KOFFIN INTERVIEW WITH BILL YURKIEWICZ OF EXIT 13/RELAPSE RECORDS - by JAY SMITH Over the past number of years, Bill Yurkiewicz is one who has had a phenomenal influence on the underground hard music scene. As lead singer for grindcore-jazz-weirdness outfit, Exit 13, composer of harsh electronic noise project NANAMAX, as well as prez for one of the most aspiring metal labels, RELAPSE Records, ol' Bill's contributions have made many a metal fan quite happy. Here in this exclusive interview, the KOFFIN interrogates William J. Yurkiewicz Jr. about Exit 13, Nanamax, Relapse and Release Records, and his new project Never Healed. ON EXIT 13... Q: So what's the word on the official Exit 13 lineup? For example.. when last I heard, Dan Lilker was out.. A: The official word on the EXIT-13 line-up is that it is an ever-evolving ensemble, and no one is ever "out" or "in", so to speak. Dan has helped us before and he may help us in the future. The lastest EXIT-13 material features Steve O'D on guitar, Terry Sherry on bass, Dave Witte on drums and I'm doing the vocals/lyrics as usual. Future EXIT-13 recordings MAY feature Jimmy Plotkin on guitar, Scott Hull on guitar, Rich Hoak on drums, Robert Williams on drums...nothing is ruled in or out. Expect the unexpected. Q: Besides 7" releases and release rumours, it's been pretty quiet from the Exit 13 camp lately. The Exit 13/Hemdale one was put out a while back - it rocked - what else can we expect? "Didadic Grind" anytime soon? A: We hae a split 7" EP with SOILENT GREEN coming out this fall on Relapse. A split picture disc 7" EP with BONGZILLA coming out on the Deaf American/Rhetoric hemp series, a split 7" EP with AGATHOCLES coming out on Deaf American, a slpit live LP with CLOTTED SYMETTRIC SEXUAL ORGAN on Relapse with crazy coverart by Wes Benscoter, a split 7" EP with 30's actress Mae West on Slap a Ham, a lock groove on the upcoming RRR 500 lock groove LP coming this winter and 2 new shirt designs through Relapse. There is no word on when/if we will record Didactic Grind... Q: It would be silly to interview Bill Yurkiewicz of Exit 13, and not give some mention to the ground breaking release of "Smoking Songs" (a collection of renditions of blues/jazz tunes from the 1920/30's, dealing with marijuana culture) Am I right in assuming that all fans of Exit 13 completely embraced the idea of you guys doing this sort of album? How much has the attention from releasing this album, expanded your fan base? A: I have no idea if fans completely embrace it, all I care about is making the music I like. If they dig it, cool. If not, oh well, that's not my problem. I don't make EXIT-13 music to make money or friens, I do it to release creativity. We always listened to Viper Mad Blues and Reefer Songs before we would jam back in 1990-91 and always joked about doing a cover album of these cool songs. Dan and Rich Hoak said they wanted to be a part of it and we just booked 6 days of studio time and did it. Some people say we should be commended for taking chances and pushing the envelope, others say we are stoned fools who can't even play grind let alone 30's jazz. You decide. Q: In "Ethos Musick"'s title track you write - "There are so many fucking problems / The human species seems insane / what kind of persuasion is needed to affect beneficial change? / ethos musick!" - Besides "ethos musick", what KIND of persuasion is needed? More involvement from people in grassroots organizations such as EarthFirst!, NORML, and the like? Do you think you're getting the message through to people? A: No. Why should I care about people who misinterpret my thoughts and/or actions. Marijuana makes me mellow and creative. Maybe it does not do that for others...perhaps it makes them lazy and apathetic. I does not do that for me. To further answer your previous question, ALL kinds of persuation are needed from more information to direct action. Q: Exit 13 has a very vocal agenda regarding marijuana. Are you ever afraid that Exit 13 might attain the sort of ignorant bullshit rep that bands like Cypress Hill get where people ignore the message and the music and just dismiss the band as some sort of 'druggie pot smoking band' ? A: No. But I makes me feel better to sing about topic which bother or excite me rather that