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With the release of the fourth full length Worship The Bled which provided both good material for whiplash and lyrics to provoke thought it was time to find out a little more about Aussie thrashers Truth Corroded...
Please tell us about the beginning of the band and the reason behind the name Truth Corroded?
Truth Corroded reformed as a 5 piece thrash metal band in 2003. The band was previously a 4 piece and followed a different path.
The name was created by the founding member Mark Lennard - meaning truth is corroded through the powerful to serve its interests - be it through religious, political or economic interests.
When did you start writing songs for Worship The Bled and how long did it take to record?
Following the 2009 Thrash and Conquer tour - the end of 09, the start of 2010. The writing was completed by July, 2010.
Following pre-production, recording for the album started with Kevin Talley (Daath, Misery Index, Six feet Under, Dying Fetus, Chimaira) recording the drums over in the U.S. in August, 2010 and followed with guitars and vocals in Australia and mixing and mastering in Sweden by Jonas Kjellgren (Scar Symmetry) from September through October.
From what I've seen the new album has been very well received by critics and fans. Have you been happy or surprised at the reaction? Is there anything at all you would change about the album now?
The reception for the album has so far been very good - at a media level and from people who follow the band. Because the album was released in early 2011 in Australia and late this year in Europe and Japan it is still an album that is developing exposure, but so far its been positive and that has been inspiring.
It follows good media coverage and reaction for the bands last album Upon The Warlords Crawl (2008) The new album has taken the bands sound to another extreme since then - it is a heavier album and has also expanded our range of delivery - so to get a positive response to that growth is great.
Regards whether I or we would want to change anything? Well - nothing can ever be completely perfect - there will always be something, whether its a riff, structure, lead or vocal line that you look back on and think 'That could have been done different or better '. But overall, very pleased with how the album unfolds.
Do you write songs as band or is there a main songwriter?
Mark (rhythm guitar) and myself (Greg, bass guitar) write the music using a drum machine - the past two albums have been written that way - and then present the song in a basic form to the drummer to work on. After that we flesh out the ideas and get Jason (vocals) input. Lead guitar will then follow. With the new album I was more involved with the writing, where as previously Mark created the majority of the music. But both Mark and myself have been the main songwriters, both musically and lyrically.
The band has two new guitarists since earlier this year, and I am currently working with them on new material.
What does the album title mean and how does it tie in with the album cover?
The album title is an end point for the path of the major political, religious and economic beliefs that have shaped the modern industrial age. It has been worshipped bled and left great devastation, but will continue to be worshipped by the powerful until it bleeds all humanity.
Talking about the artwork, who did it and who came up with the concept?
I came up with the title and concept and then described the concept in a synopsis that was requested by the artist - Björn Goosses (Killustrations) - and he created the artwork which captured the title and concept perfectly.
Björn has created some incredible art for bands such as Dew Scented and Aborted. He understands where a band is going with its ideas, and captures the theme in some very powerful album covers.
What inspires you to write, both musically and lyrically?
The band has always aimed to deliver a social, but more so political comment with each successive release. We play a style of music that has always had a similar approach - consider Sepultura, Testament, Napalm Death, Kreator, Dark Angel - all major influences, and as such tapped into what we saw around us in our early years. It was a soundtrack to what was shaping our own political and social concerns, and lyrically was in step with our views.
Lyrically each album reflected the times, or had an associated message to the album title - Our Enemy Is The Weapon was conceptualized as a reaction to the nuclear threat, Upon The Warlords Crawl a reaction to the military industrial complex, and Worship The Bled to the beliefs that shaped the destructive path followed from the turn of the last century to the present.
Which bands were your main inspiration to start playing? Who are you listening to these days?
The bands - for me - were in particular Metallica and Sepultura.
But collectively for the founding members bands such as Slayer, Sepultura, Testament, Vio-Lence, Dark Angel, Kreator, Forbidden and Exhorder. We grew up on the late 80's / early 90's thrash sound. This was followed by early 90's death metal such as early Malevolent Creation, Obituary, Napalm Death, Entombed and Pestilence. These bands have all been an inspiration and influence.
More recently bands such as Neurosis, Gojira, Decapitated, Behemoth, Misery Index, Burnt By The Sun, Cult Of Luna and Lamb Of God.
What is the metal scene like down under at the moment?
The metal scene in Australia is not as strong as it was a few years ago - particularly when we were starting out.
It does not have the following of the hardcore derived scene which has seen some bands achieve great local and international success - such as Parkway Drive or I Killed The Prom Queen. This scene continues to grow strong, but the metal scene has not had the same level of support or growth.
Also - Australia is a big country with a small population. There are only 6 major cities, and it is expensive to tour between them. It also creates limitations in the music market, therefore enabling a particular trend sound to dominate.
For Australian metal bands it has been an uphill battle to receive overseas attention, and its distance from the dominant European and U.S. market also hinders its development. But there have been some metal bands making an impact such as Psycroptic and The Amenta - both awesome bands, and that is inspiring.
Will you do a video in support of the album? Whether you will shoot a vid or not, which song do you think would lend itself best to visualization?
We have a live video that was filmed during our April tour of Australia, Japan and Asia for the song Knives Of The Betrayed. It can be seen on www.metalinjection.com or YouTube.
This past weekend we went to Melbourne to film a clip for Pride Of Demise. The final clip will be available early next year.
What about playing live? Anything on the way?
2012 will see the band tour Europe around Feb / Mar - finalizing details at the moment. We also want to return to Europe mid-year as well as return to Japan later in the year.
Do you plan to record some live footage for YouTube or similar platforms?
There is a live clip of Knives Of The Betrayed available on YouTube now - check it out!
What next on your schedule? Anything you want to add?
We are getting started on writing the next album - we want to take our time with it and start recording mid to late next year. As mentioned above, there is tours being scheduled and we really look forward to getting over to Europe very soon.
Thank you for the interview and the support - please visit www.truthcorroded.com
Well, European fans should look out for these upcoming tour dates early next year! In the meantime check out the Youtube vids and of course the latest album Worship The Bled!
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