Why did it take so long to unleash “Dawn Of The Apocalypse”?

- The new album was written and recorded within the time from mid 1998 till mid 1999. We had many difficulties prior to the beginning of  writing the new songs. We had to overcome many obstacles before we could be content and comfortable together to create the album. We had to search for a new place to have band rehearsals and then we had to take the time to write the music, which does not come very easy for us. We want to make certain that the music that is created by VITAL REMAINS is to our own satisfaction before we release it to the world. We are very serious when it comes to our music and we wont let ourselves release anything less than brutal.

Did you have to endure any lineup changes during past few years?

- Well , we still have our main line-up of Dave Suzuki, Tony Lazaro & myself. But with the new album we featured a new vocalist who has now been fired due to personal complications. As of now, we have a new vocalist & new drummer for our up-coming tours. Dave (Suzuki) will switch to lead guitar for our live shows. Dave did all the lead guitars on the new album & we cant seem to find any guitarist to match his abilities to play leads so our only alternative was to locate a brutal drummer so that Dave can play the lead guitar position.

What is the reason for these permanent delays between each album’s release dates? Simply let us recall how much time passed since “Let Us Pray”… I almost thought you have ceased to exist, however fortunately then came “Forever Underground”… Anyway, once again: what is the cause?

- We are very serious when it comes to writing our music and we don’t want to rush anything. We would rather take our time and create something magnificent than to rush and create something mediocre.

I’ve been doing this for many years and still continue… continue to praise restlessly David’s unique drumming style… Where have he learned to treat his drumkit in such a magnificent way?

- Dave wanted to learn how to play death metal style drums 5 years ago. His main interest is the guitar. He has been playing guitar since he was very young. But after the release of our 2nd album (“Into Cold Darkness”) we found ourselves looking for a new drummer and Dave was there to collaborate with us. Dave has a very unique talent with the drums. His style is very fast and brutal. His style comes from countless hours of practice.

Are you going to collaborate with Osmose further? What is your view their new direction? It seems strange and somewhat irritating to me; formerly they were almost 100% black metal label, however they sign mostly shitty, noisy pseudo-thrash metal bands nowadays… Who needs this…

- I’m not really concerned with the bands that Osmose is currently signing. Although I still admire the bands like IMMORTAL & NARDUK & ANGELCORPSE. ENSLAVED & IMPALED NAZARENE are also very good. I’m personally not a fan of the noisy pseudo-thrash metal bands that you mention. It seems as though the true style of black metal has met its boundaries & now the listeners want something new to listen to. I don’t believe this retro80s style metal will be very successful. Bands like CELTIC FROST, MERCYFUL FATE, IRON MAIDEN, VENOM & DESTRUCTION can never be duplicated. They all left their groundbreaking marks in their own time. Nowadays I believe that the fans are seeking something more brutal and talented to listen to. Bands such as KRISIUN, ANGELCORPSE, REBAELLIUN, HATE ETERNAL, CENTURIAN & SOUL REAPER are paving the new road for the new breed of metal to arise. And we are right there in the midst of it all brandishing our own contribution to the brutal style of death metal. I cant say for certain at the moment what the future holds for the relationship between Osmose & VITAL REMAINS. We will have to wait till we complete our assault of the world when we take our “Dawn Of The Apocalypse” tour out on the road.

You seem to be touring a lot! Which either gig or tour would you name as the best and the worst one ever?

- Touring is something that we enjoy doing very much! We try to tour & play gigs as much as possible. Its all so very important for a band to tour to help with the promotion of an album. As for our best tour I would have to say it was our 1997 European tour with MALEVOLENT CREATION, VADER & INFERNAL MAJESTY. This tour was incredible! Every show sold out with the exception of 3. The tour line-up was an absolutely great package for any venue. All 4 bands shared 1 very large bus and we all got to know each other very well. It was a really great time for us. There have been a few bad shows in regard to poor attendance here in the USA. But we have to take the bad gigs with the good gigs. We don’t control the promotion part of the gigs. I mean, when a band is scheduled to gig in a certain city, it is up to the promoter of that particular venue to promote the show, or have a local band from that area to help pass the word. Some of these promoters don’t do this sort of business, which makes me tend to believe that they are very unorganized & unprofessional.

Let’s get back in time for a while… “Let Us Pray” was brought forth the light a long, long time ago… VITAL REMAINS seems to keep on progressing with each single release, however let me ask you: what is your personal view on your band’s evolution throughout years? Do you ever listen to your past works?

- Yes we have progressed a great deal since the birth of our very first album “Let Us Pray”. And every album after we have gotten better with each release. Its all part of growing together as musicians. I think that we have evolved into a very great, brutal, death metal band. And we are only going to proceed further with our next release when the time comes. I still listen to the older albums quite frequently. They are a big part of my life and I’m very proud of the work on each existing album.

What about telling us few words on the subject of your regular studio equipment?

- We use very good studio equipment. Our equipment consists of  MesaBoogie dual Rectifier 100watt guitar heads & Marshall Valvestate heads together with 8  4x12 celestian rigged speaker cabinets, Ampeg svt400 bass head with 1-18inch, 4-10inch & 1 2-inch speaker cabinets. The drum kit is a Tama concert series mahogany woodgrain 10 piece drum set with full cymbals & cage set-up.

