The Revolution Interview: XNRS – Forging Chaos Through Heavy Metal

inkedrevolt
Jun 30
3 min read

For readers discovering XNRS for the first time, how did the band come together, and what inspired the sound and identity that defines your music today?

Originally founded by lead guitarist Asura, the initial outline of the band began several years ago having written a handful of songs inspired by mid 2000s thrash and death metal-adjacent bands. Some of us knew each other from various other projects, that being vocalist Gurzil and guitarist Deimos, and in 2024 the line up was completed with the addition of our drummer Ares and very recently bassist Tyr. Over time, the sound very much changed into an amalgamation of all manner of metal subgenres taking inspiration from thrash, death, black, metal core, nu metal, industrial, prog, and even video game and movie soundtracks, giving us a dynamic and theatrical sound and performance that crosses the barriers of subgenres, fuelled by technical riffing and dark atmospheric sounds.

Heavy metal is known for its passion, energy, and connection with fans. What message or emotion do you hope listeners take away from your music?

Positivity and unity. The XNRS family is open to all who wish to be a part of it. If you are a compassionate and kind individual who cares for their fellow humans, you are our people. The world is a dark place right now, and we wish to throw some positivity back out into it. When we play live, we want you to rage with us, dance with us, headband with us, mosh with us, scream with us, but at the end of it all what we want you to do is go forth in peace and spread the good vibes. You may not see us smile beneath our masks but know that we definitely are smiling with you.

Every band faces challenges on the road to success. What has been the biggest obstacle XNRS has overcome, and what did you learn from the experience?

We have had 2 major roadblocks as XNRS since we started the ball rolling in 2025!

The first was our heavy use of atmospheric backing tracks. We knew this would be a challenge as none of us had done this kind of thing before, for some of us it was our first time using equipment such as wireless guitar inputs and in-ear monitors. We purchased a lot of new equipment solely for this band and it's been one hell of a learning experience getting it right in order to deliver a bold and professional sound. Stressful, yes, but we'd highly recommend it to anyone whose serious and whose on the fence about such an approach. The second challenge was of course our masks and the anonymity we had agreed upon. This was a challenge in the sense that we not only had to force ourselves to become DIY cosplay masters and learn to adapt playing live in full costumes, but we also couldn't tell our friends or family about it. We weren't able to push the band from any personal social media accounts so when we entered Metal 2 The Masses Hitchin, we entered with absolutely zero outside support and had to solely rely on our performance to gain fans to potentially be successful, and although this was extremely challenging, it forced us to be nothing less than our best.

The metal scene continues to evolve with new artists and influences emerging every year. How do you stay true to your roots while continuing to grow as musicians?

This is a great question, and one I imagine for a lot of musicians like us is not easy to answer. We think it's important to try a little something new in every new song you create, something that intentionally forces you to learn or grow along the way. Discovering, learning, and playing new music from various genres that inspire you is also important here, as with inspiration comes the question "how did they do that thing? How can I incorporate something similar into my work?" and before you know it, you've got a song which stands out against the rest of your work and which has pushed you towards further new discoveries and ideas.

Looking ahead, what can fans expect from XNRS in the coming months, and what goals do you hope to achieve as a band in the future?

We are currently focused on recording for some upcoming releases and potentially looking at getting a video made. We have a couple of gig dates around the country, so for now we'll get our heads down and keep up the hard work.