It is rare to find a grind album that is so dynamic and intense but without losing any of the killer brutality that this genre is known for. Visceral Bleeding haven’t been in the caper all that long as a unit, but with "Remnants of Deprivation" they have created one of the more interesting formulas for a metal album. However while not breaking down any major musical barriers Visceral Bleeding are certainly giving other well known names a reason to stand up and take a listen to some truly vigorous metal. Peter (or Laughing-Pete, for the amount of times he laughed during the interview) gives us the low-down on a few of the more intrinsic factors that make up Visceral Bleeding and the new album.

Jack ‘Odel’


Congratulations on "Remnants of Deprivation". In all truthfulness, "Remnants of Deprivation" is one of the best death/grind albums I have had the pleasure of listening to. You guys must be very proud of how "Remnants of Deprivation" turned out!

Thanks man, and Yeah! We are very happy with the way it turned out. Perhaps it is a little short, we actually had one more song almost finished but we couldn’t seem to get it done so I guess it will be on our next album.

Could you give me some background information as to how Visceral Bleeding got together?

Well, Niklas Dewerud and I are old friends and we were jamming a bit back in 96-97 and then we decided to do something serious with it and started to look for a perfect line-up. We tried out a few guitarists but none of them were serious enough. And then all of a sudden we met Calle in a pub here in Kalmar and started to discuss music and it turned out he was a guitarist and that he would love to be part of Visceral Bleeding. He played the guitar for a while but we couldn’t seem to find a bass player either so we decided that Calle was going to take care of that and Marcus, a very old friend of mine from Växjö joined in as Lead guitarist. Somewhere in the middle of all this Dennis joined in as singer and we felt right away that this was the perfect line up. Sadly Niklas has now left Visceral Bleeding, but we have found a perfect replacement in Tobbe "Rotten Boy" Persson.

Was the Visceral Bleeding sound an instant overnight achievement? Did you have to work and work to come up with a suitable arrangement, which would make Visceral Bleeding what it is today?

We have worked incredibly hard on all the arrangements. Trying out riffs and so on. Now we have a pretty good idea of what V.B is about so the next album will probably be much easier to write. But we have to stay focused so it doesn’t turn out to be a rip off of "Remnants", it has to be a completely new album if you know what I mean.

I gotta ask… Tobias "Rotten Boy" Persson plays drums permanently for Visceral Bleeding now. What is the story behind the nickname?

[Laughs]… Actually it’s from Spawn of Possessions song ‘Church of Deviance’. We started to call Tobbe "Rotten Boy" after we had been to the Sweden rock festival where he made sure to prove he didn’t deserve any other name! [Laughs] Drunk as a goat all the time and so on, we felt that he was completely rotten so… check out the gallery on the Spawn of Possessions site and you will find a picture of Tobbes tattooed leg.

Are you guys all Cannibal Corpse and Morbid Angel fans? Because I seriously dig "Remnants of Deprivation", yet I find it very, very hard to get into anything Cannibal Corpse has ever released upon the world.

I really really like "Vile" by Cannibal Corpse; perhaps not the best sound in the world but I love how much time they must have spent on arranging those songs. Of course we like Morbid Angel, especially the old albums, but we’re not super fans, except Dennis who is a Morbid Freak [laughs]. I listen to Monstrosity – "Millenium", Gorguts – "Erosion Of Sanity" and Suffocation – "Pierced From Within" a lot. Those three albums are pretty much the reason I’m playing the way I am.

Many friends that I know who have listened to "Remnants of Deprivation" are more impressed by the amount of tempo changes and variations within each single song you have composed. The death genre seems to be a little bit null in regards to this aspect. Do you have any thoughts?

We love to make the songs as "deranged" as we can, with tempo changes and so on. I think it’s just a way to keep us on the edge of what we can play. The next album will follow in those footsteps I can assure you, [laughs]. If you like that kind of death metal, you have to check out Spawn of Possessions upcoming album "Cabinet". It’s the sickest piece of music I have ever heard. Oh man… you have to listen to it like 5-6 times before you even understand what the hell is going on!

Vocalist, Dennis has a great voice, I can't remember the last time I heard a human bark like a dog, like in the track 'Butcher Knife Impalement' and other selected parts of "Remnants of Deprivation".

