Retortion Terror/Invidiosus/Horror Pain Gore Death Productions/2017 Split CD Review

  This  is  a  review  of  a  split album  between  Japan's  Retortion  Terror and  Minnesota's  Invidiosus  which  will  be  released  in  October  by  Horror  Pain  Gore  Death  Productions  and  we  will  start  off  the  review  with  Retortion  Terror  a  band  that  plays  a  mixture  of  crust  and  grindcore.

  Their  side  of  the  split  starts  out  with  some  angry  screams  before  going  into  a  very  fast  and  brutal  grindcore  direction  which  also  uses  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  along  with  most  of  their  tracks  being  very  short  in  length  as  well  as  a  brief  use  of  melody  and  mid  tempo  sections  and  elements  of  crust  can  also  be  heard  at  times,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  violent  and  angry  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Retortion  Terror  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  crust  and  grindcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Scorched" and  "River  Of  Ignorance".

  Next  up  is  Invidiosus  a  band  that  plays  a  technical  mixture  of  death  metal  and  grindcore  with  some  elements  of  thrash,  crust  and  black  metal.

  Their  side  of  the  split  starts  out  with  a  very  fast,  brutal  and  old  school  grindcore  sound  along  with  some  blast  beats  while  the  vocals  are  a  mixture  of  death  metal  growls  and  screams,  when  guitar  solos and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  done  in  a  very  technical  fashion  and  d  beats  are  also  used  at  times.

  Elements  of  thrash  can  be  heard  in  the  guitar  riffing  while  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  there  is  also  a  slight  touch  of  blackened  death  metal  and  most  of  their  tracks  are  very  short  in  length,  melodies  are  also  used  at  times  as  well  as  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sounding  very  powerful,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  depression,  anxiety,  dystopia,  mental  illness  and  humor  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Invidiosus  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  technical  death  metal  and  grindcore  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Purpose  Defeater"  and  "Where  Evolution  Ends".

  In  conclusion  I  feel  this  is  a  very  great  sounding  split  and  I  would  recommend  it  to  all  fans  of  crust,  grindcore  and  death  metal.  8  out  of  10.

  

Marginal/Total Destruction/Transcending Obscurity Records/2017 CD Review

   Marginal  are  a  band  from  Belgium  that  plays  a mixture  of  grindcore  and  crust  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Total  Destruction"  which  will  be  rleeased  in  December  by  Transcending  Obscurity  Records.

  Drum  beats  along  with  a  very  brutal  grindcore  sound  starts  off  the  album  while t he  vocals  are  mostly  death  metal  growls  while  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  as  well  as  the  music  being  very  heavily  influenced  by  d  beat  and  crust  and  guitar  leads  are  also  used  at  times.

  All  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  while  high  pitched  screams  are  also used  at  times  along  with  the  music  being  very  heavily  rooted  in  the  90's  but  also  sounding  very  modern  at  the  same  time  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  angry  punk  rock  style  shouts  can  be  heard  and  most  of  the  tracks  are  very  short  in  length,  spoken  word  samples  are  also  added  on  one  track  and  the  music  always  remains  heavy.

  Marginal  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  grindcore,  crust  and  d  beat  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  violent  and  political  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Marginal  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  grindcore  and  crust  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Barbarians"  "Impaled"  "This  Violent  Way"  and  "Total  Destruction".  8  out  of  10.  

All Pigs Must Die/Hostage Animal/Southern Lord/2017 CD Review

  Massachusetts's  All  Pigs  Must  Die  have  returned  with  a  new  recording which  continues  the  thrash,  crust,  hardcore,  grind  and  death  metal  mixture  of  previous  releases  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Hostage  Animal"  which  will  be  released  in  October  by  Southern  Lord.

  A  very  fast  and  brutal  sound  starts  off  the  album  along  with  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  while  the  vocals  bring  in  more  of  an  aggressive  style  that  mixes  crust  and  hardcore  style  yelling  together  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  also  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Elements  of  d  beat  can  also  be  heard  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  recording  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion  along  with  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  mixing  in  the  brutality  of  grindcore  as  well  as  some  of  the  riffing  also  adding  in  melody  and  elements  of  thrash  at  times,  one  one  track  a  brief  use  of  clean  playing  can  be  heard  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  short  in  length.

