CRYPT MAGAZINE: sex. horror. rocknroll.

by Dr. Justin J. Duckham

Photos courtesy of Nuclear Blast Records

Austria based Belphegor has been writing some of the most brutal blackened metal imaginable for well over a decade. However praising them for their brutality would be selling them short. The subject matter of their lyrics also reflects a deep sense of intelligence, something that many of their peers seem to lack. Take for instance the newly released "Bondage Goat Zombie". The album focuses heavily on the Libertine themes of Marquis De Sade, clearly seen in tracks like "Justine: Soaked in Blood" and "Chronicles of Crime". Crypt Magazine was lucky enough to talk to lead singer Helmuth about his affection towards Marqui De Sade, the new album, and the bands relentless "fuck you" attitude.

Justin: Is there any difference between touring Europe and the US?

Helmuth: No, to me it's the same. If the people are good and every, and scream there lungs out, then it's aways cool. I love flying out of Europe to different countries, but in Europe there are people that are freaky and weird, just like in the US where people freak out and go crazy. Of course, it's always a pleasure, always a dream for us. I've always wanted to tour the US, and now we?ve done it three times. It's unbelievable.

JD: I just watched the new music video for Bondage Goat Zombie, and I have to say it's brilliant. Very brutal. Very powerful. Can you tell me about its production?

H: Thank you. It's very brutal, very dirty, very raw, which is everything we stand for. We used some footage from our live show, added in some verses and fills. Also we used some animation from the album cover, which turned out to very cool. I like it. It's fucking brutal.

JD: So I have to ask about the title for the new album 'Bondage Goat Zombie.' What's that about?

H: Well, the album is about bondage, and all of those sadomashochistic elements. The Goat is our trademark and I really like zombies. I like zombies, but I think that most of the people on Earth are zombies. Anyways, (the video) really shows our fuck you attitude.

J: Can you tell me more about your view on how everybody are zombies?

H: I'm not afraid of humans, but I do hate a lot of people. Especially in the music business. They're always trying to put you down and say "no, this is shit, this is shit." But nobody comes up to you and says it. Nobody says it to your face. The metal world is a lot less united now than it used to be. Haha, they're all brainless idiots.

JD: Speaking of fuck you attitude, a lot of your songs are inspired by Marqui De Sade. How did you get into him? His style seems to go hand in hand with metal. Was it a natural step?

H: For me it was a natural step. In 1996 I read Justine, and then next I read 120 Days of Sodom. It was fucking interesting, and so is De Sade who had a very interesting life. Over 25 years in prison, people wanted to kill him and everything, and he just kept on saying"Fuck you, I don't care about you." That's how we feel against religion and everything like that, fuck you. It's my life, you know? That's what we wanted to say with the album, "fuck you".

J: Would you consider yourself a modern day Marquis De Sade?

H: Haha not really, no.

J: Come on. Why not? Are you sure?

H: Well I'm a writer too, but he was very impressive. Very tough.

J: Nice. So what else can you tell me about the new album?

H: It's a cool album. It's fucking brutal. We've included some new stuff, some new elements and it's very demonic. Brutal stuff. Real metal, as I always say.

J: Seeing as how it's a new album, and you guys have been around for a while, can you describe the evolution of Belphegor?

H: Yeah, everything changes you know. We've been touring 15 years now. We've become better musicians, we really put our energy into it, and we've developed a dynamic.

J: What's your opinion on the state of metal today?

H: I don?t care about metal today. I support what I like, and don't give a shit about the rest. I think the spirit is lost today. There is too much of the commercial style and too many people talk shit about the old stuff. I like a lot of bands, but most to me is shitty. Nothing to do with real metal.

J: So I opened up to Myspace and the internet and everything to get a question to ask from your fans, and the one that I kept on getting, especially from teenage European musicians, was how can they get into the so called professional music world?? So this is one of those typical questions where I ask, what advice do you have for the kids??

H: The most important thing is to always do your own thing, always do your own stuff. Practice, practice, practice all the time. Get better at your instrument, but always do the metal thing and do your own stuff.

J: Any final words you would like to leave our readers with?

H: Fuck the church, and check out our album.