Awaken the Ancient is a progressive female fronted death metal band formed in 2011 from Atlanta, Georgia. The band's new EP Humanity's End drops this Tuesday, August 6th and is available on worldwide on Spotify and iTunes.
Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.
Michelle Hargita - Vocals
Justin Naylon - Drums
Kurt Vanpool - Guitar
For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to Awaken the Ancient? How long has the band been around?
Justin formed Awaken the Ancient in 2011. He was previously in Neuroblast, Eridian, Choking Her, and Narcolepsy. Kurt was in Laceration, Narcolepsy, Choking Her, and Eridian as well. Michelle was in Collapse of the Empire and joined Awaken the Ancient in 2017.
What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?
The origin of Awaken the Ancient stems from the feeling you get from creating music. When possession or awakening of that creative side of your mind takes over when you’re in the zone.
Who writes your songs? What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs and do you think these topics will change over time?
We try and write them as a band using each members input to try different ideas. A full song can take anywhere from a month to much longer. Michelle wrote all of the lyrics for Humanity’s End. The topics ranged from pathogens and disease, to intertwining dreams and realities, to self reflection and battling inner demons. Both Humanity’s End and Parasitic Ritual describe burrowing parasites and disease plagued lands but are metaphors for our mortality and how infectious our thoughts and ideas can be.
Prisoner, Simulated Atrophy, and Nature of Mind tend to be very psychological and focus on mental obstacles, feelings of doubt, and suffering. I think the overall theme of the album is acknowledging that we are the ultimately the cause of our problems. The topics will change over time, as with most progressions we change with the music.
What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?
We are individually inspired by a lot of different bands and a lot of different styles. Some of the ones that currently inspire us include Archspire, Rings of Saturn, Thy Art is Murder, Cannibal Corpse, The Zenith Passage, Entheos, Fallujah, The Black Dahlia Murder, Origin, Beyond Creation, Nile, Morbid Angel.
Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?
Justin - Nile, they have such a wide variety of music and such a huge discography.
What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, ect …
Preshow warmups are a necessity and we all share this equally in the band. Every type of stretch possible, all the silly vocal warmups, and going for a quick run are just a few of them.
What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?
We believe our new EP Humanity’s End and the next release that we’re currently working on is the band’s best work to date. Opening for The Black Dahlia Murder, Dying Fetus, Suicide Silence, Fit for an Autopsy, Fallujah, Cryptopsy, Decrepit Birth, Defeated Sanity, Pathology, 6 Feet Under, Abiotic, Cognitive
If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
Probably Cannibal Corpse and Meshuggah, they put on the best live show and inspire us the most.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
This music is our outlet, each one of us. If you dig the EP spread the word, we’d like to tour all over.