  All  Pigs  Must  Die  creates  another  recording t hat  remains  true  to  the  thrash,  crust,  hardcore, grind  and  death  metal  mixture  of  previous  releases,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  hatred,  destruction  and  anti  religion  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  All  Pigs  Must  Die  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  thrash,  crust,  grindcore  and  death  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Hostage  Animal"  "Slave  Morality"  "Moral  Purge"  and  "Heathen  Reign".  8  out  of  10.  

Necromorph Interview

1. Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?



Quite some. We’ve been playing a few shows and are already working on the next album. We are also planning to release a song from our latest album on video.



2. In 2016 you had released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?



The Composing is more elaborated or probably more defined. We took a step away from the Swedish sound with that fuzzy HM2 distortion towards more melodies and D-Beats. The same is still, that we didn’t lose any of our grind power, so that you will find quite a lot of raving blast-beat parts on “Under the Flag”.



3.In the beginning the band was more black metal, then death metal moving moving into a mixture of death metal, crust and grindcore, can you tell us a little bit more about the decision behind going into a different musical direction?



Oh, that’s quite simple. Our taste of music has changed over the years and after a while we came to a point, were we said: Yeah, grindcore that’s the music we want to do.



4. This was your first album since 2011, can you tell us a little bit more about what was going on during the last 5 years?



We were getting older. J No, seriously. We played some shows of course, changed our label and our rehearsing room and we had a little lineup change with Benna leaving and Karl joining the band. Fritze became Father. Some member started new projects. Summed up, a lot personal things wish took time apart from the band.



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



We are criticizing society and often focus on what happens around us in our everyday life. Especially themes like intolerance or ignorance are often subject we expose in our lyrics.



6. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Necromorph'?



First, we liked the sound of the word itself. Then it is also some kind of tribute to Necrony which influenced us very much in the early days of Necromorph. We also liked the picture or metaphor in sense of a necromorphing or with other words rotting society.



7. What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?



Of course we enjoy every show we are playing. But to name some, it would definitely be: Obscene Extreme, Blut Svente Festival, VEB in Lübeck, Amnesie in Berlin or in Weimar in the Gerbertstraße. We like it small and cozy – so our best shows might have been in clubs like that. Our performance is always wild and a bit chaotic, very energetic and true.



8. Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?



Yes. October 1st Berlin @ Pedäl Bättl. October 14th the Defying Danger Label Night in Bitterfeld. October 28th at Café Markzicht in Dedemsvaart (Netherlands). November 10th Ear Terror Festival in Emden. December 23rd Abjured Record Release in Halle.



9. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your newer music by fans of death metal, grindcore and crust?



The feedback has basically been positive. You can say, that we didn’t have the same impact on promotion we had with Grinding Black Zero due to our change to a smaller label. F.D.A. Rekotz is quite an institution in the German metal scene were as our new label Defying Danger Records is a newcomer on the German metal-landscape. It needs some time get established and connected. But we are very confident that it will work out. And hey, it’s always cool to support the underground.



10. Are any of the band members currently involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?



Yes. Ulf plays guitar in an old school death-metal band named Dehuman Reign. Karl has some cover-projects going on here and then and is also performing shows with the Feuerregen – a fire-artist group. Jockel is playing bass for Ost+Front – an industrial band, which comes around a lot.



11. Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?



We are not planning to do something especially different or so. We just let it flow and will see what happens…



12. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?



That’s quite much and differs from member to member. From Raised Fist to Tragedy over Entombed to Anaal Nathrakh is their quite a lot between. For all of us it is definitely: Necrony or later Nasum, Napalm Death and Victims.



13. What are some of your non musical interests?



Sports, reading and writing, hanging out with friends and watching movies, enjoying the big cultural live of Berlin – and parties and alcohol of courseJ.



14. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?



Thanks for the interview. Think independently. Support the underground. We will hopefully see us to one of our shows. Cheers.

Reign Of Vengeance/The Final Aeon For All Humans/2017 EP Review

  Reign  Of  Vengeance  are  a  band  from  Arizona  that  expands  on  their  technical  and  brutal  style  of  death  metal  by  adding  in  elements  of  slam,  grindcore,  hardcore  and  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released   2017  ep  "The  Final  Aeon  For  All  Humans"  which  will  be  released  in  October.

