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Interview answered by Sérgio Baloff (vochaos!) Hello Sérgio, you disgusting Brazilian Death Metal Bastardo! Welcome in Carnage #.11! What's up in Brazil? Deathmetallic greetings you fuckin' German Metal maniac Marcus!!! It's a demoniak pleasure for me to appear in the rotten pages of your Carnage'zine! Things are at the same time intense and chaotic here in the Headhunter D.C. camp! Intense because we have nearly 100% of the new stuff ready for the next album, what means that we will be entering in the studio again pretty soon to record our fourth assault of unholy brutality, and chaotic because we are facing some problems with the line up once again (we're already record holders concerning line-up changes in the whole Metal history, surpassing Death and Incantation in this subject, hahahaha!!!), since bassist Alex Mendonça simply abandoned the band near the recordings of the new album, what should bring us some delay for this. Also the drummer Thiago Nogueira left the band recently, since he has been involved in another parallel projects to Headhunter D.C. (non Metal stuff...) there's already some time, and he has not been enough dedicated to the band as we really needed, then he also decided to leave the band to dedicate himself to these other jobs exclusively, which surely give him much more money than Headhunter D.C. gives (money suxxx!!!)! Nevertheless, Thiago will probably record the new album for us just as a session musician, but at once we are seeking for another drummer for replacing him (what won't be easy in a city as Salvador - no salvation!), as well as a new bassman. As you can see, dear Marcus, the last news aren't that good, but if it depends on our perseverance and our willpower for what we believe is true (something that already lasts 15 long years), we will be solving this old problem in our anti-trend journey again very soon, after all we are already experts when the subjects are difficulties. As I use to say, "the battle must go on... never surrender"!!! The same boring procedure in every interview: Tell us a little bit about the beginning! Uaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!! I'm fuckin' sleepy! hahaha!!!! Let's go... The band was formed 15 years ago, in fact in May 1987, by guitarist Paulo Lisboa after his first bands split, Túmulo (from 1986), which was the first Extreme Metal act from the state of Bahia (along with Speed/Thrash fighters ThrashMassacre - RIP) and surely one of the first from the North / Northeast side of Brazil. The band has already featured several line ups with the passing of the years, but just me ( who entered the band in late '89, replacing the original vocalist Eduardo Falsão ) and Paulo were part of the line up that recorded the debut LP "Born...Suffer...Die", in '91. Besides, we went by all difficulties that the Brazilian bands from the eighties used to face until we arrive where we are today. In spite of all those difficulties, we are here today, alive and stronger than ever, keeping at spreading the mighty Death Metal cult through this vast Underground universe!
What says your mummy about her holy and lovely son who plays in a brutal christhunting Death Metal band? She said: "Oh, my God, my son is an antichrist and sings with a demonic voice!!! Where did I wander?" hahahaha!!! Of course she, as well as my daddy, would prefer that I had an angelic voice and sing about flowers and love or that I was a fuckin' doctor, engineer or shit like that, but I believe she's already get accustomed to my headbanger and Metal musician way of life, since I'm already in that "business" (ha!) there're at least 13 years! Poor mom... You are right once again, so you can keep smoking how much marijuana you want! hahaha!!! Actually I think we are part of the old school of Metal, since as I told you before we were formed in mid / late eighties, and a lot, a lot before that, me and Paulo were already banging our fuckin' heads to the sound of Venom, Slayer, Exodus, Metallica, Possessed, Satan, Metal Church, Iron Maiden, etc. (we're already two old bastards reaching/surpassing the thirty years old! ), therefore in all that is related to our work, be it the image, the music, the posture, the attitude, you will find references from the old school of Metal. The old school for us represents the whole true side of Metal: the magick, the old feeling, the essence which has been unfortunately lost with the passing of the years, so, to keep that old essence alive and that old flame burning in the current days is one of the main goals in the whole concept of our hard work! Some of my fave bands from the old school are Slayer, Venom, Sodom, Bathory, Bulldozer, Hellhammer / Frost, Tormentor / Kreator, Destruction, Necronomicon, Assassin, Metallica ( via 3 first albums), Possessed (eternally masters!), Dark Angel (2 first albums!), Exorcist, Hirax, Sacrifice, Nasty Savage, Running Wild (2 first LP's), Voi Vod (2 first LPs), Iron Angel, Angel Dust ("Into the Dark Past"), Whiplash ("Power and Pain"!), Exodus ( of course!!! where do you think my pseudonym "Baloff" came from? hehe!), Ïnfernal Mäjesty, Messiah, MX, Sepultura ( via 3 first albums), Vulcano, Sarcófago, Cova, Blasphemer, Mutilator, Chakal, Holocausto, ThrashMassacre, Anthrax ( with Neil Turbin only! ), Pentagram (Chile), Protector, Slaughter, Poison (Ger), At War, and also old Heavy Metal / NWOBHM bands such as Satan / Blitzkrieg, Metal Church, Iron Maiden, Picture, Ozzy, Black Sabbath, Omen, Manowar, Accept, Savatage (via 3 first albums), among others. As for the photos on the back cover of "...And The Sky...", actually we always wanted to use some brutal live pics in our albums to give people an idea about our insane behaviour on stage (pure fuckin' headbanging!!!), but we had not still taken such good pictures that could be used on them. Overkill's "Feel the Fire" is a good comparison, but I think the style of our photos is closer to Exodus' "Bonded by Blood", don't you think? The old school lives on!!!!!
What do you think about the Rebaelliun Split? My gay friend Uwe felt very angry about that. The fucker wants to make an interview with them as I told him that they have splitted up, hahaha! I know the Rebaelliun guys personally and we have already played together twice: in December'99 and in October 2001, and in spite of I'm definitively not into this new wave of "Extreme Brazilian Death Metal" (that "tatatatatatatatatatatatata" kinda sound the whole time, you know...), I sincerely found it's a pity that they have splitted up, because they were a band which, as well as Krisiun, they showed the world, in a wide scale, that Brazilian Death Metal is still alive (in spite of this trend created around them), besides being a band that featured two excellent guitarists, Fabiano and Ronaldo. Nevertheless, I preferred them when they were still called Blessed. Their "The Evil's Transcendence" demo is a killer one and has really cool songs!!! Their guitarist / founder Fabiano Penna is actually playing in a band called Horned God, in the same vein of Krisiun and Rebaelliun, I think... By the way, is your gay friend Uwe the same one whose King Wolle sent me a photo in which he's wearing a corsage and a garter-belt and making love with a car? hahahahaha!!! Fuckin' hilarious!!! Thanks for your kind words! We're always happy and proud when we know that fuckin' true Death Metalheads (like you!) really get to assimilate the true concept of our music, of our hard work. "...And The Sky..." truely represents everything that genuine Death Metal means for us, and in that way, it becomes easy so that the fans who look for Death Metal's true essence identify themselves with it. Of course those who follow the trends will hate it, since we don't play spiritless music, with blast beats all the time, chaotic riffs (and without any feeling) and ultra boring and monotonous grunts, you know, but those who seek for 100% UNTRENDY Death Metal, this is the right album in my opinion. Just check and draw your own conclusions! The writing process of our songs is not so complex! The songs are mostly fruits of Paulo Lisboa's sickly mind, who later passes on the riffs for the other members so that they can put their arrangements into the songs (bass, drums and vocals). Sometimes a little bit of Alkohol goes well in this ultra complex process, haha! But the most important is that all the members have the same feelings and thoughts regarding Death Metal music/ideology, the rest is just consequence. Actually the keyboards were never so important in our music and not even we use this instrument alive. We used the keyboards in the album just to create a more morbid, gloomy and funereal atmosphere in some compositions ( we had also used the keyboards on two songs in "Punishment at Dawn", back in '93, and in the Promo'96), and I think we've got a good result in "...And The Sky...". We had plans of recording the fourth album in November or December, but since the label will delay a bit more to send the money for the recordings ( besides the current line-up problems we have been struggling, mentioned in the first question ), we should enter in studio only in February or March. But in spite of this small delay, it will also have its good side, since we will have a little more time to better work on the new stuff to do our best album to date. Anyway, the album is planned to be released in the first semester of 2003, so keep on waiting! New odes to death and hymns of brutality & mayhem are on the way... Yes, and we also use make-up and wear pink garter-belts like Vince Neil of Mötley Crüe used to dress him (her) self in "Theatre of Pain"! By the way, I'm thinking about colouring my hair in blond, what do you think? You know, in the best German tradition, hahahahaha!!! Yes, her name is Maida and she is guitarist Fábio Nosferatus' daughter! She was born banging forth her head and her hair is longer than the one of Ross Dolan of Immolation, what's letting us fuckin' envious, because we are already beginning to be bald! hahahaha!!!!! She is the first heiress of our Death Cult and she's being prepared to give continuation to our eternal Deathmetallic saga! LONG LIVE DEATH CULT!!! About the bands you've mentioned, I only know Dew-Scented, but only by name. I know they have an album called "Ill-Natured", but that's all. Sorry! Is that too shameful for me? On the other hand, I know some great bands from your country , as the mighty leaders of German Thrashing Black Metal Desaster (hail Tormentor!!! Can't wait to listen to your new hellish assault "Divine Blasphemies"!!!), Anasarca (killer!), Pavor (do they still exist?), Resurrected, Baron ("Reborn in Revenge" demo'97 rules!), Impending Doom, Kadath and others...
The fanzine scene in Brazil was never very well-known out of here unfortunately, perhaps for we have had just a very few zines written in English in the past, as it is the case of Necronomicon, Revenge (both existent between '87 and '89) and Black Hole (written in English - PO Box 1181, Curitiba, PR 80.011-970), this last one is still active until nowadays, now as a magazine. In early / mid eighties there was Rock Brigade (which would become the biggest Metal magazine in Brazil and a label) and Heavy Metal Maniac, which would become in a store and a distro / label. I myself started doing a zine called "Rotten Death" in late eighties, but I never got to release its #1, because in that same time I was called to do the vocals in Headhunter D.C., and I didn't get to reconcile the two things. Anyway, this is a project that I must still accomplish before going to hell! Some great Brazilian zines that really work hard for the scene, and so deserve to be mentioned here are: Psychosis Death ( going to the #3 soon, written in Portuguese and English - Rua Madre Lúcia Maria, 643, Sorocabano, Jaboticabal, SP 14.870-460, e-mail psychosisdeath@ig.com.br ), Sceptic Circle ( Rua Uruguai, 09 - Jd. Bela Vista, Ferraz de Vasconcelos, SP 08.500-000 ), Black Arrow ( PO Box 279, Embu, SP 06.801-970, e-mail: blackarrow@ig.com.br ), Medical Genocide ( Qd 4, Lt 05 - Vale do Pedregal, Novo Gama, GO 72.860-000 ), Morbid Tales ( Rua Rio Oiapoque, 254, Braz Madeira, Cascavel, PR 85.809-220 ), Deusdemoteme ( Rua Antônio Miranda, 922 - Juçara, Imperatriz, MA 65.900-620, e-mail: slander@jupiter.com.br ), among other few ( but true ) books of Brazilian darkness. Write and check'em out!!! When I read the catalogue from Hellion Records I must puke. From Brazil comes a Power Metal wave to us. Not enough that the Italians rip us off, no, the Brazilians do it too. And the bands have so stupid names like "Völlig Heilig", what means total holy and so? Do you know something about the "Brazilian way of Power Metal"? Hahaha!!! Trends come, trends go... I definitively hate all those new symphonic / epic / melodic (irck!) Power Metal bands, be them German, Italian or even Brazilian! I can't feel any "power" in those actual bands, as all of them seem to have the same gay vocalist singing about the same "swords, magicians and dragons"! I think any of them will NEVER reach the class of "Walls of Jericho" for example, although they try to copy Helloween all the time! Fuck them!!! That "Brazilian way of Power Metal" you told about doesn't interest me, definitively! "Völlig Heilig"? I've never heard about this band here! What does this name means, Mr. Marcus? "Sacred sword of God" or "Soldier of Heaven"? hahahahaha!!! Unfortunately we have not been playing live so much as we wanted or as we have been requested to lately, just because of the fuckin' line up problems we're actually facing. We were recently forced to cancel a very important tour through the Brazilian Northeast, as well as we have lost the opportunity of being an open act for the Polish gods Vader in one of their gigs here in Brazil in December due to those problems, can you believe that? Argh! My world has tumbled!!! The last gig we did was in June, in Brasília, DF, where we play with the brothers of Embalmed Souls, at a simply memorable night, where genuine Death Metal reigned supreme! A killer gig!!! The last gig I saw until the day I am answering this intie was Destruction and Kreator, here in Salvador, in August, in my birthday. Can you imagine how drunk I was at that night? Destruction was really great, and in spite of their last albums sound a little too modern for me, my neck almost broke to the sound of such old classics as "Antichrist", "Curse the Gods", "Live Without Sense" and "Mad Butcher"! They were killer on the stage! I could finally have an autograph of Mr. Schmier on my old rotten jacket! As for Kreator, they were a fuckin' shame! They were totally apathetic on stage and they didn't play any song from "Endless Pain", even with the crowd screaming insistently: "Tormentor! Tormentor!" Really disappointing for their first gig in our city! Kreator is fuckin' dead!!! I have not been buying many albums lately. First because CDs here in Brazil are so fuckin' expensive and second because not so many stuffs have really impressed me lately. If I remember well the last record I really needed to pay to have it was Immolation's "Close to a World Below" and there's quite some time since this. Ah, I remember that after this I bought three Vader digipacks (all 2 in 1), re-released on System Shock: "De Profundis/Future of the Past", "Live in Japan/Sothis" and "Black to the Blind/Darkest Age Live'93". Hey, and now I reminded of another record I've bought recently, the fifth one: our own debut album "Born...Suffer...Die" on vinyl format, which is an ultra rare item nowadays. I bought it to do a trade with a friend from Greece. But I perfectly remember the last 5 albums I've got through tradings or gifts from friends, do you want to know them? Let's go: Pentacle "Ancient Death" MCD (thanks Wannes!), Vomitory "Blood Rapture" CD (thanks Tobias!), Incantation "Blasphemy in Brazil" double live LP on Mutilation Rec. (thanks Tullula!), Monstrosity "Live Extreme Brazilian Tour 2002" LP also on Mutilation and Nun Slaughter "Devil Metal" Live LP on Sombre Rec., Germany (thanks Chuck from Tirade Rec., USA!). Nothing bad at all, huh? DEMOLITION HAMMER - Epidemic of Violence? I remember we having received a promo package from Century Media in their early years, and among their releases there was a Demolition Hammer album (I don't remember if it was the "Epidemic of Violence" album), but if I remember well I didn't like their music that much. Sorry man, but why don't you ask me about the classic "Cursed" of Morgoth? What the fuck!!! haha! Celtic Frost - Morbid Tales? What do I have to tell about an album with such jewels as “Morbid Tales”, “Procreation ( of the wicked )” and “Return to the Eve”? One of the very first albums of what would come to be called as Death Metal, besides “Apocalyptic Raids” and “Seven Churches”. A godly masterpiece! Could anybody at that time imagine that they would record an album as “Cold Lake” in the future? Of course not! Sacrifice - Forward to Termination? Another great album by these Canadian thrashers! I am an unfortunate one, because I’ve never got it on vinyl, just an old tape recording. I wanna die!!! I also love their “Torment in Fire” LP, from ‘86, but this is surely also a great Thrash album! Destruction - Infernal Overkill? Another masterpiece which I haven’t enough words to talk about! You Germans are responsible for some of the greatest Death / Thrash / Speed / Black Metal classics of the ‘80’s: “Endless Pain”, “Pleasure to Kill”, “In The Sign of Evil”, “Obsessed by Cruelty”, “Persecution Mania”, “Sentence of Death”, “Eternal Devastation” and... “Infernal Overkill”!!! I still have it on vinyl here in my collection ( original Brazilian press by Woodstock Records ) and I could finally see them alive a few months ago! By the way, could you tell me if they have released any stuff under the name ȁKnight of Demon” back in early ‘80’s? Nephasth - Immortal Unholy Triumph? This album has been also released in the USA through our current label Mercenary Musik / WWIII Rec.. I have listened to only one track from this album, featured on a Mercenary Musik compilation in which we also appear, but as you know it’s not my cup of tea, definitely, but I know they are going to have some recognition out of Brazil, and it means they are working seriously. Anyway, I prefer their 3 track demo from 2000. No, as I told previously it was released by the Brazilian label Mutilation Records (www.mutilationrecords.com.br) in 2000 and one year later it was officially released in North America by Mercenary Musik / World War III Records. This American edition features covers of old (very old...) Sepultura’s “Morbid Visions” and god Possessed’s ȁTwisted Minds” as bonus tracks. Get yours now at www.ww3music.com! To play the most proper sound as possible has always been one of our main goals, and although it’s not so easy to get, I think we have been getting it in any way with each album released, but some influences (be them direct or indirect) or inspiration sources become inevitable, since they are bands we have worshipped for several years. Some of them: Morbid Angel/Immolation (godz! “Unholy Cult” rules!)