10–16 minutes

The Nwothm

Claymorean stands as a beacon of Serbian heavy metal resilience. In this interview with TheNwothm, vocalist Dejana and guitarist-songwriter Vlad trace their journey from the early days of Claymore to the rebirth as Claymorean; a transformation marked by raw storytelling, epic soundscapes, and a fierce independence. With roots steeped in Balkan mythology and cassette-deck worship of metal gods, their music channels both the grit of their hometown and the grandeur of their influences. From DIY demos to festival stages, Claymorean’s saga is one of evolution, endurance, and unapologetic power.

Interview

TheNwothm: Hey there I hope you are well! Please can you introduce yourselves? 

Dejana: Hey! I’m Dejana, the vocalist of Claymorean, but apart from that I work on lyrics, music, and social media promotion. We’ve been forging metal since 2014 under this name. Our music blends power, epic, doom, and traditional heavy metal, always with a strong sense of storytelling and intensity.

Vlad: I’m Vlad, the guitarist and songwriter of Claymorean. Even though I’m the oldest person in the band, these youngsters gave me the assignment for handling the most of the pages we run, and that’s probably why we don’t have as much fans as we’d like to haha. 

TheNwothm: What’s the story behind your roots in Lazarevac and Belgrade? How has your hometown shaped your music or outlook?

Dejana: Lazarevac is a small mining town near Belgrade. There’s a rawness here, a kind of resilience that feeds into the power of our sound. It’s not glamorous, but it teaches you to fight for every step forward. That tension shows up in our themes, especially the darker, more introspective ones.

Vlad:  Yeah, I would add that Lazarevac is like Serbian version of Birmingham haha, only the best metal is forged here, even though we’re mining coal. 

TheNwothm: Claymorean evolved from Claymore! Can you take us back to the moment the name change happened in 2014? Was it a symbolic shift?

Dejana: Absolutely. The name change was a rebirth. Claymorean resurrected with a new direction, fire, vision, and eventually a new voice.

Vlad: Honestly, I consider it as a new beginning. The old Claymore stylistically doesn’t have a lot in common with Claymorean. It was based on the late 90’s early 00’s melodic power metal with a pinch of symphonic and prog elements. 

TheNwothm: Serbia has a rich cultural and historical backdrop. Have any local legends, traditions, or folk sounds found their way into your music, consciously or unconsciously?

Dejana: Yes, although it’s more emotional and symbolic than literal. The Balkans’ myth-heavy history bleeds into our lyrics and atmosphere. You might not hear folk instruments, but you’ll feel the weight of our legends, the ghosts of rebellion, inner battles, and the strength in every note.

Vlad: Songs like “Old Mountain”, “We Fight Like Lions”, “Mystical Realm” have these melodies which are common for these parts. 

TheNwothm: How does the Serbian metal scene compare to others you’ve encountered. Anything that makes it uniquely intense, resilient, or underrated?

Dejana: We don’t have the luxury of being on massive labels or playing in large venues… so we carry the heart on our sleeve and try to do our best. We are rarely supported by our mainstream media and promoters, not even when there is a chance to support a bigger band at a concert. So in the end, it’s a small but passionate scene that drives off of very little resources and love for heavy metal music.

Vlad: I tend to think that Serbian metal scene is a diamond in a rough. Many bands of high quality have emerged on the scene in the past two decades. Mostly extreme subgenres like death, black, thrash, and hard-core, but nevertheless of high caliber. I wish we had more traditional metal sounding bands though. 

TheNwothm: Growing up, who were your musical heroes — any posters on the wall or cassette tapes played to death?

Dejana: I had the luck of growing up besides my, now sadly late, rock’n’roller uncle who pushed me to start singing in a cover band when I was 18. So my walls were covered with posters of Judas Priest, Whitesnake, Rainbow, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Black Sabbath, W.A.S.P., Deep Purple… you name it. He pushed that music into my core since I was little… I only built up from there. A part of his vinyl collection is integrated in ours, those still spin regularly.

Vlad: Oh man… Kiss were my first big influence. Then Sabbath, Alice Cooper, Saxon, Yngwie, Manowar, King Diamond, Running Wild… I remember having my first metal album on a cassette. It was Saxon’s “Destiny”. But later in the 90’s I remember playing first HammerFall album and Megadeth’s “Countdown to Extinction” to death haha. 

TheNwothm: Let’s rewind to your first official demo in 2002. What do you remember most vividly about recording it?

Vlad: Well, it was recorded in my “home studio” which consisted of a PC and my electric guitar. I knew nothing about recording the music on a computer, so I tried my best, and the result was pretty shite haha. But the songs I recorded were something I wrote in the mid 90’s, and with song “The Triumph” we were featured on the “Best 16 demo bands from Serbia” compilation, that was released through Rock Express Records in 2002. That was a huge deal for us back then. The label even had a fancy promotion for this release. We had free drinks and a sofa in this big lobby. I thought we’d be rock stars haha. 

