Press

December 14, 2007

Erebus plays a different type of "heavy" metal. Well, actually, their mix of death, thrash, crunchy, pounding, midpaced aggropunkmetal does fulfill the definition of heavy. However, it's heavy in the department of ideas, too: there are not that many metal bands in the U.S. bothering to write lyrics that tackle social issues this directly, like consumerism, the war in Iraq, the government, religion and military interventionism, among other things. It's refreshing to read lyrics that are not so self-centered and based on private emotions. Erebus is a bit like reading the news, except that Erebus is more like an angry broadcaster commenting on the reasons for the war in Iraq or the emphasis on buying useless crap. Also, it's not really about being "vague," but more like in-your-face and finding a comprehensible way to get the point across. To the music: the vocals can be guttural, death metal-like, angrily shouted and sarcastic. The guitar on occasion will have a bit of melody, but it's never too much, but more like the brick-falling-on-your-toes method; mosh-friendly or violence-friendly, sort of approach. Actually, Erebus has the feel of heavy punk band, too. As it turns out, their album, "Prey For Our Nation," is fun, yes, fun, despite their ranting and raving. And they rant a lot!! There ain't too many bands doing things this way, unfortunately, but it's certainly good to bring some relevance to metal. The band obviously has some things to say, as their answers demonstrate.

Metal Bulletin (MB): Can you give a bit of an intro on Erebus. When was "Prey for Our Nation" recorded and where did you record it? How have things gone for Erebus after this recording? What type of live appearances have you done? What is next for you in 2008?

Dave: Erebus is a political metal band that strives to change the sound of contemporary metal by showcasing non-metal aspects and infusing them with traditional metal into a sound that has been described as having the feel of "bluesy punk-rock funk, a little bounce and crunch amidst the death metal growls." In addition, Erebus emphasizes the live aspect as a main part of its identity, with songs that involve the crowd. Erebus demands audience participation under penalty of death. Erebus is often remembered as "the band whose bassist attacked me" or "the band whose singer got up on the bar and screamed at a cop walking by to check IDs" (true stories). The album Prey For Our Nation was recorded at Jasper's House Recording Studio in New London, WI in summer of 07. Things have gone really well for us with this recording, having sold countless copies at shows, the album can now be purchased on iTunes as well as CDbaby.com.
Zach: Erebus was born in Green Bay and founded by Dave and Jon, who are brothers. After Dave moved to Madison to start school, they picked up Gage and myself. We've played quite a variety of live shows, from small bars to outdoor festivals.
Gage: 2008 will begin with our tour, probably include another regional tour or so, and will definitely see the recording of a new album.

MB: Can you tell us who is in the band and what instrument they play? How long have you been working as a band? Can you give your website and myspace or any other info about your band?

Erebus:

• Jon Frazer: Drums
• Dave Frazer: Vocals
• Gage Trader: Guitar (joined the band in the fall of '07)
• Zach Fiegel: Bass (joined the band in the fall of '07).

[Erebus Website note: Gage and Zach joined in fall of '06]

Check out band bios and other cool stuff at
www.myspace.com/erebuswi
www.erebusband.com

MB:Should the title "Prey for Our Nation" be understood as "Kill and rob in the name of the U.S." in the sense of imperialism using the name of "the people" to justify itself? If not, how do you see the play on words?

Dave: In "Empire Bargain Basement" (song 3), there is a line: "its collection time, we take away your profits like parasites, Change your government, deciding on the terms of your demise" This, to me, epitomizes this "prey" aspect. The IMF lends out the money, and then demands repayment at the beckon call of international financial groups like Citigroup, essentially sending back to U.S. interests the gains that were made with that very loan, 'taking away their profits, like parasites.' In addition to that, the IMF structural adjustment procedures force a government to restructure along lines that, more often than not, topple the government in place, allowing us to 'decide on the terms of your demise' Plus, the album Jname "Reign in Blood" was already taken.
Zach: Prey for our Nation, I've always thought, was referring to poorer countries in the world that the U.S. feeds off...be they Asian countries providing cheap labor for pennies on the dollar of what it would cost to employ those same laborers in the US, or countries that are bound by OPEC laws to trade only American dollars for oil. It's a play on words that really fits with the lyrical theme found throughout the album.

MB:One of the songs has a sample from The Matrix and it is a "humans-as-parasites" perspective. Why did you choose that in particular? To me, it just sounds cynical and kind of arrogant with its "human beings are no better than parasites" viewpoint. The capitalist class could be described that way, but all of humanity?

Dave: This song has several aspects. The great thing about political lyrics is that they are open to interpretation. "Revelation" (the song with the matrix soundtrack) is a perfect example, since all you have to go on is the quote itself. I think it's great when people interpret our lyrics in ways they weren't originally intended.
Zach: It seemed to me to be more of a commentary on how humans have historically treated the environments they've lived in...polluting the skies, hunting and fishing animals to the point of extinction, etc. until there's nothing left to do but move on to another area of the world.

MB: You don't have guitar solos in your songs. Is this a something that you are set on: not having solos? Personally, I like solos. It adds variety from all the chugging guitar sometimes? What do you think?

