Interview with guitarist Ats Aim
Interview conducted by Luxi Lahtinen
Date online: May 1, 2024
Estonian old-school death metal patrol Decitome, formed in 2015, have become one of the most notable forces from that country's underground metal scene, playing the kind of death metal that borrows bits and pieces from Swedish as well as American death metal, without directly committing to any style in full. They put out one album in 2017 called Death Is Called Ethos and one EP, Flux of Ruin, in 2019. The band has recorded their yet-untitled follow-up album and are currently looking for the right label to release it. That will happen, sooner or later, and yours truly was lucky enough to hear the album in advance and all I can say is that it truly destroys, as cliché as that may sound.
As the band's forthcoming album made such a huge impression on me, I saw the opportunity for contacting the band's true spirit and soul guitarist Ats Aim to find out some of the latest news from the Deceitome camp and what's been going on lately besides having a new album ready to be released for (old-school) death metal fans across this globe.
Ats took his time and politely shed light on some topics related to the band.
Hey there, Ats! How's life in Estonia these days?
Ats: Greetings, Luxi! Sorry for using the age-old cliché but "we live in interesting times." Interesting might even be an understatement considering current events in the world. And I would say that life and the mindset of the people in Estonia certainly reflects that.
FORMING DECEITOME
Deceitome, this old-school death metal unit you formed in 2015, has one EP and one full-length under its belt as far as official releases are concerned. How much recognition has the band received so far?
Ats: Deceitome, even before the name, was a band I wanted to form since I was 14 years old but I would not say it was solely formed by me. If it hadn't been for Tarvi, who I was drinking and discussing things with one night in 2015, we would be speaking about a very different band right now. I would say we co-formed the band as it is known today. As far as recognition is concerned, I would say that most of the recognition we got was from our EP Flux of Ruin. That was the more "mature" release and for the first time it wasn't an independent one. I guess we have left a good impression on the right people at this time. In Estonia we are known, but I would say that internationally we still have ways to go.
When you decided to form this band, was it clear from the start that you'd churn out old-school-tinged death metal?
Ats: There has never been any doubt about what Deceitome was going to be and will remain as, in my mind. I have always wanted to play old-school death metal since I was a kid and there will always be a rotten place in my heart that still remembers the feeling of hearing the classic albums for the first time.
What bands are your inspirations or influences?
Ats: It is not a very interesting or "original" list of influences, really. The classics from Nihilist and Carnage to their counterparts Entombed and Dismember, along with Unleashed and Grave. And no list would ever be complete without, I believe, the band that has influenced me the most as far as death metal goes, and that is Edge of Sanity and other later projects involving Dan Swanö, like early Bloodbath. And, of course, no list would be complete without Bolt Thrower.
As you can see, a lot of Swedish influence. I have never really gotten that strongly attached to the American scene.
If we go back in time a little bit, the first Deceitome song that you made available through Bandcamp, was called "The Void Abides." What kind of impact did it have on people? Did releasing the song via Bandcamp bring you a small flood of positive reactions from metalheads worldwide?
Ats: I definitely wouldn't say worldwide, but as far as Estonia goes, it seemed to get attention and pushed us to do more and more as we went forward.
DEBUT ALBUM - DEATH IS...
The band's debut album, Death Is Called Ethos, saw the light of day in December 2017, which you released on your own. Did you want to get it out independently in the very first place, or did you shop it to some well-chosen labels but nothing came out of it?
Ats: We definitely looked around for labels at the time, but nothing really stuck. Well-chosen is maybe too mature of a word to use. There was a lot more drinking and hellraising involved than there might be nowadays, which came with the territory, I guess. In the end, we decided that for our first effort it would be nice to have total control over everything and make it as good as we could and maybe use it as a foundation for future collaborations.
How proud are you of your debut album? Do you think it turned out the way you originally wanted it to, or are there some things that you'd change?
Ats: Funny thing is I listened to it for the first time in years as we were building a set list for a live show a few weeks back. I think I hadn't listened to it in maybe four years. I remember having some slight grievances with it in the past but after hearing it again with a fresh ear I was pleasantly surprised and can say that I am proud of what we achieved at the time.
Were you surprised that deatheads around the globe seemed to dig the album?
Ats: The debut was a breath of fresh air in Estonia at the time. Death metal was on its last leg here basically and the reception from the old-school guys was awesome. We also gained some traction from the outside, played our first tours, and met some awesome people who really liked what we were doing.
LIFE'S FULL OF CURVEBALLS...
In 2017 your vocalist Kevin Rändi decided to step away from the lineup. What happened?
Ats: Kevin had personal things to deal with during that time, but the split was an amicable one. I have a joke I always tell about the Estonian scene that every band you join needs a drop of your blood and a promise to never leave or else no one will ever talk to you again. I have never liked that way of thinking. There is nothing worse than a person being in a band as an obligation. Kevin had things he needed to take care of, and he even continued writing lyrics for us on Flux of Ruin.