[Laughs]… Yeah, we call it "Burken". It didn’t turn out just like we had hoped, but I still think its pretty cool. And yeah, Dennis has a great voice, too bad he had a really bad cold when he did his vocals otherwise it would have been even more aggressive and brutal.

With a name like 'Visceral Bleeding' surely the press and feedback you would get back concerning the death theme may be rather negative concerning the sheer weight of death/grind bands out there with the death/gore lyrics and aspects. Is it possible to be a death/grind band and not specifically called 'Visceral Bleeding' or something of that nature? Don't get me wrong though, I don't have a problem with your band's name… but I think you can see where I am coming from.

I absolutely understand what you mean, and yeah we have had a lot of questions about why we don’t try to break any new ground with our lyrics and so on, but I think it’s a way to make the bigger picture, and the whole "image", more brutal. I definitely think it adds brutality and aggression to the band and the music.

I have seen some of Mike Bohatch's artwork around before, yet "Remnants of Deprivation" is the last album I would expect him to be working on, that being said the cover is very cool. It does wonders for the album having such good artwork.

Absolutely, and a big piece of that pie should go to Paul Bailey who did the amazing layout. Chris didn’t want us to have a typical gore cover so we had to make sure we found a picture that was really cool and dirty, you know? And I think we found one that is perfect for the album. I’m glad that we didn’t take a gore image, if we had there would have been thousands of questions about why… [laughs]

The banjo on 'To Disgrace Condemned'? What is going on there? That has to be one of the most innovative musical moves in death metal, which frankly there should be more of. Was this intentional, or were you just mucking around in the studio and thought, "what the hell we'll bring a banjo in on this part!"?

[Laughs] It was decided a long time before we hit the studio. We even rehearsed it. The whole song is a tribute to the movie "The Deliverance". See that movie and read our lyrics and you will understand it perfectly. [Laughs] It is a great movie, you will love it.

Again speaking of the banjo… is there a possibility for more unique instruments in future Visceral Bleeding albums?

You’ll never know, but there is nothing planned at the moment.

Was the song writing a collective band effort on "Remnants of Deprivation"? Also how do you go about writing the lyrics? Is there a real inspiration for impaling people with butcher knives or do you flick through the pages of the thesaurus and dictionary for some natty phrases (I know I would)?

I wrote most of the riffs on "Remnants of Deprivation" and Niklas and I arranged most of it. But of course we re- arrange a lot in the songs during rehearsal. When I write the lyrics I just sit down and think of a cool title for a song and then I just write around it. Nothing deeper than that I’m afraid.

Is there a meaning behind the title for "Remnants of Deprivation"?

Sort of, the song is about the extinction of life. And new forms that start to evolve. I don’t know if the picture is showing you the annihilation or the new forms evolving… I guess that’s in the eye of the beholder…

Does it pose much of a problem Retribute Records being located in Britain and you guys being a Swedish band, and based in Sweden?

No problems at all, we haven’t had a single problem with Chris. We have e-mail contact almost every day, so it has been working out great.

Just a final question. Have you guys got much live playing lined up to support "Remnants of Deprivation"? If you ever feel the inclination to travel to Australia for some live action, rest assured you will have one bloke to see you play! Thanks for answering these questions.

[Laughs] Cool man!! After the show I’ll buy you a beer man [laughs]… but seriously I don’t think we will do much touring on "Remnants of Deprivation", which is a shame, but we are at the moment moulding Tobbe to be a perfect Visceral Bleeding drummer and we are writing new material and so on.

Thanks for the interview and the great support, hail!

Hate always keeps you on the edge of the seat. Their albums change. Their image changes. They bring fresh energy and push boundaries of what can be done in extreme metal. Not everybody likes Hate but everybody should know Hate. Their music and passion inspires. Their message is clear. They're doing their thing and getting stronger with every step. I had a chance to talk to ATF Sinner last year over couple beers and then some. It took awhile to get the answers back but with the amount of touring they did last year who can blame him. Hate or be hated!

Tom (Pictures by Monika)


Thank you so much for finding time to do this. How is life on tour treating you?

Usually, it treats us well, but sometimes you may face unexpected situation and you have to find a way out pretty quickly. For example, a few days ago a sound guy whom we hired on this tour simply disappeared without a word! Later I learnt that he didn't feel safe in our RV! (laughs). Fortunately we found a replacement immediately and we sound even better now!

