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CARCASS

CARCASS Frontman Says Illegal Music Downloading ‘Can Be A Positive Thing’

Manos Spanos
Tarja Virmakari of Metal Shock Finland and TrueMetal.it recently conducted an interview with bassist/vocalist Jeff Walker of reactivated British extreme metal pioneers CARCASS. You can now listen to the chat using the audio player below. Asked about his views on illegal music downloading, Walker said: "It can be a positive thing, if people download an album, hear it, enjoy it and buy it. The danger is that there is a hard core of people who download and never buy anything, and that's damaging to the music scene. They're not supporting anybody, they're not supporting the artists as fans. But for the most part, I think it's positive. Because I understand fully why people do it. There's so much music out there; people don't have the money or the resources to buy everything. And also people have probably spent or wasted money in the past on albums that have disappointed them. So it gives people a chance to test something before they buy it. I personally don't think it's any different to hearing music on the radio. But, like I say, it's that hard core of people, who… their attitude is very nihilistic and it's out of step with the idea of what being a fan is about. You shouldn't be trying to damage the artist who's trying to being people pleasure. We're not at war with the audience." CARCASS' new album, "Surgical Steel", sold around 8,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 41 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD was released on September 16 in the U.K., September 13 in the rest of Europe and September 17 in North America via Nuclear Blast Records. The effort was produced by Colin Richardson(FEAR FACTORY, MACHINE HEAD, NAPALM DEATH, SLIPKNOT, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE) and mixed by Andy Sneap (MEGADETH, ACCEPT, EXODUS, ARCH ENEMY). Joining guitarist Bill Steer and bassist/vocalist Jeff Walker in CARCASS' current incarnation are new drummer Dan Wilding (ABORTED, TRIGGER THE BLOODSHED) and guitarist Ben Ash(PIG IRON, DESOLATION, LIQUEFIED SKELETON). In a recent interview with Chile's Radio Futuro, Walker stated about the new CARCASS CD: "We think we've made a good album, so it's gonna be very interesting when people get to hear the record. We can't wait to see what people think." He continued: "It sounds like CARCASS. Even the drumming sounds like CARCASS. Everything about it… I think it's gonna shock people, how good it is. I think it's got all the elements that people like, yet it still sounds fresh. So that's all I can say, really, 'cause we don't really sound like any other band, and the fact that after 17 years, we wrote music and it still sounds likeCARCASS, I think it's good." Regarding the direction of the new CARCASS album, Walker previously stated: "We've taken stylistic cues from all the albums because it's in our blood, but it's no rehash or mess of ideas. I think it sounds almost like the missing link between the third and forth albums but with some groove in there. I've jokingly christened some parts 'trad blast' and some 'death sleaze'… don't think for a minute this is just some nostalgic throwback album — we're setting up another 17 years of ideas for other bands to copy and clean up on. [laughs]"
03 min read

CARCASS: New, Previously Unreleased Song ‘Zochrot’ Available For Streaming

Manos Spanos
A new, previously unreleased song from reactivated British extreme metal pioneers CARCASS was made available through Decibel magazine's Flexi Series. "Zochrot" was included in the subscriber version of the magazine's October issue. You can now stream the track at this location. A limited number (fewer than 30) of copies of the issue that includes the flexi is available for sale in the Decibel webstore. CARCASS' new album, "Surgical Steel", sold around 8,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 41 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD was released on September 16 in the U.K., September 13 in the rest of Europe and September 17 in North America via Nuclear Blast Records. The effort was produced by Colin Richardson (FEAR FACTORY, MACHINE HEAD, NAPALM DEATH, SLIPKNOT, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE) and mixed by Andy Sneap (MEGADETH, ACCEPT, EXODUS, ARCH ENEMY). Joining guitarist Bill Steer and bassist/vocalist Jeff Walker in CARCASS' current incarnation are new drummer Dan Wilding (ABORTED, TRIGGER THE BLOODSHED) and guitarist Ben Ash (PIG IRON, DESOLATION, LIQUEFIED SKELETON). In a recent interview with Chile's Radio Futuro, Walker stated about the new CARCASS CD: "We think we've made a good album, so it's gonna be very interesting when people get to hear the record. We can't wait to see what people think." He continued: "It sounds like CARCASS. Even the drumming sounds like CARCASS. Everything about it… I think it's gonna shock people, how good it is. I think it's got all the elements that people like, yet it still sounds fresh. So that's all I can say, really, 'cause we don't really sound like any other band, and the fact that after 17 years, we wrote music and it still sounds like CARCASS, I think it's good."
03 min read

CARCASS Giving People What They Want

Manos Spanos
Joseph Schafer of Invisible Oranges recently conducted an interview with bassist/vocalist Jeff Walker of reactivated British extreme metal pioneers CARCASS. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below. Invisible Oranges: To me, "Surgical Steel" sounds at its heart to be a very sad record. Walker: You think? Invisible Oranges: I think so. Walker: If anything, "Heartwork" and "Swansong" were, lyrically, very serious. This is a throwback to the old days of CARCASS, where it was very lighthearted. But this is cool because you're extracting something from this album. Which is fine. I'm not here to dictate how people should perceive or enjoy this album. People who look at the lyrics and titles and think what the fuck they want are ultimately fragile and stupid. There's no real agenda here, no real issues, nobody's trying to brainwash anyone. I'm not Barney Greenway [NAPALM DEATH]. You can look at it at whatever level you like. You can view the lyrics as throwaway, or look very deep into it, and that's fine. People keep asking me what the chorus is, the numbers on "The Dark Granulating Satanic Mills", and I'm not going to say. I've heard some interesting theories as to what those numbers are about, and that is far more interesting than the reality. Invisible Oranges: Would you describe to me the moment when you realized you were happy doing CARCASS again. Walker: The first rehearsal. I was just happy to be playing with Bill [Steer, guitar] again. He's a far superior musician to me, and a far superior human being as well. It was cool to be back where we started. Invisible Oranges: It really seems like, retroactively, CARCASS is the relationship between you two. Walker: Yes, you could argue that. If I hadn't met Bill, Bill would have achieved musically, but I don't think CARCASS would have existed, so in that sense you're right. But the central songwriter of CARCASS has always been in flux. In the old days it was Ken [Owen, drums] who wrote a hell of a lot of the riffs. If you look at "Reek", we had an equal three-way split. On "Symphonies", Bill started doing more, and I did more of the lyrics. "Necroticism" is 95 percent Ken and Bill. Mike [Amott, guitar] came in at the end with one riff. "Heartwork" was all Bill and Mike's riffs. So as you can see the core of the band is constantly changing in terms of who's writing the riffs. On "Surgical Steel", it's all Bill who's coming up with the riffs. The more I think of it, you can't really call the band mine and Bill's because in the past so much of it really was Ken. Ken cast a long shadow on this album, and his ghost is in the drumming, is in the lyrics and the songtitles. And he even tracked some backing vocals. He's still there in spirit very much. Invisible Oranges: That's sort of poetic considering the way he is mixed into the record, his vocals are lower, so he almost literally is a ghost in the songs.
04 min read

Carcass
Surgical Steel

Panagiotis Karagiannidis
Regarding an album that comes from a band that reforms after many years, we can state that ‘’Surgical Steel’’ is not only the return of the year 2013 but maybe the return of the decade so far.
05 min read

MIKE AMOTT Had ‘No Interest Or Belief’ In Making New CARCASS Album

Manos Spanos
In the October 2013 issue of Decibel magazine, bassist/vocalist Jeff Walker and guitarist Bill Steer of reactivated British extreme metal pioneers CARCASS spoke about the band's split with guitarist Michael Amott and drummer Daniel Erlandsson, who had been touring with CARCASS since the group's reunion was announced in 2007. "In all honesty, once Michael had stepped out of CARCASS again, that's when we could entertain the idea of doing the new record," Steer revealed. "He'd made it very clear from the outset that he'd no interest or belief in there being a new CARCASS record. It's really hard to tell if maybe he felt we were incapable of doing it, or if maybe he was just speaking out of loyalty to [his main band] ARCH ENEMY. I don't know. But once the reunion shows were over, Michael basically said, 'Look, I'm gonna be busy for a few years — you guys do whatever you're gonna do. That meant Jeff and I could talk seriously about doing new material, because neither of us were being pulled in another direction like Michael was. CARCASS had become our main band and had priority treatment." When Amott split, Erlandsson followed. "It's very much a package deal with those two because they're in the same band, and they've invested so much in it," Steer offered. "There's no way that either Jeff or I could condemn them for doing that because ARCH ENEMY is their thing — especially for Michael. It's a band that's made its name from his direction — obviously his lady [ARCH ENEMY singer Angela Gossow] is involved, and until recently his brother was. So, it's always gonna mean more to him than CARCASS, and we can understand that." "I wouldn't expect any different, honestly," Walker concurred. "ARCH ENEMY is Mike's band. So are SPIRITUAL BEGGARS. And CARCASS is our band. It just doesn't mean as much to him as it does to me and Bill. We've been doing this since we were 17. The best way I can put it is this: Any band that Bill or I play with — whether it's BRUJERIA, ANGEL WITCH or GENTLEMANS PISTOLS, CARCASS is our priority. With Mike, this would never be his priority." According to Walker, Amott changed his mind once he heard that Jeff and Bill were actively working on new material. "The reality is that Mike was very keen, more than anyone, for CARCASS to reunite," Jeff said. "A few years later. he wasn't keen for the reunion to continue, and he wasn't keen on the idea of CARCASS doing a new album. This is despite the fact that he contacted me, after we were a year into the songwriting, because he heard we were doing a new album, and indicated that he wanted to be involved. I think Bill had an exchange with Mike about this and gave Mike an opportunity to put his cards on the table, [but] it became clear that Mike wasn't really interested enough to walk away from any of the projects that he's involved in . And don't get me wrong — we've never expected that of anyone . But I think it could be fitted around each other's projects. I still do BRUJERIA, you know?"
04 min read