A scene veteran, Anders Melts (also in Forgotten Sunrise), took the vocal duties in Deceitome during the same year. How did he end up joining the band?
Ats: When Kevin left, I felt we might be in trouble since a vocalist change is a really serious problem for a young band, even more so because Estonia doesn't have an abundance of people who can do it the way I like. I always knew Anders had good vocals and when I spoke to some friends that name always came up. But it took time for me to approach him since I thought he was probably out of our league and wouldn't really be interested.
I took the time to write to him and we met up shortly after to talk. Fortunately, it seems we had made a really lasting impression on him on one of the gigs he went to. So much so that he said that even though he is busy this is something he would like to do. And here we are, some seven years later and still going strong.
Did you arrange auditions for other potential candidates for this position, or was Anders on top of your personal "Wanted!" list, so to speak?
Ats: I might have a demo song lying around somewhere with our old drummer doing some vocals when we were getting drunk in the studio one night, haha...!! But in all seriousness, there were never any other candidates but Anders that were discussed.
EXPERIENCE MEANS EVERYTHING
As he is a few years older than the rest of the guys in the band, did it ever bother you that he'd become the captain of the Deceitome ship, telling everyone which harbor to go to with every single decision made within the band?
Ats: Anders has never been a guy to brag about days long past or felt that he is better than anyone else to make decisions for the band and that is what I have always liked about him. He has a lot more experience and he provides his opinion, which is naturally always taken into strong consideration. But there was never any "threat" of him being the only decision maker and he himself made that clear from the start. His opinion and mentality have always for the most part been in line with mine. I guess that's why we get along so well.
What would you say he has brought into the sound of the band, or for the band in general besides his never-ending creativity, of course?
Ats: His vocal style is totally unique and always has been to my ear. It has also given us more raw grit and darkness to our sound which I very much like. Vocals aside, he has an eye for minute details and always has ideas for little bits and pieces that can fill a hole that might be in a song to make a riff stand out. And I always appreciate his honesty in things. You need a person to tell you when something is wrong.
If that wasn't all as far as lineup changes are concerned, Raiko Rajalaane took over the drum duties in 2021 and Alex Svart was found to play bass. How did you find those guys to join the band? Do you feel they both have the right attitude and understanding of what Deceitome should be all about musically?
Ats: You would have to ask Anders about that in more detail, but it was a well-known fact that we were looking for a drummer and during that time Raiko talked with Anders and bought a CD from him to learn the songs. We had a feeling that maybe that kind of dedication would pay off, but at the time we had already someone else "booked," so to speak. That, however, did not work out and Raiko still wanted to do it. Alex came a short while after, when we needed a bassist, and he was a friend of Raiko's. Both were really interested in doing it and as we gave them the chance they have proved it. The rest... only time will tell.
NEW ALBUM'S COMING...
You have your follow-up album finished and are now looking for the right label to release it. What can you tell us about the album?
Ats: I know that every band says that their latest release is their best one, but at least in our case it is definitely true. It simply has the best songwriting out of all our releases. It is dark yet preserves the "Dismember"-style melodies that made the Stockholm scene great without devolving into the melodic death metal category. We are also happy with its sound, courtesy of Magnus from Talbot. As far as the label hunt... we are in talks currently about some things but nothing I can really reveal at this point.
Playing live is, of course, important for many bands to make themselves known among metal fans, and I bet it's also important for Deceitome to get some cool gig opportunities. Tallinn has a new venue for bands named The Krypt. You performed there on April 20th with three other bands. How much do you look forward to climbing onstage with Deceitome again?
Ats: I think it's about damn time to get my ass on stage and play some uncompromising death fucking metal. Deceitome live shows are always a real pleasure for me.
What other gigs do you have in the pipeline?
Ats: There is always something in the works. I think the live shows will really start picking up pace after we release the album. Right now, I can say that we will be performing at Hard Rock Laager Festival in the summer.
Lastly, how do you see the current state of the Estonian death metal scene, from your point of view?
Ats: It is small, very small but not the wasteland that it was when we started. There are younger bands than us coming up that might grow into something of real substance.
That's all I had in mind for this discussion. I would like to thank you, Ats, for your time in getting this interview done and I'd like to wish you all the best with all the present as well as future endeavors with the band. Anything else you'd like to add or say for the fans of the band perhaps?
Ats: Thank you for this interview! You have done some real homework and did not ask the "stamped" copy-pasted questions that give absolutely nothing to anyone. Something of substance, which I appreciate. Other than that, I think everyone should grab a drink of their choice and listen to some good old-school death metal.
Other information about Deceitome on this site |
Review: Death Is Called Ethos |
Review: Flux of Ruin |
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