Vital Remains
Wywiad przeprowadził Aleksander Krzeczkowski
Every time I listen to Vital Remains new album I'm looking for a cross to spit on it. Hate to religion that emanates from this Music strike the mind and takes control over it. Where's the source of this force? Tony Lazaro is the key for sure. Together with splendid multiinstrumentalist Dave Suzuki he developes his apocalyptic vision of death metal in absolutely amazing way. Let's see what he said about that.Hi Tony! How was the Milwaukee Metalfest? It was your first show for 2 years. How did Tim and Derek make out?
Milwaukee Metal Fest went good! We got to meet alot of our fans and drink alot with them hahaha. Tim And Derek did really good. We only had a couple of practices with them before the show. They both had a great time and they each look forward to doing future shows with us. Dave and I can't wait!
I don't know what one of "Dechristanize" creators must feel, but I can tell you what a death metal fan feels - I'm absolutely possessed with this music! I put this album on the CD shelf together with the greatest death metal productions ever. Aren't you bored already with all those superlatives people are using to describe the album?
No not at all. It's great to hear all this good feedback from the fans, press, and the underground! After working so hard on this album to have some people saying it's up there with Morbid Angel's "Altars" and Deicide's "Legion" and that it's the best Death Metal album of 2003.....shit that's the fucking Best and a true honor to be in the same sentence with those two greats! I'm glad you like it, I think it's our best to date hands down!
Based on my own experiences - the title symbolizes the process of removing all Christian feelings and fears - especially unconscious ones - that remain in every man raised in a Christian family. Don't you think that someone who has never been devoted to the Christian church would not be able to understand "Dechristianize" fully? Isn't the anti-religious-rebel feeling the most important here?
This album shows our pure hatred for the church and Christianity! And even if you're not a Christian you can hear the anger in our music. Some people just get into the music and I think that's fine, but the music and the lyrics are both important to us!
You have sped up the tempo. Was that a natural process or was it a conscious decision to make your music even more intensive?
We really wanted to step it up and write the heaviest VR album. We wanted it to be dynamic as well as brutal. So we needed to work harder to get to this point. We spent two years working on Dave's blast beats and all his drum work. He also wanted to take it to the next level. He really worked hard and it shows on the new album. We didn't think at first that we could out due the last album. "Dawn" I thought, was my best work to date and I could do no better. But some how I started writing some heavier riffs and mixing old school stuff with modern style and I came up with Dechristianize. It took me a year to write this album. We did alot of pre-production on this one before we recorded it. This gave us an idea of what it was going to sound like. But yes, it came very natural for me.
The few complaints that I've heard (and which I don't really understand) concern the sound. I think that synthetic overproducing would definitely kill the great blasphemous spirit of the recording. Anyway - is there anything you would like to sound better on "Dechristianize"?
Yeah we had no choice with the drum sounds. The drum set that was given to us for the recording session sounded like shit! It was a big tom rock kit and not what we asked for! We wanted something that was closer to what Dave has. We wanted the first tom's to be a 8inch and then a 10" to cut thru on all the fast fills. We ended up geting a 12" or 14" or something, hahaha. So we decided to trigger 
everything because the sound was so low and shitty! I wish we could have flown Dave's kit in for the recording but the record company (Olympic) didn't want to pay for that! I think for what we had to work with we could not have done any better. We knew it was going to be a little raw so, we just gave our best performances. But we learned alot from this and I promise next album will sound even better.
So... will you enter Morrisound studios again to do your next recordings?
NEVER!!! We hated working there! That place is overrated and they treated us very unfair! They made mistakes and then took our money and blamed us. I would not recomend anyone going there as they only care about the dollar and not the music! Morrisshit Studios hasn't put out anything good in years since Scott Burns left, I wonder why?
Well... a question about Glen Benton - necessary in every interview today (he he). As far as the last three Deicide lp's are concerned - don't you think he's fulfilled even more, artistically and more effectively, in Vital Remains now? I know you guys are friends and it's hard to be 100% objective, but what is your honest personal attitude towards these albums? Would you agree they've lost their previous strength after the ingenius "Once upon the cross"? And I'm not talking only about the sound...
