How
did you first learn about Metal-Rules.com?
First time I visited Metal-Rules was couple of years ago. I canīt
remember how I found out about it, probably through google or something
like that. I forgot it for awhile until my friend told me about it about
a year ago.
Are you a regular visitor to the Metal-Rules.com webzine?
Yes! Nowadays I visit the site everyday! I read the news, reviews and
some interviews as well, but the most interesting section of Metal-Rules
for me is the forum. You could say Iīm a professional lurker since I
read it every day, but I havenīt registered yet. I read most of the
topics and even though I donīt agree with everything posted in there,
it warms old metalhead like me to see that people still really care
about metal.
How important is Metal-Rules.com or the Internet in general for
getting your music?
Very important! Nowadays itīs so easy to find out about new bands
and for underground bands like us itīs the best media to promote our
music.
In your experience, either as a reader or as a band, what has
Metal-Rules.com meant to you?
Simply put, I get to know more about metal than I would otherwise.
Do you think webzines like Metal-Rules.com are, or maybe someday
could, replace traditional published magazines?
I love to read books, mags, newspapers etc. so, personally webzines
wonīt replace good old paper in my life, but on a larger scale I can
see it happening or at least theyīll be competing for the same
customers. Well, in some ways thatīs already happened since Iīm here
answering this question, heh heh
Can you please list the members of the band and what they each
person plays?
Aki - drums
LoG - guitar
Marco R.J. - vocals
Late TT - guitar/backingvocals
Ollar - bass
How long has the band been together and what goals would you like
to achieve in the coming years with the band?
The roots of Maple Cross reach all the way back to 1985, but with the
new line-up weīve been together since early 2001.
We havenīt set any goals for the band, because we just want to play
and make music we like ourselves. But, we do want to play as many gigs
and record as many albums as possible.
In your opinion, what style of metal would you say best describes
what you play?
Iīm not very good at this. Iīm sure there're people out there who
know to which genre every single metal band belongs to, but I donīt
know. Anyways, itīs metal with touches of thrash, death and traditional
heavy metal. Iīm afraid thatīs the best I can do.
Who have been some of your main influences?
Slayer, VoiVod and Iron Maiden are the most important ones, but lot
of 80s and 90s metal bands have influenced us. Thereīs just too many of
them to mention here.
Is your band currently signed to a record label?
We aren't signed yet and we'll just have to wait and see what happens
Actually, we are looking for a distributor for our next album. So,
anyone interested get in touch.
Have you contributed work to other compilation CDs?
Weīll appear on Metal Ostentation 2 comp. cd with a song called
"The Chosen People".
Where did they hear about this compilation?
I read about it from Metal-Rules website and contacted EvilG right
away!
Why did you choose this compilation to get your music to potential
fans?
I donīt know, it just felt like good opportunity to make more people
aware of Maple Cross. Everything about it felt great and still does. It
is a true metal site and I just knew that the roster of bands would be
great! So, I just hoped we would get on it.
Besides your song, what is the best feature of the Metal-Rules
compilation and why?
Man, Weīll be on the same CD with Julie Laughs Nomore and Dark
Order, need I say more!!!
Why did you choose this particular song for the compilation?
Well, I think itīs a great song and it shows both sides of our
music, aggression and melody.
Where did you record the song & who wrote it and produced
it?
We recorded the song in Boogiecellar in our home town on 13.01.2002.
It was engineered by Kettu and it was mixed by A. Karppinen at Akiīs
Palace on 19.01.2002. Itīs produced by us. We wrote the song together
and I (Marco) wrote the lyrics.
Would you say that your song on this compilation representative of
all your material?
Yes! "Invincibles" is aggressive yet melodic song, both
important ingredients of Maple Cross music, although we donīt have
choruses in every single song this one gives a better picture of our
music than any other song.
What is your song on this compilation about and what was the
inspiration behind it?
Itīs a traditional soccer chant! Just kidding, although itīs about
a soccer team, Preston North End more precisely. I wrote the lyrics to
be more like a battle song and I was hoping to keep the real meaning a
secret as long as possible, but since the truth is already out there I
decided to share it with you guys as well. Iīm a Preston North End
supporter and it plays a big part in my life. I had the logo tattooed on
my right arm and the next step was to write a song about the history of
Preston North End. Well, now that Iīve done it, Iīll have to find
other ways to promote them, heh heh...
What about this song made you select it for this compilation OR if
your band wrote or recorded a new song specifically for this CD, what
things did you have in mind when writing the song for use this
compilation?
Itīs just a great example of Maple Cross music and one of the first
songs we wrote together with this new line-up. So, we decided this would
be the perfect song to introduce us to metal community.
What kind of expectations do you have towards this particular
compilation? What do you hope to gain by being featured?
This is a great way to promote our music and weīre just happy to
have this opportunity to make the name Maple Cross more known in the
metal world, thatīs all weīre looking for.
Are you hoping this might help you in some way gain the kind of
exposure that may lead to a label picking you up?
Not really. Labels arenīt that important to us, but I do admit they
are handy tools to spread your music. If somebody wants to sign us,
great! If somebody wants to distribute our music thatīs even better
As you know, most of the bands on this compilation are not
extremely well known. Do you think a compilation CD with a group of
mostly underground bands is a great way to help get your music noticed?
Yes I do and this is the right kind of compilation CD. Why buy a
comp. CD full of known bands with already released songs
What do you think of compilation CD's overall?
Itīs a great way to find out about bands youīve never heard before,
but like I said, I never bother with compilations filled with
"popular" bands.
What kinds of things should a compilation feature in order to make
it worth purchasing and what makes a compilation worthwhile?
Just fill it with up and coming metal acts from all the sub genres
and you have a winner!
If you had a chance to put together this type of compilation, what
would be some of the unsigned bands you'd like to feature?
Thereīs lots of bands I would include on my comp. CD, but 2 bands
would certainly be on it: Monsterspank and Mengele! 2 metal bands from
Finland. Mengele is old school thrash and Monsterspank is some kind of
stoner/death or what ever, but they are great!
Would you be interested in sacrificing another song for
"Metal-Rules.com - Vol. II" if the opportunity presented
itself?
Certainly, no doubt about it!
Where can people order your other recorded material?
Go to our website where you can download our demos. Send 10/$10 to
our contact address and weīll send you our debut album (released -92).
What are your band's upcoming battle plans?
Weīll record the album next and take it from there
Do you have any live dates coming up that you'd like to list here?
Nothing yet, but keep on checking our website. After weīve released
the album (march/april) we'll hit the road.
