Twenty years of existence, an uncompromising sound, and a nihilistic vision – NEROCAPRA is not a band that follows trends but an embodiment of the underground metal scene in its most primitive form.
From their first demos to their latest album, “La Serpe In Seno”, this Italian quartet has been shaping raw and grim music, disregarding modern production trends or genre labels. Their style is a contaminated blend of death, thrash, and black metal, with lyrics drawing inspiration from philosophy, personal experiences, and Italian literature. In this interview for NECROZINE, the band members reveal the story behind their beginnings, the challenges of the underground scene, and their plans for the future – as well as why their music sounds like a nightmare you can’t wake up from.
Hey guys! First of all, thanks a lot for taking the time to answer these questions. So, NEROCAPRA is a name that sounds dark and ominous – what is the story behind it, and how does it reflect the spirit of the band?
The name recalls two images dear to the extreme genre, namely the color Black synonymous with darkness, fear and unknown and the goat that for the Christian world represents the devil, symbol of evil, it sounded good and rendered the sound of the band well.
The band has existed since 2003, but your first demo was only recorded in 2009. What caused this time gap, and what were your beginnings like?
After years of touring an experimental music project Mirco and Daniele wanted to go back to metal, but the metal of their childhood, the rotten, dirty one of the Tapes, to do so they had to complete the lineup which then turned out to be more difficult than expected.
When the lineup had the necessary stability, the demo was released and the band left for a short tour around Italy.
How did you come together, and what was your initial vision for the sound and approach to music?
As already said Mirco and Daniele were already playing together but doing other things, NEROCAPRA was born from the desire to return to making raw, dark and uncompromising metal.
Your music is raw and aggressive but has a distinct atmosphere. How important is it for you that the songs are more than just pure riffing and relentless blasting?
Our music wants to take the listener into a world made of nihilism, sloth, pain and where the flesh acts as a mere casing for a soul that is often corrupted, the instrumental part therefore accompanies the text on a journey that must leave those who listen to the song with that claustrophobic sense mixed with annoyance and must not leave them indifferent.
How much has the Italian metal scene influenced your sound? Do you feel like part of a particular movement, or do you follow your own path?
The Italian scene that belongs to us is that of the late 80s early 90s that included bands of substance such as BULLDOZER, FUNERAL ORATION, GORY BLISTER, HEADCRASHER, NECRODEATH, OMICIDIO, SCHIZO but that unfortunately apart from a couple of exceptions could not cross the borders, over the years then things have changed a lot and Italian bands think of LACUNA COIL, FLASHGOD APOCALIPSE have in fact cleared the Italian metal, we are part of that underground that proceeds on its way not inclined to fashion and business and like us many other bands animated by the passion for metal and its nuances.
Since you play old-school death/thrash/black metal, how important is it for you to preserve that raw sound compared to modern production trends?
NEROCAPRA is a project that makes spontaneity its strong point, each album, each single song is a story in itself, they are conceived based on the inner vision that strikes us at that moment, the dark, claustrophobic sounds are a distinguishable mark in our sound because in music we vent all the rottenness that everyday life impresses on us, a relief valve, a sort of monster that comes out of the bowels.
Which cannot be represented by clean sounds and perfect arrangements.
What are your key musical influences? Do you rely on the classics, or do you seek inspiration from lesser-known sources?
The NEROCAPRA matrix certainly comes from the sounds of extreme metal from the 80s and early 90s, but they are not our only influences, over the years each of us has had a different musical path, this makes NEROCAPRA a reality that although apparently dedicated to an old style metal, cannot be defined as predictable, each album, even if raw and rotten, sounds different and this is what we like and this is NEROCAPRA.
What does the songwriting process in NEROCAPRA look like? Do you have a clearly defined approach, or do you let things come together spontaneously?
Surely the second one you said, the song is born naturally without sitting down at the table in a brainless way, with everyone’s collaboration in order to obtain a homogeneous result, once the line has been established we work on stylistic refinement. But I would say that spontaneity is the predominant part.
Your lyrics are dark and raw – do they come from personal experiences, philosophical ideas, or are they purely fictional?
A bit of all 3 things, it draws from everyday life, from what happens to us and those around us, from negative experiences, difficult moments and pain, but also from literature whether it deals with real or imaginary subjects, for example “La fortezza” a song from “La serpe in seno” takes inspiration from Dino Buzzati’s “Desert of the Tartars”, which I highly recommend reading. But others like hunger for air from “Mefisto manna” talk about the suffering experienced by a very close person. The lyrics deal with pain, loneliness, the difficulty of living caught up in the daily routine of our lives.
