‘DEAD TO BE DONE’ – YE OLDEN LEAGUE OV NECROPHILIA

Long time, no update! So why not kick the Evilution Engine back in motion with something really odious and foul w/ extra bugs’n’goo on top? Something that makes the next-door neighbour’s 21-pound thug-like tomcat exclaim the cutest ‘meow’ in feline history, and piss itself in horror as it runs off to claw at infinitesimal mosquitoes and engross in other such kitten pastimes. Neurotic Records’ hottest megastars of death/grind ferocity, bone-collectively known as Prostitute Disfigurement, recently issued their third compilation of cadaver canticles entitled Left in Grisly Fashion. Roel, guitarist and rhymester for the Dutch five-piece, kindly took off a few hours from his daily runs to the local mortuary in order to serve us a few meaty chunks of information. First off and straight from the P.D. vault: a gruesome peek into their sinful deeds of yore…

“I think there is a real progression if you look at all three albums in a row,” Roel starts out. “Our former albums where often titled as grindcore and I think the Embalmed Madness album has some of these influences in a way, but not the Deeds of Derangement album. In principle we wrote the songs the same way as we did on the other two albums. In my opinion the Left in Grisly Fashion album is a lot stronger in songwriting, both lyrically and musically. But like on the former records we didn’t want it to be too technical; just easy to listen to. Hopefully we made it headbang-worthy enough for everyone.”

# Your first official releases, the demo Disfigure and the debut album Embalmed Madness, were recorded with the use of a drum computer. Has it ever felt restrictive to later work with a drummer of flesh and blood, considering that there are limits to the physical capacity of a human being?

“After a while I got bored with drum programming, so we needed a real drummer; also to get a better feeling when we play live. I don’t think Michiel has got that many limitations against the DR Rhythm from Boss, though. Every fill sounds more natural. We prefer a natural sound.”

# The artwork for Left in Grisly Fashion is indeed extremely befitting to the music. Please tell us a bit about the artist, the idea behind the artwork as well as the final outcome of it all!

“Like always, we really enjoyed working with him. ‘Let Joel design the cover and the entire CD artwork. Let him do his thing’ – which he does pretty well, I think. We gave him some directions as to what we wanted and gave him the myriad of opportunities to fill it in. I can say that guy really knows his Photoshop very well. We told him we liked it to be darker and gloomier than our former covers. I think most of the songs on Left in Grisly Fashion have a more darkish edge than our previous ones. But if you look closely there is still a female on the cover in some state of decomposition – and say, she’s ‘left in grisly fashion’. In some way you can say that naked female corpses are our trademark.”

# Sexual deviance, carefree manslaughter, lavish scatology, dead-human infatuation and so on and so forth... What is the one common denominator in the lyrical universe of P.D. – if there is one?

“No, no depth – no metaphors. Just Niels and my own sick and perverted fantasies about necrophilia put on paper with a little dark humoristic twist on top. We try to see through the eyes of a killer and have a peek in the dark corners of his mind. I still wonder how we manage. ‘How did it come to this?’ The lyrics on the Embalmed Madness album were mainly done by Niels and were less complex just like the music itself on that recording. That also counts for the Deeds of Derangement album although the music reached a higher standard. I’ve decided they were worthy to be printed in the booklet.”  

# On the subject of the lyrical content: has the band ever experienced tiresome clashes with the affliction of all things artistic a.k.a. censorship?

“Luckily, no real problems so far. We can’t play in a few venues in Holland because of a certain song (track 5 from the Embalmed Madness album). They can eat my ass for all I care – and they will like it, I’m sure. Narrow-minded people always spoil the fun. Just have to live with that, bad as it is. The slipcase for the Left in Grisly Fashion album was designed especially for those certain authorities that will ban us if they have the chance.”    

# Left in Grisly Fashion features guest-vocal appearances by two fellow arbiters of brutality, namely Robbert Kok from Disavowed and Joel Sta from Pyaemia. How did it all work out in the studio?

“They recorded the vocals with Robbert Kok in his mobile studio. It’s just his computer with some version of Cubase (recording software) on it and some studio speakers connected to it. They recorded the vocals in Niels’s guest bedroom, that’s all. I wasn’t there when they recorded their vocals so I can’t really tell how the process went. I was sitting downstairs getting drunk.”

# Please comment on the iniquitous collaboration with Neurotic Records!

“You don’t hear us complaining at all. We’ve known Ruud (Neurotic Records) for quite a few years now and he showed his interest in the band. He has very wide distribution and we really liked what he did for the other bands on his label, like Visceral Bleeding. Of course, we also have the advantage that we can communicate in our native language, but that obviously wasn’t the main reason. Neurotic Records definitely shows more care in their bands as well as better promotion, better distribution and is offering us tours. We really need his guidance and managing skills, because we’re five incompetent bastards alright.”

# Holland is one of the leading countries when it comes to musical extremities. Just to name a few: Brutus, Pyaemia, Disavowed, Severe Torture and a certain outfit called Prostitute Disfigurement. What the hell went wrong, dude?

 “That’s the same question I’m asking myself everyday. ‘How did it come to this?’ I really can’t tell why. Maybe we’re just a small shitty country filled with sick bastards who can’t cope with themselves, and that’s why we write it off in our music. In that matter we should all go see a psychiatrist. Who knows?”

# A small tour together with Macabre and Flesh Made Sin is scheduled for the end of August. What expectations do you have for this circuit, and what is it like to be able to tour with a cult act like Macabre?

“I’ve heard Macabre are great guys so that should be a lot of fun, I guess. Flesh Made Sin are friends from a nearby city; always fun hanging out with those guys. I’m really looking forward to get on the bus and do those four gigs (it’s only for four days). We’re honoured that we’re allowed to play with – like you said – a cult act like Macabre. I’ve liked this band for as long as I can remember. In September we’re doing a big tour with Exhumed, Severe Torture and Psycroptic, and I’m also really looking forward to that.” 

# Last but not least: a few quick ones:

Favourite horror movie?
“Evil Dead (cliché, I know).”

Favourite porn star?
“Oh, a hard one. Uh, Chloe Jones.”

Favourite serial killer?
“Fred West.”

Favourite cookie-monster vocalist?
“Ben Goreskin of Gorerotted.”

Favourite murder weapon?
“Penis.”

Conducted and written by Misereion.