T.W.M. Interview by EarthDog

1.First of all tell us how the idea and the concept for a one man band came about ?

Well, I was sick of trying to join a band. There was a serious lack of Metal musicians and I started playing around with recording software and drum samples. It took a lot of persistance to learn how to write, record, mix, and produce for a one person band but I never gave up. I am certain some people expected me to give up.

2.You say on the Myspace site you do this "only for fun" but the (de)tunes are so good.Would you ever consider getting a full band together ?
Hmm, I would under certain circumstances. The problem is that I have had great difficulty meeting other musicians who are into playing this sub genre of Metal. I think I will continue on working as a one man force with friends and guests appearing occaisionally on recordings until I meet like minded musicians.

3.You have already recorded a fairly vast output of music,what is it about it that keeps you going to do more ?

Well, there are two things in my life that really define who I am and Metal is one of them.

4.The newest recording "The Death Tree" is out on Streaks.How did that come about ?
Matze over at Streaks Records and I exchanged messages online and he said he liked some of the demo songs he had heard and was interested in hearing more. I started writing and recording a new album and talked to Scott about working on a song together and the album really turned out well. I sent Matze the demos and we talked about them a bit and it was decided that Streaks would release an LP of the album. Scott also drew up some sick artwork for the release and Matze put in a ton of hard work and we ended up with TWM IV when all was said and done.

5.The songs sound like the work of a dark and disturbed man,what influences you to compose these brooding tales of doom ?
Heavy Metal first and foremost. I think the lessons that I have learned from Sabbath are the most important ones for me. Sabbath is my favourite band. I study the music, the process, their life, everything about them. The songs might come off as dark and disturbed to some people and that is really my purpose for this band. I want these songs and stories to explore the dark side of humanity and to give people an uneasy feeling. When I decided on the lyrical content for this band I decided against writing about anything personal and chose to tell stories instead. I did not want to write introverted songs and instead I chose escapist content instead. It all went back to the interviews I had heard and read from Sabbath about how they wanted to write scary music and what kind of reaction they got from writing that music. I wanted to tell scary stories like my heros in Black Sabbath.

6.How much time do you dedicate to the band on a weekly or monthly basis ?
Insane amounts.

7.Tell us about some of the newer tracks and which ones are you the most proud of ?
Well all of the new tracks on TWM IV are part of a story that I wrote. Included with the LP I wrote a paragraph per song which connects all of the songs together in one story. I would like to explore the story telling aspect of my music moreso with my next album. I am imagining creative ways to do this everyday.
I think the song I am most proud of is the title track 'The Death Tree'. This song is really a reflection of this digital recording era of Metal where musicians on opposite sides of the continent can work on one song without having to leave home. This song was a collaboration between myself on the extreme West Coast of Canada and Scott Stearns in Ohio. I recorded the basics for the song and sent the tracks to Scott in Ohio where he added his madness to the song. He sent the tracks he recorded back to me and I mixed them all together and mixed down the demo version for the album. I think it is amazing that musicians can do this so easily in this era of Metal and I am proud of this effort.

8.Where is all the stuff recorded and how do you put together a song being a one man band ?

Most of the music is recorded in my apartment with a few exceptions. I am not against using a studio or jam space or anything. As a one person project the home studio option is the best choice for myself.
Well most of my songs come from guitar riffs first. I will just jam on my guitar and when I come up with the riffs and leads to a song I try to time the drums to the natural speed of the riffs. Other times I will play around on my bass and write a song or two from that perspective. Equally, I sometimes come up with drum tracks first, then lay down the rest of the instruments. Once the basic tracks are recorded I will record lead and backing vocals. I generally always finish off the leads last.

9.The one man and two man band set up is becoming a more popular way to produce music. Do you think its because its so much easier than having to deal with conflicting personalities and such ?
Hmm, I think for some people that is definitely a reason. For me personally it is because there just are not a lot of other musicians around. Most Metal musicians in Canada play Melodic Death Metal, Grindcore, or some form of Black Metal. Doom and Sludge is very rare in Canada. I find Metal musicians are quite rare as it is . It's as if there is an attitude out there that people think that playing slow means you are a bad musician. I just find that Sludge and Doom require an 'I don't give a fuck' kind of attitude because so many people think that playing riffs as fast as possible means you are a good musician. Sometimes it's like living 'Born Too Late' up here.

10.I was recently involved in a heated debate on Drone and its value as a music form.Some people just find it boring,what makes a good Drone/Doom band to you ?

A good Drone/Doom band to me would mean a band that is Doom who uses Drone influences to build up tension slowly through repetitive riffs that slowly change and climax. That description is what a good Drone/Doom band is to me.

11.Are you happy with the reactions you have got so far with your recordings ?

I would say so. I look to reviews and to listeners a lot for feedback. I like to hear what people have to say before I start recording a new album. I find it helps my creativity and direction focus by having other perspectives on the music.

12.Any bands you really like at the moment ?

Yeah, haha, lots. I would say right at this moment I am really rocking out to a new band called Freedom Hawk that I discovered on Myspace. Ultralord's 'Act I' is a definitive Sludge album to me and I have been listening to that one a lot lately too.

13.Tell people where and how to purchase your works ?

For Europe I would say Matze at Streaks would be the best bet www.streaksrecords.de
He has done a great job of spreading the album around to so many distros in Europe such as Electric Earth Records, Plague Island Records, Blind Date Records and so many more.
In North America I am pretty sure the record can be found at Shifty Records, Hell's Headbangers, Choking Hazard Records in Canada, and many more.

Thanks a lot for the interview! I always enjoy writing these out. Thanks to everyone who read this.

www.myspace.com/thewhorehousemassacre