CARCASS: Entire ‘Surgical Steel’ Album Available For Streaming

Manos Spanos
"Surgical Steel", the new album from reactivated British extreme metal pioneers CARCASS, can be streamed in its entirety in the YouTube clip below. "Surgical Steel" will be released on September 16 in the U.K., September 13 in the rest of Europe and September 17 in North America via Nuclear Blast Records. The effort was produced by Colin Richardson (FEAR FACTORY, MACHINE HEAD, NAPALM DEATH, SLIPKNOT, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE) and mixed by Andy Sneap (MEGADETH, ACCEPT, EXODUS, ARCH ENEMY). "Surgical Steel" will be available on several collectible formats, which can now be ordered with or without an exclusive t-shirt design here. Joining guitarist Bill Steer and bassist/vocalist Jeff Walker in CARCASS' current incarnation are new drummer Dan Wilding (ABORTED, TRIGGER THE BLOODSHED) and guitarist Ben Ash (PIG IRON, DESOLATION, LIQUEFIED SKELETON). CARCASS' first studio LP since 1996's "Swansong" will feature guest vocals from original sticksman Ken Owen. In a recent interview with Chile's Radio Futuro, Walker stated about the new CARCASS CD: "We think we've made a good album, so it's gonna be very interesting when people get to hear the record. We can't wait to see what people think." He continued: "It sounds like CARCASS. Even the drumming sounds like CARCASS. Everything about it… I think it's gonna shock people, how good it is. I think it's got all the elements that people like, yet it still sounds fresh. So that's all I can say, really, 'cause we don't really sound like any other band, and the fact that after 17 years, we wrote music and it still sounds like CARCASS, I think it's good."
05 min read

CARCASS Frontman: ‘We’re Not Trying To Compete With Any Bands That Are Influenced By Us’

Manos Spanos
David E. Gehlke of DeadRhetoric.com recently conducted an interview with bassist/vocalist Jeff Walker of reactivated British extreme-metal pioneers CARCASS. A few excerpts from the chat follow below. DeadRhetoric.com: With the new album ["Surgical Steel"], what was your "Hey, this is going to work" moment? Walker: In the rehearsal room; it's that simple. Bill [Steer, guitar] actually was like, "Okay, let's try this out and if it works, great, if not, we haven't lost anything." My attitude was that it will work, like, "Don't worry, Bill." I have enough confidence in myself and him as a guitar player, and Daniel [Wilding] is a fantastic drummer and I was never under any illusion that we couldn't pull something great off. I mean, we're hungry and we have something to prove after 17 years and we don't want to disappoint people. We don't want to be one of these bands who come back after a long period of time with an album that people are like, "That album sucks!" We already made that album — it's called "Swansong". It's important we don't shit on our legacy. This is almost like making our first album. We've done this off our own volition, with our own time, and our own money. No one was dangling a carrot in front of us. We could have easily found a record deal, then made this album. But I think it was out of pride — especially from my side that it was more important we put our money where our mouth is. We kept it secret, and we didn't want to be accused of doing it for the money. DeadRhetoric.com: There's no money in metal anyway. Walker: I disagree. [laughs] Joking aside, it's easy to deal with those kind of snipes, but I don't want to give people ammunition.
04 min read

