Mental Demise
Wywiad przeprowadził Tomasz Osuch
'....we'll never change our name because MENTAL DEMISE is essence, which describes our musical vision & it's more than 'just a name' for us...' - these words sholud be the best introduction to interview with this brutal death/grind band from Ukraine. If you don't know any of their releases, you should catch up on it as fast as possible, and prepare yourself for their next stuff which is currently in making process. I talked with Old, the brutal screamer of Mental Demise, and here you have the results...Let's start with the most important thing - that is the question about the new Mental Demise stuff entitled "Disgraceful Sores". The new material has been ready for almost a year and it was due to early 2003. But it has not been released so far. Is there any label, which is interested in releasing it now?
"Hell-o! Yeah, new stuff has been ready more than year ago. But we have some problems with a mastering, so that the releasing of this stuff is puts off on vague time. But anyway we have some offers from labels to release this CD in North America, in Europe and CIS countries. Now we are preparing the very new material, which will become an apogee of brutality in MENTAL DEMISE history. So, I'm afraid that for the moment that "Disgraceful Sores" become not too actual comparing with a new stuff."
I have your 3 track promo CD which shows the new face of your music. This is still brutal death/grind music; more interesting though and a little bit different from what you did in the past. I hear the step forward in your evolution from "Credo Quia Absurdum...?" and "Psycho-Penetration". Can you tell more about new Mental Demise songs, both from "Disgarceful Sores" and these newest? What will be the best recommendation for it, what can we expect?
""Psycho-Penetration" was brutal, simple & bad sounded stuff. But it was very good 'shoot to a target' - there was no bands on ex-USSR area who played such type of music in 1998. Then it was "Metamorphosis" stuff (in 1999) consists of 5 songs. This stuff was buried unfortunately. It was an intermediate step between "Psycho-Penetration" and "Credo Quia Absurdum...?" It was fall out, so that the difference is obvious. "Credo Quia Absurdum...?" is more melodic, more classical Death-Metal. Not so brutal, but it was important to us, because we're become more technical due to 
this stuff. "Disgraceful Sores" is the step ahead, but also two steps backwards at the same time. It is our return to the roots, to the "Psycho-Penetration" idea with "Credo Quia Absurdum...?" technique, but not tooo fast as we wanted. I think that it is extreme Death with Brutal & Grinding elements in US way. Now 5 absolutely new songs is ready & it is a fucking holocaust! You can expect very intensive Brutal Death/Grind!"
I remember that some time ago, when people where talking about Mental Demise music they were comparing you to bands like Suffocation, Deeds Of Flesh, Pyrexia or Cryptopsy. But it is Cannibal Corpse that was the most frequently mentioned band. As I said, you play brutal death mixed with grind elements. Is it something you would agree with?
"OK... In the beginning we're admires on Suffocation, Pyrexia, Cryptopsy, Deeds of Flesh and we are listening to that great bands till now. Cannibal Corpse we like a lot too, especially early albums. But after the 8 years of practice, we had been found our own face. I think, of course some people find familiar elements in our music. Who knows... Now we have own opinions on Brutal Death Metal, despite of that all bands which are playing in frames of style are similar in something. It's without doubts."
There are 7 songs on "Digraceful Sores", 6 of which are new and 1 is an old one. Why did you decide to record this song ("Senseless Saint/Prophet Mattoid") again? Is this track very important for you?
"I don't think so. It is hard to pick out any track as important for us. The decision to re-record "Senseless Saint/Prophet Mattoid" was getting maybe accidentally."
Are you 100% satisfied with the sound you managed to achieve on "Disgraceful Sores"?
"No, we are not satisfied with our sound 'cause it was recorded in 'custom' conditions. Moreover, never to be satisfied with own results, else the stimulus to reaching the perfection will never appear.
Lots of death/grind and grindcore bands have hundreds of split cd in their discography. So do you! Why do you think such bands release so many splits and and only few full-length albums or not at all?
"It's OK. Split tapes, CDs, EPs is a good possibility to spreading your music over to fans out of the different parts of the world. Many bands had been made their names due to that way. Belgian AGATHOCLES as example."
How important for you was the "Psycho-Penetration" demo, which, by the way, was released later on split cds with Mentality and Datura?
"As I said earlier "Psycho-Penetration" was discharged in necessary time & in a necessary place. Due to "Psycho-Penetration" MENTAL DEMISE became more well known in the underground. I think that not give big results because of Maniacal Brutality Prods /Latvia/ is dead now and other label that released this split - Eclectic Prods /Ukraine/ too week to distribute this stuff well."
I heard that you are interested in psychology, are you studying? Is this your main passion outside the music world?
"In present time we have only one student in our cast - our guitar-player Pinky. Other band-members are working. Psychology? Well, I'm into that stuff! But also I'm into the mediaval history, sci-fi & I like cooking, ha-ha! Drummer like to makes photo shots; bass-player is deep into sound engineering. All our occupations are connected to our music, so I think that nothing exists outside our music-world."
