Malebolgia
Wywiad przeprowadził Wouter RoemersNorth Carolina has once again spawned another impressive death metal band. Malebolgia play blazing hyperfast death metal that retains the genre's old school darkness and gloom and today's technical perfection. Having recently released their debut "Requiem For the Inexorable" through underground label Comatose Music, Masterful Magazine was able to catch up with drummer Kevin Hedgecock. Hedgecock explains the details of their debut, the deal they got with Comatose Music and what makes Malebolgia different from the other bands on the scene today.
Hello and welcome to the biggest online magazine of Poland! Your new album "Requiem For the Inexorable" was recently released in North America. Relieved?
Thanks for having me! It's truly a pleasure! Yes! We're extremely relieved that it's out and doing very well!
Since this is your first interview for Masterful Magazine, could you provide us with a brief history of the band up till now?
Well, we have a very lengthy history, but I'll try to dumb it down so that your readers don't decide to take a nap while reading this. Malebolgia started out in the summer of 2000 by Joseph Darling and myself, as a side project. We added our original vocalist Daniel Marshall and realized that we may have something worthwhile. So, we decide to make this into a full time band. We added a bassist and guitarist, played a lot of local and regional venues and it just kind of went from there. We've been through a lot of members resulting in Joseph and myself being the only original members. Having said that, this line up, that also consist of Matt Lovett, Tim Knouff and Josh Albright has been the most stable we've enjoyed since our conception. We've put out a couple of demos including the 'Requiem For The Inexorable' promo in 2003, an EP entitled 'Synchronized Stabbings' in 2002 & a 3 way split w/ Infected Malignity & Tragical Memories called "Supreme Brutal Legions Volume 2" released in 2006 from Disembowel Records and Vrykoblast Productions which featured material from the 'Synchronized Stabbings' EP and 'Requiem For The Inexorable' promo.
"Requiem For the Inexorable" was originally self-financed and released, but later picked up by Comatose Music for wider distribution. How did you end up meeting Steve Green (Atrocious Abnormality, Lust Of Decay) and inking a record deal with his label?
We've been friends with Steve for several years now. We've played a lot of shows together, being that our bands are from the same state (North Carolina), and there's always been a mutual respect for each other. So, it made sense for both parties to 'ink a deal'. We're fans of the label and he's a fan of us, it's hard to beat that! In all honesty, we couldn't be any happier with the job he's done for us! It's an amazing label to be working with!
Is the deal with Comatose Music for one album only, or can we expect more from Malebolgia on this label?
As of now, I believe that it's a 'one off' deal, but we haven't had any discussions about the future of our partnership. Like I said, Comatose is an amazing label to work with, so I don't foresee there being an issue of working together on Malebolgia's end.
How has Comatose Music been accommodating the band's needs?
More than enough! Steve has gotten the word out about "Requiem For the Inexorable", gotten the cd in online stores such as Relapse, CM Distro, The Omega Order, etc and shares his contacts to help us out! Yeah, there's still a lot of 'D.I.Y.' work, but we prefer it that way, we like getting our hands into the mix of things.
"Requiem For the Inexorable" is a very intense album and really blew me away. I still listen to it as if it's the first time hearing it; there is just so much depth to it. How have fans reacted so far to the fresh batch of songs?
Thanks! I'm glad that you got it and enjoy it! That's pretty awesome! So far, we've had a lot of positive reactions from old fans, new fans and reviews. Obviously, you can't please the ears of everyone and the type of death/grind we play is not for some. We're fine with that. We write music we like and enjoy listening to. If people like it or 'get it', awesome, but if people don't like it or grasp onto to what we're doing or trying to do, then that's fine too, it's their opinion.
The new record shows a lot of variation in pace and dynamics. But even in the fast parts, Malebolgia sounds incredibly steady and even. This I think is, besides deft and powerful musicianship all round, also very due to the majestic and commanding singing. Where did you in the beginning get the inspiration to create those hauntingly addictive vocals? And how does it feel when singing?
We see the vocals as another instrument. Having said that, the vocals are there to tell a story and to project another emotion that the instruments may not be able to. We take our vocal patterns and lyrics very seriously. To me, there's nothing worse than having 'blah' vocals/vocal patterns or typical death metal/grind lyrics, so that's why we want to take that part of the band to another level. We have a lot to say and have a lot of 'personal experiences' and see this as our way of expressing those emotions.
I found your music intelligently crafted and very diverse but also relaxing (the track 'Requiem' especially) and atmospheric. How would you describe your music?
Well, I have a hard time pinpointing what genre we are exactly. We get labeled as 'brutal death metal', sometimes death/grind and I would say that's correct to an extent. When you listen to "Requiem For the Inexorable" as a whole, there's an atmosphere, as you suggested, that a lot of brutal death metal and death/grind bands lack. Don't get me wrong, we really enjoy BDM and death/grind, but we want to create something new, something that no one has ever captured before in the BDM and death/grind genre. Do I think that we've achieved our goal yet? Not quite, but we took a good step in the right direction with this release.
With the album finished and in stores worldwide, what do you regard as the most accomplished song in hindsight?
'Cock Rockin' Fever'. Nah, I'm proud of the whole album and I think that each song accomplishes what we wanted it to. I think that it's hard to take one song from the album and say that 'defines' Malebolgia or "Requiem For the Inexorable".
How do you feel about your new album "Requiem For the Inexorable" Did it turn out the way you wanted?
We're very satisfied and happy with the final product! There is always something that you wish that you could change or wish that you could've played better, but we spent a lot of time nitpicking and making sure that it sounded right.
Unfortunately I do not have any lyrics in front of me, so I would like to tell us a few words about the themes you treat in "Requiem For the Inexorable".
We take our lyrics very seriously. Most of the songs have to do with personal experiences, views on society, and even our 'take' on certain folklore. I happen to write in a metaphoric style, but, besides the bonus tracks, there's a bit of truth to almost all of our songs. You just have to 'dig' a little bit to get some of our lyrics.
There are two bonus tracks on the record. 'Pissing Pus' which is a more midpaced slab of death metal with samples from splatter flick "The Mutilation Man" and the original "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and the more rock 'n roll 'Cock Rockin' Fever'. Why on earth include that last glam/hair metal track after such a punishing death metal effort?
Well, originally, neither track was slotted to be released on the first pressing at all. But, Steve wanted them on the album as bonus tracks and we gave him the thumbs up to do so. We really don't see them as part of the album, per say, they're nothing more than bonus tracks to us that from time to time people can and do enjoy. We weren't going to record 'Pissing Pus' when we entered the studio. But, I finished my drum tracks quicker than expected and we decided to go ahead, lay the drum track down for 'Pissing Pus' and if everyone 'nailed it' than we would use it as a bonus track or possibly for a split. It turned out well and is a crowd favorite at shows. Someone always yell's for 'Pissing Pus', haha. 'Cock Rockin' Fever' is obviously a 'joke' song that we record during the "Requiem For the Inexorable" sessions. It was a song that we always warmed up on during the writing process and recording sessions. Also, we decided we wanted to record a follow up our 2001 classic 'Porno Song'. It just shows we have a lighter side to us and we're all actually a bunch of goofs!
I couldn't help but notice how prominent you [drummer Kevin Hedgecock] feature in the music. Your drumming is quite impressive. It reminded me of people like Tony Laureano (ex-Angelcorpse), Aantar Lee Coates (Diabolic, ex-Unholy Ghost), Derek Roddy (Hate Eternal) and Martin Maurais (Dechrist, ex-Kataklysm).
Thank you very much! That's a very impressive list! I work really hard to keep up with the guys in Malebolgia and I never want to let them down. So, I practice and practice and practice! 4 to 5 hours a day, in fact. There are a lot of other things besides gravity blast and double bass I can do as a drummer, but it's not all about me. I don't see it as "look at what I can do!", I see it as 'what sounds best for the music and this band'. Again, Thanks!
How would you describe your musical progress from the demo to now? What do you think about the progression your band is taking?
We got a lot faster, added a bit of atmosphere and added some awesome musicians. I think that was our biggest progression. We've also started to grasp a concept of what we want to do and achieve as a band. And yes, it's a progression that I'm very happy with.
What are, at this moment, your plans for Malebolgia in the future?
As of now, we're working on booking shows, an East Coast tour and expanding our fan base. We've taken off the month of April to get our current roster of songs tighter and we've begun the writing process for a new album! As of now, it's untitled, but we do know it will be a concept album. More info will come out in time, but we're definitely excited about it!
Anything else we might have forgotten to mention? The last words are yours. All the best.
Thank you for the interview and all of your kind words about Malebolgia! Please feel free to check out our website: www.malebolgia.com and our MySpace: www.myspace.com/malebolgia for updates and other information! Pick up "Requiem For The Inexorable" if you haven't done so or grab a shirt or a hoodie if you've got the cd! Thanks!!!
Info: www.comatosemusic.com
Booking: www.malebolgia.com
