Italian BDM juggernaut Inverecund are back with an amazing new demo! Read interview below to learn more!
Can you introduce yourself to our readers, and talk about who is all in the band?
MARCELLO: Hi everyone, we are Inverecund from Reggio Emilia (Italy) and I’m Marcello, one of the two guitarists.
The other guys from the current line up are Morgan on lead guitar, Michele on vocals, Luca on bass and Alessandro on drums.
What is the story of how Inverecund got started?
MARCELLO: Everything dates back to 2019 when me and Morgan decided to form a band together. Initially we started playing death metal but it was strongly influenced by bands like Deicide and early Morbid Angel so it was a totally different thing compared to what we are doing at the moment.
After writing a couple of songs, we began to look for other people to share the project with and did a couple of rehearsals but thinking back at that time, I don’t think we were 100% sure about what we were doing musically. So we thought “you know what, let’s speed up everything and do some heavier, faster and more brutal stuff” so that’s when the real concept of Inverecund was born.
The first tracks were then abandoned and we started writing new songs that would later end up on the band’s first release;After this change of style all the guys left so me and Morgan remained on our own but then we asked Michele from Unbirth to join on vocals so the official line up was then complete. We adjusted the remaining details on the tracks and then started recording the debut EP “Engrossed in Horripilation” that came out for New Standard Elite in 2023.
How did you come up with the band name? What does it mean?
MICHELE: To be honest, Inverecund wasn't the band's first name; we had another one temporarily...then we opted for a composite name: two words fused together. In the end, we settled on a single word and, among the various possibilities, we chose Inverecund, which means "lack of shame"...I think it's a perfect moniker to describe our sound and convey our musical formula.
What can fans expect with the new demo?
MICHELE: This new demo further highlights our affiliation with an old-school school of death metal - nothing overly complicated or technical, but with the intention of being catchy and engaging. The Slayer cover is simply a tribute to a great band that inspired us so much from a guitar perspective, as well as a salute to the unforgettable Jeff Hanneman.
The artwork has a similar vibe to the full length. Is it Jon Zig again? How do you guys come up with the visions for the art?
MICHELE: Absolutely. Zig has the ability to capture in a very clear and incisive way what any death metal band wants to express; he's an artist who needs no introduction. Honestly, the album cover was among his "for sale" works; after looking at it carefully, we decided almost immediately that it would be ours... visually, this artwork conveys the unease and frenzy that the lyrics and music create when combined.
Speaking of lyrics, who writes them and how does the band come up with their themes?
MICHELE: I write and set to music all the lyrics, as far as the EP is concerned we opted for a more "classic" composition of the lyrics, while for the new demo and we believe also for the full length that will follow, we will tackle more specific themes without however incurring in the gore-splatter universe so as to be less obvious.
How many tracks will be on the demo, and when can fans expect it?
MICHELE: The new demo will have 2 new songs and a cover of fucking Slayer, so 3 songs in total.
What is different from the ep to the new demo?
MICHELE: Greater maturity in the compositional field, a more inclined attitude towards being not only fast but engaging and disturbing, expect the unexpected.
Can you tell us some of your biggest influences?
MICHELE: Deaden, Deeds of Flesh, Disgorge, Decrepit Birth...other bands that start with "D"?
MARCELLO: I would say old school brutal death metal bands from the early 2000s like Gorgasm, Severed Savior, Inveracity and so on.
As far as Italian BDM, What bands are at the top?
MICHELE: Honestly, I think the Italian scene has lost its luster lately... the old glories have more or less lived up to expectations, but I don't see a generational change worthy of what the scene was during the early 2000s, and the names at the top today are, in my opinion, very disappointing.
What is something about Inverecund that would surprise your fans?
MICHELE: Do you want to be surprised? Check out all of our side projects.
Flaying, for those who may not know, is just one person, correct? Can you tell us about yourself; How you got into this kind of music, how Flaying came to fruition, and anything else you'd like to share?
Yes! It is just me, J.M. I’m 20 years old from Las Vegas, Nevada. I’ve always been wanting to make music and the last year or so I’ve finally had the ability to do so and being able to make a project like this, it has made me super proud and I’m super thankful for everyone who has supported me so far.
