Hate's frontman Perun V. on Bellum Regiis and The Human Lust For Power

Polish blackened death metal stalwarts Hate, formed in Warsaw in 1991 and led since the beginning by vocalist and guitarist Perun V., stand as one of the country's most enduring and influential extreme metal acts. Often mentioned alongside Vader, Decapitated, and Behemoth as part of Poland's "Big Four" of death metal, the band has undergone numerous lineup changes while keeping a consistent vision. In this revealing interview with J. Donovan Malley of Frozen Moon Promotions, Perun V. discusses the release of their highly anticipated 2025 album Bellum Regiis, the band's creative process, and the philosophy behind their decades-long journey.

The conversation examines Hate's significant musical evolution – from their early Florida death metal-inspired beginnings to a more blackened, melodic, and atmospheric sound. Over 20+ years and 12+ studio albums, the band has shaped this development. Perun V. explains the intense, collaborative process behind Bellum Regiis, emphasizing the vital role of renowned Swedish producer David Castillo (Katatonia, Bloodbath, Carcass) in sharpening their signature aggression and boosting atmospheric depth. He also discusses the deliberate incorporation of melody, highlighted by the haunting contributions of guest vocalist Eliza Sacharczuk on the title track and "Vanguard", and talks about the unity of the current lineup, highlighting shared passion over just technical skill.

Beyond the album's creation, Perun V. explores heavy themes, emphasizing the importance of Slavic mythology in his lyrics, while clarifying that Bellum Regiis is as much about contemporary issues as it is mythological frameworks. Indeed, the album examines humanity's 'insatiable lust for power" and its brutal results, topics tragically heightened by Poland's closeness to the war in Ukraine. The interview also openly discusses the logistical challenges of touring, such as visa issues that led Hate to withdraw from a recent Belphegor US tour (with a positive update on visas being resolved for future tours), and ends with Perun V. reflecting on the lasting mystery and motivation that drives his commitment to extreme metal.

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J. Donovan Malley for Frozen Moon Promotions (FMP): I've always been fascinated by the process of pouring your heart into a piece of art, releasing it, and then seeing what happens. Are you satisfied with the release of Bellum Regiis and how fans received it? More generally, what is it like for you to put your work out into the world?

Perun V.: Yeah, sure. The first feeling you get after releasing an album is more of a relief than satisfaction. I believe satisfaction comes later.

Once you have some more reviews or reactions flowing in for at least a few weeks from the moment you release yourself, the first thing is the feeling of relief because, at least for this album, it's been a lengthy process to make this record—from the conception of the tracks first of all to going to Sweden.

FMP: For David Castillo, right? For a lot of production with David, did you have to go to Sweden?

Perun V.: Exactly, yeah, a few times actually. A few times. Also, we were recording the new songs in part in Warsaw.

It's called Legionowo near Warsaw, but whatever. So it's right here in Poland. Once the album was finished and mastered, we still had to wait for about four months or more for the first single to come out. Because it was the label's decision, and you need to wait for your slot, you know? So there's been a lot of high expectations on one hand, and a lot of work on the other.

Finally, you have it released, so you feel relieved first of all. And a lot of satisfaction comes with it as well because the reception is really great. So everybody is happy and satisfied. But first of all, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to make this record with David Castillo, especially the new tracks. Once I heard them after the final mastering, I felt a lot of satisfaction.

But it was, as I said, about three or four months before the first single was released.

FMP: I've enjoyed watching your sound evolve over the years. Early albums featured straightforward Florida death metal, but now your style leans more towards black metal with added melodies. In many ways, your sound has matured over 20 years. How would you describe this evolution?

Perun V.: Well, it's not easy to digest this amount of time in just a few sentences, but you're very right about the evolution. And that's the key word here, because there's nothing truly revolutionary in what we do. But on this new album, we have all the main characteristics of our style that we've been developing for years and years, or more than two decades now.

One of the main goals was to work with David Castillo to preserve this aggression and style as much as possible, maintaining all the key characteristics of our sound, including the arrangements and so on. But we also wanted to add something new. Some improvement is needed to make the production better, on a higher level, but without losing the ferocity and aggression that come with it, because it has to be a next hit album, okay?

