Story Synopsis
Black metal vocalist Attila and his band 'The Black Rubric" are on tour, but their set has grown a little stale. Unbeknownst to the rest of the band (and even himself), Attila has been corrupted by dark forces, and when he pens a new song for them to play at their hometown show, all Hell breaks loose – literally. Attila and the band must find a way to undo what they've done and send the demons back to Hell – writing satanic metal songs is cool and all, but how will they get any gigs if the rest of Quebec becomes a bottomless pit of molten sulphur?
The Black Rubric is a light-hearted adventure into a subculture that can often be overly self-serious. Attila and his bandmates have embraced Satanism as part of their aesthetic, but when it goes from being fun and slightly subversive to a real threat, they are forced to confront the choices they’ve made and discover their own spiritual path - not to mention cleaning up the mess they’ve made!
Characters
Attila: The vocalist of the band and the protagonist of the story, Attila is the definition of a ‘black metal edgelord’ - he takes the Satanic lifestyle seriously and can be intense to a fault. Attila longs for greater acclaim for The Black Rubric - for them to become one of the biggest black metal bands in the world - and that longing makes him susceptible to demonic influence.
Lilith: The lead guitarist of the band, Lilith is much more easygoing than Attila. She has a sense of humour and a sarcastic streak that serves to puncture Attila’s ego when necessary. She has a friendly rivalry with other guitarist, Pascal - she’s better than him and he knows it.
Pascal: Pascal is the joker - he’s the first one to try and inject humour into any situation. He loves black metal, but doesn’t take it too seriously - he enjoys the prestige of being in a band and puts in the work as rhythm guitarist, but is otherwise happy to do what he’s told.
Benoit: The drummer of the band, Benoit is the brains behind a lot of their plans. He had a diverse musical upbringing (including jazz and blues) and brings those influences to the band’s sound. Benoit is usually calm and level-headed... except when he’s behind a kit.
Dorian: Dorian is the bassist of the band and never utters a word, content to fade into the background. Black metal is notorious for having little or no bass (a lot of bands in the scene don’t have a bassist at all) so Dorian’s silence is a little nod to that!
Zepar: The demon that corrupts Attila, Zepar (never named in the comic) is crafty and manipulative. He sees an opportunity to use Attila’s ambition for the benefit of the forces of Hell, and ruthlessly exploits him to achieve that goal.
Creators
Writer: Chris Mole
● Co-creator of Brigantia and writer/editor of Professor Elemental Comics
● Stories published in Aces Weekly and Futurequake
● 10 years’ experience in underground metal bands (Northern Oak, Child of Ash)
Artist: Katie Fleming
● Artist and werewolf enthusiast
● Credits include Heart of Steal, 100 Times, Vampire Café and As We Go
Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
● Writer, letterer, filmmaker and Eisner-winning editor of PanelXPanel
● Creator and presenter of YouTube series Strip Panel Naked
Cover: Benjamin A.E. Filby
● Illustrator and black metal fan
● Credits include Tomb of the White Horse and self-published sketchbooks Abode and Athenaeum.
Pin-up: Katie Sawatsky
● Freelance illustrator from Canada, working in the comics, TV and game industries
● Clients range from IDW to Netflix
Logo Design: Joe Stone
● Freelance graphic designer
● Clients include Playstation, Google and MTV
● One of Broken Frontier’s “6 Small Press Creators to Watch” for 2019
Further Information
Email for all press queries: chris@chrismole.co.uk
Twitter: @ChrisManji
Kickstarter campaign link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/chrismole/the-black-rubric-the-comic
Campaign video: A loving homage to the classic Immortal music video “Call of the Wintermoon”, the campaign video for The Black Rubric Kickstarter is designed to evoke a particular genre of black metal music video which features black-clad, corpse-painted musicians embracing the grimness of nature: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqYJNwfamTs&t=1s