interview by: Pal the Postman

The following is an interview with Gorefest’s guitarist Frank Harthoorn about their recently unleashed album, Rise to Ruin, and lots more. The questions were forwarded by e-mail right after the release party gig of the album in September, 2007. The questions were forwarded in Dutch, but Frank agreed to reply to them in his own words in English. Hence nothing is lost in translation. Still, certain matters needed to be cleared up, as you will learn.

Maelstrom: Let’s start off by asking about Gorefests’s release party gig (which took place in Amsterdam’s Melkweg/Milky Way on September 14th, 2007). Were you happy with it? Personally, I thought the overall sound was better than at the try-out gig a few days earlier at the Hengelo Metropool.

Frank Harthoorn: Yeah, it was alright, I guess. This was only our third show since we recorded Rise to Ruin in March, so there's still some rough edges, slight mistakes and miscalculations here and there, but on the whole I think we got away with it. Sound usually depends on the club's PA system; I gather the Melkweg probably has a slightly better set-up than Metropool.

Maelstrom: The release party gig for Rise to Ruin was on September 14th. You may find this a bit of a lame question, but… wouldn’t 9/11 have been a more suitable date for it in connection with the album’s title?

Frank Harthoorn: Every idiot and his grandma tries to use dates like that to promote his or her stuff, and it'll only leave you looking stupid. Shallow and blatant symbolism like that is better left to the Slayers of this world. Besides, September 11th fell on a Tuesday, and midweek shows suck, even in Amsterdam.

Maelstrom: Now that it is clear that 2005's La Muerte wasn’t a farewell album, but a firm comeback, could one distinguish two kinds of Gorefest: “vintage Gorefest” and Gorefest “new improved formula”? Or is such a distinction a non-issue and is the group the same old “Fest” as it ever was?

Frank Harthoorn: I think we've gotten to a point where we're a lot more confident in our own abilities, have a much better idea of what we want and how to get it, and have reached a reasonable consensus between the four of us about all of that. There'll always be differences of opinion, or arguments, but that, to me, is an integral part of the whole creative process. That realization is a major difference to the situation say, 12 years ago, when we really had no idea anymore why we were doing this. We do now.

Maelstrom: Could one assume that it wouldn’t have been possible to create an album like La Muerte without the hiatus of years? I mean, not like two years after [1998's] Chapter 13 would there have been no split?

Frank Harthoorn: Yeah, you're probably right. In any case, we couldn't have made La Muerte if we wouldn't have done Chapter 13, or even [1996's] Soul Survivor. These might not be our most popular albums, but we learned a lot from those sessions, a lot of which we still use today. I can't imagine that stuff having been written two years after Chapter 13, though, not with how matters were between us back then.

Maelstrom: I have understood that Rise to Ruin wasn’t created in the studio in a conventional manner and that you all recorded your parts seperately from each other with the help of recording software. How did you like it? Are you more comfortable with this method than the usual one?

Frank Harthoorn: I think you're confusing two different things. These songs were written using ProTools software, which means you can record stuff at home. Since we all lead fairly busy lives beside the band, we just don't have the time to meet up regularly for rehearsals. Writing happens at home, and we send each other stuff till everyone's satisfied. After that, you start learning the songs, and by the time you enter the studio, you hope you know them well enough to record everything within the time constraints that there are. So while we're all in the studio to record the whole thing, the actual writing is done at home. Which is probably how 99% of all Metalbands work, so hardly anything unconventional going on there.

Maelstrom: Drummer Ed Warby’s quick rolls are more dexterous and hyperactive than ever before, even more than on La Muerte. How about his collaboration with the Swedish band Demiurg? Aren’t they also requiring his attention at the moment?

Frank Harthoorn: I have no idea, I take it he'll just be doing studiowork with them. I can't see them wanting to work their way around our schedules, though I don't know if they're even planning on doing lots of shows. Excellent band though, can't wait to hear the new one, especially now Eddie's behind the drums.

