Interview with MOTHMAN

I went to Austin, Texas with work once and besides having some fun at Austin Terror Fest I also found a local grind gem with a creepy-ass name. As soon as the first song started blasting from Bandcamp I knew I was in for a treat so I went to see them play live of course and oh my god did they made a new fan than night. These guys are very active in the scene, but they are not super keen to use social media so I wanted to help spread their amazing music on this side of the ocean and learn a bit more of what lurks behind their killer hardcore. Ladies and gents, today we are talking with Nathan and Andy from MOTHMAN.

So Mothman is this urban legend being that will show up at a tragedy site before it happens as a bad omen, is that right? What is your fascination with this being and why did you chose this title? 

 

NATHAN: Aside from being an omen, when someone sees Mothman, they're struck with intense fear and can't look away or run. They just have to endure the deep feeling of pain and panic. I think the latter attracted us to the moniker--seeing something truly terrifying and being unable to remove yourself from it. Also the movie Mothman Prophecies (2002) scared Skiles and I real bad when we were kids. 

 

ANDY: I didn't choose the title as I was brought into this project later on, but what Nathan said sums it up pretty well. I, however, never feared the Moth as a child but rather embraced the fear and teachings within.

 

I feel like your lyrics are a mixture of political and personal stuff is that right? Are there any other topics you are trying to transmit? Are you guys into horror? 

 

NATHAN: A lot of the earlier record topics were political and religious with some personal stories here and there. The newer stuff is more personal. We're just trying to get some feelings out with no particular agenda other than making heavy music. Horror is cool too.

 

ANDY: I just play drums.

 

I can hear hardcore/sludge/metalcore/grind... How would you describe your style if we are trying to be more specific than "Aiming to bring the most abrasive music possible"? 

 

NATHAN: I like how you described our sound when we met in Austin--metalcore influenced grind. Anything technical and heavy has always intrigued and inspired us musically. We want fans of loud, angry, fast, heavy music to enjoy our songs, but more importantly we want to enjoy writing and playing them and challenge ourselves. That usually means drawing influence from a few genres.

 

ANDY: I think our style is heavily influenced by how people may respond to what we're playing. It's quite often we'll look at a part and think, 'people are going to go nuts here' or something along those lines. Our live shows, in my opinion, are integral to the success of this band and we create a lot of special 'holy $#!t' moments for fans. Rarely do we ever look at a part and go 'we can't do that, that's not in our genre', nothing is off-limits if it melts faces. 

 

 

You guys remind me of Vulgar Pigeons and later Pig Destroyer. What really are your main influences?

 

NATHAN: For me it's a lot of heavier bands that also have an all-encompassing mystique about them: Gaza, Architect, the_network... a lot of early Black Market Activities bands. It's hard to pin down a small handful. We'll hear a song by one band and be inspired to make some weird part fit into a song that was inspired by another song from a different band. Skiles doesn't listen to too much new music so he's always finding inspiration from old albums we listened to from back in the day. Andy doesn't listen to too much heavy music and that brings an interesting influence into the mix. We're all so comfortable playing music together that everything just works out. We enjoy pushing each other

 

ANDY: I don't listen to a lot of heavy music, and more-so probably not the same bands that Nathan or Skiles would draw inspiration from. However, I do still have my own bands that influence my style including Architects, Counterparts, The Black Dhalia Murder, Norma Jean, and Dillinger Escape Plan.

 

When is the new album coming out? Any chance it will have more blastbeats? 

 

NATHAN: I'd expect we get this record out in 2021. As for blast beats, there are less than the last record, but they're extremely tasteful and well executed so it evens out. 

 

ANDY: Sadly, not as many blast beats.

 

I see most of the shows take place in and around Austin. Is that right? Any tour ideas after covid?

 

NATHAN: This band has only been on one short tour. We'd love to take the show on the road, but it's difficult with life and other music projects. Hopefully one day we can make it to Europe, Mothman Festival in Point Pleasant, WV and to a Mathcore Index Fest. 

 

ANDY: Would definitely love to when appropriate. 

 

I know Nathan is in a bunch of other bands. Could we know more about it? What about other Mothman members? What other bands you are related to and what should we hear? 

 

NATHAN: Skiles and I play in Thieves, Drip-Fed and Mothman. Andy plays in Nominee. All the bands are on streaming platforms and all the releases fucking rip. Thieves dropped a new album at the end of 2019. Nominee and D-F are both sitting on new albums that will come out in 2021. 

 

Are you gear maniacs or would you play with whatever as long as it's loud? 

 

NATHAN: I'd say we're average gear maniacs. Skiles and I have played the same rigs for years. Andy has played the same kit for years. We're definitely into checking out cool weird gear, but we're definitely married to what has worked for us. We prefer to play our own gear. Andy got that spring mount clip for his china when we were in high school and that was a pretty big deal.

 

ANDY: What can I say, the spring mounted clip was exciting new technology at the time on par with when the Zil-Bel came out. I am not a gear head, I like what I like and stick with what works for me. I have plenty of friends who go and chase the 'new best thing' and that's just not for me.

 

I went to see some shows in Austin and I had an impression that every band brings their own equipment, like FULL backline. Is that common practice in the US for venues to not provide this stuff and leave it with the band? Or is it because bands care about their sound being unique so much? 

