I had the chance to catch up with Vogg of Decapitated during their stop in Toronto on the Summer Slaughter Festival Tour August 4th, 2010. We talked about everything from what they have been up this year to what direction he sees their music turning to now that they have new players.
Let’s start off by getting everyone up to date on what the band has been up to so far this year.Vogg: We’ve been doing really good since we decided to do Decapitated again. We started in February of this year so it’s just the beginning. It’s actually a short time that we’ve been playing together again. We’ve done so much in my opinion. We did a couple of tours, UK tours, we’ve been to Australia, New Zealand, we did a metal fest in Europe, we did a Behemoth tour and right now we are doing U.S. and Canada (Summer Slaughter) So yeah, since February, it’s been half a year and we’ve done a lot. And everybody is excited to be back.
In your opinion what separates Summer Slaughter from all of the other tours?
Vogg: It’s a festival tour. We have like ten bands on the road so it’s a lot of bands and lots of equipment. We play pretty late like about 10 which is good, 10 is alright but sometimes we play 11 or later but you know it’s a festival so it always looks like that with so many bands. It’s good though because there’s a lot of people and almost every day it’s sold out. Well this one today is also sold out.
Vogg: Yeah. So it’s just great to be here in my opinion. I’m so excited, every show is great. It’s a great tour!I would say 90% of the people here are here to see Decapitated again.
Vogg: Awwwe that would be cool.
Because this is such a big tour do you guys ever race to the next destination?
**because of the language barrier there was a bit of confusion as to what was being asked and I felt like an idiot asking after the words left my mouth**
Vogg: We usually are pretty early every show because the crew has to do the stage and stuff like that. Yesterday we had a problem with the other bus, Animals as Leaders and their tour manager couldn’t make it there on time. I don’t know actually because whenever I wake up we are already at the next place. *laughs*
With the announcement of a complete line up last November how do you feel the band is going to change with the new members?
Vogg: Well it’s just me from the original members so I think that for the new record especially I think it will sound different you know. I am the main composer of the band and I will stay with this so I make the songs, I make the main riffs and that will remind me of the old times in Decapitated. We have a new drummer and new bass player with us so for sure lots of things will change. Actually this is like a brand new band. We’ll see you know, I can’t say because for me this is a new situation. I think the new group sounds good, the last couple of shows we’ve done were really nice and we did a good job. Like last night in Montreal it was such an amazing show. We’ve started to be like a real band again.So everyone is getting closer and tighter.
Vogg: Yeah, yeah, yeah!
Are there any new songs in the works and what directions do you imagine your music will take in the future?
Vogg: I have a couple of new riffs, a couple of new ideas which I started doing right now during this tour with my laptop and stuff. I don’t know, I mean it might be a bit more slow. Slow riffs and a more atmospheric sound. But it will still be fast with a lot of double kick and blast beats.Well you can’t get rid of that stuff!
Vogg: Yeah, yeah, yeah of course.
With your lineup you have only one guitarist, why one instead of two and what is your take on the big debate between one guitar versus a band with two guitars? What are the pros and cons?
Vogg: For me one guitar is enough you know. I can do my job. These days you can go on stage and do a really good sound with just one guitar and it’s no problem. It’s about doing good arrangements for the songs. I mean Motorhead and Pantera had one guitar, Black Sabbath had one guitar so why do you need two?
What can you tell me about your instruments? Are you subject to brand loyalty or will you play whatever is available? When you go out and buy a guitar what is the first thing that you look for?
Vogg: I don’t know. Right now I have a Gibson Flying V and it sounds pretty sweet. It’s all about wood and what it sounds like when you take the guitar and you hear how it sounds. Sometimes cheap stuff sounds better then the expensive ones. It’s just about sound, I don’t know too much about the construction of the wood and stuff like that. It’s just about if it sounds good to me.
What’s your take on music downloading? Do you have a preference amongst digital, cd or maybe even vinyl?