/Vader (the unholy Death Metal trinity!), old Death, Possessed, Incantation, Necrovore, Malfeitor, Dead Conspiracy, early Sepultura, early Kreator, early Sodom, etc. I am not so proud for Brazil having been the world football champion, since this last world cup was not very difficult, and the Brazilian team was not so strong. We had excellent teams in ‘82 and ’86 and we didn’t get to win! Anyway, it was not bad at all to win in the final against your Germany for 2 x 0, with 2 fuckin’ goals by Ronaldo “the phenomenon”, hahaha!!! But don’t cry bro’, because the next world cup will be there in your country, so perhaps you’ll have a better luck this time. For a while... we’re still the best of the world (sorry pal... hahaha!!!)!!! I am not a big football fanatic as most of the Brazilians are, but I like to go to the stadium once in a while to see my local team, E.C. Bahia, playing, always drinking enormous glasses of cold beer (some smoke marijuana there! ) and leaving the stadium totally drunk without knowing the game’s score, hahahahaha!!! Brazilian football championships are the best (mainly when our team wins!!!)!!! Our main goal with Headhunter D.C. is to keep the essence, the real feeling and the old tradition of true Underground Death Metal alive while we exist. This is what really matters for us: keeping our fidelity and devotion to the Metal of Death untouchable until our last breath! DEATH METAL RULES SUPREME!!! THE GLORY IS OURS!!! Our immediate plans are to record our new album as soon as possible and getting a new drummer and bassist to complete our battle front. And doing gigs, gigs, gigs! We hope to play for you European maniacs soon! Please, get some hot German sluts for me (mainly if we are in the freezing European winter, hahaha!!!)! We play Brutal Death Metal since 1987 and we will NEVER follow any kind of fuckin’ trend that comes to infest the Underground! We have our own concept of what Death Metal is about, and we think the true essence of this style is in bands as Immolation, Vader, Sadistic Intent, Pentacle, Possessed, Incantation, Morbid Angel, Necrovore, Mortem (Peru), Sanctifier, Embalmed Souls, Monstrosity, Malevolent Creation, Vomitory, Sinister, Angel Corpse ( RIP ), among others that keep the old Death Metal feeling alive nowadays. We have nothing against the bands you’ve mentioned, but I find their music extremely boring and monotonous, you know, nothing so that we can really bang our fuckin’ heads, then this “new concept” of “extreme” Death Metal that exists nowadays in Brazil is not for us, definitely! Hey, I hope you understand the whole bullshit I write and hope you have some fun with it like we do, haha!!!!!!!!!! I’m not so familiarized with the gay scene in Brazil, but as for the amount of guys (gays?) that read NecroGAYniac ‘zine here I think the scene is strong and growing up every day... hahahahahahaha!!! A few days ago I met a gay here in Salvador that said me: “Hey, please ask Thomas to send us some pink top shirts with the NecroGAYniac logo on front and the slogan “From Gays to Gays” on back!” C’mon Thomas, let’s support the Brazilian gay scene! hahahaha!!! German & Brazilian gays, unite! hahahahahahaha!!! If I’m not wrong we appeared in the last issue of Necromaniac ‘zine with an interview, but I didn’t get a copy until this moment. Would it be that Thomas didn’t send me a copy because I am not gay? hahahaha!!! By the way, how is the current gay scene there in Germany? Big, I suppose... hahaha!!! Who are the leaders? You and Thomas? hahahahahahahaha!!! To tell you the truth, I was never a big Testament fan. I was always more into Slayer, Exodus, Sodom, Kreator, Destruction, Dark Angel, but in spite of these aforementioned bands have disappointed us with some very weak albums lately, they at least have never wrote ballads, something as a mortal sin for the whole Thrash Metal concept, which is (was?) known by the aggressiveness and energetic riffs. Ballads do not fit in Thrash Metal or in any other kind of true Heavy Metal! Ballads are for the weak and for the romantic ones, so Rob is completely right! |
