Alright, Scott, what's happenin' Brother? How're thing's going in the Endtime camp?
Hey man!! Great to be doing this interview, been looking forward to this for some time now. Things with End-Time Illusion have never been better. Finally a solid line up , The addition of drummer Yanni Solfianos (Guerra, ex-Pure Chaos) and the vocals of Adam Sloan (18 Wheels Of Justice) has given us the crushing , punishing force that has redefined the ETI sound.
How old were you when metal was introduced into your life and who was the first band that you heard?
I was 8 years old when I was introduced to "heavier" music, Black Sabbath, Dio/Rainbow, Kiss, and the Scorpions were the very first and earliest bands that turned my mind to the dark side of things. But to answer your question Iron Man from Black Sabbath was what started the ball rolling for me.
At what point did you realize that you wanted to play guitar?
I always knew I wanted to play guitar, probably soon after I discovered KISS and saw their guitar smashing antics onstage, I think that is what sold me on the guitar, fuck ,at that point I think I just wanted a guitar so I could smash it just like they were doing. My old man eventually traded his Rickenbacker Bass for what was to be my first axe, a Fender Strat.
What was it like in the New Britain area during the 80's and 90's in regards to metal in general (the scene, clubs, record stores, etc)
The metal scene now is lacking many of the aspects that were prominent in the mid to late 80's and early 90's. There were several great places to play or see shows.... yes, right here in Hard-Hittin' Neuva Britski folks! The Sting, The Sports Palace, The Boiler Room , just to name the more familiar ones. The scene was defined by originality, and no 2 bands sounded alike. Bands like Lachrymator, Putrid Decay, Necrofeast, Excoriate, Tyrant Trooper, and Evilution of course dominated the Death Metal scene. The shows were always packed with crazed metal fuckers donning patch covered denim jackets covered from front to back with the sickest patches and pins....you actually looked forward to going to a record/tape shop to grab the latest releases from the most underground shit you could think of. Places like The Music Shop (Bristol) and Phoenix Records ( Waterbury) , sadly are now closed down due to the Internet and Downloading.
How did you hook up with the guys in Pure Chaos and could you tell me about your experience with them leading up to your leaving the band?
I met the guys from Pure Chaos in the early 90's. I went to high school with vocalist Glen Dauphin, who joined the band shortly before I did. I just happened to be jamming out with another early thrash metal band in the same rehearsal space that they were playing in at the time. Somehow our paths crossed again and I ended up joining the band as the secong guitarist alongside Scott Lana. We seemed to have a great musical chemistry amongst us. The material we were working on was heavy, straight forward, and brutal-as-fuck for its time. Bands like Cannibal Corpse, Deicide, and Malevolent Creation heavily influenced us. The first issue I had with Chaos was our drummer Mike Morril (Messe Noir). Soon after I joined the band , tensions were growing steadily between the 2 of us, erupting into and eventual blow out that would leave the drunken, cross-eyed, one-dimensional drummer out of the band and shit-talking up a fucking storm. Yanni Solfianos would become Chaos' new drummer, 15 years old and light years ahead of the latter in his ability to perform. The truth of the matter is that I didnt leave Chaos, I was fired. I had opted to take on a black metal side project with a friend of mine, and when Scott got wind of it he flipped the fuck out and canned me. Of course there were some other issues that would not help the situation such as my all-consuming drinking and drug habits. This all led to my untimely exit.
Who were among your musical influences during that time?
During that time period I was listening to a ton of great metal. Celtic Frost, Destruction, Fates Warning, early Death, Pestilence, Obituary, Testament, early Metallica, just to name a few that were truly inspirational. Of course I also loved the early Motley Crue and Ratt material!
Could you tell me about your musical involvements post-Pure Chaos?
Ah..... life after Chaos, a couple of projects worth mentioning. I ended up shredding it up with Death/Thrash meisters Incinerator, which featured ex-ETI drummer Matt Sharpe, as well as KILLER shred master Mike Evans on guitar. The material was very thrashy and technical, Iron Maiden and Destruction were huge influences. Things eventually ended with me leaving the band because of some personal issues. In the late 90's I had the pleasure of being asked to audition for Progressive metal band Image Beyond, which featured former Fates Warning drummer Steve Zimmerman. The material was far ahead of its time, very DreamTheater-esque. Musical differences unfortunately ended this gig after about 4 months.
