Please tell us about the history of your band and its members.
Malhkebre was formed in 2002 in southwestern France by vocalist Eklezjas ‘Tik Berzerk, guitarist Messiatanik Armrek and Crüxvheryn K. as bass guitarist, who latter departed from the band.and focused on his own project, Darvulia. The first drummer leaved too. Kristik AK (on bass) and Shamaanik B. (on drums) then joined and the assembly is now complete. Malhkebre is the Messenger, the voice of the Lord. It belongs to the religious organization The Apostles of Ignominy, with Darvulia, Malekhamoves and Sektarism, and a few more individuals, not necessarily musicians themselves, but sharing the task to spread the new satanik  evangelium. I, N.Kapalika, joined this cult several years ago and serve as a Disciple of Ignominy. I will speak here on behalf of the Apostles, as everyone of us is only one brick of this Church. Our voice is His voice.

How would you describe your style? Which bands influenced your music? 
Malhkebre’s style is rather simple to describe: Black Metal. You can add a lot of substantives as religious, fanatic, orthodox etc. but why complicate things? The fact is that Malhkebre plays Black Metal the way it is supposed to be: brutal, uncompromising and devoured with spiritual faith. All descriptions, interpretations and so on are only mundane concepts, which can be useful to make the message more intelligible for metalheads masses. They always need descriptions and big words to fill their empty discussions and give themselves an identity, as if playing “true”, “brutal”, “symphonic” or whatever else black metal will change something… Only faith makes difference, and I think it’s preferable to pose things simply instead of building a monument of self deception. The terms “orthodox” or “religious” are important, and permitted to create a welcomed division within the scene at a time when it was needed. But, since a few years, the serpent bite his tail and now these words became almost meaningless considering the flood of bands claiming to be “religious” because Watain or Deathspell Omega told so, but knowing nothing about what it really takes to follow a spiritual path. Malhkebre is a profoundly religious entity from the start, but words are not what one should focus on.

Why should a metalhead buy your demos/albums?  
That’s a good question, and maybe should I add another one: why metalheads SHOULDN’T listen to us? As I said, Malhkebre is the Messenger of the One True Lord. Our music is religious. Our path is the one of individuals honestly seeking spiritual elevation. It is no entertainment. It is no profane music. It is more than Art. The Way of Ignominy is a long and hard path that we will tread for years. It’s a lifetime burden and fight. In fact, it’s not “metal”. It seems that most of people in the scene are here to have good times, play music they like and try to build up their identity. And maybe to have their fifteen minutes of fame. That’s fine, I’m not against that and I even enjoy it myself to some extent. But we seek something else, and it’s something difficult to understand. We committed ourselves to Ignominy, and to be honest Malhkebre is just a tool. It works, and we are proud of it, but when the band’s time will be over we’ll stick to our beliefs and fight another way. Maybe with another musical project. Maybe with another form of art. Maybe by devoting ourselves completely to religion and esoterism. We will still pray while others will go back to their normal lives, normal job, normal wives and children and dogs and TV. They will cherish their “satanic” years or be ashamed of it. We will not, because it will remain our reality, far more interesting than a normal and less perilous life. Why should or should’nt you listen to us? It’s up to everyone to ask him- or herself this question. The Apostles don’t perform music but a cult. Do you REALLY want to join it, take the risk to see illumination and lose a part of your life? Or do you want to stick to the safe “beer and metal brotherhood” and enjoy your youth without asking yourself too much questions? Make your choice.

What have you released so far and how were your releases received by the public/media?  
First a two-tracks demo-tape, In His name, in 2004, limited to a very few amounts of copy. Not for real distribution but rather to gather the first few individuals worthy of the cult. First “real” release was the Prostration 10” MLP in 2006, later re-released on cd. A split 7”ep with faithful crusaders Aosoth in 2009, The truth through salt. Not just a conventional split with bonus material but an interesting concept with the two entities exploring the black side of alchemy. And at last the first album, Revelation, released on late spring by I, Voidhanger Records after a long and tiresome gestation. The reception was so far pretty good in general, even if Malhkebre remains an underground entity.

Do you play live as well? How's your live activity so far?  
The live ceremonies are one of the most important things. Listening to albums at home is fine, rehearsing and recording is crucial, but a prayer can only be properly expressed within a live environment. It’s when you are onstage that you can really abandon yourself to these mysteries and summon the forces of the unconscious. I know that it has become a kind of trend to label concerts “rituals”. Everybody do that nowadays… but don’t be fooled: it’s for real. There are some dark energies lying within the body and soul. Seems that a certain amount of bands and fans don’t fully realize it. A live gig IS a summoning of forces. And when done properly it can give strong and even dangerous results. Physical violence can occur, and sometimes it does, even against the audience. Eklezjas’Tik Berzerk’s wrath can be driven against some faithfull devotees, who praise the band and get beaten in return. I admit that it may seem unfair, but when the doors open who can predict what will happen? Malhkebre has played with a lot of prominent bands these years, like Revenge, Hell Militia, Destroyer 666 or Year Of No Light to name a few, and made a European tour with brothers Christicide in 2010. More live dates are scheduled in the very near future; in France and across Europe.

What should labels/zines/promoters know about your band? Why should they be interested in it?  
That it’s dead serious. A promoter has to know that even if we’re fine people, sometimes the unpredictable can occur. But hell, isn’t that what black metal is supposed to be? The scene is quite peaceful nowadays, gigs are parties and people are cool. And so are we. Until the Voice of the Lord touches us, makes our souls melt and unleash some fury. We don’t control it, and we don’t try to. It’s a question of self-abandon to find revelation, to loose control is specifically what we seek, what dark magic is about. Be forewarned.

What plans do you have for the near future as a band?  
First: touring everywhere possible. We’re  open to all propositions, be it in Europe or abroad. We tried to hit the American continent last years, but it was cancelled. We hope to meet the maniacs there in a near future. The first album, Revelation, has just been released, a re-release on vinyl is planned but not for the moment. And the second album is already partially written. Malhkebre had to face a lot of problematic issues and things have run slowly these last years, which was of course frustrating but the future will see the assembly stronger and more productive.

Where can we listen to your band and where can we buy your stuff? 
Digital music is not the most appropriate media to embrace the darkness of Ignominy, but no one can do without that nowadays… Some samples can be listened to on various websites (http://malhkebre.bandcamp.com/ or https://soundcloud.com/i-voidhanger-records/malhkebre-in-pulverem  for exemple). But we still have a strong preference for physical formats, especially analog ones. Not for the sake of “old school” way of making things but because only a cd or LP can offer both the audio and visual stimuli necessary to dive into spiritual abyss.  Necrocosm is the official distributor of all the previous releases. Tape, MPL and EP are sold out now. But the cd version of Prostration is still available, and you can obtain Revelation from both I, Voidhanger and Necrocosm. This is our gospel. This is our declaration of war against the mediocrity of the nowadays scene. This world and its values have to be burned down, and so are you. Only the ashes will be the fertile soil where the Devil’s seeds will grow. AMDG.

July 2014