Vogg: I prefer buying cds. It’s cool you know. There’s a lot of people taking music from the internet and stuff. They have this opportunity but they have to know that bands lose their money and they worked hard for this. That’s it. It’s just cool to have a cd and the product that came straight from the band. The people have to know that musicians spend a lot of time and go through a lot of stress. They put all their energy and time into a lot of stuff. Sometimes they spend half of their life inventing riffs. It’s just cool to have respect for the bands and buy the cd.Have you ever downloaded?
Vogg: No, I never download. Actually I don’t know how to do it.
*** everyone laughs***
Vogg: To be honest. Well I guess you don’t have to download if you can just go on MySpace or YouTube and listen.
Vogg: Yeah, right.
If you could go over your whole career and pin point the events that you are most proud of what would they be?
Vogg: I don’t know, hmm. It’s hard to say right now. There is a couple moments like that. It’s like you’re at some level, for example you go on tour with your favorite band and this moment is like everything for you and after this you’re looking for something else. For me we started and always dreamed of going with Vader on tour and now I don’t know. There were a lot of moments. Like our first UK tour with Lock Up there was a lot of people that we had met and had always dreamed of playing with and then we get drink beers with them and talk with them. Actually this whole career since the beginning of this band until now it was filled with such important moments for us. Almost every year we meet somebody.
The music industry is not an easy place to have a music career as you already know. Do you ever feel like packing it in because of the legalities of it all? And, how do you manage to maintain your sanity? And, how do you make those tough decisions like signing to a label and all that stuff?
Vogg: Those decisions all the time are very important. I just want to be honest for my band mates, my label and for all the people I work with. You have to know that your decision is right. That it’s not bullshit and that it’s not just looking for the money. You have to be honest and you have to really think a long time and not be an asshole.
I ask all of the bands this question: “If you could have been involved in the writing, recording or production of any album which would it be and why?
Vogg: I don’t know, I don’t know. Hmmmmmm. For production I would say the Black Album by Metallica to me that was a nice production. Morbid Angel – Domination.
Is there anyone that you would like to acknowledge for offering emotional support over the past couple of years?
Vogg: Sure, yes. I want to say thank you to all the people that still come to these metal shows. It’s amazing I can tell there are a lot of metal heads coming out for our tours and shows. I want to say thanks to all of those who helped us after the tragedy. All the people that helped support my family, Vitek’s family and Covan’s family with the recovering process. And thanks so much for supporting Decapitated, we are trying to do the best still that we could be doing.
I give you so much credit for getting the band started again because I know it couldn’t have been easy. I would also like to thank you so much for taking the time to sit with us.
Vogg: Thank you so much.
In your opinion what separates Summer Slaughter from all of the other tours?
Vogg: It’s a festival tour. We have like ten bands on the road so it’s a lot of bands and lots of equipment. We play pretty late like about 10 which is good, 10 is alright but sometimes we play 11 or later but you know it’s a festival so it always looks like that with so many bands. It’s good though because there’s a lot of people and almost every day it’s sold out. Well this one today is also sold out.
Vogg: Yeah. So it’s just great to be here in my opinion. I’m so excited, every show is great. It’s a great tour!I would say 90% of the people here are here to see Decapitated again.
Vogg: Awwwe that would be cool.
Because this is such a big tour do you guys ever race to the next destination?
**because of the language barrier there was a bit of confusion as to what was being asked and I felt like an idiot asking after the words left my mouth**
Vogg: We usually are pretty early every show because the crew has to do the stage and stuff like that. Yesterday we had a problem with the other bus, Animals as Leaders and their tour manager couldn’t make it there on time. I don’t know actually because whenever I wake up we are already at the next place. *laughs*
With the announcement of a complete line up last November how do you feel the band is going to change with the new members?
Vogg: Well it’s just me from the original members so I think that for the new record especially I think it will sound different you know. I am the main composer of the band and I will stay with this so I make the songs, I make the main riffs and that will remind me of the old times in Decapitated. We have a new drummer and new bass player with us so for sure lots of things will change. Actually this is like a brand new band. We’ll see you know, I can’t say because for me this is a new situation. I think the new group sounds good, the last couple of shows we’ve done were really nice and we did a good job. Like last night in Montreal it was such an amazing show. We’ve started to be like a real band again.So everyone is getting closer and tighter.
