Greetings and welcome to Extreminal webzine.First of all present your band to the readers of our webzine ?
John: We are a new band with a simple ideology: make great death metal the way we feel it should be played. Our lineup is John Porada – guitar/vocals, Tom Cardella – guitar, Alfred Mulle – bass, and Jim Smith – drums
You have one demo released in 2011.When are you going to release a debut full-length album ?
As of now, we plan on releasing an EP in the near future. All the music is recorded, we are now just deciding on how it will be released. As for a full-length, I can’t say, though we have made pretty quick progress.
Is there interest from labels towards your band ? Is there a particular label that you would like to work with ?
We will be taking our first steps towards securing a label to release our material at the beginning of 2012. I want to ensure that everything we do is done properly and that all ideas are fleshed out before jumping into anything. There are a few labels that I am always watching, and have massive respect for, namely Dark Descent and Hells Headbangers. The output from both these labels is really incredible and I would love to be a part of them.
Why did you choose to play oldschool Swedish-sounding death metal ? What’s your opinion on the brutal US-style death metal ?
I’ve been a fan of the Swedish death metal scene for years. The riffing, to me, is a combination of everything I like to play. It’s fast, with a lot of thrash influence and some elements of punk and hardcore that I always loved. The old Entombed stuff especially always had this punk feel to the riffing and the drumming that I just loved.
As for the US style, we are of course fans of the classics. Suffocation, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, and the early Deicide records are all great. As for what it became, I can’t really say I’m a big fan. I do like a few things, though. The first Deeds of Flesh album, Hate Eternal, and some Origin I like, but beyond that, I feel like it’s a bunch of fabricated brutality and technical wankery.
What are the differences between TERMINATE and your other main band – DEADNIGHT ?
Deadnight has always been more focused on black metal, and how to combine that with thrash in a way that sounds fresh. Terminate is much more rigid. I’m playing death metal, not an amalgam of genres. In a way, that grants me a bit more freedom. I don’t have to worry if a riff sounds too much like something else, because the idea is to wear my influences on my sleeve for everyone to hear. That is not to say I do not let outside influences drift in. Thrash metal is my first love, so to speak, so there is plenty of Slayer influence. And I am definitely informed by other death metal. I listen to everything from Incantation to Hypocrisy to The Black Dahlia Murder, and all of that informs my idea of how to write riffs.
How is the oldschool Swedish-sounding death metal accepted in USA ? Are there many fans of this type of death metal ?
Oh yeah, for sure. The style has always been popular here, but for whatever reason, it hasn’t been a big influence on the music that America produces. Pretty much every death metal fan who knows anything knows Entombed or Grave.
Who are the bands that have influenced you to start playing music ?
At the start, it was Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, and Slayer who really had a hand in me picking up an instrument. I wanted to learn every Steve Harris bass line, wanted to dissect every Slayer riff. Since then, I have had people who kept be going, and continue to influence me. Hypocrisy and Devin Townsend’s solo career have been hugely influential to me for the past decade.
Are there other American bands who play oldschool style Swedish death metal like you ?
Apparently, this Swedish death metal style is in a revival, something I was not aware of until a few months ago. As such, I am pretty unaware of any American bands doing this, though there are some fantastic Swedish bands like Morbus Chron, Maim, and Mr. Death. One band from America who is doing a different take on old school death metal is Skeletal Remains from California. They kind of got an Asphyx/Morgoth thing going on, and it totally rules.
We are at the end of thie year.In your opinion which one is the best and which one is the worst metal album for 2011?
I have been pretty bad at checking out new releases this year. I still haven’t heard Disma, Vallenfyre, the new Autopsy, YOB, or Exhumed. I was, however pretty happy with Devin Townsend’s Deconstruction. Also, The Black Dahlia Murder – Ritual was a fantastic album. I know, they get a lot of hate from so-called "true" metalheads, but I have been a fan of theirs since their first album, and I think they just keep getting better. The addition of Ryan Knight on guitar has been a godsend, and the writing have reached a pinnacle. I have never understood their classification as deathcore, and I think Ritual only serves to further distance them from the awful trend that has plagued extreme metal from the last 5 years or so. As for the worst, I would go with the Lulu project, though I knew that would suck from the get-go. I would have to give the dishonor to Morbid Angel of Illud Divinum Insanus for the sheer level of disappointment. There are a couple decent songs on there, but a lot of it just goes to prove that Trey Azagthoth really does not care to even try to write death metal anymore. He would rather play Quake and watch Sailor Moon, which is fine, I guess.
This is the end of the interview.Any final words for our readers ?
Expect to hear the new EP in the first half of 2012. If you haven’t heard the demo, it is available at www.facebook.com/TerminateChicago