Describe your first steps on musical field... How did you get interested in music altogether, in metal and death / black specifically? What urged you on becoming a singer / musician / composer?

- I’ve was introduced to music when I was 3 years old. My grandmother gave me a drumset when I was 3, and I learned how to play the drums over a period of 6 years after. Then I was really intrigued by the electric guitar when I started to listen to BLACK SABBATH & KISS with my mother blasting the stereo as load as it could go. I was very interested at that time to learn how to play the guitar, so my mother purchased one for me and I quickly adapted to learn how the instrument worked. But I then realized that my fingers wanted to stretch more & really pound on the strings, and I just kept breaking strings over & over, so I decided to give the bass guitar a chance when I was 18 years old. It was then I realized that the bass guitar was my instrument. And I’ve been playing bass ever since. Because I was introduced to such heavy bands as BLACK SABBATH, DEEP PURPLE & KISS at such an early age is why I wanted to be involved with heavy music. By the time I was playing bass, bands like SLAYER, VENOM, SODOM & many others were emerging in the metal scene and I wanted to be in a band and play much heavier and more brutal music. So I finally joined my first band (SELF DESRUCT) and recorded 2 demos then I found out that this other band from the next town over was looking for a new bassist so I answered the add and it was VITAL REMAINS. So ultimately I have to thank my family and my undying passion for the love of playing music.

Your opinion on christianity? I believe, to oppose this religion becoming a satanist is not the best way possible... Following any kind of religion you turn yourself into voluntary slave, don't you think so?

- I have no compassion or interest for any kind of organized religion. Religion is a fucking joke. I have my own way of life and I follow my own judgements. I am my own god and I do what I think is right for me. I am not a follower. I lead myself to do what I want to do. Christianity is a big money making organization. These people claim that they are here to follow & serve jesus christ & god. And part of their existence deals with (supposedly) helping the poor, hungry & homeless people in this world, yet all I ever see these hypocrites spending money on is themselves with their new (huge) churches being built all over the place. Fuck the christians! Rot …ALL OF YOU!

Plenty of various individuals become vegetarians / “Greenpeace” activists nowadays; do you share their views? Isn't it a bit late for waking up from “mangod” dream and starting to protect nature from ourselves?

- I admire individuals who take care of themselves and try keeping the earth a better place to live, but, I share your opinion, that it might be too late right now to start trying to change things. I mean, look at how the population has grown through out the entire planet. There are so many people living here and the industry in this world has also gotten so large that there is no chance now to control most of the pollution in the air & water. Can you imagine how much garbage there is in this world? Or how about human piss & feces ??? Where does all that shit go? Ill tell you. It just keeps piling up. We are literally living in a world of shit! We have to live with this or die!

Do you have any particular nightmares? What is your worst fear and why? Furthermore, each of us seems to have at least one fear inside of him or her, however there should be a way to overcome it. Do you agree with me? What is your solution to your own fears?

- Well there are some things I fear, like for instance, I don’t like to fly in planes, but I do it to overcome my fear of flying. I don’t have nightmares. In fact I very rarely have dreams while I’m sleeping. But my biggest fear is A.I.D.S. this disease is killing off many people in this world. You have to be very careful nowadays when having sex. You never know who has the disease. Once you get it that’s it. There is no cure. Same with cancer. There is no cure.

Imagine that you’re the last man on Tellus left after some kind of cataclysm, which made the whole humanity to cease into everlasting oblivion... What will be your first steps and actions?

- Wow!!! I guess I would just take each day one at a time, and try to survive. I know I wouldn’t survive for a very long time without food & water, so I would just grin & bear the situation.

Do you know anything regarding Russia? What is your attitude to the country of mine as well as it’s people? Any Russian bands you’ve heard lately?

- I actually have some Russian blood in my veins. My grandfather was full blooded Russian and his mother was a native and born in Russia! I don’t know too much about the country although I would very much like to some day visit there and perhaps have VITAL REMAINS play there! I’m still waiting to be introduced to some Russian bands as I am very curious to learn of their musical style.

Do you have anything left to say? If so, do it now, since the time has come for us to say “fare thee well” until next, better times…

- I would like to thank you and the fans of Russia for your support & interest. Its very greatly appreciated. Please buy our new album “DAWN OF THE APOCALYPSE” it’s a very brutal death metal album, I’m sure you will all like it! Till next time … fare well & support the metal!!!!!!!

VITAL REMAINS DISCOGRAPHY

1989 REDUCED TO ASHES Demo
1990 EXCRUTIATING PAIN Demo
1991 BLACK MASS 7” (THRASH RECORDS) France
1992 LET US PRAY (PEACEVILLE)
1993 VITAL REMAINS / MORTA SKULD 7” (PEACEVILLE)
1995 INTO COLD DARKNESS (PEACEVILLE)
1997 FOREVER UNDERGROUND (OSMOSE)
1999 DAWN OF THE APOCALYPSE (OSMOSE)

VITAL REMAINS contact –
Email: GODOFRAPTURE@aol.com