Dreams Of Consciousness: an interview with Fossilization

Brazil's Fossilization is one of the more noteworthy death metal bands to emerge in recent months. Formed by members of the doom metal act Jupiterian, their rumbling, oppressive debut He Whose Name Was Long Forgotten stands in sharp contrast to the thrashy, blasting style associated with Brazil. Predicting big things in their future, I reached out to the band to find out more. Vocalist/guitarist Vakka was kind enough to answer my questions.

Dreams of Consciousness: Please introduce your band - who are you, and where are you from? If you had to describe your band in 5 words, what would they be?

Hello Adrian, thanks for the interest! I am V. and I play guitars, bass, vocals, synths and some percussions on Fossilization and also Jupiterian. I'm from the chaotic city of São Paulo, Brazil. Well I prefer to let people tell me what they think about the band instead of misleading them through my conceptions of our work. But I won't avoid the question and say maybe "suffocating dissonant death doom metal" could work.

DoC: What led to Fossilization?

There was a sum of events that led me to form Fossilization. After we toured Europe with Krypts, Father Befouled and Encoffination, I started working on some faster riffs which wouldn't fit for Jupiterian and I didn't want to start a new band at that point. The timing wasn't just right since we had a lot to do with Jupiterian since we had just released Protosapien. Then Covid happened and I had more time at home and I could focus on some ideas for this project and since it was only myself doing the job and not a full band, it made things easier.

DoC: Both members of Fossilization are also in Jupiterian. How do you split your time between these two projects? Would you say Fossilization is a side project/one-off, or are you planning on focusing on this band? How do you split your time between these two projects?

I wouldn't say it was a matter of splitting the time. I didn't have too much work with Jupiterian because the new album had just came out, so I took the opportunity and the free time due to the lockdown to learn how to create and record all by myself and since it was just a band with no real intentions at the beginning, I felt I was free to work on it without any concerns. So yeah, it basically started as a side project at first but It's now a real band and I want to focus on it as much as I focus on Jupiterian.

DoC: Brazil is known for its death metal, but Fossilization takes a different approach from the style that's associated with Brazilian death metal. What would you say makes you unique?

You are absolutely right. Brazilian death metal bands tend to be as brutal as possible - since Sarcofago, but then you have Krisiun, Rebaelliun and many other great bands which I am a big fan of. We have a different approach maybe because I already play in a doom metal band so for me it feels more natural to mix all these references.

DoC: What is your songwriting process like?

The writing process is pretty basic I'd say. I basically have a primal idea of a riff that comes to my mind and from there I sit down with my guitar and try to develop and see where that riff leads me to. After I feel there's something worth working on, I send the track to the drummer and we begin discussing some drum patterns and we keep this remote exchange of ideas.

DoC: You recently released your first EP, He Whose Name Was Long Forgotten. Where was it recorded? How long had you been working on it prior to its release? What has the reaction been to the EP?

Most of the album was tracked here at home. I did all the guitars, bass and extra elements such as synths and percussions. Then we went to a proper studio to record the drums, reamp the guitars and then record the vocals. The reaction has been amazing! I wasn't expecting all the feedback but people seem to really be diggin it. So it's been really nice.

DoC: He Whose Name Was Long Forgotten is being released by both Transylvanian Tapes and Everlasting Spew Releases. How did these two labels get involved?

I've been friends with James from Transylvanian Recordings and Tito from Everlasting Spew for many years and as soon as I finished the recordings, I showed them some tracks and both labels wanted to work on the release. It was great cause I love both labels and I'm a fan of many bands they are already working with.

DoC: Are you planning on recording a full-length album? If so, what can we expect from it, and when do you hope to release it?

We surely are. I am already at the early stages of writing new music and soon enough I am planning to start recording some demos and see what's up. Hard to say what you can expect so soon, but definitely we're willing to do something even more brutal and chaotic.

DoC: What is the death metal scene like in Brazil these days? Which bands would you say are most notable that people should check out?

Of course I can't start this answer without mentioning the kings Krisun and the legendary Sarcofago if you don't know them yet, but concerning the underground scene, Rebaelliun and Infamous Glory are among my favorites.

DoC: What's next for Fossilization?

Well, there are so many things to do from now on but, now it's time to spread our EP around. If you have a chance, listen to He Whose Name Was Long Forgotten and if you like it, buy the physical material. If you are into tapes, check out Transylvanian Recordings bandcamp, CDs with Everlasting Spew, and the vinyls are coming up in a few months.