Interviews: NORCVLT

On this new occasion, we have had the opportunity to interview the Indigenous Atmospheric Black Metal band NORCVLT from the USA. Check out the interview and follow the band on their INSTAGRAM PROFILE.

1. Where does the name NORCVLT come from, and what does it represent to you personally?

The name comes from the interwoven roots of my indigeneity and the conventional nature of black metal. After finding a solid balance of the two elements. I wanted it to be instantly recognizable and memorable enough for it to stick in people’s minds. Hopefully, cutting through the incredible sea of noise that is the metal world.

2. The project name is described as “Native Of Rain Cvlt.” How does that identity shape the music and overall concept?

“Native Of Rain Cvlt” is not just a name or acronym. It’s the foundation of the entire project. “Native of Rain” is a direct and honorary tie to my Ñuu Savi ancestors, whose name translates to “the people of the rain.” This project is grounded in ancestry, origin, and an identity that exists beyond modern definitions.

From there, it becomes more than just heritage. It becomes a living experience of spirit, resistance, and memory, Something that is coursing through my very blood and being. It’s the presence of my ancestors, not as something distant or “ancient,” because in our belief, they are not. Through spirit, they continue to live through us.

As sacred the rain is, “Rain” represents cycles of return, renewal, memory, and the presence of spirit within nature itself.

And “Cvlt” isn’t about a literal cult. It’s about devotion, ceremony, and creating something sacred and intentional through sound.

That identity shapes everything. The music is meant to feel elemental and cyclical. like the duality of a storm that can either restore or destroy. Chaos, Order, the beauty of it all, and in between. There’s a balance of aggression and melody that mirrors those natural forces, and lyrically it pulls from themes of ancestry, land, and the return of spirit. It’s not just music, it’s a form of remembrance and continuation.

3. Was NORCVLT something you set out to build with a clear artistic vision, or did it evolve more organically over time?

Honestly, it was completely organic. NORCVLT evolved alongside me over time. I’ve been in countless bands before, and while that collaborative process can be great, it often felt like we were just making heavy music for the sake of it. You know, something to headbang to, and something to say ‘fuck yeah’ to. And there’s nothing wrong with that, but for me, it started to feel like it lacked something deeper.

As a listener myself, I’ve always felt that music needs a soul. And for a long time, I didn’t know how to give it that. Not in a way that felt true to me. Black metal has always had space for heritage and ancestry, but it’s often centered around Norse identity. As a Native person, I couldn’t even imagine interweaving my own heritage into that space at first. A lot of that came from my own struggles with identity and internalized self-rejection.

Over time, something shifted. Like many Native artists before me, I reached a point where I realized I had to confront that and create from a place that was actually mine. Even during the process of “Demo 1,” it was a constant push and pull. I was still fighting those feelings. But that’s really where NORCVLT began to take shape. It stopped being just music and became something with purpose, something rooted in ancestry, spirit, and identity.

So it wasn’t planned from the start, but it became intentional once I understood what it needed to be.

4. What first pulled you toward atmospheric black metal as the core sound for this project?

It’s funny because my answer usually isn’t what people expect. I always have to give Pink Floyd their flowers first. They were one of the earliest influences that showed me how music could be immersive. How can you build something that pulls people in emotionally and holds them there for 10, sometimes 20 minutes? That sense of atmosphere and storytelling stuck with me.

From there, discovering bands like Bathory, Nargaroth, Sol Negro, Lake of Blood, Drudkh, Wolves in the Throne Room, and Agalloch, to name a few, really solidified it. They took that same sense of atmosphere and pushed it into something more raw, emotional, and connected to what each band was contemporarily trying to convey.

That combination is what pulled me toward atmospheric black metal. It wasn’t just about heaviness; it was about creating something immersive, something that feels like an experience rather than just a song.

5. How important is it for you to weave identity, ancestry, and spirituality into your music?

Immensely important. It’s not something I see as optional or something I add in. It’s the core of everything I create. Identity, ancestry, and spirituality are deeply rooted in my music because they’re deeply rooted in me.

