This interview is featured on Attack Fanzine, a diy hc zine operated out of Sweden. The interview was conducted through e-mail by my friend Hatta from Malaysia and completed June 12, 2004.
Despite the silly name, these guys mean business. Political crust the way it is meant to be! One words to all the DIY labels, get these guys on vinyl or you will regret it. All opinions are those of individual members and not necessarily the band as a whole. - Hatta - June 12, 2004
Hello Stu, hey how are you doing man?
Stu: Pretty good my friend. I brought Daryl and Dave in on the interview as well.
Dave: stu seems well.
Let's start with some brief introduction of the band (i.e. band members, short history, discography etc.)
Stu: Ass 'O' Gore began back in the late Winter, early Spring of 2002. Daryl (drums) and I (Guitar/Vocals) had the intentions of starting a crust band. Dave joined on Bass later in the Spring. In June we recorded our "Anal Fist Capitalism Demo" tape/CD-r and played our first show as a full band in Dave's basement. Using a mini-disc player, we also recorded our last show of Summer 2002 and this was released as "In the UK" CD-R. We recorded some more stuff in August 2003 and this hasn't been released yet because we're doing a split tape/cd-r with another band and we're waiting for them to record. We will also have a song on a tape compilation I'm working on that will be all Canadian anarcho bands, although we haven't chosen the track yet, as well as a track on a compilation of local Sarnia, ON, bands I'm also working on.
Daryl: It should be noted that in the very early stages of the band, we were trying to recruit a guy named Nolan on bass… he had very similar ideological views as we did, but unfortunately, getting him into crust just WASN'T happening! I remember showing him ICBM and telling him that it was the style we were going for and he was definitely unimpressed. We ended up practicing with Dave, and it was great. I'm glad it ended up that we played as a group of good friends rather than just recruiting for ideological purposes. As a band, I feel that's important for the music, because it's great to have a good message and all, but don't forget to gore some ass while you're at it.
In the beginning, we made it clear that we would be a band that would stay true to the old school crust roots as possible. Not knocking on any of the new crust bands out there, but we feel there is a general lack of straight up crust bands nowadays. Most bands that are crust, are what you would call "crust-core". You know, bands similar to Doom and shit. Our goal was "bringin' it back" Amebix style. I'd say we are still true to that idea for the most part, but we are heavily fuckin' influenced by Tragedy, and we do tend to have straight up fast songs every once and awhile.
Dave: I'm merely a puppet of the gore. I am instructed on how to play a song and then I perform, really its like surgery, Daryl and Stu handle all the cutting and tying well I merely hand them there tools much like a nurse. If this band were an actual Ass o Gore Stu would be the colon, the main force behind the ass, constantly pumping out new material, Daryl the sphincter , carefully forming and shaping the raw energy passed on by Stu, and I simply the butt cheeks, nice to look at but with no integral role in the function of the ass, I'm just there for back up and support.
What with the name? Most of your songs are political but the band name doesn't imply that you guys should be taken seriously by the listener. Do you guys ever think of changing the band name?
Stu: Personally, I would never want to see the band name changed. I think it's awesome AND funny. The name is definitely not political, but we have politicized our logo by including broken chains on Ass 'O' Gore's wrists and the up-side-down cross. As a band, all of us have very similar sense of humour. I guess the name is kind of a joke on people who are uptight. Although it does appear that we have quite a lot of seriousness in our lyrics, there is still quite a lot of humour incorporated. We have a lot of ideas for the future that will certainly allow this humour to shine through.
Daryl: I think if you show that you have a sense of humour about things, you can be less alienating to other people about your views. I think it helps bridge communication gaps.
We actually got the name from this hilarious TV show called "TV Funhouse". I can't even begin to explain the idea behind it, but in the show there is a sketch with a flying ass named "Ass O Gore" and he looks really bad ass. It's quite well known that asses are a popular subject in crust/grind band names, so we felt that this would be a perfect name for the band. Unless you see the sketch AND have a basic understanding of that crappy show Pokemon, it's lost on people. Clips from that TV show are in the demo, and will probably be on future recordings as well.
I would NEVER want to change the name… we have such an awesome thing going with it, having the mascot and all. I would quit before changing the name.
Dave: I like it I like it a lot, the band's name is representative of the potential power that an ass can possess. I mean an ass has the power to shit, and the power to fart, and lets not forget about the power to please, both aesthetically and physically, so basically what I'm getting at is the ass o gore is the shit.
What do people think of the band's first demo? Are you guys satisfied with it? Is there anything on the demo, if given the chance, which you would like to improve on? Oh yea, how huge is the Chemical Valley Stenchcore scene these days?