  A very  brutal  sound  along  with  some  technical  guitar  leads  start  off  the  ep  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  and  clean  vocals  a  few  seconds  later  as  well  as  mixing  in  a  great  amount  of  hardcore  and  slam  elements  which  also  shows  the  vocals  also  adding  in  a  shouting  style  at  times.

  Symphonic  elements  can  also  be  heard  at  times  while  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  some  of  the  vocals  also  adding  in  high  pitched  screams  and  the  solos  and  leads  also  add  in  traditional  metal/hard  rock  elements  at  times  along  with  a  brief  use  of  clean  playing,  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  briefly  and  influences  of  black,  groove  and  thrash  metal  are  also  added  into  certain  sections  of  the  recording.

  On  this  recording  Reign  Of  Vengeance  cover  a  lot  of  ground  with  influences  of  technical  death  metal,  symphonic  black  metal,  grind,  hardcore ,  slam,  thrash  and  groove  metal  all  getting  mixed  together,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  conspiracy  theories,  esoteric  theology,  gore,  blood,  brutality  and  violence  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Reign  Of  Vengeance  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  a  variety  of  many  different  extreme  metal  genres,  you  should  enjoy  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Fuck  The  Recession,  Kill  Those  Who  Caused  It"  and  "The  Great  Hecatomb".  8  out  of  10.      

Prolefeed/Henry Kane/WOOAAARGH/2017 Split Album Review

  This  is  a  review  of  a  split  album  between  U.K's  Proleffeed  an  Sweden's  Henry  Kane  which  was  released  by  WOOAAARGH  and  we  will  start  off  the  review  with  Prolefeed  a  band  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  mixture  of  hardcore,  crust  and  grind.

  Their  side  of  the  split  starts  out  with  a  very  fast  and  brutal  crust  sound  along  with  some  high  pitched  grindcore  screams  and  blast  beats  while  d  beats  are  also  utilized  as  well  as  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  all  of  their  tracks  are  very  short  in  length.

  Throughout  their  side  of  the  recording  you  can  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  while  the  riffs  also  bring  in a  decent  amount  of  melody  and  hardcore  punk  elements  as  well  as  a  small  amount  of  guitar  leads,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  violent  and  angry  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Proleffeed  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  crust  and  grindcore,  you  should  check  out  their  side  of  the  split.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Something  Falling  From  The  Sky"  and  "Square  Meals"

  Next  up  is  Henry  Kane  a  solo  project  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  mixture  of  crust,  grindcore  and  death  metal.

  His  side  of  the  split  starts  out  with  melodic  guitar  leads  along  with  some  heavy  riffs  a  few  seconds  later  before  speeding  up  and  adding  in  blast  beats  as  well  as  a  mixture  of  death  metal  growls  and  crust  style  screams  and  the  music  also  has  its  roots  in  an  early  90's  Swedish  style.

  All  of  his  tracks  are  very  short  in  length  while  also  incorporating  elements  of  grindcore  along  with  the  songs  also  bringing  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  all  of  the  musical  instruments  also  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  are  written  in  Swedish  and  cover  nihilism,  hatred  and  misanthropy.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Henry  Kane  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  crust,  grindcore  and  death  metal,  you  should  check  out  his  side  of  the  split.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Rotten  Av  All  Angest"  and  "Maktlost  Hat".

  In  conclusion  I  feel  this  is  a  very  great  sounding  split  and  I  would  recommend  it  to  all  fans  of  crust,  grindcore  and  death  metal.  8  out  of  10.   

Krigblast/Dawn Of The Apocalypse/Selfmadegod Records/2017 CD Review

  Krigblast  are  a  band  from  Texas  that h as  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  a  mixture  of  crust  punk  and  d  beat  with  a  touch  of  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Dawn  Of   The  Apocalypse"  which  was  re;eased  by  Selfmadegod  Records.

  Atmospheric  synths  and  programmed  beats  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  which  also  introduces  melodic  guitar  leads  onto  the  recording  along  with  some  elements  of  d  beats  and  punk  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  crustcore  style  growls  and  aggressive  shouts.

  Black  metal  screams  can  also  be  heard  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  while  some  songs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  clean  guitars  along  with  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  bringing  in  a  decent  amount  of  blast  beats  and  throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  Krigblast  creates  another  recording  that  remains  true  to  their  black  metal  influenced  style  of  crust  and  d  beat,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  angry  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Krigblast  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  black  metal,  crust  and  d  beat,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Submission"  "Evil  Is  Burning"  "No  Way  Out"  and  "Fear  And  Depression".  8  out  of  10.    