follow the gore/satan cliches. Q: How would you say has Exit 13 progressed over the years? Is Exit 13 more than just a side project now? How far are you planning to go with Exit 13? A: We used to be much more of a band. During October 1989 to the fall of 1990, we practiced 3 times a week, hung out together and generally acted like a band. After I was doing Relapse for a while, say around Fall 1992, it bagan to really take a back seat to my involvement in the label. We palyed our last live show during June 1993 - the Nuclear Festival with MACABRE, ST. VITUS, DECEASED, ANAL CUNT, BRUTAL TRUTH, CANDIRU, DEAD WORLD. After that point the band nearly ceased to exist. The smoking songs sessions came and we did some grind for Craig at Visceral Prod. and for a split EP with MULTIPLEX, but all the music for Didactic Grind (about 65 minutes) has only been roughly demoed. No plans exist for the recording. I've been much more into doing NAMANAX and working for all the bands on Relapse and Release. EXIT-13 is now ONLY a studio project. The band may end and I will continue making grindcore as NEVER HEALED. ON RELAPSE/RELEASE... Q: Few months ago, received in the mail, my own copy of RESOUND - kudos on the fine job. To this date, I don't remember any metal label, doing anything of the sort - combining it's usual catalog, with a mix of interesting interviews and lowdowns on specific bands on the label. What has the reception been towards RESOUND and what do you plan to do with it? A: Praise and inspiration to plaigerise. Look at the Victory catalog - where do you think they got the idea?!?! I think Resound shows that we are really into the music for the sake of the music and not just to make money. If we were only about cash, would we spend our time on such anti-commercial artists as BRIGHTER DEATH NOW, MASONNA or even NAMANAX??? As far as what we will do, wait and see. If i told you know it would only give the followers more time to copy us. Q: As a metal fan myself, over the past years, this tired cliche has reared it's ugly head again and again. "Metal is dead". As prez of one of the most virile underground metal labels, what is your opinion on this whole ordeal? Has metal always truly been underground? Should A&R stay away from metal and focus on dance or Spice Girls, or whatever crap they're trying to push on us this week? Will there always be a market for metal? A: Obviously, anyone who thinks metal is dead was either not really into it to begin with or has no clue what is goint on in the underground scene circa 1997. There will always be a market for metal. The impotent dullard claiming metal is dead were the ones who wanted to turn metal into the next alternative for the purposes of filling their coffers. Metal is supposed to be underground, offensive, rebellious, cutting edge, misunderstood, sweaty, heavy, an escape. etc. As has always been the policy of Relapse, we will continue to release music that we like. Period. Fuck anyone and everyone who thinks Relapse should do otherwise. Q: A great part about the Relapse label is it's alter ego, the electronic/ambient/industrial side, RELEASE Records. Are you surprised at all with the success that RELEASE has had? What project(s) have brough RELEASE the most success? What's the status of the ever-so-cool-looking triple CD (!!!) set compilation of "Release Your Mind Volume II"? A: No. I knwe if were put as much time and effort into Release as we did with Relapse, we would be successful. Matt and I live for the artists we have assembled on Release and things just keep getting better. During 1998 Release will issue records from TRIBES OF NEUROT/WALKING TIME BOMBS, NAMANAX, SOLARUS, EMIL BEAULIEAU, JAPANESE TORTURE COMEDY HOUR, MEGAPTERA, BRUME, RAPOON and MACRONYMPHA, as well as a few other surprises. Release Your Mind volume 2 will be available during the last week of October. You can get copies through Relapse 2 weeks earlier. Q: Not to sound confrontational in any way - but in Exit 13's "Black Metal Weakeners", you attack the black metal scene for various reasons... but how do you justify that, considering the label you operate, distributes quite a bit of the same artists you probably had in mind when composing that track? A: I'd much rather you were confrontational! I try to differentiate