|
BACK
TESTAMENT
- Strength In Yourself
By Adrian 'The Energizer' Bromley
Talk about a resurrection of sorts.
Following the superb but ill-received 1994 Low LP, Bay Area thrashers
Testament were in a bind. They were dropped from Atlantic records,
had shuffled some of their band members and eventually, for a period
of two months, broke up. Was the band through after releasing seven
records? Was this the end of one of one of the most popular thrash
metal bands of our time. Fans worried at the outcome of these incidents.
Reads like a 'Movie of the Week,' eh?
Eventually something clicked in late 1996/early 1997 and the Oakland-based
band geared back into form and started to work on their newest offering,
Demonic. The album, on their own label Burnt Offerings, is a true
testimonial of their love of loud, hard-hitting music. While much
different in the vocal areas (with singer Chuck Billy providing
heavier, death metal growls) than classic Testament LPs such as
1987's debut, The Legacy, 1989's Practice What You Preach or 1992's
Ritual LP, the sound of Testament here on Demonic radiates a similar
Testament sound. While some changes are apparent, this is still
Testament dishing out heaviness to the masses.
Is Demonic a different record for fans and the band? From his home
in Oakland, guitarist Eric Peterson answers the question. "Demonic
is very similar to what we had done with Low. It's in the same vain
as Low. Demonic is the darker brother of Low." He adds, "We weren't
out to top Low, we just wanted to keep our music in that heavy vein.
Low was like our first record of sorts. It was the first record
with our new lineup. (Note: the band is rounded out by bassist Derrick
Ramirez, drummer Jon Dette and guitarist Glen Avelais) I think attitude-wise,
with Demonic we are still carrying on the same way Testament always
has. It's back to the first record where we have that felling of
coming up from the underground and being a new band of sorts again.
We are back into being metal fans again and it feels good."
And will fans be interested in what Testament is offering to them?
He replies, "I think this record is definitely shocking to fans.
I think a lot of people will be like, 'What the fuck is going on
here?' I think people who give it a chance and listen to it will
see that the change in vocals still goes along with the music we
play. The vocals and music gel well together I think. This is a
pretty extreme record for us. We basically took off from the song
"Dog Faced Gods" from the last record, because that was the song
that got a lot of reaction from fans and people following Testament.
That song had us excited too. We were interested in continuing with
that style of music after we had recorded that song. That's where
we went with Demonic."
And what does Peterson think about metal bands having to shapeshift
their sound to adjust or conform to a certain movement? "They didn't
have to adjust. They just did," quips Peterson. "I think bands take
a big chance when they do this with their sound. For example with
Metallica, and I will only say this once having been a big fan of
the band, I hate what they are doing and what they did. I think
this is a joke. For us to think or change like that would be a bad
move. To change and do something because your manager or label says
'Metal is dying' is not a good move. they are the forte of metal.
They should be writing music like "For Whom The Bell Tolls." I'm
sure they have their reasons for doing what they did, but don't
be Metallica then. I mean, Metallica stands for true metal. I was
kind of disappointed with what they did. But for us we wanted to
write a record that was true to what a lot of fans wanted to hear
from us. And instead of making it all corporate and/or aiming for
a radio song or selling it this way, we made music from a metal
fan's perspective and music that was true to our heart."
So Eric, is metal dead? "I don't think metal is dead at all. It
has gone underground where it should be. Metal is not meant to be
mainstream. If it goes mainstream then it starts to become goofy.
The success that a lot of bands have achieved and staying power
has been to those that believe in what they are doing. We love what
we are doing."
And as mentioned above, the band has gone through numerous hardships,
but still they keep going. "The thing that has been the most inspiring
about us as a band is for us to continue with what we are doing
no matter what we face or who is trying to knock us over and kick
us when we are down. I'm glad to see that we have been able to push
aside all those negative aspects and come back with a solid record.
To be able to crank up the new record and say to all those people
who were against us: 'Fuck off!' All those hardships that we had
to endure makes it worth being in a band and continuing with what
we are doing."
Another factor that helps make the music Testament makes more real
and down to earth is the band's own label, Burnt Offerings, which
put out Demonic. Both Billy and Peterson run the label. It's a 24-hour
job according to Peterson. What comes along with having your own
label and being in a band? What are the tasks at hand?
"A lot comes along with having a label," laughs Peterson, "I have
the phone stuck to my ear all the time. We have a lot of decisions
to make, like overseeing the budget or other things that come up.
We are running a business here and being in a band. We hire different
people to help the band, but mostly all the ideas and decisions
are made by Chuck and myself."
Still on the topic of their own label, he finishes, "When we released
Low we were on Atlantic and we felt that because of all the bands
they were dealing they were not really righteous with us in terms
of promoting and how to deal with us. After we got dropped from
Atlantic our manager at the time told us we should start up our
own label and do it ourselves. I mean we knew we were not going
to have the best distribution compared with Atlantic but we would
be more into what we were doing and making things happen. That was
the route we took and now we are more in control of what we are
doing. We are very happy with the way things turned out."
LAKE OF TEARS - Changing Along The Way
By Alex Ristic
Change should be a watchword for Swedish band Lake
Of Tears. Their sound has changed, their logo has changed, and band
members have changed. Talking from across the pond in his native
country Sweden, singer/guitarist Daniel Brennare lays out some of
the changes that have gone into their latest release from Black
Mark Production (BMP), A Crimson Cosmos. First comes the new cover
art and the fact that there are no more Roman columns in the logo
as on their previous two albums Greater Art and Headstones.
"We wanted to change (the logo) on the last album also, but Borje
(Forsberg, BMP owner) didn't want us to do that, because he thought
all the kids wouldn't like the new record or recognize it with another
logo. But now we have something more to say to him. We have some
more power now so he can't change our logo."
Brennare doesn't say where this power comes from but it's easy to
speculate that with the departure of Cemetary and sagging sales
of bands like Fleshcrawl, BMP is looking for a band to promote and
maybe be a flagship band, especially with Bathory's Quorthon deteriorating
into a songwriting wimp. Rumour has it that BMP expects A Crimson
Cosmos to sell nearly 100,000 copies worldwide. "I wouldn't believe
it that it would sell 100,000. I think if we sold like 40,000 we
would be very happy. But I don't know. I think BMP needs a band
that will sell a bit more than before to make the record company
grow a bit. But I think that they are pushing this album quite well
compared to what they did before. I think they have some expectations
on it, but we'll have to wait and see."
Another change the band has gone through is in their songwriting.
The new album isn't as gloomy and, as a matter of fact, sounds more
upbeat than their past offerings. But Brannare doesn't see it as
a conscious decision to change writing styles. "I don't think we
ever thought about having fast songs or slow songs or anything like
that. It's only progression or whatever you want to call it. We
don't think about the songs too much when they come out. We just
have some lyrical ideas and then do some music that is suitable
for that idea and just wait and see what comes out."
Some things that haven't changed are the lyrical content/ input.
Brennare comes up with most of the concepts and most of the words.
"I always liked to read a lot of fantasy books. Tolkien is my favorite
writer who I've read for many years now. Yeah, it's always passionate
to me, this fantasy world, so I always like to write my lyrics in
that kind of way, in that direction. It kind of makes them much
more interesting than to write (something more) straightforward.
If I write in a fantasy-like way, people can judge for themselves
what it means. It can mean one thing for one person and another
thing for another person." Although he would appreciate more input
from the band, Brennare is used to doing it this way the past few
years.
"I would really like the rest of the band to do a lot (more) stuff
also. But we are all doing it together but I mostly come up with
the basic idea for the lyrics or some riff ideas. We are all rehearsing
it together and putting the songs together. But I would really like
them to come up with more riffs or something."
Two of the best songs on the album are "Boogie Bubble" and "Cosmic
Weed" and although they have those Tolkien influences, they came
about in very strange ways.
"I got that idea (for "Boogie Bubble") once when I was taking a
shower in my bathtub. I kind of closed my eyes and got this sight
of lying down on the ground and looking up at the sky and I saw
like people or priests around me like shadows around me and I saw
an opening up there in the sky so the boogie bubble is a bubble
you can put yourself into. It's not a very good thing." As for "Cosmic
Weed" Brennare admits there was much toking going on during the
recording of the album but the song is a little more serious than
that and has almost nothing to do with marijuana.
"That song is not about smoking. That song is about how grown-up
people lure little children into living in a very bad world. My
experience is unto to the Swedish government. They are like a big
grown-up teaching us ordinary people what to do and stopping us
from doing certain things and telling us all the time all the laws.
And I think it's very boring for children to grow up in this world.
Maybe this world could be much better if you let them decide what
to do. I would like to live in a town with pink houses and mushroom
houses and yellow houses. It would be fun." As for the music, Brennare
says he draws a lot from the music around him but also from his
three fave bands: Black Sabbath, The Beatles and Pink Floyd.
"Yeah we listen to Black Sabbath a lot. I think many of the bands
that we like the most are from the '70s. The Beatles, from the '60s.
And much of the metal stuff from the '70s. I think that's the best
musical period in history so far. I think it will be more like individual
songs in the future. We would like to play everything we like, if
you know what I mean. I f you listen to a pop song you may want
to play that certain rhythm. If you listen to a death metal song
you want to play like that. When I buy an album I would like to
listen to an album of 10 different songs not 10 similar songs."
A final change, and by no means a small one, is the departure of
guitar player Jonas Erikksson. Brennare explains it as follows:
"He's no longer in the band. From the beginning, when we played
live and so on I had to both sing and play lead guitar, because
he was not very good at guitar so he didn't have any special role
in the band. He knew that also so it was the best thing that happened."
Enter the new players, Kristian Saarinen on keyboards and Ulrich
Lindblon on guitar to round out the five-piece which also includes
Mikael Larsson, bass, and Johan Oudhuis, drums. "Kristian, we had
him before when we played live so he knows all the old songs and
the guitar player we have rehearsed with him a bit now. We just
went out a month ago on a shorter tour, like 9 gigs, and we rehearsed
with him a bit so he knows some songs." But when it comes to songwriting
will they be able to contribute?
"I think they can write a bit too, but we'll have to see about that.
It's hard to change what we've done for a couple of years, maybe
hard to take other people in and let them do parts for the music.
Of course if we like it we would have it on the record. Why not?"
FEAR FACTORY - Remixing the Machine
By: Liz Ciavarella
We're a society of victims blinded by a nutra-sweetened
spectacle of artificially flavored bullshit. Progression. Scientific
experimentation. The world that we once knew is now a biological
playground for DNA manipulation and genetic game-playing. We're
a rotting planet shackled by an over-abundance of scientific breakthroughs
and our desensitization of technology. We've manually created the
skill to govern the natural forces of nature. We've unwittingly
become dependent on synthetic nothingness and before long we will
all spontaneously combust into a cloud of bio-nuclear vomit! FEAR
FACTORY provide the appropriate background music to the scenario
with Remanufacture, a convulsive re-mix of the already foreboding
tunes of 1996's Demanufacture.
Vocalist, Burton C. Bell tells the tale of one of the year's most
influential re-mixes.
UNRESTRAINED!: Does the band write songs to actually be re-mixed
or does that step just come with time?
BURTON BELL: We write songs and when we record them, we record them
in mind to be re-mixed and we make sure everything is exactly in
time. In sync is the word. But we record it with that in mind. When
we write the songs we just go in and write the song and then when
we re-mix it we just think about it afterwards.
U!: Do you think re-mixes are going to become a Fear Factory ritual?
BB: Uh... it's hard to say. I don't know. I mean, we would be repeating
ourselves if we keep on doing it and this is completely different
than Fear Is The Mind Killer but...... I don't know.
U!: How do you think your Fear Factory re-mixes differ from the
typical band re-mix?
BB: Well, when people do re-mixes, a lot of people want to go for
an industrial sound and like, White Zombie tried to touch upon the
house theme with their last re-mix but our's is totally techno-oriented.
Every type of techno is there and I think that's how our re-mixes
differ from other re-mixes of other bands because we're trying something
different.
U!: Do you enjoy re-mixing or is it more tedious than a regular
studio session?
BB: It's enjoyable. With a re-mix everything is recorded already
so all you're doing is taking parts and puzzling them together.
It's enjoyable. It takes a lot of work but it's fun. It's like totally
taking something apart. It's like a kid taking a drill apart and
putting it back together, you know? I mean, it never comes out exactly
the right way but it's fun, you know? It's exciting in a different
way.
U!: How do you view the world and its constant focus on technological
advancement?
BB: I feel that technology is a great advancement for the people.
We have technology to better ourselves and our lives. Technology
becomes a problem when it starts to take over your life.
U!: How do you feel about all the hype about cloning?
BB: When cloning comes into effect......if these clones are intelligent
beings (then) it's a supposed world. In a possible world clones
can start cloning themselves. Humanity can become non-existent.
Clones are an extract from technology. It might be biological but
it's still an extract of technology. That's the technological part
of it. But then there's the philosophical part of it. Okay it's
a clone, right? Now they're saying that we can use clones for surgical
purposes. For transplants. So what if these clones have a soul?
Does a clone have a soul?
U!: Just because it's a clone, it's still a person.
BB: Exactly! Is it a person? Does it have a soul?
U!: Do you think they're already cloning people?
BB: Yeah. Just because they're not telling us doesn't mean it hasn't
already been done.
U!: I don't see how anyone, regardless of how scientifically knowledgeable
you are, would be stupid enough to clone an actual person. They're
talking about cloning entire armies so "real people" don't have
to be killed. But if you're cloning a person, isn't it a "real"
person? If it can grow, walk, talk, learn, breathe......it's a person
regardless of how it was created.
BB: Exactly. It's terrible. It's the same thing with using them
as transplants. If you're going to use a clone for a transplant,
that means that they're expendable. (What about) an army of clones
going out to war? Who the fuck are they fighting for? They're not
fighting for themselves. They're part of the machine and this is
where we're taking the concept for the next record. What happens
to these clones?
U!: It's going to be a complete concept record then?
BB: It will be. I think we've sort of established that into Fear
Factory's style. We're conceptual music. We're virtual music . We
take real things and draw pictures with the music and the lyrics.
It's like a movie in a little box.
U!: Now you said you were working on some new stuff.
BB: We've just thrown a few riffs together here and there. Nothing
definite but we did the same kind of thing right before Demanufacture.
We were writing. We were having a little bit of a hard time then
suddenly we got offered the Sepultura tour and that was two months
and that totally parked our creativity. When we got home after that,
we wrote Demanufacture in four months. It took a year to record
it but we wrote it in four months. I'm hoping that happens this
time. It's almost the same kind of situation really. We're in the
studio. We're trying to write. We haven't done anything for a while.
I'm hoping touring will kind of spark us up. I have a feeling it
will. We want to go to the studio and record in October.
U!: When you guys started, did you anticipate the success that you
have now?
BB: Um... in a way. I mean, we didn't expect it but we always thought,
"Yeah! This would be cool". I had my dreams and my hopes. As long
as you keep those in mind, it's very possible it can happen.
U!: Do you think there are any misconceptions about Fear Factory?
BB: That Remanufacture is just a re-mix record. It in no way shows
the direction that band is going to. I mean, it shows what we're
into but not that the direction we're headed for with the next record
so we're still keeping you guys on your toes.
|
 |
|