 

NATHAN: Skiles and I toured Europe in October 2019 and were introduced to the idea that the headliner provides gear for everyone and it blew our minds. In the US it's rare that bands share gear to that extent unless they're friends and on tour together. We always prefer to use our gear anyways because it's what we're used to playing with. One time I asked the bassist of Vampyre if he wanted to use my 810 and he said he likes to use his own gear and I said word and then he rolled his own 810 on stage and by stage I mean floor.

 

ANDY: I loathe having to use another person's drum kit. I will always play on mine if I have the choice as it's set up for me and feels natural. I'll never tour in Europe. 

 

Can you tell us more about TX grind/hc scene? What less known bands should we check out? 

 

NATHAN: That's a tough question. We don't have too many grind bands in Austin, let alone a scene. Mammoth Grinder is probably the best heavy band out of Austin. DSGNS are another great metal band. The Bearer are a great band with new stuff coming out soon. Insvrgence are great friends of ours who work harder than a lot of bands from Austin. Of course Fire From The Gods are big time players now and still great dudes. 

 

Do you think Texas climate is part of the rage in you? Do you enjoy constantly sweating in 3 digit degrees or would you rather live somewhere with snow and ice castles? 

 

NATHAN: I'd rather be knee deep in snow at any moment. I think Texas politics are more influential than the weather. 

 

ANDY: I'm inside 90% of the year so it never bothers me. It can be pretty brutal going to check the mail though. I don’t like snow. It’s coarse and rough and irritating… and it gets everywhere.

 

What do you guys do for a living? Any chance you could make money doing music someday? 

 

NATHAN: Skiles is an project manager and musician. Andy is an SEO admin and a musician. I'm a multimedia producer and a musician. No we'll never get paid playing music. Actually, Skiles gets paid to play music on weekends in his cover band. But playing original music? Nah. 

 

ANDY: If only, if only.

 

Do you guys like drugs? getting drunk or high? Or are you sober and that is why u so angry? What is your poison of choice? 

 

NATHAN: Just the simple stuff--weed, beer and whiskey. We're Texas boys.

 

Would you like to say something about American politics? 

 

No politics. 

 

What is your favourite thing to do in free time when you are not doing music? 

 

NATHAN: Start another band and do music. 

 

ANDY: Playing video games as that's the only way I can interact with the majority of my friends that I haven't seen in months.

 

There is someone on another continent reading this and they are about to discover your music for the first time. What would you like to tell this person? 

 

NATHAN: Thank you for listening. Turn it up to 11 and bang your head. Let us know what you think and show your friends if y’all know what’s good. 

 

ANDY: I like walks on the beach and I'm open to new things. Get me out of here.

 

Last words and thank you's? 

 

NATHAN: Thank YOU for setting up this interview. We appreciate everyone listening and enjoying what we've put out so far. It'll always be a side project, but we'll always have songs in the bank. Tell a friend and spread the word. New album coming out next year. Less blast beats, but heavier and better riffs. Mothman forever, or until one of us dies. Unless it's Andy, then we'll just get a new drummer. 

 

ANDY: Thanks for the interview and good luck to Mothman finding a new drummer.

 

https://mothmantx.bandcamp.com/album/answers-to-no-one

https://open.spotify.com/album/2iouLsbWYtaolxLT9ZlKZz?si=H7i4oChkQn205Ix5nyFPJQ

 

 

Interview with WHORESNATION

I was lucky enough to fall in love with the genre where there are no unreachable superstars and you are able to have direct contact with your favorite bands. This is a gift that needs to be cherished and so I am super proud to share some first hand quality content with one of my favorite gXc bands! I first saw this band in Bloodshed festival 2014 and was blown away immediately. It's fast, it's raw, it's grim and there is absolutely nothing "happy" about this Besançon machinegun grindcore bunch. I am of course talking about the one and only, punch-in-the-face for a statement -WHORESNATION.

 

Tell us about the band name and some history, what made you think "I should be in a gXc band" one morning? Which country of this world you think deserves being called that (whores) and why?

 

Whoresnation started in 2009 in Besançon France. The line up was different back then and it evolved into what's now : Lopin on guitar, the only original member, Tonio behind the drums and Pibe on vocals who joined the band in 2010. But that has recently changed again with the addition of a new bass player. As individuals we have different backgrounds and I guess that we have always all craved to play in bands and make things happening and grindcore is one big love for the three of us. As a band we've always played grindcore, trying to be as fast as possible. 

 

The name that was chosen for the band has been questioned many times but the meaning is generally understood. The idea is to play with words and reasign ideas, most, if not all nation are somehow selling them self, "whoring", to capitalism, sacrifizing the wellfare of "citizens" and jeopardazing ecology and life in general. And if it's not put on the altar of capitalism it's most likely about fascism, anyways we're fucked and the concept of nation is wicked and wrong. We target most of the nations with our name, but well, mainly occidental colonial pig countries. We are rather "no borders" and "no love for a nation", states and governments are deeply unhuman and disgusting. 

 

Of course you understand that the name Whoresnation has nothing to do with sex workers, the word "whores" remains a debate that we absolutely understand, but we've chosen to go on with it. We think that this is also a linguistic debate and we've carried our name for over ten years during which we have played about 360 shows on 3 different continents and kind of grew up with the band, we play grindcore and we stand against all kinds of oppression. We've released some EPs, splits and comps but also two albums, last one which is maybe a bit more deathy was released in 2018 and recently repressed by Lixiviat records. We're actually working on the next one.

 

It seems to be Whoresnation as a band is getting more and more serious/dark/metal/brutal. Is that image true and what are your main influences?

The speed and brutal part surely comes from the fact that at some point we played a shitload of shows and we practiced a lot, that's Lopin and Tonio's work that payed. The dark and metal part is quite new for the band, Mephitism as mentioned before is rather deathy grindcore, somehow a Death Metal thing in the atmosphere and the riffage was added. Vocals also changed to more growls. That was a natural direction that was taken as Tonio comes from Death Metal and all of us we're quite blown away by the recent new bands and productions in Death Metal with bands like Spectral Voice, Anatomia, Necrot and so on. But grindcore is our main love and we'll remain a grind band. 

 

I don't know if we are more serious but we surely sound more serious. In the band we kind of distinguish 2 eras and we're for sure prouder of the most recent and of course of our last album Mephitism. We recorded at Disvlar studio with our consigliere Steph and it was mixed and mastered by William Blackmon, their work was perfect and that was the first time we were fully satisfied with the production. So maybe all these changes happened because we are now able to do what we want, we're really excited about writing the next chapter.

 

Is Whoresnation a political band? If not just that, what are other lyrical themes? What is "Who's to Blame? What's to Blame?" about?

 

We don't really consider WxN as a political band but we surely care about this aspect, we played in many squats and autonomous places, benefit shows, of course we are a leftist individuals and the messages behind songs are politically charged and 100% anti-fascist, anti-sexist and anti-capitalist. Lyrics on the last album are a bit less explicit and darker, they reflect on the human condition in general, we can talk about drugs or work, paranoia and anxiety and so on. 

 

Who's to blame ? What's to blame ? Is some kind of tribute to the Wire, it's a song about drugs, violence, authority and cities. Lower class are always criminalized and used as scapegoat, it's about the war anti-drug and gentrification.

 

Mephitism is my favorite full lenght grindcore album from 2018. What does "Mephitism" mean and is there a concept throughout the album or rather just a collection of songs?

 

Mephitism refers to the stench, the thick and choking fuming reek. It's about the poisonous unbreathable atmosphere that our world is sinking in. We chose to remain blurry and picked a name and an artwork that are open to interpretation and let those who are curious listen to the music, check and the lyrics and make their opinion about the meaning of it.  

 

There is a very cool video of you guys playing the legendary St Vitus bar in NYC. and the list of shows you have done is... impressive. Can you tell us more about your experience in US and some of the most memorable shows outside Europe?

 

We are huge fans of live set at Saint Vitus on youtubeshit, it was super rad that Frank Huang was there to immortalized this very special moment, that was our second show ever in the USA and we had a great time. Regarding the amount of shows we played we wish we made more, it's never enough but we always managed to play as many shows as we can, it's become harder to find time with life going on but it's always been the main goal of the band: playing live. 

Unfortunately we are bit stuck with the fucked up covid situation right now: we were supposed to make our 3rd North American tour in May with No/Mas and Warfuck but it fell through and we had also to postponed our September Eurotour with Endorphins Lost. 

 

USA has always been good to us, and it's great to play there, the two coasts are really different and both are far from our European perception of things, that's also why we love playing there even if sometimes it's challenging. Bad part is to cross the border to the USA or Canada, we were always paranoiac and anxious about that, but once we were there we made great encounters and we helped by lovely and caring people. Also, weed is legal in some states and they've the best coffeeshops I've been in, that's a plus. Next year will be back there and finally do the tour with Warfuck, we're going to tour from the Maryland Deathfest to the Montreal Earslaughter Fest playing shows before and in between. 

 

Outside Europe and North America we have only played in Japan yet. It was a unreal and great experience. We will surely tour there again for the next album. Regarding our top live experiences it's a difficult one … for sure New York was a Highlight as Oakland recently was (with Ghoul and and Impaled) in this huge and amazing venue. Some shows in Japan were absolutely crazy as well with pure raw energy. Playing fest is also most of the time stimulating and rewarding, Bloodshed fest, Maryland Deathfest, Obscene Extreme, Chimpy fest etc. are always made of great memories. We love to play live, everywhere, no matter which continents. We haven't yet tour on a large zone but we hope to discover new places and scenes.

 

Do you guys get along in the band well? Any threats to kill each other after touring?

 

Of course we get along, the three of us did a lot together and we have strong bonds. Other bands sometimes describe the way we interact as dad, mom and the child. We're not always agreeing and we're sometimes discussing things but we're united. Sometimes you feel it's time to go home on tour of course, when we're tired we're a bit moody but always finish tours before it becomes a problem.

 

 

What are your favorite non-brutal bands that you find to be heavy influences?

 

Regarding the lyrics (Pibe), French Hiphop and French Punk Rock have always been two big influences, And of course books, movies, series, cultural content that are not metal, but sometimes it's also brutal. Most of the time there are references to these in the words. Musically speaking (Lopin), I would say everything with a guitar in it can be influential. You won’t hear me tell "this riff has been stolen from Neil Young" but somehow we are all classic rock made and its may show up in tiny pieces in our music.

 

Can you tell us more about Deaf Death Husky records, what has it been up to, what is the main driving force behind this?

 

Deaf Death Husky is my (Pibe) records and tapes label. I try to help out friends as much as possible and to put out records I love. From the age of 15 I started to run DIY label and it's a part of my life, it's a very intense hobby and at the moment it's a bit slowed down but still, I just got my copies of the Satan Album called Toutes Ces Horreurs a band with which WxN made a split with long ago. But since I have moved to Paris my activity with the label is not hectic, but the husky never dies, it takes a nap.

 

What are other French bands our readers should check out?

 

Magma that's for sure! Well in the DIY scene we have many friends and luckily quite a lot of great bands ! If you're into grindcore and angry music check Warfuck and Satan that were mentioned before but also Blockheads, Doomsisters, Chiens, Deletär, Strong as Ten, Vomi Noir and all related projects. The French scene is wide and various, luckily if you want some help to understand it Romain from Terminal Sound Nuisance blog wrote an awesome guide the French Punk Scene if you guys are interested just google "French DIY Punk Scene: The Definitive Guide" !

 

What is in the near future for Whoresnation, Will you come play Lithuania again??

 

We are supposed to play some shows in autumn (mostly domestic) but we won’t be surprised if the covid situation will make it fell apart. Hopefully we’ll be able to play our postponed North American and European tours next year. The main information is we are slowly writing songs for the new album which should be released in 2021. 

 

I (Lopin) would have think the mandatory home containment would be a great amount of time to work on new songs but I’m afraid I have to face my daily intereaction with our cruel world to get inspiration. Anyway you can expect something angrier, darker and lower. Lithuania was a really good moment last time, we would love to come back and play in Vilnius and other cities and with Faršas it would be a plus!

https://whoresnation.bandcamp.com

https://www.facebook.com/vvhoresnation

Interview with Marco from FAILURE

Debut 7"by FAILURE contains the best 7 minutes of jump in the air + kick in the face audio violence I have heard in a while. The sound combined with tasty, serious imagery would make you think these guys cannot be messed with. However I was lucky to meet them in real life, play a few shows together and I have quickly learned they are just the sweetest people in the world. Ladies and gents, it's a great honor to present you this short but straight to the point conversation with the one and only - FAILURE from Italy!

Hi Marco! What is up? How is jerking off and getting high in quarantine going for you guys?

That was good to me. I enjoy being by myself at my place. Just in the end of quarantine I was starting to crave having fun with my friends again.

FAILURE is a great band name, even though there is some grunge rock or whatever band with the same name on Spotify already. I consider it to be the same case like AC/DC and ACxDC. Is there any story behind the band name that we should know?

Nothing to do with that. We just didnt know that this band existed. Steve and me chose this name because of the bad time we were living when we decided to form the band.

I am really impressed with the visual side of your band. I must say it is very sexy. Who is doing the design for shirts, covers, who did the logo etc?

Oh thanks my friend! I made the logo and we choose our covers and artworks all together. We wanted to use b/w pictures like most powerviolence bands. Steve and I play in Ape Unit too and we write lots of weird stuff with them. With Failure we wanted to play more "standard" stuff.

What were your main influences that made you make FAILURE?

Sadness, depression, frustration and Lack Of Interest.

Do you see yourselfes as a serious PV band? Or is it more like SPAZZ school PV in your eyes? To me is sounds more serious than DESPISE YOU at some parts lol

I dont know. We started writing lyrics about personal struggles but sometimes we write about more easy and ironic stuff. Sincerely, I don't care about that.

What are you currently listening to the most that you would like to recommend? (does not have to be heavy)

In these days i am listening mostly to Flamingosis, Viagraboys, The Chats, Pendulum, Vulfpeck and Kokoko.

Why no bass? Works better this way or you like the "sharper" sound?

When we started playing Steve originally wanted to play bass but we couldn't find a proper drummer. Now we don't want to look for a bassplayer and wait for him or her to learn all the songs. We are on a tight schedule and we want to be more comfortable and easy with composing and playing  so...less people, less problems.

You have a very unique sweet high hardcore voice pitch which is heaven for my ears (reminds me of RAISED FIST a bit). Are you able to do "normal" clean singing and are there any examples online?

Thank you buddy! I am not a pro screamer so I tried to learn the vocal style I like the most on fast music and that's what I came put with. Usually after 2 or 3 gigs in a row I lose my voice because I am not able to do that right (that's shite). I played with some friends on a NOFX cover band to play a couple of parties here in Cuneo but I can not sing properly there too. We recorded a punk rock version of "Ritornerai" by Bruno Lauzi (an italian songwriter from the 60's/70's) and you can find it in the latest Tanto Di Cappelo Records compilation here https://tadcarecords.bandcamp.com/album/vicious-circle as well as a Spazz cover with Failure.

Your dream band to make a split with?

Ona Snop was my previous choice but that dream already came true. Now I would say Sheeva Yoga.

How are you related with APE UNIT and what is going on with that band?

Yes in Ape Unit I play guitar and Steve drums. We are completing the new album composition. We are almost done with that but it's more weird and strange stuff and it requires us a lot of time more than the Failure punky tunes.

Can we expect a 30 min full length from FAILURE in the next 2 years or something?

We would prefer to release a good 7" all killer no filler more than a full length.

You are very fun people to be around. What is the funniest memory you would like to share from the bands history?

Oh man. Too many fun times to remember. One of my favourite situations took place in Milan when we played with Ona Snop and Afternoon Gentlemen in Villa Vegan. We started dancing to some electronic stuff staying in circle with people from bands and audience and I still don't know how all that began but a smile always appears on my face when I think about that.

Choose one alcoholic drink. The rest are gone from existence. Which one would you keep?

Beer.

Who's mama makes the best lasagna?

I would say mine, but I want to be clear this is not a competition: it's a war.

Will you come play Lithuania when we have a vaccine? Can't wait to get drunk with you again

I dream about that every night and in that dream we are dancing in circle with you.



Thank you for answering my dumb questions kind sir, wish you the best of luck working in those fields!

Go drop a like: https://www.facebook.com/failureisnochoice

Enjoy some tunes: https://failure.bandcamp.com/

Interview with Tommy from NO TIME Records

This week we have a fresh and sincere interview with a very busy man from a sunny state of California - the mastermind behind the super productive DIY label - No Time Records Tommy Smith!

So which is it - "No time" or "no time for fun"? 

Hahahaha, so the label is called No Time Records, the bandcamp link is in reference to the other founder of the label’s old band called High Tension, in one of their songs, he says the phrase “I’ve got No Time For Fun, my old self is dead to me”.

Seriously - how do you have the time to do everything you do?

I don’t, a lot of late nights and energy drinks. With the whole covid lockdown and lack of shows, I’ve had more time to focus on JUST the release label side of things, but under normal circumstances, we’re throwing nearly bi-weekly shows, 3 to 5 releases a month, playing in a few bands and touring.

What was your first exposure to grindcore and what made you fall in love with this genre? What made you go "I'm gonna do all of this shit!"?

I had been a fan of powerviolence since high school, I mainly listened to like, 4 bands, all local to Orange County. There is video of like, 15 year old me scared shitless at an ACxDC show. My current partner started getting me more interested in this stuff, plus going out to more shows in Los Angeles and linking up with more bands from the area.

You are this keen guy who just wants to do all this cool stuff, but there is a lot of negativity and cynicism in the world and I know sarcasm can be demotivating. How do you deal with all the smartasses that just know everything? 

I grew up being bullied relentlessly in elementary and middle school for my weight and overall weird behaviors, punk was the first thing that I ever felt like I belonged. After building a core group of people wanting me to succeed at what I do, I really just brush of negativity. 

I see you are a big fan of Tony Hawks Pro Skater lol (me too!). What other inspirations could you mention? Games? Movies? Books? People?

Outside of the Tony Hawk games, for sure the Guitar Hero franchise is what also perked my interest into “rock” music, I always enjoyed the punk songs more than the oldie classic rock and metal. Dance Dance Revolution is actually how I found ska music, I remember hearing “Little Bitch” by The Specials on one of the machines and found that music so infectious.

I guess for movies like, maybe SLC Punk? I saw that one once, thought it was ok, there was this dude I went to high school with who swore that movie was like the bible. Not much of a book guy, never really read many like “zines”, mainly spent my youth playing videogames.

I would really like to learn more about your personality. Could you give us some background on who you are besides your love for music? How old are you? Where u from? Family? Work? Relationships? Any funny tattoos? Any unfulfiled dreams you might have?

So I am 24, born and raised in Orange County, California. I just graduated college with a BS in Computer Science, currently looking for my like “real” job, I have a part-time gig which is the reason I was able to fund early No Time shit. I am happily taken to my lovely and supportive partner of over 4 years, I plan on marrying her but I wanna move out of my moms house before doing that. My mom is more or less supportive of my label, my dad absolutely despises it.

I have 4 shit stick n poke tattoos, a coffee mug from a piece of The Stupid Stupid Henchmen artwork, my absolute favorite band. The phrase “FIGHT LIKE HELL”, the Wu-Tang Clan logo but with the band name WADEYE in it instead, the bassist of that band has a No Time tattoo so I thought it was only fair I got one of his band, and a cassette tape that reads “TAPE LIFE OR HATE LIFE”, I gotta go back over it tho. 

https://notimeforfun.bandcamp.com what an impressive catalog. What 5 releases should one start with if they know nothing about your label? Which ones are you most proud of?

So all of the NoTime For Fun compilation series are a good place to start, they sort of “sum up” the label at the time in our history, outside of that, The Stupid StupidHenchmen “Charmingly Demonic”, that’s my absolute favorite album of all time. The Infested “Myths, Lies and Hypocrites” is also one of my absolute favorites as well. As for our more grindy stuff, LIVID’s “Life is Pain, Life is Shit” is a solid fucking record I am stoked to have under the NTR banner, and for a 5^th, probably the new Raging Nathans album “Oppositional Defiance” some absolute great pop punk.

You do all kinds of physical releases (CDs/LPs/MCs) and you release A LOT of music. I am not going to ask why you think physical is superior to digital these days, because I get it and I hate this kind of question. However, - how did you find a crowd that thinks the same and how do you sell most of the stuff without going bankrupt? If I would do everything you do here in Europe I'd need to have very rich parents to support me lmao

Oh I’ve been bankrupt quite a few times hahaha, making most everything myself to start, about 95% of my tapes releases I make myself and in small runs, I also don’t pay myself for ANYTHING. I think people like having physical versions of stuff, more and more people understand that buying physical items is the best way to directly support artists they like.

California is fucking huge and it's history is very rich with all kinds of music. Do you think it makes it harder or easier to run a DIY label / have a band / make shows etc. compared to a remote place where not much is happening?

There is a lot of competition for sure, there’s no doubt about that, there’s nights were there can be anywhere from 5 to 20 shows all happening within 50 miles of each other. Super common for people to cruise like a DIY show at the beginning of the night then hit a club show later. It’s harder to stand out for sure, so many people to try and compete with, but you are also surrounded with so many people, something like 18ish million between LA, Orange County, San Diego, and Riverside, you are bound to have somebody listen.

I have been to Los Angeles and I know it's a big, dirty mf and can be a bit scary at some points, as opposed to this ridiculous, sparkling, fancy hollywood image of this city most europeans have in their skulls. Do you feel safe there doing shows etc and do you find the extreme social inequality as an inspiration to what you do? What are the other big problems you see in the US? Would you call yourself a patriot? 

We had a band on tour we were hosting a show for, park their van, and shit you not even 40 minutes later, they come back and all of their gear had been stolen, shit fucking luck. LA gets a bad rap for theft and violence outside of shows, a few infamous spots here and there.

I don’t really feel sketched out knowing that the super majority of people just want to have a good time and get home. There’s bad shit for sure that you gotta keep your ears and eyes up for. I’m not from super poor roots, I never have claimed to be, I’m not rich by any means, but a lower middle class. I always felt punk was for the voiceless and if I can use my privilege coming from somewhat well-off background to devote my time into a DIY label then that’s what I will do.

One of the biggest problems that is facing the US is racial discrimination and abuse of police power, I’ve been having those uncomfortable conversation with family, roommates and coworkers, some understand, some still think ANTI-FA is a terrorist group so, take what you can get, can’t waste your energy on those you can’t reach. Orange County is super republican that I am not surprised people like my father and 99% of my coworkers don’t really understand why the country is so fucked.

Also the heroin epidemic is something I care deeply about and take to heart, after having multiple friends pass from ODing or be in and out of rehab and have their whole lives ruined, it breaks my heart. We try to push for harm reduction in the lyrics I write for my band, I want to start handing out clean needles and NARCAN at my shows but I really don’t know the legality or a efficient way of doing that, maybe that will be the first thing I push for when shows can happen again.

Do you find it easier to work with US bands rather than European bands? Or is there no difference for you?

So I went through high school being a HUGE fan of a bunch of UK bands, like Rash Decision, Private Gain, The Domestics, JAKAL, From The Cradle To The Rave etc so I hold European bands like super high above States bands in this weird, almost like they are so much more better than US bands because they are from Europe mentality, maybe because I can’t go see these bands live unless there is the off-chance one of them tours. So I love working with international bands from all over, and I can be more forgiving of any of the little issues that come up with releasing. Although international co-releases fucking suck, dealing with multiple currencies and shipping units ALL OVER is a fucking expensive nightmare.

So besides label, making shows etc you are also in a hardcore punk band Corrupt Vision. Can you tell us a bit about your band? Are (were) you in any other bands?

Corrupt Vision is a crossover grindcore / crack rock steady (skacore) band that I do with the other founder of No Time Records. The members of Corrupt Vision also play as the harsh noise band TIMExCUBE as sort of a joke. Me and Fern (label partner) also play in our folk punk band called The Insomniac Collective. I am starting a power violence band called NO MOTIVE with my friend Josh from a band called The Bimbos and hope to have a demo out for that before years end.

Do ya'll really hate SKA or is it like an ongoing joke? I'll be honest I'm not a fan of the genre, but I can recognize a lot of SKA-like riffs in your music 😃

Corrupt Vision dubs our music as “Anti-Ska”, we are sort-of a direct response to the super shitty, copy/paste, sickly sweet poppy party ska that’s prevalent in the Orange County scene here. We hate that most current ska bands are just riding off the sounds of the 90’s and not really adding much to it, lack of diversity in the sound, empty lyrics and overall cringy presence, we really aren’t fans.

We also like being too grind for ska and too ska or grind that we sorta piss off the elitists of both genres, I have people from both scenes say we would sound better if we dropped either the ska or the grind.

Any chance you guys would tour europe sometime when covid19 is under control? What places would you like to visit the most and what are your favorite european bands?

We (tentatively) have plans to tour the UK in April of 2021 with a band called Rash Decision, billed around a festival called Manchester Punk Festival, however, with the god awful Covid Response of both the UK and the US, I don’t see that happening. We would LOVE to come and play the rest of Europe at some point as well, I understand the UK is not necessarily the same as the rest of Europe, but with the Brexit shit, we don’t wanna risk being sent home hopping from country to country.

I dont think I have heard a spotify podcast about grindcore before! How did that happen and do you get many listeners? Any competition out there?

Its not so much a grindcore podcast as it is just about me and Fern talk about the label and all that we do, I think we are at like, 30 – 40 listeners so far which is dope, I think, wouldn’t mind more but talking with my buddy weekly and making each other laugh has been a great thing for my mental health.

Thank you so much for super fast, but also thoughtful and honest answers man! Next time I'm in on the west coast we must get drunk from a brown paper bag by the skatepark at the beach!

 Make sure to check out and support everything Tommy has been up to!

No time records
Corrupt vision
TIMExCUBE
The Insomniac Collective
The Bimbos

Interview with Pompeo from GO! FEST

Today we speak with Pompeo, one of the main people behind the amazing GO! festival in Rome and one of the key people in Italian grindcore scene!

It has been 10 years GO! fest is happening. I have been to one of the first editions and was lucky to play in #8. What is the driving force behind doing it all these years?

Hi everyone!
Yes, everything started 9 years ago and it seems incredible how we improved from the first editions. I think that our main goal (we’re three behind the festival, Daniele, Andrea and me) was to make a festival focused of fast bands. We had and still have plenty of hardcore festival in Italy but no one was dedicated to extreme bands, especially in Rome. We had September To Dismember in Bologna which was definitively a great example for us, but in the latest years I can say we’re the only extreme diy fest in our country together with Born To Be Grind organized by our friend Riki.

I'm sure it's not money right? How do you pay all the bands with such low entry fees? What was your biggest financial loss in history? How do I get rich doing grindcore?

I’m happy to say that it’s impossible to get rich with grindcore 😊 You don’t need money to do it, just rage and some musical skill. Talking about us yes, the entrance at the festival is always really cheap and I’m proud to say that we do it without any help of sponsors. When a band come to play at Go! Fest they do it more for the fun and the atmosphere, they know from the beginning that they are not getting so much money.
We never lost money so far, but we are careful when we organize the festival and all the other shows in the rest of the year

How many other people are behind the fest and what are the names worth a special shout out? Are doing this from the start?

We’re just three guys behind the festival: Daniele and Andrea and me, but every year a few special friends give us a hand and without their help we’d go crazy. A special thanks goes to people at CSOA Spartaco (our main venue), Daniel (our sound guy), Ulderico and Vincent.

Have you ever had any problems because of the fest? Government? Local nazis? Bands too drunk to play?

We’ve been lucky so far, I think the main problem of the last editions was the rain: it doesn’t rain so much in Rome, but you can be quite sure that on the day of Go! Fest there will be water falling from the sky 😊
Local government doesn’t know us and we don’t want to know them and nazis are not so much in the part of the city were we have the festival.
Oh by the way, once some assholes had something to say because we invited a band from Israel (MooM). They thought we hosted a Zionist band but they clearly didn’t know anything about them and about how carefully we choose the bands we invite.

Regardless of tragic covid19 impact to Italy - you are still doing the 10th edition this year, is that right? What are the current restrictions in your country and is there a chance the fest might not actually happen?

At the moment the situation is getting better, and even with some restrictions we decided to have Go! Fest 10, but only with Italian bands. We’re sure it will be a great edition even without internationally famous bands, we have so many great fast bands here after all.
There is still a chance that if the covid-19 spreads again the festival might be cancelled but we try to be positive about that!

What were the venues the fest took place in? Rome is known for it's sunshine and beautiful weather, - ever considered an Open Air edition?

The first edition happened at CSOA Ricomincio dal Faro, then we moved to Bencivenga squat for 3 editions, then we moved again to our actual venue, CSOA Spartaco.
We’d love to make an open air edition but we would need to involve much more people and it was impossible so far. We might try again in the next editions but it would mean asking permissions to local government and a lot of other burocratic stuff, so I’m not sure it would be a good idea.

What is your warmest memory from the history of GO fest?

There are so many. Actually one of the best was meeting you at the festival, you were the first in the audience coming from a far country! Another great memory was when I was on stage with my old band xKATExMOSHx and people started moshing so hard but we were still having the sound check.
The last one is when the guys of a really known band told me that playing at Go! Fest was much better than playing in a festival that is 10 times bigger than ours (I won’t tell you the band and the festival anyway 😉 )

Let's say I'm a small but talented grindcore band with 150 likes from middle of nowhere. What do I have to do to be considered to play GO! ?

If you send me a link and we like what you do we definitively don’t care if you are “big” or not. We just check what are your idea: there’s no space for fascist, racist or intolerant bands in the festival.

Imagine you now have the government support and endless cash. What is your dream line-up for the fest?

Don’t ask me this, I wouldn’t accept any money from the government, even if this would mean to offer a million of euros to make Spazz and Charles Bronson come back together! Ok, maybe I’d think carefully about it 😊

Besides doing the festival you are in like 666 bands. Could you give our reader a brief introduction on each and what is currently active?

Currently I only play in 2 bands: Verano’s Dogs and Taste The Floor. Verano’s Dogs is a mix of old school death metal and grindcore, Taste The Floor play fast thrashcore mainly influenced by Scholastic Deth and DS13.
I miss playing powerviolence as I used to do with xKATExMOSHx but as soon as I have more free time I’m going to found another band like that for sure. I’m getting used to play songs longer than 1-2 minutes and it’s not good at all.

What are current Italian bands we must invite to play to Lithuania?

There are lots of great bands all around Italy, even if most of them maybe never tour abroad. My favorites now are LULU from Milano, ANF from Palermo, Failure, and Scheletro from Roma.

Does all this grindcore activity clash with your family life / work in any way? Anything else you want to do but have no time?

It’s not easy but I try to spend most of my free time with my 4 years old son. Since he’s born I never left home for long tours with my bands but all the time spent with him is gold for me. Plus, he’s starting to enjoy the music I love and currently his favorite songs are from Repulsion and Municipal Waste!
The only thing I’ve been really missing for years is sleeping, but doing a lot of different things means going late to bed!

Can you share a thought that comforts or motivates you during some tough times?

I say thank you my friend! I’m not the best at motivating people but sometimes I remember that my music teacher used to say that I was her worst student in all her life and after a few years I made quite a few records, I toured around all Europe and there’s someone that enjoy the songs I made with my bands. But probably she didn’t know the word grindcore.


Grazie tante mio caro, I wish we can travel freely very soon and I can come hug you in person and have 48 beers together again xx

See you soon!

MAKE SURE TO CHECK OUT POMPEO's BANDS !!!!

VERANO'S DOGS:
https://veranosdogs-map.bandcamp.com/

TASTE THE FLOOR:
https://tastethefloor.bandcamp.com/album/taste-the-floor

xKATExMOSHx:
https://xkatexmoshx.bandcamp.com/

FOLLOW GO FEST ON FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/gofestgrindcore 

Interview with Stijn from Reproach [2020]

People who are into this specific genre probably heard of the Belgian experts of fastcore, called Reproach. For me, it was the "gateway drug" into the genre while I was still a teenager, when I discovered them during the Bloodshed fest in Eindhoven, in 2014. Reproach is the biggest influence on my music taste and they set the bar so high for other bands, that I haven't found anything as good since!

When we started this blog, we decided, that we wanted to spread the word and help others to discover the bands that really deserve their attention, and Reproach was the first band that came to my mind and I decided, that I should interview them as the last interview was quite a long time ago, so here it is - an interview with Stijn, the vocalist of an amazing hardcore punk band from Ghent, Belgium - Reproach!

So, guys, how are you doing during this weird and fucked up period of time? What have you been up to?

Hey! All of us are still in good health, that’s what’s most important. Davy got his first kid a few days ago so that’s his main focus now. Tim is working from home and sporting a lot, he’s in the best shape of his life right now. Thanks to Covid-19 he was forced to work from home and thus saved him several hours of commuting every single day, he’s also busy getting better at French since he lives in Paris now. Myself, I been sporting a lot too (weights, running, yoga, biking,…), writing some lyrics, Playstation games, and working remotely. A huge concrete skatepark in Gent is opening next month so I’m pretty stoked about that too! Frank had a few weeks off work due to Covid which give him some extra time to spend with his kid. He is back to working full time now. Gotta keep your mind and body busy during these times.

What is your approach to writing music? Are all of you contributing to lyrics, pitching ideas for guitar riffs, etc. or are you creating different parts on your own and then putting them together so it would work?

Usually, Tim comes up with a riff, jams it with Davy to create the groundwork of the song. Frank also puts ideas in there and then it just turns into a song. When every one of us likes the music, I put lyrics to it and that’s it. It’s all just very organic for us.

In your early work, a lot of songs were about skateboarding. Why, in your opinion, is skateboarding and punk subcultures are so connected? And do you guys skate or is it something you just appreciate when someone else does?

Even though I haven’t skated in a long time, I still consider myself a skateboarder. Tim and Davy also used to skate at one point but don’t anymore. Skateboarding and punk to me are definitely intertwined, the rebellious spirit, the DIY attitude, the aggression, and energy,…

The first few Reproach albums had more songs about skateboarding than nowadays, as the dominating lyrics in newer stuff are more nihilistic. Do you think that the civilization started falling apart recently or did you get a new perspective on everything and humanity was always on a downward spiral?

The main reason is that I was skateboarding less than during the earlier Reproach stuff, I always had a bleak outlook on where the world is heading.

I remember there was a photo of Stijn wearing Ash’s costume for Halloween and the song “Dead by Dawn” is an obvious reference to Evil Dead. Are there any other horror movies that influenced your music?

Dead by Dawn is one of my favorite movies ever and one of the first horror movies I ever saw. It really left an impression on me when I saw it as a 11 year old kid. I love horror movies, gore, blood, guts, and just fucked up movies. I also wanted to write a song about The Thing, but Municipal Waste beat me to it haha!

I feel like the current punk is dominated by “macho” hardcore bands and the fast hardcore punk/fastcore bands are not getting enough love. What are the current fastcore bands, that you think are underrated and should get more attention?

Not really underrated, but I’d say give Crippled Fox, Hetze, Gewoon Fucking Raggen, and Azijnpisser a listen if you like fast thrashing hardcore!

Do you have a “dream” band that you would love to make a split or play a show with?

Lack of Interest! That band still is harder than most other bands out there.

Considering that Stijn is busy with Raw Peace and Blind to Faith, Tim is playing with Lifespite, do you guys still have time to make new music for a new Reproach album? What's next for the band?

Time is always a problem, and me living in Gent and Tim in Paris while Frank and Davy live on the other side of Belgium isn’t helping either. At this point, we haven’t rehearsed in months, but we do have some songs ready to record. Our last recording was for the split tape with Toxic Shock and we want to record those songs again and the extra songs that we have currently ready for a new release. We also wanted to do a 20-year Reproach show but that didn’t happen due to a global pandemic, so hopefully, we can pull that off in 2021! 

Thanks to Reproach for a great interview!

P.S. Here is an amazing music video of theirs.
Enjoy!