Greetings! The first question will be rather typical: why “Scrambled Defuncts”? What did you try to tell us through this monicker? How does your band’s name correspond with your creations and what is it to you?

- Most of Russian bands who _try_ to compose and perform extreme kinds of music are comprised of dull-witted people, who aren’t capable of versatile global thought, therefore we have bandnames like ANAL PUS, DEATH VOMIT, NECROCANNIBAL, the ones which provoke nothing but laughter. Three of us have higher education, and, since we understand that our name will accompany the band during the whole period of it’s existence, we chose such a non-typical phrase. I doubt if the CANNIBAL CORPSE guys devote their free time to dismembering and eating up cadavers, therefore it’s obvious that there’s no special or hidden meaning behind our name, it simply reflects band’s lyrical side.

I wouldn’t say that SCRAMBLED DEFUNCTS is a well known and famous band, therefore may I ask you to give us your brief history? Furthermore, the stuff you produce appears as very skillful, hence I wonder if anyone of you have ever played anywhere else before?

- SCRAMBLED DEFUNCTS was formed in July 1997 by Dmitry and Denis (ex-IMPURITY). Since SUFFOCATION appeared as their main leading star, the music they composed appeared as gore death metal – and it still is the same. Butch (drums) joined them shortly after; he is responsible for the lyrical concept, as well as management. FOETAL CARNAGE was the first name we chose, however it was changed to SCRAMBLED DEFUNCTS in September. Alexander (the singer, ex-NASTROMA) was invited few months later and “Disintering Of Butchered Remains”, the demo we made our debut with, was recorded in December, featuring two studio and five live tracks. “Catacomb Abattoir”, our debut album, was executed in March 1998 at GOLIMOPHONE STUDIO. Yuriy (bass) joined the band the same month. This is our story in short. If you’d like to get yourself acquainted with it’s full version, check out ‘history’ section at our site (http://www.dnttm.ru/~scrdef).

“Catacomb Abattoir” has few quotations from Andrei Chikatilo and Sergei “Fisher” Golovkin, two famous Russian mass-murderers… What do you think about them? Does insanity equal genius in their mania? What is your attitude to the deeds they have performed?

- People like Golovkin and Chekatilo don’t have the right to exist. I doubt if there’s any ‘genius’ in various kinds of massacre performed by a man of unsound mind, a man who tries to indemnify the violation he endured in his childhood by murdering children in a truly sadistic way. We can’t even conceive that pain and torture their victims had to bear. As to our lyrics… well, this is the way we try to get our listeners (especially children) acquainted with the terror they might face one day…

What do you do besides composing and performing music? SCRAMBLED DEFUNCTS’ stuff is very grim and depressive (both musically and lyrically), so I wonder if it comes from your private life or perhaps there is something else behind the songs?

- Talking about our pastime (apart from music), one should use the term ‘hobby’, because music is our main occupation despite the fact it’s extremely hard to be a metal band in Russia. There’s one professional programmer and one web-designer among us. As to private life… it doesn’t influence our works at all.

Your lyrics seem to be very dreadful to me…  What gives you inspiration while writing them?  Do they mirror your state of mind or it’s just a way for you to give a distorted reflection of this fucked up world?

- Regarding lyrics, I can’t actually fancy what kind of images one can associate with our style. Most of extreme death metal bands compose similar texts  - with an exception for the few, such as SUFFOCATION. By the way, I must admit that, apart from their, truly magnificent, music, I can’t get into their lyrics. They just do nothing for me. My lyrics don’t have anything to do with my private life, I just used to translate my favorite bands’ lyrics back in 1991, and when it came to “Butchered At Birth” by CANNIBAL CORPSE, I understood that it’s exactly what I need and Chris Barnes is, no doubts, a genius, since ordinary man won’t ever write anything like that alone. AUTOPSY, PUNGENT STENCH or GOREFEST never could beat him… I decided that I should create something similar to it, that’s why my lyrics base mostly on early “verses” by Chris Barnes.

This is a question for Butch (the drummer). Your drumming sounds amazing, where did you learn to play like that? As far as I know, it’s very difficult to play the way you do so how do you cope with your drum kit on the band’s gigs? Do you change the rhythms (including fills) featured on the album when you are playing live in any way?

- We used only drummachine while working at the studio (I knew that! – ED), and I believe there’s nothing dishonourable in it. Firstly, we couldn’t find suitable drummer and, secondly, plenty of foreign bands also use drummachine quite often, even if they have skillful drummer. Otherwise, SCRAMBLED DEFUNCTS simply couldn’t go on further… But here we are, mostly thanks to that choice. Being a drummer himself, Butch created all drumming themes and rhythms. It was really hard to create and record everything, however perhaps such a laborious work explains the splendid result.

When it comes to Russian bands, it’s very difficult to record and produce the album with such a good quality you managed to do… How did you do this? Are you happy with your label in terms of your deal, freedom of creation and solicitation?

- Lots of Russian bands commit sound’s processing (as well as mixing) to sound engineers who don’t know a shit about metal, the ones who can’t fairly conceive what they have to do, and, as a result, we have ‘thin’ sound, lack of drive and power. Since no one knows how we should sound alike, we produced and mixed the album ourselves. That’s why we have such a different sound, based on earliest (and best) works by SUFFOCATION, DYING FETUS and CANNIBAL CORPSE.

