To start with, let me congratulate you with releasing yet one more stunning effort in the shape of "Slaughtering Thoughts"! This one's definitely a killer! You're utterly pleased with the way it turned out, I suppose? Do you consider "Slaughtering Thoughts" a huge step ahead, if we'd compare it to "Shadows To Fall"?

- Grind on Kai! First let me thank you for your words and your support. It`s very cool to answer your questions for Vae Solis.
Yes, of course, "Slaughtering Thougths" is the next step we have done. Between "Shadows to Fall" and the new album are three long years, and a lot of things happened during this time. We practice very hard and many hours per day to record the new songs. The most different thing between the two albums is the "red line" and the structure inside the music. We like "Shadows To Fall" very much, but "Slaughtering Thoughts" is our vision of musical sickness nearer than the first release. It is more technical and faster, also more brutal, but the most important thing is the better structure in the songs. Our vision is not to be only technical, fast and brutal, the mix of these and the very intensive feeling for this music is our main point. Music should move! Listen to death metal you must say: wow - it`s killer, not the technique is important, the feeling you have while listening brutal stuff has absolute priority. That`s our vision for PROFANITY: to write songs, brutal, fast and technical, but with feelings. With the new record we go to the next step on this path. With every release we want to come nearer to this point. It is not easy, but it makes a lot of fun to go this way.

Haven't you ever attempted to come up with few experiments when it comes to musical canvas? Like, crossing the bounds of death metal, by incorporating any "alien" elements borrowed from other genres?

- In the beginning PROFANITY played in absolutely other style than now. The two demotapes, "The Transitory 1994" and "Into The Unforseen" 1995 appear as death, black and gothic mixture. Tom, our guitarplayer and singer formed the band with the vision of a brutal music. A very good friend of us asked Tom in these early years what kind of music he wants to play: Tom showed him MONSTROCITY's "Final Cremation" video!  With the old members he couldn't play brutal music, 'cause every member had another style. After the second demo the band splitted, 'cause Tom no longer wanted to play that kind of mix. In the end of 1995 / 96 our drummer Armin and myself became members of PROFANITY. Till that moment Tom could play his favorite style. We are three freaks, loving brutal and sick stuff since the beginning. It is like a destiny, we are three friends, brothers and freaks. On the first album we have a little acoustic part, but for "Slaughtering Thoughts" we want brutality and the feeling of slaughtering thoughts, we need no acoustic parts now! In the future we will make no experiments with other styles, that was in the beginning days, now we play our own style of brutal music. We like other bands who play this mix, but we must go our way to come nearer to our vision of death metal without experiments and different styles.

It seems like you've finally inked a deal with certain record company, therefore "congratulations!" once again. Anyway, you've put out "Shadows To Fall" on your own, and consequently let me wonder what did you come to such a decision? No deals, no offers, just nothing, huh? I mean, despite the fabulous feedback and hundreds of positive reviews in mass media worldwide, you wasn't able to get a record deal. Sounds weird...

- Thank you for your words Kai. During the recordings and after them, we had some offers from labels. But they are a little bit "twilight", you know? I mean if you must pay a lot of money to release your own album on a label there is something wrong. We heard from good friends that these labels are "rip offs" so we released "Shadows To Fall" by ourselves. For us it was not important to have a deal or a company, by that way we have done a lot of experiences. It is like a school. We begun with the first class, piece by piece. That`s the best way, so you never forget your home - where you are from, it is very important!!! Remembering this time many hard work was done. We are a band which works hard for the music, but we are very satisfied by doing this. To be an active part of the underground you must move your ass. Nobody shows you the way to pradise, you must work hard to spread your name and the vision you believe in it. A label can help you on this way, but you should never stop or reduce your angagement for the music when you singned up.

Finally (did I say that before? ;) ), you joined the roster of Cudgel
Agency, young yet truly promising and hard-working label, with no less than brilliant acts signed, such as DAMNATION and TEARS OF DECAY. What's your impression on their abilities as the label, now, when you've collaborated with 'em for a while?

- Oh yes, Jens and Besen from Cudgel Agency are workaholics! It`s amazing what they do. The have a little store, their own record company and they organize the fantastic "Fuck The Commecre" festivals. They are a young label, but they are hundred procents true and fair and they are freaks, that`s great. We have not the typical business work with them, we are friends, phone very often and helping each other where we can. That's what I mean: not only the label "must" work - only together we can kick ass! As a little label the abilities are limited, that`s clear, but they do what they can to help and push us. They have contacts we haven't, this is a very
important factor. They know people, organizers, other labels or mailorders, and can bring us in contact with them. I hope for them that somedays their hard work show them the success they merit!

What makes PROFANITY stand against the background of numerous DM acts, is Armin's drumming, that's for sure! I haven't heard such a brilliant drumming for ages, man! Where has he perfected his skills?

- Oh yeah, we are very happy that Armin is our drummer. Without him PROFANITY wouldn't sound like PROFANITY. He started as a little boy in school and has a teacher. His older brothers also play drums, but in different styles, more the traditional music. The most amazing thing was that Armin needed only one take to record his drums on "Slaughtering Thoughts". Long and hard practice and his vision of brutal music makes him an excellent drummer. Armin himself is very modest and quite, he never says he is good or something else. Sometimes it is nice before playing gigs, other drummers make tons of words how good they are, but after seeing Armin in action they start thinking about the words they said.

