Interview with the band Avian

June 08, 2026

Interview with the band Avian

by Mick Michaels

Cosmick View: Hello, and welcome to The Cosmick View. Thanks for taking some time out of your day to speak with us. It's greatly appreciated.

AVIAN: Thanks for having us! Always glad to talk shop, especially when the questions aren't the standard "what's your favorite color of guitar pick" stuff. Let's dig in. 🤘

CV: Do you think modern Heavy Metal music has evolved past its origins? Or are things relatively still the same?

AVIAN: It’s evolved massively in terms of production, technique, and the sheer number of subgenres – but the soul is exactly the same as it was in 1980. And honestly, that’s a good thing. Heavy Metal is the only genre that openly celebrates its own history. Where else do you see 60-year-olds and 16-year-olds wearing the exact same band shirt in the same moshpit? The core – power, rebellion, riffs, and community – is untouchable. The packaging has just gotten louder, faster, and shinier. We see our "Schwabenstahl" exactly in that tradition: we take the classic foundation and reforge it for today, but we don't pretend we invented the wheel.

CV: Does Metal still draw people to want to listen and engage the music while challenging the audience to imagine becoming a musician themselves?

AVIAN: Absolutely. Maybe more than any other genre. Metal isn't lazy music. You can't just put it on in the background while you scroll through your phone – it grabs you by the collar. And once it grabs you, you naturally start asking: "How the hell are they playing that?" That’s why you see so many young kids picking up guitars again. Hand-made music with sweat and skill behind it still inspires people far more than someone tapping a laptop on stage. We honestly believe Metal is the last big bastion of true musicianship in popular music.

CV: Many believe that success for a band relies on three major components; good distribution, good PR and good booking. In the new modern music industry, all of that is without a doubt achievable by the artist themselves. Do you feel more and more established acts will go the independent route and eliminate the middle man component?

AVIAN: It's already happening, and it makes total sense. The tools are there. We can record an album in a high-end home studio, distribute it globally with one click, and reach the press directly via email or social media. So why give up 50% of your revenue and creative control to a middleman who doesn't necessarily "get" your vision? That said, doing everything yourself means you’re also your own accountant, graphic designer, social media manager, and roadie. It’s a brutal amount of work. We do most of it ourselves, but we’re realists – sometimes a great partner with real expertise (like a dedicated booker) is worth their weight in gold. It’s about finding partners who actually share the fire, not just gatekeepers.

CV: Do you feel that the idea of a band eliminating those second and third party partnerships; labels, management, bookers, etc., and doing things on their own, is a direct result of artists and bands being misled and taken advantage of for so long?

AVIAN: Partly, yes. The horror stories of bands signing predatory contracts in the 80s and 90s are legendary, and that mistrust runs deep in our scene. But honestly, we think the bigger reason today is just simple math: with streaming paying fractions of a cent and the cost of touring exploding, there's just not enough money left to split four or five ways anymore. The old model was built on the idea that the label fronts the cash and reaps the rewards. But if a band can build their own audience online, what exactly are they paying for? The industry has to evolve or it’ll just become irrelevant to working bands.

CV: Do you feel there is a need or want for artists of any style or genre to rise above the past and to do more musically…artistically? Or can a level of comfort be reached and maintained as a means to sustainability?

AVIAN: Comfort is the death of art. The moment you start writing the same album over and over because it’s "safe," you might as well retire. We firmly believe a band has to keep pushing themselves – not necessarily to reinvent the entire genre with every record, but to grow within their own sound. Our recent singles "Black Trade," "On The Run," and "Expired" all sound distinctly like AVIAN, but each one tackles a different lyrical theme and a different mood. You have to keep yourself entertained first. If we’re bored writing it, the listener will be bored hearing it. Simple as that.

CV: Many critics believe music is irrelevant today... just background noise. As a musician who is out there writing, releasing, and performing, from your perspective, do you still see music relevance in the world today? Is there a connection?

AVIAN: Music being "irrelevant" is the take of someone who only consumes pop hits on a curated playlist. Sure, that music is designed to be background noise – it’s literally engineered for that purpose by algorithms. But step into any sweaty metal club on a Friday night. Look at 200 people screaming the lyrics of a song that means something to them, completely losing themselves for an hour. That is not irrelevance, my friend. That is one of the most relevant human experiences left in our digital, isolated world. And honestly, that’s exactly why it pisses us off so much that these grassroots clubs are dying out. We cannot afford to lose these spaces. Music as a community, as a release valve, as a protest – that's never going away.

CV: Has music in general split into too many genres and sub-genre classifications in an effort just to please an indecisive audience in your opinion? Is it just more of a marketing ploy to funnel buyers to a specific brand?

AVIAN: Hahaha, definitely. The whole "Atmospheric Post-Blackgaze-Doom-Folk" thing has gotten completely out of hand. We sometimes joke we should just label ourselves as "Upper-Swabian Algorithm-Defying Twin-Guitar Steel-Core" just to fit in. But seriously – we think it's mostly a streaming-service problem. Spotify needs micro-categories to feed its algorithm and put you in the right "mood-box." For the actual fans, none of that matters. Good music is good music. We call our sound "Schwabenstahl" simply because it describes our identity and our work ethic – not because we’re trying to invent a marketing category. If you like riffs, melody, and a good headbanging tempo, you’ll like us. That’s the only genre tag that matters.

CV: What more can fans expect to see coming from you in 2026 and beyond?

AVIAN: Well, 2025 was actually a massive year for us – we dropped "Black Trade" and "On The Run." And we kicked off 2026 with "Expired" in April, which has hit harder than we expected. For the rest of this year and going forward, fans can expect more new music – we’re in the writing phase for the next songs right now, and a full album is firmly on the horizon, even if we haven’t hit the studio for it just yet. On top of that, we're working hard to get back on stage more regularly. The forge is hot, and we’re just getting warmed up.

CV: Thanks again for taking the time to share with our readers. We wish you all the best and continued success.

AVIAN: Thank you! Big thanks to The Cosmick View for the smart questions – seriously, this was a fun one. And to everyone reading: keep supporting your local clubs, buy a shirt from your favorite band, and stay loud. Cheers from the forge! ⚒️🤘

Check out Avian at:

Official https://avianmetal.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/avianmetal/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/avianmetal/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Avianmetal

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/intl-de/artist/570Hztg5IxGQweyOfbLVYU?si=trKBN8qERNW6X_UvNDKHhg

Avian Merch: https://www.brandsxbands.com/collections/avian/

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My name is Mick Michaels...I'm an artist, music fan, songwriter, producer, author, show host, big dreamer & guitarist for the traditional Heavy Metal band Corners of Sanctuary. Writing has always been a creative outlet for me; what I couldn't say in speech, I was able to do with the written word. Writing has given me a voice & a way for me to create on a multitude of platforms including music and song, articles, independent screenplays, books & now, artist interviews. The Cosmick View is an opportunity to raise the bar & showcase artists in a positive and inspirational light. For me, it's another out-of-this-world adventure.