Paws, Pets & Metal is Metal Insider’s newest column on bands with pets, discovering who watches them on the road, and more. Get to know more about these metal furbabies. We caught up with drummer Marko Cipäktli from Canada’s Mexican folk metal outfit Cabrakaän who discussed his cats also play music.

Tell us more about your pet(s) and their names?

My wife and I have two cats: Luna and Ringo. Luna’s a little black and white tuxedo cat, and Ringo is a big orange dude with a larger-than-life personality and outspoken nature. We adopted both of them in 2020, and our lives haven’t been the same since (in a good way).

Have you ever taken your pet on tour?

I haven’t taken a pet on tour before, but I would love to! Touring can be a bit difficult when you’re separated from your family. 

Who looks after your pet while on the road?

So far, we haven’t been on tour since adopting Ringo and Luna. However, my wife or close friends of ours would care for (and spoil) them without any hesitation. 

What’s your pet’s favorite song or album?

Since Luna’s permanently dressed as her favorite black metal artist, her favorite song would have to be Kings of Carnival Creation by Dimmu Borgir. Ringo’s favorite song is The Beatles’ Come Together (he’s obviously a big Beatles fan). That’s the song we were listening to when we brought him home, and he’s named after Ringo Starr. They also like to play music – here’s the revealed artwork of their upcoming album:

How did you introduce your pet to metal?

Our cats were raised in a house filled with metal music, so they’re naturally metalheads themselves. I think they’re bigger fans of gentle classical music, but they’re definitely used to hearing tracks from Cabrakaän’s upcoming album (our first and most critical test audience) and the bands that we listen to in our spare time.

What animal charity means most to you?

We adopted both of our cats from a shelter in Calgary called AARCS, which has locations both in Calgary and Edmonton. They do a lot of great work saving and supporting animals throughout Alberta, and can always use more donations. We’re very grateful that they helped us find our two family members.

You can find us on the following platforms:

SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0P9preX0OgDtSALRMmeucm

BANDCAMP: https://cabrakaan.bandcamp.com/

APPLE MUSIC: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/cabraka%C3%A4n/1134409618

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/cabrakaan_band/

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/CABRAKAAN

WEBSITE: www.cabrakaan.com

Our album is available for pre-order on the Bandcamp link we listed above, and we’ll be keeping fans updated on all our social media platforms.