No dates left in your Extinction Agenda
interview with Iconslaughter on 26-07-2005
Please give us a short introduction of yourself?
We are a speed/thrash metal band from the Boston, Massachusetts area. We try to honor our 'classic' influences, like Kreator, Sabbat, Razor, Tankard, Slayer and Destruction and at the same time forge ahead by tackling relevant subject material in our lyrics. All of us have been in other bands, most notably the local black metal band December Wolves. We've been at this for about a year now and already things are starting to happen. We have Voltanix on drums, Brian Oblivion on guitars and Iconslaughter on guitar and vocals. We are currently seeking a bass player with the same drive and love for this style of music.
Why do you play in this band? What is the typical fun for this band?
The real motivation in this band, as I mentioned briefly above, is to play metal the way we really want to hear it. Fast, mean, and when possible, with something to say! The fun is exactly that, in shucking the current popular metal trends and doing what we have long desired, playing a style of metal with integrity, that we feel never should have gone away in the first place. Meeting others of similar taste through our music, and making connections all over the world are the further highlights of this path.
Which Disney movie pulls your tears? Why?
Isn't 'Cannibal Holocaust' a Disney movie? I was particularly moved by the deaths of the muskrat and giant Sea Turtle. I'll have to try some muskrat. I wonder how that tastes. Is it anything like rabbit?
For what price will you sell your music for the commerial sells?
One hundred million dollars! That way we can afford new identities and fully staffed villas in South America to hide from all the negative kickback from the grim and elite metal underground.
How is the metal scene in your area? Lot of gigs? Easy to get them?
The metal scene here in New England is actually thriving, if you will. There are a lot of bands who play a variety of styles, and this naturally draws in crowds of various tastes. Some of the bands are great, some not so great, but at least the area isn't in the slump it hit in the 90s. We've got local promoters, zines, and there are a good number of clubs and gigs available. We are a very new band, so we're only beginning to tackle the live circuit, but already we've gotten many offers and hookups. So things could be worse here!
How does a show look like?
Shows are probably pretty uniform here with elsewhere in the world. You've got your small halls, clubs, and even smaller gigs in basements, living rooms, garages, and VFW halls. Some international acts can draw a lot of people, and 'metalcore' bands can draw 1000s of screaming teens pierced in various locations, but generally you won't see more than 100 people at a real metal show here. In a way, that is a good thing.
What do they have to do to obtain free tickets?
The answer to this cannot be revealed here, I'm already carrying several red flags from the FBI and it would not help matters for me to indulge you.
Reacte on these three words (random order):
* sperm swallowers - They generally perform best at gunpoint. The desperate look in their eyes is worth the cleanup costs later if they decide to bite.
* green blood - Damnit Jim, I liked him better when he was dead!
* thumbtorture - Sounds hot, how much is charged for this and can you get a mute clown to do it?
What is your drive to make music? Did you study for it?
Our drive to make music is to create a compelling legacy of thrashing speed metal. Something we can remember, and something maybe 10 or 10,000 other people may also deem worthy. Beyond that, we'd like to play some gigs, make some friends, maybe get to see a bit of this world we have not seen, and sample many foreign beers. We all have some formal music training from our childhood, but for most of our musical journeys we are self-taught..
How do you keep your memories of your musical career alive? Write it down, video?
We generally keep track of news and events that happen to the band online. We save reviews, we'll save interviews like this, we'll document all this on websites. Most importantly is of course what we remember for ourselves. We have yet to begin thinking about the video medium, but if you are referring to recording live shows and such, I'm sure we will get around to it one day. As for music videos, these are often so trite and narcissistic and I cannot watch these (even metal videos) without laughing. If the opportunity came to make a serious music video with some purpose or meaning to it, some intrinsic value, then perhaps that could one day be a possibility.
Do you play covers? Some when rehearsal?
We do play a few covers, some for fun at rehearsal and some will be incorporated to live sets! Right now we fuck around with Exodus 'A Lesson in Violence', Razor 'Take This Torch', and we will be working on covers of Voivod and Znowhite in the future, plus some other surprises. If I can convince the band, I'd like to one day cover Accept 'Slaves to Metal'. Good luck to me.
Which bands will appear on your tribute album in 2008?
The day a tribute album is created for Extinction Agenda would be a sad day indeed, hahaha. Maybe if one of us died tragically and the band split up. But if you ask me, I think it would be interesting to have all the bands that have influenced us cover the very songs they themselves inspired into being. This could create a pseudo-temporal paradox, destroying everything. Come to think of it, maybe this is not such a bad idea.
Do you have other activities in the metal scene?
Brian is still playing with the December Wolves, who are newly reformed and kicking some ass around here once more! Voltanix has another project in the works, more of a death metal style. The rest of us may contribute to that in the future. We have another band called Spelunkr, but only a fraction of this material could be considered metal, it is primarily an outlet for our more progressive and unusual ideas.
Interest outside the music bizz? What are your hobbies? Sport interest?
Our hobbies are all over the place. Weapon collecting, old and new videogames, foreign action cult and horror films, animation, various literature, and I'm sure some outdoor activities or sports on occasion. Recently I have taken up the traditional East Asian board game 'go' and some tennis matches. Curious, over there do often metal fans mix with sports fans? I find here in the States that it is often quite the opposite.
Is there life after metal?
I can imagine there is life after metal, but I hope to never find out, as I am not sure it would be worth living!
What prejudice do you hate people have of metal musicians?
This question threw me for a loop, I admit. We are not a 'hate' band, but somehow I don't think that was your question! That said, I think there are many prejudices here of metal musicians and fans, even within the metal scene. Some metal fans are interested in multiple genres, and there are those who stick to death metal, black, or 'metalcore', or fantasy power metal crap and loathe just about everything else. Just from my answer, you can tell which I am not much of a fan for!
Say something in your language that makes my wife horny as hell?
Coraxo chis cormp od blans lucal aziazor paeb, sobalilonon chis virq OP eophan od raclir maasi bagle caosgi, ds ialpon dosig od basgim: od oxex dazis siatris od salbrox cynxir faboan. Vnal chis const ds DAOX cocasg OL oanio yor vohim OL gizyax od eors cocasg plosi molui ds pageip larag om droln matorb cocasb emna. L patralx yolci MATB, nomig monons olora gnay angelard. Ohio, ohio, ohio, ohio, ohio, ohio, noib ohio caosgon!
Bagle madrid i zirop chiso drilpa.
Last rites?
Thanks to you, BRUTALISM for taking time to listen and for posing such interesting questions, and your readers for caring and reading. With luck one day we can get out there and play for anyone who gives a damn! Hail and fucking kill. Thrash will not go quietly!