I’ve always had a sweet tooth for anything death metal related, and I really got a hold onto brutal death metal as time went on and it’s been a huge inspiration since artistically. I would listen to some brutal death metal here and there, some Skinless, some Devourment, but I remember listening to Tales of Necrophilia, Fetish For The Sick, and Brutalizing Creations and it made me want to discover more of what specifically brutal death metal had to offer. I mainly always love bands like Grave, Lucifixion, Excruciate, Gorguts, Crematory, etc but brutal death metal has this more exuberant sound and more extreme lyrical content that it made me latch onto it so fast when I discovered it, as compared to a lot more old school death metal that fixates on this dark brooding sound that kicks so much ass as well, if that makes sense!!
Flaying came to fruition though mainly from a thought I had, I just had saved up enough money to get my first guitar and wanted to learn brutal death metal, death metal, thrash, all kinds of stuff. But I’ve been always obsessed with a band that themed itself around like degloving, decomposition, and all those nice things. Just some super brutal concepts that I feel like I was good at writing and describing and that’s when I decided I wanted to name this band Flaying. I was already writing some stuff for the first demo before this decision but when I thought of flaying it all like clicked to me. I remember when I was working this shitty job, I drew a really rough logo on a piece of paper then went home and started seriously trying to write.
I immediately thought of the lyrics and how the songs were gonna be, I just had so many ideas that eventually led to the first demo.
How would you describe your sound?
For what is released right now, I would describe as super fast groovy brutal death metal heavily inspired by Cerebral Hemorrhage, Disfigured, Dehumanized, Disciples of Berkowitz with maybe splices of bands like Gaffed, Mortal Decay, Limb From Limb, and Damonacy.
Just very heavy early New York / New Jersey brutal death metal influence. On my first demo, “Unrecognizable Waste” there’s a bit more of that Texas sound vocally I feel like that I tried to do trying to be like Devourment, Sintury, Infernal Dominion. Just so many bands help me piece together my own sort of sound and influence as I feel like it is with a lot of bands. I like to think of the music I make at times as being like a fusion of the influences with my own sort of songwriting, etc.
What are some pros and cons that you have found doing the one man band thing?
OK THE HUGESTTT CON, has to be the fact live shows are pretty hard for me to figure out. I honestly don’t like how drum machines or just drum backing tracks are in a live setting. Huge power to one man bands like Syphilic, Insidious Decrepancy, and more that do this. They’re amazing, but I don’t think I can pull it off as well as they do. I’ve rehearsed my songs but it is pretty hard to get the vocals to match up perfectly in time sometimes. Especially with new stuff I’m working on, I have huge trouble keeping the vocals in time haha. But the HUGEST PRO, is the fact everything within the band is basically my idea. My lyrics, my riff ideas, my own imagery and themes. Everything I can basically keep and don’t have to worry about someone telling me to change it. I’ve never been in a band with other people myself, but from those who I know that are they have told me that it has been creatively a bit restricting and frankly, I would really hate to have that be the case. I like to just have any idea I have be able to be incorporated into what I make. But I hope in time, I really REALLYY can get a live lineup set up at least and be able to cooperate with other people in another way that isn’t the songwriting and creative aspect of it. Overall it is a very double edged sword with some smaller cons and smaller pros but overall I’m super thankful that it seems to be doing well so far.
2 Demos, 6 songs in. Everything seems well received. I heard a full-length may be on the way? Please tell us more!
Yes, a full length is currently being recorded and I can’t be more excited. This feels like a rebirth for the band since the sound is very drastically different I feel like, but it still has those songwriting elements and riffs that make you think of those old demos. It is very different lyrically too and it mainly discusses death itself. People dying of course!! But more so the concept of the death and how the mind perceives the acknowledgment of it. The whole thing I feel like is very dark, gloomy, and I hope it truly swallows the listener in the ambience of it and incites those feelings of mourning, brooding darkness, and hopelessness. I’m really looking for a super early 2026 release, but there is still a lot of work to be done.
I'd like to ask about the art. Who did your logo? and the two demos, different artists correct?
My logo was done by this awesome artist “Eko Fitriyanto” also known by eckorandy on his online profiles. And yes, two different artist did the demos and I feel like they are super representative of the feeling of both and I’m forever happy how both came out.
Unrecognizable was done by the great “Lucas V.” also known by lucasvaltenbergsart / rustedwinds.
The great “PilewormArt” did Arousals. Both demos I feel like had this different theme attached to them. Unrecognizable I was going for this more worn, dull decaying sort of sound and theme. Arousal is a more grisly and intensive sound and theme that fixates on perversion. I'm forever thankful for those artist and their art will forever live with me.
What are 3 albums you can't live without, can be any genre.
