It's high time I interviewed Matt from Exhumed, my favorite hellspawn road warriors! We talk metal, road life, beer, mayo and relationships.
PG: Hey Matt, Welcome back from conquering the globe for nearly 365 days. Since you've been home, your new album came out- I loved it- but what kind of response have you gotten?
Matt: So far it seems really good. Most of the reviews I've seen have been really positive, and a couple of the not-super-good ones at least brought up valid points that I totally agreed with, haha! Ultimately we're really happy with it, and we write for ourselves first, selfish as that sounds, so I feel like we achieved something at least, haha!
PG: I'm glad, because I liked it. I read one review that called it "The Best New Carcass album." How do you feel about that comparison?
MH: Well, we've always been compared to Carcass, and in fact, we specifically made sure to record in time to avoid our records coming out too close to each other, and then a bunch of delays that we had no control over ended up pushing it back until August, which was honestly a bit frustrating. But the comparison has always been there. I love Carcass, so it's not a negative thing, but it gets a bit old, I mean we've been making records for 15 years, sorry that we have two vocalists and use words that have more than two syllables from time to time, haha! I think the new Carcass record is pretty damn good, by the way, and we don't see ourselves in competition with anyone, we're just doing our thing.
PG: I sense you're a little bit of a perfectionist, Senor Harvey...
MH: Well, I just strive for objectivity, especially with my own stuff. I try not to just be stoked on something because of some unfounded emotional response, I try to weigh it from a detached perspective as much as I can.
PG: Whatever you're doing, it works, so keep doing it. The Exhumed live set is probably one of my favorites in metal right now. How did you guys come up with the Dr. Philty schtick and how long did it take for you guys to really perfect your live show?
MH: Well, we used to incorporate all that kind of stuff back in the day with Bud throwing up, Col breathing fire, etc. and were trying to reincorporate it into the show, while still trying to be a bit more of a "serious" metal band or whatever, haha! We were on tour with Macabre and I still was dumping blood out of Ted (our resident severed head) onto myself at the end of our show, and Macabre started having Dr. Philthy (I suppose he was pre-med still then) come out as Albert Fish, and we could see that he really enjoyed it and had a great hammy stage presence, since he was already our driver and crew guy, it was a no-brainer to having him take over chainsaw and blood duties and become the mascot. I feel like it's a good compromise that's not too on the Watain / Kiss side and is more like an Iron Maiden vibe, spectacle but still focusing on the music and keeping the band and the spectacle slightly separated.
Takes the pressure off of us a bit onstage.
PG: I sense you're a little bit of a perfectionist, Senor Harvey...
MH: Well, I just strive for objectivity, especially with my own stuff. I try not to just be stoked on something because of some unfounded emotional response, I try to weigh it from a detached perspective as much as I can.
PG: Whatever you're doing, it works, so keep doing it. The Exhumed live set is probably one of my favorites in metal right now. How did you guys come up with the Dr. Philty schtick and how long did it take for you guys to really perfect your live show?
MH: Well, we used to incorporate all that kind of stuff back in the day with Bud throwing up, Col breathing fire, etc. and were trying to reincorporate it into the show, while still trying to be a bit more of a "serious" metal band or whatever, haha! We were on tour with Macabre and I still was dumping blood out of Ted (our resident severed head) onto myself at the end of our show, and Macabre started having Dr. Philthy (I suppose he was pre-med still then) come out as Albert Fish, and we could see that he really enjoyed it and had a great hammy stage presence, since he was already our driver and crew guy, it was a no-brainer to having him take over chainsaw and blood duties and become the mascot. I feel like it's a good compromise that's not too on the Watain / Kiss side and is more like an Iron Maiden vibe, spectacle but still focusing on the music and keeping the band and the spectacle slightly separated.
Takes the pressure off of us a bit onstage.
PG:That's how I feel about it- it's a lot of fun and you guys feed off of each other really well. It's total high energy mania. I love it! How was your three month long European vacation?
MH: The word to emphasize in that sentence is "long," haha! It was great, lots of great gigs, parties with old and new friends, new countries visited, beers consumed... The energy was tough to maintain for the whole time, not so much onstage but by month three the after-show partying had quieted down a little. Certainly not completely, but a bit. There was still a lot wrestling, room trashing, getting kicked out of bars, doing questionable drugs with questionable people, that sort of thing... Bud and Rob never really slowed down, but Mike and I stepped it back a little after Obscene Extreme. That's when I started thinking about all the Mexican food places I was gonna eat at when I got back to California.