Look, touring is generally hard work and a lot of fun from time to time too. If you deliver good shows, you can draw lots of satisfaction from it. Also touring is a very important part of our activity. It gives us a lot of experiences that you cannot get elsewhere. It also makes you more conscious of what you do and how you do it. It gives you a different perspective on your music too, because you can see how people react and how they understand your message.

Tour bus must have been a danger zone (hahaha) I know it can be, I've visited. What was the most memorable show so far? Was touring with Rotting Christ a lot of fun, or did you guys hang out more with Melechesh? How do those 2 compare?

The shows in California and in some Canadian cities were most memorable because we have lots of fans there who had previously seen us on tour with Hypocrisy. So we got enthusiastic reactions from them, which was great. When it comes to the bands we're touring with, both Melechesh and Rotting Christ are cool people and we really get along with them. Melechesh are musically closer to what we do, but I like both bands. Rotting Christ are really effective on stage. Both bands have some "ethnical" elements in their music and use mythologies in their lyrics.

Hate's tour spread out over 3 months or so. What is the first thing you're going to do when you get back home?

I'll definitely take some days off and try to relax. I miss watching TV and especially news in Polish.


In my opinion "Erebos" is slightly different than the previous two albums; it is slower, heavier and not as much industrialized as let's say, "Anaclasis". Would you change anything if you had a chance or was everything about it totally premeditated?

"Erebos" is a natural consequence of our previous works, and seems to be a highlight in our discography... beyond doubt, the darkest and best produced album we've done thus far. We wanted to record an album that would not be easily classified; extreme, but innovative at the same time. We also wanted to broaden our perspective and enrich the music with some new elements. Still the core or our style is Death/Black Metal, but on "Erebos" you can hear distinct influences from Heavy Metal, Death Core, some Groovy stuff here and there, and also some Industrial and Ambient sounds, but not too much. I think it's quite a diverse album for extreme metal. I wanted to go further with experiments, but, honestly, we hadn't enough time in the studio to realize all ideas that came to our heads. I think out style won't stay the same on the next albums, because all we want is to change, explore new areas...

I've listened to the album many times and it became my favorite almost instantly. How much of the creating part of the new music comes from you and do you work with other members of Hate? How do you handle the changes in line-up? Do you utilize any of the available internet resources (i.e. Skype) to work remotely?

I usually come up with main ideas and work on them with a drummer. It's a time consuming process because we arrange the drums and guitars with all small details. When we have the music arranged I then start working on lyrics and together with Destroyer we do solos and guitar leads. On this stage we record some ideas at home and send to each other back and forth until we find forms that match the main arrangement best.

With all the touring you did last year and all this time on the road let me ask you this: Erebos came out in 2010. Did you write anything new lyrics or music-wise?

Oh yes, I'm always working on some new stuff, it's like a never ending process. Something you can't really stop doing. We have two new tracks completed and at least 4 in the making. It all sounds very promising to my ear. I think we'll enter the studio in June next year and the album should be ready for autumn release on Napalm Records. I also have some fragments of lyrics written. They refer to classical Greek tragedies that bring very universal messages that may still appeal to contemporary people.

What comes first when you create new material, how do you prepare the lyrics and what inspires the music?

It usually starts with a combination of riffs and main ideas of lyrics. I want to have some topic first to know what it is going to be about. I get inspired in this way and it's easier to compose.


I've read most of the lyrics from all of the albums and I'm immensely impressed. They're written with a lot of wit and leave room for interpretation. How do you put yourself in the right state of mind to write and what would you recommend to someone that wanted to find out more about what is behind the lyrics?

I like my lyrics to be poems that have philosophical elements. They often deal with things that lie beyond comprehension and can be interpreted in different ways. So it's up to a listener how he wants to understand them. Some deal with universal things like fear, pain, afterlife (if it exists?), madness, death, deceit, false image. I often use occult or satanic philosophies because they are close to my personal beliefs.

Can you tell us a little bit about the creation of "Erebos"?