Exhumed/Death Revenge/Relapse Records/2017 Full Length Review

  Bay  Area,  California's  Exhumed  have  returned  with  a  new  recording  which  continues  their  death  metal,  gore,  and  grindcore mixture  of  previous  releases  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Death  Revenge"  which  will be  released  in  October  by  Relapse  Records.

  Keyboards  start  off  the  album  and  they  give  the  music  an  atmosphere  of  a  horror  movie  along  with  some  symphonic  elements  before  going  into  a  more  brutal  direction  along  with  some  death  metal  growls  while  the  riffs  also  bring  in  a  great  amount  of  melody  and  all  of  the  musical  instruments  sound  very  powerful.

  A  lot  of  the  music  has  its  roots  in  the  early  90's  while  also  mixing  it  in  with  a  more  modern  production  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  great  amount  of  grindcore  influences  and  blast  beats  can  be  heard  along  with  some  screams  and  d  beats  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  sticking  to  an  old  school  style  of  extreme  metal  as  well  as  having  it's  melodic  moments  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts,  keyboards  also  make  a  brief  return  and  the  instrumental  tracks  is  very  long  and  epic  in  length, some  of  the  riffing  also  adds  in  elements  of  thrash.

  Exhumed  creates  another  recording  that  remains  true  to  the  gore,  grindcore  and  death  metal  mixture  of  previous  releases  while  also  getting  more  melodic  this  time  around,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  are  a  concept  album  based  upon  brutal  murders  and  grave  robberies  that  take  place  in  1820's  era  Edinburgh,  Scotland.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Exhumed  and  if  you are  a  fan  of  this  band,  you  should  enjoy  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Defenders  Of  The  Grave"  "Night  Work"  "The  Harrowing"  and  "Death  Revenge".  8  out  of  10.  

Mortalium/Obligate Loneliness/Wolfshade Records/2015 CD Review

  Mortalium  are  a  band  from  Ukraine  that  plays  a  mixture  of  goth,  doom  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2015  album  "Obligate  Loneliness"  which  was  released  by  Wolfshade  Records.

  Drum  beats  along  with  some  dark  sounding  yet  epic  synths  start  off  the  album  and  they  also  mix  in  with  the  heavier  sections  of  the  songs  which  also  introduces  death  metal  growls  onto  the  recording  along  with  some  symphonic  elements  also  being  used  at  times  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  fashion.

  Some  of  the  tracks are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  while  the  female  vocals  gives  the  songs  more  of  a  goth  metal  feeling  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  can  be  heard  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  as  well  as  the  riffs  also  bringing  in  a  great  amount  of  melody, some  songs  also  bring  in  a  small  amount  of  spoken  word  parts  and  they  also  bring  in  a  cover  of  the  Beatles  "Elanor  Rigby"  and  as  the  album  progresses  stringed  instruments  are  also  utilized  at  times  and  the  album  closes  with  an  instrumental.

  Mortalium  plays  a  musical  style  that  is  mostly rooted  in  goth  and  doom  metal  which  they  mix  in  with  the  heaviness  of  death  metal  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  death  and  depression  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Mortalium  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  goth,  doom  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Chasing  The  Truth"  "I Hate  You  All"  "Eleanor  Rigby"  and  "Ocean  Of  Depression".  8  out  of  10.        

Turbocharged/Apocalyptic/Go Fuck Yourself Productions/2017 CD Review

  Turbocharged  are a band  from  Sweden  that  goes  for  more  of  a  mixture  of  death,  thrash  metal  and  punk  on  this  recording  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  album  "Apocalyptic"  which  was  released  by  Go  Fuck  Yourself  Productions.

  Aggressive  growls,  fast  riffs  and  blast  beats  start  off  the  album  along  with  the  riffs  also  bringing  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  the  music  also  incorporates  a  great  amount  of  punk  and  thrash  metal  elements.

  Most  of  the  music  is  heavily  rooted  in  the  mid  80's  to  early  90's  while  also  mixing  in  a  more  modern  vibe  and  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  more  of  an  old  school  metal/punk  fashion  and  the  songs  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  and  as  the  album  progresses  elements  of  first  wave  black  metal  can  be  heard  and  all  of  the  songs  stick  to  a  very  heavy  musical  style.