How did you end up working with the Sharpe Bros and could you tell me a little about the origin of End-Time Illusion?
Since jamming with alot of the aforementioned bands in the early 90's, one of the standout shredders was Dave Sharpe. He was always on his game and was way ahead of his time. There was a show at The Boiler Room one night, Cancer, Disincarnate, Lacrymator, Tyrant Trooper, and a couple others. I guess Dave was doing a soundcheck and shredding it up , meanwhile James Murphy was standing off to the side looking at him like "who the fuck is this guy!" I always wanted to be in a band with both Dave and Matt, and End-Time Illusion eventually became that opportunity. We all have a nice long history of complete debauchery and drinking tons of fucking whiskey, sometimes at 9 am while on tour in the middle of nowhere!!
Being that the wigger population in CT is overwhelmingly out of control, would you say that things are a little difficult for the band up in that neck of the woods?
Id actually say that the "wigger" population doesnt effect us at all. I could care less about some fucking chump who chooses to make a fool out of him self by wearing sagging pants belted at the knees. Those idiots should be fed to the pigs after being beaten senselessly. The problem with todays music is all this skinny-jean wearing, fucking break-down, slam, metal core fucking hipsters that bring their emo-bullshit and seem to brainwash the scene into believing that their brand of fucking slop is where its at..... not to mention the faggot combed forward bullshit hairstyles they are flaunting. So to answer your question, there have been quite a few "Fuck You Horseshoes" at some of our gigs, where playing a guitar solo is like WTF!!! What ever happened to shredding that fucking axe?
There have been many betrayals by various metal bands throughout the years such as Slayer pathetically emulating 'nu-metal' on 'Diabolus in Musica' (and pretty much every album since), Moribid Angel flying out of the closet, on fire, and of course every McTallica album released post '...Justice...'. Who are some of the bands, in your opinion, that have committed the gayest acts of treason and why?
I have to say that Morbid Angel, who seemed to "promise" the greatest comeback album is the latest and biggest disappointment as of late. Most of these bands that are trying to pull off a "comeback" just doesn't seem to work for any of them. I have to say that when Celtic Frost "fell in the Cold Lake", it was probably one of the biggest "betrayals" ever. Even though I will still put that album up against any of the faggot bullshit spewing out at us these days. Some of the tracks on that album are really fucking good despite the whole "glam" (puke) concept being thrown into the mix.
Three albums you can't live without:
My top 3 are (In no Specific Order) Fates Warning: Awaken The Guardian, Destruction: Release From Agony, and Celtic Frost: To Mega Therion. Absolute definitive albums that should be a part of EVERY true metal heads' collection.
Anything out there, old or new, that's caught your interest lately? Any suggestions?
Lately Ive been listening to the good ole days of metal, Coroner's Mental Vortex, Sabbat's Dreamweaver, the first few Voivod records. Speaking of Voivod, Im very enthusiastic about their new album coming out. The Track Mechanical Mind is fucking KILLER ..... and very promising!! I also highly recommend the newest Incantation album "Vanquish In Vengeance". These guys havent failed in keeping the old school brutality with the eerie, haunting riffs.
What does the future hold for ETI?
End-Time Illusion will be recording our 3rd full-length album sometime in early 2013. We have been trying to get through the last few tracks in finishing up the material. In the meantime , we have been playing a few shows here and there and the response to the new line-up and material have been just amazing. We will also be looking to shop around the disc to some various record labels and land some sort of record deal. A tour of an unknown length could also follow, possibly towards the middle/end of summer.
Alright Scott, many thanks for your time! Any last words?
Thanks brother!! It has been a pleasure talking with you!! Keep it Metal as always...... Horns Waaaay the FUCK UP!!!\m/\m/
For more info on End-Time Illusion, check them out over on Facebook.
No comments:
Post a Comment