This is a SUPERRR HARD ONE!! But if I were to really pinpoint to 3 albums I absolutely need (in no particular order) I would say the first one I would name would be honestly be a general mix of albums I guess you could say. Mostly when sonic games went 3D, any of their soundtracks really I just absolutely love and adore but to choose only one selection of music from sonic, I’d have to choose:
Crush 40 - Super Sonic Songs
This album, these songs have literally made me get into music as a whole in general growing up. I have loved crush 40 for so long and all their songs are what made me love the sonic franchise even more as a whole. It’s been the reason why sonic has always been able to stomp out Mario soundtrack wise. (But I mean the paper mario games osts are absolutely beautiful)
Prophecy - “Foretold…Foreseen”
This album is what I want to hear with death metal. It is one of my biggest inspirations for Flaying. Prophecy’s entire discography is super great, but this album right here… it’s just perfect. It screams these deep feelings of hopelessness and sorrow through the clean parts and brutally bludgeons with its scooped slams and thrashy riffs. The drumming is precise and sharp. It’s just perfect.
Dying Fetus - Killing On Adrenaline
This album is what I think groovy brutal death metal sounds like perfected. The technical playing on this always just sparks my mind with ideas and the drumming is straight lunacy. That part like 2 and a half / 3 minutes into the song is one of the best things ever. The end of we are your enemy is one of the best things ever. The entirety of procreate the malformed is one of the best things ever. Fuck it, this whole album is one of the best things ever. The lyrics continue to stay relevant, which most of their political lyrics do. The playing and songwriting has influenced me and many others. Just amazing.
Thanks for your time J.M.
Thank you!!! I’m gonna first say I’m super thankful for you guys reaching out to me to speak to me, I’m truly thankful to have the opportunity to share some words with anybody about Flaying. Ive done smaller projects within the realms of game development and what not that haven’t done so well, and seeing people pay attention to flaying even the smallest bit means the absolute world to me. I’m super hopeful for the future and I’m super hopeful for the best future for you guys as well! , but I would like to also add thank you guys so much for your consideration of interviewing me. I’m super happy!! We only have to see what is to come. Thank you Cerebral Reviewment!!
Tomonori, thank you for taking the time to answer some questions! Who are all members of Despoilment and their roles in the band?
Hi, thank you for the interview!
I'm Tomonori, guitars and side vocals.
And Tomohisa does the main vocals, Konashi plays the drums.
What is the story of how the band started?
Tomohisa and I were in the same university back in 2016 and he invited me to start a new band. I also played in Strangulation at that time, so Despoilment started as my 2nd band.
After writing 2 songs for the first demo, I talked to Konashi who was also in Hostile Eyes to join the band as drummer.
It has been nearly 6 years since the demo. Now we get to hear this new single and see that an album is on the way!!!! Was the band on a break from 2019 - 2025?
Yes it's been long since the demo indeed, glad we can finally get this out.
We had been very quiet in that period but not on a break actually, I was writing songs and done writing almost everything in 2022.
We're just living in different cities and taking time to get ourselves prepared for recording.
Damn!!! So these new songs have been marinating and are most certainly ready!!! The artwork is already mindblowing! How was it working with Guang Yang?
It was very nice to work with him! I have been a huge fan of his artwork and when I came up with the idea, I thought he was the best choice. I love how he draws buildings or statues in his work, especially with those oriental taste.
Album theme is punishment, to make people suffer in retaliation for their wrong-doings. And I wanted to add some Japanese traditional atmosphere to it, then chose one of the Japanese deities Fudo Myo-o which represent wrath against evil as main character of the artwork.
He understood the concept very well and the process had been flawless.
Guang Yang - "The painting shows the scene where the god is the immobilized king using his power to destroy struggling humans in front of the iconic Japanese building Aviu and Shrine. The scene vibes are violent and brutal, twisted body and face, full of epic effects. Favorite background depicts the blue face of the Impossible King illuminated by the bottom light and the burning background transitioning to the sky."
How has the scene in Japan changed since 2019? Are there more bands?
In terms of BDM, there are not so many bands coming out, especially new bands.
But I think the whole scene is getting better compared to COVID era, with more shows and more active bands playing. I hope for even better in future!
Living away from each other, what is the band's writing process?
I always write riffs first, then I make a demo track with guitars and programmed drums on my PC to share with the guys.
Tomohisa mainly writes lyrics and makes vocal patterns including my part, Konashi also learns to play with the demo but I let him do it with his own arrangement.
Sometimes we got together to rehearse. Other than that, we used virtual meeting and online jamming app to make progress on that.
Yea, this is how the writing process went.
Anything else you can tell the fans about" Vindicated Retaliation"?
To me, the most important thing in this genre is RIFF. So since the beginning of the band I had been trying to make something riff-oriented, aggressive, straightforward and addictive.
I put a lot of effort into it, so I'm very excited to share this with everyone. Hope you will like the whole album will be released early 2026!
How has your relationship with New Standard Elite been?
It's been great! I'm still a big fan of the label and roster. Actually my relationship with NSE started when Strangulation got signed under Daniel back in 2019. And soon after that Despoilment also got signed, with the first demo release.
We got signed under Daniel too but Ryan has been also very patient and supportive for this release. I'm grateful to both of them and honored to get 2 of my bands signed to the best BDM label around.
What are 3 albums that you cannot live without?
Well it's very hard to choose only 3 but,
Gorgasm - Masticate to Dominate
Pyaemia - Cerebral Cereal
Inveracity - Circle of Perversion
Thanks again! Anything else you'd like to say?
Again, thank you for the interview. It was very fun to answer those questions.
Hi this is Ryan Tays (guitars, bass, vocals) and Ian Zapata (drums) from Arterial Vivisection
Can you tell us a little about yourself?
We're a new brutal death metal band from San Antonio, Texas and for this project we really wanted to focus on dialing in that 90s brutal death sound we heard in bands like Pyaemia, Severe Torture, Gorgasm, and Mortal Decay. We were also inspired by a lot of the newer technical brutal death stuff coming out from bands like Nuclear Remains and Regurgitated Entrails to not compromise on sounds/riffs until we got the sound we were going for.
What is the story of how Arterial Vivisection came to be?
The band was something I had in mind for a while and I had been wanting to do some real brutal death stuff, so I started writing songs in my free time late last year. Writing the songs was great because I was able to my time writing them and got the parts down exactly how I wanted them. I wasn't planning on releasing the songs at first but after working on them for so long I figured it would be cool to put them out under a new name, and I asked Ian if he would be down to seriously jam in a bdm band. We had the idea going for a while but finally started rehearsing songs earlier this summer, and after grinding them out we got them down exactly how we wanted.
Arterial Vivisection is dripping in Texas grime and old school death influence. What Texas acts inspire you guys?
We're heavily inspired by a lot of Texas bands, namely Putrilage, Prophecy, Sintury, Devourment, Exulcerate, Flesh Hoarder, Horrific Visions, Viral Load/Insidious Decrepancy/Shawn Whitaker, Stabbing, Putrid Womb, Unnecessary Surgery, Necrogilistic Anomaly, Intestinal Sodomy, Defiled Crypt, Coprolalia, and any other ones we forgot that someone will probably end up poser checking us over
How did you guys land on the name?
I wanted something that was unique and not just a movie quote or song title, so I originally had the word 'vivisected' in mind because of the Mortal Decay song "Monkey Cage." The phrasings and lyrics on that album get stuck in my head all the time since they're so creative, but vivisect sounded good for a band name. Then 'Arterial' was inspired by Artery Eruption, and putting two together for Arterial Vivisection made sense as it basically means surgery on a live subject’s arteries. We wanted a pathology-related name to relate to the sound of the music, and I think it works
Well we really love the sound and feel of the project!!! What does the future of AV look like?
Hell yea man glad you guys are enjoying the demo so far! Our next step definitely starts with playing shows, so we've been in talks with a few people about booking a debut show with some other brutal Texas acts, so that will hopefully be soon and we'll announce it on our IG page. We've also begun writing for our next release, we were originally thinking about putting out a new promo this Winter, but might hold off until we have another EP-length release to put out in Spring/Summer next year. We also plan to make merch for the 'Shrouded' demo in the next few weeks, including demo art shirts so keep an eye out for that!
What can you tell us about Human Blister Records?
Human Blister Records is a DIY label ran by my homie Eddie based out of California. I met Eddie in January last year when both of our bands did a two-day run out there. He started up the label in May of last year, and I got in contact with him about releasing Arterial stuff earlier this year. He was down to release it based off the early demos, and was originally down to mix and master the release too until my homie Seb said he could do it. Now that it's out we're proud to have such a sick label helping push our stuff, so go check em out and get a CD while you can!
Thanks again guys! Any last words??
