In Utero Cannibalism Interview

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

Hello there, thanks for the opportunity. The band has reformed with some old and new members too and we’ve signed a contract with Sleaszy Rider Records. We are active and we’ve got our new album “Sick” coming out in a few days. Things are going pretty well so far and we’ve got plenty to catch up with in the near future.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how it differs from previous releases?

I could describe the sound of the new album with one word, and that is “sick”. It’s much heavier, tighter, the songs are well-thought of and as an album it’s aggressive, dark, at times depressive and it has these deep, perverse melodies which give a new twist to the sound in general. The album as a whole is not full-speed and that was the intension, to give some space to some slow, heavy riffs to come in-between so that the proper atmosphere can be achieved. I think it’s brutal as it is without taking the speed to its limits. All these elements are new, what we wrote back then was more like “into-your-face” attitude than exploring darker sides of feelings and emotions, incorporated into a song. And that I think worked pretty well.

3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the new album?

the world crisis is going on, we cannot be blind to the depression, the violence, the poverty, the social turmoil, the suffering and the oppression that we are all going through. “Sick” as an idea is a sad representation of our today’s degeneration. The whole concept focuses and explores the abjection of the human race as a family, community, country or nation and even more, it explores from a social point of view the dark side of a human being in relation to its context. And that is our own concrete societies and generally the world we live in. We are much more connected to the environment and all the other species than we think and we should respect and preserve the balance and not think of ourselves as of higher value. So far we destroy everything, we pollute the environment, animal species are being exterminated, we are in the verge of total collapse and we still don’t learn. We have to destroy more. Maybe someone should kick our asses instead and only then maybe we could appreciate life and realize that we are not here forever. If someone would be sincere enough, he should take a step back and ask himself this simple question: Why bring a child to this life? To suffer? To starve? To inherit all this pain and sorrow we endure? Why put a child in this psychotic, abnormal process in the first place? This is the general thesis of this album. The music, the lyrics and the cover is a reminder of the sick world we live in and the sickest of all is that we as a species, no matter the crisis, the wars and death that we create, still have a physical need to regenerate, to grow, to give birth and that’s what I think is even more scarier and sickening.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?

We wanted to have a real aggressive and horrific name to describe the human perversity and insanity that can be found in today’s life. The harm that a human being can do to others as well as itself as self-destructive individual is tremendous. If we look at it from a social point of view, there are millions of irresponsible people with irrational behaviors who apart from not respecting themselves, they end up devouring other innocent victims. For example there are countless mothers, and that is a fact, who although being pregnant, they drink alcohol or doing drugs, turning a blind eye to the impact that these actions will have on their unborn child. This maternal abuse leads to all sorts of abnormal and sick behaviors to the fetus. The name expresses all these extremities and it is used as a metaphor to show that instead of bringing a normal child to life, it can work backwards.“In Utero Cannibalism” incorporates all the insanity in the human race and how far a sick mind can go.

5. The band was on hiatus for awhile, what was the cause of the split and the decision to reform the band?

Things back then were starting to get a little bit hectic, there had to be some changes and that took us out of track for a little while. The bass player had to leave permanently overseas and the guitarists had some problems to deal with that could not follow the tough schedule of the band. So I had to postpone some things for a while until I felt the time was right to start over again. All this time, new material was being written because there was no plan for the band to give up. So here we are now, some of the old members together and some new ones and we are more than ready to move on.

6. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?

Some of our best shows are when we supported bands like Nile, Pungent Stench, Massacre, Napalm Death and others. Our stage performance is simply “go out there, bang your head until it drops, interact with the audience, make them feel the impact and basically leave content and have a nice time”. One of our best shows although it wasn’t the best match musically and we didn’t know what to expect was when we supported Pain. We knew that the audience could be slightly indifferent to our music but to our big surprise, people started embracing us and made us feel like we were more than welcomed. We really appreciated that and apart from giving our 100%, as always, we also enjoyed playing in that gig and it will be something that we will never forget.

7. Do you have any touring plans for the future?

We haven’t talked these things through yet with our record label. Things went so fast and we are all focused to the release of our new album but what has been said in general terms is that, considering the economical crisis, the label whenever and wherever can cover any costs of touring, in our country or abroad or in a case of a music video clip, they will do so. All these things, they will be first talked through, programmed and scheduled and when the time is right, executed.

8. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death metal?

Generally things are going quite well I suppose. People have been embracing our music and now with our new album I think things will get much better. Basically the support of our fans is another reason that kept us going all these years, no matter the downfalls and we really appreciate that. I hope with our new album we will satisfy them to the most and fill the gap of our static period to the maximum.

9. Are there any other musical projects going on these days?

No, there are no projects in-between. In Utero Cannibalism will stay focused on spreading terror worldwide.. hahaha

10. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

For us the direction is one. Speed, aggression and violence. Raw aggressive death metal. That was always our way and that was the idea since the conception of the band. We will take it as far as we can remaining as brutal and extreme as possible. We will, if need to, incorporate some new ideas and elements but the plan is to stay brutal.

11. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Our influences are bands like Deicide, Malevolent Creation, Suffocation, Death, Vader, Cannibal Corpse, Pestilence and many more. Nowadays we all listen to those great bands and to bands that introduced us to this music since we were kids such as Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax, Kreator, Black Sabbath, Thin Lizzy, The Stooges, U.F.O, Rainbow and the list goes on. But furthermore we are open-minded and we can listen to any other different genre that sounds interesting.  Personally I don’t mind listening to artists like Leonard Cohen or Del Shannon, if we wanna go further back, or bands like Deine Lakaien and Rammstein. I think it’s a good thing to have a wide variety of influences because you can open new horizons to your mind, work on new elements and incorporate them to your music wisely. But what we all listen to and what we produce musically with the band in the end is a whole different story.

12. Outside of music what are some of your interests?

There are not many things going on since the crisis struck us down. We are trying to stay positive and not give up on some basic activities or interests. Some of us have athletic activities others are doing volunteer work, such as helping animal shelters, and pretty much all of us are movie enthusiasts. Personally I collect old movies, from Dracula with Christopher Lee to The Alamo with John Wayne and many more.

13, Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?

I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to answer all your interesting questions and I wish you the best. I would also like to thank all my band mates for all the hard work, we have a long way to go so buckle up. From all of us I would like to say a big hello and thank you to all our fans out there that supported us throughout the years. You have waited this long, I hope “Sick” will satisfy you the most. We are back, we have a lot to give and we will see you all on the battlefield.