Vogg: Yeah, yeah, yeah!
Are there any new songs in the works and what directions do you imagine your music will take in the future?
Vogg: I have a couple of new riffs, a couple of new ideas which I started doing right now during this tour with my laptop and stuff. I don’t know, I mean it might be a bit more slow. Slow riffs and a more atmospheric sound. But it will still be fast with a lot of double kick and blast beats.Well you can’t get rid of that stuff!
Vogg: Yeah, yeah, yeah of course.
With your lineup you have only one guitarist, why one instead of two and what is your take on the big debate between one guitar versus a band with two guitars? What are the pros and cons?
Vogg: For me one guitar is enough you know. I can do my job. These days you can go on stage and do a really good sound with just one guitar and it’s no problem. It’s about doing good arrangements for the songs. I mean Motorhead and Pantera had one guitar, Black Sabbath had one guitar so why do you need two?
What can you tell me about your instruments? Are you subject to brand loyalty or will you play whatever is available? When you go out and buy a guitar what is the first thing that you look for?
Vogg: I don’t know. Right now I have a Gibson Flying V and it sounds pretty sweet. It’s all about wood and what it sounds like when you take the guitar and you hear how it sounds. Sometimes cheap stuff sounds better then the expensive ones. It’s just about sound, I don’t know too much about the construction of the wood and stuff like that. It’s just about if it sounds good to me.
What’s your take on music downloading? Do you have a preference amongst digital, cd or maybe even vinyl?
Vogg: I prefer buying cds. It’s cool you know. There’s a lot of people taking music from the internet and stuff. They have this opportunity but they have to know that bands lose their money and they worked hard for this. That’s it. It’s just cool to have a cd and the product that came straight from the band. The people have to know that musicians spend a lot of time and go through a lot of stress. They put all their energy and time into a lot of stuff. Sometimes they spend half of their life inventing riffs. It’s just cool to have respect for the bands and buy the cd.Have you ever downloaded?
Vogg: No, I never download. Actually I don’t know how to do it.
*** everyone laughs***
Vogg: To be honest. Well I guess you don’t have to download if you can just go on MySpace or YouTube and listen.
Vogg: Yeah, right.
If you could go over your whole career and pin point the events that you are most proud of what would they be?
Vogg: I don’t know, hmm. It’s hard to say right now. There is a couple moments like that. It’s like you’re at some level, for example you go on tour with your favorite band and this moment is like everything for you and after this you’re looking for something else. For me we started and always dreamed of going with Vader on tour and now I don’t know. There were a lot of moments. Like our first UK tour with Lock Up there was a lot of people that we had met and had always dreamed of playing with and then we get drink beers with them and talk with them. Actually this whole career since the beginning of this band until now it was filled with such important moments for us. Almost every year we meet somebody.
The music industry is not an easy place to have a music career as you already know. Do you ever feel like packing it in because of the legalities of it all? And, how do you manage to maintain your sanity? And, how do you make those tough decisions like signing to a label and all that stuff?
Vogg: Those decisions all the time are very important. I just want to be honest for my band mates, my label and for all the people I work with. You have to know that your decision is right. That it’s not bullshit and that it’s not just looking for the money. You have to be honest and you have to really think a long time and not be an asshole.
I ask all of the bands this question: “If you could have been involved in the writing, recording or production of any album which would it be and why?
Vogg: I don’t know, I don’t know. Hmmmmmm. For production I would say the Black Album by Metallica to me that was a nice production. Morbid Angel – Domination.
Is there anyone that you would like to acknowledge for offering emotional support over the past couple of years?
Vogg: Sure, yes. I want to say thank you to all the people that still come to these metal shows. It’s amazing I can tell there are a lot of metal heads coming out for our tours and shows. I want to say thanks to all of those who helped us after the tragedy. All the people that helped support my family, Vitek’s family and Covan’s family with the recovering process. And thanks so much for supporting Decapitated, we are trying to do the best still that we could be doing.
I give you so much credit for getting the band started again because I know it couldn’t have been easy. I would also like to thank you so much for taking the time to sit with us.
Vogg: Thank you so much.
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