Matt you have been doing this since you were 15, how has this affected you
life and your thinking? Do you think you may go for another 15?
Matt:
Yeah, it has been a long time now... It's weird to think that I've been in
Exhumed for almost half of my life now. It's definitely affected my life in a
lot of ways... Obviously I've had a lot of great experiences traveling around
the world and meeting a lot of great people. I think that being involved with
the scene and with music in general has been pretty positive. I think that I
have kind of reconciled my own thoughts and personal philosophies with what the
gore concept that we do, and that I'm trying to make the lyrics and music
reflect a lot more of myself and my own ideas, which have a variety of
influences outside of just being "metal" or whatever. On the downside of course,
I've never really completed college or been able to hold down a decent-paying
job, I'm always broke, etc. But the benefits far outweigh the other stuff, I
have no complaints. A few regrets, but nothing major. As for going for another
15, I think that the time will come when Exhumed has run its course and at that
point we should just quit and get on with our lives. Music is something that
shouldn't be made out of a sense of inertia or obligation. I have no interest in
stagnating and repeating the same things year after year. When it gets to that
point, it's time to do something else. Exhumed isn't going anywhere for the
immediate future, but I think that another 15 is pretty unlikely.
Since I personally am into a lot of this now titled "extreme metal", I find a
craving to keep speeding things up musically and still strive to find bands that
can speed up and maintain a decent sound and also be original, do you find
yourself in these predicaments? Who would you recommend off the top of your head
to check out?
Matt:
Honestly, I'm kind of burnt out on the whole "who's the fastest" thing. I think
that after a while it doesn't really make a difference and it all sounds fast,
so who cares if it's faster, I only care if the songs are better. I was never
into the whole "hyper blast" thing, even back when "Extreme Conditions..." by
Brutal Truth came out- I liked the riffs, but I am just not into that style of
blast beat. I think that it sounds too artificial and powerless. I'll listen to
Mick Harris any day over 99% of all the drummers out there today, even though
they're faster and tighter, etc. They don't really have any power in their
playing and they really lack feeling. There are definitely some exceptions,
though- Derek Roddy is probably the most talented drummer ever to play Death
Metal... Some of the bands I'm into that are active right now that are pretty
damn fast would be Ingrowing, Cripple Bastards, Pig Destroyer, Regurgitate, The
County Medical Examiners, Cretin, Phobia, Strong Intention, and Dropdead, but a
lot of those bands are more Grindcore than Metal. Most Death Metal these
days ends up being too clinical and artificial sounding for my tastes, so I
listen to more Grind, Punk, and older Metal really. The current Death Metal
bands that I'm into aren't really too fast by today's standards, stuff like
Kaamos, Vomitory, Funebrarum, Pentacle, Cianide, Nunslaughter, Repugnant,
Abscess, etc. etc.
Exhumed is titled as the band that pioneered the American aspect of gore
metal. Do you agree with this and how do you think you drew inspiration from the
European gore scene?
Matt:
I think that growing up in the Bay Area, there was no local DM scene at all
until '91, and the only Death and Grind bands that predated Exhumed were
Immortal Fate and Plutocracy, but by the time we were introduced to them we were
already complete Earache devotees. Because there wasn't any local scene, every
band seemed as remote as any other- Florida and England and Sweden were all
thousands of miles away, so there was no real scene loyalty as far as that went.
I just kind of honed in on what was going on in the UK and in Sweden a lot more
than the Florida scene. The only real American bands that heavily influenced us
were either thrash bands like Slayer, Metallica, and Exodus, or cult bands like
Impetigo, Autopsy, Master, Necrovore, Possessed, Repulsion, and Siege. Our sound
was definitely rooted in the early Earache catalog, and I think by the time we
had our shit together in the mid 90s, our only real contemporaries were all
European bands like Haemorrhage, Dead Infection, Regurgitate, etc. We were
really into the whole Goregrind scene in Europe in the mid-90s, it was really
the only stuff that was current that we were into back then, as far as Metal
stuff (except for Undinism and Blood Duster from Australia!). Obviously, we've
gone our own way and so have the aforementioned bands, and we all are doing
different things, but there is definitely a common thread of total grind between
all of us. At the time those bands were at their peak in Europe, no one was
really doing that shit at all in the states, except for us, and then Hemdale
arrived on the scene. Now there are a ton of US bands playing Gore Metal, which
is killer to see.
I dig the fact that former members are still promoted on your site such as
co/founder Col Jones -Cretin, and bassist Bud Burke - Dying In Your Beauty Sleep
who replaced Ross Sewage from Impaled. Leaves that sense of accomplished family
and keeps circulation into other projects that may or may not reflect the
initial bands/EXHUMED. How do you personally view all of this. I see it as an
example for the slanderers out there that there still will be peace when you are
gone.
