The Parish Interview

1. Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that have never heard of you before?
(ryan, guitar/vox)"well we are drunks from appleton wi. We are basically trying to be as ugly and as heavy as possible." (grp, guitar) we try to be
sonically as wide as can be, part by tone and part by note choice, we also are fueled by whiskey and bad decisions. we have big amps and big drums and love
to turn them up."

2. How would you describe your musical sound?
(ryan, guitar/vox)"we kind of cross heavy crust with doom and stoner shit." (grp, guitar)"I would place it between doom and stonerrock with
clever rock parts. I always fall short on this question though when people ask me what we sound like, it is hard for a band to pigeon hole yourself into
a catagory when you want to be more than that." (fred, drums) "crap"(john/bass)"heavy...fat and sassy"

3. What is the meaning behind the band's name?
(ryan, guitar/vox)"amp and riff worship. It is not religious, I hate god and the ideals of religion." (grp, guitar)"well we believe in the brotherhood
and work involved in creating this undeniable wall of sound and all ears shall parish in front of it! oops to cheesey.

4. What releases have you put out so far?
(grp, guitar)"well our first release is on crimes against humanity with desolatevoid and last van zant, we are really excited about it getting out there.
we also have a 45 12" split release with gate on trigger on the dutendoo that is very limited just getting out now and we are in the studio recording a full
length that should be out late summer."

5. How would you describe the lyrical content of the music?
(ryan, guitar/vox)"I find it interesting that people allow religions to control their lives, so that comes up from time to time. also there are songs about
drug abuse and a disgust for humanity."(grp, guitar)"I think living in a small town but by no means small minded we see the pitfalls of humanity and the
little pleasures making fun of eachother can bring and our lyrics reflect that."

6. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?
(john/bass)"the bfg house is an awesome underground venue, and the maritime tavern here in our hometown have been the funnest cuz we can stumble home from
a drunken stooper."(grp, guitar)"I think grand rapids mi. was my favorite, we did this weekend warrior thing with choose your poison and we all ended up
in this hotel room partying till the break a dawn with justus and there was some hilarious male nudity.as for our stage show we just rock out as hard as
we can, it is entertaining to watch I think"

7. Do you have any touring plans?
(ryan, guitar/vox)" we are hitting the west coast in july with dresden for about three weeks."(grp, guitar)" we love the road and want to as often as we
can afford to go."

8. Are any of the band members involved with any side projects, if so who are they and what kind of music do they play?
(ryan, guitar/vox)"I play guitar and do backing vocals in a hardcore/crust band called wartorn which was my main band for several years. we had a couple
releases on c.a.h.records and profane existence. I have turned more attention towards the parish once we started playing shows."(john/bass)"I play bass
in a progressive metal band called onus, we have gone through some member changes and that slowed us down a bit but still trudgin ahead."(grp, guitar)"
I play guitar in a stonerrock band that is called white van that is in hibernation right now because of all our schedules conflict right now and I play
bass in a grindcore/sludge band called neon hole which has a 7" split release coming out with unholy graves."(fred, drums)"I make things go bang."

9. How would you describe the musical progress over the years and what direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?
(ryan, guitar/vox)"we have only been a band for nearly a year and are only in the early stages, but expect relentless brutality."(grp, guitar)"I think we are
gonna get slower and smarter while still keeping our aggression in the fore front."(john/bass)"we get more groovy as we move ahead, we are getting better at
harmonies and groove."

10. How would you describe the underground scene in your home state of Wisconsiiin?
(ryan, guitar/vox)"wisconsin has a couple of great scenes in madison and milwaukee. we live in a small town called appleton, most of our shows are house
shows which are great. there is a wide variety of bands in this area and a lot of people who care about making it happen. the shows are often out of
hand, houses completely trashed, people injured.I am suprised I have never burned a house down actually."(grp, guitar)"I was at a lot of those shows
and he is not exaggerating at all, I know some one right now who has a black eye from a garbage can gettin thrown at his face and he just laughs the
next day about it, sorry zack didn't mean to hit you in the eye! we just know how to throw down here and our nieghbors are just so used to our shenannigans
that it seems pretty typical, but boy does the clean up the next day really suck!"

11. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and what are you listening to nowadays?
(ryan, guitar/vox)"graves at sea, bongzilla, electric wizard, asunder, stormcrow, hellshock, and sleep to name an important few."(grp, guitar)"I love blues
and guitar jazz, and I am a sucker for a good heavy groove like high on fire, yob, old mastadon, and goatsnake."(john/bass)"anything doom and metal, anything
sludgy and gross. that is pretty much everything I am listening to now and some proggy shit."

12. What are some of your interests outside of music?
(ryan, guitar/vox)"drinking/smoking"(grp, guitar)"I have a 1978 camaro z28 that I am doing a frame-up restoration on. I am also into street rodding old guitar
heads, I play one of my creations in this band and it just has a sound all it's own.but we all take time out of our busy schedules to party"(john/bass)"movies,
reading,and hurting myself in the shower."

13. Any final words or thoughts?
(ryan, guitar/vox)"thanks for taking the time to interview us, we really appreciate it."(grp, guitar)"yeah guys thanks a lot, and thanks to all who read this,
we are having a lot of fun in this band and hope to play a town near you soon"(fred, drums) "crap"(john/bass)"keep listening to doom!"

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063685834944#

Desolate Void/Last Van Zant/The Parish/3 Way Split/2010 CD Review

  This is a review of a 3 way split album between Wisconsin's DesolateVoid, South Carolina's Last Van Zant, and Wisconsin's The Parish, and I am going to start off the review with Desolate Void.

Desolate Void plays a style that mixes crust, grind,s ludge and stoner rock together. Drums use alot of fast playing with a good amount of blast beats as well as some slow drumming, while the bass playing follows the riffs coming out of the guitars and has a very powerful sound of their own.

Rhythm guitars mix some fast crust/grind/punk riffs with some slower riffs that mix stoner rock, sludge and doom metal together while the lead guitars have a 70's rock sound with alot of distortion, while the vocals are high pitched grindcore screams with some crustcore style of yelling and spoken word parts.

Lyrics cover alot of hateful and negative themes, while the production has a very heavy sound that captures all off the instruments, In my opinion DesolateVoid are a very good album that should appeal to fans of stoner sludge metal, and there best track is "Expect The Worst".

The Last Van Zant plays a more hardcore sounding version of crustcore.

Drums are mostly fast with alot of brutal blast beats, while the bass playing mixes fast and heavy riffs together, as for the guitars they mostly fast and distorted riffs that are heavily influenced by punk and hardcore with little or no lead guitars present on their songs.

Vocals are mostly hardcore style screams while the lyrics seem to touch on war and hateful themes, as for the production it has a very heavy sound that captures all of the instruments.

In my opinion The Last Van Zant are a very good band, even though this is not a style I write about for this zine, I still feel they are a good band that should appeal to fans of the more hardcore punk style of crustcore. There best song on this recording is "Standing In Blood".

The Parish play a style that I would describe as drone/sludge/doom.

Drums are mostly slow with no fast playing or blast beats, while the bass playing has a heavy and distorted sound that follows the riffs coming out of the guitars.

Rhythm guitars are mostly slow and distorted doom metal riffs with little or no lead guitars and solos, while the vocals are low pitched death metal growls, as for the production it has a raw and heavy sound that captures all of the musical instruments that are present on this side of the split.

In my opinion The Parish are the best band on this compilation that should appeal to all fans of sludge/drone/doom metal. In conclusion this is a good split with 3 good bands that are different from each other. RECOMMENDED BUY.

The Ocean/Anthropecentric/Metal Blade Records/2010 CD Review

  The  Ocean  are  a  band  from  Germany  that  plays  a  very  progressive  and  atmospheric  version  of  sludge  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2010  album  "Anthropecentric"  which  was  released  by  Metal  Blade  Records.

Drums  range  from  slow  to  midpaced  playing  with  no  fast  playing  or  brutal  blast  beats,  while  the  pianos  and  violins  bring  a  very  progressive  sound  to  the  music,  as  for  the  bass  playing  it  has  a  very  thick,  dark  and  heavy  tone.

Rhythm  guitars  are  mostly  slow  to  midpaced  sludge/metalcore  style  guitar  riffs  with  a  grat  amount  of  progressive  and  technical  riffing,  while  the  lead  guitars  are  very  progressive  and  technical  sounding  guitar  solos,  as  for  the  accoustic  guitars  they  have  a  70's  progressive  rock  feel  to  them  with  alot  of  full  chords  and  finger  picking  being  utilized.

