1.Hello Please introuduce yourselves to the readers?
Hi, Im Paul and I play the character of Tarquin in Basement Torture Killings, I am the guitarist from the band and also do split vocal duties with our front woman Beryl.
2.When did you first discover death metal music and who were the first bands you discovered?Who are some of the newer bands that have caught your attention?
I guess it would have been in the early to mid 90’s, it was a natural progression from listening to bands such as Metallica and Slayer. The first band that I discovered was Possessed, I had a copy of the Eyes Of Horror ep which is still one of my favourites to this day. From there I got into Carcass, Death, Morbid Angel and Deicide, The first few albums that I really loved back then were Heartwork, Individual Thought Patterns, Covenant and Once Upon The Cross. I don’ really listen to many of the newer DM bands as I tend to spend more time listening to Gore Grind. Some of my favourite bands at the moment are Exhumed, General Surgery, Haemorrhage, Spasm, Gutalax etc. I also really like the Prostitute Disfigurement album.
3.When did you first meet the other members of the band and was it long before you started Basement Torture Killings?What is the current line-up of the band?
Originally I started the band with my best friend back in 2007, we had known each other for many years and I was visiting him in Sweden where he lived at the time. We decided to write a song and record it and that was the start of the band. The first line up lasted for 4 or 5 years and then we had a bit of a change. Currently we have Beryl on Vocals and The Faceless Killer on drums. For the album the bass was played by K- - - - - - but he has since left the band via mutual decision. I knew Beryl from putting on shown in Bristol, she used to be one of the main promoters in the city a few years ago and with our drummer I was introduced by mutual friends.
4.Who would you say are the bands biggest influences?For the readers who have never heard Basement Torture Killings music how would you best describe the bands sound?
We play old school death/grind in the style of bands such as Carcass, Napalm Death and others. On this newer album we have brought in some more thrash elements as well, so you can hear some influence from bands such as Slayer etc. Really the music is just fast and furious grinding death metal, very similar to Exhumed and Impaled etc although we have created our own variant of that type of music.
5. how long did it take the band to write the music for the Lessons In Murder release?Does the whole band take part in the writing process or does one member usually write everything?
I would say that the songs took about 18 months to 2 years to finish. I tend to write the riffs for the song and program some drums, then I take those to the studio with our drummer and we work on the songs together making tweaks and messing with the arrangements etc. Lyrics and vox patterns are always done last, those are split between myself and our singer. The first time we really get involved with the vocals is usually in the studio, this has always been the way for the band.
6.Who usually handles writing the lyrics for the music and what are some topics written about on the debut release?
The lyrics are split between myself and our singer. On this album I think that I wrote the lyrics for 9 songs and she did 2, usually she would have done more however she was studying with college so did not have lots of time. All of our albums are about murder and torture in its various guises, this time however we decided to do something a little different and do a concept album. The album has been created as an audio guide for wannabe serial killers, sort of like murder for dummies. As such each song is presented as a lesson to teach people how to be serial killers, topics covered include, victim slection, disposing of the body, taunting the police, how to blend in with your surroundings and appear normal etc etc
7..Besides the upcoming new release are the bands previous releases or merchandise currently available?If yes what is available and where can the readers purchase it?
We have our last album “There’s Something About Beryl” still available online for purchase either via digital or physical means. I have also recently acquired a hundred or so copies of our second album “A Night Of Brutal Torture” that should be up for purchase again on line shortly.
8.Does Basement Torture Killings play live very often or do you prefer working in the studio?What have been some of the bands most memorable shows so far?
We love to play live, this is our favourite arena. We have done many shows during the course of our history, some of the best ones include Obscene Extreme Festival, Grind Over Sofia, Incineration Fest in London, Bilbao Death Fest and our first headline show in Porto Portugal.
9.When bands are able to play live again are their any plans to play live if yes where will the band be playing?
We had many shows booked for this before the virus, now we will need to look at rebooking these. Many seem to have just transferred to next year so we should be playing Death Feast Open Air, Nice To Eat You Festival, Fuck The Commerce, Death Coffee Party and many others.
10.What does Underground Metal mean to you all?
Thats a hard question, first and foremost its a community. A place where like minded people can check out bands and meet friends etc. For bands it provides an outlet for creativity and expression
that may not be accepted elsewhere. I like to think that its a place where people work together to put on shows and help each other out, its not always like that but it is in the main and thats what it should be in my view. It's about passion and expression instead of business and profit.
11.Besides working in Basement Torture Killings do any of the members currently work with any other bands or solo projects?If yes please tell the readers about them?
Our drummer plays in a tech death band called Anakim, I play guitar in the black metal Band Thus Defiled although we have been formant for a long time. Our singer used to play in a band called Craniation although that has ceased to exist for a while.
12.Besides metal music do you or any of the members currently listen to any other forms of music?If yes who are some of your favorite bands and artists?
We all have quite diverse musical tastes although I can’t really speak for the others, for me though I really like Nick Cave, PJ Harvey, Duran Duran, Grave Pleasures, Kate Bush, Suede etc. Recently I have been listening to the new Me and That Man album that Nergal from Behemoth has released, its kind of dark country I guess, I really like it a lot.
13.When not working on new music or band business what do you enjoy doing in your free time?
I like to travel and read, I also teach Aikido a Japanese martial art. I also like going to good restaurants and hanging out with friends and stuff.
14.Besides music we are huge movie fans here do you enjoy watching movies?If yes do you have a favorite genre?
I love horror movies a lot as well as crime dramas etc. The band has a really visual identity that in part is taken from slasher movies etc.
15.What are some of your all-time favorite movies and what are some of the current movies that you have been watching?
Some of my favourite movies are - Star Wars, Hellraiser 1-3, True Romance, Pulp Fiction, Goodfellas, High Tension, The God Father, Blood Sport, Silence of The Lambs, Rocky (all of them apart from 5), First Blood, Heat, Braindead, Event Horizon, Commando etc Recently ive been watching some Samurai movies such as Blade of The Immortal and Samurai Marathon, Ive also been trying to catch up on some classics so we watched the original Cape Fear a few days ago. I also love a lot of the crazy J Gore movies such as Tokyo Gore Police, Hell Driver, Robo Geisha etc
16.Who are your all-time favorite Actresses and Actors?Are their any directors that you enjoy watching the most?
I don’t really have favourite directors as such, I like most of the Tarantino stuff, Scorsese, Kubrick, Ridley Scott etc but to be honest its more about the actual movie and the story rather than the direction for me - although that of course is integral to the finished product. I really like to De. Niro, Anthony Hopkins, Pacino, James Ganolfini was great I also think that Stallone is vastly underrated.
17.Thank you for taking the time to fill this interview out do you have any final comments for the readers?
Check out our new album Lessons In Murder which will be released via Bizarre Leprous Productions at the end of May. If you like old school death grind then you should like it. Other than that thanks for the interview and stay safe during the virus.
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