Maelstrom: I saw Gorefest on the Belgian Graspop Metal Meeting back in 2005, prior to the release of La Muerte, and what did he have? Five stitches in one of his ankles? How did he manage to do that? What happened?

Frank Harthoorn: He tried to do some household plumbing, with considerably bloody results. Ed's known for being a bit of a blunderhead while preparing for big shows. Usually, a couple of shots near the wound will do the trick, though I dread the day he'll actually chop off a hand or a foot. We might be in trouble then.

Maelstrom: You will also be doing shows in Russia. That’s quite remarkable! Are you getting fanmail from over there? Have you been approached to be doing those gigs? (I reckon that fans in the US will be pretty jealous about that).

Frank Harthoorn: Yeah, that one kind of surprised me. We've never been to Russia, and frankly I had no idea people over there had actually heard of us. Apparently they have, which is cool, but I have no idea what to expect.

Maelstrom: I imagine what it would be like if Gorefest visited the States together with your Swedish colleagues Entombed with a true “Crusade of Eurodeath.” As far as I know they have no touring plans for 2008. Would you fancy that?

Frank Harthoorn: Ha, I'd love to go on tour with Entombed. I mean, it's hardly a strange combination, is it? There's a big difference to the work ethics of both bands though. We all have our daytime jobs, which we won't be giving up anytime soon, whereas Entombed, I think, live off the band. That means they can pretty much go on tour whenever they want. We all have our schedules to fit in. But it's a cool idea though, I'll give you that.

Maelstrom: On Rise to Ruin, there are guest vocals from Jacob Bredahl from Hatesphere from Denmark. How did that take off?

Frank Harthoorn: JC recorded his vocals at Tue Madsen's Antfarm in Denmark. Tue felt it would be a good idea to have some backup screams, and Jacob lives just around the corner from Tue's, so he was an easy target, so to speak. He quite likes our stuff too, so that kind of helped as well.

Maelstrom: To my knowledge, Gorefest would be releasing a DVD with the gig from the Dynamo ’93 festival (in Eindhoven in the Netherlands). How about another re-issue of False combined with that one? Wasn’t there discontent about the production sound of the album (it sounded too clinical)? Combining False with the Dynamo ‘93 live tracks would give listeners the chance of comparing studio tracks to live tracks.

Frank Harthoorn: You're misinformed. We've never had any complaints about the sound of False; it's the mix on Erase that we fucked up. I don't think there'll be anymore re-issues, either, since all of that stuff was re-issued two years ago already. We were trying to get hold of the Dynamo '93 video recordings, but at the moment it's very unsure if any of those still exist. Besides the two songs which are there, of course. It would have been cool to re-release our live album, Eindhoven Insanity, together with a DVD of the same show, but I guess that's just not gonna happen.

Maelstrom: On the current album, there are more blastbeats to be found than on any previous album. Say, you have been working for a long time with the Nuclear Blast label and once again there is artwork by Rob Middleton, who has been doing a lot for Napalm Death. Would you ever consider moving more towards grindcore? Or would it be too much of a compromise with regard to melodies? I think Ed wouldn’t mind.

Frank Harthoorn: If we'd ever be inclined to write songs with more of a grindcore edge, we'll do that, even though I think there's already quite a bit of grind influences in there. But I can't see us turning into an out and out grind band in the near future, that would seem a bit contrived, to say the least.

Maelstrom: Is it correct that you haven’t been actively involved in the making of the songs?

Frank Harthoorn: Yeah, that's right. When we started writing songs for this album, I soon realised Ed and Boudewijn were coming up with much, much better stuff than I was, so I decided to take myself out of the equation. Thus, Rise to Ruin, was completely written by Ed and Boudewijn, and it turned out all the better for it, I think. Next time might work out completely different, though. To me, it's not that important who writes what, as long as it gets written.

