Hungarian duo Karola and Roland of WitcheR join us to talk about their spellbinding new release Öröklét, a record steeped in witchcraft, folklore, and timeless melancholy. Fresh off a whirlwind self-release, they share insights into the album’s creation, their artistic philosophy, and the delicate balance between classical influences and raw black metal spirit.
Welcome to WitcheR
Hi Karola & Roland, welcome to Femme Metal Webzine! How are you doing, and how’s life treating you these days?
Greetings to you and the readers! Thank you very much for reaching out! We’ve just come through a very intense period, as our new album was released barely a month ago, and since we handled the release ourselves, we spent a lot of time packaging orders and received countless messages and congratulations. As exhausting as the whole process was, it also gave us an incredible amount of energy to move forward!
The new album Öröklét from WitcheR
On the 4th of November it was released the new full-length Öröklét. What can you share about its general production?
First, we didn’t rush it. Our previous full-length album received a lot of positive feedback, and we wanted to create a record that not only matches that level, but also shows progress in several ways. We spent a great deal of time on the sound design, for example, to achieve unique sounds and a distinctive overall character.
We also upgraded our studio to improve the recording quality, and we deliberately emphasized Karola’s vocals. Based on the feedback, this worked out so well that we’d like to put even more focus on it in the future. Although there were many small changes along the way, overall I have to say we managed to create a worthy successor to Lélekharang.
The lyrics on Öröklét
As per Witcher’s tradition, the lyrics are mostly related to witchcraft and Hungarian folklore. On which tale mostly focus this time on Öröklét?
Exactly. We didn’t create a concept album, so every song stands on its own, yet they are still closely connected. We don’t tell specific stories; instead, each track reflects what witchcraft means to us.
What it feels like to be an outsider, or to stand in opposition to the so-called values of the modern world. You know, we live a rather withdrawn life, and old values and traditions are very important to us. Respecting this past is our greatest source of inspiration, both musically and lyrically.
“We’re very attached to WitcheR’s roots”
I always loved WitcheR’s aesthetics because even after 15 years, it remains mysterious, and it feels like it comes straight from a funeral need. How much challenging is to not repeat yourself?
First, thank you for those flattering words. Look, for some people it already counts as repetition if the musical style doesn’t change from album to album. In this respect, we’re very attached to WitcheR’s roots, and we don’t want to make any drastic changes. Our only goal is to write great melodies and great songs.
As long as Karola is able to create such melodies, and as long as we can turn them into songs together, it’s really not a challenge for us to avoid repeating ourselves. Because even if the foundations remain the same, as long as we can fill everything with meaning and a strong melody, that’s more than enough for us.
WitcheR flirting with classical music
Despite been a metalhead, I’ve always been a classical musical lover. Indeed, Öröklét concludes with a reworking of Franz Schubert’s Piano Trio No. 2 – Andante con moto. According to which criteria do you choose the classical pieces to be included and reworked?
Since our first album, it has been a tradition for us to close the record with a reworked classical piece. In fact, the Boszorkányszimfóniák EP consisted entirely of such adaptations. When choosing a piece, we take many different aspects into account. The most important is that it has a certain atmosphere and melodies that will still sound good when transformed into metal.
Beyond that, its overall mood should fit the atmosphere of the album. It’s also important that we don’t pick an overused piece that dozens of bands have already adapted before us.
Even with Beethoven, we didn’t go for Für Elise, because everyone has heard it on countless metal releases. But Moonlight Sonata hadn’t been done in this context yet. Since Karola is a trained musician with extensive knowledge of classical music, she can always come up with excellent ideas on what we might rework next.
The cover artwork
I also greatly admire the cover artworks on WitcheR’s albums. What is the meaning behind the Öröklét cover artwork, and how does it relate to the lyrics?
Since the Lélekharang album, we have been working with Balázs Pénzes (Grafit & Hamu Artwork), and we are so much on the same wavelength that he can understand what we want to see on the cover even from half a word.
AI or similar tools are out of the question for us! We insist on real art, work created by human hands. On the cover, one of the album’s central messages comes to life through the concept of “eternity”. It depicts a young witch bidding farewell to an old witch after she has passed on all her knowledge. Through this, her wisdom and blood attain eternity, continuing to live on and be passed down from generation to generation.
The next plans for WitcheR
What’s next for WitcheR? Are there any plans for a tour or other upcoming projects you can share with us?
We’re not performing live, so there’s no tour or similar plans in sight, but we still have some projects lined up. Next, we plan to release a third music video from the new album, which will be interesting because we shot it over a period of 12 months – but I won’t say more about it for now.
After that, next year we definitely want to make our presence known with a brand-new song. In 2027, we plan to release a new album, but this time we want to work with a bigger label, because we’ve realized over the past few weeks that, in terms of releases, WitcheR has outgrown the capacity of just the two of us. It’s still too early to talk about our further plans.
Closing words
Thank you so much, Karola & Roland, for taking the time to chat with us! Do you have any final thoughts or messages you’d like to share with our readers and your fans?
First, we would like to thank you for taking the time to talk with us and for giving us the opportunity to answer interesting questions instead of the usual template ones, and to introduce ourselves on Femme Metal Webzine.
Secondly, we want to thank our fans for the incredible support and all the messages we received – you are the best! If anyone would like a CD, cassette, vinyl, or T-shirt, feel free to contact us or check out our Bandcamp page. Keep the flame of real music and true art alive, because without the past, there is no future!