Nous avons eu la chance de discuter avec Inferno, le batteur de la formation extrême Behemoth, qui sera de passage au Club Soda le 22 avril prochain dans le cadre du Metal Alliance Tour. On parle du nouvel album du groupe, des meilleurs drums du monde et de ses albums préférés, entre autres.

Thorium – So you just came back from a european tour with Behemoth. How did it go ?

Inferno – We are really happy about it. It was like our last european tour with Cannibal Corpse, pretty much the same venues and lots of the shows were sold out. We had a new setlist, we totally changed it and played five new songs from the Satanist. We felt pretty good about it.

T – What can your North american fans expect from the tour?

I – I can’t wait ! It’s always good to be back in the US and Canada. We always had a great response over there so I just can’t fucking wait !

T – You have released an album earlier this year that came out to tremendous praise. What are you most proud of out of it ?

I – For me, it was the possibility to change my drum sound. This time around, we tried to get a more natural sound from the room where we recorded the album. The songs are also very differents in terms of arrangements and rough structures we never had before in this band.

T – Did you change your kit for this record ?

I – I had a choice to use anything I wanted, so now I moved to Pearl Drums for the european tour.  I just signed with them and and am waiting on a new kit now. They have the best gear on the planet so it was easy to make a decision. The recording session was very confortable, we were very well prepared and rehearsed for a couple months, pretty much everyday except weekends.

T – Is there anything special or unusual about your drumkit ?

I – I used rototoms on the albums this time around. They were used in the eighties in old Sepultura and Kreator albums like Pleasure to Kill. I used splash cymbals for the first time also. It gives more flexibility to arrangements.

T – Behemoth came out as an unstoppable force in the recent years. Do you think anything can stop the band from bringing the music to the masses ?

I – It’s not gonna happen. We are who we are, and the statement behind us  is to stay strong, and we are stronger than ever now.  Nergal is doing well and is totally healthy, and he has even more energy than before, so… no way !

T – Nergal has released a pretty controversial statement about american death metal bands, saying the majority of US bands are boring and generic. Do you feel the same way ?

I – He was probably thinking about the newer generation, nu metal and metalcore shit.  We are all big fans of american bands like Deicide, Morbid Angel and the rest, so it’s probably not about satanic and death, thrash or black metal bands. We have huge respect for the US black metal scene, for the bands like Inquisition which we played with on the european tour and will share the stage with in America, Leviathan… That’s what I think about it.

T – You are one of the fastest drummers ever recorded in the extreme metal scene. Do you think speed is necessary in extreme and death metal ?

I – No, definitely not ! Man, I can say I try to spend more focus on precision and trying to play as well as I can. It’s nothing about speed. The Satanist is not so fast as we were before. It’s focus is more about emotion and atmosphere.  It’s the way I understand it after twenty years of drumming, it’s definitely not about speed. It’s about having an open mind and doing pretty much everything.

T – What are the albums you listen to the most ?

I – For now, the new Titan Blood record, Grand Magus, Dead Can Dance,  and most of the old school stuff like Immortal.

T – Do you feel you have grown since your first american tour in 2003 ?

I – I’m definitely more professional and mature, that’s for sure, and conscious about the music I play. As a band we also dropped our limits. You can hear it in the new album, the riffs and the rock structure, we never would have pulled this kind of stuff on the previous records, it was not possible. This time, we wanted to play the music we wanted to listen to, frankly.

T – Any other bands you would like the share with ?

I – I would have to say The Devil’s Blood, but it is not possible anymore, unfortunately. I remember the tour we did with them a few years ago and it was the best tour we’ve done, ever.

T – What can we hear if we ride in Behemoth’s tour bus ?

I – You can hear some really crazy shit in there, especially during party time ! Stupid music from polish cartoons, old school stuff, pop rock stuff from Poland, and of course, a lot of classic thrash, black metal bands. There’s always Mercyful Fate’s first album and stuff like that to make everyone happy.

T – Do you have anything to say to your Montreal fans ?

I – Can’t wait to play over there !  Thanks so much for your support !

httpv://youtu.be/Czx-OIyrQwQ

Auteur: Phil Mandeville

Crédit photo: Paul Blondé (Archives Thorium)