Ryan and Ian - Thanks again for putting us on man, we appreciate the opportunity! We just want to say keep supporting real brutal death and all extreme music no matter where you are! Stay true and support all forms of sick shit whether it's music, art, movies/shows, games, etc and keep 'em alive! And listen to Mortal Decay !!!
Every so often I stumble upon something. Something that catches my by surprise. Enter:Noth
I really cannot recall how I stumbled upon this demo. It is only 2 songs but they have fed my cravings for techy, brutality full of creative riffs for months now. Noth is an international project made up of two powerhouses: Baran from Türkiye, and Florent from Switzerland. Together these two bring a crazy range of influences to pull from, some bands they are part of, to name a few; Twitch of The Death Nerve, Omnicidal Instinct, Cenotaph, Empyreuma, Kakothanasy, Burial Invocation, Poisoned Dream. You get the idea. Learn more below!
Hello and thanks for answering some questions! Can you tell us who is in Noth?
Just me (Baran) and Florent Duployer from Kakothanasy
What is the story of how the band started?
Ankara includes lots of Turkish BDM bands and hosts the culture since 1996. Because it is a deep-rooted culture, I wanted to put another brick in the wall as a new generation musician. In this way, my close friends like Baha (Genorbit), Orkun (Desecrated Ubiquity), Erkin (Meshum and Molested Divinity), Batu and Cihan (Cenotaph) inspired the idea.
Inhomogeneities is crazy!! What is the band's writing process like?
As a prog music and BDM enjoyer, I am influenced by many bands like Cephalic Carnage, Paroxysm Unit, Encenathrakh, Suffocation and Defeated Sanity also guitar masters like Guthrie Govan and Allan Holdsworth, guided me to progress my musical style. And I started to create the dual guitar riffs, basses and vocals. When the music took its form, I talked with Florent and he nailed the drums on the riffs.
Can we expect some new music soon?
We are planning a huge split with TRDM bands and of course full length Noth album will come.
What things, other than music, influence your art?
Death and rebirth cycle of nature. Astronomy, universal laws, philosophy and surrealist paintings. If you are a good enough observer, you can get inspiration from anything.
If you were stranded on an island, what 3 albums would you take with you?
Morbid Angel - Covenant
Gorguts - Obscura
Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon
and What 3 things (not music) would you take with you?
Nylon string guitar, bong and huge telescope. (I trust my surviving skills so I don't think there will be any problems.)
Thank you so much! Anything you'd like to say to your fans?
Thank you for checking us out! Crazier riffs on the way, stay tuned.
Who are we speaking with and what is your role in the band?
Hi I’m Adrien I play drums in Scasm
How did Scasm get started?
Scasm got started spring of 2023 by me, Kadin who plays guitar in Scasm currently, and past members Jimmy Duffy and Tyler Kuhn. We used to be in a band in highschool, nothing serious, but after like a year or two of not playing together we got talking again about wanting to jam and what we’ve been listing to. We got together in this little shitty practice space and have been playing since then
How did you guys come up with the name?
I came up with the name Scasm by thinking I made the word up. Me and Kadin were on the phone trying to come up with something and I just said Scasm because I thought it sounded cool and I looked it up on urban dictionary and it actually was a word and it had a kinda gross meaning so we were like sick let’s roll with that.
* Our research team at Cerebral Reviewment looked into this and were pleasantly surprised:
SCASM - When your colon spontaneously explodes OR The orgasmic feeling you get when you pick scabs.
Is there a different line up between Bludgeoned and the new demo? That full length was so well received and hard hitting! The demo has a slightly different sound but still fucking great! How would you say Scasm’s sound has evolved?
Thank you so much and yea right after tour we had two members leave. Then we got Anthony to join so yea different line up and pretty much after he learned our new material we recorded the demos. Which yea the demos compared to the album are definitely pretty different. I’d say our sound has evolved a lot more from being very cavemanish slam to straight bdm with some flavor.
Congrats on signing with NSE!! How did this happen?
Thank you, we’re stoked about it and don’t think we ever won’t be. How it happened is we went on the spring break bludgeoning tour with Roots of Deception and Desecation for 2 weeks, shout out to them, and right before we went on tour me and Kadin talked about going in a different direction of more brutal death metal than slam.
