Marius: Neurotic DeathFest 2007 with the old line up: maybe the sickest show we made with Davide Boeri and Maurizio Lucà. With the new line up we don't have enough live experiences, but I think our release party (21st November, in our zone) and the gig in London we made few days ago (we toured UK from 10th to 13th December) have been the best shows. Freaky partecipation of the audience, nice exibition on stage, definitely we had a great time!
Speaking about the worst… well, bad performances happen and happened and probably will happen! I’m pretty sure the worst gig was at the beginning of 2008, the last concert of our drummer Davide Boeri: we were playing in Germany, we were really hard partying, lol, and everyone of us was pretty drunk… That’s probably the worst concert we made; all the drum patterns were wrong, lots of mistakes for the guitarists, my vocals were a sort of guttural freestyle! Shameful… but people over there was crazy – and also really drunk! So none seemed noticing it… there’s also a video of that night someone uploaded on YouTube, try to find it and have a laugh!
ID: Tell us about your band's upcoming events.
Marius: At the moment we're planning some gigs for the next years; they'll be lots of dates abroad, almost none in Italy - and, honestly, I think it's better! The news making me really happy is we're going to perform at Neurotic DeathFest 2010 with Dying Fetus, Origin, Beneath The Massacre, Napalm Death, Immolation and many more!!
ID: What do you guys do apart from playing brutal death metal? And how has playing this extreme and ugly form of music affected your lives?
Marius: Playing this music is a vent, as art is in all its forms. By the way, as you can imagine, when you play about 20-30 underground gigs every year, it's not that easy ruling private life... If you have some private problems with your family, they risk to get bigger, also with friends/girlfriends... by the way these situations are fundamental to leave us attached to reality, if you know what I mean... Playing in cool situations, have gigs all around is fucking amazing, it's a sort of drug and you risk to forget all days reality: luckily we have common lives, without people considering us members of Septycal Gorge, but students, common workers, sons, boyfriends, stupid and useless friends, AH!
Diego: Death Metal is simply part of my life and cannot be detached to it. Music is a passion and not a work, so it will always be, cause it’s an important way to self expression.
ID: A lot of so-called puritans today detest the modern ''ultra brutal/slam brutal death metal'' and label it as ''trendy'' and ''talentless''. What are your views regarding this criticism?
Marius: Personally, I think that's not a question of "trendy" or "catchy" or what else... Fundamentally and generally, there are two categories of music: good and bad... Nothing more to add about that, except the fact I think real brutal death metal can’t be considered “trendy”: it’s ages it survives to every kind of trend, because it survives in a sort of musical ghetto; for me it’s easy noticing this feeling of exclusion from every (new or old) trend: here in Italy, the 99% of people saying they listen to metal/hardcore/extreme music only knows and supports mainstream bands; there are also some zones – like the one where Septycal Gorge were born – where it’s hard finding someone listening to Metallica (and I hate Metallica…)! By the way, my experience taught me that, when the music is trendy, it sucks…
Diego: I personally don’t like at all slam bands, it’s not my cup of tea. I prefer bands like Deeds of Flesh Inveracity etc. Don’t know really if slam is trendy or not, anyway there are lot of shitty bands out there and few that are really really good.
ID: Tell me 5 albums which you have been spinning very frequently these days.
Marius: Terrordrome "Vehement Convulsion", Vomit The Soul “Apostles Of Inexpression”, Skinless “From Sacrifice To Survival”, Gatekeepaz "Dietro il Cancello" (Italian hip hop, uhuhuh!), Disgorge (US) "She Lay Gutted".
Diego: Morbid Angel “Covenant”, Deeds OF Flesh “Mark Of the legion”, Alice In Chains Black “Gives way to Blue”, Insidious Decrepancy “Extirpating…” Soundgarden “Superunknown”
ID: Which bands do you consider as an integral influence on the music of Septycal Gorge?
Marius: I'm sure our guitarist and founder member Diego would answer Deeds Of Flesh; by the way, personally, I've always felt the smell of Suffocation... By the way, all the technical Californian bands which Unique Leader Recs put under contract at its beginning are our fundamental influences.
Diego: Marius is true. For me my main musical influence in writing and conceiving music is DoF. A platter as “Reduced…” and “Path…” are the bible for me. Also Suffocation of course that are the masters of this style.
ID: Thanks a lot for spending some crucial time out of your tight schedule and answering this questionnaire. I wish all the very best for your new album and hope to see Septycal Gorge crushing the emo kids more barbarically than ever. Horns up for Italiano brutality! Take care guys.
Marius: Thank you so much, Ankit!! Sorry for the late answers, but during these last days we've been really busy! Support your own local scene, underground's fundamental for developing this music worldwide! Cheers! Have fun, have a great 2010!
Diego: thanx a lot for your friendship and support man! And for this interview of course! Wish you the best for your work.
Septycal Gorge is: