In this day and age, many people complain how very few modern metal bands carry the pure essence of extremity and aggression in their music. Some say it's long gone, others say it's right in front of our eyes yet we are blind, although some would say that you just have to look in the right places, even where you least expect to find them. A couple of months ago, I discovered an interesting podcast show on YouTube called Iblis Manifestations, hosted by a very encouraging and strong minded character Shayan S., who is the founder, vocalist and guitarist of the death/black metal band Trivax. Although the band originally hails from Iran, Shayan relocated to the UK in the town of Birmingham, which many know as the birthplace of Black Sabbath and heavy metal. I was really impressed with many episodes on his podcast channel, mostly the conversations with some of my favorite musicians like Alvaro Lillo (Xalpen, Kako Daimon, Watain) and Adam Zaars (Tribulation) just to name a few, and he even made a couple of special episodes where he talks about himself, his lifestyle and goes all the way to motivate his listeners to fight to achieve difficult things in life. On top of that, a very important episode that I frequently revisited, and would even highly recommend that you check out, is the one where he exchanged some interesting stories along with his band colleague and bassist Sully, which contains personal backgrounds that are not for the faint-hearted. The stories that Shayan and Sultan shared is but one of many things that fuels the energy and the aggression of the band's music, besides their burning passion and love for this kind of music. Out of curiosity, I decided to have a look at the band Trivax, only to discover one violent beast of a song named 'Azrael' that is unlike anything I have heard lately. I was really impressed by the song and I realized shortly after that the band was releasing their new and official second full-length album "Eloah Burns Out" on September 29th this year. If you ask me, I believe that Trivax is exactly the kind of modern extreme metal band you were looking for, whether you like it or not. For this occasion, I had the pleasure to speak with Shayan on behalf of Trivax, where we talked about their new album "Eloah Burns Out", the influence of their music on others, his life in Birmingham and many other things along the way. Please join me as we dive deep into the world of Eastern chaos magick, within the realm of Trivax.

Vladimir

Greetings Shayan! First of all, I'd like to wish you a warm welcome on behalf of the MetalBite crew. How are you doing today brother?

Hey Vladimir, I am doing excellent - very happy that the album is finally out!

I just listened to your new album "Eloah Burns Out", which I find to be a very powerful and extreme work of art unlike any other album we got recently. I think that you took on a very challenging task of surpassing everyone's expectations, especially since the band expanded its sound since the past album SIN. How was this whole process of working on this album for you? Were you met with some challenges along the way as you were working on each song?

So I would definitely agree that there is a very unique nature to this particular album, both from a songwriting perspective, but also just the general vibe of it, where it sits and the great scope of extreme metal, particularly within black metal. I would say that a lot of this can be simply due to the energies which were channeled into the making of the album, this is both during the creative process as well as the execution part of making this album. I would say that the challenges weren't so much in terms of the creative side, in fact the creative part of the album was the easiest and quite literally one of the most rewarding processes that I have ever been a part of as far as Trivax's history is concerned. The difficulties that we had, I would say were more to do with the publishing side of things, as it took us a very long time to find a suitable label. We finished the album in late 2019, and as we all know, a lot of the music industry basically went on halt not too long just after that, so it was very important for us to make sure that we still preserve the spirit of this album, and even though it has taken some time since then, we still stand by every second of this record wholeheartedly and it's a release we couldn't be any more proud of.

"Eloah Burns Out" is certainly one of the most anticipated albums of this year and the audience seems to be very pleased with it, myself included. Have your previous singles 'Azrael' and 'Alpha Predator' contributed in any way to raise fan awareness of the band and your upcoming album?

Oh, definitely. This especially became apparent when we did the album launch show at Cosmic Void festival. I have never seen our crowd react the same way that they did to a song being introduced, like they did when I introduced "Azrael" at the show. I anticipate that this might be here to stay...

How do you personally feel about your new album as a whole? Do you feel that it served the purpose of Trivax and accomplished what it was meant to do?

I feel extremely proud of it. It's a record that I feel truly encapsulated our intent, not just around the time when we made it, but it encapsulated our intent from the times even before that and it certainly feels the same even right now. It's an album that really represents Trivax at its core, and yes, it's absolutely possible that we will go on from here to evolve our sound and do different things, but this is always going to be a classic that people can reflect back on and it's not an album that's going to go away anywhere anytime soon.

Trivax certainly means serious business and it is indeed a serious band full of energy, fueled with hate and aggression that is evident in your music. I personally feel that there aren't many bands or musicians that have the strength of character and willpower as you do. Are there any personal beliefs or philosophies that inspire your everyday life, your mindset and also your artistic side?

I really appreciate that, but we also don't approach Trivax in a way of dick-measuring contest. We do what feels right to us and serves our intent, other bands are welcome to do what they do.

On top of that, are there also any musicians or artists that influenced your overall mindset? If there are, what is it about them that truly fascinated you?

It's difficult to specifically pinpoint this because there's been such an accumulation of inspiration through other artists over the years, but of course I would say that musically speaking it's perhaps a little bit easier to pinpoint that because it always goes back to the likes of Metallica, Dissection and Celtic Frost. However, on the other side of the token, if you want to speak about mindset, now again those bands may be quite relevant, however I would say that the mindset is one that is of our own and I don't personally think there's another school of thought like the one of Trivax, or at least identical to it out there by any other bands, because there really aren't any other bands that have the same kind of history, as well as sharing the same kind of intent. There are many things that a lot of bands, particularly within metal and extreme metal sing about and they wanted to be a part of their message, but this always comes from a point of fantasization, whereas in the case of Trivax, these are things we have actually dealt with and these are issues that we've been in direct contact with, so there is that real sense of danger that exists within the core of the band and I think it's part of what makes what we do very authentic, but also extremely powerful.

Besides music, you also have your podcast show Iblis Manifestation where you often have conversations with various musicians and artists. Alongside these conversations, you even publish episodes where you talk a little bit about yourself and also express your opinions with the intention of helping your fans by boosting their confidence. What amazed me the most about these episodes in particular are the comments from people who truly appreciate and take your advice seriously. How do you react when you realize that your words of motivation successfully influence other people, especially when people in the comments express their gratitude and value what you've said?

Honestly, it's crazy for me to see the community which has grown around the podcast. You have to bear in mind that doing this, especially in addition to music, takes an exorbitant amount of time and a hell of a lot of work, and it also costs money (Zoom membership, recording equipment, publishing on streaming platforms etc...) However - the response and the feedback that it gets, is always amazing. This is besides how rewarding it is to also get the opportunity to speak to many of my own musical heroes, as well as friends and like minded folks who I hold a lot of respect for. Never a dull moment for Iblis Manifestations.

Some months back I saw a video where the metalheads protested and played your song 'Azrael' in front of the Iran Consulate in Frankfurt, Germany. Trivax certainly has a very big impact on the youth that encouraged their rebellious nature to fight against any form of oppression. Tell me, do you think that the modern metal scene needs more bands like Trivax who can send a clear statement through their music and motivate people to follow their path without allowing anything to stand in their way?

Yeah, that was pretty wild to see! We received the video out of nowhere, and I have to say, I was pretty blown away.

Interestingly enough, when you relocated to the UK, you moved to a very special town in the Westlands region, the place where it all began, none other than Birmingham, the birthplace of Black Sabbath and heavy metal in general. What was it like when you moved to Birmingham? Did you feel an instant connection with the place because of its cultural significance of heavy metal music and were you welcomed with good hospitality by the local metal community?

Yes, but not initially. I arrived in Birmingham just around the time deathcore and metalcore were emerging on a mainstream level, with a strong following for shitty bands with full sentences for their names and every damn kid being obsessed with breakdowns and having stretched ears, which was not the kind of "Metal" I was looking for. I found that nauseating.On one hand, of course I was really pleased that I could finally perform the music that I loved freely for the first time, on the other hand, I was actually very disappointed to see the state of contemporary music in the same city that gave birth to not just Sabbath and Priest, but also Napalm Death, Bolt Thrower and Benediction. Like, how could the culture decline so badly in just 2 or 3 decades? Thankfully, that trend died off a good 3 or 4 years later after my arrival, and you could see a resurgence in proper metal in the UK as a whole. I will say that, of course, Birmingham is such a historic place in music, our music, where it was undeniable to feel special about being in that city. I used to get the X51 bus to Walsall back then, and that would always go past Black Sabbath's old rehearsal place in Aston, opposite of which was the bar they would visit, which I actually think was from the time they were called Earth. That and also seeing guys from the 90's Earache scene casually hanging around in Scruffy Murphy's or even rehearsing at the same place as ourselves was totally surreal to me at first. Very cool indeed.

People often complain that extreme metal has lost its edge, that bands don't sound or feel dangerous as they used to. What is your take on this general opinion? Do you think that extreme metal needs more provocative and serious bands with a legitimate antireligious and antisocial attitude?

I sit on the fence with this one. I feel like, so much of the time, people simply regurgitate the same naysaying comments just because it sounds cool, or because some bitter musician out there with a chip on their shoulder is simply trying to put down other bands who are getting success. I think that we live in a time where there are some truly fantastic bands out there, and equally there are some terrible ones too. But it seems that the traction is happening for both sides.

Going back to my previous question, would you consider Trivax as an exemplary extreme metal band that manages to express its true nature properly through the music and the lyrics?

I would say so. From the artistic angle, I know that we do what we do with utmost integrity and honesty, so yeah, definitely.

When you look back at the beginnings of Trivax in 2012 and fast forward to the present day, the band has achieved a lot since. Both you and your band have matured and evolved into something with a respectable status and major influence on people. Tell me, do you think that the band has found its place in the metal community or do you think that there is still much to be done for Trivax?

Thank you! I'd say that both of those are true. Whilst it definitely feels like we have found our footing and people know what we are about, this is still only the beginning as we have a lot left to say!

Thank you so much for doing this interview, Shayan! I wish you and Trivax many years of success. Are there any final words you'd like to leave to your fans?

Better to die on your feet, than to live on your knees. Thank you for the interview.