Florida metal guitarist Marko Bojkovic has released his latest album, Venom. Musically, the album is a mixture of progressive metal, death metal, power metal, and thrash metal, with a hint of influence from anime and video game OSTs. The album was preceded by two lead singles, “My Strength Returning“, and the title track “Venom”. The three-and-a-half-minute instrumental track is a wild ride of riffs, blast beats, and of course, what any great metal instrumental should have, sick-ass guitar solos.
Marko’s musical style has progressed over the years from traditional thrash metal to a style that blends all sorts of metal such as progressive, death, extreme, power, and thrash metal. This growth reflects in the album’s dark-and-then-light nature, with the goal of making an album that fans of all types of metal can enjoy,
We were able to talk with Marko as part of our Refrain Interview Series. Check it out Below.
RMB: How many songs on the album?
Marko Bojkovic: 9 Songs; 6 Originals and 3 Covers
RMB: Is this your first album? If not tell us about your previous work and how this differs from your previous work.
Marko Bojkovic: This is actually my 8th album. I’ve been putting out albums since 2011 when I was 16, but this is my first album that I recorded in a studio, rather than by myself.
RMB: What’s the story on how it was recorded? The Who, When, Where etc. Was it a long process or quick? Any good stories about the recording process?
Marko Bojkovic: I developed the idea of a Venom-themed album when I bought my 8 string guitar back in 2016. I finally began making it by recording some demos in the summer of 2020, but had to put recording on hold to finish grad school. Once I finished the demos in the summer of 2021, I sent them to my friend Johnny Ray of Three Headed Snake and the Mourning (who sang at the end of Escape from the City). He recommended me to work with James Lewis of the band NOMVDIC. James is the lead singer of that band and he is a producer at Forerunner Recordings. I started recording there in July 2021, and while my sessions there were fun and I built a friendship with James, there were some drawbacks. I had acquired Covid in late July, so I couldn’t record again with him until mid August, and then he got sick at the end of that month, so recording paused until mid-September. Some recordings were long such as some songs that I had to re-write, but others such as small leads were quick. Not to mention, I had trouble finding someone to sing on the album, but luckily my brother in shred from Spiritual Chaos, Anthony DiFiglio (who plays the second solo in my Strength Returning), recommended me to Chris Savipoulos (of DeathtrucK), and he did all of his vocal tracks back in February this year.
RMB: Do you have a favorite song on the album? Tell us about it?
Marko Bojkovic: That’s like asking me to pick a favorite child! It’s so tough because all songs stand out in some way, even the covers! For example: Venom stands out to me because it transitioned from being the first song I wrote on an 8 string to the first song that I wrote in an open tuning, which I think makes it even cooler. The tuning is open B, which I borrowed from Apeiron Bound lol (Shoutout to those guys! They’re amazing and their influence on this album is profound! Download their album Multiplicity when it comes out on August 26!). However, I do have a favorite guitar solo: My Strength Returning. It is very intricate and best displays my playing style. I would love to do a lesson video for it, but I want the song to reach 100 views on YouTube first. Here’s a link to it: https://youtu.be/wyT9LUi0sUQ
RMB: Are there any overarching themes on the album?
Marko Bojkovic:
The general theme of the album is negativity to positivity. I went through some hard times in my personal life, which lead me to create songs such as Lifelong Bloodshed and Agony of Loss. However, amazing things happened, hence why I wrote My Strength Returning and covered Dragon Soul. I wanted the album to start on a dark and angry note and end on a light and happy one.
RMB: Who are some of your biggest musical influences?
RMB: Who are some of your biggest musical influences?
Marko Bojkovic: I wish I could list them all, but there are so many. If had to pick one though, I would choose my amazing guitar teacher, Francesco Pinter (who plays guest solos in Category 5). He is literally the best guitarist ever and he doesn’t give himself enough credit! Please check him out! And Francesco please don’t blush when you read this lol
RMB: What’s the one thing you are most proud of in your career so far?
Marko Bojkovic: Venom. No doubt about it. I wanted to create a perfect blend of progressive metal, thrash metal, death metal, extreme metal, and power metal, and I finally achieved that with this album. I am so excited for the world to hear what this album has to offer.
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