  On  this  recording  Turbocharged  expand  on  the  death/thrash  metal  style  which  they  mix  in  with  more  punk,  d  beat  and  crust  elements  this  time  around,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  anti  religion  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Turbochgarged  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  death,  thrash  metal  and  punk,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Siamese  Sons  Of  God"  "Halo  Of  Thorns"  "Deathmarch"  and  "Scandinavian  Darkness".  8  out  of  10.

Facada/Nenhum Pluto De Attitude/EveryDayHate/2017 Compilation Review

  Facada  are  a  band  from  Brazil  that  plays  a  mixture  of  grindcore,  crust  and  death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2017  compilation  album  "Nenhum  Pluto  De  Attitude"  which  was  released  by  EveryDayHate.

  Acoustic  guitar  playing  starts  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  very  fast  and  brutal  grindcore  direction  which  also  uses  a  great  amount  of  blast  beats  and  high  pitched  screams  while  death  metal  growls  are  also  used  at  time  and  after  awhile  elements  of  crust  and  d  beat  are  added  onto  the  recording.

  Most  of  the  tracks  are  very  short  in  length  while  the  music  also  adds  in  the  energy  of  hardcore  punk  at  times  as  well  as  adding  in  a  covers  of  Bad  Brains's  "Sailin  On"  and  Misfits's  "Hybrid  Moments"  which  also  introduces  guitar  leads  and  melodic vocals  onto  the  recording  and  some  of  the  tracks  also  bring  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  adding  in  a  small  amount  of  melody  at  times,  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  briefly.

  Facada  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  grindcore,  crust  and  death  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  very  heavy  recording,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  society  and  life  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Facada  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  grindcore,  crust  and  death  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Coraxo"  "War Command"  "Cause  And  Effect"  and  "Deathwish".  8  out  of  10.

Mutation Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?

Ginger: We’re all just getting into shape and mentally preparing to get this thing on tour. I’ve had a few personal problems that landed me in hospital, but that’s just made me more focused on what we want to achieve on tour. Mutation has become a personal mission for me.

Scott: I'm currently in Australia – We met up in May to shoot the 'Hate' video but everything is admin based until we begin our tour pre-production in early October.

2.Recently you have released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

Ginger: This is our third album. The first Mutation album was more like grindcore rock n roll, the second experimented with pushing extremes, exploring the heavier elements but mixing them with weird time signatures and general weirdness. This third one is more streamlined. This one is a more relentless experience that naturally suggests taking this into the world of live music.

Scott: Both the first (The Frankenstein Effect) and second (Error 500) were quite different sounding but seem to come from the same gene pool. Coming on board to write 'Dark Black' with Ginger, I wanted to bring a new flavour to the table and made sure it stood on it's own.

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

Ginger: The main themes of the album are mainly mental health related, which also touch on our frustration with society and the daily trials of keeping your head above water and not giving into the anger and aggression that comes with the stigma of suffering from mental health related issues.

Scott: As Ginger said, it's not a pleasant album lyrically. I did not try and make sense of what was going on in my head at the time and create something with metaphors. It was very abstract and nonsensical as that was where my mind was.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Mutation'?

Ginger: This was a sonic experiment that was designed to Mutate over the first three albums. There was no long term plan, I just knew that I’d need three albums to figure out what Mutation is meant to become.
Now the mission is to take this studio project out on the road, and allow it to mutate into a road animal.

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

Ginger: Would you believe we haven’t even played a show. The only live performance that the band has ever undertaken is on the latest video for Hate, below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LvySwEwbXU

Scott: Yeah – The 'Hate' video is the band, at our first rehearsal, live in the room. We put a lot of faith into the fact this would work – and the video above cemented that fact.

6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

Ginger: After the Oct/Nov tours of UK, Ireland and Japan we want to take this band everywhere that has electricity. I feel that the next step in our evolution is as a live band, and I’d like to play every day of the week for all of 2018.

Scott: It truly feels like a brand new band – We have to prove ourselves so this tour is our chance to introduce this project to the world. There's been fans popping up from all over the globe, so as far as I'm concerned, I'd go anywhere with these guys.

7.The new album was released on 'Undergroove', can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

Ginger: Undergroove is the mastermind of Darren Sadler, who I’ve known for a long time as a friend but never got to actually work with. They say don’t work with children or animals, or mates…but I couldn’t be happier with the way that Darren has taken Mutation and genuinely worked his bollocks off to get our music out there in peoples faces. Together we’ve become a deadly team and I can only imagine what we’re going to achieve together in 2018.

Scott: I had worked with Darren on Exit_International's debut EP / Album and singles. He is such a pleasure to work with and was personally made up knowing someone as hardworking and dedicated was in our corner. He's done an incredible job so far during this campaign, and hopefully this means when the time comes for a new record Darren will be with us too.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of extreme metal?

Ginger: Insane!! The response to this album really has blown us all away.First of all, we did;t know if anyone would actually like this music. It’s not exactly traditional metal. But it seems like the world of extreme metal is ready for whatever you’d call this call this brand of noise. I think that because the world is in such a fucked up place right now, politically, that it has created a hole for music as aggressive and bleak as ours. For this we have Mr Trump, Mrs May, Kim Jong-un and the rest of the global team of political piss-wanks to thank.

Scott: To me, 'Dark Black' is the runt of the three Mutation records,  and doesn't sound like anything in heavy music at the moment. The sum of our parts, knowing whet makes us tick was never going to create a straightforward version of what people see as metal. To me it is a violent, experimental punk album with splashes of melody. It is always amazing to hear the great feedback the record has gathered so far.


9.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?

Right now Mutation is our main concern, we are 100% focussed on this and all other bands and projects have to take a back seat. This is going too well for us to even consider our other options. We believe in riding the horse of fortune until the fucker is bleeding out from exhaustion.

Scott: This is our number one concern at the moment, and turning this loose as a live band is where the test comes – Hopefully the live arena will spread the word further. I'm still with my best pals in Exit_International and we are releasing a live album we recorded on our tour in May, as well as my Jaws Of Deaf project which is just a case of when I record a set of 5 songs, I put them online. I also play guitar for a rock band in Geelong (Australia) called Social Haunts. Denzil our drummer has a load on – He's always in at least ¾ bands at anyone time, most recently seen giging with Horsefight. For the rest of the guests on the album....Here's the roll call: Prog metal superstar Devin Townsend, Phil Campbell from Motörhead, Arthur Shepherd of Primitive Weapons, ex-Cardiacs fruitloop Random Jon Poole, Jamie Oliver of UK Subs, Mauro Pawlowski (ex-dEUS) and the mighty Paul Catten (Barrabas, Bed Wetter, Stuntcock, The Sontaran Experiment, ex-Medulla Nocte etc etc). With backing vocals from long-time Ginger comrade Givvi Flynn and host of friends and fellow weirdos also contributing.

10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

Ginger: This is arguably the most exciting thing about what’s happening to us. We will develop this into a live monster and then record that version of the band. None of us have an idea what we’ll sound like after a year on the road, but I guess we’ll all find out on the next album.

Scott: Ideally I'd love not to repeat a vibe of anything we've done before, but has to be extreme. This project allows us to push boundaries, and would love to experiment further with the next album. Maybe even going further into the electronic realm might be worth pursuing, but recorded in a live setting.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Ginger: I’m not sure that any direct musical styles or influences apply to Mutation. We all listen to a host of different music but when we get together for Mutation then the natural sound is something miles away from what we listen to back home. I think we’re just trying to choke as much noise out from this band as is humanly possible.

Scott: When we wrote 'Dark Black', we spent an evening listening to music, talking about films and book that we both love – The thing that became apparent was a shared 'vibe' we both like, and that always is a nod in the extreme direction. It was an exploration of all things fucked-up which opened the door for this album.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?

Ginger: We are all big fans of the kind of chemically enhanced bonding sessions that involve laying down brain cells in sacrifice to the darker forces of equilibrium in chaos. Baphometal, if you like.

Scott: We both are hardcore horror fans, and that informed the album and our direction. Exploring extremes, chasing the hit.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Ginger: We intend for the Mutation live experience to be something that lives between catharsis and sacrifice. This will be unlike anything else that you will experience. Trust us on this and join us. Together let’s make this something very intense and very special indeed.

Scott: The plans we have for this tour, when executed will seriously challenge and push how extreme an experience live music can be.