WORMROT
Questions asked by Jon Wilde, added to Rock Realms 24th March 2010.
Wormrot is a grindcore band from Singapore consisting of Rasyid on guitars, Fitri on drums and Arif on vocals. With new album Abuse out in April on Earache, and a massive tour starting any time soon, this is a band literally going places.
Rasyid and Arif answer questions...
Hi, thanks for taking a moment to answer these questions. Hope you are well?
Arif: Hey wassup. All is well here. Thanks for asking!
Could you give us a brief history of how Wormrot came to exist?
Arif: Wormrot started out as a death-grind project formed by me on vocals and Acit (Septikaemia, Hellghast) on drums. We took in Halim (Arbitrary Element, Cardiac Necropsy) to fill in the bass. I met an old high school friend Rasyid who had just completed his national service (2007) by a chance meeting through a mutual friend and he was invited to try out on the guitars. A couple of jamming sessions followed yet we couldn't find a comfortable stride. Myself and Rasyid decided to go on our own to form a grindcore band, retaining 'Wormrot' as the band name. Fitri was a friend of mine in camp while we were serving our national service. He fitted the empty drum slot comfortably and secured himself in the first jamming session with an unforgettable incident involving the drum set, beer and vomit.
Who came up with the name?
Arif: Myself and Rasyid came out with the band name. It was a total random. haha
Who would you list as your musical inspirations?
Arif: Personally Insect Warfare, Magrudergrind, Blockheads, Spazz, Superbad, PLF, Indisgust, Infest, Nasum, Phobia, Rotten Sound, Jig Ai, Gride and many more.
What about your writing inspirations? What sort of stuff motivates your mind for lyric construction?
Arif: All the shit that had happened to us in the past. Be it good or bad, it will be in the lyrics somehow or other. It's not always negativity when it comes to Wormrot. As you notice the songs like Good Times and Indonesia are about the great experiences we had touring, making new friends around the globe etc.
When did you start working on debut album 'Abuse'?
Arif: I couldn't recall when we actually started but it was pretty fast. and it could have been better. We were tied up to finish it up quickly as the past tour was rather close upon beginning. Somehow it just flows smoothly throughout the whole recording process and everything was put into places with the last minute planning. With all the hectic and chaos, it's definitely worth while. Like i said, it could have been better so be in touch for our 2nd album!
Was the album title there from the start as an inspiration, or did it come after the music?
Arif: It came right after the music. After we had done with all the tracks especially the vocals and the lyrics, ABUSE is the best choice for the album title. Before deciding on the title Abuse, we thought of ABUSE THE CONFUSE which was one of the choices for the album. But we stick to a simple term on a more general meaning towards everything. hence, ABUSE.
How does the writing work? Is there one main contributor or are the songs a band effort?
Arif: First of all, Rasyid would spew some riffs for us. We might take it or reject it as a band. Fitri and myself will spew in ideas and modify some of the riffings to blend in with the drum layouts. Tons of changes and modifications going on. Its more of a band effort. Everyone single one of us contributes.
How does it compare in terms of sound and quality with the EPs and demos you've already put out?
Arif: Massive difference. Obviously in sound production. Personally the older stuff like the DEAD EP was rather more straight forward than Abuse. Due to the fact that we have changed the line-ups in the drum department. Everything got more lively and groovy when Fitri came in to the picture. We are sort off more structured with our song writing now and still keep the elements of straightforwardness with tons of grooves.
How would you portray your style to somebody who hadn't heard you before? You're described as Grindcore but there are definitely other sounds in there too.
Arif: Yes there are definitely other sounds in Abuse. We listen to practically anything. Be it Rnb, hip hop, deathcore, metalcore, emoviolence, pop, nu metal etc. We reinterpret some of our other genre interest and try to blend in as much as we can in the band so it boils down and became grindcore. Well not all of our songs, some of them. Its always fun to write music with the band. And I'm personally looking forward for the "stress storm" in the 2nd album.
Did you use any special techniques or instruments to get your sound?
Arif: Its pretty much the basics of recording. Rasyid with his pedal distortion with a little bit of help from the amps, mic'ed up drum and the engineer did the rest of the session. Nothing special or extra hidden tricks going on. It's just us and the music.
What are your favourite pieces of kit, both in the studio and on the stage?
Rasyid: I use an Ibanez RGA loaded with EMGs and a Digitech pedal which I use on the album and on stage, whereas Fitri uses Vic Firth sticks.
Was recording the album hard emotional work, good fun, or a mixture of both?
Arif: It's a mixture of both really. As i recall, we had some sort of a personal life problems going on while maintaining the recording sessions. Tons of issues going on that time but we managed to pull it through. and its all worthwhile.
What are your favourite moments on the album?
Rasyid: The whole album is a collage of favourite moments! I can't single out any particular moment that we're most proud of. We wouldn't be releasing it if we're not happy with it...
Do you enjoy the writing and recording process, or do you prefer being up on stage playing live?
Arif: For me, i prefer being up on stage. I just dig the adrenaline rush through our songs and out to the grinders surrounding us. Its the best feeling ever. Witnessing crowd going crazy to your songs right in front of your eyes is just epic.
What is a Wormrot gig like? What should fans expect?
Arif: Sweaty, Pissed off, sticks flying, string snapping good time.
Are you looking forward to hitting the UK? Will this be the first time you've been?
Arif: Most definitely. It is our first time in UK and the dates are confirmed and we just cant wait to meet up with the Earache crews and spread our shit in the UK! its gonna be a blast!
Any question you love being asked that I've missed? If so, what's the answer?
Arif: Nope.
What are you up to once you've finished answering these questions?
Arif: Another interview. haha! Probably have a good rest after that. We`ve been working our asses off on our daily jobs and at the same time handling the band stuff. Maybe I'll hit up some Gears of War before I'm off to bed. haha!
Anything else you would like to mention?
Arif: Cheers and beers to you and the crew for helping us out getting this interview. We really appreciate the true grind support from all over the world. We are touring very soon so i hope to see grinders doing their thing when we`re there. Stoked on making more new friends around the globe. Also, our latest release will be out pretty soon. Look out for that one on our myspace page. http://www.myspace.com/wormrotgrind
Thanks again to Rasyid and Arif for their time. Keep an eye out for the new Wormrot album and the band on tour. Check their MySpace page for details..
http://www.myspace.com/wormrotgrind
