Amok
With a full-length album under their belts courtesy of Witches Brew Records (Germany), Scotland’s premier mosh-merchants Amok are hungry to spread their sound throughout the UK and beyond. James Ashbey caught up with them in February 2009…
Hi lads! Let’s start off with a run down of Amok’s current situation: who’s in the band, how long have you been going, and where do you call home?
Keith – We formed around 2004 roughly through a mutual love of beer, guitars and AC/DC and started writing thrash because we were sick of the shit generic garbage that was getting played back then. Home for us is definitely Glasgow and we are all proud of our roots. We are: Calum Henderson (Guitars), Greg Corlett (Guitars), Keith Henderson (Bass), Jamie Bremaneson (Drums) and Steven Matulewicz (Vocals).
Amok recently announced a record deal with the German label Witches Brew; this is obviously great news for the band, and will hopefully result in big things for the ‘Downhill Without Brakes’ album. How did this offer come about? Had you sent material to Witches Brew beforehand, or did they approach you?
Calum – It happened really fast. A couple of the guys from Gama Bomb told us that Cheryl (Witches Brew) wanted copies of the album. We sent one over, I guess she liked it and an offer was made. It’s really good news for us and I’m happy that the work we put in paid off.
Greg – We had other offers for the album but we know Witches Brew and their good work with other bands so we were happy to sign with them.
Keith - Yeah it is fantastic that the album is going to be pressed and produced properly! We definitely made the right choice.
Stephen – Aye The Witches Brew deal was definitely the best for us from the ones we got approached about. It offered us excellent promotion and support from a committed label with a proven track record (Look at Gama Bomb for example) as well as allowing us to release the album ‘properly’ and reach as many people as possible, without any major obligation. Too many labels rip the arse out of bands for all their worth then dump them, with this we don’t have that!
Downhill Without Brakes
Your album features great hand-drawn cover art which exhibits the ‘devolution’ of humanity into alcoholic squalor! What is your take on the beer-bong infested world of ‘Party Thrash’? Do you feel you share the mission of fun-loving bands like Municipal Waste, or is the artwork more of a commentary on Glaswegian society or the band’s own habits?
Greg – The artwork is generally representative of the cycle a number of alcoholics or addicts find themselves in, impossible to stop their habits yet this just accelerates their downward spiral and leads to complete dehumanization or ‘devolution’ as you put it. And whilst this definitely fits in with Glasgow the same can be said for anywhere.
Calum – The artwork just shows how pointless going down that route is. It’s taken you millions of years of evolution to get you there, and you ruin it all by sticking a needle in the main vein. ‘Downhill Without Brakes’ is loosely based on our own habits.
Greg – In terms of how we can be defined, we do have a serious side, but we just can’t help but indulge in some pure party thrash!
Calum – Aye, I’m not sure if we are part of that movement, but if that’s what you want to call us it’s fine by me. We share the mission in that we believe metal doesn’t have to be grim!!
Keith – Aye, we do like to party and play non grim catchy as fuck thrash but we are serious about what we do and put a lot of effort into writing to the best of our ability. I think songs like “Global Hangover” definitely show our more serious side. However if the album makes you want to party and drink like a champion then I will be happy!
Stephen – We’ve never really pigeon-holed ourselves into that ‘Party Thrash’ approach. Fair enough, we are a right good laugh and arse about a lot but we don’t use it as a gimmick like many up and comers do. We’re serious as fuck when it comes to Amok, but our easygoing personalities don’t allow us to be all boring and stern faced about it. We like fun too much and hate grim.
Can you say some words about the Scottish thrash scene, or lack thereof? A few other band names come to mind, but do you feel part of a thrash ‘movement’, or more like lone warriors doing what you like amidst a sea of indifference?
Keith – I do feel that with the release of the album we are now starting to become more recognised and feel more of a part of the UK scene. However at first I felt we were a bit isolated from the UK Thrash revival being stuck up in Scotland. This was quite frustrating but gigs such as Apocalyptic Rage in London have hopefully exposed more people to our music. When we do play in England we definitely do feel that we are flying the flag for Scottish thrash though which does spur us on to play well and put on a solid show!
Stephen – Yeah I definitely agree with Keith there. At first it was like we didn’t get any attention because we’re from Scotland and not in the main ‘hub’ of the scene down south. It pissed us off because we knew we’re bloody good and had so much to offer the scene. I think it was a bit of a challenge for us to try and break down the barriers of the North/South divide and get people to notice us. We definitely feel more at home now and the gigs in England have helped big time. As for the Scottish thrash ‘scene’, well there isn’t one. Sure, there are a few bands but no scene as it where, it’s funny, we’re young but are like the granddaddys of the Scottish thrash, hahaha!
According to your bio you were formed in early 2004, and so arguably pre-date the ‘revival’ hysteria thrash is currently enjoying. The album deal aside, do you detect greater attention to the band as a result of this ‘thrash is back’ climate, in terms of venue and crowd interest?
Greg - Generally our gigs in Glasgow have always been fairly consistent but again recently there has been a slight change. While some of the old dogs have been there since the start, there has been a younger crowd growing in size who seem to belong to the thrash revival. That can only be good though and the more thrash attracts a younger audience then the longer thrash will reign.
Browsers of UKThrash.co.uk may have heard some anecdotes of Amok antics involving US thrash gods HEATHEN; can you briefly explain how your paths crossed, and what you remember of the encounter?
Keith – Ah, my moment of glory or shame. When Heathen came to town they needed a place to crash so my friend let them crash at his flat. I think the plan was after the gig we would go back and have a few tins with them, which was fucking cool as Heathen are one of our favourite bands! I remember vaguely drinking with some of the band after the gig. It then goes blurry for a couple of hours haha. The next thing I remember I’m walking around Anniesland with no shoes, trousers, socks, phone or wallet. Being stranded and pished I had to walk home.
I finally got to the flat just as Heathen were arriving. I was well excited to see them but then I realised they were all pissing themselves at seeing this drunken semi-naked Heathen fan wearing dodgy y-fronts staggering in the middle of the road! The obvious thing to do was to have another beer so we went in and drank some more tins all night listening to Bonded By Blood which was fucking cool! I still have no idea what happened but it was a good laugh. Actually, I think part of the song ‘Downhill Without Brakes’ was based on this haha!
There’s also a story of Metal Iain fouling himself in our bathroom, but maybe that’s for another day…
To wrap things up, what can we expect next from Amok? I was impressed with your performance in London in late 2008; do you plan to return to some English venues? Has the Witches Brew signing cast your touring sights more widely?
Greg - Hopefully we will be touring soon enough around the UK and some European dates too. The release of ‘Downhill Without Brakes’ has been a great success and at the moment we are writing and arranging material for a new album, hopefully we can record sometime in the Summer.
Calum – Yeah, we are working hard to raise the bar for the next release. I think we understand where our strengths lie and it’s becoming clearer what we are all about. We have about 5 song ideas already and we can’t wait to get working on them!!
Stephen – It’s going to be more of the same, ‘Premium Brand’ thrash! We’re pushing for a lot more gigs, exposure in press and working on a new demo so keep your eyes and ears firmly open!
Greg- But as of what to expect, expect more thrash with too much girth for your maw to handle!
Thanks for the interview, and good luck for 2009!