So, we wrote three new songs that were more in that direction but the other members in the band didn’t have time to learn them before we left for tour but at this point we were kinda sick of playing the songs from our album Bludgeoned Beyond Repair. So, we go on tour and actually kinda meet Ryan from NSE at our Ohio date but I knew just based on our current style that he probably wouldn’t have considered us for the label. So, we continue with tour and become really good friends with Desecation so I asked Marc to send out our new demos to Ryan and he was like yeah obviously knowing that we wanted to go in more of a bdm direction (thank you Marc). After tour we come back and Kadin and I really work on these new songs and how we wanted to sound being even more inspired from tour, working towards that bdm sound we have always wanted. We wrote 5 new songs - we also reworked the 3 from right before tour - having 8 brutal songs to pick from to send to Ryan. In the process of that we parted ways with two members and had our bro Anthony from Hosticide join officially and help us record the new demos. After Marc heard the demos he was surprised at how much our sound changed and he then sent them to Ryan who also fucked with it and was also very surprised coming from seeing us on tour. Now, we have the demo out with New Standard Elite & we are officially on the label & we got an album in the process.
So there is another full-length on the way?
There is another full length on the way but little delayed because I broke my ankle in August on a dirtbike. So no drums till it heals which is soon and as soon as that happens it’s right back to the kit and getting ready to record.
Oh man I hope you heal up quickly! By the way who is your favorite drummer?!
Thank you I’ve been itching to play but my favorite drummers or top 3 cause I really don’t just have one and could sit here all day naming them haha. But it has to be Brad Fincher from devourment Lille Gruber from defeated sanity and Rickey Myers’s from disgorge. But Brad started it all for me to play somewhat how I play he’s definitely the first one I looked up to for drumming before I found all the other bdm bands I listen to now.
Who are some of your biggest influences for Scasm?
Some of my biggest influences are definitely Devourment, Defeated Sanity, Brodequin, Bound and Gagged, Disgorge, Prophecy, Deeds of Flesh, Pyaemia, Cerebral Effusion, Cannibal Corpse, Cinerary and Infertile Surrogacy.
Thank for taking the time to talk with us, we are rocking the demo daily! Can’t wait for more from you guys! Any last words?
Thank you for asking and that’s sick always enjoyed reading these interviews stoked to be on one. All I got to say is we have the album coming and a pretty big announcement next year so be on the lookout for that.
The Philippines have been oozing brutal death talent for decades now, with a healthy underground scene that really never ceases to surprise me. Deleterious are no exception to this rule; the two-piece are back at it and will have new music soon. If you don't know them, fix that below. Links at the bottom!
Thank you for taking the time to answer some questions! Who are you and what do you do in Deleterious?
Our pleasure! I'm Renz, the drummer of Deleterious.
When did the band start and how? What is the origin story of Deleterious?
Back in 2021, this was during the pandemic, Quinn and I were both in the same band called 'Fatal Castration', he was the bassist and I was the drummer. I was so eager to make music but other members weren't available so I invited Quinn to make a duo bdm thus Deleterious was born.
What can you tell us about the upcoming album?
For the upcoming 2nd full length album, we are really working hard to make a classic one. Not to mention, this is 5 years in the making since 1st album was finished in 2021. We are making sure that all tracks for this 2nd album are well loved by ourselves and not just to add numbers, just to get buy or just to release to something. These tracks will also be played live on actual gigs.
How did working with New Standard Elite work out?
Man, this is a good question. Back in 2020, I would always send demos thru facebook or email to Dan Osborn , the man who made NSE and made BDM great again. I would get declined or ignored. But after we recorded the promo for Deleterious in 2021, he finally replied. We already got Goreslam Wreckordz, a local label here in the Philippines, to release our promo.
So Dan told me to send him the tracks for the album once we finished recording and I did, and fortunately, Deleterious was the first bdm band from the Philippines that got signed by New Standard Elite. And to continue the legacy, Ryan Baker, the new owner of NSE, is doing a great job to support us bands who carry the flag. His support is way more than what we expected and we're very much grateful. And of course, Filipino BDM bands were signed under his belt - Scourging, Guillotined, Human Mastication, and soon there will be more for sure. We love it when fellow Pinoy bdm bands are carrying the same NSE flag.
We are very much excited to release the new album. This might take more than a month or two until we finish recording. But we assure you, we didn't compromise. Way more faster, way more brutal.
Who are some of your inspirations?
Disgorge, brodequin and a lot of classical musics(no joke, we get some of the musical emotions - interpret and modify to bdm tunes.
How did the band get the name Deleterious?
We just wanted a one word name. So I looked for words that are kinda to cool to read and hear, proposed some to Quinn then we agreed both on Deleterious.
