There’s a lot in the Bible that could lead to a hell of a metal song. However, most metal bands don’t even bother to look inside to see what’s up. It turns out there is tons of blood and conflict and sacrifice! Indianapolis heavy doom hitters Lavaborne looked to the good book to inspire their track “Mortal Pride,” from their debut Black Winged Gods, which we are streaming today.
Wise Blood Records will release Black Winged Gods on October 1st. Stream the new track below – it’s three-plus minutes of Cirith Ungol and Candlemass taking a detour through the Midwest. Read a quick Q&A with vocalist Chris Latta to learn more about these Midwest bruisers while you listen.
Can you tell us about the track we’re premiering today?
Chris Latta: I originally wrote the structure for ‘Mortal Pride’ back in college around 2010. I distinctly remember learning the bassline to Iron Maiden’s ‘Ides of March’ only to land on this progression. There’s also much inspiration from Black Sabbath’s Tyr, particularly the song ‘Heaven In Black.’ Thankfully it’s developed quite a bit since then, as the guys added some stellar leads and extra segments. The lyrics are about the Tower of Babel in Genesis, which men built in an attempt to reach the heavens only to be foiled in a divine rage. The first couple verses are a pretty straight retelling, with the third admonishing God as the true figure of hubris. It certainly captured the disgust I felt in my first attempt to read the Bible in my early twenties.
How did the band get together?
Brandon Signorino and I formed Lavaborne in 2017. I’d wanted to start a band in the vein of more traditional heavy metal and figured he would be a great person for that. We released a demo that fall, and then the other three guys were recruited to start gigging from there.
Did you write and record all the album during the pandemic, and if so, what were the challenges?
Most of the songs were written and arranged around 2017-2018 though I’d had skeletons for some of these songs going back even earlier than that. The recording process did take longer than initially planned. Much of that was due to members moving around the city and adjusting to different spaces and schedules. Our drummer Max produced the album and did an excellent job of keeping everything cohesive, with B-Sig playing a key role. Thankfully, we recorded enough of the album before the pandemic, so we could get things done without many people in the studio. We also took precautions and rescheduled sessions if somebody wasn’t feeling well. Thankfully there weren’t any COVID cases in the Lavaborne camp.
What’s next for the band – are there any plans to hit the road, or are you taking a wait-and-see attitude?
We’re hoping to play out more and expand our reach once the album is out, but we also want to make sure we’re cautious about it. We’ve got a couple of dates here in the Midwest later this fall that we’ll hopefully be able to keep on the table, and it would be terrific to see some new places in 2022. The safety of everybody seeing us along with ourselves and everybody’s loved ones is the biggest priority.