Maelstrom: “Whores of Babylon” — quite a biblical sounding title. Yet it is the album’s centrepiece, being the longest. Listening to it is almost like listening to classic Rush, with the song split up in different sections. Is this a one-off progressive experiment or can we expect songs of similar length in the future?

Frank Harthoorn: The titletrack of La Muerte was even longer, I think. And that was an instrumental! Boud wrote “B-Whores” by melding together two or three other songs he had, I guess he thought it just sounded better this way. I have no idea if there's going to be more of these things, if it happens, it happens. You never set out to write long songs. You don't go: “right, let's sit down and write a couple of ten-minute songs.” That'd be stupid. If an idea happens to need nine minutes to flesh out, and there's not really anything you can take out, then so be it. You better make it a really good song, though, the majority of these 10-minute plus workouts are really pretentious and overindulgent crap.

Maelstrom: Doesn’t it bother you if the audience is getting noisy during a quiet part, wrongfully assuming that the song has ended?

Frank Harthoorn: No, not really, I don't take too much notice of other people outside the band when playing live. As it is, I'm glad enough already they're there, and noise is to be expected. I'd be more worried if they'd be silent.

Maelstrom: The lyrics of J-C are dealing about the stupidity of mankind and the meaninglessness of their actions. It’s not a typical subject for death metal bands. I know that the band decided long ago that the really gory lyrics should better be left to US bands like Cannibal Corpse. In some way the current lyrics of J-C can be connected to the US subgenre of “suicidal black metal” in which hatred for mankind, genocide and the end of days are hailed. What is your opinion on that subgenre?

Frank Harthoorn: Works of genius. Nothing like a bit of Xasthur, Leviathan, Nortt or Krohm before bedtime. It brings me sweet nightmares.

Maelstrom: When listening to the lyrics of J-C on Road to Ruin and also La Muerte, I can imagine vividly that they are in close connection to US politics and its consequences. I mean, it’s hard to imagine that they are about our Dutch government, as it’s influence on the world isn’t particulary big. Are the lyrics addressed to a particular entity or are they dealing with what is happening all over the world?

Frank Harthoorn: I think most of it is about what's happening in the world in general. It just happens that the US have a very great deal to do with everything. I know a lot of US citizens don't like it when foreigners have something to say about their government, but that's just it; being a non-inhabitant of the country gives you a clearer perspective of what's going on over there, and it's quite fascinating, to say the least. So much of that stuff affects us as well. Not that we don't have any issues to solve in THIS country, mind you.

Maelstrom: I have also been listening to the bonus tracks and the song “Surrealism” in particular reminded me somehow of the melo-death of Arch Enemy (because of Boudewijn’s solo in the middle). Now I am quite a fan of Arch Enemy and consider it an accomplishment if a Dutch band can archieve that level. Are you up to date with their activities?

Frank Harthoorn: I like Arch Enemy a lot, and I'm a big fan of most of Mike Amott's work, but I also think their approach to metal and songwriting is very different to ours. So, yeah, I follow their stuff pretty closely, and no, I don't think “Surrealism” sounds anything like Arch Enemy at all. I'd probably put it closer to a band like Trouble.

Maelstrom: I know that there is a good chemistry between you and your current producer, Tue Madsen, but have you — in connection with my previous question — ever thought of Frederik Nordstrom during the quest for a suitable producer?

Frank Harthoorn: I think we considered him for a very short while, but quickly realised we probably wouldn't be able to afford him. He's done some excellent work for sure. I'm glad we're still able to afford Tue though. What we're mainly looking for is a guy who knows how to do a good mixing job. The production part we basically do ourselves, but we've learned from past experiences (i.e. Erase) that mixing's something best left to professionals, and Tue is definitely a professional. He's also got much of the same ideas as we do about what sound we're trying to achieve, and that's pretty important to us.