Nothing more, nothing less. And David understood that very well from the very beginning. In fact, the reason we chose to work with him is that he doesn't use a template as a music producer.

He doesn't use a template. His productions are very different. Depending on the band he's working with and his style, he's trying to convey his vision through his productions. I really didn't want him to lose the character of our music. And he would be able to do that because I know his productions. I saw the albums that he did with Katatonia, Carcass, and Candlemass.

All of them are different. All of them have unique characteristics. And in all of them, you can hear the essence of the music that the bands create. That's one of the reasons I'm pleased to be working with David. Because he didn't ignore the main concerns that we had discussed with him, and it's a great production, yeah.

FMP: You're part of a band since the beginning, guiding its vision despite lineup changes. What has kept the band's spirit alive? Is it your unique sound, collaboration, or playing riffs yourself? Discuss the band's changes and how the current group functions.

Perun V.: Since we're long-standing, we share a passion and similar tastes in music. This helps a lot. It's not about randomly choosing musicians just because they can play instruments. But instead, people actually understand what's going on and share many of the same tastes as I do. This makes things much easier. Also, I'm working with this lineup of guys right now.

But with this drummer and the bass player, this was actually the second album I did with them. Rugia was the first, and now this, Bellum Regiis, is the second album. We have known each other very well by now. We know how to work together. We've exchanged all kinds of thoughts and remarks on music, arrangements, and so on. So, this collaboration is getting stronger, better, and more effective.

So that's the first thing. Second, the main characteristics of our style are what attracted everyone in the band to it. The previous albums and the stuff we released before actually drew everyone to us. And everybody is a fan of the band.

FMP: Right on. No hired guns aiming just to make money. You have people who genuinely love the band and share common interests.

Perun V.: Exactly. And they want to develop this formula and work on it. They're curious about what's coming next. What are we going to make next time? And so they have their expectations as well, so we have a lot of discussions about this and that while working on the songs.

Of course, I come up with the main ideas, both the musical ideas and the lyrics. But everyone has something to say, and there's an open discussion about stuff. I often consider their opinions as well. So, everybody feels at home, and everyone is very engaged in what we do. We work together, and that's how it functions.

FMP: The title track begins with Eliza Sacharczuk’s voice and a melody that appears in the intro to the “Vanguard”, emphasizing a strong melodic element in the material. Discuss how you integrated melody into Hate while preserving its aggressive core. Also, share more about Eliza on Bellum Regiis and the strategic use of her voice.

Perun V.: Yeah, so long story short, I wanted to create tracks based on some specific melodies. Especially those you mentioned, like the title track, “Vanguard”, and a few others. I aimed to build them around some melodic themes.

There was also an element I was searching for. It was a vocalist who would create an interesting contrast with my voice. Exactly, exactly. I was looking for this contrast, and it might be a male vocal. I listened to some guys singing, but nothing sounded convincing.

Eliza Sacharczuk

Then I focused on female vocalists, and there was some selection. There was a group of vocalists to choose from. But Eliza is my friend's wife. She wasn't far away, but I didn't know what kind of music he sang, what his skills were, or so on. I was amazed when I found out she could actually sing in many different styles.

First of all, it's folk music, and she's excellent at it. She's a music teacher. Very cool—a singing teacher who can sing folk and does it often. I mean, because she has a small orchestra in Eastern Poland that plays folk music. And she can also sing in a more classical style. That style is very, very classical—kind of monumental.

That caught my attention because I heard only one track, and they used her voice this way.  So I thought to myself, let's give it a try. I sent her the songs. At that time, I was in the pre-production phase. So, I had all the songs recorded already, but it was just a pre-production..

So I sent her the songs. We had a few conversations, and then she sent me back some ideas. They weren't entirely convincing, but I thought we could do something because the contrast between my voice and her voice was right on.

And then I learned that she could speak Greek. So I thought, yes, because she had spent a few years in Greece, like six years living in Athens. And she speaks Greek very well. So I asked her to sing something in Greek. She said, "All right, let's give it a try." So I selected some parts of the classic Greek tragedies from Aeschylus.

It's just Greek—classic Greek literature. So it's in the public domain and easily accessible. So I chose some fragments that match the lyrics in those songs. And I sent those fragments to her. Then we met in the studio where I was recording guitars and other instruments. And she did a great job.

