Ever Metal – EMQs With Culled

27/06/2024

What is your name, what do you play and can you tell us a little bit about the history of the band?

Shane Hawco – Vocalist and Lyricist for Culled.

How did you come up with your band name?

The name “Culled” came from the cultural mentality of undervaluing autonomy and life, be it animal or human. In the end, we are all just bags of meat with an expiry date, a memento mori if you will. Our actions can have great impact and consequences, especially to those directly around us. So it is a calling and reminder to be mindful of that impact and the harm we can cause and to live our best life, even if that means being separated from the herd of normality.

What Country / Region are you from and what is the Metal / Rock scene like there?

We are based in Alberta Canada, some of us in Edmonton and others in Calgary. The Metal scene here is quite fragmented and mixed in all honesty. There are lots of bands and festivals, some leaning toward Metal, Thrash, and Deathcore, and others leaning more on the Punk / Hardcore side of things. They rarely mix but there are some bands that cross boundaries. We like to think with our heavy sounds and political-leaning lyrics we are able to bridge the gap successfully, but we of course could be wrong.

What is your latest release? 

Our upcoming release is an EP entitled “Psycles” a five-track EP that directly confronts the oppression and cycles of addiction, be it drugs, power, or religion. Similar to how the debut release “Thin the Herd, Fail to Learn” leaned heavily on the intellectual teachings of Noam Chomsky, “Psycles” leans on the compassionate thoughts of fellow Canadian Gabor Mate where empathy is a mainstay in surviving our current traumatic political climate.

Who have been your greatest influences?

Without a doubt bands like Napalm Death, Nasum, and Neurosis play a big part in our sound but so do bands like Suffocation, Yes, Atheist, Discharge, and Kreator.

What first got you into music?

Back in ‘92 I saw Napalm Death and Brutal Truth live. I never experienced anything with such intensity and integrity in music before. Although I wouldn’t get into making music on my own until a few years later that show stayed with me and made me realize that there is more to music than technical proficiency but emotion and compassion can also play a huge role.

If you could collaborate with a current band or musician who would it be?

I would love to work with Barney Greenway, he’s been a huge influence of mine and I feel I could learn so much from him, perhaps a mentorship over a collaboration and there is no way I feel I am anywhere within his realm musically.

If you could play any festival in the world, which would you choose and why?

There are just so many out there, I would say Obscene Extreme and Milwaukee Metal Fest come to mind right away but so do Prepare the Ground, Psycho, and Decibel’s Beer and Metal fests. So many we would be more than proud to be invited to.

What’s the weirdest gift you have ever received from a fan?

Drinks, shots etc, I know it’s considered normal, but I would rather talk with someone over a drink than have them bring me one on stage just cause.

If you had one message for your fans, what would it be?

Be kind to one another, empathy over apathy. 

If you could bring one rock star back from the dead, who would it be?

I’m not sure I’m comfortable with this one, so many tragic losses, but I would say Mieszko Talarczyk was taken far too soon and I would have loved to see where things would have gone for him and his projects. Plus, it would have been incredible to see him perform. 

What do you enjoy the most about being a musician? And what do you hate?

The collaboration with actual musicians has always been awe-inspiring. I always feel privileged when people of such skill and dedication want to work with me, and these guys in Culled, Ben, Chris and Curtis have been the best bunch of guys I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. Hate? Ego’s plain and simple.

If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?

Greed, it’s absolutely appalling. That and resistance to creativity and being unique and different. So many acts out there, trying to be the next “X” or “Y” or cloning the sound of “Z”. I say this knowing we are not being overly unique ourselves, but we are enjoying what we are doing and are starting to open things up, which is just where we need to be I feel.

Name one of your all-time favourite albums?

Black Sabbath’s “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath”. It’s dark, yet a change from the norm for the band, they weren’t afraid of trying something different, adding various types of moods and experimentation with new sounds and technology of the day. And, ‘A National Acrobat’ has one of the catchiest grooves I’ve ever heard. 

What’s best? Vinyl, Cassettes, CD’s or Downloads?

Honestly it’s all a personal choice. I prefer physical media with vinyl being my preference but I love the ease and convenience of having a gigantic library of music at my fingertips. I just hate how the streaming media treats artists. It’s great for discovering new artists I guess, but if you really dig something I still feel you should support the artists by purchasing a copy, regardless of format.

What’s the best gig that you have played to date?

There have been so many, but a highlight was opening for Death for All when I was in Disciples of Power and having my old band Exit Strategy open for us. I had a chance to meet Sean briefly before he sadly ended things. He was the nicest guy from the brief exchange we had, and I was shocked when I heard he was gone.

If you weren’t a musician, what else would you be doing?

Art, I’m actually more of an artist than a musician, I love to paint and draw and I’m really looking forward to getting back into it again at some point.

Which five people would you invite to a dinner party?

Pretty simple, I like to keep it tight and have the band and their significant others over from time to time. They are just the kindest humans… so much love and respect for them all.

What’s next for the band?

We are already working on the follow-up, most likely a full release. We really just wanted to get these songs out there and an initial offering after the band took a hiatus during the pandemic and looked for new members. The addition of Chris and Curtis to the band has been incredible, they are dedicated to their craft as well as the band’s mission statement of finding empathy in almost every situation. It’s a pleasure and I’m personally really enjoying how the new material is shaping up.

What Social Media / Website links do you use to get your music out to people? 

Everything is linked to our website at www.culled.ca we just wanted to keep it simple and easy for people to access. Check it out!

Time for a very British question now. As an alternative to the humble sandwich, is the correct name for a round piece of bread common in the UK either a Bap, a Barm (or Barm Cake), a Batch, a Bun, a Cob, a Muffin, a Roll or a Tea Cake?

I really don’t know, my family has British roots and is based out of Newfoundland, they love their tea and tea cakes so I’ll go with that.

Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you would like to add?

Thank you! For those who have supported us in any way, thank you so much for the love, and for those who are just getting to know us thanks for the interest!