PG: What was the first plate of food you ordered when you returned stateside?
MH: Well, I flew to my mom's place in South Carolina first en route to a family reunion, so I started with a pulled pork sandwich with hot sauce, potato salad, homestyle mac and cheese and raisin almond coleslaw. And several Coronas.
PG: That sounds pretty good (and very Southern). Minus the raisins. What was your favorite show on the tour?
MH: The raisins were from a high-falutin' Whole Foods type place, really good cole slaw, actually. Southerners also get mad at me because I put cheese, mayo and onions on my pulled pork sandwich, haha! I think Obscene Extreme if I had to pick just one. The atmosphere there is just so cool and zany, and I saw sooooooo many old friends and shit that I hadn't seen in forever. It was just a great time. And we also played the after party where we did mostly cover songs and stuff, which was really fun.
PG: That does sound gross.
MH: See what I mean, southerner? If I'm in California I put Ortega Chile on my pulled pork. And that is not a sexual euphemism.
PG: No, I just hate mayo.
MH: Be careful in Europe, they're a mayo centric folk out there.
PG: I know! Ugh, that shit is so nasty. When it Rome though, you put that shit on your fries...
MH: I always have mayo on my fries. Even in US and A
PG: I loved seeing your tour pics on instagram- what was up with Bud and the chickens? And everyone passed out in weird places? PS. Mayo on fries is icky.
MH: Bud loves animals, and specifically chickens for some reason. He's always drawing chickens everywhere. We stayed at our friend Alex's pad and he has a great garden and little chicken coop out back. I passed out about 5 and woke up to piss a couple hours later, and Rob and Alex (who were still drinking, of course) had put chickens on top of Bud and then woke him up. He woke up really stoked about it. I had to run upstairs to get my phone and capture the moment. These are the times of our lives.
Bud and Rob are pretty much invincible party machines that somehow manage to get sloshed virtually every night, even when they know van call is at 8 in the morning and shit, so they end up passed out everywhere. In Europe the beer supply is much more plentiful than in the states - sometimes it's virtually limitless, which is a double edged sword for sure!
PG: That bit about the chickens is actually pretty adorable. What's the best beer you drank in EuroLand?
MH: Man there were so many... I got into Chouffe, which is a pretty popular Belgian beer, we went to the Budvar brewery in Budejovice, Czech Republic and took the tour, which was educational and fun, I drank a lot of Afflingen, Kozel, Pilsner Urquell, Leffe, tons of German beers whose names are too hard to remember... Sooo much good beer over there it's impossible to pick a favorite.
PG: I was pretty partial to Kotzstricher, but they make that in (former) east Germany...It was my favorite. It sounds like a good time, shows, fans, friends, unlimited booze...are there any downsides to being on the road that long?
MH: Physical / mental exhaustion really. I found after three months of being tired and not getting consistent sleep and stuff, I had a hard time concentrating. I read like 5 books in the first month and half we were in Europe, then started "Eyeless In Gaza" by Aldous Huxley and after a week or so, I just couldn't concentrate very well on it. Finally finished it on the flight back to America, after getting a few nights of actual rest. I missed my dog too. Of course you get homesick and stuff, and it sucks always missing family events, I barely see my little nephews and my niece which is kind of a bummer.
PG: When you're not on tour and not writing, what do you do for fun?
MH: I always laugh when I answer this kind of question, it ends up sounding like a fucking personal ad or something, haha! I like to cook, I read a lot, collect comics, records, different nerd stuff (I spent $50 on Marvel Super Heroes 1977 Slurpee cups on tour), writing comic book scripts, writing different kinds of songs and stuff, occasionally hiking, going to the gym a little to offset all the beer, sleep a lot... Pretty boring introverted stuff.
PG: It could be a personal ad, but you have a girlfriend now!
MH: Exactly, haha! And she's very impressed with my super-hero Slurpee cup collection! She's more of a Star Wars nerd, to be honest, but I love SW too so it works just fine.
PG: These are important foundations on which to build a relationship! Do you have any other relationship advice then?
MH: Uh... Don't cheat on people, or if you do, just dump them the next day. Also don't break up with someone and get back together - either stick together and work it out or just break up permanently. Also, ladies, every once in a while, just put on lingerie and serve your boyfriend food and beer while he sits on the couch and watches sports (not with his buddies there, of course). Better than any birthday present.