And yeah, it was a pleasure working with her. And we also, and you are right about it, we didn't want to overdose, you know? So, to keep the balance and make it enjoyable, not overload it.

So yeah, everyone’s happy about this, including Elisa. I'm pretty sure she wants to continue this adventure with us, so I believe we’ll revisit the idea of making tracks together, maybe even in the future.

FMP: I was disappointed you had to leave the Belphegor tour. I have done a lot of band interviews and understand that visa issues are complicated, especially now. It really sucks to have to drop out, so please tell me what happened.

Perun V.: I'll tell you what happened, and I also have some good news for you.

So, what happens is that we call it a visa petition. This is the first step if you want to get a work visa in America. It is called the P1 visa petition, which is the artist visa. Specifically, they changed the procedure completely when Donald Trump came to power. Completely.

I mean, it wasn't easy. But then it turned into a completely messed-up process from my point of view. So we only had less than three weeks because of the Belphegor tour, since it was a late offer. And then it took just three weeks to process those visas. It was absolutely impossible. When I saw the list of documents we had to gather, including some recommendations, financial documents, and a lot of other stuff, I wasn't sure what to do.

Crazy stuff. So, our exemplary record of past visits to America didn't matter at all. It didn't matter at all. At that point, we basically had no choice but to let everyone on the American side know that we wouldn't be able to make it. And after some time, we actually applied for those visas..

With all those documents they asked for, they told us it's not enough. You still need to bring this, that, and this other thing?

But we were pretty determined to gather all those documents. And then, just a few weeks ago, I was in Greece, on tour. Three weeks ago, while we were touring Europe with them, I received the message that the authorities had approved our petition.

This means there was just one step to getting the visas: the meeting at the embassy in Warsaw, which is a formality. If the petition was approved, you just go there, have a nice chat with someone from the consulate, and get the visa. So, we'll be ready very soon to come to the States.

I already talked to Stefan, who represents us from Continental Touring. He's a very cool guy, by the way. He just told me that he would come up with some ideas for possible tours for us next year, maybe even two, not just one, but two tours we can easily do on those visas.

So, it looks positive.

FMP: I wanted to ask about the significance of Slavic mythology in your lyric process and how it has evolved. Is it also a personal journey as your interest in it deepens? Please share your role in your lyric writing and life.

Perun V.: First of all, I want to emphasize that on this new album, Bellum Regiis, there are some references to Slavic mythology, of course. But it's not like it's everywhere, you know, like all over the songs.

I think that maybe three songs are exceptionally dedicated to Slavic mythology in this way or another. And there are some references in other songs as well. But it's not a concept album, and it isn't based on Slavic mythology in the same way as Rugia was. If you ask me about Slavic mythology and its significance to me, I became really interested in it around 2015 or 2016. I was actually searching for my own identity on a deeper level. As you can imagine, I couldn't find any of my identity in Polish conservatism, which is closely tied to the Catholic Church. I was simply exploring, delving into history.

I came across many interesting ideas from the ancient Slavs. Ancient Slavs inhabited Poland, but there was no actual Poland at that time—just a concept. There were many Slavic tribes with unique traditions and customs. Right now, I think there's kind of a renaissance of those Slavic ideas, especially the pre-Christian ones. Why? Because archaeologists, historians, and language experts are discovering more and more, so it's fascinating.

It's really fascinating. Yeah, this pushed me artistically. At that time, there was the album Tremendum in 2017, and then Auric Gates of Veles, from the Slavic Pantheon.

They connected very much with or based them on Slavic topics. Now, this album—specifically, the new one—centers around our insatiable lust for power and the struggle to attain it. Everything related to that, including wars, conflicts, propaganda, and similar issues, is also part of it.

And there's this big question: why are we so inspired by concepts like glory, power, wealth, and so on? Because this is something very common to every human being, I believe, or at least to human groups, like nations, on a larger scale. It's one of the deeply ingrained characteristics of our kind.

So you can see many negative consequences of it as well. This actually inspired me to explore this theme and to write an album about it. Of course, you can imagine the war in Ukraine that we have.

FMP: I was going to ask, given Poland's location—sharing a border with Ukraine—how much war reality influences this discussion, especially after that missile strike hit Poland a while back.

