-- Hudic gets shredded --

06/07/2019
Stijn Daneels
Interview conducted and written by Glenn “Terra Shredder” Van Bockstaele with assistance from Anton De Prijck (who made the final photograph).

Hudic is a Belgian metal band that combines different styles (doom, black and death metal) into one soul devouring machine! Last fall they released their debut EP “Ne Ergo Dimittas” with 5 masterful tracks and I had a lot of good things to say about it (http://belgianmetalshredder.be/reviews/103) and eventually I got the chance to shred them before their performance on the Wacken Open Air Belgium finals (May 25, 2019). We talked about the production of their great “Ne Ergo Dimittas” debut EP, the meaning behind the Hudic name and its multi-faceted style, their constructive partnership with Carnation and their love for deadlines.


BMS: Hello there! Can you explain how Hudic crawled out of the nether regions?
Hudic: We’re a bunch of friends who met each other frequently at the various metal festivals we attend each year. We all shared an equal passion for heavy metal music and from day one we had a dream of starting a project together. And in the summer of 2017, when we were all attending MetalDays in Slovenia, our endless brainstorming sessions came into fruition and Hudic was born! Then and there!
BMS: What does the name Hudic actually mean?
Hudic: It’s Slovenian for devil. Our artistic vision for the band was to combine atmospheric black metal with doom metal, groove metal and melodic death metal. A mix of everything. We didn’t want to limit ourselves to any specific subgenre, we combined different styles to come up with the sound we have today. We all listen to different music and we all individually contribute to create the unique Hudic sound. For instance, a Hudic tune may have doom metal at its core but with death metal vocals and some black metal riffs added into the mix.

BMS: A few months ago, I reviewed your debut EP “Ne Ergo Dimittas,” and I found it to be a very strong release. I’ve heard you’ve got plans for a full length release. Will you be including any of the current EP’s songs into that upcoming album?
Hudic: No, it will be a set of entirely new material. If you’ve enjoyed our “Ne Ergo Dimittas” outing then you’ll certainly love the new stuff since there will be some similarities. However, we’re pushing ourselves further this time! In fact, we work better under pressure by giving ourselves deadlines. Like arranging for a certain song to be considered finished at a specific date and so on. It gives us a clear direction and keeps us focused and engaged. For the moment we have written about 50% of the album so we're well on schedule. The album will be more melodic, heavier, darker and tighter and once again will bring in many metal subgenres together. It will be everything “Ne Ergo Dimittas” was and more! We’re now much more aware of our individual and collective strengths and that’s how a band can positively evolve! By always remaining critical about your band, material and image since all little details matter!
BMS: That’s a great mentality! Personally, I felt every track on the EP had its own unique identity. Like one song features melodic death metal with doom metal influences and another song has thrash metal mixed with atmospheric black metal. Every track felt pleasantly unpredictable.
Hudic: And that’s exactly what we’re aiming for. You know, when you brand yourselves as, let’s say, a thrash metal act, then people will already subconsciously create certain expectations about your music. And in the case of thrash metal, people expect skin-shredding riffs, moshing drum beats, short songs, etc. You already kind of know what you’re going to get. Sure, we don’t mind people having premature expectations about us, but they will discover that we’ve got many different infernal cards at hand, ready to be put on the table!
BMS: Well, you sure dropped some aces with your EP! So, what are your other future plans? Maybe some international gigs?
Hudic: This year we’ll be playing at both Antwerp Metal Fest and Frietrock! This autumn we’re planning an international tour which will include a show at an Italian black metal festival and a concert in the Netherlands with Shuulak. Although we haven’t had any really big gigs as of now, we’re already very grateful with the progress we’ve made during our first year of existence. It took a lot of dedication from everyone involved in Hudic, but we released a well-received EP, got shows scheduled at a couple of Belgium’s major metal festivals and made many connections with other bands, promoters and reporters like you! And of course, we’re now here at the finals of the Wacken Metal Battle Belgium and we’re ready to raise hell!
BMS: Oh yeah! Now, for my last question I want to ask something about the production of “Ne Ergo Dimittas.” Despite being your first release it sounded very powerful and clear!
Hudic: Thanks, we recorded the EP in the Project Zero Studio, owned by Yarne Heylen and Bert Vervoort from Carnation. They're good friends of ours and they helped us a lot with the EP’s production as well as offering us advice for the live gigs, writing music and so much more. We’re very grateful for their advice and if they’re available to produce our upcoming album then we would certainly be working with them again! Yarne, Bert and the other Carnation folks are very professional but they also enjoy a good party as we had experienced during the recording sessions!. For instance, one day when K was recording his vocals we were in the room next to the recording booth and we all began dancing to the beats! Good times!
BMS: I’m sure plenty of people will also be dancing here tonight! Thanks for the interview! And like Stijn “Metal Shredder” always does, it’s time to get together with me for a picture!