Fernanda Lira, bassist and vocalist of Crypta, an all-women Brazilian death metal band, is redefining what it means to be metal.
“Those of us who are nonconformists are trying to get back to what metal was like in the beginning,” Lira said in a recent phone interview. “It’s not about making the metal scene less metal. It’s about making it more diverse, welcoming, and accepting of everyone. The more welcoming we are to all kinds of metalheads, the cooler and greater it will be.”
Crypta is on tour supporting the 30th anniversary of Connecticut crossover legends Hatebreed alongside Caracus and Harm’s Way. They will all stop at The Wiltern in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Oct. 15 and at the Riverside Municipal Auditorium in Riverside on Wednesday, Oct. 16.
“It’s been such an important tour for us, and we’ve been playing theaters every night, which is something new to Crypta,” Lira said. “I’m very excited to watch all these bands as much as I can, especially Caracas, who I’ve listened to the most because of my death and thrash metal background. I can’t wait to watch them every night.”
Long before fronting Crypta, co-founded with drummer Luana Dametto, Lira was introduced to the genre by her father when she was six. He would record personalized cassettes of all her favorite bands, ranging from Suicidal Tendencies to Biohazard, which she would listen to along with her other favorites, including the Spice Girls. In an interview with Chaoszine, she recalled that her father always ensured that women-led groups such as Warlock and Girlschool were included.
By 13, she had picked up a bass and began developing a taste for thrash metal and heavier acts like Slayer and Arch Enemy. Inspired by metal groups pushing the boundaries of the genre in more extreme directions, she began playing exclusively with all-women-led metal bands but didn’t think it was something she could achieve professionally.
As a backup plan, she pursued a profession in journalism, where she figured she could report on the metal scene. She took courses where she learned the nuts and bolts of the practice but ultimately dropped out in her third year of college. Lira wrote for publications including Rock Brigade and Roadie Crew, interviewing some of her most beloved idols, such as Anthrax, Pantera, Helloween, and Death Angel.
While the interviews satisfied her proximity to the metal scene, she still felt the urge to perform on a grander level. By 2011, Lira secured a spot in the prominent Brazilian thrash metal outfit Nervosa, which was so popular that she couldn’t write and perform simultaneously.
“I would still love to do something in journalism, but being on stage and playing metal spoke more to my heart,” she said. “ It’s cathartic for me. I felt like being on stage would be the right choice, and I don’t regret it. It is my favorite thing, and I couldn’t be any happier than being there every night.”
Lira, who is from São Paulo, said she is proud to be a Brazilian and a Latin American metalhead. The music scene in Brazil has had legendary groups like Sepultura at the helm and has been revered by pioneers from Iron Maiden to Metallica. She believes these metal fans show up so strongly because they often don’t get to see their favorite worldwide acts compared to the European fans whose countries host yearly festivals.
“The global metal community is something amazing and unique in its own way, but I think with Latin Americans and Brazilians, there’s this cultural thing where we’re very passionate about everything we do, so when it’s combined with metal, you get some of the most passionate fans,” she said. “I’m very proud of the Brazilian metal scene. It’s difficult to strive and make a living, but having a band is even more difficult. You don’t have money to buy any gear, and rehearsal rooms are ridiculously expensive. It’s kind of an impossible dream for most of us, but we still have so many good metal bands.”
Lira is also politically outspoken and likes to use her platform to elevate pressing social issues. She was a critic of former far-right president Jair Bolsanaro. The song “Starvation” from their debut album, “Echoes of the Soul,” is about the thousands of people starving to death in Brazil during the pandemic under the Bolsanaro government.
“A lot of the references I’ve heard in metal are from bands that were not really vocal in politics or societal problems,” she said. “My purpose as an artist isn’t just performing or talking about music. It’s also to use my voice for people who cannot speak and for those suffering. It is an important way to make people start thinking and maybe start debating, which can be good, fruitful and meaningful for society.”
Despite not being a big fan of the genres, her counterculture ideology resembles the philosophies espoused in punk rock and hardcore. As a politically outspoken, straight-edge vegan, Lira doesn’t spend too much time concerned with what it is and isn’t considered metal.
Logically, why should she when heavy hitters like Morbid Angel have given their blessings and Tobias Forge of Ghost, a group infamous for breaking metal norms, named Crypta his favorite up-and-coming metal band last year?
His perspective on breaking away from the restraints of metalhead conformity is rebellious in principle, which may not always agree with some fans. However, she’s still unapologetically herself, which is as metal as it gets.
The frontwoman has a massive King Diamond tattoo and another one of a silhouette of Beyoncé based on her Lemonade tour. Some fans have been quick to call her a poser after she posted on social media enjoying herself at a Beyoncé concert.
The sneers didn’t faze Lira, but based on her experiences, she believes there is still some tension in the community about how to behave as a metalhead. While some fans may have scolded her, others brought her Beyoncé memorabilia, providing her some hope in the direction the diehard metalhead consensus is moving.
“I want to be free and help others feel free in the metal scene, too,” she said. “I don’t mind that people don’t relate to everything I’m saying or am doing. I don’t agree 100% with every artist I listen to and consume. I see more metalheads now opening their minds, hearts and ears to different perspectives and ways of being a metalhead. Like I’m a metalhead, but I can still listen to other stuff and tour without drinking all the time.”
Part of making others feel free involves showing them the possibility of what that looks like, particularly women. She never really thought her all-female project would lead to an uptick in inspiration among young girls and women. However, after touring more frequently, watching girls’ and women’s attendance increase at their shows, and personally receiving their positive feedback, she realized the impact of what she represents on stage.
“They felt inspired because they saw us out there living the dream,” she said. “I know I felt like my dreams were limitless when I saw other women out there touring. I remember how that felt, and I thought if they could do it, I could do it too. It’s a privilege to be able to do what I love but also inspire more girls to get into the metal scene.”
Crypta
Where: The Wiltern, 790 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles.
When: 7 pm Tuesday, Oct. 15.
Tickets: $41.75-$92.00 at Livenation.com.
Also: 7 pm Wednesday, Oct. 16, at Riverside Municipal Auditorium, 3485 Mission Inn Ave., Riverside. Tickets are $48 at Livenation.com.
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