Stu: It seems that a lot of people have been impressed with it, although sometimes it seems like people are skeptical as a result of the name. Or they assume we'll be grindcore or something. Although some have criticized the recording quality, it's mostly people who aren't familiar with DIY recordings. I'm satisfied with it. At the time though, "Anal Fist Capitalism Demo" was the best of any recordings I'd ever been involved in. The Chemical Valley Stenchcore scene consists of only us. Referring to ourselves as stenchcore was kind of a joke on the whole concept of the band, since our logo is a giant ass with arms. It is also in homage to the bands that were around in the late 80's in the UK.
Daryl: For what little money we put into our recordings, I'd say it's an awesome sounding recording. The only thing I wish for is a better drumset, and to be better at playing the drums! Haha! People who complain about the recording need to realize that it's a DEMO. Anybody who pays a lot for a demo is confused in my opinion. It's supposed to be just a listenable representation of one's work. I feel the demo is very listenable therefore our goal has been reached.
Dave is hugely responsible for all the very decent recordings in Sarnia in the past year or two. You have no idea how many shitty recordings there were of local bands for the longest time. Plus he gets better and better at it each time. DIY in action.
Dave: haha yes I am God, well thank you daryl, I love the demo, I have been recording music for a long time now like since I was 5 so its kinda a hobby of mine, and I feel I improve with each new session. I wouldn't really want to change anything on the demo, I feel it is a vary fair representation of the skill of the gore and should not be tampered with.
The CDr (for the new split material) you gave me kicks some serious ass. I am surprised with the progression you guys have made. Seems that there are a little bit of Tragedy/From Ashes Rise influence as well. Is this intentional because it seems that a lot of bands these days are greatly influenced by those guys as well?
Stu: Thanks a lot Hatta. I'm glad you enjoy it! Although I've never really listened to F.A.R., I love Tragedy. I think I can see where you could make that comparison on some. This isn't really intentional. When we got back to practicing again in Spring 2003, we set out with a goal of pushing ourselves musically to improve. Not that we intended to go in any new direction, but just push ourselves within the parameters we've set. We don't intend to try and emulate Tragedy or F.A.R. because really, the only people who can make Tragedy is Tragedy.
Daryl: I love both of those bands you mentioned, so I'm very flattered with the comparison. My only hope is that we can be recognized as our own thing, and that we are still keeping the old school crust sound intact.
Dave: I must admit that I, myself am not familiar with either of those bands, I'm more into wu-tang clan, but I love to play the bass and love performing in our crust band, as for the sound I just work with Daryl and Stu until we find something we like and then we pump out the jams.
Are you still looking for the right band to do the split release? Why a split release and not a normal release? Is there any particular reason for this? Do you have any particular band in mind?
Stu: In particular, we hoped to do a split with a band from Southeast Asia. However, we have located a band called Gritos de Esperanza from Temuco, Chile, in South America that we will do the split tape with. I still hope to do a split with a band from Southeast Asia sometime, but I feel I need to work more at establishing friendships there and checking out the scene a lot more. I want to do a split because I love the spirit that goes into releases internationally and feel that North America doesn't give much respect to what's going on, unless it's already popular (like Japanese hardcore). Canada, as part of North America, is part of this, but we're in a unique position because Canadian bands don't get much respect either. It's like we're considered part of the US, yet also ignored. I get a much greater feeling of sincerity and dedication when I check out the tape labels of Malaysia (for example) than more established labels from North America.
Daryl: I just want the fucking thing released! It's been almost a year since we recorded that stuff and we still haven't released it yet! I guess we put off releasing it on our own because it's so little material, therefore the desire to do a split with another band that are similar to the style we play. I'm getting really tired of not putting it out though because I'm really proud of what we did and want people to hear it. I honestly don't have a particular band in mind… if it's similar to our style of music, then I'm cool with it.
Dave: I'm with Daryl, I just want to get the music out to the people, Stu's got all the int'l hook ups so I'll leave it to him to find the right match up for the gore.
I can tell from the lyrics that the band is pretty involved in the whole animal rights thing. So how is the animal's right movement in Canada these days? Are you guys involved in any direct action regarding to the animal rights movement?
Stu: I'm involved in terms of personal evolution and occasional acts of protest and demonstrations. I've never personally been involved in any animal liberation, nor would I advertize it had I been involved in any. However, I support it, and hope it continues. In Canada, there is certainly a movement of people opposed to animal abuses, as for animal liberation, I haven't informed myself lately on the status of this movement.