Matt:
I definitely think of Exhumed as a big extended family. Pretty much everyone who
has been in the band is on good terms, if not close friends, so I think it's
great. Just because someone isn't in the band anymore doesn't mean that we don't
support them. Col's new band is so fucking godly that everyone should
check them out at
www.cretanic.com Bud's also involved in a country project (!) called Turd
Furgeson and Wiggle Wagons they're pretty damn good. Bud can chicken pick like
the best of them! Obviously Ross is involved with Impaled who just got signed to
Century Media, and our old guitarist Derrel is now playing with Col and I in our
thrash band, Dekapitator.
Are you having a blast with Leon del Muerte from ex-IMPALED on bass and John
Longstreth (ex-origin/skinless) on drums. Do you see any future recording out of
these touring factors?
Matt:
We had a great time with John behind the kit, and he did a killer job. It took
some time for us to get used to each other musically, since we're pretty much at
opposite ends of the Death Metal spectrum, but I think we both had a killer
experience and learned a lot from each other (mostly about beer and farts, but
that's par for the course). We're playing with Danny Walker (from Uphill Battle)
again now (he did our European tour last November as well as some scattered US
dates) on drums and working out a whole new set list. Leon played in Exhumed
from 96 to 97 so it's great to back on the road with him again. He and I have
known each other from almost 10 years now, so he's been part of the family for a
long time. As far as a recording line-up... We'll see when we get to that point.
We definitely want to establish a permanent line-up if possible and be a "real
band" as much as we can. Once we get that squared away, we will worry about
recording.
Do you hope to keep the band in a circulating member mode or do you hope to
get back to a family unit?
Matt:
See above...
Platters Of Splatter has been released, do you have in words of wisdom why
lovers of the band and new comers to the sound should buy this CD?
Matt:
Newcomers probably shouldn't buy this disc- they should by "Anatomy is Destiny"
and then if they like it, get into the back catalog. Slaughtercultists, however
should definitely check it out. The tracks from the "In the Name of Gore" split
w/Hemdale are a lot better than the "Gore Metal" album I think, and there's tons
of stuff from 92 to 2002 to get into. Of course if you're not into raw (read:
shitty) production then you may want to skip this altogether, since some of the
stuff we've included on the disc is pretty raw.
There was a split with Pale Existence/Exhumed done about 1996. Is this the
phenomenal band from Pa? I can find little to no info on it.
Matt:
The Pale Existence that we did a split with was from California. Bud actually
was in that band before he joined Exhumed. I haven't heard the one from PA-
that's such a goofy band name that I can't believe there was another one out
there!
If EXHUMED was to find Bin Laden, what exactly would you do to him? Please be
specific!!!!!! Matt:
We would fuck him up. Terminally. And then kill him. And then set his ass on
fire. And then get the reward $$.
Assuming that you have seen many dead corpses in your life, have you ever
seen the lungs of a smoker? If you smoke did that effect you?
Matt:
I've seen photos of smokers' lungs- definitely gnarly. It didn't really effect
me too much, as I've never smoked a cigarette in my life. I'm just not really a
smoker. More of a drinker.
What is your favorite horror/gore movie and why?
Matt:
Dead Alive. I think it is totally over the top and brutally gory, while still
being hilarious, sarcastic, ironic, and clever. There are lots of great ones out
there, but for me, I doubt that Dead Alive will be topped.
Where do you see the future of gore metal going?
Matt:
I don't really know. I try not to worry too much about that kind of stuff- I
just worry about what Exhumed is doing and where we're going, and I know that as
long as we keep challenging ourselves and pushing our sound further then I'll be
interested. I'm not that concerned with what other bands do. I think people see
us as torch-bearers for the gore scene, which is great, but ultimately we're
just one band doing what we do, and hopefully the other bands in the genre think
the same way, or we're all going to end up sounding the fucking same, and that's
boring! However, gore bands that I think will make killer records are
Engorged, The County Medical Examiners, Bile, Inhume, Last Days of Humanity,
Aborted, Splatterhouse, and probably a couple of others that I'm forgetting
right now.
There seem to be a build up of bands in the genre? Who do you think we should
keep an eye out on?
Matt:
See above.
What would you have for closing words for this interview and what would you
like on your tombstone?
Matt:
On my tombstone: Nothing- I'm going to be cremated. On the urn it should
say- Matt Harvey 1975-2060 (or thereabouts) "Only Death is Real" Thanxxx for the
interview and check out
www.exhumed.us and
www.relapse.com for tour dates, as we're playing shows constantly for the
next few months. See all the Necromaniacs out there on the road or on the
slab.....
