COCKNEY’S FINEST GORENOGRAPHERS

Now that this once-abandoned interview lies before me, revealed in all its vomit-seasoned magnificence, thanks to a foolish double-click that was triggered from an instance of lethal boredom, it would be cruel not to share the entertrailment & killarity here on the Evilution webzine. What is there – in all frankness – to write about an ensemble called Gorerotted? What is there to relate about a musical unit whose members are the closest humankind have come to an orcish mob overstuffed on methamphetamine hydrochloride? What is there more to tell about a five-man combo whose crimes in sonic form come with titles like “Masticated by the Spasticated” and “Put Your Bits in a Concrete Mix”? Yes, what is there to affirm other than that it would be wise for the reader to arm him- or herself with a silver-blade chainsaw and the latest edition of Pathologies Unheard Of – A Reader’s Guide to the Odd Infliction. So, from here onwards we will let four-stringer Phil Wilson do the talking and his steadfast legion of pornstar zombies the disturbingly intercourse-suggestive walking…

“Hey wee men, how’s it goin’? It’s been a while since we recorded Only Tools and Corpses, but a lot has happened since then. It’s probably been our quietest summer for a few years, but we’ve been in rehearsals, and have got about halfway through writing the next album. We’ve done a few good shows around Europe, and we’ve managed to go to the pub a few times also. We love a drink, we do.”

# To my ears Only Tools and Corpses is a potpourri of American death metal with subtle references to early English grindcore. Could you please comment on the blend of these genres, and perhaps supply us with your own stylistic rundown?

“What you said. Nah, there’s a lot of influences in Gorerotted. We have the classic death metal influence from Rushy, and Fluffy likes his crusty punk approach, and I love the power of steel. When you fuse it all together, you get the horrific beast that is Gorerotted. The line-up now is rock-solid and we’re adjusting to each other’s styles and writing approach, and the new stuff is turning out to be bigger and more powerful than before.”

# A select handful of scrumptious, side-splitting samples are smeared across the textbook brutality on Only Tools and Corpses. Can I make you lift the carpet on some of them?

“There’s a few on there, eh? It starts with Tales from the Crypt, which is classic to everyone who likes horror etc, and we’ve got Bad Taste in there, and a few others I can’t remember right now. Mr. Gore is the man when it comes to horror films. He has literally thousands of crap films. In the Terrorizer Magazine ‘Gore Special’, he had to pick his favourite gore movies in his interview.”

# In 2002, you put out a re-release in a collaboration with Relapse of the brilliant debut album Mutilated in Minutes with enhanced artwork and all. Personally, I loved the bubble-gummy style of the original version, but the rehashed visuals on the new version are no less exquisite. Simply put: can gore evolve?

“Stop using big words, yous. I didn’t like the first cover, but the fans seem to love it to this day. The re-issue was nice with the lyrics and shit included. Gore has to evolve. I mean, there’s only so many ways you can stab a chick with a screwdriver. Only Tools and Corpses is 100% Gorerotted, but I think you’ll see some serious progression in the new music we have written. Watch this space...”

# For the benefit of the long-time gore-rotting buff in particular and any potential future addicts out there in, could you shed some light on the musical progress from the debut album to Only Tools and Corpses?

“Like I said, it’s classic Gorerotted, but I think we’ve progressed as individuals. The line-up now is great, and were all learning from each other, and getting very, very drunk in the process. I think it’s just a bit tighter, better produced, and a much more tight-knit unit.”

# Nine times out of ten, growls/grunts/screams blot out most traces of foreign accents and regional dialects, but the so-called Cockney Oi’s delivered by Mr. Gore are quite remarkable in that sense. Care to comment on his characteristic vocal style?

“This is the hardest question I’ve ever had! How do you categorise Mr. Fucking Gore? He is a style of his own, and Gorerotted wouldn’t be the same without it. He really is a typical Londoner, but it’s good that we have some sort of geographical presence in our music. He doesn’t try and sound like a cock; it just comes naturally.”

# The ‘dual (triple) vocal assault’ phenomenon has more or less become a blueprint for bands on the gorier side of death metal with Impaled and Exhumed, for instance, as modern-day purveyors. However, I tend to rather think of Extreme Noise Terror when I expose my tender eardrums to Only Tools and Corpses. But where – and when – is it actually plausible to look for Gorerotted’s musical relations?

“Yeah, what you said. We don’t try and sound like anybody or have a particular influence that we draw from. I think death metal needs some vocal tomfoolery, and Goreskin and Mr. Gore are a prime example of how it works well. When I joined the band, we just wanted to add another edge or backing to the vocals, and I feel we’ve come out trumps.”

# Promising acts seem to crop up from everywhere in England these days, and bands such as Mithras, Akercocke and Gorerotted are just some of the most conspicuous ones. Whatever obscure gist is brewing deep underground in the soil of Britannica, and what is your personal perspective on ‘the inland swing of metallic things’?

“I’m not the biggest fan of UK bands. Rushy is the guy who keeps in touch with the underground the most. He loves a racket band, he does. Akercocke are a good band, I do like their music. They asked me to be the naked person on the front of their new album, but I’m a bit shy about showing my bottom, so they got some chick instead.”

# What makes London such a perfect platform for the grotesque principles of Gorerotted: fishy additives in the subsoil water or a classic case of metropolitan psychosis?

“London is perfect; there’s a lager shop at every corner, and what else does a band need for inspiration? It’s the perfect place for a band to be, as all the good tours come here, and it’s easy to get to mainland Europe for shows. It’s also a great place to be a metal fan, as there’s always gigs to go to, bands to see, and pints to drink.”

# Humour of the most absurd kind is a mandatory constituent in the Gorerotted concept, which should be crystal-clear for anyone who has been exposed to the hyper-graphic nature of Mutilated in Minutes. Could you imagine a humourless, strictly medical and all-out serious approach to the adorable lushness of gore?

“Nah, that’s boring… The medical gore thing is just ripping off Carcass, and that’s all there is to it. If another medical gore band appears I think I’ll drown myself in booze. You’ve got to have a different edge on things to keep people interested, and I think we’ve pulled that off perfectly. Too many bands fold their arms and look mean, whereas we are entertainers, and we get the job done.”

# I read a concert review on the internet which suggested that Gorerotted had stopped wearing blood on stage. Now what is that all about?! Getting soft, eh...

“It’s just a logical progression for us, and we’re a bit more mature now (well, a little), and we felt we didn’t need it anymore. It was a characteristic of our show, but people know who we are now, and I think too many bands are jumping on the ‘cover-yourself-in-blood’ bandwagon. Also, try touring for two weeks and have to clean out your pickups after every show and fuck up your shit. I think we’re better without it.”

# What’s so wrong with The Village People?

“Nothing, I love The Village People, don’t you?”

# What has been the biggest step in Gorerotted’s horrific annals so far; and what would be the utmost accomplishment to strive for in future?

“Huh, you said anal. The biggest step recently has been Metal Blade, but we’ll keep moving on. The album release is the next step, and then we want to tour till our balls drop. I can’t pick a particular moment or occurrence since I joined the band; it just goes from strength to strength.”

# That’s it. Please feel free to wrap this interview up in the most bloodcurdling manner possible!

“Cheers son, thanks for the questions. I hope you realise how long it took me to translate my caveman Scottish into legible English. Hope it makes sense. You French peeps get the fuckin beers in and wait for the next Gorerotted show near you. Aye tae fuck, power, steel, lightning, blah, blah…”

Conducted and written by Misereion.