Remember 2007? That was the year Eric Wood publically proclaimed something along the lines of how the only two real power violence bands of modern times were The Endless Blockade and Apt 213.
Well holy shit did that ever
a) ruffle a lot of feathers
b) form the focus for 90% of conversations at the merch table for two years
c) give 99% of interviewers a new question i didn't want to have to answer
d) make already shit "recommend me some power violence like Tragedy and MK Ultra" message board posts even more shit for about a year or so.
After Wood's glowing recomendation Anthony Bartkewicz, who wrote the article for Decibel magazine about power violence where we received said musical reach around, also asked me for a few soundbites. These are the unedited questions and answers that they ultimately trimmed down.
1. A few years removed and on an opposite coast from the original PV bands, what is it that makes you feel aligned with PV instead of just grind or hardcore?
it's the music that really drew me in during that early - mid 90s blackspot of diy hardcore, when faux humanism, tolerance for morons, celebrations of inadequacies and screen printed manila envelopes were de riguer. It cut through the bullshit and laid waste to everything in its path; it synthesized Heresy, Neos, Ripcord, Larm, Impact Unit and many other greats perfectly, updating them for a new era and always keeping an eye on the roots that grew before.
As for being aligned with PV, i'd say we're a power violence influenced band, or a neo-power violence band.
We still feel aligned with hardcore (primarily), grindcore (secondarily) and noise/ power electronics (thirdly), we just know what makes our sound and how to filter our influences cohesively. We know that if we're going to lift an Autopsy riff then there are certain changes we have to make in order for it to fit our parameters. Look at Darkthrone: they're heavily influenced by punk and crust but their records are definitely black metal records, not mere World Burns to Death or No Security clones.
2. What (if anything) do you think separated/separates PV bands from grind or hardcore?
at the time nothing really seperated them from hardcore. In retrospect it was a very short lived moment that can barely even be called a movement (that came after the originators largely burned themselves out) that was running on total nihilistic anger, the kind of which hardcore just wasn't producing anymore.
[at the time] Hardcore consisted of too many tales of betrayed friendships and the horrors of Reagan's legacy; all delivered with the passion of a shopping list
i don't consider PV to have much in common with grindcore
3. Which of the original west coast PV bands were the most influential/inspriational to you?
My favourite record of the era is definitely the No Comment - Downsided 7", you can't fake that despondent rage. As far as inspiration goes the oppression of Crossed Out and Neanderthal appeal to us most. We aren't interested in the joke bullshit that came in the wake of Spazz (second wave power violence) or Charles Bronson (not power violence)
*cheers Dave Adelson
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
What a stupid thing to focus on. People who know Wood have told me that since then, he has added to his list of "true" powerviolence bands.
But people only care because PV is trendy somehow.
It's the only musical trend I can think of in which most of the fans cannot tell me what makes it a distinguishable genre.
He's definitely expaqnded his list.
I'd argue it's a current within a pre-existing genre, not a genre in and of itself
Also, the what is or isn't power violence dead end "debates" seem to carry on because inattentive listener and mediocre band alike try to focus on an Essence they neither grasp or are able to replicate at the expense of focusing on Intent and its relation to the act of artistic creation
fuck, decode that poorly written sentence and get the core of my interest in the occult and music in one fell swoop
Post a Comment