CARCASS: Part One Of ‘Surgical Steel’ Track-By-Track Breakdown

Manos Spanos
Part one of a track-by-track breakdown of "Surgical Steel", the new full-length album from reactivated British extreme metal pioneers CARCASS, can be seen below. Watch guitarist Bill Steer and drummer Dan Wilding explain the songwriting process for the songs "1985", "Thrasher's Abattoir", "Cadaver Pouch Conveyor System"and "A Congealed Clot Of Blood". "Surgical Steel" will be released on September 16 in the U.K., September 13 in the rest of Europe and September 17 in North America via Nuclear Blast Records. The effort was produced by Colin Richardson (FEAR FACTORY, MACHINE HEAD, NAPALM DEATH, SLIPKNOT, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE) and mixed by Andy Sneap(MEGADETH, ACCEPT, EXODUS, ARCH ENEMY). "Surgical Steel" will be available on several collectible formats, which can now be ordered with or without an exclusive t-shirt design here. Joining guitarist Bill Steer and bassist/vocalist Jeff Walker in CARCASS' current incarnation are new drummer Dan Wilding (ABORTED, TRIGGER THE BLOODSHED) and guitarist Ben Ash (PIG IRON, DESOLATION, LIQUEFIED SKELETON). CARCASS' first studio LP since 1996's "Swansong" will feature guest vocals from original sticksman Ken Owen. In a recent interview with Chile's Radio Futuro, Walker stated about the new CARCASS CD: "We think we've made a good album, so it's gonna be very interesting when people get to hear the record. We can't wait to see what people think." He continued: "It sounds like CARCASS. Even the drumming sounds like CARCASS. Everything about it… I think it's gonna shock people, how good it is. I think it's got all the elements that people like, yet it still sounds fresh. So that's all I can say, really, 'cause we don't really sound like any other band, and the fact that after 17 years, we wrote music and it still sounds like CARCASS, I think it's good." Regarding the direction of the forthcoming CARCASS album, Walker previously stated: "We've taken stylistic cues from all the albums because it's in our blood, but it's no rehash or mess of ideas. I think it sounds almost like the missing link between the third and forth albums but with some groove in there. I've jokingly christened some parts 'trad blast' and some 'death sleaze'… don't think for a minute this is just some nostalgic throwback album — we're setting up another 17 years of ideas for other bands to copy and clean up on. [laughs]" "Surgical Steel" jewel case track listing: 01. 1985 02. Thrasher's Abattoir 03. Cadaver Pouch Conveyor System 04. A Congealed Clot Of Blood 05. The Master Butcher's Apron 06. Noncompliance To ASTM F 899-12 Standard 07. The Granulating Dark Satanic Mills 08. Unfit For Human Consumption 09. 316L Grade Surgical Steel 10. Captive Bolt Pistol 11. Mount Of Execution "Surgical Steel" digipak track listing:
05 min read

CARCASS Frontman Says MICHAEL AMOTT Was ‘Too Busy’ To Continue Playing With The Band

Manos Spanos
Raymond Westland of Ghost Cult magazine recently conducted an interview with bassist/vocalist Jeff Walker of reactivated British extreme metal pioneers CARCASS. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below. Ghost Cult: Can you talk us through the point CARCASS reformed to the moment you actually started to work on the new album? Walker: We got together in 2007 when Bill [Steer; guitar] finally agreed on doing a couple of gigs. We didn't play any gigs that year, because I walked away from the whole thing, due to certain business arrangements I wasn't happy about. In 2008, the whole reunion thing came about. It was never meant as a long-term thing. Then 2009 came about and we got more and better offers coming in. Same thing in 2010, including a couple of events and venues we hadn't played before. Last gig we did as CARCASSwas in August 2010 with Michael Amott and Daniel Erlandsson of ARCH ENEMY. That was the closure on the whole reunion thing, becauseMichael made it explicitly clear he'd be too busy with his own bands to even consider doing anything in the future with CARCASS. At that point, we hadn't discussed doing anything beyond the whole reunion thing, so that was quite a relief. At some point, Bill contacted me about whether I'd fancy doing anything with Dan Wilding, who was a member ofABORTED when they toured the U.S. Bill has a thing with drummers and he wanted to do something musically with Dan. As for me, I was really prepared and willing to do more music with CARCASS back in 2009. When you're in a band with Bill Steer, Michael Amott and Daniel Erlandsson, it would be wasting a great opportunity not to. Daniel would have made himself available if we would continue doing music with CARCASS, but when push came to shove, he had to make a decision and he decided to stay with ARCH ENEMY. It wasn't really a matter of choosing for him. If he stuck around for longer, a CARCASS album would have been around sooner perhaps.
05 min read