Gage: One thing this band is pretty good about is being open to new ideas. If I wrote a killer guitar solo and showed it to the guys, they'd be all for it, I have no question about that. The problem is, just with everything else, we only take what we think is best for the song. As I develop my skills as a guitarist and learn how to write memorable, meaningful solos I think you'll see them come into Erebus The main reason for that is that I think solos are only good when used they're used correctly. I hear a lot of bands that needlessly put solos into songs all over the place, and it doesn't really do anything. I'd like to work in some solos as a part of Erebus, but I think the music is generally very rhythm-centric and don't think they should be used in every song. I think one of the biggest goals of the next Erebus album is to add new and diverse sounds - for example playing more variations of chords and inversions and playing in different keys and modes (I think Prey for Our Nation has really one or two modes in the entire album, and we have a new song in the works with 3 or 4 in just the song).

MB: The war in Iraq is a running topic in your lyrics. Do your fans in general share your views about this issue? Do you get emails/hate mail from prowar metal people?

Zach: I haven't heard any complaints
Dave: If you disagree/agree with what we have to say, drop us an email on the website or myspace and tell us why.

MB: Do you think that working people need to make a revolution? I mean, the Democrats and Republicans are imperialist parties. One poses as "more-American-than-thou" and the other one as "friends-of-the-people," but both are full of it. So, voting is not going to change things. What do you think?

Dave: The situation needs to change. We live in a democratic society in which potential for collective action at the level required for a revolutionary movement is not attainable, since attitudes are tempered and controlled by the illusion of representative government. Even if it were attainable, a violent revolution would not be desirable as it would cause more disruptions than it would repair, especially if this "workers revolution" assumed the disastrous policies of previous worker's revolutions.
Zach: Voting is not going to change things. The "working people" need to make a revolution in that they need to start paying attention to what's going on around them, rather than whether or not the Colts are going to cover the spread against the Eagles. People are apathetic and lazy, and that's why the atrocities that our government has been committing against us and the rest of the world have gone for the most part unchecked and without opposition.

MB: "Funeral for a Culture" touches on the question of entertainment as a cultural practice of manipulation. How do you see what you as counteracting that?

Dave: The song is about culture warriors like Bill OReily who lament the death of a culture that is, in fact, elitist, convenience addicted, vain and uninterested in any issue that doesn't involve catching the latest episode of "the singing bee" on TiVO. In some ways, music is part of what controls people, what keeps them complacent. A lot of bands (even metal bands) are escapist, they avoid issues that we approach head-on. That's how Erebus counteracts the manipulation that is present in our popular culture. Our lyrics are about awareness, about waking up to what is really going on and about discussing solutions to problems we face.

MB: Your band touches on political subjects a lot more than metallers usually do. Do you take inspiration from bands like Napalm Death or crust bands? What made you decide to go all the way with in this direction? Does everyone in the band share this perspective about the lyrical concepts?

Dave: It is important to me to sing about issues I feel passionately about, otherwise the entire feel of the song is bullshit. When I am on stage screaming these lyrics, I am angry, even now after having played them for a year. I think a lot of bands scream for effect. My screams are raw, they are the product of the lyrics themselves.
Zach: I really don't listen to metal much. I've been a punker since I was young. I wouldn't be in this band if it weren't for the lyrics.
Gage: It's good to have lyrics that actually mean something. I love all kinds of metal, but the lyrics are usually pretty stupid and for the most part worthless.

MB: What is your favorite food and why? Have you seen a good movie lately? Which one?

Dave: Food: Lasagna/Movie: Flesh Gordon (the porn version of the comic book FLASH Gordon)
Gage: Food: Anything Mexican because it's cheap, delicious, and makes me shit like a demon afterwards./Movie: Not really, although I did watch Superbad again recently.
Zach: Food: I haven't eaten enough different things to decide that yet./Movie Unlike Gage and Dave, I'm a bit harder to please when it comes to movies...I don't get a hard-on watching things explode for an hour and a half, and I don't laugh at an hour and a half's worth of dick and pussy jokes.
Jon: Food: Mac and Cheese /Movie – American History X

MB: What are your guitars tuned to?

Zach: Dropped C, baby..

[Erebus Website note: The guitars in Erebus are actually tuned to Drop C#]

MB: Your songs tend to stay at midpaced rhythm. Personally, I prefer stuff to be a bit faster, with some double (or lots of it, too...). Is the question of the speed of the songs something that matters to you?

Dave: Sheesh, is there anything you DO like about Erebus? We tend to play these songs much faster live, but never at the speed of death metal or power metal. I guess this has to do with our influences, of which Rage Against the Machine is a huge one. We are more about being heavy and playing things that the crowd can get into than being fast. However, if you want fast, we have 3 new songs presently in the making, all of which take things a bit faster (including blast beats! No way!)
Jon: As for the double bass, yeah, you can go nuts and play lightning fast double bass, but what it really comes down to is whether the drumming fits the part. It doesn't take any creativity to play non-stop double bass as fast as you can.

MB: Do you think Packers quarterback Favre should come back in 2008 or retire?! Why?!

Dave: Fuck no! Favre should play until they have to devote an offensive player to wheeling him around on Lambeau Field. And he'll still throw it 80 yards.
Zach: I don't care when he retires, as long as he does it before he's completely worthless. I would hate to see Favre go out on a lame-ass season, that's all.
Gage: Retire. I can't wait for the Packers to return to mediocrity so the Bears can extend their all-time record over the Packers even further.

THE END.