Well I will say and a lot of people will agree that Glen's performance on our new album is some of his best work period. Listen... Deicide is one of my favorite bands. I love the first three albums. But I don't write for them I write for Vital Remains. Maybe what they put out is what they wanted to do? So you see I can't really say anything because I'm not in the Deicide camp. I will say I think this new Deicide album is going to be really good! Glen really got a charge working with us and I think he's putting everything into his new album. He always gives 100% thats why he's one of the best I think.
Will there be any more serious collaboration with Glen in the future? Have you got a replacement lined up for him if he would not be able to tour with you? He has done an absolutely impressive job for you.
That's up to him if he wants to work with us down the line.We are forever Grateful to him for doing such a great job and helping us out. We have not looked for a replacement. We did the Milwaukee 
Metal Fest with him and that went great! If Glen has time he has said he would tour with us so, we will wait and see. We are very happy with Glen's performance on the album!
How about other new people in Vitals - do Tim Yeung (ex-Hate Eternal) suit the band? What is the background story of him joining the band?
Tim is doing a great job! He is very fast and never quits. He is excited about working with us. We can't wait to get out there and tour. Also Derek our new bass player who played with Deeds Of Flesh is awsome! He is good friends with Tim. They both can't wait to tour. I got in touch with Tim after I asked Tony Laureno of Nile if he knew of a drummer that could play Dave's blast's .Dave wanted to play lead guitar and so we had to find someone that had that speed. And Tim as you can hear him on the first Hate Eternal album is a monster drummer. He's even faster now which is sick! hahaha
So - does Tim take the whole drum duties? Is Dave Suzuki going to concentrate on the guitar exclusively now?
Yes Tim on Drums, Dave on lead guitar, Derek on bass and Glen on vocals. This will be the touring lineup for this album.
And how about bassist Derek Boyer (Deeds of Flesh, Deprecated, Decrepit Birth) - did you propose him to be a permanent member of the band?
Well Tim suggested it to us. That he knew this good bass player, that had a great work ethic. It's all up to these guys if they become permanent members of VR. If they work hard and do there jobs then maybe they will but we will not just take in anyone quick anymore! Thats been our problem we would give someone a chance and they would just take advantage of us. They would get there foot in the door and then stop showing up to practice and acting like they don't need to. Well that shit won't fly with us anymore. You don't want to work then we don't want to work with you or have you around.You have to earn things in life no free rides!
Was that the main reason for so many line-up changes in the past? Haven't you and Dave been overly-demanding?
Like I said we just want people to show up and work that's it. We are not ego's or that demanding. We just ask that people show up and give 100% that's all! Sometimes shit happens and people can no longer give that much and so you start carrying people.This is when you start to drop because you having to carry the extra weight. This conters the productivity of the band and before long destroys it. Well Dave and I feel everyone like a chain should carry themselves. This is how a unit works. It has to be a team effort thinking on the same page and being on the same level.
I'd also like to ask what happened to Paul and Jeff who started Vital Remains in 1988?
Jeff quit back in 96 as he got sick of doing it and dealing with all the politics in the music business. He still listens to metal but he is a fulltime plumber now. Paul also quit because he had a family and could not balance the band and his personal life. He is a manager of a garage that fix cars. And here I am after 14 years still acting like I was 18, HAHAHA.
Who's the main songwriter in the band now? Is it you or Dave? Or maybe you share composing duties at the same level?
I have written all the music since the begining back in '89. I write all the music because it just comes natural for me to. I also compose all the parts as well. When I write a song I can hear the drum beats in my head and so when I finish a song that's when I get together with Dave and tell him whats beats to play. Dave wrote the Leads and the Lyrics on the new album. He then layered the harmonies over my riffs. It just works for us and since I've been here from the start that's why the band never quit or stopped because i never quit! I'm not going anywhere.hahaha
Are there any tracks left from "Dechristianize" sessions? How many songs did you prepare in your rehearsal room before recording?
There are no extra tracks left. We don't write fillers! Whatever we have we put it all on the record 100%. So everything that's on there is everything I had. We put all our blood, sweat, and anger into this album right down to the intro "Let The Killing Begin". Some people think that it's from a movie, but I created that all in the studio. I wanted a strong intro like the trial of Christ, hahaha. I thought it would work for this album as I had this idea for years. I think it worked in setting the mood. To The Cross With The Prisoner! It's Fucking Great! hahaha
You have signed with Olympic, and Century Media is the owner of this label now. Many bands in the past were seriously complaining about the pressure that Century put on them. There were a few cases where the bands were told to go back to the studio to re-record the album 
because Century didn't accept their risky experiments or other things. Doesn't it scare you? Or maybe all of this is just a myth based on rumours?
