SOD
Mag 1. Tell
me about your first band, Bloodsick and the scene where you are from
Jim Lippucci: We started Bloodsick with the intent to play just simple back to the basics thrash. We really missed the style of metal that we grew up on and thought it would be cool do something a little bit like that. We all knew each other from years in the scene so it was pretty cool jamming together. We recorded a six song demo which was just actually finally released as a split with The Spawn of Satan. Eventually just about everyone involved lost interest and Chris and I decided to move in a new direction. Our scene here is pretty cool, a lot of cool bands and cool metal freaks around the area to drink beer and rage thrash with! Wayne Richards: I wasn't in Bloodsick, but our drummer Chris Dora (who was in Bloodsick) and I are in The Spawn of Satan, and all of the people in our circle of metal brethren have rehearsal spaces in the same building. We all came to know each other here and at shows and alcohol-fueled ragers in Cleveland. The Cleveland metal scene was built around excellent bands of the past like Destructor, Terror, Purgatory, Blood of Christ, Decrepit, Hemdale, Escalation Anger, From the Depths and many others. Current bands like Soulless, Nun Slaughter, Somnus and a few others are keeping the torch of Cleveland metal burning bright. 2. You
released a 7" with Nunslaughter - are they from your area? How
did JL: At the time Nunslaughter was in the process of moving to Cleveland. We've known various members of Nunslaughter for years so it was pretty cool to do the record. They are definitely more raw and purely Satanic than Bloodsick…They're great. Bloodsick was more old style thrash, while Nunslaughter is more old school satanic death metal. WR: FACTOID: Nun Slaughter and Soulless (among others) share the same practice space (and occasionally the same women). 3. Tell
me about the name change to Soulless and how the band finally came
JL: Various members wandered off and the sound was really changing, so it really wasn't the same band any more. We wanted to sort of start over plus I don't think we ever liked the name too much. Chris had the name Soulless in the back of his mind for a while and we thought it fit really well with the sound and lyrics of the new stuff we were writing. WR: It was not actually a name change. Yes, 3 members of Bloodsick went on to form Soulless, but the early Soulless material is completely different from Bloodsick. Different people were writing the songs and Jim actually sings completely different in Soulless than he did in Bloodsick. Soulless was a completely different band. Jerry (the original guitarist), Tony (original bassist), Chris and Jim had 4 or 5 songs written when I was approached by Chris, who played me the one of the first Soulless rehearsal tapes, and asked me if I would be interested in joining as the 2nd guitarist. At the time I was jamming down the hall with The Spawn of Satan, so I kind of knew these fellas. I liked Dora's sweatpants and the songs, so I joined Soulless immediately. 4. It
seems that Soulless is the perfect blend of the catchy riffs of early
JL: Well, I don't know…that's sure pretty flattering…We really just wanted to make the music we wanted to hear, and I think we're all pretty happy with it. I think it's decent thrash…it's kinda pissed off so that's probably a pretty decent assessment… WR: Early
80s thrash and early 90s death metal…yes, these are our major
sources of inspiration. We are heavily influenced by bands like Kreator,
Slayer, Metallica, Iron Maiden, Celtic Frost, Sodom, Exodus, Coroner,
Destruction, Carcass, Entombed, Dismember, Unleashed, Bolt Thrower,
At the Gates, etc… JL: The response was pretty cool. It got some pretty good reviews and almost everything was positive. We really didn't spend too much time in the studio on that record. We really just wanted to get the songs down and get some kind of demo out. We were happy with the way it turned out so we just decided to go ahead and put it on CD with some decent packaging and stuff. We were a little surprised at some of the reviews we got, so it was really encouraging. WR: The Darkening of Days demo was well received in the underground (Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles named it best demo of 1999) and we were pleased with the vast majority of reviews we received. It was recorded quickly and not enough attention was stressed on certain areas of the process, but ultimately we accomplished our goal of recording a quality demo and getting our name out there. 6. Tell
me about all of the tribute Cds you appeared on and the songs you
JL: Those recordings were cool because we were afforded a little bit of money to go into the studio while playing songs by our metal forbearers. It really helped us become very comfortable in the studio without blowing all of our own cash. It gave us some time to really look at and adjust our sound and playing and to be very critical and hurtful towards one another…We'd often be overheard to say… "That guitar sound is shit" "your gear is crap" "what makes you think you know how to sing / play / write…" I think the personal attacks laid the groundwork for various members' eventual departures from the band. It also helped Wayne a lot… he was still pretty young and I think he got nervous and frankly a little bit frightened…I think he was only 12 at the time…but he managed to pull it together. It was a very wonderful time that we remember fondly.
7. Tell
me about the Soulless 3-song demo and how you came to sign with World
JL: We couldn't be happier with WorldChaos!!!!! They've been very cool with everything and are really putting a lot into promoting this release. They're true underground warriors! King's Evil fucking rage, and it is definitely an honor to be associated with them. WR: The "Bleeding Darkness" 3 song promo was sent everywhere and again was well-received. Few good offers were made to us, so we went back to the studio (The Mars Recording Compound) to begin work on another self financed release. Almost half of the album was complete when we received interest from WorldChaos. They asked if we had anything else recorded…we sent them the rough, half-finished recordings which were to become "Agony's Lament" and they signed us. We could not have signed with a better label. It's obvious that WorldChaos puts out great metal (King's Evil, Terror Squad, Grim Force, etc.), and we are extremely happy to be part of the WorldChaos metal family and the first U.S. band on this killer label. 8. Tell
me about the recording of Agony's Lament and the great cover art and
JL: We've been lucky enough to have a great studio nearby (Mars Recording) and we've been working with Bill Korecky, the engineer for years with various bands, so things went pretty well. It was really kind of strange…we got rid of our bass player at the same time we decided to go ahead and begin recording the new album on our own. Wayne was going to play bass, and we were going to concentrate on finding a new bass player after the record was done. Then we ended up hooking up with Dave Johnson, our present bass player. He stepped in, learned all of the material in a couple of weeks and really became a key component in the recording process. He definitely helped to solidify the lineup and bring the album together. We really lucked out on our cover art…our original artist let us down at the last minute, leaving us with a finished CD and no art. We were very fortunate to hook up with Matt Cavotta. He got everything done in a week and was really cool to work with. I think everyone in the band really likes it. WR: I would guess the entire recording process took about 20 full days spread out over the course of the Summer of 2002. Bill Korecky is amazing to work with and we always have many beers and laughs with him when we're recording at Mars. The studio is fantastic and Bill's expertise in engineering brings out the best in what Soulless wanted to do with this record. Matt's artwork was shockingly brilliant. We were turned on to him through a friend of ours who Matt had previously worked for (SOMNUS). The concept (from what I gather) is supposed to be a demon in a void, whose posture is being slightly altered by poles and hooks and such. After the concept was discussed, Matt had the art for us in a week. We find the artwork irresistible. 9. Agony's
lament is 666 Fucking Skulls in the opinion of SOD magazine. Thank
JL: Thank you for appreciating and supporting skull crushing thrash metal! WR: Visit
Soulless at www.soullessdomain.com. We appreciate the support and
enthusiasm for metal Sounds of Death has displayed over the years.
We thank you immensely! Let thrash reign supreme! |