Perun V.: Yeah, but yeah, you have good intuition. That's exactly how I got interested in this. I started exploring this idea of kings from Latin, which means the clash of the titans, clash of the superpowers, and so on.

The world has changed quite a bit over the last, say, 10 years, and you can see that it's becoming multipolar instead of being bipolar back in the day.

And the album is not a concept album, so it's not as rigid as one usually is. However, it touches on this topic from many different perspectives. For example, the track “Iphigenia” is based on an ancient Greek story about King Agamemnon and his eldest daughter. The story goes that she was on her way to an island, thinking she was going to marry Achilles and heading to her wedding. But in reality, she was going to be sacrificed in a temple by her father, who was so determined to win the Trojan War that he wanted to please a goddess with his daughter's sacrifice. It's a dramatic situation, and the story has a twist—once Achilles learns about it, he wants to save her. She then considers her options and decides she doesn’t want to be saved; she chooses to die for a higher cause—the victory of her nation in the Trojan War. That’s what “Iphigenia” is about. It’s also about war—this very dramatic act of sacrifice for something greater, made willingly in some cases. Today, we see similar situations in the real world, like the war in Ukraine, which is far from mythology—it's brutal, bloody, and horrifying. Many people make such dramatic decisions, and their stories are often in the media. It makes you think: why are these concepts so important to people in specific moments? There’s something in all of – something in you, me, everyone—that can lead to these actions. Metal music tends to focus on this darker side of human nature. But what really interests me is the human essence itself—the deep, darker part that some call Satan, some call the shadow side of the human soul, or just the dark facets inside us. It’s a fascinating subject, especially in the context of war, with its cruelty, suffering, and callousness. The lies, propaganda, and chaos all awaken this dark side, which is why witnessing it every day can be so inspiring.

FMP: Absolutely. One last question: what still excites you about extreme metal? What keeps you motivated to keep pushing in the world of extreme metal?

Perun V. Music, for me, is like a trek; it's a long journey I started many years ago, and I'm still somewhere along this path.

You're simply curious—what's next in the journey? What's the next destination? I mean, there's no final stop; it's like chasing something challenging to catch, right?

However, there are smaller destinations, those tiny points where you pause and actually form some essence of what you want to say. And, of course, you do this through music in this case. This creative process is so fascinating that I want to see the next step. Because it is, in a way, subconscious, you can't plan it perfectly. You don't really know what's coming next.

I really don't know why I used that melody for the “Vanguard”. No idea at all.  All I know is that I heard it in my head at some point. I was humming it for a while, so that I wouldn't forget it. Then, the moment I picked up the guitar, I saw when I should play it. Here, or from C, or from C sharp, or whatever.

Then, I became fascinated enough by the melody to turn it into a whole track, including all the other riffs and arrangements. We wrote and finished this song in two days. We were doing rehearsals, and at that point, it was Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. So those three days, this weekend, and that song was almost finished?

Sometimes, it feels mysterious and fascinating to me as well. And that's one thing for sure. Of course, there is motivation that comes from outside, too. The fans, the people who support us a lot—they've been supporting us for decades now, I think—are simply waiting for us.

Just a few days ago, I received a message that we'll be doing a more extended tour in Mexico, for example, because in October, we're doing a tour in South America with Vltimas. It's like a co-headlining tour or something similar. But then we go to Mexico for the last show of this tour.

The bigger event was supposed to be in Mexico City with Deicide and Behemoth. And yeah, I might have to go to that. Then, just recently, I got the message that, “OK, Mexico wants more of you.”

So I booked five more shows for you. This means that people are eager to see us there and hear the new material, live shows, and so on. So you can't ignore this. It's a strong motivation to push things forward.

FMP: Absolutely, absolutely. Well, I'm glad you're on this journey. I'm so happy you still find mystery, because with mystery, there are often moments of joy, and they tend to go together.

It sounds like you're on an incredible journey. I look forward to seeing how it unfolds in the future, no matter which direction it takes. This album is the best release I've heard from you.

Perun V.: Thanks for doing this interview.  Your questions were very thoughtful, and I can tell you are a true fan who knows our music very well!  Cheers!

You can purchase Hate’s new album Bellum Regiis on Metal Blade Records Bandcamp or stream it on the band’s Spotify.