AN OPEN LETTER TO THE FANS AND THOSE WHO SUPPORT DESCENSION:

Greetings from the demon Astoroth.  You may have noticed a few changed on here, and there are reasons.  The biggest changes are in the form of our new members.  Their contributions have already changed the sound of the band in many positive ways and we will continue to evolve further.  The letters we get from you all mean a great deal to us... and many of you have been around since our first show in NKC at that strange little bar The Speakeasy... and I really, really appreciate that loyalty.  The last FOUR years we have been nominated as Best Metal/hardcore and Best Live Band in the KC Music Awards sponsored by PITCH Magazine, and each time we are humbled, honored and amazed.  Our peers, our local band brothers and sisters give us such support and say so many very nice things about the band.  We thank you so much for the enthusiasm and the kind words you speak when on a stage accepting an award or while performing on stages in KC and other areas.  Your words are dear to us and you make all this hard work and sweat worth it.  Without you guys we'd be nothing... and Brian Saunders and Mean DEAN the Metal Machine - you guys made us who we are as well... and we love and appreciate you for it.

Not all mail we get is positive, some people locally have decided to try and lie about the band and spread rumors that aren't true.  These same people spread gossip between bands all over town and they should be destroyed.  They suck ass.  The fact that someone would waste energy trying to destroy others tells you about them, about who they are and what they are about.  People who would take so much time to hurt other people, to squash others dreams and to try and undermine all the hard work that a band has went through.  Descension does NOT talk trash or slam other bands, it will NOT happen.  WE SUPPORT ALL OUR LOCAL BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN THE SCENE, regardless of style or what bands they are involved with.  Also, you probably noticed the heading to this page no longer has anything to do with BLACK METAL... that is due to a few different reasons... First, we have been the target of numerous close-minded idiot nazis that want to call themselves American Black Metal and then proceed to tell us how UNTRUE and LAME we are.  Nazi values go against everything that Black Metal stands for, so you pathetic idiots are NOT Black Metal... it just does not work.  Black Metal is about rebellion and embracing the dark side of life, the folklore, the myths... Odinism is one of the original religions of the Norwegian people and it is reflected in their music.  Immortal is a Norway Black Metal band that sings about forests and trees and saving nature... I guess you might want to call them the same, yet they are true Black Metal. It is not about how fast you play or how many virgins you kill - it is about attitude and your beliefs and staying true to who you are... but it did make me think.  And I came up with reason 2, below...

Reason 2:  I really started looking at our musical output and our newer songs and who we are personally in this band.  I realized we really AREN'T a Black Metal band in the traditional sense of the word.  We are a Heavy Metal band with Black Metal influences.  And we are proud of the term Heavy Metal for many reasons.  Some of the best music in the world has been made by Metal bands... and I would be embarrassed by the tag "Alternative."  There is no alternative anymore... it has become the norm.  Heavy Metal is the ONLY music that has remained loyal to itself and it's fanbase.  And everyone steals from it!  Pop bands steal the guitar sound, hardcore "borrows" the structures, Alternative rock like Papa Roach have openly STOLEN Iron Maiden riffs in their songs and even hip-hop wanna be's like Limp Bizkit steal the attitude and the guitars from metal music.  I'll say it proud... we're a fucking metal band and we are glad to be it - we promote metal at every turn and support all other local metal bands.  We are not as heavy as Dying Fetus, but we open for them - we are not as "black" as Frost Like Ashes, yet we share the stage.  Metal is metal and all this bullshit about who is "true" and who isn't needs to stop - unless someone does hip-hop with a metal sound, then that isn't METAL, it's HEAVY HIP HOP.  DESCENSION is proud as hell to be Metal, yet Descension plays as many shows with Punk, Ska and Emo bands as we do Metal ones.  We love all these bands as well - and we support them and their respective genres.  In many ways, Descension has more in common with the local Punk music community.  We are the underdogs, we fight for every gig and sweat for every appearance.  We have to work twice as hard to win the respect of metalheads due to our image and our love of other music forms.  We are not a punk band, but a Metal band with a Punk attitude and appreciation for the art.  Punk rules, live with it.  MANY CLOSE-MINDED "METALHEADS" have given us nonstop shit for these facts, but you know - Descension is a band that wants to ENTERTAIN people with our music... And we DO INDEED have elements of Punk, Rock, Hardcore, Classical Music and even Soundtrack Music in our songs.  We do NOT limit ourselves or PAINT OURSELVES INTO ANY CORNERS!

And then we get to the third reason:  I want to always be true and honest to ourselves and our fans and to classify ourselves in a genre we don't seem to fit in anymore seemed wrong.  We will never sell out, we will never give up our dignity and our priorities in this band.  We first and foremost will stay true to our roots, to our ideals and to what we believe in.  We will not add elements of any kind just to sell CDs nor will we let our fans down.  We will never become jaded or burnt out on who we are and what we do.  You are all the most important thing for us.  Without you, there would be no reason to keep going.  One of the main reasons I do this is for you.  When I was a kid and had a shit day in Hell, I'd put on an Iron Maiden album, A Slayer tape or a Raven album or whatever and it would take the shit away... it would make my day seem much better.  I want to do that for other people.  I want to take any bullshit you may have and throw it away for that hour and a half we are on stage or for the time you listen to our CD.  I want to entertain people.  

That is why we have the stage show, and why we wear the make-up and the strange stage gear.  This is NOT CORPSE PAINT.  It is not WARPAINT.  It is a part of our show, our characters and our ideology.  We want to give YOU, the crowd that sees us, something for your money.  We want to make sure you are entertained for that admission price.  And we want to make sure you take something away from you... not just another forgettable rock show with a band of people that look the same and do nothing but shake their heads and jump around.  Same songs, same riffs, same bullshit lyrics about "keeping it real."  It's easy to say "keep it real" when you rake in millions a year in a half-assed commercial corporate shit factory band.  We are doing what they claim to do.  WE are making it real by staying true to US and to YOU and we do it for nothing but the love of making music and entertaining YOU.  We aren't getting rich, no band does at this level.  And we support other bands in the scene with the same attitude as us.  We aren't and never will be "rock stars."  We throw away the egos and attitudes that hurt other bands.  We support other local and indie bands and we strive to strengthen independent music, not harm it.  Most shows around here make very little profit and to do this for any length of time, you have to love it.  And we salute any band, no matter what type of music, that has the guts to get in front of people and play music they created, from their hearts and souls.  And most of all we SALUTE YOU - the people who support us and other bands - and those of you that believe in us, in our music and in our cause.  HAIL TO YOU ALL.  And FUCK the assholes who call us KISS or ICP rip offs - we are NOT - in any way - ripping anyone off - yeah, Kiss did it first - but these characters were created JUST for this band and to entertain people - and FUCK people who can't enjoy a band that wants to entertain people, have a good time and support others... and FUCK people who can't be open-minded enough to give us a try and to give others a try - truth and honesty and integrity is our main power and our focus - and we love all who share it... HAIL TO THE TRUE!  SUPPORT LOCAL MUSIC AND LIVE MUSIC ALWAYS!!!!

Astoroth Occultus

Demon Lord, DESCENSION

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