During a recent interview with Revolver magazine, BEHEMOTH frontman Adam “Nergal” Darski shared his opinion about social media as a vehicle for opinions, and how invested he is in that world.
“It’s a double-edged sword. I’m a social media wh*re, but at the same time I’m withdrawing from it, as well,” he said. “I try to find those tools that are useful, cool and intuitive — so far Instagram is the best one. With Facebook, I’m not present there anymore. My profile is there, but I deleted the app on my phone. I’m not scrolling.”
“I think I have this dysfunction: Sometimes I go to social media and I just troll my own account. Lately I’ve stopped doing that, but every now and then… I’ll go there and deliberately do something to provoke discussion. I say things I don’t really feel, to see how people would react. But lately, I’d rather read a book, workout, go for a walk or pet a dog. There are billions of better alternatives to sitting on social media.”
“When I scroll Instagram or see music videos from other bands, this is my question to the world out there: Where’s the substance? Music videos are about the guys banging their heads and playing guitars. Boring! Drop that, not relevant … cringey stuff. I don’t want to listen to music or watch videos of bands that have nothing to say. I don’t want to watch movies that are just about bombs and fast cars.”
“Feed me with something that’s going to stay with me, and that I can learn from,” he continued. “Maybe I can be a better person afterwards. Or a smarter person. Or maybe it’ll disturb me … maybe I’ll revisit my views or change them. But f**k my brain! That’s what I’m asking the world: F**k my brain. When I read a book, I want it to stimulate me. I need a boner, and not just because it’s Fifty Shades of Grey.
“I really hope what BEHEMOTH delivers is true substance. You may not like it. It may eat at you. It will probably disturb you. Maybe it’s too aggressive for you, that’s quite possible. But there’s substance there, there’s craftsmanship. That’s something you cannot take away from Behemoth’s new record.”
“I always say that I come across Catholics and Christians that are part of our legion — people that are open and vocal about their beliefs, like, ‘I’m Catholic, but somehow what you do resonates with me.’ That’s amazing! Like, how is that possible? I do have massive respect for that because I can be stubborn with my views [too].”
Nergal went on to explain how he finds that creating controversy and provoking people through his work in BEHEMOTH as a healthier alternative than toxic dialogues through social media.
“I always say that I come across Catholics and Christians that are part of our legion — people that are open and vocal about their beliefs, like, ‘I’m Catholic, but somehow what you do resonates with me.’ That’s amazing! Like, how is that possible? I do have massive respect for that because I can be stubborn with my views [too].”
“I could be a little more relaxed, but I’m not. But this proves that the art that I make is metaphysical. It goes beyond who’s right and who’s wrong. There’s something more — atoms and energy that connect people beyond boundaries. To me, that is revolutionary. So why should I question their liking of BEHEMOTH?”
