ALEX WEBSTER says CANNIBAL CORPSE “probably wouldn't do a tour with SIX FEET UNDER”
New album 'Chaos Horrific' album slated for tomorrow
14-08-2023
In a new interview with Scott Penfold of Loaded Radio, CANNIBAL CORPSE bassist Alex Webster was asked for his reaction to Chris Barnes‘s comment about the state of the death metal scene in which the former CANNIBAL CORPSE vocalist said that he “despises what the genre has become.” Alex said: “I don’t really put too much emphasis on any of that stuff. I think people should be able to say whatever they want. And if people have an opinion about music, why should they keep it hidden, I guess.
If Chris doesn’t like something, he’s absolutely free to say he doesn’t like it. And then people are free to say they don’t like his opinion. So I don’t really care about that. I think everybody’s entitled to their own opinion, and it’s fine.”
Webster continued: “We all love music so much, especially… I’ve found metal fans, we’re all so passionate about it, we’re just prone to debate and argue. And I think it reflects how much we all care about this music. It’s not just background music to us. If you go into McDonald’s and you can hear a song in the background, then it just seems to me, it’s probably not interesting enough to have dedicated fans; it’s just sort of background music. But metal and other kinds of music that really require your attention and get you engaged… It’s not in the background for us literally or figuratively — it’s something very important to all of us. It’s our hobby in many ways, it’s what we’re into, and, yeah, we’re gonna argue about it sometimes because we care about it. So I think it’s fine.”
Asked if there is a relationship there between CANNIBAL CORPSE and Barnes at all today or if it’s “kind of like ‘you do your thing and we’re doing our thing’,” Alex said: “Pretty much. Yeah, he can do his thing; we do ours. If I see him, it’s always friendly. But I haven’t seen him in a few years. But, yeah, to each their own, and it’s all cool at this point. We don’t really run into each other, though. They (Barnes‘s current band SIX FEET UNDER) haven’t toured in a while. Normally when you see everybody and you reconnect with people is at festivals, mainly the European ones, I should say, ’cause that’s where the majority of the festivals are. And we reconnect with a lot of people there — bands we’ve toured with, friends, crew members that we know, working with other bands. So that’s where I would run into him. And they haven’t been doing that stuff in a little while. So maybe we’ll see him next year or something, though. Who knows?”
Webster was also pressed about whether fans have asked to see CANNIBAL CORPSE and SIX FEET UNDER touring together, especially now that SIX FEET UNDER features another former CANNIBAL member, guitarist Jack Owen. Alex said: “People have asked about the two bands touring together, but I think, again, SIX FEET just doesn’t really tour that much. And we probably wouldn’t do it. It’s, yeah, like you said, sort of everything’s cool, but it’s sort of like, you do your thing, we’ll do our thing. And it’s fine.”
CANNIBAL CORPSE released a new song called “Summoned For Sacrifice” including a video. The track is taken from the death metal veterans’ sixteenth studio album, “Chaos Horrific“, which is due on September 22 via Metal Blade Records. The CANNIBAL CORPSE “Summoned For Sacrifice” video was directed by David Brodsky and produced by Allison Woest of My Good Eye: Music Visuals.
Watch “Summoned For Sacrifice” below.
Of the band’s second single, “Summoned For Sacrifice,” themed around the selection of an individual to be dismembered, drummer Paul Mazurkiewicz elaborates, “One person is randomly selected to die. Thirteen people are randomly selected to kill this person by violently removing pieces of his body until he breathes no more.”
Watch the previously released “Blood Blind” below.
Written shortly after the conclusion of the “Violence Unimagined” sessions, echoes of that album exist in “Chaos Horrific”.
“To me, this album feels sort of like a continuation of ‘Violence Unimagined’,” says bassist Alex Webster.
The bandmembers have always been noted for technicality and complex songwriting, but that doesn’t define where the writing process takes them.
“I believe that our songwriting has progressed in a manner where every song paves its own path, whether it’s a straightforward or technical song,” notes guitarist Rob Barrett. “Sometimes it’s a mix of both, so there’s no preconceived idea that we want to be more technical. The music just sort of takes its own course.”
Webster concurs: “I don’t think there was any conscious effort to make things more technical, so if it wound up that way it would just be a natural result of us trying to write the heaviest songs we could.”
CANNIBAL CORPSE had no master plan, approaching each track with an open mind.
“I never go into a record thinking about anything, I just let the writing flow freely with no limitations,” says guitarist/producer Erik Rutan. “But this time, I knew I wanted to push the envelope a bit in a different direction than ‘Violence Unimagined’ — expand the dynamics, explore new territory without departing from what CANNIBAL CORPSE is and always shall be.”
Rutan has now produced six CANNIBAL CORPSE albums, starting with 2006’s “Kill”, and this is Rutan‘s second release as a full-fledged member, since officially joining in 2020. Tracking at Rutan‘s Mana Studio in Florida, the band’s home state, was comfortable for all involved, who were at the top of their game and ready to give it their all. Things went smoother than ever, particularly on the guitar front thanks to Barrett and Rutan having “custom guitars built with longer scale necks to hold the proper intonation necessary for lower tunings,” says Barrett.
Drummer Paul Mazurkiewicz named the record and his cohorts felt it was a great representation of the band. Subjects covered include fighting off hordes of zombies (“Chaos Horrific”),the selection of a random individual to be dismembered and sacrificed (“Summoned For Sacrifice”),and the violent revenge of victims of human trafficking (“Vengeful Invasion”). The album artwork by longtime collaborator Vince Locke is also suitably CANNIBAL CORPSE-esque, featuring a chaotic tangle of the living and the undead, evoking the lyrics of the title track.
Mazurkiewicz says: “‘Blood Blind’ is about mass mutilations to reset the human race in a genocide that was embraced by the masses.” Rutan adds: “‘Blood Blind’ was the first song musically that I wrote for ‘Chaos Horrific’. It all started with that funeral march of a first riff floating around in my head and it took off from there. Heavy and disturbing, it worked its way into an aggressive smorgasbord of depth and swirling darkness! I thought it would be great to collaborate so I had Paul add his lyrical stamp to it…”
“Chaos Horrific” track listing:
01. Overlords Of Violence
02. Frenzied Feeding
03. Summoned For Sacrifice
04. Blood Blind
05. Vengeful Invasion
06. Chaos Horrific
07. Fracture And Refracture
08. Pitchfork Impalement
09. Pestilential Rictus
10. Drain You Empty
Social media