- Hello, Bob! Wargasm was formed in 1986, but before that it was Overkill and Maniac. So, why did you have to change the name and how did you come up with Wargasm? How did you meet Spillberg brothers? - I met Rich and Barry in school, we all went to the same high school. We changed from Maniac to Wargasm because we were offered a deal with Combat Records to be part of their 'Boot Camp EP' series (which we passed on), and they told us there were several Maniacs across the country. Rich and Barry's sister found the word in a thesaurus, as a synonym for the word 'attack'. - Your first demo, "Satan Stole My Lunch Money", was released the same year. Tell us a bit about this tape, how many copies did you have? Where did you record it? And where does this title come from? - We made as many copies as we needed. It was recorded at Normandy Sound in Rhode Island. We were the first metal band to record there; after that, lots of NY bands recorded there as well, like the Cro-mags, Leeway, & Ludichrist. The title was just something humorous to contrast with the heavy music. - The debut full-length, "Why Play Around" was released in 1988. Say, what kind of memories do you have regarding this album? What associations come first? - Well, the release of the album was delayed 8 months because our label lost it's deal with its distributor. But when it finally came out it did very well. The label refused to support us in any way, so we started fighting to get out of our contract. - Tell us about the recordings, how did it go? Was it your first time working in a professional studio? How long did it take you to complete all works? - It was exciting, learning how 'real' records are made. We had recorded the demo here, and that became half of the 'Why Play Around?' album, then we recorded the other half there to complete the album. I don't remember how long it took, because the 2 sets of sessions were months apart. - After the release, how often did you play live? Did you have any following tour? Is there any memorable gig for you from the early days? What can you say about the one you played with Morbid Angel, Obituary and Pestilence? - We played in or around Boston a few times a month. We had been the go-to opening band when bigger artists came through the area, we had opened for Megadeth, Slayer, Metal Church, Fates Warning, but after the album came out, we were headliners in our area. The most memorable show from the early days was a run of 3 shows we played with Manowar, Nuclear Assault, and Hades. The night in Boston was insane, as it was our 'hometown'. Manowar were apparently threatened by our popularity and their road crew sabotaged the PA and the lights to try to disrupt our set after they saw the response we were getting. The show with Morbid Angel was a festival we played while on tour of Europe with Biohazard; it was mostly Death Metal bands, but it was still great and we had a lot of fun. - Then there was a 5-years gap, during which you released 3 demo tapes. Why did it take you so long to release another album? Were you looking for a proper label support or was it something else? - We were fighting to get off our label, and until we were free we could not sign with another. Also the label did not ask us for a 2nd record, but would not let us go. It was a few years of Hell. - In 1993 you finally released the following album, "Ugly". How could you compare this album to the previous one? Five years can change a lot, so what have changed in you with this release? Did you want to say something different with this CD? - 'Ugly' is more complex and more 'Thrash'. It's real angry. We didn't plan for it to be any certain way, it's just a collection of the songs we wrote while we were fighting with our label. We all had grown as musicians and as songwriters, over 5 years. - "Fireball" release was pretty interesting. How could you comment on the choice of covering Deep Purple? And what do you remember about those radio sessions? How did you get invited? What year was it? - We all loved Deep Purple and that was a song we covered live many times. The radio show was 1993? 94? We were invited to the station to do a live broadcast, and they let us keep the tapes. It was very uncomfortable playing a set wearing headphones, and not having a live audience. Not the same as really playing 'live'. - In 1995 you accomplished your last album, "Suicide Notes". First of all, why did you part your ways with Massacre Records and how did you get the deal with Transmission Records? Did you consider any other offers? - The album was supposed to be called 'What Are You Afraid Of?' and was supposed to come out on Massacre, but after we finished a rough mix of the record, we found out our recording budget was cut, our promotional budget was cut, and there would be no tour support. I decided to leave the band. Massacre did not want to put the record out if we were breaking up, but allowed us to find a label who was willing to release it. Transmission paid for us to mix it, and they put it out. But we changed the title before we gave it to them. - I think this is your grooviest and darkest album. What were your intentions with it? What can you say about the lyrics? - The lyrics are just about how awful the world is! But after leaving the band many people have said the lyrics seem to be about my unhappiness with the band's situation. Maybe that was coming through unconsciously? The 'groove' is from touring with Biohazard, I guess. We are very proud of that album, we wrote and recorded it in only 6 weeks. It's also the one that the fewest people have heard, unfortunately. - The sound is very solid, can you tell a bit about the recording sessions? While the recordings, did you already know that it will be your last work together? Can you say that this atmosphere reflected somehow in the record itself? - We had just gotten back from a European tour with Tankard and learned that Massacre wanted another album, in 6-8 weeks. We had nothing written, so we worked hard, writing, demoing, rehearsing and finally entered the studio and recorded it all. We had no idea it would be the last record, things were going well, we were considering re-locating to Germany, as we did very well there. - In 2004 you did a reunion show, which can be found on a self-published DVD. How did it happen? Who came up with that idea? How did you choose the songs for the set-list? - We did a reunion show for a charity called Rawkstars, and decided to record it. We chose the songs that got the best responses when we played them years before. - Recently, you've got some cool CDs and LPs reissues, what can you say about those editions? How do you like their look and sound? Are they still available from you? - We started re-issuing our albums in 2014, and will continue until everything is back out again. So far we have released 'Why Play Around?' and 'Ugly'. We are doing CD and vinyl for each release, and 'WPA?' is also coming on cassette. I think they look and sound amazing, we are working with the label, Dark Symphonies, and we are supplying pictures, bonus tracks, show flyers and memorabilia for the packaging. Each release sounds better and has better packaging and booklets than the original CDs. They are available here: https://wargasmboston.bandcamp.com/ - Tell us about your current project, Robot Monster Army. Are you working on the new material? - Robot Monster Army is a recording project I started so I could record with friends whenever time allows. I wrote 50 songs in about 6 months and we record whenever we can. So far we've done 2 full albums and a bunch of 'singles'. I only have 2 songs left to record, and they will probably be done this year. All the music is available for FREE here - Thank you for this interview, Bob! Would you like to add anything else? - We also have a Facebook page where anyone can get in touch for any reason. Cheers! |