What are your future plans in terms of writing music, recording new stuff and playing live? What will your next album sound alike? When and where is it possible to see you perfoming live?

- At the moment we’re working on the songs for the second album and planning to cover one track by SUFFOCATION. Lyrics will be quite different from the ones featured on “Catacomb Abattoir” – more various, cruel and irreparable. As to music, we will keep our style the same. New tracks will be even more aggressive, diverse and technical. Perhaps, we will experiment with such instruments as viola, flute, violin, etc. I can’t say what it will sound alike – it’s up to you to decide (after the album is out, of course). If you mean one single group, be it SUFFOCATION (at least, when it comes to technique). Concerning our gigs, check out our homepage (http://www.dnttm.ru/~scrdef) to get most fresh info. Also, you can join our fan club (“Join Us” section), consequently you’ll be informed of all the news regarding SCRAMBLED DEFUNCTS personally via email.

What do you think about social, criminal and political situation in Russia in particular, and in all the world, speaking generally?  Does it give you any creative inspiration, or all the inspiration comes from your inner self?

- The current situation in Russia (which arose in Gorbachev’s times) fully answers the intentions of the world freemason’s lodge and Z.O.G., which treat us like the marrionettes... as well as our president, or, speaking more precisely, everything that if left of him... conducting genocide of our nation, lacerating the remains of our long-suffering motherland… like goddamn jackals… Destroying our industries, wrecking the efficiency, leading the nation to penury, sacking national riches and natural resources. Once one of the most powerful countries in the whole world, we were turned into source of raw materials, some kind of adjunct, dump of radioactive garbage and the source of fleecing. The youth gets high on drugs don’t giving a fuck about job, viruses are being spread… Russia is slowly withering.

What philosophical or religious ideas stand most close to your view on the world and what ideas appear as inadmissible for you? Have you got your own philosophical or religious concepts?

- Well, we don’t follow any universally recognized religion, since we think that they put on too many limitations, enslaving our inward life, depriving us of many pleasures. Religion is, first and foremost, chains, which won’t ever let you to overcome them. Therefore, if we talk about certain vital principles, the man should have right to contest the dogma, which is being thrust on us - dogma or ‘God’ for some (of course, I’m talking only about christianity). We don’t adhere to such phrases as “all of us are one of a kind”, “universal happiness and blessing” or “morals and charity regarding everyone”. Hence, christianity is the most inadmissible religion for us. In our view, it’s one of the most dangerous tendencies ever, because it makes you weak and too sensible, unable of doing anything plain and tough when it’s necessary (“turn the other cheak”…) It makes a feeble, spineless creature out of man, who’s not capable of be guided by accurate, cold computation. Consequently, he’ll just turn the “other cheak”… instead of (even) thinking about another outcome.

Do you drink, take drugs or get yourselves fucked up in any other way? What about studying altered states of mind? What is the most splendid way for you to achieve a state of mind different to ‘normal’?

-  Before he joined the band, Alexander (the singer) was a drug-addicted person during five years. He tried to fix the things up, but in vain. In order to cool down the pressure he drank up to three bottles of vodka a day. Attending one of the medical seances, he met Dmitry who was working as a hospital attendant. Dmitry brought him to the band and explained that he should stop using heroin. Alexander collided with our comprehension and true love (especially when it comes to Butch). This strongest feeling let him quit taking drugs in few months. The only weakness he can permit himself to, is opium’s injection after concert and participation in homosexual orgy with other bandmembers as well as specially invited children. And if seriously, in order to regain consciousness, we need only few grammes of extract from a year-old child’s adrenalin gland and short seanse of spiritual relaxation upon his dismembered carcass.

What would you do if you saw a tortured person lying on the street… slowly dying? Would you try to save him, or, since he’s dying anyway, you’d better perform few experiments upon his (still vital) flesh?

- It depends on many reasons: age, sex, nation. Most possibly (as we're humane people) will dial 911 and, until they reach us, we (using laboratory method, of course) will perform few experiments upon him (solely on scientific purpose): such as ability to sustain high voltage, high-tension current’s resistibility, fire- and frost-resistance, an ability to stand shock loading… If this individual has golden teeth or any kind of values, we will withdraw them without regret, since we are in need of financial means in order to complete the work on our second album.

What is absolute pain and absolute pleasure to you? Could we draw any parallels between these terms?

- This question is more philosophical, than musical. We think that there’s nothing absolute in Nature, perhaps with an exception for the Nature itself. As to parallels… if everything’s interconditional and correlaited (pain and pleasure, for example), then we could not only draw certain parallels but make an attempt to link them to each other, or at least place ‘em on the single straight line…

Ok, I exhausted myself, so that seems to be all. Would you like to say anything in the end?

- In the end we’d like to thank you, Kai, and you, Silvanus, all the fans and people who keep supporting us. The band is full of creative plans and new ideas which will be definitely fulfilled in the nearest future.
Our homepage: http://www.dnttm.ru/~scrdef
Our email: scrdef@dnttm.ru
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