New Jersey death metal band Funebrarum is set to release its third album, entitled Beckoning the Void of External Silence, on May 29th. Funebrarum’s vocalist Daryl Kahan spoke with Metal Express Radio about their upcoming album, bringing in Patrick Fernlund of Gorement to do guest leads, staying active after their hiatus during the pandemic, and more. Check out the chat below!
Metal Express Radio: Funebrarum are set to release their third album, entitled Beckoning the Void of Eternal Silence, on May 29th. What can you tell fans about the upcoming release?
Kahan: We, Funebrarum, are proud to finally share our new album with the world. It is our strongest and most dynamic release to date. We have put in a lot of work and attention to all aspects to make it so. Beckoning is by far our darkest and strongest album, with a good variety within the songwriting. From grinding morbid death to punishing slow doom to mid-tempo punk/thrash parts. Everything we like in proper Death Metal.
MER: How was the writing and recording process, being your third album?
Kahan: We wrote the album over a year in Portland, Oregon, New Jersey, and while on tour in Europe and in Mexico. Most of the album’s instrumentation was recorded in Portland at our drummer Charles Koryn’s studio, Elektrik City Recording. Vocals, leads, and mixing were completed in Edison, New Jersey, at Sound Spa Studios, with engineer Stephen DeAcutis behind the board. Our guitarist, Phil Tougas, bassist Winslow, and I co-produced the album with Steve, with mastering done by me at Winterdark Studio.
MER: How was it bringing in Patrik Fernlund of Gorement to do guest leads on the album?
Kahan: In 2003, I designed, conceptualized, and produced Gorement’s discography CD entitled Darkness of the Dead. Their guitarist, Patrik, and I remained friends over the years, and when Funebrarum’s album started taking shape, I reached out to him regarding playing some guest leads, which he did. Patrik is a highly skilled guitarist, and his leads are a great addition to our album. When in Sweden, we may coordinate a live appearance with Patrik on stage.
MER: Funebrarum will be making their live return at Killtown Deathfest in Copenhagen, followed by a European tour. What are your expectations for your upcoming touring schedule?
Kahan: We have a great tour agency working for us, Swamp Booking in Berlin, who have most of the dates already booked. We will be playing in some areas of the UK and in mainland Europe, where we have not played before, nor have I been to yet, so we are looking forward to playing in those areas and getting back out on the road, in general.
MER: After being on hiatus for a bit due to the pandemic, how does it feel to have a new album out with a tour to follow?
Kahan: The album’s music portion was mostly completed before the pandemic, except for the cover art (oil paintings) and layouts for its various formats, which I recently finished, so it has been a long time coming, but this was the goal, and I am glad to be releasing the album now.
MER: Do you see any plans for Funebrarum after the European tour?
Kahan: Yes, we do. In addition to the new album, we will be releasing a split 7″ EP gatefold with our friends Pestigore from Finland, on my label, Morbid Wrath Records, and in cooperation with the Czech label, Doomentia Records. Pestigore are a strong band and cool people, who we have appreciated since the 90s. We hope to schedule some shows with them in Finland while on tour. The momentum generated by our new album and split EP will continue with some new riffs and song ideas that the band and I have. I look forward to getting back into the studio asap.
MER: Is there anyone that you hope to tour with and why?
Kahan: We will be touring Europe with a cool, younger underground band from Finland called Morbific. I listened to a few of their tracks, and they are quite good. I would like to tour with our friends Interment (Sweden), Galvanizer again, as well as Rippikoulu (Finland). The aim would be to support bigger bands to expose Funebrarum to a larger audience.
MER: Is there any place you hope to play live that you have not and why?
Kahan: Over the years, we have played live with some legendary underground metal bands. We would like to do some shows with our brothers, Evoken, and our guitarist, Sam’s other band, Hulder. This is a distinct possibility, and we are working towards making it happen.
MER: If you could create a Big 4 of death metal, who would it consist of and why?
Kahan: I like my Death Metal heavy and downtuned to the depths with raw, dirty, and quality riffs.
Bolt Thrower (UK) they were tremendous and powerful band, with a great tone and a great drummer, Andy Whale, who I had the pleasure of working with in the band Darkened. I have had a tattoo of Bolt Thrower’s album art since I was 19, now 54.
Demigod (Finland) – Their demo Unholy Domain from 1990 is one of the penultimate Death Metal recordings in Funebrarum’s book. The members of the band and I became friends years later when I helped them get on MDF, and when my other band played with Demigod in Paris. Their singer, Esa, came running up to me when we arrived. Great dude. We played with Demigod, Archgoat, and Convulse in Paris. Their drummer Seppo came to see and hang out with us in Helsinki when we played there. These are great underground moments for me personally, from reading interviews with them in their zines and getting their demo via tape trades in the early 90s.
Celtic Frost (Switzerland) Not exactly Death Metal, but a great Metal band I discovered and followed during my formative years in the 80s. Frost was a tremendously powerful, dark, and rhythmic band with great design and occult aesthetic. I ended up dating and living with a woman in St. Gallen, Switzerland, who was in their inner sanctum (or close to them), and Hans Rudi Giger.
Slayer (US) Again, not death metal, but everything up until Reign in Blood was hugely inspirational for the other members of Funebrarum and me. Hell Awaits! Possessed, Bathory, Destruction, Sodom, Venom, and Kreator – all led to us forming Funebrarum.
Bonus Band: Rippikoulu (Finland) Another great band we befriended and eventually played shows with. Heavy, dark, and doomy – just how we like it.
MER: Out of Funebrarum’s three albums, which one would you recommend to a new fan and why?
Kahan: Our new album is representative of the band in 2026, and we hope to find new fans through it, but to fully understand Funebrarum, I would recommend our first album, Beneath The Columns of Abandoned Gods.
Thank you for your interest and support of Funebrarum. Hail METAL!!
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