By Xyztva
Hidden somewhere between medieval mysticism, black metal darkness, heavy metal heroism and existential ruin, Veneficus Sarcina has gradually forged an identity that feels both ancient and strangely personal. It´s discography is marked by restless experimentation and an unmistakable atmosphere. Releases such as Being and Morbidity, Towers of Midnight or Belt reveal a creator unafraid of crossing stylistic boundaries, moving naturally between raw black metal aggression, melancholic melody, liturgical echoes and fantasy-driven storytelling. Behind the distorted guitars and spectral aesthetics lies a musical vision deeply connected to introspection, death, imagination and spiritual decay. Far removed from commercial trends and modern expectations, Veneficus Sarcina represents the kind of underground spirit that continues to keep extreme music unpredictable and alive. In this interview with its creator Logan Brown, we explore the origins of the project, the influences behind its unusual sound, the philosophy shaping its lyrics and aesthetics, and the future awaiting this evolving musical entity. Welcome to the world of Veneficus Sarcina.
REA: First of all, thank you for spending some time with us. Can you tell us a bit about yourself? How is your life apart from your project? Family, friends, life in the city, jobs, etc. Logan: Thank you for having me! Outside of my music I am a pediatric nurse working on an inpatient psych unit. I’ve been doing that for three years or so now, did retail before that. I have a girlfriend I love that I spend most of my free time with, and three cats; Mithwen, Morwen, and Lindwen. Their names are in Tolkien’s Sindarin language. I am a practicing Buddhist and a vegan for many years as well. I get out and around Dayton Ohio, hosting shows at a local coffee shop and often driving down to Cincinnati or Louisville to play shows.
REA: I would never have imagined that! What are your main hobbies outside of music? Logan: My hobbies outside of music are few; exploring local Asian food, collecting vinyl, caring for my cats, going to parks, riding my bike, and I planted a small flower garden this year.
REA: How much importance you give to politics in your live? Do you have any political views you want to share? Logan: Politics, hm. Human rights issues are important to me, as well as animal welfare, but I tend to take the stance that I have my own garden to tend to. If we were to spend our time intentionally living with kindness and understanding, caring for those around us, the world as a whole would see a general improvement, in issues related to politics as well. Ultimately, I think trying to reorder the world to be perfect is a hopeless task, as we only have the power to overcome violence and hatred in our own hearts. So, not much interest in political issues.
REA: Good! Let´s get a bit more personal. Do you consider yourself more connected to your inner world or to the outer world and society? Logan: That’s a fun question. Certainly, my inner world comes first, as it’s what I use to interact with the world at large. If we were to get philosophical, I think we each individually create the outer world in our perceptions and views. No objective world, just thoughts and perceptions, ideas and views.
REA: That´s a very interesting perspective! What does darkness represent for you? How do you deal with it or embrace it? Logan: Darkness… represents greed, hatred, confusion. We all carry an individual burden of these things to varying degrees, and to ignore them is I think our greatest folly. I find an outlet for mine through art, as a way to let darkness out so I can reflect on it and overcome it. Another interesting question!
REA: We came to interview a musician and we found a deep philosopher too. What are your thoughts on religion and spirituality? What are your beliefs if you have any? Logan: There’s crossover in all different forms of expression! Religion is a rich subject for me. I was raised in a protestant Christian household, a religion I rejected in favor of finding a more concrete, results-driven form of spirituality. I have no interest in views built on fear or superstition. After years of spiritual seeking, I found what I was looking for in the Buddha’s early teachings, and practice them to this day. So, you could say I’m a Theravadin Buddhist, but I also respect and read plenty of Chan writings, what is nowadays known more commonly as the Japanese word Zen. I find myself hating Christianity; something I explore in my music. Satan as a symbol is powerful, representing a rejection of the church and an embracing individuality. My hatred is something I’m working on.
REA: Great! I have a similar view towards Christianity and Satanism. Let´s go for the last question of the personal block. Do occultism or esoteric traditions influence your life beyond music or aesthetics? Logan: I find the occult interesting, but ultimately a confusing mish-mash. Great food for the imagination and exploring deep, psychological symbols, but… when it comes to daily life, I think the most important things are right in front of our faces. Not hidden in esoteric practices reserved for the few.
REA: Ok! Let´s focus now on your musical development and beginnings. What was the first album or artist that waked your interest in music? Logan: Whew, let’s see… if we’re talking heavy metal, I started out in the Metalcore and Nu Metal scene, in high school. So, shit like Slipknot, Korn, The Devil Wears Prada, All That Remains, goofy acts like that. My buddy’s dad showed me Megadeth at some point, and that got me privy to thrash. Slayer followed, and it was all downhill from there.
REA: Ok! So, when did you realized you wanted to start creating music instead of simply listening to it? Logan: Middle school really. I was playing drums, my first instrument, to bands I liked and had some friends that played other instruments. Who doesn’t want to be in a band? So we formed one. For guitar, I learned Jumper by Third Eye Blind and Wonderwall by Oasis and shortly after wrote my first tune. So, the solo stuff started with Folk Pop more than metal, but I never lost interest in heavy music.
REA: That´s so true! But in my case, I never went past being a music spectator. Logan: Nothing wrong with that!
REA: Which are your favorite metal genres? Logan: NWOBHM, First Wave Black, Thrash, Thrash-Death, OSDM, Doom (the old shit), and (gasp!) Glam/Hair. I think all of that is evident in what I write. Anything done in the 80s is of interest to me.
REA: Great genres! I also appreciate a lot of 80s Metal and even non metal music. You already advanced some of this but let´s get a bit deeper. Which other music genres you like or appreciate apart from metal? Logan: Outside of metal I appreciate 90’s alt-folk like The Microphones and Neutral Milk Hotel, lo-fi rock like the Dayton natives Guided by Voices, art-rock ranging from the Beach Boys to Talk Talk, Krautrock/New Age like Popol Vuh, and, it’s out of the bag now, I love modern Pop. I like anything taken to an extreme, with a do-it-yourself attitude. To me, Pop is extreme; extremely loud, production with a goal, not always clean, huge emotions, dramatic, and self-indulgent. Not unlike metal in a lot of ways.
REA: Well, that is a very interesting way of understanding pop music, maybe more aligned to indie pop or are you referring to mainstream pop also? Logan: Mainstream in this case. It’s do-it-yourself more than people maybe realize nowadays, at least the big acts (Olivia, Sabrina, Taylor etc.). They have so much power and control over their vision, but also have the budget to pay for the «best of the best» for their production/mixing/mastering team. There go my few listeners, haha. Cats out of the bag. Alright next question…
REA: Who knows!? Maybe it gets you popular even! Which artists had the biggest impact on your musical development and style? Logan: For my metal, I can’t praise CELTIC FROST highly enough. That should be obvious. Hellhammer as well. Anything Tom touches turns black, in the best way. My guitar tone is directly correlated with his tone-knob-off thing, and on A Flight Through Obscurity I just used a Tube Screamer into a JCM800. I also study a lot of Darkthrone riffs and song-structures. Dave Lombardo’s drumming in Slayer is untouchable, especially on South of Heaven. Dream Death as well, as a unique band I see as in-between Frost and Slayer. REA: I love A Flight Through Obscurity, I need to relisten that one soon after you gave us that precious info!
REA: What kind of environment inspires you the most creatively? Logan: I like to pull the shades, turn off the lights, light some incense, and get to work. I’m usually imagining fantasy environments more than being inspired by real-world places. Though some songs are inevitably linked to my real life (My Endless Tragedy comes to mind). For those, the dark room helps me reflect more clearly on my memories.
REA: This can be a bit uncomfortable question for an artist, but I think nowadays times it´s nearly inevitable to ask it. What do you think about AI as an assistant or co-creator at the time of composing music? Have you ever used it or experiment with it? Logan: Totally comfortable with that question and my answer: Fuck AI. It removes the magic from the creative process, the space between idea and creation, where accidents happen and unpredictable results occur. The best part about art is the act of creating which AI negates. Not to mention the ethics involved in generative AI stealing work from real people. REA: Yes! No revolution comes free, but the AI one came as a blow for many of us. Also, a lot of speculation over where will it finally led us. Logan: True. There will always be real artists only interested in real art, in my opinion.
REA: Now let´s explore a bit about Veneficus Sarcina. Is Veneficus Sarcina your first musical project? Logan: It is not! My first band was called Abandon Ship. We never recorded. I then started writing folk as Logan Brown, and then had the idea for medieval music played as heavy metal. That birthed Veneficus Sarcina.
REA: What does Veneficus Sarcina mean´s and why did you choose it as your project name? Logan: Veneficus Sarcina is Latin, roughly translated as Sorcerer’s Burden. I am the Sorcerer, magically creating my world through art. My burden is, like stated earlier, greed, hatred, and confusion. Heavy heavy heavy. It’s very conceptual, but also just sounded badass to me.
REA: In fact, it is! How would you define the essence of Veneficus Sarcina to someone who has never heard of the project before? Logan: I would define it as… someone recently called it heartfelt. I liked that. I try to bring my real-world emotions into the fantasies I create. As defined by genre, it’s Blackened Heavy Metal, worshiping the First Wave.
REA: What are the main themes explored in your lyrics? Logan: Despair, depression, escapism, power, sexuality, Lovecraftian fantasy, hatred, aversion, the inseparability of death from life and how to understand that, and some songs are inspired by dreams and psychedelics.
REA: Great! I see most of your releases can be perfectly fitted in Blackened Heavy Metal but there are some which we don´t feel as they quite fit in that genre. Can you develop a bit on what type of release are Anachronisms and how they differ from your other releases? Logan: Ah, yes! I do EPs in between albums that explore traditional medieval songs in a heavy metal context. It’s totally anachronistic, thus the repetitive name. It’s how VS started, and I don’t plan to stop. There is a certain magic in the simplicity of medieval music, and I’ve found the melodies sound very powerful played on guitar. The fourth is on the way, presenting songs from the Cantigas de Santa Maria in a primitive, black metal context.
REA: We see that they are very special for you. We´ve noticed that you have been giving some live shows centered on Anachronisms and medieval music, right? Have you had live shows for other of your music releases? Logan: I do play the medieval tunes live somewhat often, yes. It’s much easier to coordinate one guitar and one drummer than it is to teach a whole band how to play complex songs from my albums. I have a dream of doing so, but nothing is currently growing in that direction. Well, there’s one possibility, but it’s way too early to mention it!
REA: If you finally get there, we´ll pay to see those shows for sure! Do you feel connected to any specific scene or movement inside extreme or underground metal? If so tell us a bit about it please. Logan: Not so much a scene as a train of thought I see running through metal’s history… starting with Celtic Frost more or less. Bands riding this wave would include Dream Death, Delirium, Winter, Slaughter, Goatlord, Bethlehem, Darkthrone, Obituary, and more recently Apokalyptic Raids and Midnight. If anyone else can detect a spiritual likeness between these projects, then they get me as far as I’m concerned.
REA: And from an artist perspective, What genres and styles are the bands you normally play with doing? How are your fans? Are they more like a dedicated scene or just random public that joined for curiosity? Logan: I’m usually playing alongside Dungeon Synth acts, as we have an active, growing scene here in the Midwest. Shout-out to Fantasy Audio Magazine!
REA: Nice! That sounds as a solid scene of fans! Logan: Yeah, there’s lot of shows and events popping up all the time. We do a Christmas show called Cryptmas every year.