When can fans expect a single from the new album?
Soon! Maybe December or January.
You guys play Davao DeathFest next week. Good Luck!!! Any other live shows coming up? Planning a trip the United States?
Yes bro! We're very much excited to play, our last gig was last quarter of last year so this will be our one and only gig as we got busy doing the 2nd album.
As for US - not much. Visa issues are kinda far fetched.
Will you be working with Bin for artwork again?
Of course! Bin has been our go-to-guy for artworks here in the PI. For the 2nd album, we haven't finalized yet.
What is your favorite movie?
Must be Interstellar or Inception.
What is a band or artist that you love that would surprise us?
Try checking out Guthrie Govan and The Aristocrats. Love them! Instrumental with alot of grooves and tempo changes.
Renz, thank you for your time!!! Cannot wait for the new music, good luck at DDF! Any last words?
Man, our pleasure. Thanks for checking us out. Stay sick and stay brutal!
Special mention also to Mik Frigillana of Edge Production, Ryan Gee of Human Mastication and other friends and productions in the Philippines who are doing their best to feed the fire for local Brutal Death Metal scene. Hats off to you guys!
Hello Josh, thank you for taking some time to answer some questions. We last spoke to you about 14 years ago!!!! So I am excited to catch up a little! For those that do not know, back then I was asking you questions about your one-man-band, Autonomy. You were 19 and attending college to study music recording. Can you put into words how it feels to be successfully making a living with music?
Cheers man! Yes a lot of things have happened/changed since we last spoke for sure. It definitely feels fulfilling to be making my living through music, especially after looking back at how long ago I fixed myself upon this path. I'd be lying if I said it was easy, it's definitely a difficult thing to be fully freelance working in music as both a touring musician with DS and an audio engineer in today's economy. But at this point I don't even know what else I could be doing with my life haha.
In the mentioned interview, even back then, doing vocals was your main passion.
Could you have ever imagined where you are now?!
Excerpt from 2011 interview:
CR - You have said before that vocals are your passion in Autonomy, has this always been the case?
J - Definitely. Prior to Autonomy I was the vocalist for an RI based deathcore band called “Death Haven” for about 5 years. Had a lot of good times in that band and it definitely fueled my passion for vocals.
I never would have imagined doing vocals with Defeated Sanity, that's for damn sure! I'm still humbled to this day to have the opportunity to play with these guys. Back then I wasn't one to project or think ahead of how things might be, I just went with the flow and worked as hard as possible on whatever I was doing at the time, and doing vocals wasn't even something I was doing much of when I got the call from Lille to fill in on that first US tour I did with Defeated Sanity.
What was happening for you in between Autonomy and joining Defeated Sanity?
I had become extremely focused on my career as a studio engineer. I was halfway through university when I sort of hung up Autonomy to focus on my studies, and all of my free time went to school and other relevant things: I was Vice President of my school's chapter of the Audio Engineer Society in my sophomore year, and President my senior year. I was also interning at recording studios while actively in school and working, it was a very busy time for me. I had been in New York working at a studio for around 6 months when Lille hit me up to fill in on what would be my first tour with the band in the Summer of 2015. And as I mentioned before I wasn't actively doing vocals in any projects or even active in the scene in any way during those years.
Ok, so going from not really being active in the scene to filling in on vocals for defeated sanity? You’re making people hate you bro! Haha no but really what gives? Had you recorded things for the band? Did you already know Lille? I assume they weren’t die-hard Autonomy fans?! (But maybe)
I knew Lille through the scene already from my solo project 'Autonomy' which he actually enjoyed the last demo I had released (Fun fact: The first riff on 'Condemned To Vascular Famine' from our latest album is actually a rehashed riff of mine from the Autonomy song 'Renounced Posterity').
Sometime in 2011 I believe, I did a vocal cover of 'Consumed By Repugnance' on Youtube that he really liked. HERE. Then I ended up doing another cover just for him to check out of 'Blissfully Exsanguinated' HERE which is much more technical vocally. He was really impressed and said he would hit me up if he ever needed a vocal fill-in. I said yeah, okay lol. And yet, here we are!
"My lyrics vary from song to song, but are mostly influenced by the human race and religion and how both suck haha." - Josh - 2011
- Is this still accurate?
To a degree yes haha. Though with Defeated Sanity, Lille and I write the lyrics together, and there is usually a very specific lyrical concept in mind for the album. The Sanguinary Impetus is about violence, sexuality, and the general brutality that occurs on a daily basis in the animal kingdom. Chronicles of Lunacy is all about mental disorders and delusions. These are the two albums that I've contributed to both vocally and lyrically.
