Internal Bleeding interview

Chris Pervelis  of INTERNAL BLEEDING was the first person I sent a questionnaire interview* to for Subcide Zine #1, along with a US $5 note for a copy of their 'Invocation Of Evil' demo tape, 20 years ago.  With the band recently reforming, it seemed only proper that I interview him again!

As I post this the band have just kicked off on a European tour.  If you're in that part of the world and reading this see the tour dates later in the article and see em if you can!

1) 20 years ago in 1993, almost to the week, I sent you the very first set of interview questions for Subcide Zine #1. 20 years later things seem to have gone full circle i.e. Internal Bleeding has recently been reformed and I relaunched Subcide as an online blog a couple of years back. Why do you think this has happened? What key things have happened in that time? What do you think we'll both be doing 20 years from now?

20 years Chris? Really? Wow, it's been that long. Amazing. I remember when we first made contact, it was really exciting because you were one of the the first from New Zealand to contact the band. Seems like no big deal today with the internet and Facebook, but back in 1993, it was a pretty big deal since everything was done through the mail. I think we both know the answer as to why this has happened 20 years later: we both just love heavy music, and no matter what we do, we can't escape it. Extreme and heavy music is like Heroin. Once it's in your veins, it's real tough to kick. 20 years from now, when you do the Subcide 40th anniversary issue We'll both be celebrating our retirement from the working world and sitting on our respective front porches watching our grandkids play in the front yard. Christ, I'll be 65 in 20 years. I don't even want to contemplate that.

Click on the above and below images to read the original Internal Bleeding interview from Subcide Zine #1

2) And I’ll be 60.... What do you think has changed about Internal Bleeding since the first time around?

Oh jesus a lot has changed since the first time around! There are so many different life experiences that you go through over the years that change you as a person. 

Anyway, I think we've grown tremendously as musicians. Both our technical skills and our musical palates have expanded greatly. This, I believe has helped us take our music to an even higher level of intensity and creativity. We don't feel locked in a box or shackled down because we are limited by our ability and knowledge.

Also, this time around we are far more of a team when it comes to the writing process. It used to be that me or the other guitarist in the band would write all the riffs, present them to the band, then arrange things. Now it is a very collaborative effort. Everyone pitches in and writes riffs. Even our drummer, who cannot play a lick of guitar will hum or tap out something he hears in his head, and I will turn it into a riff. It's very gratifying to see everyone being do damn productive.

We're also a lot more mature as people, which I think makes for more interesting road trips. Now instead of scrounging money for beer and gas, when we go out on the road, we have some money in our pockets and are usually looking around for a place to smoke a cigar, relax and enjoy each other's company.

3) You’ve just been recording a brand new Album. What should people expect from that? What will it be called? How will people be able to get hold of it? Could you please name and describe a few of it's key tracks?

Well, we finished recording, but it wasn't an album, it was more like 1/2 an album. We're using the 5 songs we recorded as a demo of sorts to shop the material to labels. Once we secure a deal with a good label, we will go back into the studio and finish recording the other four songs. Then, we'll finally release an album. It's a bit of a drawn out process, I know, but this is what our management has asked us to do. Anyway, Some of the tracks on this release are songs we've been playing live for the past year or so. These include "The Visitant", "In the Absence of Soul" and "The Pageantry of Savagery". Then there are two more that we recorded that we do not plan on playing out live until after we put out an album.

As for this material that is on "demo", it's the most mature Internal Bleeding to date. Full of the groove and slam that people expect from us, but with twists and turns that will take things a bit further musically. The production is really good too, so we're happy with that as well.

4)  How do audiences react to Internal Bleeding in 2013 compared to say 1993?

Well, it's definitely a new experience. There's still a lot of hardcore IB fans at the shows who know our material and rage right along with us. But there are also a lot of younger people who may or may not have heard of us, which makes it exciting because we are playing in front of new people. When some people hear that some of the songs we are playing are 20+ years old, they completely freak out -- I think that is one of the coolest feelings ever. To know we're still relevant, we're gaining new fans and people still dig what we're doing is a truly humbling experience.

5) That leads to a topical question of the modern underground Metal scene. What do you see as being it’s pros and cons?

Well, the digital revolution I think is the biggest change in the past 20 years and it's definitely a double-edged sword and has changed the way bands have approached promotion. On one hand all the Facebook, twitter and email is great. It keeps us connected and makes communication simple and easy. On the other hand, it takes far less commitment by both the bands and the fans because every type of communication is so easy. I miss handwritten letters, photocopied flyers and waiting every day for the postman to deliver something. But other than my lamentation of a time that has past, I think the core of everything has stayed the same and it's still going strong. People are still into it, there's definitely a brotherhood that cannot be broken and the enthusiasm for discovering new bands is driving people to seek out and explore. All good things!