For a long time, I struggled with even allowing myself to express that, but once I embraced it, it changed everything. The music stopped feeling empty and started feeling like it had purpose. It carried something real.

So when I write, I’m not just trying to make something that sounds good. I’m trying to channel something that comes from lineage, from memory, from spirit. That’s what gives it weight, and that’s what makes it feel alive.

6. “Antlers Of The New Dawn” feels like a strong symbolic title. What does that phrase mean in the context of the song?

The title really builds off where the previous release, “Saa Ka’nì,” left off…in darkness. It wasn’t a sudden return to light. It’s about the idea that light doesn’t come back easily or immediately.

“Antlers Of The New Dawn” represents a Herald sent from beyond the material world that carries the first sign of light returning. The antlers symbolize the form the herald takes and that its presence, a kind of spiritual guidance, emerges at the threshold between darkness and renewal.

So the title reflects that moment of transition, not full light. But the first sign of its inevitable return.

7. Can you walk us through the emotional or visual landscape you were creating while writing this track?

I wanted to emphasize a return, but also a continuation of the mythos. In Saa Ka’nì, everything leads to a necessary end. Through fire and into darkness. It’s the idea that all things must end for something else to grow or be reborn. Not always physically, but metaphysically.

“Antlers Of The New Dawn,” in continuation, exists in what’s left after that cycle. Not just desolation, but a darkness so still that not even the naked eye can fully take in what remains. Only ash and the absence of what once lived.

But within that stillness, a breath is heard, like wind passing through long-dead trees. Through that breath, and from the elements left in ruin, the herald begins to form. The Sacuaa, meaning deer in my ancestors’ language.

Its antlers cut through the desolation as it walks its destined path, not fully formed, but becoming. It’s the first movement after stillness, the first presence after absence. And when the herald reaches its stance, the light finally returns, as it once did.

Emotionally, it felt very still and heavy. Like being forced to sit in the aftermath of something that’s already ended. There’s emptiness in it, but also a quiet sense that something is going to return. You just don’t know when yet. As once an inevitable end came, an inevitable beginning follows.

8. You handle all instruments and production yourself. What are the biggest advantages and challenges of working completely solo?

The biggest advantage is the freedom to control everything within the project. I can experiment, improve, and push the music further every time. Whether that’s improving in a musical technique, upgrading gear, or learning from past mixing, production, or mastering mishaps.

Another big part of that is not being on anyone else’s clock. I can move at my own pace and follow the timeline I set for each release.

But the biggest disadvantage comes from that same freedom. Let’s be honest, most of us as artists and musicians are perfectionists as fuck. You end up overanalyzing the smallest shit that no one is ever going to hear in the mix. Chasing a very specific feeling or inflection that you probably already nailed, but you can’t even hear it anymore because you’re completely ear-fatigued from hours of working on it. Especially when you’re tracking multiple instruments in a day.

Even though I find the whole process of recording, mixing, producing, and mastering intensely gratifying, it definitely comes with its own set of challenges when you’re doing everything yourself.

9. How do you approach balancing raw black metal aggression with atmospheric and ambient elements?

It really depends on what the song is meant to convey within the larger scope of the record. Each track is a piece of a story, so when I’m writing, I’m always asking myself, “What am I trying to say in this part of it?” That’s what ultimately determines the balance between aggression and atmosphere.

If a moment calls for intensity, the raw elements take over. If it calls for reflection or space, the atmospheric and ambient layers come forward. It’s not about forcing a balance. It’s truly about letting the song dictate what it needs.

That’s why I’ve always loved black metal so much. It’s a perfect catalyst for expression because it doesn’t have to exist from just one angle, emotion, or experience. Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy the classic bands that any black metal listener knows and loves. But for me, the genre is so much broader than just the typical tropes of Satanism, nihilism, or misanthropy. So many amazing bands have proven that the genre has the range to be something far more expansive and personal.