It strikes as you have a studio of your own at the moment; could you
please enlighten us concerning it's equipment, and so on and so forth?

- We own no studio. We record since "Shadows To Fall" in the Brickhouse Sudios with Albrecht "Bibber" Felsenstein. Our split 7" with LIVIDITY was recorded in his studio too. Before the recording session for "Slaughtering Thoughts" started, he bought new equipment. I`m sorry that I cannot tell you more about his equipment, but this is something I don`t know very well - so before I talk wrong I said nothing, I hope you understand me. But I can tell you another short story about the recordings: Bibber got in contact with Erik Rutan from HATE ETERNAL / MORBID ANGEL and he gave him some tips about his recordings and the way he recorded the stuff with HATE ETERNAL. I think the main thing this time was that we have done four guitar-lines. This build the sound of wall we want.

Lyrics... Well, yours undoubtedly aren't the ones which could be possibly defined as "clichesque". Actually, it's quite surprising to see a death metal band coming up with such a lyrical canvas... the one which most probably would fit certain doom / goth band better...

- You are right Kai: we are not in the typical splatter or gore lyrics. We need no splatter or brutal-guys image through them. Another fact is that we are positive-thinking metalheads, not the evil or satanic ones. All the lyrics have a positive touch. There aren`t themes of religion or politics in it, they based on feelings. It`s like a picture you see and you describe with words. On this album we talk about "souls" very often - for us a very important thing. There is a figure called "Morething" - this thing is a
special creature, it is real and not, it is a souldealer, a slave and the master of souls and the ultimate key to all souls.... I don`t understand that many bands create an evil / brutal / splatter image - death metal is so powerful and great music with a lot of positive energy. Okay, sometimes we use typical words like "carnage" too, but not as a gore factor, always as psychological point. The "red line" is not only in our music, it`s in all lyrics, too.

Let me torture you with yet one more question regarding PROFANITY's lyrical side. It strikes as there's someone else, nor you, neither Armin, who's responsible for composing musical canvas? Or am I wrong?

- The most lyrics were written by ourselves. But it is right, a very good friend of us give us his thoughts for this album, too. It is very interessting to see lyrics about "souls" from different people. Written from different people, all lyrics together build a union. In the booklet after the end of each song stands the author's name of the lyrics, so you can see from who it is. That`s the lyrical side - the musical side based only on the band!

How many interviews have you answered so far? Which one was the most
irritating one?

- Since the release of "Slaughtering Thoughts" we do a lot of interviews. I don't know how many, we don't count it, but there are very much. For myself I can't remember very irritating ones, but it is possible that Tom or Armin have ones.

Do you know that yours is not the only band carrying the "profanity"
moniker. What about those Swedes (PROPHANITY)? Didn't you have any kind of problems with 'em (like claiming that they were the first ones to pick up this name, and stuff like that, y'know)?

- Yes, we know it. We have the name since 1993 and till now no problems with it.

Have you ever desired to become a commercially successful band? No, not "commercial", but the one you bringing you enough $$$ to quit working and fully concentrate on PROFANITY? Got the point? Isn't it unreachable, when it comes to death metal?

- We started PROFANITY to play our favorite music as freaks. Playing brutal deathmetal, you will never earn enough to can stop working. Okay, the big bands like CANNIBAL CORPSE do it, but I think for PROFANITY this will never become reality. Of course, it`s a dream, to play and live from you music, but the reality is another! The point of commerce is different. If you change your musical vision to sell more albums it is commercial in my eyes, but if you believe in your music and do always what you want and you have luck, so the people like your music, not the company ones, it is really okay for a band to sell more and become bigger.

There's been a ballyhoo quite for a while, the one concerning black / death metal and nazi movement. A couple of these narrow-minded freaks claiming that paying homage to your fatherland, is no less than a crime. "A patriot"? Nazi scum! Man, that's disgusting! As far as I know, German bands (at least, such as GRAVEDIGGER) aren't even capable of composing the lyrical canvas based on German mythology in order to avoid the accusations in being nazis or whatever! What the f**k, I don't blame (and never blamed) Germans in WWII (and nor do other Russians), why should you carry the responsibility for what's happened half a century ago?!

- We hate all kind of extreme political thinking or racism, from right and from the left! We believe in our music, not in political ideologies. For some bands it is "cool" to play with words from the german naziregime - I think this is very stupid. They don`t know what they say - the real meaning of these words, the pain in these words. I hope this "trend" is over very fast. For us Germans it is very difficult - it is always the same: we, most of the younger generation know what was done. We know the cruelty that was done by nazis, but we are another generation. It is very important that nobody forget what has happened, but we live our lives today, now, half a century later. We are not the ugly Germans! There are always racism idiots,
but not only in Germany, the whole world is full of people with little brains (let me disagree - ED)! I have no problem to say: yes, I am a German - that is the same when you say: I am a Russian or another say I am a Swiss, or a Japanese. We all should more interested in music, not in ideologies.  It is very often that bad musicians need other effects. Let only the music talk!

Do you know anything regarding Russia? Any metal bands coming from the country of mine you've heard lately?

- I`m sorry - for myself I must say no. But Tom knows some and is in contact with them.

Thanks for the interview! All the best to you in all of your endeavors! The final words are yours...
 
- Kai, thank you very much for your support. I wish you and Vae Solis the best! If some metalheads are interessted, visit our homepage: www.profanity.de or for infos: martl@profanity.de
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