Portuguese metallers MOONSPELL filmed their February 4 concert at the Campo Pequeno arena in Lisbon, Portugal for their upcoming 20th-anniversary DVD. The show, which was witnessed by four thousand metalheads, saw the band performing three of its records live on stage: "Wolfheart", "Irreligious" and "Extinct". Says MOONSPELL: "The show was filmed for a DVD release via Napalm Records and we believe these will make the Portuguese wolves' fans very, very proud. "MOONSPELL broke their ticket sale recording for a headline show in Portugal, and four thousand rabid fans have attended this show, making impossible history happen for a Portuguese metal band." MOONSPELL recently revealed it was working on a Portuguese-language EP about the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, also known as the Great Lisbon earthquake, which occurred in the Kingdom of Portugal. In combination with subsequent fires and a tsunami, the earthquake almost totally destroyed Lisbon and adjoining areas. MOONSPELL vocalist Fernando Ribeiro told Spark TV: "I always was very fascinated about the apocalypse, the end of things, and we had this experience in the 18th Century, in 1755, and it really affected not only by the destruction and the death toll — it was very high, and it was probably one of the biggest earthquakes ever to occur on European soil — but it also influenced the way people looked at Gods, at religion, the way Europe changed. And it was tragic and traumatic, but the earthquake was the birth of a more modern Portugal, a Portugal that actually would enjoy a period of prosperity after, and the Portugal that was, before the earthquake, just going down and lost in vice and corruption and greed. So I think it makes for an interesting subject, and it makes it even more interesting if I do it in Portuguese, because it happened there." Regarding the musical direction of the material that will appear on the new MOONSPELL EP, Fernando said: "It's not that gothic, I have to say. I think it's a more metal album. As the subject is an earthquake, it's definitely a little bit more brutal. But it still has the touch of MOONSPELL and it also has a more symphonic touch here and there. I'm not even really singing with my melodic vocals, just screaming." Asked whether MOONSPELL would once again incorporate some of the oriental music elements — like they did on "Extinct" — on the upcoming EP, Fernando said: "I think it's a big influence in our music. And also, the idea behind this EP is to capture a certain feeling and a certain spirit of that time — people in the streets of Lisbon and people living their lives. And Lisbon, at the time, was a big metropolis, and it was populated by a lot of people — from Muslim people to people from Africa, new people from Brazil, Portuguese people, English people, French people… a lot of people, because Lisbon was the epicenter of many of the maritime dealing and commerce. So we are using these oriental things, because that was the stuff that people listened to in the streets as well, and that's important. We will not work with the same people as on 'Extinct', 'cause 'Extinct' is a full-on album, so we had more money to invest, etc. It's an EP, so it's lower budget, more modest production. But sometimes you just use your imagination. So I think that part, it's totally covered and it's going to be a bit different from 'Extinct', but it will have these feelings, definitely, on these new songs, because it's the feeling of the Portugal at the time as well." "Extinct" was released in March 2015 via Napalm. The CD was completed at Fascination Street Studio in Örebro, Sweden with producer Jens Bogren, who has previously worked with KATATONIA, AMON AMARTH, OPETH and PARADISE LOST, among others.
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