ACCELERATING THE ROT
Depopulate our precious space of virulent and rancid filth
Offering society
Nothing more than revulsion
By blade dispensed. my self-imposed vocation
To extinguish pre-desecrated beings
One by one, I decimate the miasmic masses
Stooped and slumped in the dark
Excrement made flesh
Living decomposition brought by injection and inhalation
Every dose an artificial revival of vitality
Inebriation diminishing their suffering and my satisfaction
Unfulfilled as my deeds yield such low-scale destruction
I must purge them all of their pseudo-existence
Chemical inclination lethally utilized...
A fatal addition to the formula
Their noxious supply - I infiltrate
Suspended between life and death
Their self-inflicted decay - I accelerate
A toxic armageddon - I initiate
An all-consuming pestilence
Wrought by my hand
Amongst the needles and smoke
They writhe and choke
A squalid domain of disgrace liberated
I've become the sole redeemer of humanity
Can you walk us through that first tour filling in, what it was like? Crazy nerves at first? Feeling on top of the fucking world?
I was definitely nervous, I went into it as prepared as I could be. It was my first time ever being on tour so the personal stakes were very high for me. We had a few days rehearsing beforehand at Matt Kilner's place where I actually met a lot of people I'm still homies with today. The tour was a really positive experience, we all got along really well and the fans were very receptive to my performances, so I ended up sticking around. Lille had auditioned a handful of other vocalists while I was still doing live gigs with the band, but ultimately he was happiest with what I was contributing.
Then how soon after that were you officially asked to join the band?
I believe it was July 2016 that I was announced as a full-time member of Defeated Sanity, so about a year after that first tour I did with them in 2015. There were a lot of shows in that year between the first tour and becoming full-time so I definitely had put some work in.
I think it is safe to assume that you enjoy being in the band and are a good fit? We are not in for any surprises in that regard are we?!
I do enjoy it of course and am always humbled to be playing alongside some of the best musicians in Death Metal. I'd be lying if I said I didn't ever feel that sort of 'Imposter Syndrome' or second guess my value of contribution to the band, but that's also the curse of anyone who's an artist or creative type. With the time and work I've invested in the band and the positive feedback on the albums and performances I've done, plus knowing I give everything I have on every performance, it's a good reminder that what I'm contributing to the band has value.
So we officially know you now as the full-time vocalist of the legendary Defeated Sanity. A lot of fans may also know you are a recording engineer. Is that the correct title? Can you list some artists that you have worked with?
It is! Or audio engineer generally speaking, though I'm specifically a studio guy. I've worked with almost every kind of music under the sun, and with some fairly big artists like David Crosby, Norah Jones, Marc Broussard, Cecile McLorin Salvant, etc. Specifically in Death Metal I've worked with Brodequin, Emasculator, Embodied Torment, Virologist, and more/more to come haha.
Can you give the fans a few names of vocalists that you looked up to and were/are inspired by?
Some of my biggest inspirations growing up were George Fisher, Joe Horvath (Circle of Dead Children), Matti Way, Chris Barnes, AJ Magana, Ruben Rosas, and plenty of others but these are the ones who come immediately to mind.
Can you name a few album that are NOT any sort of metal that you really love?
I listen to all kinds of stuff so this will be all over the place and tough to nail down haha. I love Classical/20th Century Classical music a lot so some are more of extended pieces/symphonies and things like that. I love Mahler's 5th Symphony, Giacinto Scelsi's 'Uaxuctum', Gyorgy Ligeti's Requiem, Penderecki's 'Utrenja', Chopin's Nocturnes, I could go on and on and on. I'm a big fan of Hozier's first self-titled record, Bon Iver's: For Emma, Forever Ago, Jedi Mind Tricks: Servants In Heaven, Kings In Hell, Porcupine Tree: Fear Of A Blank Planet, Sufjan Stevens: Carrie & Lowell, Melody Gardot: The Absence, just to name a handful of favorites from all over the spectrum.
Well Josh, thank you so much man!! I've been following you in one way or another since the birth of Autonomy. Cannot wait to see what happens next for you!! Good luck with everything! Any last words?
Always appreciate the support my friend! Knowing I have people who've known me and have supported what I do for a long time definitely helps keep me going when times get tough (and times get tough when you're 100% in music as a profession) haha.