10. Which bands or artists have influenced your sound the most, both within and outside black metal?

That’s a tough one…it’s really a culmination of different bands I’ve grown with and that have stuck with me over time. Like I mentioned before, Pink Floyd definitely sparked my love for long, immersive music.

Within black metal, Bathory is always one of the first that comes to mind because fuck….I fucking love Bathory, especially the Viking-era like “Twilight of the Gods” and earlier works like “Blood Fire Death.” I can definitely hear certain elements of that influence in my own music.

Bands like Dissection, Immortal, Hellhammer, and especially Nargaroth have also shaped my playing. Whether it’s specific techniques, chord choices, or just the overall feel.

But the biggest influences, especially in pushing me to express my own vision, are bands like Lluvia, Agalloch, and Panopticon, along with many Native metal artists who came before me. They showed me that metal can be more than just a sound; it can carry identity, culture, and atmosphere in a way that tells a story beyond just lyrics.

That’s what really stuck with me. The idea that music can be immersive, personal, and rooted in something deeper. Especially something that’s closer to home, in the sense of my own heritage, rather than just Norse and Satanic Identities.

11. The project carries a strong sense of ritual and mythology. Is that something you consciously build, or something that emerges naturally through your process?

For Saa Ka’nì, it was mostly organic. The ritualistic and mythological aspects built themselves over time as I started focusing more on my heritage, its spiritual beliefs, cosmology, philosophy, and the practices I’m willing to share. While also intertwining my own experiences and walk as an Indigenous person.

At the beginning, I didn’t have a fully clear foundation for where I wanted it to start. It revealed itself as I kept writing.

Now, going into the second full-length, that foundation is already there. The mythos is much clearer and broader than before, and it’s not just something that emerges. It’s something I’m shaping more consciously and intentionally. And with the first single, “Antlers Of The New Dawn,” from the upcoming album, I hope people can already feel that evocation taking shape and anticipate what’s to come.

12. What role does the environment or the land play in your creative inspiration?

In my belief, the land is inseparable from our spirit. It’s a guide, a teacher, and at times even something that disciplines us. What we give to it is reflected back through the fruits of our intentions…We have a responsibility to tend to it and move in accordance with its natural order.

Not the flawed constructs of societal or governmental ideas of order, but something older and more grounded. The land we stand on is sacred, no matter where you are in the world, it deserves respect and care.

Within these beliefs, it ties directly to my music. It’s not just inspiration, it’s essential. As someone who predominantly lives in the city, I feel there’s a kind of sickness in how disconnected we’ve become. There’s a constant push to separate ourselves not just from the land, but from each other, from our health, and from our well-being.

So creating music is also a way of reconnecting, of remembering that relationship. I believe in regaining sovereignty and acknowledging the land that’s been stolen, exploited, and disrespected. Especially as a Native person south of the border, where so many of those struggles and injustices are overlooked or never taught. That awareness is something I carry into everything I create.

13. Where do you see NORCVLT evolving with this upcoming second full-length album?

With the upcoming second full-length, I see NORCVLT continuing to grow. Expanding the sound, deepening the mythos, and reaching more people. It’s about building on the foundation of the first record, but pushing it further, both sonically and conceptually.

At the same time, I’m really looking forward to bringing that energy back to the stage. We had to cancel a few shows earlier this year due to a life-threatening emergency involving my brother-in-arms, our live drummer. It was something none of us could have predicted, and there was never a thought of replacing him. Loyalty aside, he’s a core part of what NORCVLT is as a live entity! We simply couldn’t do it without him.

I’m grateful to say he’s home now, recovering, and doing well. So by the time the new album releases, we’re aiming to come back fiercer than ever and bring this next chapter to life on stage.

14. If you could collaborate with any artist in the atmospheric or black metal space, who would it be and why?

I’m definitely open to doing splits or collaborations with my peers in the Native metal realm, if the opportunity comes up. That’s something I value a lot because it feels like a shared movement rather than just individual projects.