6) What new and exciting bands have you seen lately that you would recommend readers check out? Why?

Two bands who I have totally been diggin lately are The MERCILESS CONCEPT and TENTACLES. I dig the Merciless concept because not only do I like their music a lot, but I think they have a really great attitude and really go out of their way to put on a killer show and treat their fans right. Tentacles is just flat out insanity. Total brutal death, with some groove, plus some really cool melodic parts that are creepy as hell and really stick in your head. I find them to be pretty refreshing. 

7) While we’ve been doing this interview you have released a music video for a new song "Castigo Corpus Meum". As a first insight to new IB material, this tune is intriguing as it goes through a number of interesting musical transitions over it’s 5+ minutes. Could you please tell us about the thought processes that went into creating the song? Is it indicative of your other new material? Could you please explain the concept behind the lyrics and video?

Well, I think it was a natural progression for us. We know our core sound, which is constant catchy grooves and slam riffs but we wanted to expand that a bit and push our music into some different dimensions, so it would be fuller, more interesting and more diverse. I think we achieved our goals, because a song such as Castigo Corpus Meum has all the hallmarks of the Internal Bleeding sound, just expanded and opened up. It is definitely indicative of the new material. Lyrically, the song is about a chapter from the book "The DaVinci Code." It's where the antagonist of the book lashes and tortures himself. At the end of the chapter he mutters the words "Castigo Corpus Meum". It was something that Keith (DeVito Vocalist) and I found very interesting and we discussed it for a while. Finally we sat down one night and wrote the lyrics together. As for the video, we just tried to recreate that scene a little bit and mix it in with some live action stuff.

8) what else is inspiring the subject matter of Internal Bleeding lyrics these days?

We've moved our lyrical focus quite a bit. I wouldn't say that they are necessarily reality based, but I would say they are 'near' reality based. Many of the lyrics we are writing today usually focus on a single person and his interactions with the world around him. Common themes are mental exhaustion and breakdown, supernatural experiences, the effect society's violence has on the young, etc. Basically, every song lyric is a story about an individual. The current song we are working on, "Fabricating Bliss" is about a person suffering from Symphorophilia, which is a basically sexual arousal through watching accidents and other misfortunes. He goes around setting up disasters for so he can get his rocks off. Fun stuff.

9) Lets talk about you for a bit. In the late 90s/early 2000s you left Internal Bleeding to Focus on your Job/Business in Graphic Design. Care to tell us about this part of your life? Feel free to throw in a plug!

Well, I had always done graphic design and advertising every since I graduated college. In the late 90s, I had a really great job as a creative director and partner at an advertising agency. It was a great gig. I had plenty of time off to play in the band, made lots of money, etc. However, the advertising business is brutal as hell and very volatile and it was taking a toll on me, working 15-16 hours a day, constant traveling, etc. I made the decision to leave the high-powered job behind and start my own company so I could have more time for the things I love, be captain of my own ship so to speak and to make my own future. It took a lot of effort and hard work, but it's paid off. I now have 3 employees, the same income I had when I was a creative director, and much more free time for my family, the band, etc. If you'd like to learn more about my business, feel free to visit www.cgpcreative.com. You'll see I do a variety of work from web, to print advertising and beyond.

10) I see you’re about to head off on a tour of Europe. Tell us about that? Could a trip to the southern hemisphere be on the cards at some stage?

Yeah, cannot wait. Us, Disgorge and Beheaded. Should be a killer tour. We're going out for 12 days. That's about the most we can do since we all have jobs, etc. Would I ever love to hit the Southern Hemisphere. That, my friend, would be an absolute dream come true for the band. You never know. We've been offered some pretty cool stuff in Indonesia, etc., just kind of fell through though. Let's hope one of these offers works.

11) Thanks for the Interview Chris. In closing, could you please tell readers who haven’t heard Internal Bleeding before, why they should check you out. Is there anything else you would like to add?

Well, basically, if you want to hear where the 'slam' genre in Deathmetal started, you should check us out. If you like your Deathmetal heavy, groovy as hell and well played, then by all means check out Internal Bleeding. You can visit us on Facebook at:Facebook.com/internalbleeding and visit our website to learn more at www.internal-bleeding.com Thanks Chris!!!

* The actual first interview I did for Subcide Zine #1 was an in person recorded interview with Tom Larkin from Shihad.  Internal Bleeding was the first band I had actual letter writing contact with.