Death, thrash, black – your music blends elements of all these genres. Do you feel that the audience perceives you as leaning more toward one of them, or do you not care about genre labels at all?
We honestly don’t care about being labeled, we play extreme metal or as we like primitive metal, maybe that’s why we fit into all genres without distinction.
If you could play with any band from the past, who would you choose?
Here I would let everyone answer 😂
Max: I would play in a Grind band, early NAPALM DEATH, CARCASS or TERRORIZER.
Raoul: MORBID ANGEL or DEATH
Mirco: ENTOMBED absolutely.
Rob: HOLY TERROR, SABBAT, CARNIVOR…
Your discography shows an evolution in sound while remaining fully committed to an old-school approach. How would you describe your sound’s development from the first album to today?
The purpose of NEROCAPRA is to tell the suffering, the restlessness, the inner annihilation, through music each song produced has its own story and the sound that comes out of it is the rawest expression, more than evolution we could define it as a tortuous and troubled path that passes from concepts that require brutality to others that require a more catacomb-like and dark sound but always remaining faithful to our style.
The album “La Serpe In Seno” brought a slower, more morbid sound compared to your previous releases. Was that a conscious decision, or just the natural course of things?
I think COVID played a decisive role, because the album was born in that period, the band had remained a duo and the difficulties in playing were objective, I think it was a more relaxed and introspective album that saw the light spontaneously and without any rush, an album certainly more mature but which does not distort the suffering and nihilistic attitude of the band.
Since you have an old-school approach, do you notice differences in reactions between younger and older fans at your concerts?
We are testing the new lineup and in the live shows we have had so far the audience was closer to our age, so I can’t judge. I hope to be able to notice these differences soon, since we still have some concerts in the next few months
The Italian metal scene is known for its passionate bands and audience – how do you see its current state? Is there enough support for bands that want to do things their own way? Do you follow any bands you would recommend?
Something is awakening in the undergrowth, thanks to the desire and tenacity of some small underground groups like Wine and fog or Church of crown or WarHell, who work hard to produce bands, organize concerts and festivals, but in Italy there is little space for the underground, the venues work with bookings and playing is a feat, there is too much fear of screwing up the evening and above all people do not want to pay the bands.
There are bands to point out, from PUTRIDITY to VOX INFERI to name two extreme genres, but the movement is churning out new and old valuable groups.
Do you prefer small, sweaty clubs or big stages? Where do you feel most at home? What is the craziest thing that has happened to you on tour or at a concert? What is the weirdest or most unpleasant comment you have received about your music?
Absolutely small clubs, not because we disdain large spaces, on the contrary, playing at a festival would be great but the project we’re carrying forward, our sound, develops better within definitely smaller environments.
Due to training problems we haven’t been able to bring our proposal live much, so I’ll tell you that the craziest thing will happen at the next concert, because at metal concerts you never get bored. I have nothing to report about the unpleasant comments either, but you know you can’t please everyone.
Now that you are a full-fledged quartet again, what are your plans for the future? A new album is already in the works – what kind of sound can we expect? Will you stick to Italian lyrics, or do you see yourselves transitioning to English on the new album?
Playing live as much as possible creating the right mix between the members bringing the name NEROCAPRA back to people’s ears, then closing ourselves in the room and starting to work on new material of fucking Primitive metal, dirty, claustrophobic and sulphurous. The next album will be 100% NEROCAPRA.
Concerning language, we will see at the moment the emotions that the single piece will give us, nothing is precluded in the past we have used both Italian and English sometimes even in the same song.
If you had to compare your music to a movie, which one would it be and why?
Probably “La casa dalle finnestre che ridono”, an Italian cult film from the 70s, disturbing and morbid, that even today, 45 years later, watching it leaves a sense of uneasiness not indifferent
Top 3 Italian beers?
Among the industrial breweries I would mention Menabrea, Castello, Pedavena, but among the craft breweries that I personally prefer there are an infinite number of very good ones.
FINAL WORDS – Whatever you want to say to close the interview: a message, a curse, a philosophical quote – whatever you want!
First of all, thanks to NecroZine for the space dedicated to us, to all the people who wanted to immerse themselves in reading this interview. 2025 will see us busy live and writing new songs for the next album, we hope to hear from you soon with some news.
In the meantime STAY PRIMITIVE!
Follow NEROCAPRA:
