Interview with Discharge 2006
By Bradley Smith
You have a new EP due out early this year. What can we fans expect from it musically? What sort of development do you feel has been made since your last release?
YES WE HAVE A 3 TRACK EP ALL NEW TRACKS BEING RELEASED END OF MARCH/BEGINNING OF APRIL THE EP IS CALLED BEGINNING OF THE END WELL I(RAT) PERSONALLY THINK IT’S A CROSS BETWEEN THE 82 SOUND AND THE LAST DISCHARGE ALBUM RELEASED IN 2002 ON SANCTUARY RECORDS THAT WAS SIMPLY CALLED DISCHARGE
(BAND), DEVELOPMENT OR REGRESSION SOMETIMES LESS IS MORE, OH AND THE COVER WAS DRAWN BY SQUEELER WHO PREVIOUSLY DID MOST OF THE ARTWORK FOR ICONS OF FILTH IF ANYONE'S INTERESTED
It says that the new EP will have bonus DVD tracks. What will be featured on these? Also you are putting out an official DVD after your tour. What all will be included on this release?
YES ON THE CD VERSION ,WE ARE GOING TO LEAVE THE CHOICE OF THE DVD TRACKS TO FISH(THUNK RECORDS) AFTER ALL HE IS RELEASING THE OFFICIAL DISCHARGE DVD NOT LONG AFTER, SO HE ISN’T GOING TO PUT ANYTHING BOLLOCKS ON IT
For a band that has been around sooooo long, how do you feel the band has progressed from its inception up until today? I mean everyone talks about your metal period and that sort of topic but I want to hear how you guys see it from the inside looking out.
WELL AS REGARDS THE DISCHARGE METAL PERIOD THAT WAS REALLY CALVIN AND GARRY MOLONEY'S DOING, RAINY PLAYED ON THE GRAVE NEW WORLD ALBUM BUT SOON LEFT,(RAT) SOME OF THE FIRST STUFF LIKE WARNING, IGNORANCE AND BORN TO DIE IN THE GUTTER WAS PRETTY OKAY, I JUST THINK THAT THINGS GOT PUSHED A LITTLE TO FAR ON THE GRAVE NEW WORLD LP
With all the conflict going on in the world today do you feel your lyrics are just as relevant, if not more so, in today’s society?
( RAT)WELL AS THE VOCALIST AND MAINLY I DEAL WITH THE LYRICS I THINK THEY ARE RELEVANT. DO YOU THINK THE WORLD IS A SAFER PLACE TODAY THAN A FEW YEARS AGO?
I PERSONALLY DON’T THINK SO, I CANT SAY HOW I WRITE THE LYRICS
MIGHT HEAR SOMETHING SEE SOMETHING READ SOMETHING(HANG ON THAT’S AN ALBUM TITLE RIGHT THERE) SHIT ITS BEEN DONE ,THEN THE BRAIN STARTS TICKING OVER AND I JUST JOT THINGS DOWN, SOME OF IT MAKES SENSE, SOME OF IT IS A LOAD OF OLD TWADDLE
You guys are hitting your 29th year of existence this year. That is quite an accomplishment. There must be a lot of good times and probably even some bad times across that span. Looking back across all those years what were some events that really stand out in your mind as a band. Do you ever feel jaded?
FUCKING HELL SO MUCH HAS GONE ON QUITE A FEW OF THOSE YEARS WE HAD ALL LEFT AT VARIOUS STAGES SO ITS REALLY HARD TO PINPOINT, I SUPPOSE FOR (ME)BONES AND RAINY THE APOCALYPSE NOW TOUR, IT SORT OF KICK-STARTED THINGS UP IN THE UK AND PROBABLY AROUND THE WORLD IN A STRANGE WAY
I have heard from several important extreme metal bands such as Darkthrone and Carpathian Forest(who even did a cover of you guys) regarding your influence on extreme Metal. What impact do you feel discharge brought to the world of extreme metal?
WELL I SUPPOSE DISCHARGE WAS LOOKED ON AS THE MOTORHEAD OF THE PUNK SCENE DIRTY AGGRESSIVE SOUNDING AND A LOT OF PEOPLE ACROSS DIFFERENT GENRES GOT INTO OUR SOUND
Since we are on the topic of your crossover influence on metal, how do you feel Discharge meshes ideologically/politically with these sorts of bands? It seems to me the impact was mainly musical as your political side is a facet that is scorned by most metal bands.
WELL YES WE AGREE IT WAS MORE THE SOUND OF THE BAND , THAN THE POLITICAL STANCE, BUT THEN AGAIN PEOPLE IN THE METAL SCENE ALSO GIVE A SHIT ABOUT THEIR/OUR WORLD, SO I AM SURE PEOPLE GOT INTO WHAT DISCHARGE WAS DOING FOR ALL SORTS OF REASONS
I feel that the personal side of matters is an integral aspect of a band like Discharge. I was wondering about some personal and political issues as they relate to you. People change as they grow and mature and as they experience the world around them. Do you feel any of your early views were a bit idealistic and naïve? How do you feel you as a person differ from the young man you were when you recorded See Nothing?