TheNwothm: “The First Dawn of Sorrow” came out in 2003! What themes were you channeling with that debut full-length?

Vlad: After the demo release we got a call from the “One Records” label, and they asked us to do the entire album for them. I wrote several songs and did the entire recording and mixing once again in my “studio” in 3 days. It sounded awful, but the label was somewhat satisfied and went on to release it as our 1st album. The themes were various, mostly based on the fantasy literature I was reading at the time, from Howard and Tolkien to Stoker and Lovecraft. But I also had a love song on it called “Distant Worlds”, which was well received among the fans. 

TheNwothm: With “Lament of Victory” in 2013, after nearly a decade’s pause, did you feel like you were picking up where you left off or starting fresh?

Dejana: It was definitely a fresh start. Most songs were already written, Vlad only waited for the right people to record them with. However, that style of singing is so foreign to me. I begged for a change… and a change did come.

Vlad: That album was supposed to be released in 2004 since most of the songs were written back then. Needless to say, the band went on hiatus and I waited almost a decade before working on it again. 

TheNwothm: “Unbroken” in 2015 — the title alone feels defiant. What’s the significance behind it?

Dejana: This was the first album I contributed to. I dreamt of that “Heldenhammer” theme, I dreamt of the entire orchestra, and it was a perfect thing for the intro of the album and that song. I got a chance to add my flavor of melodies, but to be completely honest, I only knew what I was doing when we reached the end of the album – “We Fight Like Lions”. Shortly after that release, we covered Manowar’s “Blood of My Enemies” and that’s when I realized – I just found my true voice.

Vlad: Unbroken was a fresh start and a completely new chapter for our band, now called Claymorean. I would say that this album felt like a combination of the Claymore days with our new direction. I wanted it to be a concept record, with the Mark of Chaos Warhammer story behind it, but only the first part of the album followed that concept. Many fan favorite tunes are on this one. “Gods of Chaos” perhaps being our most popular song, along with “We Fight Like Lions” which became the standard closer on our live shows, but also “The Everchosen” and “Ironhide” which are deep cuts for the fans. On this album we recorded our first cover song – Manilla Road’s “Into the Courts of Chaos”, which totally went well with the overall theme of Unbroken. I have to say that Mark Shelton personally gave his blessings and thumbs up for this cover, and I’m eternally grateful for that. 

TheNwothm: “Sounds from a Dying World” (2017) sounds apocalyptic. What inspired that concept and tone?

Dejana: That album was something special for me. Some of the greatest songs come from that record. I was already on my turf, so to say, and I could play with those doomier songs and work on my harmonies. I only know that we naturally gravitate towards darker themes and atmospheres. They are more natural to us to compose.

Vlad: Sounds is considered as our best album to date, for a lot of fans, and I don’t blame them haha. It’s very dark record with almost doomy atmosphere and raw sound. Famous musician and producer Arthur Rizk even put this one on his best 10 new metal bands list. How cool is that? This time we covered Cloven Hoof’s immortal banger “Astral Rider” and once again received praise from its songwriter, Sir Lee Payne. Dejana even sang this one live with Cloven Hoof at “Up The Hammers” festival in Athens. Also, we finally did our first live show few months before it was released. We were supporting Ross The Boss Band in Belgrade. Great times. 

TheNwothm: “Eulogy for the Gods” (2021) — what myths or legends stirred that creation?

Dejana: A lot of ancient myth and modern reflection. The idea was: what if the gods are dead… what if we’re left to navigate this world without them? It’s about how we outgrow beliefs, and how sometimes even the divine fails us. Songs draw from classic sword & sorcery tales, religious themes, real struggles, darker times, quarantines, and of course Manilla Road.

Vlad: As Dejana said, this album was our take on the organized religion and the dogmatic aspects of it. This is the album where we got noticed by the wider audience and media, and it opened many doors for us to promote our music, which we did in the years that followed. 

TheNwothm: Your newest full-length, “Eternal Curse” (2025), has already made waves. What do you want fans to feel when they press play?

Dejana: We want them to feel like they’re entering our little world. We wanted to try and make a more energy-packed album, and by the reviews, we succeeded. It’s an album about BATTLE – historical, inner, or mythical. We worked on this material for the last 4 years. We truly wanted to polish every detail on this release and give our best before these songs “hit the streets.”

Vlad: Our principle of making each album is that we make it as huge fans of heavy metal music. So, if we like what we hear, as fans, then it’s a go. If we’re doubtful about our songs, it’s simple, we won’t be putting them on album. Eternal Curse is truly a product of the entire band. Everyone was involved to some point, whether it’s a riff or a melody, we worked on it as a team, and thus far it’s definitely the album I’m most proud of.