To me at least one immediately gets the sense of an intensely individual spirituality ingrained in Acherontas music.

Is the blending of eastern and western musical styles linked in any way to borrowing from both eastern spiritual paths and European Satanism? In recent Beherit interviews it has been said that despite becoming increasingly involved in left hand path Buddhism Beherit are as Satanic in spirit as ever. To you how readily does eastern esoteric spiritualism fit into the western Satanic tradition? Under the banner of Acherontas we avoid to use the term Satanism. Acherontas dwells in Occultism, to the Hidden side of material plane... We do not limit our Shadows in the path of Satanism. Occultism and spirituality in general are beyond words; the path is Endless. Acherontas in basic terms are devoted to the teachings of Tiamat with many other fields reached such as Hermeticism, Alchemy, Kabalah, Astral Vampirism, dream workings and many other such themes. I am trying to discriminate with experience and care the fake and modern grounds that the nowadays "Occult" literature declares. I am striving for wisdom and not Black Metal poetry that most Occult books

write to. I am always looking at the sources of Sorcery, in my life and behind Acherontas too. And I am glad that this great knowledge is hidden, even though people think that it is open now for everyone. In my own studies in ethnomusicology Ive encountered a phenomenon in Greek music since independence of a tension or strain between western cultural influences and attempts to adopt high European culture, and also eastern influences which are the inevitable result of Greeces years as part of the Ottoman Empire. Can you see reflections of this in Acherontas borrowing on both classical music and Asian musical styles, or is Acherontas completely removed from any specifically Greek musical context (in either the wider sense or the Greek Black Metal sound of Necromantia, Rotting Christ etc)? Even from the beginning as Sutthof our musical style was beyond the classic Greek Black Metal sound such as Rotting Christ and Necromantia. All of us in Acherontas love the old sound of Hellenic Black Metal. It was pure and different from the rest scene that all was trying to do nothing but blast beat. But we chose to perform our art a little different and to not play (as most

bands did here in Greece) like Rotting Christ. There is not any point behind to try to play the same as others. You can have your influence but why make copies of others? With Acherontas and Stutthof many times used samples and created many Ritual parts for the purpose of the concept we used in each album. The traditional east music or sounds from different currents of music such as Ritual Ambient has been used to create a "dream" to the masses out there and make the music of Acherontas as a gate to Samadhi.. How do you view the Black Metal landscape at present and how do you think Acherontas fit into it? Have you heard the Necros Christos side project the Ra Al Dee Experience and can you see this sort of Eastern mysticism and musical influence on Black/Death Metal growing stronger in the next few years? Ra Al Dee Experience is very inspirational. Sounds like these I think fit great in the Black Metal current. It is something that in the last years is used very often from certain bands. Some of them used these elements as part of a trend and others by purity. Acherontas performs Spiritual Occult Art. I don't care about Acherontas fitting into any Scene. I just care to create Occult Art when my

experiences needs to fill the shells of Art. Clearly the non-Black Metal influences in Acherontas stretch far beyond just classical music and eastern musical styles. How much would you say you are influenced by Prog Rock, Psychedelia or Goth Rock? I listen many kinds of music beyond classic Metal. My tastes come from traditional music of Egypt and India to the psychedelia of Pink Floyd and Eloy. In the recent compilation release 15 Year Anniversary Of Left Hand Path Esoterica you celebrate your 15th year in the Black Metal scene, however you included only material from Acherontas and not from earlier projects like Stutthof. How do you now view those years of your musical output and the very different lyrical concepts such as vampirism and National Socialism? Even if you do not see Acherontas as a direct continuation of Stutthof were those years still important in formulating the musical level you have now found? With this compilation we wanted to include stuff from releases that Zyklon B records (a label with whom we had a contract) released in past. The reason was that this Rip-OFF label made shit work for us. So there was many people out there that was interested for our art and could not have our music. There was no need to include Stutthof tracks as all Stutthof releases was already available in masses. Stutthof had no NS lyrics. We used with Stutthof stuff such as rune magick and ancestor worship or dark paganism (which may be used by the so called NS philosophy) BUT Stutthof was not a political band.

The reason behind Stutthof forming into Acherontas was the evolution that came in musical writing. It is something logical after 15 years and it is very easy to see this in our concepts and our title songs in the past. To continue create the same thing again and again is fake and boring. Evolution in all the parts of life is of paramount importantance. When can we expect new material from Acherontas? Do you plan on adding even more musical elements to your diverse list of influences? In every release you will embrace an other side of our soul. About new material,you can expect a split between Acherontas and Nightbringer. This split release will be out on the magical night of 30/4/2012 in digipack CD and 10'' EP vinyl by Agonia Records. Also a mandatory release of Sumerian Blessing will be unleashed by Nihilward Productions as a digi CD on the day of Summer Solstice, 21/6/12. Acherontas, Crimson Moon, Akrabu and Shibalba have together raised the Serpentine Force and nvoked the gods of the desert and sand in a 4-way split under the title Ana Harrani Sa Alaktasa La Tarat. The Vinyl version will be out on Obscure Abhorrence/Art Of Propaganda. Have you ever performed live with Acherontas or would you ever do so? What are/would be the ritual requirements of such a performance? Many Rituals have took place in past... More come now as Acherontas will perform a ritual at Black Metal Rising in Paris in July, and we just confirmed to perform at Under The Black Sun open air festival. This is as part of a tour that will take place with Nightbringer as the Acherontas

members will join the line up of Nightbringer for these shows. Acherontas Discography Tat Tvam Asi full length (2007) on Zyklon B Prod. (CD and lim. 500 LP, tape on Night Birds in 2010) -...For The Temple Of The Serpent Skull... split with Necromantia (2008) on Dark Side Records (tape on Night Birds in 2010 lim. 300) -Sic Luceat Lux split with Leviathan (2009) on Zyklon B. Prod. (500 on digipack CD, 200 on A5 CD with bonus tracks, 12'' red vinyl lim. 100, 12''purple vinyl lim. 50, 12'' pic. disc lim. 250, 12'' multi-colour vinyl with bonus 7'' lim. 200, die hard box lim. 50) -Split 7'' with Drowning The Light (2010) on Zyklon B Prod. (grey/white vinyl lim. 50, multicolour vinyl lim. 100, pic. disc lim. 111 copies, black vinyl lim. 150 copies) -Theosis full length (2010) on Dark Side Records (tape on Night Birds in 2010 lim. 300) -Hermeticism MCD (2011) on Agonia Records (7'' on World Terror Committee lim. 500, first 100 on red vinyl, tape version coreleased by Werewolf Promotion and Hammer of Damnation) -15 Years Of Left Hand Path Esoterica comp. digipack double CD (2011) on Darker Than Black -Vamachara full length (2011) on Agonia Records (tape co-released by Werewolf Promotion and Hammer Of Damnation) -Ana Haranni Sa Alaktasa La Tarat split digipack CD with Crimson Moon, Akrabu and Shibalba (2012) on Nihilward Prod. (LP co-released by Obscure Abhorrence and Art Of Propaganda lim. 500, first 100 on red vinyl) -Ruins Of Edom split with Nightbringer (2012) on Agonia Records (digipack CD lim. 1000 and 12'' lim. 300, first 50 on blue vinyl)