The members of Los Angeles based extreme prog metal outfit ANA KEFR are featured in a new interview with We Love Metal, discussing their new album The Burial Tree. An excerpt is available below.

You’ve only been around for about 3 years. You must be very pleased with the critical acclaim the band has received so far.

Rhiss D. Lopez: "'Very pleased' is an understatement. I know we’re still small fries in the grand scheme of things, but I’ve intuitively known from the beginning that the second album would be a landmark in the band’s history. I feel like we really found our unique voice in this album, and it has been overwhelmingly great to see such a powerfully positive reaction from pretty much everyone who has heard it. I’ve had my own moments of doubt about the album, not regarding the production quality or musicianship but specifically over the structure and complexity of it all. Part of me feared that we might be doing literally too much, and that no one would understand it. Probably every musician goes through this when they begin sharing their work with others. The songs that were my biggest concerns have ended up being the ones that are praised in almost every review, it basically shows me that I’m clueless. Everything I thought had the potential of being our downfall with this album has been called brilliant. I guess, for me, nothing is ever enough, I’m always applying a very critical ear and eye to our work so I always see room for improvement. It is really difficult to stand back and just enjoy it for what it is, so hearing so many people react positively to the album has kind of boosted my confidence and told my inner critic to shut up a little bit. The reviews and praise have been wonderful, the album has been received so well and it’s just a great feeling to see that something we’ve all invested so much time and money and thought into has been more than worth the stress and sweat."

I’ve read online about certain political/religious views of the band. Can you explain to our readers (who have been asking) why these views are so controversial.

Rhiis D. Lopez: "Well, we’re not exactly quiet about our views on religion, we’re all atheists, agnostics and/or humanists, and the lyrical content I write reflects this. Ana Kefr is Arabic meaning 'I am infidel', and the name fits the band and the concepts behind the lyrics. A lot of metal bands are against religion, this is nothing new to us, but we really like to get involved in what we see as important issues. We are regularly a part of free thought events like the Atheist Alliance International convention, where a lot of huge names in science, entertainment and philosophy (Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett; even Bill Maher was there!) come together in the name of logic and reason. Where other bands sprinkle in irreligious sentiments among themes like zombies and Satan, we stick to our ideals and don’t swerve off the path. Not every song is about religion, that would get old fast, but I personally like to see Ana Kefr as a thinking person’s band. Sure, some people will get into it and will ignore the lyrics and just enjoy the brutality of the sound, but I think the fact that there is an actual philosophy and a lot of thought behind the lyrics will appeal to those fans who not only want good music but also something that will get them thinking, something that they can conceptually connect with and relate to. There is this huge scene of Christian metal, everyone is humping the Jesus bandwagon these days, and it is very, very important that an alternative is available. We are in no way a reaction to that Christian trend. Non-believers are rising in numbers, I think we’re at a point in history where science has finally made it impossible for religion to ignore it, and so many people are losing the chains of faith and are embracing a more liberated, enriched humanist philosophy. I don’t know of any other bands offhand that really do what we do, but I believe we aren’t the only band who is part of the breakers of that free thought wave. The enlightened minds of new generations need art that doesn’t reflect Bronze Age ideals and barbarism, but instead the freedom and philosophy of 21st century humanism. We are, musically and conceptually, a step in that direction."

Click here for the complete interview.

The Brial Tree will be released on May 3rd. It was produced and mixed by Ana Kefr and David Franklin, engineered by David Franklin. The cover art ("The Watcher") was created by Dutch artist Bianca Van Der Werf. Check it out below:

The official tracklisting:

'Ash-Shahid'

'Emago'

'Monody'

'In The House Of Distorted Mirrors'

'Thaumatrope'

'Bathos And The Iconoclast'

'The Zephirus Circus'

'Jeremiad'

'Apoptosis'

'Parasites'

'Paedophilanthrope'

'Fragment'

'The Blackening'

'The Collector'

Check out the band's new website at this location.