ENGLISH VERSION CLICK HERE
Tratamos de realizar esta entrevista varias veces. Había perdido la fe, pero gracias al amigo Curby del Obscene Extreme logramos que nos respondieran, lo que me pone extremadamente feliz.
Estos señores son los titanes del grind. Los años pasan y ellos siguen moviéndose adelante, creando bombas de caos sonoro.Ya lo dijimos antes, no hay banda que reúna el espíritu del OBSCENE EXTREME tanto como estos oriundos de Birmingham, Inglaterra. Todos de pie, con ustedes Napalm Death.
ND está siempre moviéndose adelante, sacando material nuevo y empujando los límites de la música. ¿Cómo hacen para mantener esa energía y esas ganas de seguir adelante?
Barney: Es algo natural - no siempre es fácil de explicar. Lo importante es que espero que no perdamos la espontaneidad y el costado caótico de nuestro sonido. Si somos capaces de mantener ese tipo de fundamento, podemos intentar algunas cosas diferentes en principio y la banda por suerte no perderá su esencia. Si las cosas se empiezan a sentir estancadas, yo creo que ninguno de nosotros en la banda estaría satisfecho. Aunque creo que nuestra música es muy natural y orgánica, todavía no nos conformamos con cualquier cosa que no se sienta al 100%.
Ustedes siempre tienen un concepto o filosofía importante tras cada disco y “Utilitarian” no es la excepción. Cuéntennos un poco sobre qué es ser “Utilitario”. ¿Sienten que ese mensaje puede llegar más allá de su audiencia?
Barney: No sé si soy un utilitarista o no. Yo estaba utilizando principalmente ese concepto como asociación de palabras - con el concepto filosófico del utilitarismo (el principio básico es el logro de la felicidad total) a pensar en una "vida ética", donde el proceso de toma de decisiones éticas en la vida diaria teóricamente permite alcanzar una felicidad mayor. Si partes desde de allí - como alguien que trata de vivir éticamente - entonces quería hacer frente a la duda que atraviesas cuando uno se pregunta si en realidad estás haciendo algún tipo de diferencia. La conclusión, simplemente, es que se debe perseverar, ya que de no hacerlo eso perpetúa la explotación y por lo tanto contribuye a la continuación de los niveles de desigualdad.
En general, todo lo que tratamos de hacer es poner mis ideas afuera. No sé si esos pensamientos han llegado más allá de las personas que están en Napalm, y eso no es algo que sea fácil de conseguir de todos modos. Si se abre la mentede las personas, incluso un poco, entonces eso es realmente un logro. Eso es todo lo que siempre me pregunto– que si la gente piensa y valora las cosas por sí mismos. No es necesario que estén de acuerdo conmigo en mi cada pensamiento particular.
La influencia Napalm Death en la música es incuestionable y hay cientos de covers y tributos de bandas grind a ND. ¿Cómo se sienten al generar tal influencia y respeto?
Barney: Es muy halagador, pero somos conscientes de que tendremos que hacer otro álbum, tarde o temprano, y esperamos que pueda tener el mismo tipo de impacto. Parte de la longevidad de la banda afortunadamente proviene del hecho de que nos hemos mantenido con los pies en el suelo, como una banda, así que tratamos de no dejar que las cosas se nos vayan a la cabeza - incluso las cosas agradables, ja, ja. Y de todos modos, cualquier banda, influyente o no, es más fuerte cuando se tiene una escena vibrante en torno a ella para apoyarla.
ND ha cruzado camino con uno de los grandes músicos de esta era, John Zorn. ¿Quién propuso esta gran colaboración?¿Qué tal fue trabajar entre ustedes?
Barney: Ah, fue Shane quien lo sugirió. Estábamos sentados escuchando las pistas durante la grabación del álbum y Shane mencionó que podía escuchar el saxo de Zorn en su cabeza en “EverydayPox”. Zorn ha tenido una asociación con Napalm y sus ex miembros desde hace algún tiempo - aunque no recientemente - por lo que Shane probó su suerte y le mando un email. Afortunadamente, John respondió y realmente se metió en el tema, un par de días más tarde tuvimos las pistas crudas a través de Internet. Todo era totalmente maníaco y de forma libre - de la manera que nos gusta. John Zorn no es alguien que necesite ningún tipo de dirección, ja, ja.
Sacaron un split con Converge y ahora viene uno con Melvins! ¿Qué podemos esperar de ND en el futuro? ¿Tienen nuevos splits por venir?
Barney: No hay nada más planeado en el momento en términos de splits, pero estamos soñando con hacer algún día un split con Swans y/o Gauze de Japón ... o algo así. Algo de esa naturaleza, un clásico por ejemplo!
Tenemos todo tipo de conciertos próximamente, incluyendo una exposición de arte donde un escultor va a construir arcilla alrededor de los altavoces PA que explotarán cuando toquemos. La intención es retratar a los bloques de apartamentos que se desmoronan alrededor de Birmingham donde vivimos. Cosas interesantes.
Ya tienen experiencia en la locura desatada en OEF y además van a encabezar el primer OEF América. ¿Qué expectativa tienen de esta versión?
Barney: Estoy con la mente totalmente abierta a cualquiera de las situaciones, y estoy seguro de que será un gran momento. OEF en la República Checa tiene un gran sentido de la independencia y la amistad, y estoy seguro de que el promotor Curby desea replicar eso en México. La mayoría de las bandas son amigos nuestros, por lo que será como una gran reunión.
Creo que es importante mencionar que ha habido algunas dudas de la gente sobre si la fiesta va a suceder debido a cancelaciones anteriores de otras cosas no relacionadas en el pasado. Pero todo lo que puedo decir es que está sucediendo. Tenemos nuestros billetes de avión y estamos llegando seguro. Creo que es justo decir que este tipo de fiesta extrema es más probable que ocurra a que no - este tipo de bandas tienden a ser bastante persistentes, fuertes y dispuestas. Por lo tanto, nos vemos allí.
You Suffer? (Sufrís)
Barney: But I try not to (Pero trato de que no)
Más información:
Homepage
www.napalmdeath.org
Myspace
www.myspace.com/napalmdeath
These gentlemen are the titans of grind. Years pass and they keep moving forward, creating sonic madness . We've said before, there is no band that meets the spirit of OBSCENE EXTREME much as these natives of Birmingham, England. All rise, Napalm Death is here.
ND is constantly moving forward, with new material and always pushing the limits of music. How do you manage to keep that energy and that desire to move on?
Barney: It’s just something natural - not always easy to explain. The important thing is hopefully that we don’t lose the spontaneity and chaotic edge to our sound. If we can maintain that kind of foundation, we can try a few different things on top and the band hopefully won’t lose its edge. If things did start to feel stale, I don’t think any of us in the band would be satisfied. Although I feel our music is very natural and organic, we still don’t settle for anything that doesn’t feel 100%.
You always have an important concept behind every album and “Utilitarian” is not the exception. Tell us about what is to be Utilitarian. Do you feel that your message has reached far beyond your audience?
Barney: I don’t know whether I am a Utilitarian or not. I was mainly using that concept as word association – using the philosophical concept of Utilitarianism (the basic principle being the achievement of total happiness) to think about ‘ethical living’ where the process of making ethical choices in everyday life would theoretically achieve a wider happiness. Taking it on from there – and as somebody who tries to live ethically – I then wanted to address the doubt that you go through where you wonder if you’re actually making any kind of difference. The conclusion, quite simply, is that you should persevere, as not doing so perpetuates exploitation and therefore contributes toward continuing levels of inequality.
Generally, all I try to do is put my ideas out there. I don’t know whether those thoughts have reached beyond people who are into Napalm, and that’s not something that’s easy to achieve anyway. If it opens people’s minds even slightly, then that’s really the achievement. That’s all I ever ask – that people think and assess things for themselves. It’s not required that they hang on my every thought specifically.
Influence of ND in music is unquestionable and there are thousands of NDs covers and tributes by grind bands. How do you feel when you generate such influence and respect?
Barney: It’s really flattering, but we are mindful that we’ll have another album to do sooner or later and we hope that it might have the same kind of impact. Part of the longevity of the band hopefully comes from the fact that we kept our feet on the ground as a band, so we try not to let things go to our heads – even the nice stuff ha ha. And anyway, any band, influential or not, is stronger when it has a vibrant scene around it for support.
ND has crossed path with one of the great musicians of our times, John Zorn. Who proposed this great collaboration? How was to work with Zorn?
Barney: Ah, it was Shane who suggested it. We were just sitting around listening to the tracks during the last album recording and Shane mentioned he could just hear Zorn’s sax in his head on ‘Everyday Pox’. Zorn has had an association with Napalm and former members for some time – although not recently – so Shane just took a chance and emailed him. Thankfully, John responded and was really into it and a couple of days later we got the raw tracks via the internet. It was all totally manic and freeform – just the way we like it. John Zorn is not somebody who needs any kind of direction ha ha.
You’ve got a split with Converge and is coming out one with Melvins! What we can expect for ND in the future? You have new splits to come?
Barney: Nothing else planned at the moment in terms of splits, but we’re dreaming someday of a split with Swans and / or… Gauze from Japan or something. Something of that nature i.e. classic!
We do have all kinds of gigs coming up though, including an art exhibition where a sculptor is going to build clay around the PA speakers which will explode out when we play. It’s meant to portray the crumbling apartment blocks around Birmingham where we live. Interesting stuff.
ND has experience OEF madness, and now you will headline the first OEF America in Mexico. What expectations do you have for this release?
Barney: I’m totally open-minded about most situations, and I’m sure it will be a great time. OEF in the Czech Republic has a great feeling of independence and friendship, and I’m sure the promoter Curby will want to replicate that in Mexico. Most of the bands are friends of ours, so it’ll be like one big reunion.
I think it’s important to mention that there has been some doubt from people that the festival will happen due to past cancellations of other unrelated things in the past. But all I can say is that it is happening. We have our flight tickets and we are coming for sure. I think it’s probably fair to say that this kind of more extreme festival is more likely to happen than not – these kind of bands tend to be quite persistent, resilient and willing. So, see ya there.
You Suffer?
Barney: But I try not to.
Homepage
www.napalmdeath.org
Myspace
www.myspace.com/napalmdeath
You always have an important concept behind every album and “Utilitarian” is not the exception. Tell us about what is to be Utilitarian. Do you feel that your message has reached far beyond your audience?
Barney: I don’t know whether I am a Utilitarian or not. I was mainly using that concept as word association – using the philosophical concept of Utilitarianism (the basic principle being the achievement of total happiness) to think about ‘ethical living’ where the process of making ethical choices in everyday life would theoretically achieve a wider happiness. Taking it on from there – and as somebody who tries to live ethically – I then wanted to address the doubt that you go through where you wonder if you’re actually making any kind of difference. The conclusion, quite simply, is that you should persevere, as not doing so perpetuates exploitation and therefore contributes toward continuing levels of inequality.
Generally, all I try to do is put my ideas out there. I don’t know whether those thoughts have reached beyond people who are into Napalm, and that’s not something that’s easy to achieve anyway. If it opens people’s minds even slightly, then that’s really the achievement. That’s all I ever ask – that people think and assess things for themselves. It’s not required that they hang on my every thought specifically.
Influence of ND in music is unquestionable and there are thousands of NDs covers and tributes by grind bands. How do you feel when you generate such influence and respect?
Barney: It’s really flattering, but we are mindful that we’ll have another album to do sooner or later and we hope that it might have the same kind of impact. Part of the longevity of the band hopefully comes from the fact that we kept our feet on the ground as a band, so we try not to let things go to our heads – even the nice stuff ha ha. And anyway, any band, influential or not, is stronger when it has a vibrant scene around it for support.
ND has crossed path with one of the great musicians of our times, John Zorn. Who proposed this great collaboration? How was to work with Zorn?
Barney: Ah, it was Shane who suggested it. We were just sitting around listening to the tracks during the last album recording and Shane mentioned he could just hear Zorn’s sax in his head on ‘Everyday Pox’. Zorn has had an association with Napalm and former members for some time – although not recently – so Shane just took a chance and emailed him. Thankfully, John responded and was really into it and a couple of days later we got the raw tracks via the internet. It was all totally manic and freeform – just the way we like it. John Zorn is not somebody who needs any kind of direction ha ha.
You’ve got a split with Converge and is coming out one with Melvins! What we can expect for ND in the future? You have new splits to come?
Barney: Nothing else planned at the moment in terms of splits, but we’re dreaming someday of a split with Swans and / or… Gauze from Japan or something. Something of that nature i.e. classic!
We do have all kinds of gigs coming up though, including an art exhibition where a sculptor is going to build clay around the PA speakers which will explode out when we play. It’s meant to portray the crumbling apartment blocks around Birmingham where we live. Interesting stuff.
ND has experience OEF madness, and now you will headline the first OEF America in Mexico. What expectations do you have for this release?
Barney: I’m totally open-minded about most situations, and I’m sure it will be a great time. OEF in the Czech Republic has a great feeling of independence and friendship, and I’m sure the promoter Curby will want to replicate that in Mexico. Most of the bands are friends of ours, so it’ll be like one big reunion.
I think it’s important to mention that there has been some doubt from people that the festival will happen due to past cancellations of other unrelated things in the past. But all I can say is that it is happening. We have our flight tickets and we are coming for sure. I think it’s probably fair to say that this kind of more extreme festival is more likely to happen than not – these kind of bands tend to be quite persistent, resilient and willing. So, see ya there.
You Suffer?
Barney: But I try not to.
Homepage
www.napalmdeath.org
Myspace
www.myspace.com/napalmdeath
2 invocaciones del cosmos:
Muy buena entrevista. Me gusta. Sencilla en la persona a la que se l e pregunta y a la vez compleja en el planteo de acercamiento, según me parece. Me gustó.
muchas gracias loco. Para mi que barney esté en mi página es un gran honor ya de por si, pura emoción
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