What could Ka’aper and Wacken Metal Battle possibly have in common? What’s happening at Savino Live and how is Rock Island Events involved?
The big news for Cyprus metal stage – the first Wacken Metal Battle will be held in Larnaca on January 17th 2026!
Before this long-awaited event we decided to speak with one of the six selected bands – Ka’aper.
Our readers are already acquainted with this band from their album “While Flows the Nile”.
The band’s vocalist Evgeny Pchelyakov told us what the band is up to, expectations from the Battle and some insights from upcoming album.
1. First of all, thank you so much for giving us some time to interview you, because as far I know you’ve been travelling a lot with concerts lately and finishing your new full-length album. Do you feel yourself as rockstars already?
Hey Kateryna! Always a tremendous pleasure to talk to you! We’re starting from jokes – I like it! Of course, we don’t feel like rockstars at all, more like a modest local band. We still have a huge road ahead till we can even become a NOTICEABLE local band. One of my friends said many years ago, “No one becomes a rockstar in the declining age of their mid-thirties”. I totally agree.
2. Does it make a difference to you preforming in Georgia, Armenia, Moldova, Egypt and how it resonates with Cyprus stage?
I always love playing in Cyprus. We have one of the best metal communities here! Don’t get me wrong – metalheads in Georgia, Armenia, Moldova and especially Egypt are sick, but I’m incredibly proud of our local scene! And you can see how many new bands are appearing, and many of them are amazing!
3. Continuing the theme of multiculturalism, how did it happen that both Russia and Ukraine musicians play together in the same band despite the current geopolitical crisis? Can you share some of your thoughts that will be safe for you to say as you, probably, travel to your Homeland?
Come on, first of all, we live here in Cyprus, non of us supports any political parties or movements in our former countries. Secondly, we were all born in one country – the USSR. Then it fell apart and gave way to separate countries to develop and evolve. In our childhood, these were sister countries, where families often lived on both sides of the border and met every weekend.
So I consider the crazy stuff that’s going on now is a real civil war. You asked me not to swear during the interview, so let me rephrase: I’ve screwed all those sons of women with loose morals who made us shoot each other. I’ve said it many times and I will keep saying it until this bedlam is over…and probably a bit longer.
I’m completely convinced there are no bad nations – only bad people, and fortunately they are a minority. So we don’t care where we are from – we’re brothers regardless of what passports we have. We didn’t choose the country we were born in and, honestly, didn’t choose our governments either. You know what I’m talking about, hehe.
4. Let’s talk about your latest single “Amenhotep”. Why did you choose exactly this song? What can this song hook metal fans with?
It was an easy choice! “Amenhotep” is a heavy, catchy and dark song – a quintessence of Ka’aper. What’s really important is there are no “notes” in the vocals – I use only growls – but you can easily murmur the chorus like an average rock tune because the vocals follow the melody. That combination works well very rarely! Usually it sounds primitive and stupid, but not in “Amenhotep”. It’s definitely one of the best songs we’ve ever written – both within Ka’aper and beyond.
5. In the review of your album “While Flows the Nile” from Afternoiz we’ve got a phrase regarding the lyrics of songs related to Egyptian mythology: “…there is a danger of remaining within the framework of the chosen topic …”, do you feel this danger or you still have a lot to say with your music?
It’s an abyss. Bottomless. We can keep writing about ancient Egypt for many albums and still have a lot to say. That doesn’t mean we’ll do it until we become grumpy old men with dementia, no. Probably, for the fourth album we’ll switch to, for example, Mesopotamia or Greek/Cypriot mythology, why not? But you can be sure the third album will be based on Egyptian history and mythology.
6. Share some spoilers with us from your upcoming new album. What should listeners be prepared for?
Oooooh, can’t wait to release it! Really! It’s so melodic and heavy, fierce and dark. It’s still Ka’aper, but…wider maybe, I guess that’s the right word, we explored new territories – there is some really sick headbanging stuff, some mellow and melodic parts, but probably the biggest surprise will be revealed really soon in our upcoming single “Lament for Osiris”. Such Ka’aper hasn’t been heard before, trust me.
7. Will you take a risk and play new songs from the album at the Wacken Metal Battle?
We’ve already played several new songs at previous shows. Namely, “Of Chaos And Destruction” which we’ve played many times, “Pharaoh” which was released on our live EP “Half Alive, Half Dead” and then re-recorded for the upcoming album, the upcoming “Lament for Osiris” as well and, of course, “Amenhotep” which we will definitely play at the Metal Battle!
8. I’m sure you know all other bands taking part in Wacken Metal Battle and shared the stage with many of them. But it is a competition after all. What does Ka’aper intend to use in order to win? What other aces does the band have up its sleeve?
Actually, we shared the stage with ALL of them: Blynd, Guiltera, Salienzor, Speak in Whispers, YMNKY! and even DJ Eric Hutchence. All of them are our friends. If I answer with complete honesty, I’d say we are not going there to win, but rather to have fun and show our music to a new audience.
Don’t get me wrong, we love this spirit of competition and we’ll be happy to pass to the finals, but it’s not football where the winner is the one who scores the most goals. It’s music and all those bands are awesome, so only the judges will decide! We’ll do our best to deliver the best show we can, as we always do, but there’s no reason to expect anything extraordinary for this show. Just good music, tons of energy and natural charisma, hehe.
9. I believe that facing your fears builds character. Do you ever get nervous before going on stage with Ka’aper ? What’s your worst nightmare when performing in public?
Somehow, I never get nervous when I play with Ka’aper. I have no idea why. When I play with someone else, I almost shit my pants, but not with Ka’aper. Probably, this is why I love performing with these guys so much. I feel really confident on stage, because I trust the musicians around me, and even more I convinced that we play really decent music. This is why I don’t have “nightmares”.
What can possibly happen? I fall off the stage while headbanging? I don’t care. If my head is still on my shoulders, I’ll go headbanging with the crowd. What else? I accidentally jump on our guitarist? Well, in that case, my problems will be nothing compared to his trouble.
10. Afternoiz wishes you success in your performance at Wacken Metal Battle. It’s obvious that you have everything to win: supportive metalhead community, strong will and heavy, memorable riffs. Looking back on the journey from the very beginning of the idea to create a band till now fighting for a place to perform on one of the biggest metal stages in Europe, what conclusions have you drawn for yourself?
It’s simple. Love the music you play and never compare yourself to others. Just do what you do and do it well. We already have so much stress in everyday life, so we should try not to turn music into another source of stress. That’s it. Love what you do.
follow Kaaper
New Single “Amenhotep”:
https://open.spotify.com/track/4ydh1dbCkDHxMb0Y93QuhB?si=345b7e8c9b46443e
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/390682690791303?ref=pro_upsell_xav_ig_profile_page_web
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/kaaper_official/
Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/artist/4T0bImsYNQXp9JdY1RBzEu
