beginning of 2010 by me actually. None of the other guys were in the band yet, I don't think I even knew them at that point! It was just me and my friend in this local rehearsal place here in Finland. After countless line-up changes and name changes, we finally stuck to Lost Society and after meeting the other guys who are in the band today; we got a pretty good thing going on! We've known each other for about 3 years now, and, along with playing in the same band together, we are like brothers! The element of Thrash has been present from the beginning, but it definitely got stronger once the final line-up was complete and we started making faster and faster riffs and the tempo kept going faster.

Luxi: Without sharing similar musical interests it would be tough to achieve chemistry between band members. I bet all the 4 members of Lost Society share some common favorite bands and artists from the '80s era of Speed and Thrash Metal. What would your world be like without Exodus, Vio-lence, Death Angel, Stone, Kreator, Metallica, etc.? Pretty darn boring and miserable, I suppose?

Samy: It's true that we all share a very similar music taste, from Thrash to others like KISS, Iron Maiden, etc. We all love the music that came out in the 80's and 90's and that's one of the biggest inspirations we have. We're trying to get back the old-school sound and flavor of the music! Without the music I'd say we'd all be working at a small grocery shop somewhere...haha!

Luxi: Are there certain albums or bands that you consider as true influences for Lost Society?

Samy: For me at least the biggest influence and the best band is Iron Maiden! From Maiden I started listening to metal and it'll always be the number one band with me. But for Lost Society, bands like Anthrax and Megadeth have definitely played a big part in the development of our sound. Also bands like Pantera and Municipal Waste. Each band has given us something and we've mixed that with some of our own stuff and this is what we have!

Luxi: In some ways Lost Society reminds me of another young Thrash Metal outfit that comes from Vestfold, Norway, a band called Tantara. Are you any familiar with this young Norwegian Thrash Metal act? Does Lost Society have anything common with them, apart from your young ages and superb playing skills? You should consider sharing stages someday...

Samy: Yeah, I've heard them! I didn't know that they were from Norway though, awesome! You never know if someday we might play the same place; that would be great. And yeah it's definitely the attitude and the energy of the music that brings us together!

Luxi: Talking about bands that have relatively young musicians, Forced Kill come from the same city where you guys are located, in Jyväskylä. How well do you know these guys? Have you had any thoughts of cooperating with them, maybe a tour that would go under the moniker "Thrash Blasts, Asses Kicked & Wet Necks" or something like that, haha!

Samy: Forced Kill is fucking awesome! Yeah we know the guys a little and many times we've been thinking that we have to gig together. We'd destroy the place with both bands' aggressive and loud stuff! And we have to keep that name in mind... haha!

Luxi: Let's talk about your forthcoming full-length studio album, Fast Loud Death, to be released on Nuclear Blast on March 15th, 2013. The album was recorded at Sonic Pump Studios with Nino Laurenne at the production helm. How was it to work with Nino and get his guidance throughout the whole recording process? Did he contribute any useful ideas to the album or help you focus your energies and potential into the recording?

Samy: The recording process went very smoothly! We stayed at the studio for a little less than two weeks and we got 15 badass tracks recorded! Having Nino as our producer was absolutely awesome as he really managed to get the sound we wanted for the album. He captured a "live" feel on the album and you can definitely hear and feel the energy throughout the album! He gave us really good pointers that we will remember while making new songs. We got good pointers on how to "produce" songs so they really sound good! We hope to work with him in the future too!

Luxi: Do you believe you gave 100% in the studio or do you feel like some things could have done even better?

Samy: I believe we really gave our absolute all during the recording process. We had been practicing like hell before we entered the studio; we were down with our instruments and we got them just like we wanted! We're all really happy with the outcome, it couldn't have been better!

Luxi: How would you describe Fast Loud Death to the readers of The Metal Crypt? The album title itself reveals quite a bit, doesn't it?

Samy: It's going to be a combination of energetic fast riffing, aggressive singing, kickass backing vocals and a heart-pounding drum and bass sound! It'll have songs that will just make you stick your fist in the air and start moshing your brains out! That's exactly what we want! And the name really explains the contents of the album, it's FAST, LOUD and it'll take you away with it!

Luxi: The album has got 13 songs in all. Did you use every song that you had for the debut or are there some leftover songs you might use for your next release?

Samy: When we hit the studio we had a pretty good idea of the songs we were going to record. We had dozen of songs ready at that point, but we chose the absolute best and those that would sound good on the album, and we clearly chose the right ones! These 13 + 2 bonus tracks are going to blow everyone away! Crank up the volume and prepare for the FAST LOUD DEATH!

Luxi: As far as playing live is concerned, I have not managed to catch you live yet. What I have seen in video clips is a huge amount of energy on stage. You remind me of Vio-lence or Death Angel when they are in their early twenties. Where does all of your energy come from?

Samy: Thank you! Hopefully you can come check us out soon! As for the energy, I'd say it comes purely from our joy of playing. We all love playing this kind of music and being on stage is definitely the best feeling on earth so we give it our all when we play and we give the crowd something worth their while!

Luxi: Lost Society has only played in their home territory thus far. Do you have any tours in the works that might expand your horizons outside the borders of Finland?

Samy: When the album comes out, further info will come about the gig plans we have. I'm sure we'll be hitting other countries very soon, and we hope to see each and every one of you!

Luxi: Are there be any bands out there that you'd like to tour with if that type of opportunity was offered to you?

Samy: One of the bands would definitely be Anthrax! They've been such a huge influence on us and we all love the band. It would be really awesome to share the stage with those guys someday, and to meet them!! We all hope that someday it could work out! It would be crazy!!

Luxi: What can you those people that are curious to see you guys live expect to happen on stage?

Samy: They can expect 4 absolutely crazy people to jump and run on stage while playing their asses off! I have to tell you, it's an experience that can't be explained unless you come check it out! We all have a damn good time and we make sure that the crowd enjoys themselves, too. Fast, loud playing is in store for all of you!

Luxi. What are some of your hopes for this year; what are you hoping to achieve with Lost Society in 2013?

Samy: I really believe that this is going to be a great year, the album will come out shortly and we're going to do a lot of gigs! And we're going to be in our rehearsal place practicing our asses off and writing new material, of course! Mostly we just want to get out there in front of the big crowds and show them what we do best, thrash up the place!

Luxi: One last question and then we are finished; if you had magical powers to change three things in today's Metallica, what might these three things be?

Samy: Haha, I'd say 1. Grow your hair back, 2. Go back to the first albums kind of stuff and 3. Attitude. I think those ought to do something to capture the magic from the beginning!

Luxi: Thank you for your time Samy. I want to wish you all the best with your future endeavors with band. The famous last words are yours, if you have anything in your mind...

Samy: The pleasure was all mine! On behalf of the whole band I'd like to thank all the supporters out there, you guys are awesome! Check out the album when it comes out, come check us out live and keep on supporting Lost Society! THRASH!

Other information about Lost Society on this site

Review: Fast Loud Death

Review: Terror Hungry

Review: Braindead