INTERVIEW WITH NEROCAPRA

Drink the blood and enjoy the madness...

C.N. - HELL-o Cadaveric Warbrother Mirco, first of all I would like to welcome to the band NEROCAPRA to the perverse underworld of MURDER RECORDS and thank you for your time and willingness to answer this nefarious interview for the CADAVERIC NOISELETTER. To begin with I would like to ask what made you start this project in 2003 after a long journey in the depths of the Italian Underground, can you introduce yourself and reveal us a little more about the origins of NEROCAPRA?
MIRCO - Hi Danihell, It’s a pleasure to be here with you and with your subscribers. Nerocapra satisfies our will to play extreme metal and to honor the distorted and extreme sounds of the early Eighties that still fascinate us today. They were my first years in music. Despite having played several genres, my heart brought me back to metal. Long story short, the Nerocapra journey started in 2003, after having found all the other members of the band. In 2009 our lineup was established, we recorded the first tracks in studio and we played a few gigs. Some of our signature riffs had already been composed in 1990. The will to play those sounds again are still the lifeblood of the project today. Our sound is raw, heavy, dark. Nerocapra plays ‘primitive metal.

C.N. - Over the years, NEROCAPRA has undergone some changes in its line-up, so I would like to ask you to introduce us to the current line-up of NEROCAPRA and if possible tell us a bit more about the objectives that NEROCAPRA intend to achieve as a band with this new line-up?
MIRCO - Our lineup today: Massimo Tosco (vocals), Mirco Rizzi (guitars and vocals), Raoul Ronco (bass), Roberto Ripollino (drums). We’ve been friends for years and this creates a good synergy among us, helping to keep the project alive with our key goals: keeping on playing what we like most, with passion and straightforwardness. We will be on stage in 2025 and this will be a good milestone, as we haven’t performed live since the pandemic. We are currently rehearsing new riffs and ideas that we would like to release on vinyl or on a 5-track ep.

C.N. - NEROCAPRA's first recording was only recorded in 2009, when you released your first demo entitled "Demo 2009". What was the reason that led to a long period of 6 years until you were able to present your first work in NEROCAPRA's discography?
MIRCO - Our lineup required a drummer who could and would commit to the project. Finding the right person was not easy. Being passionate about things beyond music is quite a peculiar trait. Nerocapra is more than a musical project, it’s a group of people.

C.N. - In 2011 you decided to independently record your first album entitled "Vox Inferi" which would be released in CD format by FOAd RECORDS. In 2020 WARHELL RECORDS made a digital reissue of this album. Can you tell us a little more about this album?
MIRCO - ‘Vox Inferi’ was planned, recorded and produced entirely by Nerocapra like all our other albums. I curated the recording and mastering with Daniele and Beppe Mondini, who had joined us shortly before for drums. Everything was homemade but the actual printing of the LP. It was big fun and it fully represents the Nerocapra spirit of those years.

C.N. - After the release of the first album and some live dates, Daniele Brusaschetto one of the founders of NEROCAPRA, decided to leave the band, but that didn't make you give up and even with the line-up reduced to 3 members you decided to go into the studio to record your second album entitled "Mefisto Manna" which would be released digitally and also in Digipack CD format by WARHELL RECORDS with the support of JUSTIFIED VIOLENT RECORDS. Would you like to tell us a little more about this album that presents a rawer sound and that manages to encompass a more Black Thrash side to your sound?
MIRCO - ‘Mefisto Manna’ was completely conceived by Beppe and me. At that time, Nerocapra was a duo, as Daniele had left. Today Nerocapra is a quartet, with a bass player, too. Until 2024 our lineup included two guitars/vocals and drums. Talking about Mefisto, the desire to play and carry on the project led us to this album, which deeply resonates with me. Beppe, who also played in other bands, used to live far away from Hellbox (our studio), took care of the drum sections. Mefisto introduced us to a Black Metal audience, and this was due to the production. This pleased us, even though Nerocapra is a sort of cauldron that encompasses metal, Death Metal, thrash metal and black metal.

C.N. - As time went by, Alessandro Battezzati joined the band to complete the quartet and that allowed NEROCAPRA to compose and record a new demo in 2016, entitled "Il Carnefice Pastore" and released independently by NEROCAPRA? What can you tell us about this recording, which was released on cassette with a limited edition of 120 copies?
MIRCO - Playing live with Alessandro and Beppe and conceiving the tape ‘Il carnefice pastore’ was really fun. We personally curated the graphics: all the120 tapes are unique, as they were smeared with animal blood one by one. We honestly felt as tape butchers!

C.N. - In 2018 your demo "Il Carnefice Pastore" would be re-released in Brazil by DAMNATIO MEMORIAE RECORDS in Split Cassette format with the Brazilian band BLASPHEMOUS SEXFAGO. Can you talk a little more about this release and how the opportunity to make this split came about?
MIRCO - During the promotion of the tape, ‘Frater Malignant’ of Damnatio Memoriae records got in touch with us: he fosters tape productions and he proposed us this split, in a very simple and straightforward way.

C.N. - Still in 2018, your drummer Beppe announced his departure from the band and was replaced by Roberto Ripollino. However, both were an integral part of the composition of NEROCAPRA's third album, entitled "Decomposizione". This album would be released in CD format and digitally by WARHELL RECORDS. Your sound on this album, despite being influenced by wild Thrash Metal, manages to be faster and where a return to the band's origins emerges with its primitive and raw Death Metal. What can you tell us about this album, where the sound decomposition is presented in a violent and fast way that pushing us against the wall?
MIRCO - This work took us back in the days, it felt like being back in the Eighties, musically speaking. Beautiful days spent playing and creating songs just for the sake of it. The album got good reviews and allowed us to get back on stage. And then, the pandemic stroke hard.

C.N. - In 2019, this miserable planet plunged into an abrupt pandemic, paralyzing the humanity. It was at this time that NEROCAPRA was faced with the departure of Alessandro due to lack of motivation to continue as a member and leaving the band as a duo again. This did not stop you from moving forward and it was also at this time that NEROCAPRA took the opportunity to compose and record their fourth album entitled "La Serpe In Seno" which would be released digitally and in CD format by WARHELL RECORDS in 2023. The sound of this album presents a more raw and less fast sound where your symphonies encompass into a more morbid Death Metal. What would you like to tell us about this cavernous album?
MIRCO - Since we were forced to hit pause for some time, Roberto and I started working on a new album. ‘La serpe in seno’ is probably the most ‘relaxed’ album we have ever made. It took us a lot of time to create it, and this process was a true pleasure. Those hard times were more bearable thanks to the passion that moved us. Fabio Lipera (Warhell Records) and Ezio Carello (Wine and Fog Productions) showed a lot of interest towards us, and our rotten and obscure music.

C.N. - NEROCAPRA is now a quartet again, with Massimo Tosco taking on vocals and Raoul Ronco taking on bass duties to complete the line-up, which already included Mirco Rizzi on guitar and vocals and Roberto Ripollino on drums. Now that the line-up is complete, what can we expect for the future of NEROCAPRA?
MIRCO - As I told you before, in 2025 we will be on stage and we’ll be live in some festivals. We’re ready for new sounds and ideas thanks to the contribution of Max and Raoul. We can’t wait to be on stage together again, doing what we like most.

C.N. - I know that NEROCAPRA is preparing to start composing the fifth album with the new band. What can you tell or reveal to us about this? In your opinion, what are the strong points that you consider to be relevant in the evolution of NEROCAPRA and what can we expect from the band's sound for the next album?
MIRCO - Raoul's distorted bass lines will explode on our new tracks, as it’s the first time that Nerocapra has a bass player. Max's voice will growl our new lyrics, with a raw, deep primitive metal sound.

C.N. - NEROCAPRA's sound has evolved consistently over the years, always maintaining a primitive essence where we can be crushed by a more Death Metal oriented side and run over by the faster parts where your wild Thrash Metal influences are linked. With the new line-up, do you think we will be swallowed up by a more brutal sound and tormented by sick nightmares? What message does NEROCAPRA intend to continue to convey with its new lyrics and songs?
MIRCO - Death, Thrash and Black sounds, no frills whatsoever. I want to strongly emphasize that violence and evil in each of us are intrinsically human.

C.N. - It is still premature and we do not have a conclusion regarding the possibility of MURDER RECORDS joining forces with NEROCAPRA in the release of the next album. However, if this possibility is confirmed, what are your expectations regarding this possibility becoming a reality? What was it that caught your attention in the work that MURDER RECORDS develops to carry out its releases with maximum repugnance and support the bands that decide to penetrate its perverse underworld? What NEROCAPRA expects from MURDER RECORDS?
MIRCO - Nerocapra has always produced and promoted its music, regardless of the support of labels and managements. Everything that fosters this way of making music is a honor and pleasure, especially when it’s made for the sake of passion and not just for money. We are honored to collaborate, given the passion that oozes and bleeds from Murder Records' press releases.

C.N. - We are coming to the end of this interview, so before I finish I would like to thank you for taking the time to respond to this interview. Now I will leave this space free and open for you to say anything you think is relevant and that has not yet been said or addressed in this interview. This space is yours to thank or tell fuck off whoever you want to...
MIRCO - Greetings to all readers and maniacs of the sounds of the devil. Let's support music and all those realities that move this world. Stay primitive and good luck for your projects!

Interview made by Danihell Slaughter.