Fini. Interview with Tomas and Demonen

Interview by Jay Parker

Hi this is Jay reporting from Bogota Colombia for INSIDE THE DARKNESS magazine... Today I’m lucky enough to be talking to the brightest star of Maldivian Black Metal… The mighty Fini... With the debut gem of an EP, Cold In OUr Hearts, now in circulation, we cannot wait to see what the future holds for this Maldivian BM monster... Welcome, thanks for taking the time to talk to our readers.

1) Tell us about the band? When / Where / Why was Fini formed?

Tomas: We started this black metal project as a two-piece. And we still remain as it is, just the two of us. It’s easier to manage it that way. We started jamming and writing music back in 2012/2013. We used to live in Sri Lanka and we named the project Absa. We wrote lots of music in our early days. It became sort of a platform to let our ideas out there. So writing became very easy. We didn’t care what genre we were in. All of our influences generated some sort of shit in our heads and we just played it out. Since then, we’ve been trying to fine tune everything and get hold of the sound which the band is known for today. If I can remember correctly, track II in Cold In Our Hearts is a track we wrote in our early years. Track I was written around 2018 when I lived in South Australia. We decided to change the name right after I returned to the Maldives in 2020. This was mainly due to the sound that we were going after. “Fini” means cold in ‘Dhivehi’ which is the Maldivian official language. The lyrics have no connection to the Maldives whatsoever.

2) Who is in the current line up?

Tomas – Guitar, Vocals, Bass Demonen – Drums

3) Describe your sound in 5 words.

Demonen: We wouldn’t be able to categorize our sound into 5 exact words due to the multitude of layers that makes up most of our tracks. The sound consists of what the lead and rhythm guitar produce as s whole rather than what it outputs individually. It may go against what is usually considered as normal among the vastness of music.

4) Run us through your EP, Cold In Our Hearts... when and where did you record it and where can our readers get their hands on it? Run us through each and every track please...

Demonen: The EP was conjured inside the home studio of Tomas, most of the recordings took place during the first lockdown that hit everyone. We had to communicate between emails and mostly through text based chat between sending the tracks back and forth, making adjustments as needed and other arrangements were done through this way as well. Neither of us were present “physically” to do the recordings and it was a bit of a challenge that we had to overcome. We had our minds set on using live instruments despite the limited gear we had especially with the drums. We decided to record the drums through an Electronic Kit, Tomas had his gear as well and we made the best of what we had. The EP can be heard (insert links) through these channels. With Cold in Our Hearts Part I – we decided that the track would show glimpses of what our initial sound would be without overwhelming the listener. For us, it was a great opening track which sets the mood for what the listener can expect from Fini. Cold in Our Hearts Part II – is where you can say that we went all in with our sound. The multilayered melodic yet atmospherically driven guitar track which I think will be a staple for us going forward with the accent based drumming to the said guitar riffs really made it a standout track and hopefully will grasp the listeners in immediately.

5) What is the lyrical theme behind Fini? Who writes the lyrics and the music? Do you have a song writing process or does it just come together?

Demonen: The lyrical themes for Cold in our Hearts can be generalized into being somewhat Nihilistic. The weight of modern day nuisances combined with the bleak future that we see was an inspiration to say the least. However, it was not something intentional but derived from our current state of mind during the initial writing process. Tomas wrote the lyrics and outlined the themes for both the tracks on our EP. The majority of the music will be written by Tomas as well with some exceptions here and there with the band working as a collaborative group in regards to writing music. All in all, it’s a combined effort in the end with both member’s ideas making it whole.

6) What inspired you to play Black Metal?

Demonen: I think for us; it was always the early Scandanavian Black Metal scene that really inspired us to start playing Black Metal. It will always remain as one of the purest forms of art for us with an endless stream of inspiration to do what we want and convey our sound through a channel like Black Metal.

7) Tell us about your plans for the future?’ are you recording new material? are you planning to tour?

Demonen: We are currently working on writing some new tracks, tweaking some older tracks to be more in line with our sound. Our current focus is to do a split with another internationally established act. Tomas: Performing live has definitely come up in our conversations. But nothing is planned yet. We will most likely attempt to tour next year. Or if anything comes up, perhaps later this wouldn’t be so bad either. Let’s see. Fini will definitely perform live. That’s all I know.

8) Tell us about Black Metal in The Maldives... recommend some new up and coming bands from the Maldivian scene for our readers...

Demonen: There is currently no active Black Metal scene or a band here in the Maldives apart from Fini with great emphasis on the active bit.

9) What is your favourite black metal album of all time and why?

Demonen: For both of us, it would be hard to pick a single album or even a band but some of our inspirations include albums by Taake, Immortal, Burzum, Gorgoroth and Mgla just to name a few.

10) What is your own personal opinion of the BM scene at the moment, and how do you imagine it will develop over the next decade?

Demonen: The scene has changed drastically compared to what we had when we were growing up. Maybe for the better and some definitely for the worse. We don’t usually keep track of specific say country related scenes but we find the time to checkout big names coming from each corner of the world. So it’s hard to say where the scene will go moving forward but hopefully, more bands will break the boundaries on what can be done.

11) For the musicians reading... tell us about your instruments and equipment... what tunings do you use?

Tomas: I used an ESP LTD ECBlack Metal to record all guitar tracks. It goes direct into a Focusrite Scarlett Solo connected to my computer. The amp sound is from a Peavey 6505. I had a TS808 in front of the amp. I also used a delay pedal which I can’t remember the name, and that’s all. My guitar is tuned to D standard. Demonen: For drums for the recording of the EP, I used a standard electric kit. We are attempting to do the next release on full acoustic drums.

12) Tell us your best and worst experiences as a band so far..

Demonen: Best experience was the chance to get our music out and getting people to listen to something we made. We haven’t had any notable worst experiences thus far. The closest would the general lack of support from our local scene but that’s hardly an issue for us.

13) Would you like to add anything for our readers???

Please checkout our EP and stay tuned for more.

Thanks Fini Hails 666 from Colombia!!! J