Daryl: I do the best I can to not support the suffering of animals. It is a personal commitment to myself that I feel is a positive commitment. I'm not here to point fingers and judge anyone who doesn't share my beliefs; I can only hope that my personal actions can influence others to at least think about it. The best I can say is that if someone who doesn't get it wanted to talk about it with me, I can express my reasons for doing so, and that's that. That's all anyone can do really. If you try to do more than you can handle, you can get frustrated and give up or become jaded.
To be honest, I'm not all that hip to what's going on in the animal rights community. I imagine they've all come to the conclusion that they're still against cruelty to animals? Hahaha…
I would never talk openly about being involved in direct action or anything to that nature if I was involved. I have great respect for people that have the courage to do so, as long as it's constructive and better in the long run.
Dave: I'm a nihilist.
Hey what happened to your tape distro? Why do you stop doing it? Is there any chance of it making a comeback? Do you want to talk about your zine Free Society? How do you find the time doing these entire things?
Stu: I'm still operating the distribution, I have just removed the vast amounts of tapes that I had. This decision arose from the realization that many bands these days believe in copyright and don't want to see me "profiteering" from their music. There is certainly a chance of it making a comeback. My job now that I've removed them all, is to begin contacting the bands who I have demos of and ask them for permission to continue distributing them. There are quite a few bands who still believe in anti-copyright; Armistice, Resist and Exist, Contravene… these are just a few to name. After receiving permission, my next step is to work on ripping the tapes to the computer so I can burn CD-rs from them because one of my tape decks has died. Free Society was started by me and another punk from Chemical Valley (Sarnia, ON, Canada) back in 1998, for the purpose of speaking our minds at a time when we had so much to say. I'm still doing the zine, admittedly less frequently than when I was younger. My next issue will have an interview with former members of Amebix, and Brian Diablo, former singer of Catharsis, so this is quite exciting for me. Time is very much hard to come by. I just try and fit the stuff in as I can. If I was just working on one thing exclusively, such as the zine, I'm sure the zine would be much better than it is. But I feel like I must do everything because it makes me feel alive.
Daryl: I just want to say anybody who feels that they are remotely involved in the DIY punk/hardcore circuit can GET FUCKED if it pisses them off that their demos are being distributed for the cost of the tape and materials itself. I think I can safely speak for the rest of Ass O Gore that if we were to go online and find any of our releases being distributed by people we've never met before, we would be flattered and happy that our shit was getting out to people and that it is being enjoyed. I'm never going to be against the copying of any music that I do because I want it to be accessible to everyone… besides the other point, which is I CAN'T DO SHIT TO STOP IT AND NO ONE CAN! So everyone who feels the need to go on a crusade about it, STOP WASTING YOUR TIME! All you can hope is that someone will like you enough to buy and support your releases when they can get the money to do so. I could go on and on about this… but I'll cut myself short.
Dave: ya!
Is Stenchcore making a comeback? What do you feel when one of the guy from AXEGRINDER contacted the band regarding the cover song you did on your upcoming release?
Stu: I'm not sure if there is a "market" for it, but there definitely seems to be a few bands that are paying homage to the UK greats of the late '80's. I'm aware of their existence, but I honestly haven't heard enough. I know of Filth of Mankind (Poland), Age (Japan), Hellshock (USA), Hibernation (Greece), and I've seen some other stuff referred to stenchcore lately. It's by far my favourite style of music. The fusion of metal and punk is awesome. When Steve from Axegrinder contacted us, it was pretty fucking awesome. We were all extremely excited and eager to send him the new recording with Grind the Enemy on it. I was even more excited when he e-mailed me and asked to use the song on the Axegrinder website. That's one of the great things about the scene: being able to talk to the people making the music you love. Unfortunately, the song has since been removed to make way for an old live recording, but we're still in the thanks list on the site.
Daryl: I am so fucking flattered by the praise we got from Steve of Axegrinder. I was a little embarrassed because I actually felt I could have done better on our recording hahaha. I didn't know we'd be getting heard by one of the members of the fucking band! He contacted us because we had actually been posting on message boards trying to make sure we had the right lyrics to the song in the first place, and he ended up seeing the post and asking us if we got around to it.
Dave: I thought it was wicked cool that Steve even listened to us, I've now experienced my fifteen minutes of fame and can die a happy man.
What do you think when bands like FROM ASHES RISE signed to Jade Tree? Does this mean that we will likely seeing more and more 'crusty' punk bands getting on the mainstream and be accepted? Should we focus on other much more important thing that arguing about the decision that bands like FROM ASHES RISE have take?
Stu: Although there are more important things to argue about, I think it's valid to discuss the implications of this sort of thing. I don't think we'll see many mainstream crusty bands, but what I do see, is the erosion of DIY ethics. Bands on larger labels can and do have the effect of attracting kids to the underground from the mainstream, but the lack of reaction from the veterans about things like this is negative because it legitimizes the decision to be on "independent" labels rather than DIY operations. Many choices involve compromises but it bothers me that these bands see high quality recordings and glossy products as being valid reasons to compromise our ethics.
