MYSELF AM HELL - Interview by Dave Wolff - Music - http://maxpages.com/aeazine/MYSELF_AM

How long has Myself Am Hell been in existence? Give a brief history of the band from the beginning.
We've been playing as Myself Am Hell for about four years. My brother Matt met the other guitarist Ron at college and they both dropped out to attend G.I.T. (Guitar Institute of Technology) in California. They returned from LA and began seeking a drummer, a vocalist and a bassist, Luckily, we met Adam at a New Year's party and he quickly joined when he heard some of the songs they had been working on. I had written a few songs (lyrically) and Matt began using those lyrics for his music. One night after auditioning many singers, I grabbed the mic and just started belting out the lyrics as they sounded in my head. I had been taking guitar lessons from Matt and Ron, so I picked up a bass and everything just clicked.

What's new with the band these days? Since first starting out how well known have you become worldwide?
Well, we just finished a U.S. tour in the spring of 2000 and we're hittingthe road again on Oct.30th for a fall tour on our way out to California to play the November to Dismember Metalfest in San Bernadino. We're currently working on material for our third cd which should be out in 2001 and backed by Dragonslain Records who we signed with after we met them on the road. A great underground label dedicated to the advancement of metal!! The two cds we've unleashes so far have been received extraordinarily well in all parts of the world. We've gotten great reviews from England, France, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Russia, Austrailia, Greece, Turkey, Spain, Portugal, Pakistan, The Netherlands, and many more countries. Our main goal is to subjugate the world's population and force technically superior speed metal upon them!!!!

Has there been a good response to the material you've come out with so far?
Judging by the reactions of crowds at all the Metalfests we've played and comparing that to the crowds we've played in front of here at home and on the road, I'd say people generally go berserk when catching our live set. We've inspired many a blood bath and I've seen people being carried out during our sets. I've seen mosh pits broken up by security and many people have been escorted off the stage (or thron head first off the stage!) by bouncers at clubs. Those metal warriors we call our fans know that we're up there giving them 200% of our energy and enthusiasm for this music and they respond in
kind! Everyone check out WWW.MYSELFAMHELL.COM for free mp3's and lyrics and general info!! Immerse your putrid soul in the loathsome evil of MYSELF AM HELL!!

From what areas do you have the largest following?
It's so hard to tell! Our website receives hits from all over the world and legions of earthlly demons have scrawled their messages in our guestbook. While touring our strongest response was in the midwest, but nobody kicks more ass than the sick bastards here in New York!!

Are you working on new material now? In what ways is it similar and different from your older stuff?
Yeah we have three songs finished with three more that we're working on that we'll try to finish while touring. The new material is actually somewhat of a mixture now that everyone is contributing to the music side of things. Our first cd was musically written mainly by Matt. The second cd was a mixture of Matt and Ron and we're going to keep moving in that direction to get an even more brutal sound for the third cd. We're still in the technical vein of things and the guitar solos are even more intense!

From where does inspiration come for your lyrics?
Most of our songs are from sickass dreams that I've had. I'll wake up in the middle of the night and just start writing. When I wake up I'll look it over and see if anything is disturbing enough to turn into a song. It's fortunate that most of my dreams involove some serious carnage and lunacy so I get many ideas from my own imagination!

What's the state of the thrash/extreme metal scene where you're from? In what ways would you like to see them improved for the better?

Here in New York, the scene isn't as strong as it used to be. Things have turned around a bit and there have been shows where the club was too crowded and people were being turned away at the door. But there aren't enough clubs to play in and most clubs want Top 40 cover bands to play popular radio shit. I've heard tales from other bands that have played outside the U.S. and they say that the European scene is extremely brutal! We're looking forward to touring the world someday and experiencing that for ourselves! For now, we'll be more than content just touring the U.S. and building up our fan base in
this country! There are a billion things I'd like to see change, but the most important is the radio. No stations give metal any prime time airspace. All metal shows are from colleges only and they have shows after midnight. Metal takes the most talent to play and it's the most creative, orignal music I've ever heard and yet, no one is willing to play it for the masses anymore! It's hard enough just to get added to concert schedules that radio stations do to inform people of area shows. They won't add metal shows because they're afraid to promote us! Peoples attitudes have to change also! A lot of bands
get hounded by church and religious groups picketing their shows and keeping people away. Clubs and bars that support metal are often harrassed by locals and they're always being shutdown on legal technicalities by people who have poles shoved so far up their asses they just can't relax and let other people enjoy themselves. ALL these people NEED to be exterminated IMMEDIATELY!

What bands do you listen to personally? Do you read many fanzines? If so, which ones would you recommend?
I listen to bands that I grew up with who still kickass like Iron Maiden, Slayer, Testament, Judas Priest (Painkiller anyone?), and bands that we've played with like Dehumanized, Internal Bleeding, Suffocation, King Diamond, Cannibal Corpse, Death, Morbid Angel and shit like that. Of course, that's just me! Ron likes Yngwie Malmsteen, Allan Holdsworth and other more guitar oriented music and our drummer listens to most metal, jazz, fusion and stuff like that to keep his drumming different and fresh.

Describe the website for the band. How has it been coming along lately? What effect has the internet had on the scene in your opinion?
Our website was developed by Matt and he maintains it also. We generally use it to post info on shows, the tour dates, metalfests, etc... It;s also a great way for people to hear us for the first time. Matt put several downloadable mp3's on there along with the lyrics and the graphics are insanely awesome! He's a computer programmer in his real job, so the site is maintained well and always a sick place to tell your online friends about! The guestbook is also a great place to check out what the psychos who've
encountered us think--crazy shit man! CRAZY shit! I think the internet has made it easier to keep in touch with other bands and fans and it's definitely easier to keep in touch with our booking agent while we're on the road in case plans change at the last minute. It's very helpful for doing interviews also!

What is your opinion of the infighting between fans of different styles of metal? What effect is having on the scene as a whole?
Well, people are always going to have their own opinions and if they feel so strongly about something that they want to fight...well I say bring it on! I'm always willing to fight some dickhead who attacks us or our music. If hecan't find an intelligent way to argue or debate his thoughts and he just wants to fight...whatever! I do think that there is a lot of shit musicpolluting the scene, but at the same time, everyone has a right to be heard if they believe in what they're doing. I think the scene is definitely weakened by a lack of unity and willingness to support each other by the bands mainly and by the fans secondly.

What are your aspirations for the future of the band?
We'd like to release our third cd next year during 2001 and tour at least three times to promote the cd. We'd like to hit Europe and Asia within as soon as possible and maybe try to hit South America too. That's the immediate future. The far future would include a yearlong worldwide tour of destruction and blasphemy, new shirts and many more vicious cds to slaughter the soul.

Anything you wish to close with?
Shit yeah! Everybody check out the web site--trust me you won't be disappointed! WWW.MYSELFAMHELL.COM Email me at YEASATAN@AOL.COM with any and all questions. Zines get in touch! We have a cd blowout special BOTH CDS only $12 incl. postage, shipping, etc...WORLDWIDE!! Sickass t-shirt guaranteed to draw dirty looks and make you stand out in a crowd! Long or short sleeve, L and XL sizes only $15 Worldwide!! Join the unholy legions of MYSELF AM HELL! Dude thanks for the interview and keep pumping out the evil until we have destroyed the pure! See you on the road...TO HELL!!

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