No not at all. We have always been given free artistic expression from every label. When Century heard the album they really liked it. I have nothing but good things to say so far about them. They are all very pro and when you have a question they get back to you. I think it's better this way! We have been around for a long time. I think they know we know what we are doing. We would never let anyone tell us what to write or how to act a certain way! Fuck that shit! We are a Death Metal band, always was and always will be til Death! Hail Satan!
Aren't you afraid that many people might interpret your label change as an act of commercialization?
No way! Listen to our album if that's Commercial then the underground must not exsist, hahaha. We are totally Underground and proud of it! The label change we just got lucky on. We signed with Olympic and we didn't know they were going to sell the label. So now with Century they have the resources to get the record to more fans faster and cheaper, what's wrong with that?.. Nothing... its all about the fans to us always! Our fans trust us and know we would never sell out or let them down. Never!
I hope it's not too personal a question - Tony, do you consider yourself more of an anti-christian person or more of a Satan worshipper? Which aspect is more important for Vital Remains - showing Christian's hypocrisy or following your satanic philosophy? Is my separating those things right in your opinion?
To put it simply I am a Satanist if you look at it from a left and a right point of view. If God and Christianity are on the right hand then I would be Hard Left! I was born this way since I was young I remember being like this. It was a natural thing and not just something that happen when I was older that set me off. I questioned God and teachers when I was a little kid. They never could answer me. I saw alot of their hypocrisy. I saw priest's gambling under the altars in church basements with the money they collected from the poor.I had friends who were molested.I would always run from Priest when i was a kid,i hated them and thats why my natural Satanic instincts kept me safe and protected me all my life. I would often smash the crucifix off the walls in my house. I remember when i got older Jeff our old singer and me burned that same cross in my attic.hahaha....
And i remember my mother flipping out saying she was going to tell my father.She never did but my father would always say you take the Devil's path and i would laugh and say someone has to!HAHAHA So im both i would say. I see Christianity as the cancer of man. And i see organized religion as the distruction of mans free thought.If we would have followed the bible where would we be today? If it was not for the free thinkers and early Satanist who invented everything where would we really be? I tell you... we would be living in Darkness. Christianity has committed more killings than all the wars.They have destroyed people's cultures and for what?...their god! and their ways! They are guilty of ethnic genocide when you look at what they have done to cultures.People live for many years without Christianity and survived. It shows we don't need it and that we can live with out it. People need to take responsibility for themselves. And we can't keep blaming all the bad shit on the Devil. How about on the real guilty... like Religion! They are both very important to me speaking for myself.
After "Dawn of the Apocalypse" I told myself that you would not be able to record a better album. And here it fuckn' is. Now I ask myself the same question - did you reach the top of your abilities now? Is there any element in your music that might be done better in the future? It's really hard to imagine...
I don't know... hahaha I just told Dave I don't see myself being able to top this one. It's going to be a real challenge for me on the next album. But I have some ideas that we never done before. I have a concept so, will see... but man you're right it's going to be one tuff thing to top "Dechristianize".
To see Vital Remains performing live is a dream for many people here in Poland - so what are the tour plans? Will we have a chance to bang our heads on a gig in our country?
Right now we are talking to promoters about touring the US first and then Europe.We will definetly come to Poland when we come over.We have alot of friends and fans there.They are great and have supported us for many years.We can't wait to play the new material for them.It will be our honor to play for the True Polish Underground!
OK. Thanks for everything - just one quick question at the end. Did you know that Deeds Of Flesh latest effort is entitled "Reduced to ashes"? Isn't this the title of your very first demo tape? :-)
Yes it is, hahaha Cool! Thanks Olo for the interveiw! Best Of Luck to you! And to all of our fans in Poland, hope you like the new album and hope to see you all on tour soon! Hails And " LET THE KILLING BEGIN"!!!.... -I-ony666Lazaro
www.VitalRemains.com for more info...-I-
Aleksander Krzeczkowski
