The North Carolina death metal group Voraath are this week’s featured Meet The Band artist. They just released their debut album Vol 1: The Hymn Of The Hunters. Drummer Joshua Nassaru Ward introduces us to his band.
Chad Bowar: Give us a brief history of Voraath.
Joshua Nassaru Ward: The band started with Paul, Tylor and I. We brought in Chelsea and Daniel completed our lineup. We’re relatively a new band but with some industry veterans.
Describe the songwriting process for Vol 1: The Hymn Of The Hunters.
We first developed the story. We break down each chapter of the story and that is the basis for every song. We trying to lock on and capture a specific emotion that takes place near the events of a story. Being that we are in a futuristic post-apocalyptic setting, the content of each song can be a bit dire, reflecting genuine feelings, encapsulating them into the music.
What will be your strongest memory of the recording of the album?
Recording tracks in a dilapidated camper, making jokes about really bad takes. I think someone farted and we left it in the album somewhere.
What was the biggest challenge in its creation?
Trying to plan each event that happens in our lore and represented accurately, musically.
How would you characterize its style/sound?
If extreme metal wrote a movie. We wanted to build a sci-fi horror adventure auditorily.
What’s the album’s lyrical concept?
You got to buckle down for that one. The short version is we are mountain survivalists in a post-apocalyptic world, working as retrieval experts and mercenaries for future corporations. Really taking on any job that allows us to acquire assets for our families and village. We live in a world where 80 percent of the population disappears after the arrival of three cosmic entities. Corporations now run the world and are in constant War meanwhile strange interdimensional creatures emerged after the second “Great dying.” Our team known as “veil walkers” become renowned for taking on missions with requires us to terminate various interdimensional creatures. We unfortunately become part of a much bigger and cosmological story.
How did you come to sign with Exitus Strategem?
They contacted us, the owner was super awesome and our interest aligned. Exitus Stratagem Records is a veteran on company and due to the content of our music being tactical survival horror, it seemed to fit.
What are you goals and expectations for the album?
To bring to life our musical multiverse, it starts with this album. It’s extreme metal but it also has so much emotion and storytelling encapsulated.
You created several videos for the album. What was your favorite shoot?
Actually it’s a video that’s about to come out. We’ve done a video for a song called “Sammy Hill” where we got to go to the government training institute with centurion tactical simulations, we got blown up! They had a former EOD expert out there blowing stuff up as we ran around a defunct nuclear facility. Was definitely fun.
What has the response been to the songs you’ve released so far?
The reception has been good. I think the way we craft each song and how each song flows into each other for the sake of the story is definitely noticed.
What has been your most memorable Voraath live show?
The Michigan metal Fest family gathering! Everyone there is awesome and made us feel at home. Was a sold-out show!
What are your upcoming show/tour plans?
We are on tour as we speak. We are playing the Michigan metal Fest, the Toledo zombie crawl, and we’re looking at possibility of Europe, Japan, and Mexico!
What are some of your non-musical interests and hobbies?
Martial arts, tactical training, and combative instruction. I am part of a school based out of Okinawa Japan in which we preserve the Uchinanchu Life protection system. We have a training group known as Mijichi tactical based out of North Carolina. We live in the woods so we enjoy a lot of outside activities such as kayaking, hunting, camping. Our singer is a professional voice actor, part of video games such as Doom Rternal and she did a major role in Hellblade 2!
What’s the best thing you’ve binge watched lately?
Fallout but also The Boys because Chelsea is behind me yelling “the Boys”
What’s in your current heavy musical rotation?
Cattle Decapitation, Alluvial, Kardashev, Strapping Young Lad, Dolly Parton.
Anything else you’d like to mention or promote?
We’re excited to bring to life our complex multiverse. Infusing our own culture of Appalachian living with science fantasy. We spent some time creating this, from the lore to the music.
(interview published June 22, 2024)
Watch Voraath – “The Leviathan’s Keep” Video