PG: What was the first plate of food you ordered when you returned stateside?
MH: Well, I flew to my mom's place in South Carolina first en route to a family reunion, so I started with a pulled pork sandwich with hot sauce, potato salad, homestyle mac and cheese and raisin almond coleslaw. And several Coronas.
PG: That sounds pretty good (and very Southern). Minus the raisins. What was your favorite show on the tour?
MH: The raisins were from a high-falutin' Whole Foods type place, really good cole slaw, actually. Southerners also get mad at me because I put cheese, mayo and onions on my pulled pork sandwich, haha! I think Obscene Extreme if I had to pick just one. The atmosphere there is just so cool and zany, and I saw sooooooo many old friends and shit that I hadn't seen in forever. It was just a great time. And we also played the after party where we did mostly cover songs and stuff, which was really fun.
PG: That does sound gross.
MH: See what I mean, southerner? If I'm in California I put Ortega Chile on my pulled pork. And that is not a sexual euphemism.
PG: No, I just hate mayo.
MH: Be careful in Europe, they're a mayo centric folk out there.
PG: I know! Ugh, that shit is so nasty. When it Rome though, you put that shit on your fries...
MH: I always have mayo on my fries. Even in US and A
PG: I loved seeing your tour pics on instagram- what was up with Bud and the chickens? And everyone passed out in weird places? PS. Mayo on fries is icky.
MH: Bud loves animals, and specifically chickens for some reason. He's always drawing chickens everywhere. We stayed at our friend Alex's pad and he has a great garden and little chicken coop out back. I passed out about 5 and woke up to piss a couple hours later, and Rob and Alex (who were still drinking, of course) had put chickens on top of Bud and then woke him up. He woke up really stoked about it. I had to run upstairs to get my phone and capture the moment. These are the times of our lives.
Bud and Rob are pretty much invincible party machines that somehow manage to get sloshed virtually every night, even when they know van call is at 8 in the morning and shit, so they end up passed out everywhere. In Europe the beer supply is much more plentiful than in the states - sometimes it's virtually limitless, which is a double edged sword for sure!
PG: That bit about the chickens is actually pretty adorable. What's the best beer you drank in EuroLand?
MH: Man there were so many... I got into Chouffe, which is a pretty popular Belgian beer, we went to the Budvar brewery in Budejovice, Czech Republic and took the tour, which was educational and fun, I drank a lot of Afflingen, Kozel, Pilsner Urquell, Leffe, tons of German beers whose names are too hard to remember... Sooo much good beer over there it's impossible to pick a favorite.
PG: I was pretty partial to Kotzstricher, but they make that in (former) east Germany...It was my favorite. It sounds like a good time, shows, fans, friends, unlimited booze...are there any downsides to being on the road that long?
MH: Physical / mental exhaustion really. I found after three months of being tired and not getting consistent sleep and stuff, I had a hard time concentrating. I read like 5 books in the first month and half we were in Europe, then started "Eyeless In Gaza" by Aldous Huxley and after a week or so, I just couldn't concentrate very well on it. Finally finished it on the flight back to America, after getting a few nights of actual rest. I missed my dog too. Of course you get homesick and stuff, and it sucks always missing family events, I barely see my little nephews and my niece which is kind of a bummer.
PG: When you're not on tour and not writing, what do you do for fun?
MH: I always laugh when I answer this kind of question, it ends up sounding like a fucking personal ad or something, haha! I like to cook, I read a lot, collect comics, records, different nerd stuff (I spent $50 on Marvel Super Heroes 1977 Slurpee cups on tour), writing comic book scripts, writing different kinds of songs and stuff, occasionally hiking, going to the gym a little to offset all the beer, sleep a lot... Pretty boring introverted stuff.
PG: It could be a personal ad, but you have a girlfriend now!
MH: Exactly, haha! And she's very impressed with my super-hero Slurpee cup collection! She's more of a Star Wars nerd, to be honest, but I love SW too so it works just fine.
PG: These are important foundations on which to build a relationship! Do you have any other relationship advice then?
MH: Uh... Don't cheat on people, or if you do, just dump them the next day. Also don't break up with someone and get back together - either stick together and work it out or just break up permanently. Also, ladies, every once in a while, just put on lingerie and serve your boyfriend food and beer while he sits on the couch and watches sports (not with his buddies there, of course). Better than any birthday present.
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