LOMM: Can you give a little biographical and historical info; who is involved in the band, and how did you guys meet up?
Michał Kustra: Hello everyone! We are Dargor from Krosno, Poland and we play melodic black metal. In 2018 I’ve started making music as the one-man project. After recording the first three songs I’ve received the proposition of playing the live show. It was a good concert with Furia in Warmia in Rock Klub Iron, Krosno. I’ve made a few phone calls to my old friends and that’s how the lineup was completed. I knew guys from the previous local bands I’ve played before. Dargor is: Michał Kustra (lead guitar, vocal), Damian Muszyński (bass, vocal), Michał Socha (guitar), Maciej Socha (drums) and Dawid Warchoł (keyboard).
LOMM: Pandemic has taken an emotional toll on everyone yet the arts have been hit especially hard. The musicians are vulnerable to financial upheaval. How have you guys have been holding up?
Michał Kustra: The situation wasn’t so hard for our band. Each of us has other job and we were holding well. The music is mostly for fun in our case. The only thing we couldn’t do was playing the live shows. At least we could compose and record some new stuff.
LOMM: On the other hand you seem to have had a productive time. Is that right?
Michał Kustra: Yeah, we have finished and released our debut album “Descent Into Chaos”. You can listen to it entirely on our Youtube channel. We have also composed five completely new songs. We already practice them on rehearsals and prepare to record another album. For sure it wasn’t wasted time musically by any means.
LOMM: We love black metal at LOMM, obviously you do too 🙂 And you’re good at it. What does it means to you, why did you choose this genre?
Michał Kustra: We all just love black metal, always listened to it, and wanted to play it. The choice of genre was easy and obvious for us. Black metal can be aggressive but have beautiful melodies and atmosphere at the same time. We like it a lot and it’s our favorite genre of heavy music.
LOMM: How did the initial musical and thematic elements evolve?
Michał Kustra: We started with a simple and raw approach. Our music was referring to traditional black metal from Norway. Later, our sound became more melodic and atmospheric. It has a lot more space and sounds more modern I would say. We’ll continue this direction on our future record. We already work on a couple of new songs and they have a similar style.
LOMM: Are you happy with your product? What aspects of it do you think you guys nailed, and what parts do you think you could improve upon?
Michał Kustra: We’re very happy when it comes to the sound and compositions. I think it’s the best we could do at the current moment. I am personally proud of that record in general. Of course, many things can be improved in the future. We work on more technical and ambitious songs. We also plan to use more professional equipment to sound better and more powerful.
LOMM: How has the overall reception been?
Michał Kustra: The most of reactions and opinions were positive which makes us happy. It motivates us to create new music and make it sound even better.
LOMM: Have you ever been on a tour? Given live performances? Is it tough for you not to be able to do so now?
Michał Kustra: We have never been on tour with Dargor yet. We started performing live just before the covid pandemic began. Being unable to play shows is not extremely tough for us… We can still create and record new music. But… if there would be an option, we would play the live show or a couple of them very willingly!
LOMM: What is the next step for you? How is the future looking?
Michał Kustra: We focus on creating the new material. Right now, it’s on the composition and rehearsal level. We prepare to enter the studio this autumn. We also practice our songs to be able to play some shows when possible.
LOMM: Could you tell us about the lyrics / themes /concepts you focus on or plan to focus on? How did the ideas come about, and how do they influence the writing process? Who is writing the lyrics?
Michał Kustra: I am writing all the lyrics. They are mostly about the process of inner descent and the dark sides of human nature. The biggest inspirations are my thoughts, observations, and life experiences. I just philosophize about choosing the right path and finding the sense. Staying sane and dealing with reality or falling apart. I like to write about these subjects and black metal fits them perfectly.
LOMM: Who is composing the songs?