That said, what I’m really looking forward to is sharing the stage with my brothers in arms—Sex Blasphemy, Periodeater, Tlamacazqui, and many others. To me, that kind of collaboration is just as important. It’s about building something together in a live setting and creating a space where all of us can express what we’re doing.

15. Is there anyone or any style you feel would never align with the NORCVLT vision?

Anything tied to NSBM. It’s not just something I disagree with. It’s a complete bastardization of the genre. Supremacy in any form has no place anywhere. It has no place in black metal, and it sure as hell has no place within the NORCVLT vision.

Especially groups like “Odio Bronce” that appropriate Indigenous imagery and culture for their own warped agendas, while pushing narratives that have historically been used to erase and destabilize Indigenous identity, culture, and heritage. That’s not expression, that’s theft and manipulation.

And I’m tired of hearing the same excuse that “black metal is supposed to be evil and hateful.” That's a ridiculous cop-out. There’s a difference between channeling darkness, anger, or hostility as emotion… and then there’s promoting real-world ideologies built on division and supremacy.

NSBM isn’t extreme art….it’s fucking propaganda. And I don’t respect it, I don’t support it, and it doesn’t belong in the same space as what I create.

16. What’s been the most surprising reaction to your music so far, either from listeners or within the underground scene?

Shit. Honestly, any praise or positive reaction still surprises me. Whether it’s from listeners, fans, or peers in the scene, it’s something I don’t take lightly. It’s truly an honor every time.

I think the most surprising part has been seeing people genuinely connect with the themes and atmosphere, not just the music itself. When someone tells me they felt something deeper or understood what I was trying to convey, that means more than anything.

17. How do you want people to feel after listening to “Antlers Of The New Dawn”?

I want it to feel like something has begun….that you’re witnessing the start of a new cycle through the soundscape. What was left in stillness and darkness begins to shift. A breath emerges, and within that breath, a call is heard. Like a flute carried through the wind.

From that breath, the herald forms out of elements long forgotten, taking its first steps toward birthing something new. Ultimately bringing forth the dawn once more.

I want it to feel like a presence revealing itself. Something that makes you say, “It’s here.”Something powerful, but also elegant, is making its return known.

18. What do you think about the current state of underground black metal and where it’s heading?

I think it’s in really good hands right now. There’s no stopping the genre anytime soon. There’s been a lot of strong releases in recent years… albums like Saturnian Bloodstorm by Lamp of Murmuur, Autumn Embrace by Enisum, Pale River, Ghost Reflection by Empillarist, Ech’Mau Noir Bis by Galibot, and The Unyielding Season by Winterfylleth have all been in heavy rotation for me.

Even more recent releases, like what Draugveil has been putting out, shit. Talk about a unique refreshment. And seeing my relative in Burnt Lodge drop a split with Veytik, “Anchors Plunged Off Helluland,” just shows how alive and evolving the scene still is.

With the way things are expanding and the direction it’s heading, I don’t see underground black metal slowing down at all. If anything, it’s only getting stronger and more diverse. It’s going to be alive and well for a long time.

19. How do you view platforms like Breathing The Core supporting deeply conceptual and atmospheric projects like yours?

I think platforms like Breathing The Core are important for projects like mine. Not everything is meant to be easy to digest, and a lot of what I do is deeper than just the music itself. It’s about meaning, intention, and the full experience.

So when a platform actually supports that instead of just chasing what’s trending, it shows there’s still space for real depth in the underground. And that matters, because it helps connect the music to people who are actually looking for something more.

I truly appreciate the opportunity to share and express my vision alongside many other artists.

20. Is there anything else you’d like to share about the upcoming album or the future of NORCVLT?

Ah man, I can’t say too much without giving it all away, but a second single is coming very, very soon. And the upcoming album is way more expansive than “Saa Ka’nì,” even down to the track count.

I’m excited to share it and for people to hear the next chapter unfold.

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