Since their formation, Thy Legion has stood as one of Malta’s fiercest voices in the realm of black/death metal. Known for their relentless aggression, occult themes, and unflinching live presence, the band has carved a distinct identity within the Mediterranean extreme metal scene. With their latest album, Grand Cosmic Funeral, Thy Legion expands their sound into darker, more cosmic territory while retaining the raw, visceral edge that has defined their music for over two decades.
DinIntunerec: Hello, thank you for getting on board with this interview and welcome to Bucharest! How do you feel about being here?
Thy Legion: Hello, we are very excited to be here. Its our first time in Bucharest with Thy Legion and we are thankful to the organizers for having us. We like the country and we noticed that the metal community in Romania is very nice.
DinIntunerec: Thy Legion has been active for more than two decades. How do you reflect on the band’s evolution since its early days in the Maltese underground?
Thy Legion: Well, some things have changed in time. We started with a more raw and brutal sound, somehow more simplistic. Then, we started to incorporate death metal elements. For a while, it was blackened death metal, and now we have evolved more towards black metal than death.
DinIntunerec: Malta is not typically associated with extreme metal. What unique challenges and opportunities come with emerging from such a small scene?
Thy Legion: This is not exactly true. I mean if we discuss percentages, for a country with such small population, there is a considerable number of metal bands, though not all of them playing extreme metal. Regarding the challenges and opportunities… that’s a long discussion. Even the fact that for each live show we have to take the plane, which involves financial burdens and advance planning can be considered a challenge. Also, even on the island, there are few venues (one or two which are permanently active) so basically you play in the same place. Opportunities, however, always come for those who work for them!
DinIntunerec: Your sound blends the ferocity of death metal with the atmosphere of black metal. How do you strike the balance between brutality and atmosphere?
Thy Legion: Basically we have a lot of influences: row black metal, atmospheric black metal, death metal also. Me and Elton, the other guitarist, we both like the ferocious parts, but also melodies, harmonies, atmosphere… we even have a clean part in a particular song. We plan to do more for the next record, because we’re already working on our next album. Me and Elton sat down together and started writing. We didn’t force it, it just came out like that. So, everything flows together, brutality and atmosphere.
DinIntunerec: Lyrical themes have always been central to your work. Which ideas and philosophies continue to inspire Thy Legion?
Thy Legion: In the beginning, I was inspired by my personal feelings and struggles Usually, when I was running at a low point in my life, I started to compose and put my feelings into the music. In the beginning, it was all about the ignorance of humanity and stuff like that. But now, it’s more spiritual… and death appears as an entity. Not as a theme but the concept of death. So it’s about death as an entity, rather than the process of dying itself. It’s like when, for example, you kill your old version.
DinIntunerec: Extreme metal often thrives in live performance. How do you channel Thy Legion’s intensity on stage, and what do you hope audiences take away?
Thy Legion: Basically, as a vocalist, I would always try to channel the audience’s reaction. We always have positive reactions. That way, it gives us more energy and we can give more energy back. And it’s something amazing. So, when we see that we have create that atmosphere, the communication we aim to put out to people, that brings everything together. For us, it’s like connecting with everything. It’s a full circle. And, it’s amazing. Our live performance is not just plug and play and rock and roll, it’s not just grabbing the microphone. We try to reach out and push people, from start to finish. That’s the important thing for us.
DinIntunerec: Collaboration between members is crucial for such a layered sound. Could you describe your songwriting process?
Thy Legion: Most of the time the guitarists, will get together, put ideas forward and write some good fucking riffs. Once that is laid down, usually the rhythm section, drums and bass, kick in. Drums will complement the riffs. Myself on bass, I will complement the riffs. Sometimes I might actually change the feel of a riff and maybe we decide to change the direction of the riff and of the song.
Although we do it in separate steps, overall it’s still a group effort. Once the music is all set and done, the lyrics are placed in good catchy patterns and that way we can conclude the whole structure of the song. We see what’s best, whoever comes out with the best ideas. It’s a group effort, indeed. Once we are all happy with what there is, we can move forward.
We have an advantage since we have two frontmen, two vocalists.
There are more ideas. There’s Tony, that does the low end part, the growling, and there’s Mark who does the screams. So together they create the patterns. It’s a mix and match.
Also it’s not like the guitarists only do guitars, or the bass only does bass. For example, I have an idea to shape a riff differently or to shape a bass line differently or Elton would like to change focus. We all put in the ideas into one big melting pot. Once that’s done, sometimes there are points where we need some extra push. Sometimes we need to layer additional instrumentation or noises to create the atmosphere. That’s where it builds up furthermore.
DinIntunerec: The band has gone through lineup changes over the years. How have these shifts influenced your creative direction?
Thy Legion: Thankfully, we haven’t had one of those in a while. Emanuel was the last one to join, 7 or 8 years ago. Apart from that, we had a pretty steady lineup… the core members are the same for almost 20 years now. Our creative direction shifted mostly when Emanuel joined, and it shifted for the better.
DinIntunerec: Malta has a tight-knit community of metal bands. How does the local scene support or shape Thy Legion’s work?
Thy Legion: There are a lot of underground bands in Malta. Less known, indeed, but still, quite a lot… around 80 at least: metal bands, punk bands, rock’n roll bands… And it is a tight community… In fact, it is so tight that we play in more bands, or we exchange band members… It helps because, obviously, we have different influences, different experiences playing with other bands.
DinIntunerec: Looking back at your earlier releases, which album or song do you feel was a turning point for the band?
Thy Legion: Feed Them Bullets and also Sadism Through Holy Intervention, from our second album, Venerato Diaboli. Before I joined, seven years ago, I used to be a fan of the band and go to their live shows. When I first listened to Sadism Through Holy Intervention, let’s just say it blew my mind. We also had our first music video on it, so it qualifies as a turning point for Thy Legion. We still play it on our live shows, almost all the time because fans love it and expect us to play it.
DinIntunerec: Black/death metal is an international genre. How has Thy Legion connected with audiences outside of Malta?
Thy Legion: Well, this year, basically, it was quite a busy year. We started applying for festivals and we started playing outside Malta a lot. We had our first show this year in Serbia. It was called Empire Festival and it was a multi styles festival. It wasn’t just black metal. After that, we went to Belgium. In Belgium, we played at Black Chaos Assault.
You know, the best thing about black metal is that there are many subgenres: atmospheric, melodic, raw, occult black metal and more…
So, this year we connected with different audiences and different black metal bands of various styles. And it has been great!
DinIntunerec: How important is production in realizing your artistic vision, and what do you look for in capturing the Thy Legion sound?
Thy Legion: First of all, I need to state that Thy Legion should be considered always as a whole. So it’s not just the music, it’s not just the looks. It’s a bit of everything. So, in order for us to convey our message, as it is intended, it needs to look right, it needs to sound right, it needs to feel right. That’s why, it needs to be organic.
So, when it comes to the recording process itself, we tend to go into a more organic type of sound. We’re still recording real drums, real amps… still capturing everything as authentic as it can be, with minimal messing around as much as possible. But then again, when it comes to live shows, sometimes some help is needed. So, for example, to carry our sound with us, we needed to move over from amps to digital because obviously to fly with a 30kg head with you all the time is going to be very expensive and also detrimental for your back.
DinIntunerec: After so many years in the scene, what continues to drive the band forward creatively?
Thy Legion: It’s our passion that drive us forward, the curiosity to always discover something new, as black metal is so vast that one may always find new stuff to explore. Also, there are always new opportunities, to travel and play at festivals… meet new people. Let’s say this is our dopamine shot, and it is addictive. It’s an escape from the every day reality…Life sucks enough as it is…
DinIntunerec: Grand Cosmic Funeral is a striking title. What is the core concept or vision behind this album?
Thy Legion: As I mentioned before, the core concept is death. I mean, at that time I was in a really bad place. And I was reading a lot of things, occult things and stuff like that, that I think helped me. Even to grow. As I told you, you kill your old version and you become more. You’re a better one. That was my focus. It’s about a spiritual journey for me. Grand Cosmic Funeral is very personal. Sometimes, there are verses that only I can understand. Maybe you understand it too, but differently.
