This year, we decided to ask musicians that we truly admire to pick their favorite albums of the year and name a band they’d like to get together and make a new record in 2014. Check out below the third batch of answers that we received from members of A Storm of Light, The Secret and Sofy Major.

Josh Graham (A Storm Of Light)

What are your top 10 releases of 2013?
1-Nick Cave - Push the Sky Away
2-Subrosa - More Constant Than The Gods
3-Oranssi Pazuzu - Valonielu
4-Monochromacy - Cement Cathedrals
5-Chelsea Wolfe - Pain Is Beauty
6-Meshuggah - Pitch Black
7-Haunted Horses - Watcher
8-The Knife - Shaking the Habitual
9-Intronaut - Habitual Levitations
10-Dreadlords - Demo

What’s the best concert you have seen this year?
Soundgarden at Hammerstein Ballroom

What band would you like to reunite and make a record in 2014?
Hair and Skin Trading Company

Michael Bertoldini (The Secret)

What are your top 10 releases of 2013?
It will be hard for me to do a top 10 of new releases since I haven't really listened to much new music this year.
1-Ensemble Pearl - s/t
2-My Bloody Valentine - MBV
3-Coffins - The Fleshlands
4-Bolzer - Aura
5-Grave Miasma - Odoris Sepolcrorum
6-Nails - Abandon All Life

What’s the best concert you have seen this year?
Black Sabbath at Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Coffins at Earthdom in Shin Okubo, Tokyo

What band would you like to reunite and make a record in 2014?
Cursed, the best hardcore band of the past 10 years.
Burning Witch, the heaviest band everrrrrr.

Mathieu Moulin (Sofy Major)

What are your top 10 releases of 2013?
1-Big Business - Battlefields Forever
2-Blockheads - This World Is Dead
3-Future Of The Left - How To Stop Your Brain In An Accident
4-Hook Worms - Pearl Mystic
5-Whores - Clean
6-Great Falls - Accidents Grotesque
7-Nails - Abandon All Life
8-Death Engine - Amen
9-Melvins - Tres Cabrones
10-Lustmord - The Word As Poxer

What’s the best concert you have seen this year?
Pigs at Cox18 in Milan, Italy
Hombre Malo at Raymond Bar in Clermont-Fd, France
Melvins at Trabendo in Paris, France
Pord at Parking in Vesoul, France
Lleroy at Freak Out Club in Bologna, Italy

What band would you like to reunite and make a record in 2014?
They've not disbanded, but I'd like to hear a new Keelhaul record.
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It's been a little over six months since The Secret’s fourth album “Agnus Dei” was highly praised in these pages for its chaotic, noisy and abrasive concoction of punk-crust fury and black metal nihilism. Now the Italian four-piece have released a new video for “May God Damn All Of Us” from that record, which was directed/edited by Rasmus G. Sejersen. Check it out below.


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Italians The Secret are back with their fourth and second album for Southern Lord Records “Agnus Dei”, a blistering effort that blends the best elements of black metal, crust and hardcore with an impressive and raging fury. We caught with guitarist Michael Bertoldini following their European trek with Converge, A Storm of Light and Touche Amore to know more about recent stint in the road and their touring habits.

First things first, how are things in The Secret camp at the moment? You have just got back from a European tour with Converge, Touché Amoré and A Storm Of Light. How did that go?

Things are great, we're at home being lazy for a little bit after the tour but we should start practicing again in few weeks since we're gonna play some headlining show in Italy in February. The tour with converge has been very hard because of the drives but all the shows have been killer and it's been an awesome experience. We were all sick, tired and sleep deprived at the end of the tour but I think it's still been the best touring experience we ever had so it's been totally worth it. 

I believe this was the first time you toured with Converge, who’s the band of your producer Kurt Ballou. What was like touring with them?

Converge is one of the best live bands around at the moment and playing with them has been very stimulating. It's incredible how a band that has been around for so long is still able to play with such intensity every night, it's very inspiring and i'm very proud of sharing the stage with them.

What were some of the good things and bad things you come across on tour? I heard that the Croatian authorities denied you entry into their country, what was that all about?

The best part has been having the chance to play in front of a large crowd basically every night and sharing the stage with very good bands. The worst part has been following the tour with a van and leaving pretty much every morning/night without sleeping or only sleeping for 3/4 hours. I remember that during the UK leg of the tour I’ve only slept for less than 12 hours in 5 days. We toured a lot before but this has been the most challenging experience we had so for.

Besides that unfortunate event, what’s one of the craziest, most fucked up thing that’s happened to you guys on the road?

Fortunately that episode has been the only seriously disappointing thing that happened during the tour. We tried to enter Croatia from Hungary and Croatian cops made us wait for more than 3 hours there before rejecting us, it seemed a kind of entertaining situation for them. They basically made us understand that they could do whatever they want, whenever they want. Very frustrating. We ended up driving to a very small Slovenian village, booking a room in a weird hotel and eating pizza at a spot that advertised hemp based pizza doe.
The morning after we all woke up around 8:30 since the hotel was unexpectedly hosting a Christmas Song Piano Concert in their hall. Weird experience.

How does the band get along on the road? I often hear bands complain that it can be quite stressful to share a van with other guys for days in row.

Spending a whole month in a van with the same people can get a bit frustrating at times but we all learnt how to deal with it. I think the most important think is trying to respect each other, it's the one and only basic rule for touring. I'm pretty good at isolating myself through reading and listening to music, it makes me feel like I’m having a little of privacy even if it's just an illusion. It's not really a lifestyle for everyone but I still enjoy going on tour since having the chance to play my music every night really gives my life a sense and make me forget about everything else.

What about the crowds, was there a place in particular where the fans receive you guys best?

It's kinda hard to tell, we really enjoyed playing everywhere during the last tour. Every country and every town are different and interesting in different ways. I think that Italy is probably still the country where we're doing best, fortunately we got a positive feedback since the album came out.

What’s next for The Secret, is there a US tour in the works?

We're making plans for 2013 right now, it's gonna be a very busy year. As I said we have some Italian shows on the way and then we have another Euro tour coming in April/May but I still can't say much more about it. Touring the USA again is definitely something we want to do but I don't think we'll be able to fly overseas before next Fall/Winter.


 
Following this interview The Secret has announced a new European tour, this time with Deafheaven. Check out the dates below: 

18.04.13 Germany Karlsruhe @ Stadtmitte
19.04.13 Belgium Durbuy @ Durbuy Rock Fest
20.04.13 France Rouen @ 106
21.04.13 France Paris @ Le Fleche D'or
23.04.13 Germany München @ Feierwerk
24.04.13 Italy Bologna @ Freakout
25.04.13 Italy Milano @ Lo Fi Club
27.04.13 Hungary Budapest @ Dürer Kert
29.04.13 Germany Berlin @ Magnet
30.04.13 Denmark Lyngby @ Templet
02.05.13 Sweden Stockholm @ IOGT-huset i Skarpnäck
04.05.13 Holland Arnhem @ Willemeen
06.05.13 UK Nottingham @ Rock City Basement
07.05.13 UK Glasgow @ Ivory Blacks
08.05.13 UK Leeds @ The Library
09.05.13 UK London @ O2 Academy Islington
10.05.13 Germany Köln @ MTC 

More info at: www.facebook.com/The-Secret
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On this mixtape we decided to explore different facades of the music we like and that influenced and keep influencing The Secret. As you can see/listen, part of the tape is strictly metal/hardcore/punk while other songs are still dark and heavy but with a different approach. When it comes to metal we love when music has physical, straight to the point and aggressive approach and is not overly processed or sound fake. At the same time we're convinced that more textural and psychedelic music can be as heavy and dark even without the need of loud guitars.
I hope you will enjoy our selection

Shora - Klahrelt from "Malval"
Katharsis - Thy Horror from "666"
Sunn O))) - Belurol Pusztit from "Oracle"
Assuck - Dataclast from "Misery Index"
Craft - Fuck The Universe from "Fuck the Universe"
Skitsystem - Det Samvetslosa Hates Plagor from "Stigmata"
Hellhammer - Messiah from "Demon Entrails"
Magma - De Futura from "Udu Wudu"

Michael Bertoldini and Lorenzo Gulminelli

THE SECRET

The Secret's new album Agnus Dei is out via Southern Lord.
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It’s no secret that we’re huge admirers of Italy’s most raging and vile musical export The Secret, their third full-length and Southern Lord debut “Solve et Coagula” was highly praised in these pages two years back when it was released.
Now, the hardcore-infused, nihilistic black metallers return with another shattering album that is even more chaotic, noisy and ferocious than its predecessor.
“Agnus Dei” is nothing if not abrasive and filthy in every way, with The Secret delivering frantic tempos, ripping riffs and piercing screams. These guys are pissed-off and the songs are simply relentless.
The band can go from some storming black-metal ("Darkness I Became" and "Post Mortem Nihil Est" for example) to some filthy, crusty sludge (“Heretic Temple” and “Vermin of Dust”) without ever loosing intensity or its sense of repugnance.
Bands like The Secret show no respect for the physical and mental health of their listeners, they simply force you take notice and remind you what extreme, hostile music is all about. (8) 

Band info: www.facebook.com/thesecret
Label info: www.southernlord.com
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