Michał Kustra: For now, I compose all the songs. In the future, the other guys will probably join me. They all have great ideas when it comes to writing black metal. It can make our music more diverse, I suspect more raw and aggressive stuff from them. Our bassist and keyboardist can compose also melodic and symphonic songs. They do it in a bit different style than I do. We’ll see what the future brings but it can be interesting!
LOMM: What bands do you draw your inspiration from?
Michał Kustra: I am mostly inspired by black metal bands such as Samael, Ajattara, Dimmu Borgir and Summoning. Moreover, I enjoy almost all genres of metal and many other groups. For sure there are a ton of different bands I took inspiration from. My top 10 favorites are Children Of Bodom, Samael, Fear Factory, Paradise Lost, Neurotech, Ajattara, Swallow The Sun, Amorphis, Dimmu Borgir and In Flames.
LOMM: Which is more exciting? Being on the road or studio?
Michał Kustra: I really like both, playing the live shows and recording in the studio. It’s hard to choose between these two because they are very different things. When you play the concert, you can feel the power and adrenaline. After the show, you can hang out and party with your friends. Sometimes you can visit the new places in which you would never be if you wouldn’t play in the band. The recording is something else. You’re focused on what you do with a small group of people and you try to do your best. I love it too. As well as experimenting with tone, adding some details spontaneously and satisfaction after a day in the studio after you did a good job.
LOMM: What first got you into music?
Michał Kustra: I liked the music since I was a little kid. When growing up, I was checking out a lot of styles and genres. At the end of primary school, I’ve heard some heavier music. I really got into power and heavy metal bands like Rhapsody and Manowar. I’ve also seen some local groups playing in my hometown. I’ve loved the atmosphere of these shows. My cousin Bartosz Wierzbicki, who played in the heavy metal band Krusher let me try to hold his electric guitar and hit the strings. When I did it and heard the sound of the power chord I just knew I have to do it myself.
LOMM: What do you like the best about being a musician? And what is it that you do not like much?
Michał Kustra: There are a lot of great things. I like composing something new. I enjoy just playing and practicing the guitar. I love the power of performing the live show. The satisfaction after recording and releasing the new music is also great. When it comes to the bad things… Playing in the band and recording requires from you a tone of time and energy. Sometimes you can feel really exhausted. But… it’s all worth it in my opinion.
LOMM: If you weren’t musicians, what would you be doing?
Michał Kustra: We all have different jobs and education and music is just a hobby. I am the computer programmer, the other guys are physiotherapist (Michał Socha), historician (Damian Muszyński), paramedic (Maciej Socha) and doctor of IT science (Dawid Warchoł). Playing music is our biggest passion. If we wouldn’t be able to do it for some reason… there are many other great things. I’d probably train at the gym more often, travel, and read a lot.
LOMM: If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?
Michał Kustra: Often the rights to the music belong only to the label and the band has very little to say. It would be nice if the professional bands owned rights to their songs too.
LOMM: What’s more important to you? Catering to the audience or music for its own sake?
Michał Kustra: The priority for me was always just the music. I wanted to create something I feel and I’m proud of. Of course, it’s nice when people enjoy it too. It’s also the goal and it makes me very happy. But… I always need to like it first.
LOMM: What is the most memorable gig that you have played to date?
Michał Kustra: It was the show in Rock Iron Klub, Krosno just before the Covid pandemic started. We played with Furia and Warmia. There were a lot of people, the sound was great. It was pure fun to play. I will always remember that day. It was also our first show ever. We’re happy we managed to prepare for it in a short amount of time. Great satisfaction!
LOMM: When you look back your music career, what do you consider to be your greatest accomplishment?
Michał Kustra: I think that the biggest accomplishment is releasing the first album “Descent Into Chaos” which contains seven songs and seven videos. We’re happy with all of them. We can show anyone what and how we play. Also… we can calmly focus on creating the next release which we actually do.
LOMM: Who would you like to collaborate with?