DinIntunerec: How did the writing and recording process for Grand Cosmic Funeral differ from your previous works?
Thy Legion: It did, for sure, because of Covid, first and foremost. There was a time when we actually couldn’t meet physically. Everyone was doing some work at home. Then, thanks to technology nowadays, we could send stuff, talk and discuss. After we wrote the first song of Grand Cosmic Funeral, which was Dark Mother, we released it as a music video. So, we wrote the first song, Covid hit us, and we’re kind of stressed about how to continue the album? I’m not the best with technology. But, Clayton taught me how to record. And we started working from home. We started sending stuff to each other.
At that time I set an electric drum kit at home, so I can write my parts and send to the others. However, the process was slower. Anyway, I’ll tell you a little secret, at some point, we started to sneak out and meet in order to be more productive. But, we were wearing masks… (all laughing) and we had sanitizer there. We had to cope, you know… either that or go insane.
It also gave us time to set up a new practice space where we could actually record from. The pressure kicked in more. So, we got more influence to write more depressed music. Because we were having more dark thoughts. Anyway, it all came together in the end.
DinIntunerec: The album’s atmosphere feels both cosmic and ritualistic. What techniques did you use to create this soundscape?
Thy Legion: I think it is because of the riffs and melodies… Sometimes we write the melodies before the riff. For example, we start writing a song. But first, the melody kicks in. Then we do the riff on it. Not the other way around. Because it’s the melody that makes it more spiritual. The aggressive part, obviously, is a bonus. We need the blast beats. The riffs come from a deep place in the heart, and for this reason you can feel this sort of atmosphere. Apart from that, we have tried new elements in this album, also. We have done some choir recordings. Even vocal wise… Speeches which bring out the atmosphere.
But if you have to put it in one word, it comes from the heart. That’s the thing. You know, like Elton said before, we are going through ups and downs. And, if you are low, you get to experience. When you go through a lot of shit in your life, you don’t need to think about it. It just comes out.
DinIntunerec: Which track from Grand Cosmic Funeral best represents the album’s spirit, and what story does it tell?
Thy Legion: The Adoration of Omega. It’s track that we wrote near the end. Because we didn’t write the songs in the same order they are on the album. So, I think Adoration… was one of the last ones we wrote and it best defines the album… It captures most of feeling, it has melody, aggressiveness, the clean part, the speech, blast beats.
DinIntunerec: Tell us a few words about your astonishingly shocking cover artwork.
Thy Legion: Elton did it himself. He just let his imagination run free and that was the result. Apart from being an amazing guitarist, he is very artistic even as an illustrator… He discovered this talent during Covid times… he started drawing, first with pencils, then he evolved.
DinIntunerec: Looking ahead, what themes or sonic directions are you eager to explore in future releases?
Thy Legion: Well, we want to go deeper… We are happy with the direction of having more black metal elements than death metal. Before we were kind of more on the death metal side, or at least somewhere in the middle. Now, we’re focusing more on black metal. I think we will continue going in that direction. Also, we will definitely go a bit deeper into the spiritual side of things.
DinIntunerec: What is the most important life lesson that you have learned so far?
Thy Legion: For one thing, to always look for the positive side of everything, even when life sucks. Even with the disadvantage we already talked about, coming from a small island, most of the time it may turn into an advantage, because people look at us with curiosity and get really interested to know about our culture, language , music… And there’s a lot to learn from that…
DinIntunerec: Thank you for your time, any final words for our readers?
Thy Legion: Thank you for the interest in our music, thank you for having us here, playing at this festival, thank you for the interview and the in depth questions. We are happy to be here and can’t wait to play tomorrow. And we are definitely coming back, because people here are amazing.
DinIntunerec: Well, see you on stage, then!
With Grand Cosmic Funeral, Thy Legion affirms their place as one of Malta’s most enduring extreme metal forces, blending blackened fury with expansive, otherworldly themes. Their journey reflects not only the persistence of a band but also the resilience of a scene determined to thrive against all odds. As Thy Legion continues to expand their sound and reach new audiences, they remain a powerful reminder that the underground is alive, unyielding, and eternally defiant.
