EMQ’s with GUTTED SOULS
Hi everyone! Welcome to our new EMQ’s interview with Rio de Janeiro, Brazil based Death Metal band Gutted Souls. Huge thanks to vocalist Iron for taking part.
What is your name, what do you play, and can you tell us a little bit about the history of the band?
Hi everyone! I’m Iron, vocalist and founder of Gutted Souls. I also do vocals for some other underground bands like IncognoscI and Peristaltic Movement.
Gutted Souls was born in 2003 from the ashes of another band called Necropedophile, that was focused on gore and splatter themes, and very much influenced by Cannibal Corpse, Lividity, and things like that. We got tired, no scratch that, I got tired of writing these kinds of lyrics and was into writing more philosophical and world issues related themes. Also, the sound was changing, we were getting into Cynic, Atheist, Wormed, Cryptopsy, things like that. So, a name change was in order. We had many ups and downs with line-up changes, lack of money, the usual Death Metal hurdles. We finally got out an unnamed demo in 2011, followed by an EP called “Unconscious Automaton” in 2012, a full length “The Illusion of Freedom” via Envenomed Music Records/Dharma Records in 2017, and a single in 2019 called ‘Organic Portal’.
How did you come up with your band name?
Well, we wanted something that carried more meaning, and Gutted Souls sounded perfect. The souls of every man gutted by constant strife and by an uncaring, cold, and pathological system. I’m also proud of our logo, inspired by Japanese kanji.
What Country/Region are you from and what is the Metal/Rock scene like there?
We are from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. We have a very varied scene here. Lots of hardcore, and metal bands, every single one seeking their own sound. You have 80’s inspired bands, stoner bands, doom metal, technical death metal, progressive and theatrical metal, there is everything here. The country is huge and that has a strong impact in tour logistics, so doing the “all the band in a car and let’s travel the country” is not feasible here. So, there is some unwanted separation by State due to the distance between them but streaming and Youtube are mitigating this problem in recent years.
What is your latest release? (Album, EP, Single, Video)
Our latest releases are a single from 2019 called ‘Organic Portal’, that is a rewritten song from 2002. We took it apart and rewrote it to address the theme of paedophiles lurking in the dark corners of the deep web. Our other release is the videoclip for the song ‘The Undying Stars’, from our album “The Illusion of Freedom”, from 2017.
Organic Portal
The Undying Stars
Who have been your greatest influences?
My main influences are Cynic, Suffocation, Deicide, Morbid Angel, Cryptopsy, 80’s Synthpop, and jazz-fusion (memories from when I used to play bass).
What first got you into music?
My family loved to hear popular music. I always had a thing with music, but that didn’t click with me. Then, one day in high school I heard the first chords of “Immortal Rites” by Morbid Angel. It was instant love/recognition. I did not even know that “heavy metal” existed as a genre until that precious moment. The rest is history, in less than 3 years after that I was trying to get into bands, despite not playing any instrument. I had found my musical calling, learning an instrument and the ways of metal was a matter of time.
If you could collaborate with a current band or musician who would it be?
Sean Reinert (RIP), Paul Masvidal, Kevin Taylor (Drummer), Eric Rutan (as a producer).
If you could play any festival in the world, which would you choose and why?
Milwaukee Death Fest, hands down! Honourable mention, the legendary Mountains of Death, may it rest in power. Two fests of pure, relentless Death Metal.
What’s the weirdest gift you have ever received from a fan?
Once, a fan posted a photo with our “Unconscious Automaton” EP using a full Hazmat-like combat suit. It was weird. We never discovered who the guy (or gal) really was.
If you had one message for your fans, what would it be?
The world is a cold and uncaring place, and your only weapons are knowledge and self-mastery.
If you could bring one rock star back from the dead, who would it be?
Chuck Schuldiner, and Freddie Mercury.
What do you enjoy the most about being a musician? And what do you hate?
The act of creating, specially recording, is very special for me. Being on stage is awesome, but nothing beats putting the finished new album to play. It’s an awesome feeling.
I have the fact that there is little money flowing in metal, so everything is more precarious, at least in Brazil. It’s nice that people actually do the gigs out of love, but it would be nice to have big festivals around here.
If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?
The problem with the music industry is that it is only an expression of a general pathological system and worldview. You could argue that the model of record labels as gatekeepers is what the problem is, and it really was for a long time, but that has largely been replaced by streaming that pays next to nothing for the artists. When that is solved, or fade into irrelevance, something else will appear, because of the root problem: to view music as something that needs to be consumed, as fast and mindlessly as possible. Unless people change their relationship with music to something more deep, and less “what is the new flavour of the day”, the music industry will keep cashing on this pathological desire
Name one of your all-time favourite albums?
“Focus” by Cynic, “Pierced from Within” by Suffocation, “Dance of December Souls” by Katatonia, “Black Celebration” by Depeche Mode
What’s best? Vinyl, Cassettes, CD’s or Downloads?
No preference. Times change, and music mediums change as well. I loved to rewind tapes with a pencil, but now mainly use Spotify.
What’s the best gig that you have played to date?
Extreme Hate Festival, alongside Master, Unleashed, Abysmal Dawn, and others. Drinking Jack Daniels with Paul Speckmann, hearing tales of the underground was something I’ll cherish forever.
If you weren’t a musician, what else would you be doing?
Well, I’m not only a musician. I’m also a biologist with a PhD in Biochemistry that works as a scientist in a large pharmaceutical company. I also write. We all are more than one thing, aren’t we?
Which five people would you invite to a dinner party?
Jordan B. Peterson, Chomsky, Bob Lazar, Father Joseph Azize, Ray Dalio.
What’s next for the band?
We are working on our next album. The idea is to talk about the human condition from an esoteric perspective and to experiment with different speeds, melodies, and ways of doing riffs. We think that each album is a work in itself, so we don’t want to do an “Illusion of Freedom 2”.
What Social Media/Website links do you use to get your music out to people?
www.guttedsouls.com/
www.facebook.com/GuttedSouls/
www.guttedsouls.bandcamp.com
www.guttedsouls.bandcamp.com/merch/
www.youtube.com/user/guttedsoulsband
www.instagram.com/guttedsouls/
Jaffa Cakes? Are they a cake or a biscuit?
For some reason I thought of Jabba The Hut eating cake. I’m probably a disturbed geek humanoid.
Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Thanks for the platform for discussing our ideas and spreading our music. Keep tight, this pandemic is on its way to end and soon we will all be moshing again to our sweet, sweet metal!
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