Maelstrom: Is it correct that you like groovy death-metal like Torture Killer and therefore probably also Six Feet Under?

Frank Harthoorn: I can appreciate SFU for what they do, and I quite like their aesthetic, but I much more enjoy Torture Killer, who I think are the best elements of SFU and Obituary combined.

Maelstrom: I am curious about your opinion: Are Six Feet Under just as good as they were back in their early days or are they, according to some critics, a bunch of half-hearted 40+ dudes who are nowadays mainly thriving on formulas and routine, not really bothering to do anything innovative anymore?

Frank Harthoorn: I'm not really up to speed on what SFU are doing, or indeed have been doing for the past five years. From what I HAVE heard from them though, it really vexes me Chris Barnes seems to be doing much better stuff with Torture Killer then with SFU. Better songwriting, better performance, much heavier sound... If you put [Torture Killer's] Swarm and [SFU's] Commandment in front of me, I know which album I'LL be listening to, that's for sure.

Maelstrom: A few years back Six Feet Under made Graveyard Classics II consisting of an entire coverage of their favourite ACDC album Back in Black. To my knowledge Gorefest never recorded any covers. How about a Gorefest treatment of a bunch of Thin Lizzy songs? You guys are very fond of those twin-guitar parts, aren’t you?

Frank Harthoorn: Thin Lizzy songs are for a large part defined by Phil Lynott's vocals. There wouldn't be any point in us doing a cover version of any of those songs, no matter how much we love them. Ed and Boudewijn have their own Thin Lizzy tribute band called Live & Dangerous, and they're great, but Gorefest doing Thin Lizzy just wouldn't fly. That's why we try to stick a lot of twinguitar things in our own music, just to have a little piece of that Lizzy-pie.

We're no strangers to covers, though. We've covered Kraftwerk's “Autobahn,” Death's “Mutilation”; we've done “Green Manalishi” (the Priest version), and in '96 we did a whole clubtour doing nothing but AC/DC, Black Sabbath and Deep Purple songs. Lots of fun, that.

Maelstrom: In the period between Chapter 13 and La Muerte, you were in a band in the vein of Hüsker Dü and the Foo Fighters, the Hollow Men. Has anything been released by them? Did you ever consider, during the Gorefest-less period, to advance in alternative rock and perhaps connect to a wider audience?

Frank Harthoorn: No. I'm not really interested in trying to please anyone, I just like creating and playing music with some other people, and pleasing myself thusly. With Gorefest, we have the added bonus that there's other people that enjoy our music, and some of them actually buy our album, giving us the chance to record and release our next collection of songs. With the Hollow Men, we just enjoyed writing and playing songs. They're still around, by the way. They have some songs up on their myspace page, including a couple I play on. Cool little band.

Maelstrom: I’d like to finish with the next couple of questions. What kind of guitars are you using currently? In Amsterdam I noticed that you and Boudewijn have two models that are nearly identical.

Frank Harthoorn: We've been using Gibson Les Pauls since, oh, '94, I think. They play quite a large part in creating the character and color of our live sound. Besides, they're fine guitars, sturdy, they don't give you too much trouble provided you take care of them. Nice, full sound. I don't think we'll be using very different guitars anytime soon.

Maelstrom: Suppose you were at a soundcheck and you’d have to play a recent song five times in a row, which one would you pick? (I noticed that you were having fun with “You Could Make Me Kill” even though it’s from the previous album).

Frank Harthoorn: Probably “Speak When Spoken To.” I could use the practice, hahaha. I'd love to play “Murder Brigade,” or “The End of It All,” or even “La Muerte,” that would be cool. But five times? I don't know, even playing something just twice in row usually kills a lot of the pleasure you'll find in that particular song, at least until the next day.

Maelstrom: I’d like to thank you very kindly for doing this interview. I hope that you will have a successful year ahead. Take care of each other.

Frank Harthoorn: Thank you very much, your kind words are much appreciated!