Exclusive Interview: Drown In Sulphur talk “Dark Secrets of the Soul”!

A highly anticipated record “Dark Secrets of the Soul” from Italian Blackened Deathcore collective Drown In Sulphur has already surpassed 260k of Spotify streams having only been released on 12th January via Scarlet Records. Admittedly those statistics are skewed by the pre-release singles but even so the numbers feel like the announcement of the opening weekend sales of a major blockbuster movie at the Cinema. The follow up to their critically acclaimed debut “Sulphur Cvlt”, a record which reached the 1.46 million streams milestone not so long ago, it’s one which finds the band at the height of their powers despite line up changes going into it. We had the pleasure of a pair of conversations with the band and this is the first of those…

There has been a constant revolving door of musicians in Drown In Sulphur over the past decade; with Daniele “Blacklight” Posillipo now in the fold do you feel like this is the definitive line up? Do you feel as though the changes have slowed the progress or are you now exactly where you want to be with “Dark Secrets of the Soul“? “The line-up changes were not wanted by anyone but are the result of force majeure. Not everyone is willing to sacrifice everything for the band and not everyone has the availability to play live and fulfil the commitments behind a musical project. With the arrival of Daniele “Blacklight” we have reached the technical and compositional level we wanted, having a cohesion between us with equal objectives. Obviously these changes have greatly slowed down the growth of the band considering it has existed since 2014 but in reality we have been working for a total of 4 years.”

We always say that even in the digital age, the first bite is with the eye and it has to be said that the artwork from Alvaro Valverde from AV Art Ilustracion (Unanimated, Wythersake, Night Crowned) you have on the record is incredible! How did you go about choosing it and what do you feel it says about the project? “We want to thank Alvaro for the amazing job he has done for us. The album cover represents the figure of a demonic vampire, emblem of our criticism towards religious dogmas and religious falsehoods that influence our lives and no one realizes it. This is also a spiritual elevation above religion. Each song is symbolically represented within the artwork. From the impaled angels, to the castle, to the eclipse in the sky. The album depicts the lack of values ​​in the world.”

The clean singing on “Lotus” feels like a brave and bold move; were you nervous about how it would be received? “We weren’t nervous at all, we knew very well that some would like it and others wouldn’t, but it is a song that we considered too beautiful not to include, especially because its meaning linked well to this album. Furthermore, we don’t set ourselves limits or prejudices during the composition, we just do what we feel without thinking about what the external perception could be”

We’ve mentioned in our review comparisons with Draconian Reign, Cradle Of Filth and Lorna Shore but who do you consider your influences? “We are grateful for this comparison because they are great bands, but none of them influenced us. We have similar sounds but our influences come from different genres and backgrounds. Deathcore, Prog Metal, Metalcore, Black Metal and also a lot of Pop. Christ and Blacklight have also collaborated with Pop artists, even as ghost writers in Christ’s case.”

What are your aspirations for the project? Touring America with a band like Enterprise Earth or Angelmaker? Play a major festival? Appear on the cover of Metal Hammer Magazine? “All three options, even more! We always try to give the best in everything we do.”

What’s next for Drown In Sulphur? “We hope to play as much as possible to promote this album. However, we can announce that we are already working on new material.”

“Dark Secrets of the Soul” by Drown In Sulphur was released on 12th January 2024 via Scarlet Records