I read the lyrics on the new album and I found them really straightforward, maybe with psychological taste and in the brutal death/grind style! Let me guess...are you their author?
"Yes, I'm the author of all our lyrics. And I'm always trying to describe only a reality. I don't use Satanism, gore-porno or other fantastic shit! These topics aren't disturbing me. My lyrics are about society with its problems, atavisms and phobias both in a past and in a future. But sometimes I use some symbolic elements to make songs more equivocal."
Let's talk about concerts now. This summer you played on the fourth edition of the Metal Heads Mission Festival and you were also announced for the concert with polish Vader...
"The atmosphere on M.H.M. #4 was very cool! This fest is growing year by year & it will be famous and big someday! There was 15 bands from Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Poland... It's pity that we had only one band from Poland - NECROPSY. But other yours country mates by different reasons didn't reached the Crimea... But NECROPSY was good! They have a good potential and they are really strong! Fest took place right near the seacoast, practically on the beach... There were a lot a lot of sun, beer & strong Metal music! What about the gig with VADER... Unfortunately we've lost a chance to play with your most famous band. The driver that we've renting with car was disappeared in unknown way when he has been got the full payment. Fuck such the not honest people... So, we miss this possibility to play with the polish gods of Death-Metal on the one stage..."
This spring you were in Poland and did a few shows with Deformed, Epitome, Damnable, Imperial Foeticide on the Grind Tour de Pologne II 2003. I was on two concerts, and I remember your gig in Kraków. You played a really cool concert then! Few personal words about last visit to Poland please.
"This mini-tour was very important for MENTAL DEMISE. It was a good effort to show an Ukrainian Death-Metal abroad & good chance to demonstrate our possibilities on practice. All people from EPITOME, IMPERIAL FOETICIDE, DEFORMED were cool guys, so hail them all!!! Hope to meet them one day and to play on the one stage again!"
It wasn't the only tour that you played with polish bands. Two years ago you did a mini-tour through Belarus with Hate. Well, it looks like Mental Demise quite often plays with polish bands!
"Poland is our neighbors from the old times, so that we're enough often plays with Polish bands. HATE - good Death Metal band with theirs own 'handwriting'. We were really glad to support them in this tour!!! Greeting to them from MENTAL DEMISE!"
Eddy Yeremenko is your manager and it seems that it is thanks to his activity that Mental Demise plays lots of shows. I heard that at the end of October you will play on two shows in Poland on Serial Killer Tour 2003 with Effect Murder and Non Opus Dei. Can you give more details about upcoming Mental Demise concerts, tours?
"Yeah! Edward made a lot for our band! Due to his activity we're support cult band PUNGENT STENCH in their Holy Inquisition tour across the ex-Soviet countries & we'll visit Poland second time in the end of October. What about our upcoming tours, well we have plans to be in tour with PARRICIDE (Poland) for the next year & other tour with two Brutal bands from Vlad's (FLESHLESS) label NICE TO EAT YOU Records - DECEPTION from Poland and LANENIA MENTIS form Czech on the beginning of May 2004. Tours should follow over territories of Poland, Ukraine, Czech, Slovakia, Germany... possibly Belarus and Russia. So, we are welcome polish maniacs to our gigs in present and in future time..."
It seems that you are satisfied with your management? Is cooperations between Mental Demise and Eddy going well?
"Ed helps us & MENTAL DEMISE would like to thank him for cooperation! We wish to continue work with him 'cause he is the best manager that MENTAL DEMISE ever had."
Correct me if I am wrong but if I remember well, you and the drummer (Tom Grinder) were writing in Brutal Letter Newsletter. Are you still doing it?
"You're right. T. Grinder & me were discharged 10 issues of Brutal Letter. Now it is in anbiosis, but I believe that we'll go on to work on it again. We have such plans, but I can't say anything about terms..."
Your first demo is entitled "Psycho-Penetration". I quite often hear that people call you 'Psycho-Penetrators'. Hm... maybe you should change band's name from Mental Demise to Psycho-Penetrators? :-)
"I didn't ever heard that anybody called us 'Psycho-Penetrators'! Can you tell me, who calls? Anyway, we'll never change our name because MENTAL DEMISE is essence, which describes our musical vision & it's more than 'just a name' for us. "Psycho-Penetration" is only the name of the album and it will never be more than only 'a name'..."
Ok, thank you for an interview Old. By the way tell me, are you really so old?
"No, I'm 25 years old. I'm not too 'old'... ha-ha! People called me: 'Hey, Old!' till the 1993 & I still don't know why...Ok, Thanks a lot Tomasz for interest to MENTAL DEMISE! Welcome to our shows - we'll glad to see you & drink together with us man! Stay brutal & don't give up!"
Yeah, I'll try! :-)