Michał Kustra: I’d like to collaborate with anyone who loves metal, has good ideas, and can bring something interesting to improve our band. Also, with someone who can promote it and reach new people. There a lot of great guys around. Even in my nearest region. The fourteen people have worked on “Descent Into Chaos”. They all did a great job and I hope to collaborate with them again in the future. Also, there are some guys from other countries I know only from the Internet. They are helping me to promote our music and they are doing a great job.
LOMM: Who would you like to go on a tour with?
Michał Kustra: We would mostly like to tour with other melodic, atmospheric or symphonic black metal bands. Anyone who is passionate and plays interesting music. We think it would be awesome to do the entire shows in a similar, dark atmosphere.
LOMM: If you could play any festival in the world, which one would you choose? Tell us why.
Michał Kustra: I’d like to play in Masters Of Rock in the Czech Republic. I’ve just been there a couple of times. The atmosphere is great. The place is awesome. The audience loves melodic metal. Always when I was there I was thinking “it would be cool to play on that stage”. Who knows, maybe one day it will happen.
LOMM: Name some of your all-time favorite albums? Include controversial ones.
Michał Kustra: I think there are not many controversial ones on my list. My favorite bands are Samael, Children of Bodom, Fear Factory, Paradise Lost, Ajattara, Swallow The Sun, Neurotech, Amorphis, and In Flames. It’s very hard to name the favorite albums. I just love a lot of releases equally. I’d have to name 4 or 5 albums for each of these bands.
LOMM: What does your collection look like? Mostly Vinyl, Cassettes, CDs, Digital? A bit of everything? A total mess?
Michał Kustra: My collection contains mostly cassettes gathered in my teenage years and some CDs bought later. I mostly listen to music on Spotify or Youtube nowadays. Still, I buy some CDs from my favorite artists to support them and have something to listen to in my car. Right now, I am looking forward to the new Fear Factory release.
LOMM: What Country/Region are you from and what is the Metal/Rock scene like there?
Michał Kustra: We’re from Krosno, south-eastern Poland. Decapitated is from our town. There are also many good underground bands in our region but their number is, unfortunately, getting smaller and smaller. When it comes to Poland as the entire country we still have many awesome bands. Not only the most known ones like Behemoth, Vader, Decapitated, Batuszka or Mgła. Also, many groups are recognized only in our country which totally kick asses.
LOMM: You can invite 5 people to a dinner party, from the future, the past, rock stars, a movie characters, you name it. Who are you having dinner with?
Michał Kustra: J.R.R Tolkien, Dino Cazares, Alexi Laiho, Arnold Schwarzenegger and if I can get someone from the future… the last human in the universe to tell us how our race will end.
LOMM: What is your weirdest memory in your music career?
Michał Kustra: In Dargor nothing very weird has happened yet. I remember something from my first heavy metal band Arondight. We played the show in the middle of the forest. It was the motorcycle rally event. The stage was made out of two car trailers. When the drummer was playing the double kick sections It was all shaking and I thought it will collapse. Electricity was taken from aggregate. After the show, there was a contest for drinking cheap wines.
LOMM: What is the weirdest gift you have ever received from a fan?
Michał Kustra: Not so weird but very cool. Christmas tree balls with Dargor logo:)
LOMM: If you had one message to your fans, what would it be?
Michał Kustra: Be happy in life and do what you want and like. Don’t let anyone else dictate your views and lifestyle. Don’t hate and support each other. Enjoy it all while we’re still there!
LOMM: Anything else you think your fans should know?
Michał Kustra: We started working on the new album. For now, it’s on the composition and rehearsal level but we believe it will kick ass. The new songs will continue the style defined on “Descent Into Chaos”. They will be just a little more technical and ambitious. A bit more catchy as well I think.
LOMM: Thank you for taking the time.
Thank you for having us in your magazine and supporting the underground! Greetings from Poland!
Lady Herself: Entirely a pleasure.
No Comments