Daryl: Honestly, I don't give a fuck that From Ashes Rise signed to Jade Tree Records. That's their prerogative. I personally like some of the bands they have helped put out like Kid Dynamite, Damnation AD and Lifetime. Plus they released the Turning Point discography, which is just fine by me. I honestly don't see what the hell is so awful about the label… from what I understand; even labels like PE tend to fund the cost of pressing the vinyl and cds. That's not completely DIY. I guess it comes down to me not caring. I don't feel Jade Tree is out to exploit kids, so I don't have a problem with them.
Will we see more crust punk bands going mainstream? I don't know. I guess it depends on how impressive the band is to a variety of people. I definitely don't see Doom style bands going "mainstream" anytime soon though. I don't see it in the cards.
Of course we should focus on more important things… if you think it's so shitty that so and so band signed to a larger independent label, then don't do it yourself and set an example.
Dave: Jade Tree? I don't know shit about dick when it comes down to labels in the crust scene but I do know that DIY is where its at I've always produced and distributed my own shit and that's fine with me, im not even seeking county wide recognition, but I don't care some band I never listened to signed to some label I've never heard of.
Is there any possibility for your band to release your own records? Is it important to have a record label doing it? Don't you think by doing so (having a label releasing your record) the whole purpose of DIY ethics will be lost?
Stu: With money, the possibilities are endless. Right now, a vinyl release would be difficult for us. I want to start doing small print runs of tapes similar to Jimbo Broken Noise/Parkinson (because I think it's awesome and it's less expensive than vinyl). A label is not important, however, people willing to make copies and share our music is important to us. I want people all over the world to hear our music, and I'd rather leave that in the hands of our friends and family in the international DIY scene to make copies and share it, although that's just my own opinion. As long as any money made on our release is used for the expansion, sustenance and ultimate proliferation of the DIY hardcore/punk community, I would rather we do it that way.
Daryl: I would love to someday see an Ass O Gore release committed to vinyl just because it would feel like a cool accomplishment for us. Packaging is part of the art of the music as well. Unfortunately, the mindset for a lot of people is "Wow, they did their shit on actual vinyl, they must be good". I like people to take my music seriously, as long as it doesn't compromise my principles and I'm happy with what I'm doing. Obviously, it should be known by now that if people want to copy it for their friends for free, I'm down with it. As long as it's being heard, that's what matters to me.
If a label wants to help fund the recording of something we do, or help fund the pressing I don't see what's so wrong if they do that and slap their label name on the back of our record. You're still doing all the work, you're just getting helped to pay for the cost to get it off the ground.
Dave: well I rely heavily on my family to get my music out on to the streets, leone quinn's out there 6 hours of every week day bustin her ass tryin to pimp out the next 69 release and with no major label backing her ass. "Yo and that's the 'Big Word'".
Why do punks value vinyl so much? Why is a tape or a cdr does not constitute a legit released by a band? Is there some kind of double standard here?
Stu: There is definitely a double standard. I can't really explain it, but I know I am guilty of buying into it. I am interested in combating this tendency because I know it just contributes to materialism, consumerism, and above all, the need to spend more time working a shitty job to afford records. I would rather people only needed to spend $3 to acquire an Ass 'O' Gore release, or tape it for free, or something. I think there's ways of overcoming the exclusivity of vinyl. More bands should allow people like Jimbo to press tape versions of official releases to reach out to the kids internationally, but it seems that so many bands are concerned about people making money off of their music that it prevents them from sharing it.
Daryl: I just think vinyl's neat. I don't have a valid reason. It's nice to have the big artwork and stuff… plus vinyl sounds warmer. In my opinion, nothing can constitute a legitimate release by a band. I don't think there's a stable definition of one. I guess the only way it's legit is if it's made by the band themselves. After that, it's all up in the air as to what is a legit release.
Dave: No release in my opinion is legit , live performance or bust. But things must change with the times vinyl is being phased out and no one can save it.
The final words are yours.
Stu: I'm not sure when our split tape will be out (possibly this Summer sometime), but the demo and the live release are available from us for quite cheap. Keep crust out of big business and in DIY where it belongs. Always keep the faith. Thanks a lot for interviewing us Hatta! Keep rocking - DIY forever!
Dave: I just wanted to say that everything is gay and im not changing for no body, Shut up, Bitch! Dave quinn would also like to say, "New Kids on The Block Say No To Drugs - Peace!"
CONTACT:
freesociety@hotmail.com