Metal legends Venom - the 2017 lineup guided by Cronos along with guitarist Rage and drummer Dante - landed at Sweden Rock to offer a black metal outburst in an old school way. Metal-Rules.com had a unique opportunity to sit down with the whole band and discuss several interesting and fascinating topics, including forthcoming new music. An excerpt follows:

Metal-Rules: From The Very Depths, the album. It was two years ago, almost three soon. So you have any plans for the next one?

Cronos: “Yeah, yeah. We’re always writing.”

Metal-Rules: Are you still signed with Spinefarm records?

Cronos: “Yeah, yeah. No, no. We don’t want to go. The sister company is Universal. We’re just sitting behind it all. That’s where we get the backing from, and it took me a long time, to get a big label to actually to have the confidence in a metal band. Because yes, we got ignored and things were coming out on independent labels everywhere. We were never getting the backing. We’re doing alright with Universal at the moment. Because they’re a fucking massive company and they’re getting behind the band named Venom. Which I just I think is fucking very special. Now you can just go and make a quick phone call, and then get off a train. Walk into the Universal building. Get your tag and go upstairs and go and sit with the fucking manager, that’s a special thing. That’s fucking cool. Those guys are happy to have you there, and that’s great. Because once upon a time, you’ve seen the EMI thing that put out there? That’s what it used to be like, and that letter came back with a tape that I had sent. And EMI didn’t even play it.”

Metal-Rules: Somebody lied then…

Cronos: “Yeah. It took the time to write that FFFFFFFFFFFF YOU YOU YOU YOU YOU “fuck off.” Now to also see EMI being bought out, hahaha.”

Metal-Rules: But going back to the original question, you have plans for the next Venom album?

Cronos: “Plans are put into each other. They’re all like a progression, as this band grows, the albums grow. The songs get more complex, they get deeper and heavier, and production gets better. We’ve already put three songs together for the EP, which was only delayed because there is a backload of vinyl now. Everybody is buying fucking vinyl, and it’s really hard to get the pressings. The label was doing one, but we couldn’t get in. So, we kind of just put it back a bit. But the EP will get released this year, and then the album gets released in 2018. So, you’ll hear from the EP the direction, about is pretty much where we are now.”

Read the full interview at Metal-Rules.com.

(Photo - Marko Syrjala)