Scum pour l'album "Gospels For The Sick"

1. First, could you tell us how Scum was born? Where did you meet the other guys?

Casey Chaos had the original idea of putting together a band with him and a bunch of Norwegian musicians. Samoth, Happy-Tom were introduced to the idea and I was asked to do the drums. Cosmocrator came into the picture a little later. Just some weeks prior to the recording of the album in fact.


2. Was it hard to meet alltogether because of the planning of each of you?

Not really, because we just booked the studio and it left it pretty much up to everyone to adjust their
time according to that.


3. Who decided the musical direction of Scum? How spent the writing of "Gospels for the Sick" and how long did it last?

I think Casey oroginally thought he should play more traditional black metal when he came to Norway
but since Samoth, Cosmocrator and I allready some a few rehearsals before we entered the studio I knew which musical direction it should take. Samoth and Cosmocrator wrote all the riff but it was all rearranged in the studio while a lot of new stuff were written there as well. The entire recording took three weeks but the mixing went over a period of two months.


4. The music of Scum is quite far from your previous projects. What do you like in it?

Well, I have a personal interest in punk rock music so it was not something new for me, but what I like in Scum is the harsh mix between black metal and punk rock attitude. The dirty energy.


5. Each of you come from different horizons and your music takes advantage of that. What do you think each member bring to the music?

Yeah, I agree with you and I think each member`s experience and knowledge within (extreme) music helps building up the project. Everything from sheer studio experience, musicianship and chemistry.


6. Is there a tour planed?

No, not at the moment. I doubt we will be a touring band. We did our debut gig at the Øyafestival in Oslo in August. Then we will have a release party in London on the 9th of September. It`s a matter of coordination you know and since everybody have their respective bands it will limit itself.


7. Do you think there will be a successor to this first album?

That remains to see. We first want to focus oon this one and see how the reception and response is, how it sells etc, then, we will see later on what is next. But if we capture the same vibe and atmosphere it is likely it happens again.


8. What is the best (and the worst) memory you have from your musician's life?

Highlights is doing the tribute to Quorton show at the Hole in the Sky festival in Bergen last year, recording of In the Nightside Eclipse and Gospels for the Sick, also recording with Aborym in Rome earlier this year.
Worst moment? I am not sure really. Getting to know that Deicide cancalled the show with Emperor in London in 1993, the day before the gig was supposed to take place. Maybe that one.


9. What are you listening to these days? Any good metal (or not metal) albums to recommend?

The last albums from Nile, Meshuggah, Red Harvest, Mindgrinder, Arcturus etc are good ones. Also Poison Idea is forever kicking. I heard the new Nervermore is great as well.


10. What is your opinion concerning the metal webzines? Are you a reader of them? How do you evaluate the impact of such magazines, compared to “real” magazines?

Well, I am conservative and I must say I appreciate the paper magazines because they are easier to handle than web zines. Besides, I like to read better from paper than from computer screen. When that is said, I see the importance of web zines also since there is no borders or other limitations and it is often free so people in far out places are able to reach the same information as the ones in bigger, western cities. I like that part of globalism.


11. Thank you for your time. The last words are yours!

Thanks for the interview man. Keep up the support.