Vocals  are  mostly  deep  growls  that  take  influences  from  death  metal  and  metalcore  mixed  in  with  alot  of  clean  singing  male  and  female  vocals,  while  the  lyrics  touch  on  the  corruption  of  Christianity,  as  for  the  production  it  sounds  very  heavy  and  professional  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  good  and  heavy  sound  to  them.

In  my  opinion  The  Ocean  are  a  very  original  and  talented  band  that  should  appeal  to  a lot  of  different  fans  of  extreme  music.  RECEMMONDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Anthropocentric"  "She  Was  The  Universe"  "Sewers  Of  The  Soul"  and  "Heaven  TV".  RECEMMONDED  BUY.

https://www.facebook.com/theoceancollective/

Drug Honkey Interview

 1. Can you update us with what is going on with the band these days?
- We are playing limited shows lately & mainly concentrating on writing & recording our upcoming full length "Ghost in the Fire" for Diabolical Conquest Records out of India. The Indian scene has shown
us much support & respect & we are happy to be spreading our sound to a new demographic -


2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how
does it differ from previous releases?
- Well, there is & always will be a similar feel to our albums, but @ the same time they vary quite a bit in atmosphere.. So, the new album is what I would call a solid mixture of our previous sounds along with a completely new feel which needs to be heard to catch my drift. -


3. What are some of the lyrical topics and concepts the new release explores?
- Most of my lyrics are a variation of reality & what is happening in my life & the world closest to me.. Topics range from self destruction, to demented triumph, to absolute confusion & everything in between. -


4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?
- The difference in spelling in the word honky versus honkey came with the idea that we were the honkys giving you the music that in turn is the drug. Hence the 'key' being the music that us honky's are giving. Or something along those maddening lines. -


5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far, and how would you describe your stage performance?
- Let's see.. The show we played with Today is the Day was a very memorable one. As was the gig with Buzzov*en & Indian.. & just recently we played a show with Upsidedown Cross & Full Blown AIDS that was extremely enjoyable. There have been several great shows over the years, but those are the ones that came to mind as soon as I read the question.
Our Stage performance/presence is a somber one meshed with bouts of violence & dementia. There is no formula, we just go with it. -


6. The album was originally self released but now is re-issued by Diabolical Conquest, are you happy with the way the re-issue came out, compared to the original version?
- Well, it is a re-issue, but not a re-release in the sense of more albums being pressed... yet. Main man Kunal @ DC Records showed interest in signing us based on what he heard from "Death Dub". As we then discussed our future collaboration together, he brought up the idea of distributing the cd's I still have remaining. So, it is the same release, but now being pushed & spread worldwide by the label. & they have been doing an incredible job @ propelling us further than we already were. -


7. When can we expect the next full length?
- As of the time being the plan is to release it by the end of this summer.. August is sounding good.. & with the progress to this point that looks like a solid timeframe. -


8. On a worldwide level, how has your music been received by doom metal fans worldwide?
- Overall we have received a good response. We know & expect that not everyone is going to like or understand our brand of music, but all is well as of now. The good response is heavily outweighing the bad & that is all we can ask for. -


9. Are there any side projects besides this band, or is this a full time line-up?
- There are many.
I am also vocalist & founder of death/grind band Morgue Supplier.
Drug Honkey & Morgue Supplier are my two main projects.
Our drummer BH Honkey is a drum 'n' bass dj & producer who has many releases under his monicker of M1D1.
I am also the lunacy behind noisegrind project Asscavern.
BH Honkey & myself also have our electronic dark down-tempo project called KLLU.
Last but not least, I am also involved in an avant-garde/doom three piece called LadyBug DeathCamp with David Holland & Jim Deabenderfer from Cardiac Arrest.
There are others as well, but the ones I have mentioned are the most solid & forward moving. -


10. Your music makes a lot of references to drugs, what are some of the drugs that help you to write creative music?
- We have all done our share of everything you can imagine, but really, life circumstances develop most of our feel/sound. -


11. How would you describe your musical progress over the years and what direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?
- Our progression is ever moving & @ a standstill @ the same time. What I mean by that is: The natural course of playing together as a band brings forth a constant evolution of what we do naturally. Our sound will just keep evolving while staying the same. If that doesn't make sense, then you won't understand us & probably won't like us. & that's just fine by us. -


12. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music, and also what are you listening to nowadays?
- We have a diverse musical taste as a band. Some are: Winter, Autopsy, RZA, Scorn, Skin Chamber, Upsidedown Cross, Mr. Bungle, Eyehategod, Godflesh, Simm, Hellhammer/Celtic Frost, Aphex Twin, Swans, Nirvana, Solaris, Dream Death, Cianide, Led Zeppelin, Pixies, Kim Thayil, Jesu, Melvins, & Techno Animal. & There are so many more incredible bands/musicians that have got us to this point in our lives, these are just a small fraction. -


13.What role does Satanism, Occultism or Anti-Christianity play in your music, and how would you describe your views on these topics?
- It plays a role in the sense that we don't believe in anything that rejects individuality & imagination. For us, Satan plays the role of selfishness. By that I mean, we are selfish in our beliefs & what we
stand for. Friends, family, & individual thought are all that we concentrate on. All the other "worldly" nonsense is not a concern.
There is no real Anti-Christian sentiment in the literal sense of the word. We don't really care what anyone else believes in, even though I do wish people would squash their traditions and move forward because it hinders us as a race in so many ways. To each their own, just don't ever come @ us with what we know to be ridiculous. –


14.Outside of music, what are some of your interests?
- My family, my animals, my friends. –


15. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
- Just a big thank you for your time & this well thought out interview. And - everyone be on the lookout for the new album "Ghost in the Fire" coming out soon on Diabolical Conquest Records. -

https://www.facebook.com/drughonkey

Drug Honkey/Death Dub/Diabolical Conquest Records/2010 CD-Re-Issue Review

  Drug  Honkey  are  a  band  from  Chicago,  Illinois  that  plays  a  very  experimental  form  of  doom/death  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2008  album  "Death  Dub"  which  was  re-issued  by  Diabolical  Conquest  Records  in  2010.

Drums  are  mostly  slow  playing  with  no  fast  drumming  or  blast  beats,  while  the  samplers  are  very  dark  mixing  in  noise  elements  and  are  very  evil  sounding  mixed  in  with  some  synths  that  make  the  music  sound  even  more  darker,  as  for  the  bass  playing  it  has  a  very  thick,  heavy  and  noisy  tone  with  some  low  doomy  riffing.

Rhythm  guitars  are  mostly  slow,  doomy  and  sludgy  sounding  riffs  with  alot  of  heavy  and  noisy  distortion  and  there  are  no  guitar  leads  or  solos  present  on  he  recording  which  makes  the  music  sound  alot  heavier.

Vocals  are  mixture  of  deep  death  metal  growls  with  some  high  pitched  screams  and  some  industrial  style  vocals,  while  the  lyrics  cover  despair,  drugs,  confusion,  anti-religion  and  Satanism,  as  for  the  production  it  has  a  very  heavy  raw  feel  to  it,  but  you  can  still  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  and  one  of  the  songs  was  recorded  live.

In  my  opinion  Drug  Honkey  are  a  very  good  and  original  sounding  experimental  sludge/doom/death  metal  band,  and  if  you  are  looking  for  something  original,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "My  Sins"  "The  Devil  Lasts  Forever"  and  "Who  The  Fuck".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

https://www.facebook.com/drughonkey

The Atlas Moth Interview

1. Can you update us with what is going on with the band these days?
We are about a week into tour with Nachtmystium, Zoroaster and Dark Castle which has been pretty awesome thus far. Its always great being on the road with people you are friends with prior to hitting the road. We also have a covers EP coming out at the end of Sept and are writing a new full length that we hope to record early 2011.

2. How would you describe the musical style of the new material?
Its a little too early to tell i suppose, although, we have never set out with a goal of what we should sound like. We just get into a room together and work on songs until they feel right. I suppose it sounds like the next logical step to take from 'A Glorified Piece Of Blue Sky'

3. What are some of the lyrical concepts and subjects that you are working on these days?
Once again, a little too early to tell as far as a new record goes. Both Dave and I write our own parts usually, so speaking for myself, i tend to write from more of a personal stand point. Whats going on in my life and or what i see around me. We havent gotten past very rough demos for a new record yet and i have written some lyrics but who knows what will stick. Something that bothers me now may not bother me by the time i hit the studio and then i feel as though it would be silly for me to go and try and express those feelings when they are not true to the time period.