WELL YES I SUPPOSE AS YOU GROW OLDER AND SUPPOSEDLY WISER IDEALS CHANGE SLIGHTLY, WHEN YOU HAVE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF CHILDREN OF YOUR OWN, BUT THEN YOU WONDER WHAT IS THE WORLD GOING TO BE LIKE WHEN THEY GROW UP, THIS SO CALLED CIVILIZED WORLD ALWAYS SEEMS TO HANG ON A KNIFE EDGE NOT QUITE TIPPING OVER, LADY LUCK WON’T ALWAYS BE SMILING DOWN, EVEN SHE NEEDS TO TAKE A BREAK.
What issues that are affecting today’s world do you feel are the most important and cause the most imminent danger to humanity?
RELIGION AND THE DIVISIONS OF HATRED THAT IS BEING CREATED HAS COME TO THE FOREFRONT OF THE WORLD’S ATTENTION, JIHAD THE RELIGIOUS WAR.
In the past couple of years the UK and the USA have been involved in the war in Iraq. How do you feel about this situation?
WELL IT HAD BEEN GOING ON AND OFF FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS WHEN IRAQ TRIED TO INVADE KUWAIT. THEY OBVIOUSLY ONLY STEPPED IN TO PRESERVE THE OIL SUPPLIES, OIL’S MORE VALUABLE THAN GOLD TO THE MODERN WORLD, THEN THERE WAS THE FEAR THAT IRAQ WAS DEVELOPING NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY, THIS IS A LEADER WHO GASSED HIS OWN PEOPLE BECAUSE THEY WERE KURDS. CAN SADDAM BE TRUSTED? CAN ANY WORLD LEADER FOR THAT MATTER?
(RAT) JUST AFTER THE TROOPS WENT INTO IRAQ I ASKED SOME KURDISH
IRAQIS, WHO WORKED AT THE SAME PLACE I DID WHAT THEY THOUGHT ABOUT IT, MANY OF THESE PEOPLE HAVE FAMILY'S LIVING THROUGH IT
SO THEIR OPINION MATTERS THE MOST , THEY TOLD ME THEY WOULD LIKE TO OF BEEN ABLE TO OPPOSE SADDAM THEMSELVES , BUT THEY ARE TOO FRIGHTENED AND NOT A STRONG ENOUGH FORCE, SO I SUPPOSE THEY WERE TRYING TO SAY THEY WERE GRATEFUL , BUT IT’S TURNING INTO A BIT OF A VIETNAM PART TWO, BUT THEN YOU CAN’T JUST GO IN STIR THINGS UP THEN TURN YOUR BACK AND LEAVE. IT’S NOT AS EASY AS THAT, WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN NOW THAT IRAN HAS NOTIFIED THE WORLD IT HAS PULLED OUT OF THE NUCLEAR TREATY AND IS GOING TO ONCE AGAIN DEVELOP ITS NUCLEAR POWER? YET AGAIN THIS FUCKING KNIFE EDGE THING!
Back a little bit to the musical side of things. What sort of monumental effort was it to get all the original recording members of Discharge back together? How have you guys been interacting since the reformation in 2000?
(TEZZ) WELL I WAS STILL LIVING IN THE STATES AT THE TIME AND CAME BACK TO VISIT BONES. WE ENDED UP GOING TO A PARTY IN STOKE CALVIN AND RAINY WAS THERE, WE STARTED CHATTING ABOUT OLD TIMES AND THINGS MOVED ON TO LETS RECORD A NEW ALBUM, WE WAS WORKING ON THIS FOR SOME TIME, I WOULD COME OVER WHEN I COULD WE WOULD REHEARSE, FINALLY HAD ENOUGH SONGS FOR AN ALBUM, I DECIDED TO MOVE BACK TO THE UK TO GIVE IT 100% SANCTUARY RELEASED IT AND EVERYBODY AGREED WE WOULD GO OUT ON THE ROAD AND PROMOTE IT, THEN CALVIN CHANGED HIS MIND AND WASN’T INTERESTED IN DOING ANY LIVE GIGS WHICH WASN’T ANY GOOD TO THE REST OF US SO WE WENT OUR SEPARATE WAYS AGAIN THEN I DRAFTED IN RAT FROM VARUKERS ON THE RECOMMENDATION OF IAN GLASPER FROM TERRORIZER
Discharge has had such a huge impact on the underground, spawning a legion of clones/imitators. What do you think of all these bands such as Dischange and Disfear and all the other “dis” named bands?
LIKE WE SAID BEFORE WE HAD NO IDEA THE IMPACT DISCHARGE WOULD HAVE ON THE SCENE IT’S AN HONOUR
Any final words of wisdom you would like to impart on the uneducated masses?
TRY TO TRACK DOWN THE NEW EP BEGINNING OF THE END. IT’S AVAILABLE ON VINYL AND CD (THE CD HAS TWO TRACKS OFF THE DVD).
IF YOU HAVE PROBLEMS GETTING HOLD OF A COPY GO TO THUNK RECORDS WEBSITE AND THEY WILL SORT SHIT OUT!