www.facebook.com/mercaptan.band
From: Romania
Sounds like: Thrash Metal
1. How did you get started with music and how did you develop your sound? Who thought of the name “Mercaptan" and is there any meaning behind it?
I (Kovács Zoltán) started really getting into music when I was very young. I saw the "End of an era" DVD by Nightwish. And after that I started to learn how to learn metal songs on guitar and that's how our sound developed basically. Also for the last 3 years I've also been studying classical guitar, I guess that added something to the sound too.
2. What do you want people to take away from your music?
Whatever they want honestly, I'm not here to tell anybody what they should or shouldn't think about our music. Music is very subjective, everybody likes different things. If someone likes our music or relates to some lyrics and feels like he could take away something from it, then good for him, if not, then good for him too. I'd like people to understand our music in their own unique way and not through mine or anybody else's point of view.
3. How would you describe your sound to the average listener?
I'd say it's a mixed bag between the big four of thrash metal and N.W.O.B.H.M. and sometimes with small influences from Nightwish, progressive metal and classical music.
4. Who are three bands you’d like to tour with?
Well keeping it realistic I'd say Continoom from Hungary, they really have a killer live show, Crematory from Germany and if I really want to go unrealistic, then maybe Mercyful Fate.
5. How has Covid affected what you do as a band?
It actually was quite good for Mercaptan, because I had a lot of time to write and record the album. I'm stil in high school so a lot of time freed up ny only having online classes.
6. What’s your take on the current state of Thrash Metal?
Most of the bands have this "It needs be fast and really difficult just because I can", and I'm that way too, but sometimes people forget about what makes a song, a song. And that I think is melody, which is not too common in thrash metal nowadays.
7. What’s the current music scene like locally there in Romania?
It's the same as everywhere else, most of the people listen to really bad trap, don't get me wrong there are some decent to good trap songs too, but most of it is crap. Oh, and we have another popular thing called "manele" which is basically pop with really wierd turkish traditional music influences. This "manele" thing is really meh to me and sometimes it can get quite annoying. There is an underground metal scene too, but it's not the most evolved. Compared to other countries I'd describe it as "an eh-meh to good-ish".
8. What’s your take on the royalties that streaming services pay out to artists?
Well you certainly get less money than "back in the old days" when I wasn't even born, but considering the fact that there are squillions of artists on these streaming services, it's quite alright, because no owner of any streaming service has that amount of money. So in conclusion I wouldn't mind if the royalties were higher, but I'm not complaining.
9. What’s next for Mercaptan?
Right now I'm struggling with finding members for the band because there aren't a lot of metal musicians around my area. But if I manage to find some people, then it's gigging time. But probably the next will be another album.
10. Any shoutouts?
Haggard! I know they're a pretty big band, but whenever I ask somebody if they know them, everyone says no. And the other too would be the already mentioned Continoom from Hungary and Grinder form Romania.
