CobraMetal.net recently interviewed NILE founder Karl Sanders, who talks about the band’s anticipated new record “At the Gate of Sethu”, which is supposed to be out sometime this year.
CobraMetal.net: Speaking of the new record, you guys are going to be releasing “At The Gates of Sethu”. When did writing begin and what was the process like?
Karl: Well, we started in May of last year (2011) after we finished our European tour. We worked on that fucking record for 10 months straight, to the exclusion of all else. (Laughs) Long hours, every day.
CobraMetal.net: With each new Nile release, you guys always seem to push the boundaries of what you can do both technically and musically. Do you feel that this new album is a reflection of that statement?
Karl: I certainly do. Someone said to me last night, it was a fan standing outside of Slim’s in San Francisco, basically it amounted to: If you want to achieve anything, doesn’t matter what it is, you’re gonna have to work at it. You put the time and the effort and the sacrifice into it. That’s what we did when we approached creating this new record.
CobraMetal.net: As far as the concept of the new record is concerned, what can you tell us?
Karl: It’s in similar territory to other Nile records in that a lot of it stems from Ancient Egyptology and sort of has underlying modern themes tied in. We haven’t abandoned our identity and I don’t believe you should fuck over your fans. If your fans like what you do, and you change too much of what you do, fans don’t like it. What matters to me is when I’m out on tour and I meet the actual fans and they share their thoughts…those are the people that I listen to. There’s a lot of new ideas within the realm of what we do that we tried to incorporate. We studied real hard on the guitar and have lots of new riffs and musical ideas. There are a lot of surprises on the record.
CobraMetal.net: Can we expect any guest appearances on this new record?
Karl: Jon Vesano is all over this record. (Our former singer and bass guitarist who we’re still good friends with.) Jon did some guest vocals on “Those Whom The Gods Detest” and it made us realize all over again all the things we really liked about Jon’s vocals. We wanted to incorporate some of his insanity. [laughs] He’s wicked, man. He knows how to channel that inner possession. He finds a way to summon it. It’s great stuff.
NILE – “Sacrifice Unto Sebek” video:
NILE – “Execration Text” video:
