Desalmado Interview

 1. Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that have never heard of you before?

Caio Augusttus: The band was formed in 2004 with the intent of making pure Grindcore music. Bruno, Ana Paula (former bass player) and I started with the idea of mixing that sound with lyrics about social criticism in a general context.

We had some line-up changes and we stabilized when the Estevam (Romera) joined the band. He brought more metal influences to our sound. Before that our songs were, for lack of a better word, confused. We were more influenced by punk music than by metal.

As time went on, our music and our ideological stance became more extreme, but never forgetting our roots in Grindcore.

2. How would you describe your musical sound?

Caio Augusttus:  Grindcore:  the union of punk/hardcore to extreme death metal.  What’s important for us is that our music remains dirty, aggressive and consistent to the ears of those who like the band.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

Caio Augusttus:  Our songs mostly deal with the notion of certain human groups imposing their dogmas and culture upon other human groups. That behavior is a part of the human instinct of oppressing and conquering for an ideological greed in exchange for money and power. We refuse that posture and any action under that ideology. Perhaps humanity’s most objective means to satisfy this addiction is religion. We can specifically cite Christianity in the West. I think that for every 3 people “saved” by religion, another 5 will be sacrificed in a socio-economic context. That is just plain wrong.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the band’s name?

Caio Augusttus: Perhaps the main thing is that we do not believe in the existence of a mentor above, the name is an affront to religion, this is the best definition. The word “Desalmado” in Portuguese actually has a few different meanings. It can mean heartless, or cruel. It can also relate to disembodiment: Your soul leaving your lifeless body.

Bruno Teixeira:  Besides that, we have a song on our first demo called "Desalmado." The lyric of that song questions the attitude of religious leaders who use lies to achieve their goals. Again, touching on the lack of a conscience in the face of acts that will cause damage to tens of thousands of people. We see this happening everyday here in Brazil.

5. Has the band had any opportunities to do any live shows yet, if so what are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?

Bruno Teixeira: Yes, we have done numerous shows in Brazil during the seven years of this band. We played songs from all our albums and I think that our show is very dynamic and aggressive.

About our best shows, I highlight the opening for Entombed, our first show and an amazing show in the city of Santo Anastácio. Recently we made two great shows, one with the bands DFC, Presto? and Blasthrash, and the other with Defy.

6. Does the band have any touring plans for the future?
Bruno Teixeira: Absolutely! This year we will do our first European tour. It will go through seven countries. After the launch of our new album we want to do shows in Latin America and in North America as well.

7. Recently Greyhaze re-issued your ep, how did you get in contact with the label and how

would you describe the support that they have given you so far?

Caio Augusttus: We're really happy with our deal with Greyhaze Records, it's a positive partnership for both and I believe that having our EP released again is a great support to our music.

In our musical style it's hard to have a support from a record label, a lot of other great bands should have this support. It is very important that the extreme music remains strong in the music scene.

 Bruno Teixeira: One important thing is that Greyhaze knows that we're an underground band, and they respect our music. There are no illusions; both sides have their feet on the ground. Greyhaze contacted us after seeing our video clip and listen to the songs on our MySpace.

8. On a worldwide level how has your music been received by grindcore fans?

Bruno Teixeira: So far the response has been very positive! Our music has pleased not only Grindcore fans, but also people who like Thrash Metal, Punk, Hardcore, Death Metal etc. I think it's pretty cool, because I always liked bands that were not attached to a musical style and incorporated influences from other musical styles.

9. Are there any projects besides this band or is this a full-time line -up?

Caio Augusttus:  Maria has another band called Fire Driven, Ricardo plays in a Thrash Metal band called Chemical Disease and Bruno just started a Grindcore project called Putrid Sense. There's also a D-beat project called Millagro, where Estevam, Bruno and I recorded some songs. But Desalmado is the main thing for all of us.

10. What direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?

Caio Augusttus:  You will see a pretty solid increase in the overall heaviness of our sound. The next album is still a bit in the first roots of the band, but there is a notable difference from Hereditas. It’s dirty and has the ideal mix between Hardcore Punk and Extreme Metal.

11. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are

you listening to nowadays?

Caio Augusttus:  Napalm Death, Terrorizer, Extreme Noise Terror and Sepultura. We listen to a lot of stuff, but in the last 3 years I've been listening a lot to Neurosis and Crowbar. Napalm Death is a band that I listen to everyday.  I have been paying much attention to bands like All Pigs Must Die, Trap Them and Rotten Sound, I think they´re really extreme and insane.

Bruno Teixeira:  Lately I've been listening to Krisiun, Looking For An Answer, Toxic Holocaust and some underground Brazilian bands, like Test, Huey, Defy, Hutt, Facada, Apokalyptic Raids etc. There are a lot of great Brazilian bands, I could stay here talking for one hour and I would forget to mention a lot of bands. I really listen to a lot of musical styles.

12. Outside of music, what are some of your interests?

Caio Augusttus: I have a profound interest in politics, economy, and religion. I’m always involved philosophical socio-political debates. I’m always involved in some shit like that. I waste tons of time writing about these matters.

Bruno Teixeira: I have a general interest in politics. There’s a lot happening at this very moment that could change the destiny of a lot of people. For some inexplicable reason, nobody seems to pay attention to that. Events such as the Arabian Spring, the reaction of the Greek population in front of their economic crisis, and the protests in Chile for better education show that a lot is going in a positive direction, people have been showing their indignation. It’s still not enough. We need to press on.

13. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?

Bruno Teixeira: Thanks to you guys from Bringer of Death! Attitude like yours should always be praised! It is this kind of support we all need. Hope to see you soon on the road!

Cheers!