4. How has the tour been so far, what are some of the best shows that the band has played and how would you describe your stage performance?
This tour has been great, like i said, always good to be out for a month with people you know. My favorite shows are usually DIY shows. Last fall when we were out with Wetnurse, we played a place called the Sweatshop in Providence and a place called Unit 11 in Boston which were both just out of hand. The element of danger at a warehouse show is something that i can never get enough of.

5. Do you have any plans to tour Europe as well?
We are working on that as well. We have some early US touring plans next year which will take us to both the east and west coasts which will hopefully be followed by Europe immediately after in April/May 2011

6. What are some of the other side projects that the band members play in, and what kind of music do they play?
Andrew and Tony both work at a studio and often collaborate on various projects but i wouldn't know how to explain any of it to be honest. Its also so very across the board. I also do Twilight and a new project i am working on with Jeff Wilson (ex Nachtmystium), Bob Fouts (Gates of Slumber) & Bruce Lamont (Yakuza) which i plan on finishing my vocals for when i get home from this tour.

7. How has the support been from Candlelight Records so far?
Candlelight has been really great to us. Oddly enough, they showed up when we played a basement in Delaware on our very first tour and showed great interest in us since then. They were an obvious choice for us when we were working on "A Glorified..."

8. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and what are you listening to nowadays?
We all listen to everything...we can find inspiration in pretty much any music. I personally am greatly influenced by Deftones, Nick Cave, & Sabbath, so obviously i have been listening to the new Deftones & Grinderman records. I also rarely find an actual metal record that blows me away but the new Dawnbringer just recently blew my mind as well as the new Wolvhammer record.

9. How has your music been recieved by sludge fans worldwide?
I think we have been received pretty well by sludge fans but i also find a lot of sludge fans say that we are way more than just your average sludge band which is obviously a grand compliment.

10. How would you describe your musical progress over the years and what direction do you see the music heading into on future releases?
I think any good band progresses naturally without trying to change. Its good to have goals with where you want to take your music but in reality its always best to let is happen naturally. I personally believe we took great strides between our EP and our full length and i would hope that we can take even larger strides between our full lengths.

11. I have read somewhere that one of your members is into Shamanism and Summerian Magick, what role does it play in the music?
That is Dave, our lead guitar and clean vocalist. The rest of us are not versed in that particular area but Dave definitely brings that vibe to us and i can't say i haven't sat around listening to him talk about it a lot that it hasn't fascinated me to some degree. He often burns sage before we start our set on stage which definitely sets the mood for us as we are starting. Without that, it doesn't even seem like a complete show to me.

12. Outside of music what are some of your interests?
I do various forms of art. Lots of bands CD layouts, posters, shirts, yadda yadda. That has become my main source of income over the last few years or so. I also have a soft spot for comic books but at this point of my life i can't afford the ones i want so i try to ignore em and every few months grab a few graphic novels to take on the road with me.
13. Any final words or thoughts before we close this interview?

Thanks a lot for the interview, it was a pleasure!
cheers.

--
Steven
http://www.theatlasmoth.com/
http://www.myspace.com/theatlasmothband

The Atlas Moth/The One Amongst The Weed Fields/Candlelight Records/2010 CD Review

 The Atlas Moth are a band from Chicago, Illinois that plays a psycheldelic form of stoner/sludge/doom metal and this is a review of their 2010 ep "The One Amongst The Weed Fields" which will be released by Candlelight Records.

Drums are mostly slow to midpaced drumming with no fast playing or blast beats, while the bass playing has a very dark and doomy tone.

Rhythm guitars are mostly slow to midpaced stoner/sludge metal riffs that are heavily influenced by 60's rock, while th lead guitars are very 70's inspired guitar solos that have a heavy psycheldelic edge to them.

Vocals are a mmixture of sludge style screams and clean singing vocals, while the lyrics cover everyday life type of themes with a heavy doss of drug use, as for the production it sounds very professional and you can hear all of the musical instruments that are present on this recording.

In my opinion The Atlas Moth are a very good stoner/sludge metal band that should appeal to all fans of this genre. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "California Dreamin" and "Golden". RECOMMENDED  BUY.