REA: Could you explain roughly your songwriting process from the initial idea until you get to the final release? Logan: For sure. It starts with the riff, always. If I have one solid riff that I want to hear over and over, I can write adjacent riffs that compliment it and new riffs inspired by it. This eventually leads to a structure which I solidify with drums. I write as I record, and drums are often improvised on my records. It’s my first instrument, so I feel comfortable doing this, but it lends itself to a certain imperfection I’ve come to appreciate in my recordings. So, I’ll then do bass, lead guitar work, and finally lyrics grow out of a rhythm. I usually know what the rhythm of the vocal will be before I discover the words. REA: Impressive and I hope inspiring also for other musicians who are looking to follow a one man band creation process! Logan: For sure! Record everything! Never know what you’re going to accidentally play.
REA: For us Sarcina IV is one of your most special releases, but which is the release that represents Veneficus Sarcina the best in your opinion? Or the one you love most? Logan: Thanks for saying so! I released that one as a little bit of a surprise, and it got somewhat steamrolled by A Flight Through Obscurity. So, I like hearing that. I usually love most what I’m currently working on, so there’s an EP coming of B standard riffs that I’m obsessed with. Then a new album I’m writing that has «Swords» in the title not unlike my first record… I think I may like IV the most too, as it shows all different shades of metal I’m capable of creating.
REA: Your release schedule has been quite prolific. How are you able to be so creative and productive? Logan: I work three days a week as a nurse which leaves me with a lot of free time to fill… I think creating is an impulse springing from a fear of death. Not to get deep again, but the more content I feel the less I want to create heavy metal. So, here’s to hoping my discontent is eternal.
REA: Let´s get to the final part of the interview, a bit shorter than the previous one. I promise! About the Future of Veneficus Sarcina and final thoughts Logan: Haha, deal
REA: How has your musical vision evolved since your first releases? Your project is still evolving or you think it already reached a mature state some time ago? Logan: Good question. I’ve always just done what I want. The Blue and Red Magic EPs came out of nowhere, I didn’t have a clear vision for them musically. I mean, I started from Celtic Frost and just took it from there. Everything informs everything. I think AFTO is my most mature album, it’s cohesive and ambitious, but still pushing my horizon. The 1980s and early 90s are so full of rich inspiration, I doubt I’ll ever stop evolving. My wide interests lead to something of an eclectic sound, but I think that’s part of the draw.
REA: Are you currently working on new material to be released soon? Please, tell us a bit of what we can expect of your next releases. Logan: Yes, Anachronisms IV is coming (mentioned earlier as versions of the Cantigas), and I have an EP written in B standard that’s very nearly Death-Doom. So expect that soon! Then the album I mentioned with «Swords» in the title… REA: Yes! You already mentioned all of those. I assure we are looking forward for more of your art. Do you have planned release dates for those? Even if they are not definitive of course. Logan: Sure! Let’s say no sooner than early fall, as I want to keep giving AFTO some time to trickle out into the world.
REA: Are you looking forward to collaborate with other musicians or artists to form a new group or join an existing one? Logan: As a matter of fact, I’m collaborating with a few new friends, one of which is closely associated with Grime Stone records. That’s all I’ll say for now, but it’s faster, early thrash inspired. Still in the realm of Black Metal.
REA: Do you see Veneficus Sarcina eventually emerging from the underground into something bigger over time or your musical ambitions go in another direction? Logan: I’m not opposed to having a wider audience, it’s very satisfying to have anyone appreciate your art. I’m still surprised a few people are paying any attention to my screams into the void. Granted I don’t do it for validation but for the joy of creating. But I think my taste is too… Avant-garde? to ever attract too large a crowd. REA: Who knows!? There are some extreme and experimental arts out there that for me are surprisingly popular and successful, some could be even considered mainstream. Logan: True that!
REA: Last question! Finally, what message would you like to leave for the people supporting your music and the underground scene? Logan: Just a heartfelt thank you for giving me any of your time! There is so much music out there, much of which I find more interesting and worthy of attention than what I make. So, thank you for listening, and connecting with me through sound. There is much, much more to come. REA: You are being too humble! Your project is still small, but we think it´s a very talented one. I hope anyone that reads this interview checks out your music and discover it!
Veneficus Sarcina´s Discography: https://veneficussarcina.bandcamp.com
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