{"id":44726,"date":"2026-08-25T07:34:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-25T05:34:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orkus1.com\/an-interview-with-virtual-perish-part-1-of-2\/"},"modified":"2026-08-25T07:34:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-25T05:34:16","slug":"an-interview-with-virtual-perish-part-1-of-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orkus1.com\/en\/an-interview-with-virtual-perish-part-1-of-2\/","title":{"rendered":"An Interview with VIRTUAL PERISH (Part 1 of 2)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In our two-part interview with Virtual Perish, we talk about their new album, \u201cVirtual Parish,\u201d which will be released on October 23, 2026.<\/p>\n\n

Orkus:<\/strong> Let’s start at the beginning. Virtual Perish was founded back in 2020 and gradually evolved into the trio we see before us today. What was the original motivation for starting the band? Aurelio:<\/strong> Originally, Virtual Perish was a side project of mine and a former founding member\u2019s. The idea behind it was to take songs that didn\u2019t fit into our main projects and turn them into full-fledged tracks within this project. I no longer have my former main project, \u201cAura,\u201d and Virtual Perish is now my sole musical and artistic focus. <\/p>\n\n

O:<\/strong> You guys come from all over the world. Where exactly, and how did you all end up together? Aurelio:<\/strong> I’m from the Vienna area in Austria, and I was lucky enough to find my two bandmates through the Internet and social media.William:<\/strong> I’m originally from Richmond, Virginia, USA (I live in Amelia, VA now), and I found Aurelio after I worked up the courage to share a sample of the only decent vocal recording I’ve ever managed to make on a Discord server we were both on. He liked what he heard and offered me a guest spot on a song. After that, we just kept going. (smiles) Iris:<\/strong> Then we decided that a female voice was all that was missing to make it perfect. Sought\u2014and found, I\u2019d say. How could it be any other way with an online collaboration? Over the Internet, of course. Aurelio had posted an ad, and I was just open to a new, creative project. Perfect match! As an added bonus, working together regularly also helps me improve my English skills. (winks) <\/p>\n\n

O:<\/strong> What’s the story behind the band name? How did you come up with “Virtual Perish”? Aurelio:<\/strong> Virtual Perish, virtual decay. We\u2019re seeing what social media can do to humanity. Anonymity brings out the worst in people. The rise of artificial intelligence adds a whole new dimension to this. Plus, the name was unique and memorable. <\/p>\n\n

O:<\/strong> The single for \u201cPrimal\u201d has already been released. It\u2019s a wild mix that just sounds so cool! How did the song come about? William:<\/strong> We got together to write a \u201cgroove metal\u201d-style song, and I was somehow fascinated by Sepultura\u2019s \u201cRoots\u201d album and Soulfly (especially their \u201cPrimitive\u201d album).Aurelio:<\/strong> It\u2019s also the only song on the album where William and I created the instrumental together. William first played the main riff on his guitar, and then I recreated it using my VST instruments. It\u2019s also the longest track on the album, packed with creative ideas like a Trance Gate effect on the heavily processed lead guitars. <\/p>\n\n

O:<\/strong> You yourselves have said that the song\u2019s lyrics explore the desperate urge to break free from the shackles of modern society, while at the same time maintaining a strongly self-critical perspective. How did that come about? William:<\/strong> In the lyrics, I\u2019m basically just letting my frustration run wild about how I\u2019ve been told my whole life that I\u2019m too loud, haha. I finally live in a place where I can be as loud as I want, and no one can complain anymore\u2014it\u2019s just awesome. I live out in the countryside now, which has brought me closer to nature again. And with the combination of the ideas behind \u201cRoots\u201d and \u201cPrimitive\u201d\u2014the return to nature and the pure liberation of letting it all out without any restraint\u2014\u201cPrimal\u201d was ultimately just the best choice. <\/p>\n\n

O:<\/strong> How can we generally picture the process of working on the album? If it\u2019s even possible to describe it in such general terms\u2026 how does a Virtual Perish song come to be? Aurelio:<\/strong> It always starts with a word in my head\u2014an \u201cumbrella term\u201d for the sound I want to create. In this case, the word was \u201cgroove,\u201d and that\u2019s how the songs took shape. I work exclusively with virtual instruments, but without using any artificial intelligence at all; these virtual instruments existed long before AI was even a thing. We work in different phases, and sometimes these phases can take a very long time. Most of the songs on \u201cVirtual Parish\u201d were written instrumentally by me two years ago (mid-2024). I currently have about five albums with the instrumental tracks already completed in reserve. After one album comes the next; I start working on the next one right away. Iris:<\/strong> It all starts with an idea\u2014and that usually comes from Aurelio. Little by little, it turns into an instrumental track, which is in itself a harmonious blend of powerful drums, catchy riffs, and brutal synthesizers. That\u2019s when we (William and I) come into the picture\u2014in our endlessly productive late-night online sessions, the very first question is: \u201cWhat does this song make you feel?\u201d If our \u201cMaster of Melody\u201d hasn\u2019t already had a basic concept in mind, this is how the song\u2019s theme (and sometimes even the title) emerges. The next step gets technical\u2014finding the rhythm of the vocal melody, counting syllables, coming up with words that fit the theme, a little rhyming here and there, and the lyrics and vocal line are done. At this point, I sometimes raise my\u2014particularly popular\u2014objection: \u201cYou (or I, haha) can\u2019t sing it like that.\u201d Then we tweak, correct, and harmonize again\u2014that\u2019s the fine-tuning. Once we\u2019ve gotten this far, the rest almost takes care of itself: After figuring out who gets to sing what, where, and when, we record the vocals. For Aurelio and me, since we live so close, the recording sessions always involve sharing a snack and a quick chat about the work. (grins) Once the basic framework is in the can, my creative\u2014and often overconfident\u2014inner singer tends to come out: People really like my spontaneous harmony ideas, so I\u2019m practically forced to sing them\u2014which often isn\u2019t that easy. So far, though, we\u2019ve always found a way to make it work, as you can hear. William:<\/strong> We pick a vibe and tailor all the songs on the album to it. This album was groove metal… \u201cUnder the Influence\u201d leaned heavily toward nu metal, but basically it all came down to the question: \u201cCan we write a song in the style of the bands we grew up listening to?\u201d\u201d \u201cVirtual Errors\u201d was more experimental. With \u201cInfernal,\u201d it was all about an \u201cevil\u201d vibe, and with \u201cImmor(t)al,\u201d a \u201cdirty\u201d vibe took center stage. <\/p>\n\n

Claudia Zinn-Zinnenburg<\/p>\n\n

Lineup:<\/strong>Aurelio Rami \u2013 vocals, programming, drums, compositionWilliam \u201cEdge Case\u201d Warden \u2013 vocals, compositionIris Rebecca \u2013 vocals<\/p>\n\n

Listen to “Primal”:<\/p>\n\n

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