NECROT

NECROT per tight playing those songs over and over again, and played with so many amazing bands. It upped the bar for us in many ways, and we wanted to progress onto more grandiose sickness in the death metal game. “The scene we come from in Oakland has had so many different kinds of heavy music over the years. There's so many different players and styles in the melting pot here. We’ve played all kinds of shows here too. DIY punk gigs in warehouses, basements, and bars, to bigger metal and thrash shows with huge national acts. I feel like because we come from more of a DIY background, we can play with INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST SONNY REINHARDT BY NICHOLAS SENIOR lots of different kinds of bands.”

So, what blood offerings did in the process. Necrot’s vision of in the water in Oakland to create “As far as the progression from Necrot have to give to release the throwback death metal style is so many amazing bands?). Guitarist Blood Offerings to Mortal goes, it back to back death metal perfection to these ears, with bits Sonny Reinhardt takes me through was a pretty natural progression classics? The Oakland-based of punk fury, thrash energy, and the band’s thoughts of following up to want to have sicker drums, act’s 2017 debut, Blood Of- some of the best riffs in the game. Blood Offerings. more solos, heavier, more intriferings, was quite the first impres- It’s equal parts cavernous sludge cate riffs, and deeper, darker sion, but their sophomore record, and melodic menace. “We offered our blood by touring lyrics,” Reinhardt continues. “It's

Mortal, out now via Tankcrimes, that album a whole bunch on the a next-level Blood Offerings that takes the (gory?) cake, sweetening Necrot came together from various road for the last few years after makes you realize your absolute everything about Blood Offerings bands in Oakland (what the fuck is its release!” he says. “We got su- MORTALity [laughs].”

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALAN SNODGRASS

“WE WANTED TO SHRED AND DESTROY EVERYTHING AROUND US! WE WANTED TO TURN IT UP FROM 11 UP TO BROIL!”

Offerings and jokes aside, there’s an 11 up to broil! But honestly, we felt impressive care and understanding like we were ready to make the of craft that helps elevate Necrot step up from the last album and from the host of OSDM styled acts. bring on some more technical stuff For one, the songs themselves are mixed with heavier and even some never without a sense of pace and darker, more melodic stuff. Basicalspace—never has an album cover ly, just bringing out more aspects of been more apt to the chaos within. our sound in a more complete and Riffs, solos, and bridges are a bigger mature way without sounding like a focus here than just simply a flavor- different band or straying from our ing agent. We haven’t entered prog real true sound.” territory (Horrendous has that pretty locked down), but Necrot aren’t The record’s themes are also perjust here for the bludgeoning. So, fectly aligned to Mortal’s haunting what did the band want to do with cover, as Reinhardt explains: this album? “The way I see it is that we are high“We wanted to shred and destroy lighting the fact that we create all everything around us!” Reinhardt of this chaos and destruction, this says. “We wanted to turn it up from division between people. That, in fact, we are giving up our humanity to that void and darkness in a struggle to gain power over each other and the world. It's making things worse, and we will kill ourselves in the process. It's not happy subject matter, but it matters because we are all caught up in it together. It's a sink-or-swim situation for all of humankind. And it seems like the ship is sinking ...”

Getting back to an earlier issue, Reinhardt helps answer what exactly is in the water that has allowed the Bay Area to be so fertile to death metal blossoms.

“Before the pandemic, and when it started getting so expensive to live here, we had so many different types of venues to go hang out at. It was cheap enough to get by and see amazing music every night if you wanted to. It was easy to be inspired and meet like-minded people who were down to do shit together. It was fucking fun as hell!

“Now it's been pretty challenging, as times have changed. A lot of the spaces are gone, so it's a really different vibe. Luckily, we've been able to get out on the road and have lots of great experiences. We can't wait until that opens up again. Perhaps all the rich tech people will move away, and the Bay Area will become cheap and awesome again.” �� �� ��