“Heavy metal is a clenched fist.” – Oscar Thunder (far left)
I still remember the first time I came across the young Swedish classic metal band Helvetets Port. My friend and I were skimming through the vast metal section at New Jersey’s music haven, Vintage Vinyl, and Exodus To Hell, Helvetets Port debut full-length, caused me to stop flipping through the records. I was initially intrigued by the seriously Eighties-inspired cover art—of four spandexed dudes standing on a bizarre chess board under a two-mooned sky (which for some reason reminded me of Torch’s 1984 album Electrikiss)—and wanted to see if these dudes were for real.
So I rolled the dice and bought the album. When I got home and threw it on my turntable, there was no doubt in my mind that this band—singer/guitarist Witchfinder, bassist Inquisitor, drummer O. Thunder and guitarist Kongo “K. Lightning”—was serious about their heavy metal.
The album’s opener, “The Shogun,” is a call-to-arms—replete with classic metal riffs, choruses and production—that announces Helvetets Port are on a mission to keep the old metal ways alive. Cuts like “Diamond Claw” and “Killers in the Sand” are loaded with riffs that could easily be featured in any early Mausoleum Records releases and the title track contains a chorus that sounds like it was made specifically for all the fist-pumping, alcohol-fueled heavy metal lifers around the world. Even the music video for “Lightning Rod Avenger” was shot using old-style, 35mm film. Of course, the band’s wardrobe and epic set designs alone will transport you back to 1983.
MetalKult reached out to Helvetets Port for a brief chat so they could shed some light on their brand of retro-loving, forward-looking heavy metal. Oscar Thunder took some time to explain why they’re hellbent on keeping it true during these plastic times, the current Swedish heavy metal scene, Exodus to Hell and the future of Helvetets Port. —Henry Yuan
It seems true heavy metal is experiencing a “reawakening” with the younger generations in Sweden, with bands like In Solitude, Enforcer and Portrait. How do you explain the rising interest of old-styled music? OSCAR THUNDER I think it is something that has been building up for years and when a few bands get attention, others follow and the scene naturally expands. The whole scene has grown steadily for the past 10 years with more and more old bands reuniting, new festivals emerging and smaller festivals expanding. Of course, there were always bands that never gave up and new bands delivering heaviness even in the darkest of times—regardless of the lack of common interest for heavy metal. I myself was caught by heavy metal at an early age and have since held it as the highest of styles.
Do you remember a specific moment in your life that made you swear an oath to this music and lifestyle? THUNDER I remember receiving a Metallica single as a birthday present at an early age. I was actually sitting with my ears to the speaker making the music as loud as possible. When I borrowed a Judas Priest record from a friend a while later, there was no turning back. Together with a couple of friends, I had a period of listening to a lot of thrash bands, but the moments that gave me the most satisfaction were when I discovered (more…)
(From left) Ol Drake, Joel Graham, Ben Carter and Matt Drake
If you’re discovering (or in some cases, rediscovering) the new sounds of classic thrash metal these days, you’ve most likely heard of the Huddersfield, England, five-piece Evile. Their latest Russ Russell-produced record, Infected Nations (Earache Records), established the band—vocalist/guitarist Matt Drake, lead guitarist (and Matt’s brother) Ol Drake, drummer Ben Carter and newcomer Joel Graham on bass—as a musical force that’s taking the genre to new levels, while staying true to its aggressive core.
Since their 2007 debut, Enter the Grave (which was produced by famed Metallica knob-turner Flemming Rasmussen), Evile have been hitting the ground running, headlining gigs in Great Britain and supporting bands such as Entombed, Satyricon, Exodus, Sabbat (English one) and Megadeth all throughout Europe. Their tracks have even made their way onto the ever-popular Rock Band video game.
But despite their fast rise, Evile have also weathered its share of storms. The most brutal was the untimely passing of bassist Mike Alexander on October 5th of 2009. While on tour in Luleå, Sweden, the 32-year old passed away unexpectedly from a pulmonary embolism. While this was obviously a gigantic blow to the band, and an emotionally heavy time for Matt, Ol and Ben, Evile decided to carry on with the band, in part as a tribute to Alexander’s memory.
The band eventually recruited Rise to Addiction and Ninedenine bassist Joel Graham, and made their first North American appearance this past spring supporting thrash legends Overkill. The tour was so successful for Evile that they’ll be returning for an additional four months later this fall. But before they hit our shoes, these road dogs will be playing before thousands of fans this summer at select European festivals, including Norway’s prestigious Hole in the Sky.
MetalKult recently had a quick chat with lead guitarist Ol Drake where he discussed Evile’s first-ever American tour, working with metal’s legendary producers and the challenges of keeping Evile together after the loss of friend and bandmate Alexander. —Henry Yuan
Evile recently completed two successful runs in North America. Since it was your first time over here, did those tours meet your expectations? OL DRAKE The tours met and surpassed our expectations. North America is such an awe-inspiring place to travel around and play in. The scenery, the fans, the food, the prices…everything is great there. The only negative thing we were told about North America that ended up being true were the drives. They were ridiculous. I remember one was about 28 hours. We just sat in close proximity with one another, and exchanged colds for 28 hours. Grueling, but well worth it. The highlight, to be honest, was the entire thing. It was such a pleasure and honor to be able to play in North America and we can’t wait to do it again in September!
Joel Graham stepped in to handle bass duties after the unfortunate passing of Mike Alexander. How has it been with him in the fold? DRAKE At first it was strange, obviously. Amidst our mix of emotions (more…)
In 1992, Dutch death metal band Pestilence were riding high. The success of a trio of heavy-hitting albums—Malleus Maleficarum (1988), Consuming Impulse (1989) and Testimony of the Ancients (1991)—had secured their position in the European extreme metal underground and they were poised to become one of the major players in the death metal genre. But their success was about to grind to a halt.
When the restlessly creative group, led by vocalist/guitarist Patrick Mameli, added jazz and fusion styles to its sound for 1993’s Spheres, fans of Pestilence’s earlier straightforward death metal were confounded, and accused the band of biting off more than it could chew. A sentiment Mameli has come to appreciate—“We really messed up on that one,” he confesses. “We definitely made a lot of heads turn and I didn’t think it was the right follow-up to Testimony. If we would’ve had Resurrection [Macabre, 2008] after Testimony, I think we would’ve been one of the biggest death metal bands out there right now.”
Instead of breaking out, the band broke up soon after the release of Spheres and the possibility of a reunion was close to nothing. “I’ve always said that there will never be a reunion, and a reunion with the original line-up,” Mameli stated. “It just wouldn’t work.”
However, despite putting his energies into his post-Pestilence band C-187 [featuring Cynic drummer Sean Reinert and Atheist/ex-Pestilence bassist Tony Choy], Mameli just couldn’t shake his past. “When I did interviews for that band, people of course knew me as Patrick Mameli from Pestilence and everyone who was interested in me always asked me about Pestilence and not about C-187—my project.”
Luckily for Pestilence fans, Mameli had a change of heart. When they reformed 15 years later, with Darkane drummer Peter Wildoer, one-time Pestilence bassist Tony Choy and original guitarist Patrick Uterwijk, Mameli refocused Pestilence’s sound for 2008’s hard-hitting Resurrection Macabre. Building on their successful Resurrection, the current band—which now features newcomer Yuma Van Eekelen on drums and Spheres-era bassist Jeroen Paul Thesseling—hope to claw their way back to the top with their upcoming album, Doctrine.
MetalKult recently caught up with Mameli during the band’s final tour stop in New York City where he discussed Pestilence’s unexpected rebirth and their latest extreme metal offering, Doctrine, the trials of touring North America, and his ever-present goal to keep growing as a musician. —Henry Yuan
In the late Eighties and early Nineties, the death metal spotlight was mainly focused on Florida and Sweden. However, even though the Netherlands had a smaller scene, the bands left a prominent mark in death metal history. What was the death metal scene like back then? PATRICK MAMELI You just mentioned the Scandinavian scene and they were very present in the Dutch culture and music. There wasn’t a very big underground scene in Holland so I don’t really understand why Dutch bands made a lot of impact on the market, since everybody was influenced by the Florida scene. Everybody was into tape trading stuff like early Death and Possessed. Everybody tapped from their influence. There were only a few bands that mattered and some bands that weren’t well known, such as Sinister, who are still doing stuff now. And of course Pestilence, who were the biggest band coming from Holland. There were a few other bands, too, but I think they all tapped into the same Floridian scene. Later on, we all started to understand that we needed to put our own stamp on things to change our role. That’s kinda how it happened. When we started to create death metal around ’86, there weren’t many bands at that point in Holland doing the same stuff we were doing.
Prior to this U.S. tour, Pestilence made an appearance at Maryland Deathfest. I take it this year was better than last, where you guys had some trouble getting into the States. MAMELI Yeah, we just didn’t have our paperwork in order last year. There were some files missing. We came over and got detained for a bunch of hours and (more…)
It’s common knowledge to many die-hard death metal fans that Florida has nothing to prove when it comes to quality death metal. In the late Eighties and early Nineties, the Sunshine state was spewing out bands like Morbid Angel, Obituary, Death, Deicide, Monstrosity, Atheist, Cannibal Corpse and Nocturnus – just to name a few. It was the equivalent to New York City’s exclusive Eighties hardcore scene, where all bands knew each other and each band carried the desire to top one another.
Now, Deicide co-founder and drummer Steve Asheim is ready to take the now-stagnant Florida extreme music scene to new levels with Order of Ennead. The band, which also features guitarist/vocalist Kevin Quirion, bassist Scott Patrick and lead guitarist John Li, rose from the ashes of Council of the Fallen and released their sophomore album, An Examination of Being, this year through Earache Records.
In the following interview, both Kevin and John discuss An Examination of Being’s creation and concept, give a lesson about living life on the road and discuss what it’s like being in a band while attending college.
How did Order of Ennead come about? KEVIN QUIRION Our bass player, Scott Patrick, who I played with in Council of the Fallen, knew everybody. We stopped playing for a while and I actually ran into him at a Cradle of Filth show over in Tampa. He said that Steve [Asheim] from Deicide wanted to jam. I was like, sure he does, because, you know, he’s from Deicide. We got together and started putting songs together immediately. I actually had a lot of material already since I’m always writing. Later, we got John Li involved. JOHN LI I met Scott through Ralph [Santolla of Obituary/Deicide] at Gigantour, I think. I was 16 or 17 at the time and he asked me if I wanted to try out for a black metal band called Council of the Fallen. They disbanded and a few years later after my freshman year at NYU, they asked me again only this time they had a record deal and they were going to record an album. I was like, yeah, of course I wanna do it [laughs].
Kevin, as the lyricist and the voice of the band, what are some of the themes you want to expose? How are An Examination of Being and the self-titled different in that respect? QUIRION It’s pretty similar. We pretty much talk (more…)
“When we started Autopsy, the Bay Area thrash scene was in full swing. You know, Testament, Vio-Lence, Forbidden…all of those bands,” recalls Autopsy skinsman and vocalist Chris Reifert of the band’s early Nineties beginnings. “That was not something we wanted to do. When people talk about the glory days of the Bay Area, most of it was crap.”
Reifert’s less-than-positive sentiment towards the Bay Area thrash movement is what prompted the singer to push Autopsy’s music into new extremes, combining the doom of Black Sabbath, the intensity of Possessed and the horror themes of Death.
This contrarian attitude has, for the past 20-plus years, fueled Reifert and Autopsy guitarist Danny Coralles’ creative pursuits, whether in Autopsy, other projects including Mirror Snake, Eat My Fuk, the Ravenous and Death, or their most-recent cult death-punk outfit, Abscess.
“[With Abscess] we like to mix things up with brutal death metal, punk, doom and psychedelic,” Reifert explains. “There are a lot of ingredients out there that you can mix to make some brutal shit.” The band—rounded out by guitarist/vocalist Clint Bower and bassist/vocalist Joe Allen (ex-Von)—has just released what may be its most eclectic and brutal full-length, Dawn of Inhumanity [Peaceville].
Along with Abscess’ upcoming album, Reifert and Coralles will be revisiting Autopsy this year, and hitting the stage—for the first time since their separation fifteen years ago—with the headlining spot at the Maryland Deathfest.
MetalKult recently caught up with both Reifert and Coralles for a brief chat where they discuss Dawn of Inhumanity, their musical roots, Autopsy and what it was like playing with the late Chuck Schuldiner. By Henry Yuan
Your sixth and latest Abscess record, Dawn of Inhumanity, shows the band getting closer to perfecting a true “death metal punk rock” sound. What was the writing process like?
Danny Coralles One of us will bring riff ideas to practice where they may or may not be manipulated altered or perverted by the band. Then vocals, solos, harmonies, twizzles, etc. are all figured in. Guitar solos are either written or improvised on the spot – gotta love the spontaneity of a crazed mind! We’ll tweak a song up until the last second before recording but there really are no rules.
How important is punk to your playing and as a person? Is there anything about it that grabs you that death metal can’t?
Chris Reifert Punk is great with death metal if it’s (more…)
A few weeks ago, I was very fortunate to have attended a theater screening of At the Gates’ full-length documentary, Under a Serpent Sky, which is bundled as part of the three-disc box set The Flames of the End (Earache Records).
Not long after the lights dimmed and Under a Serpent Sky started rolling, I knew I was in for a cool ride. Directed by guitarist Anders Björler, the documentary touches on just about everything that you’ve ever wanted to know about this band. It even includes footage taken from rare home videos and the band’s personal pictures.
This insanely thorough film includes interviews every band member (one the film’s most interesting parts is hearing the band discuss the [pre-At the Gates band] Grotesque days and what it was like growing up as one of only a handful of metalheads in the Gothenburg area), but there are also interviews with a lot of key players in the Swedish death metal scene, including Uffe Cederlund from Entombed/Disfear, producer Frederik Nordström, and Mikael Stanne from Dark Tranquillity. In terms of giving fans a proper view of how one of Sweden’s greatest bands and scenes came into existence, there’s just nothing out there that rivals this kind of coverage.
Watch a preview for the DVD here:
Due to the length of the film, we were not shown the epilogue. It was summed up as a “What are they up to now?’ kind of feature. I’m extremely curious to see it once I get my hands on the actual product, though I more or less know what everyone is up to these days…what can I say, I’m a shameless fanboy.
Prior to the screening, I had an opportunity to sit down with Anders for a little chat at his hotel. In the following interview, he talks about the making of this feature, and gives us his final thoughts about the band. By Henry Yuan
The Flames of the End box set not only has the Wacken Open Air performance, but it also contains a full-length feature documentary. Would you say that this is a celebration of At the Gates as opposed to just being the “final nail in the coffin”?
ANDERS BJÖRLER When we originally talked about this, the decision was to document this story as a present to ourselves. As the project prolonged, I noticed it got bigger and bigger. Everyone soon got involved and it became a giant puzzle, where we were trying to figure out the past and going through hundreds of pictures. We were basically living in the past for a while. We ended up doing some reunion shows and after we got back, I worked on the film for four or five months straight to put the finishing touches on it. It was then when I realized this was an actual feature-length documentary film. I mean, it’s not like a real documentary film, but we’re all very proud of this.
What was the actual process like of putting together the documentary? What was going through your head when you came across some of the footage?
BJÖRLER I had some old stuff from the very beginning. My father had this old VHS camera recorder, you know, the “big boat” [laughs], which he gave to me and I started filming as early as 1989. I started filming Grotesque [the pre-At the Gates band featuring vocalist Tomas Lindberg] and various shows around the Gothenburg area. Even though I had some of this old stuff, I needed help from people all over the world. I mean, I actually got footage from a guy in Jordan. It was footage from a Grotesque rehearsal, which was originally shot by me, but I lent it to someone in the past. 20 years later, he has that copy. I don’t know, but he had it [laughs].
That’s the thing. These videos were traded in the tape trading scene and the bootleg scene, especially the concert footage. Two guys from New York actually filmed the show at the Wetlands in 1996. I mean, I had a lot of footage and pictures but I had to get in touch with everyone from the scene to get more and to get some stories. Of course, you don’t remember everything. [At the Gates vocalist] Tomas [Lindberg] had a lot of ideas and got very involved and we had different members in the past… it’s been such a long time.
What made you and the rest of the band decide to reform the band for these series of shows? Was there any specific event that triggered this decision?
BJÖRLER We had talked about it in the past, actually. We started talking about it in 2002. Adrian [Erlandsson, drummer] was tied up with Cradle of Filth at the time. He wasn’t allowed to do it, basically. When he got out of Cradle, things were looking better. We [along with brother/bassist Jonas Björler] had a very tight touring schedule lined up with the Haunted and Tomas was in school at the time studying to become a teacher and he had other bands on the side.
Since I was the one who quit the band in ’96, (more…)
“We want to speak the truth and keep it as brutal as it is,” says Witchaven vocalist/guitarist Demolition Henry. “We were driving through New York City and we saw that giant board that has the national debt…it’s fucked up! We’re trying to wake people up and show them what’s real. We don’t want to bullshit anyone.”
Combining black metal and politics isn’t exactly a new phenomenon, but Southern California’s best-kept secret aim to deliver their far left views through whatever means possible. Through their MySpace bulletins and blogs, Witchaven shed light on every possible mishap in the American and capitalist systems. And what better way to grab people by the ear than with an insane blend of black and thrash metal…a method Witchaven perfectly execute (most recently on the Totalitarian State of War demo compiliation).
The band—rounded out by co-guitarist Jerry, drummer Lerby and newly recruited bassist Jorge—takes the raw metal-rock sound of Venom and injects it with a blasphemous dose of 1349-style black metal and a bit of Discharge-worthy punkish mayhem.
I first encountered Witchhaven on Bonded By Blood’s Masters of Disaster’s tour. They they played on top of a bowling alley here in New York City, and I was instantly hooked. Then, a couple months ago when I got the chance to see them kill everything in their path on their home turf in Montclair, CA, I knew that this is the band to look out for in 2010.
After Witchaven’s half-hour long unholy thrash assault at the Mutant House in Montclair, I caught up with the guitar duo of Demolition Henry and Jerry, and discussed politics, the curative powers of weed, the influence of James Brown and how to make it as an unsigned metal band in the digital age. —Henry Yuan
For those unfamiliar with Witchaven’s history, tell us about how you guys first started out. DEMOLITION HENRY We started back in 2006. We were originally a Venom tribute band that would just play a couple of shows. We actually called ourselves Witching Hour since that’s our favorite Venom song, but we soon found out that some other band already had the name. We decided that a similar name was Witchaven, and we stuck with it. When we first started, it was just me on guitars and vocals and my friend Tommy on bass. We eventually found some members, did a few tours and released a few EPs.
Fast-forward to today and we now have a solid lineup and are ready to release a full-length album in December/January. In the spring of 2010, we’re gonna go on a full-throttle tour of the States where we’re gonna play, party, drink, smoke weed and have a hell of a good time. [laughs]
How did you promote yourselves with no label support? HENRY All we really did was use MySpace, internet forums and things like that. When we released our demos, we usually just let people download them for free. JERRY A lot of it was just word of mouth. HENRY Yeah, just like back in the old days. People just talked about us because they liked us. It’s crazy. Like, our name would just pop up in random forums in these “best new wave of thrash bands” lists. JERRY We would go to places we’ve never been to before and people would recognize who we are. I don’t really know how, but it happens [laughs]
You guys play a unique blend of black and thrash metal. Who are some of your influences, both past and present? HENRY Hands down our influences from the past are Venom, Bathory, Hellhammer and Celtic Frost. A little later on, we started to go in a more Motörhead-style sound. Now we’re incorporating more of a technical sound like Kreator, Necrodeath and Merciless. Some other bands we really like are Aura Noir, Nocturnal Breed, Deströyer 666… Nowadays, we look to a lot of death, black and a lot of punk… You could even call us metal-punk I guess. JERRY A lot of D-Beat and shit’s that not even metal at all, like weird funk shit, James Brown… just everything, you know?
Demolition Henry
A lot of thrash and extreme metal bands are coming out of the L.A. area these days. What makes you guys stand out? HENRY When we write music, yeah, we write thrash, but we’re not trying to recreate anything. We want to progress from what our originators did. Nowadays, everyone wants to write the same kind of thrash with the same intro, same riffs, but we’re trying to do something different. We’re thrash, but we have so much more in the music on top of that.
The L.A. scene seems to have a real unity to it. When you guys were out on the road, how did the other scenes across the country stack up against it? HENRY Every scene seems to be the same to me. There’s a unified scene in metal in general. You can always expect a great time when you go to a metal show. I guess a good or bad time, depending if your nose is broken or not. [laughs] JERRY I’ve also noticed that everyone in a scene knows each other, much like here. When we play a show, we will always see familiar faces, even if we’re in Portland or something. It’s the same exact thing but with different faces. It’s the same with Texas, or Boston, or wherever. HENRY Every scene out there is keeping it true and they’re only getting bigger. A lot of younger kids are coming out, too. We’ll be out on the road for a few months and when we return, we’ll see those same kids with long hair and they’re rocking the denim. It’s awesome because it’s finally spreading! Realistically, there are a lot of posers, too, but you know what? (more…)
California’s Warbringer are not only a leading force in the new wave of thrash metal, they also just may be the genre’s best example of a true working-class metal band. If you’ve been to any “major” heavy metal concert this past year, chances are you’ve caught their set. They’ve shared the stage with bands like Nile, Swallow the Sun, Finntroll, Kreator, Obituary, Agnostic Front, Slipknot and more. Which is all to say: these guys aren’t shy about paying their road-dog dues.
I’ve seen these guys at least four or five times in the New York City area. So when I had the opportunity to travel out west to catch their Halloween set at the Mutant House in Chino, California, I figured I knew what to expect. I was wrong.
The band headlined the annual Thrashoween gig, which also featured Witchaven, Bonded By Blood and Exmortus, in a location that was quite literally a converted chicken coop. The locals completely packed the place, and when Warbringer ripped into their set, which featured cuts from their latest effort Walking Into Nightmares(Century Media), the place went nuts. Talk about witnessing the power of home-field advantage.
But before the chicken-coop onslaught, I sat down with Warbringer frontman John Kevill for a little chat, during which we talked a bit about the American Vs. Europe scenes, opening for Megadeth and why it’s important for a young band to hit the road…and hit it hard. —Henry Yuan
First off, I want to congratulate you guys on getting an opening slot for Megadeth. Is it true that the band personally invited you guys to play?
JOHN KEVILL Oh, thanks man! Well, we were supposed to be opening for the entire tour but obviously, it didn’t happen so now we’re only doing a week’s worth of shows. Dave Mustaine originally wanted this band Arcanium on, and we’re only filling in for the dates Machine Head can’t do. Still, we’re opening for Megadeth! We’re actually gonna be second on those shows. [laughs] I can’t really tell you if Dave Mustaine actually knows who we are or not, though it would be cool if he saw us and went, “Fuck yeah! Those guys are awesome!” We’ll see. I heard a lot of things about him from both ways. I’d love to meet him and tell him, “Hey man, thanks for making music that rules.”
You guys have been on the road constantly for a few years now. Looking back, do you feel that experience influenced your writing on Waking Into Nightmares?
KEVILL Not really. We’ve toured with all kinds of bands, from Kreator to Nile to Suicide Silence, and we’re not that influenced by them. Our attitude is that we’ll tour with any band even if the music isn’t exactly the same as ours. It works out great this way because kids want to come out to shows to have a good time anyway. Like with the Finntroll show: not everyone there went strictly for folk metal. But we had a really good time on that tour and so did the fans. We got ourselves out to an audience that wouldn’t hear of us otherwise. As long as the opportunity’s good, we’ll play with anybody. That said, I think Adam [Carroll, guitar] went on a bit of an Exodus binge after we first toured with them.
What were some of the highlights and low points of some of the tours you have been on? Any specific shows/tours that sticks in your memory?
KEVILL Hm, highlights… a lot of the Kreator tour, for sure. It was Kreator, Exodus and us, and we were the three thrash bands on the tour so it worked out perfectly with the crowd, who were mostly thrashers and raged for sure. They were some of the biggest and craziest shows we ever did. Lowest points? There was one show in Danville, Virginia, where we played to just two people. Two people, man.
Woah, what happened there? KEVILL It was one of those shows that we did coming out of a tour. If we end a tour on the east, we’ll play a few shows on the way back, so it’s not a straight drive back. Sometimes, those are the worst shows, the routing shows, because it’s basically you and whoever the promoter picks. Once in a while they’ll do a good job. But sometimes those “off-market” places can be disastrous. But the two people who came out in Danville knew who we were, and they raged. Hat’s off to those two people: you gave us a show! [laughs]
Having played across North America as well as in Europe, do you see any notable differences in terms of audiences, scenes, organization, etc.?
KEVILL Yeah, I kinda do. The European metal fans are a little more, well, serious about metal. They generally know their stuff and there’s a more die-hard metal audience. In the states, there seems to be more kids at the shows. That’s good, too, because these guys are just getting into metal and are really excited about it. But really it just depends: We’ve had both great shows and bad ones in Europe. Oh, and in Europe, they have those huge festivals, which are pretty much an institution at this point. Like, they can get all these metal bands for a four-day extravaganza to play for thousands of people…and it actually happens!
Do you feel that those festivals happen over there because it’s more accessible geographically whereas it’s much more difficult to get around here in America?
KEVILL I think it depends. I mean, if you have a festival in a really populated area, I think it’ll work because, including the areas around it, the population density is super high. In Europe, indeed you can get around easily, as we did last year when we were driving laps around Germany. It takes about 10 or 11 hours to drive from one side of the country to the other, and Germany is pretty much one of the biggest countries in Europe. You can get across the Netherlands in like a few hours, you know? Compare that to here, like, if there’s a festival in the east coast and you’re from California, Texas, Colorado, Arizona, etc., you have to go a much longer distance just to get there.
What was it like to have played in the world’s biggest heavy metal festival, Waken Open Air? (more…)
John Baizley Live. Photo by Show Heart Photography.
Baroness singer/guitarist John Baizley recently spent a few days in NYC to promote his band’s third album, Blue Record. We took the opportunity to invite Baizley up to our studios for a little chat to hear what’s been going on with his progressive hardcore act since our last meeting.
Below the jump, watch Baizley talk about dealing with increased expectations, new producers and, um, journalists who ask questions about hidden wieners in his artwork. (more…)
All things old are new again, or so the adage goes. It seems this statement also holds weight in the realm of metal, as evidenced by today’s resurgence of the classic thrash of Eighties titans, Slayer, Metallica, Exodus and Overkill by bands like Municipal Waste, Evile and Toxic Holocaust.
So it was only a matter of time, I guess, before the kids jumped back even further for inspiration, to the blueprint for all things heavy, the New Wave of British Heavy Metal with bands like Diamond Head, Judas Priest, Angel Witch and Motörhead.
Enter Cauldron—the young Canadian heavies who un-apologetically worship at the NWOBHM altar. “We’ve been playing this style of music way before the resurgence of the traditional NWOBHM thing,” says Cauldron guitarist Ian Chains. “And you can expect us to be playing this long after this phase loses its cool.”
On September 18, 2009, when Cauldron—also featuring drummer Chris Rites and bassist Jason Decay—arrived at Brooklyn’s Europa Club, for the first annual September Slaughter Thrashfest (which featured thrash legends Whiplash and At War), MetalKult took the opportunity to catch up with Chains. Because we’re a high-class operation, and Europa’s backstage is shit for interviews, we had our chat in the next quietest spot available, which turned out to be right smack in front of a Brooklyn police station.
In the following Q&A, Chains discusses Canadian metal (read: Anvil), Cauldron’s debut album, Chained to the Nite (Earache Records) and spreading the heavy metal gospel until the end. —Henry Yuan
METALKULT You guys have been pretty active about blogging all the tour’s misadventures on Cauldron’s MySpace page. Any juicy stories that didn’t make the blog?
CHAINS Oh, there are tons of stories that don’t make the blog because we’re so lazy that we don’t update it!
METALKULT The tour is supposed to be you guys and Sweden’s Enforcer. However, tonight you’re playing with Whiplash and At War as well. Are you a fan of these legendary bands?
CHAINS I think tonight will have one of the better turnouts of the tour. But, honestly, I wouldn’t say I’m a Whiplash or At War fan. I mean, I’ve listened to them, but it’s just not my thing.
METALKULT In the liner nots for Chained to the Nite, you have a message to Mercyful Fate fans [“Message to Mercyful Fate fans: we know, don’t worry about it!”]. As a guitar player, was Hank Sherman a major influence on your playing and songwriting?
CHAINS He’s definitely an influence. But as far as that message goes, it’s quite cryptic. A friend of ours pointed out some similarities when listening to some of the early mixes and we just threw that in there as a joke. But yeah, I love Hank Sherman. I love his band before Mercyful Fate [The Brats] and I actually love his band after Mercyful Fate [Fate]. He’s got a pretty diverse catalog. My main influences as a guitar player are John Sykes [Tygers of Pan-Tang, Thin Lizzy, Whitesnake], Wolf Hoffman [Accept] and Adrian Vandenberg [Whitesnake].
METALKULT Canada has a very respected music scene, with bands like Rush, Sacrifice, Slaughter, Despised Icon and, of course, Anvil. Are metal fans up there still showing strong support for the scene?
CHAINS Not really. I’ve seen Anvil play to 10-15 people, literally. But since that movie came out, I’ve heard they’re drawing bigger crowds. People elsewhere really appreciate Anvil, and other classic Canadian bands. But for Canadians, it’s like, “Oh, another Anvil gig? Eh, I probably won’t go.”
METALKULT Let’s talk gear for a moment. What are you using for this tour? Why is this the right sound for you and the band?
CHAINS My main guitars are a black Gibson Flying V ’67 reissue and a white with black pinstripe Jackson USA Rhoads V. My amp setup is a a 1981 [Marshall] JCM800 with JCM900 cabs. The JCM800 is modded with a little extra gain.
METALKULT Those original JCM800s are the shit.
CHAINS Yeah, and I only paid $600 for it! I’ve had it for 10 years. I also use a Boss DD-2 delay pedal and an MXR Phase 90 phaser pedal, which I use for some solos.
METALKULT As far as metal trends go, it seems many of the younger kids these days are paying more attention to the technical side of metal, often at the expense of true, raw heavy metal. What is your take on this?
CHAINS Well, as far as people only getting into the technical side of things, I can only say that we’re just not that into it. We’re interested in good songs. Of course, I like good guitar solos and guitar playing, but I also don’t want to listen to something overly technical and boring.
METALKULT I gotta admit, the cover for your debut is one of the truest covers I’ve seen in a while, not to mention one of the most provocative. Who came up with the concept?
CHAINS [laughs] Jason came up with the concept years ago, even before most of the songs were written for the album. It was before Earache was even interested in the album, and we shot our own version of the cover with our own money. The photos came out pretty misguided and lacked any sort of direction. When Earache came along and saw the cover, they just hated it. So they hooked up their own model and their own concept. It was shot in England, and we weren’t even there. They also mentioned that certain retailers in the states, like Best Buy, might not carry the album. So we ended up having to pick an alternate photo for the sleeve. I think the cover looks almost identical to The Rods’ Let Them Eat Metal. But yeah, I’m okay with both covers. No big deal.
METALKULT Cauldron played the one of Germany’s most prestigious heavy metal festivals, Keep It True Festival, where you shared the stage with legends such as Diamond Head and Sabbat. What was that experience like?
CHAINS That was our first time our band played in Europe. We met a lot of cool people over there. I didn’t see Diamond Head play—because I was extremely hammered. [laughs] But I heard the power got cut, which must have sucked. Our buddies Twisted Tower Dire also played, and we did a few shows with them after the festival. We also hung out with Lääz Rockit, who were really cool guys. Bullet, who were really good friends with, played right after us. We’re really good friends with those guys, and we recently played in Sweden in a festival called Muskelrock, which is at Bullet’s amusement park.
METALKULT Wait, Bullet has their own amusement park?
CHAINS Yeah, they own this abandoned amusement park from the Sixties and put on shows there. It’s got good sound, and Bullet always get cool bands.
METALKULT Finally, what’s Cauldron’s plan after this tour wraps?
CHAINS We head back to Toronto for a few weeks and then we’re doing a week-long tour with Wolf in the U.K. We’re trying to tack on a few dates with Enforcer in Scandinavia, too. Then after the European run, on November 6, we will go on a six-week tour opening for Municipal Waste here in the States. Some bands on that tour will only be on there for just a week, but we’re gonna be there for the whole thing. It’s gonna be awesome.