As we toured a lot after releasing "Morphosis", most of the new songs were written between tours or just on the road.. For example, the song "Transsubstance" was written on the US tour, just a few weeks before we entered the studio. As for the recording, it took us almost t 5 weeks. The sessions took place in two studios in Poland: Hertz and Efektura. All went pretty smooth because we knew exactly what we wanted to achieve, so there was not so much experimenting with the sound etc. Earlier we had recorded a detailed demo with most of the songs, so it was clear how it would all sound. We actually entered the studio 2 days after our arrival from North American tour with Hypocrisy, so we all were suffering from time change etc. It took us a few days to adapt well to the studio, hang out a little with Wieslawski Bros (with whom we've been friends for years) and to concentrate on recording. But once we started the proper session, it just went smooth. We just wanted to use all the potential of the studio and I'm sure we succeeded in doing this.

Nowadays, it's easy to find out about opinions about your album. Most of it even before the album comes out. Do you read all that or do you completely ignore all that and do your own thing?

I read them to understand how people see my music. However, every review of an album is nothing but one person's impression. And you cannot please everyone. Anyway, it's always interesting to see how people perceive our works and what their impressions are.

Hate's previous albums premiered on vinyl last fall. Are you a collector, what do you think about vinyl releases?

I do not collect vinyls. I just have a few - mostly gifts I've been given. However, I agree that vinyl has something magical that cd lacks. They say it conveys more low frequencies than a cd, those frequencies that you can't really hear by ear but they certainly effect your body in some way. Besides, some vinyl releases are real pearls for collectors.

What is your favorite artist, what kind of music do you listen to to relax and unwind? Is there anything new in your collection?

I listen to a big range of music, so it's hard to point at one favourite artist or band. I'll name a few just to give you impression of what I like. Nine Inch Nails, Tool, Tori Amos, Diamanda Galas, Fields of The Nephilim, Anaal Nathrakh, Mayhem, Pantera, Johnny Cash, Slayer, Immortal, The Cult, AC/DC, Dead Can Dance, Chopin, Beethoven, Penderecki, Shostakovich, Bartok etc. I rarely listen to music for relaxation, because I find myself too involved in it. Listening to music I can't concentrate on anything elese. I rather watch TV for relaxation. I love cinema!

Labels come and go; they are not created equal. How was Listenable Records treating Hate? Do you think they promoted you guys enough?

Listenable is a good label when it comes to Europe. In America they have poor distribution and they don't support our efforts enough. So, after releasing "Erebos", we decided to change the label. We talked to some, and finally we decided on Napalm Records to be our publisher for future albums. We will start working with them for real when the new album is ready. I wish for better collaboration and much better promotion of our stuff in the future.

I know that recently some of the band members got endorsed with companies that, well, create your "tools." Are there any favorites, any brands of musical equipment that you may favor over the others?

We work closely with Fernandez Guitars and Run Guitars. Both companies produce amazing instruments. I use Run "Invader" model which was created to my likes, and soon I'll get a new model called "Thor". Destroyer plays on Fernandez "Vortex". We both use Bash Amps, which work great on stage as well as in studio. Our drummer works closely with Czarcie Kopyto. It's a Polish manufacture that makes drum pedals of highest quality.

Do you play any other instruments yourself?

Well, you have programs these days that enable you to achieve any sound you like. So you don't need to play, for example trumpet or horn to record music composed on those instruments. All you need is a keyboard, good computer and special software. So what really counts is an overall knowledge about music that you have as well as your musical tastes. However, it's good to know how to play an instrument, especially if you compose on it. Besides guitar I can play bass, drums, and piano.

For anyone that would like to buy you a drink at a concert - what is your poison of choice?

I love Mad Dogs - vodka mixed with cherry juice and Tobasco.

What is the biggest lie you ever told?

I don't remember.

Do you believe in the end of the world in 2012?

Nope. I think that prophecies of any kind are bullshit.

What can you never get enough of?

There's no such thing. Too much of anything leads to overdose. In order to take pleasure in something you need to take breaks from it. Otherweise, you end up being fed up.

Dude. It was awesome talking to you, and I really appreciate the time you've put into this, knowing how busy you guys are. I hope to catch up with you again after the new album comes out (which I'm looking forward to very much!).

Great thanks for this interview. It's always a pleasure to meet you guys! and to your readers: Rest in fuckin HATE! We'll be back in America sometimes soon!