|
MSJ: This interview is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2004 Year Book Volume 3 at https://garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2003-and-2004/.
First, the last time we checked in with you guys, the Ghoul Hunter and the Killbot were raising hell in the catacombs. How did you escape? Or is that a tale yet to be revealed? |
|
At the end of Maniaxe, that rust bucket Killbot smashed the Ghoul Hunter's castle down to the ground with the Ghoul Hunter in it. We assume they both perished in the rubble. Sometimes in the night, however, a strange beeping can be heard coming from the piles of brick and mortar that was once a towering fortress. |
|
MSJ: Tell us a bit more about your new "blood brother" Dissector and what he brings to the cult of Ghoul. How do you expect his presence will change future offerings? |
|
Dissector is our newest member. A guitarist of extraordinary skill and speed, he possesses the power to turn an apathetic crowd into a mosh-crazed gang of numbskulls, simply by playing one of his nefarious thrash riffs. |
|
MSJ: I wouldn't say "Maniaxe" is no longer death metal, but it's a lot more streamlined and less raw than "We Came For the Dead". Do you expect this progression to continue or might you revert to a more primitive sound? |
|
I envision our next recordings to be even more frantic, loud, thrashy, and insane. More blazing solos, more thundering drums, more mosh riffs, more screaming and growling. They'll be the sounds of a band of total maniaxe unchained and going for the throat! |
|
MSJ: What comes first for Ghoul? The lyrics or the music? |
|
Both at the same time. It's hard to write lyrics and play guitar at the same time too. You try it! |
|
MSJ: Have you guys ever considered a full-fledged comic book detailing your adventures? It would certainly be a graveyard smash! |
|
Yeah, it might happen one day in the future. We've finagled an artist that will either finish a Ghoul comic, or see his entire family killed and devoured. |
|
MSJ: Speaking of comics, I suspect you were highly influenced by "Creepy", "Eerie", old EC Comics, etc. What were some of Ghoul's favorite comics and horror movies? |
|
Billy from Razorback sent us some of his favorite comics recently. Sad Sack, Beetle Bailey, Teen Romance...they all sucked. We want something with more gore! This "Creepy" you speak of sounds right up our alley. I've heard of a magazine called Tales from the Crypt as well. That interests Ghoul to no end. If only I could get Billy to stop sending me Lil Lulu comics... |
|
MSJ: Do you have an idea where your story will be headed on the next album? Any chance of Ghoul leaving Creepsylvania and heading to the less cryptic confines of "the real world"? |
|
I've no idea at the moment. As we're still recovering from the brutal onslaught of that mechanical menace and his moronical master, we haven't had many adventures worth talking about. I guess it's going to have to be a surprise! |
|
MSJ: "The End?" was quite a surprise. What provoked you to write this spooky surf music and will you be indulging in any more like it? |
|
It seemed a logical way to end the CD, didn't it? We may do more like it, or we may move on to something else. That kind of music does interest Ghoul, though, and we like many bands from that genre. |
|
MSJ: Another stroke of genius was your cover of "What a Wonderful World". Was it merely sarcasm that inspired you to adapt this track or was there something deeper to it? |
|
Just a sign of the times, I suppose. The world as we see it and all that rot. |
|
MSJ: What's Ghoul like on the live front? Do you play out much? |
|
We've played shows here and there, but usually the police get involved, we have to hide, lose all our equipment, etc. So it's not really worth it. We will play shows when there is a reason to do it, such as a weak and willing audience, ready to be slaughtered and reborn as mosh crazed Numbskulls. Wait, that's pretty much every show, isn't it? |
|
MSJ: How difficult is it to thrash away wearing those hoods? Do you get fresh hoods on a regular basis or have you kept the same ones all along? |
|
It's quite comfortable, actually. |
|
MSJ: There's been some speculation that maybe you guys are not all that ugly under the hoods. That maybe you are more "respected" members of the medical profession, as well as "other" bands. Any truth to those rumors? |
|
Do we look like guys who have time for side bands? |
|
MSJ: What was the last CD/tape/record you got just for your own enjoyment? |
|
Testament- The Legacy |
|
MSJ: What was the last live show you dragged yourself out of the tombs to see? |
|
We saw the Engorged, Lord Gore, and Ghoul show. We played it too, as luck would have it. |
|
MSJ: Finally, any last words or warnings to the trembling humanoids out there? |
|
Bow before Ghoul, puny fleshlings! Your blood will coat our walls and your flesh will adorn our scab-encrusted hides for all time! Live for Metal.... DIE FOR GHOUL!!! |
|