between being co-owner of Relapse and being the vocalist for EXIT-13. There are 20+ employees here at Relapse and many people LOVE black metal. Relapse, as well as being a record label, is a distributor of music, not the battleground for my personal tastes. We sign bands to Relapse based on my personal tastes, but we distribute almost all metal that is being issued in the worldwide underground scene. As a vocalist, I stand behind my criticisms of black metal. I think it is childish, simplistic, trendy and driven by image. I prefer music based on anger, conviction, NAPALM DEATH-From Enslavement to Obliteration worship, socio-political considerations, old CARCASS worship, etc. I do not hate black metal so much that I want to deprive American fans from the oppertunity to purchase music that up until a couple of months ago, few people wanted to distribute. It would be insane for any Relapse customer to assume that Matt or I should love every single product we distribute through Relapse. We strive to provide the widest selection of metal, grind, industrial, noise, ambient, experimental, progressive and hard rock that we can assemble. We have quite varied and evolving tastes and would like to inspire that in our clientele. In closing, to me VENOM is the only true black metal band and ROCK harder than any trend-dazed, corpse-painted weakener from Sweden or Norway. VENOM knew how to boogie and how to write a catchy tune. Thay had a sense of humor. They are GODS! Q: Is there any up and coming RELAPSE/RELEASE new signings that you'd like to plug for metalheads to check out? A: We have recently signed ultimate rock bands TODAY IS THE DAY and UNSANE. The new material from both bands just kills! I'm really proud to have these two bands on the label!!! We will be working with the Swedish grindcore band NASUM. We will be doing full albums with BENUMB, AGORAPHOBIC NOSEBLEED, SOILENT GREEN, FLESH PARADE and BONGZILLA. Watch for 7" EP's from some of those bands plus SPAZZ, LOCUST and a BRUTAL TRUTH/VIOLENT SOCIETY ep. ON NANAMAX: Q: You've recently put together a new release under the NANAMAX moniker called "Audiotronic"? Would you care to shed some light on the NANAMAX project and this new release and what it's about? A: It was the first time i did NAMANAX in a real studio. I got Jim Plotkin to help me bacause he is a genius in the studio. It just came together, was improvised and to me represents a logical progression for NAMANAX. I quickly grew tired of just doing straight forward harsh noise. I wanted to give it depth and personality. When I recorded Audiotronic, I also completed 4 more full records of music very similiar. The follow-up Monstrous will be released by Release during March 1998. Q: I'll be honest - I've tried to get into the power electronics genre, it intrigues me -but I always come away with the impression that it's 'just noise'. I just don't get it. Would you care to give a summarization, if possible of the power electronics genre and what it's all about, and your personal reasons for your involvement in the scene? A: There is nothing to "get", its all about the feelings the sound produces in your mind! There are certain experimental bands who make music that just blows your mind when you get into their vibe...bands like NURSE WITH WOUND, COIL, MERZBOW, WHITEHOUSE, VIDNA OBMANA, CURRENT 93, DANIEL MENCHE, DEUTSCH NEPAL, GOBLIN, O YUKI CONJUGATE, ATRAX MORGUE, BRUME etc. All these artists have something truely brillant about their work, something fans of extreme metal can and should experience. I do NAMANAX to express creativity inspired by this scene and especially the artists listed above. Try listening to noise with the thought of the artist making a sculpture with sound. Candles and big fatties helped me "get it!" LOOSE ENDS.... Q: We've talked previously about this, but I'm sure there's some fans out there wondering what I was - What's the story with SOLARUS and/or PURGE? Are they the same? Is Solarus' "Empty Nature" the Purge release we've been waiting for? Who is SOLARUS? A: SOLARUS was PURGE, was SUNYATA and was CANDIRU. So many things evolved during the decay of CANDIRU through the final recording of what became SLOARUS' Empty Nature and Crystalized CD's that I could never explainv the whole process briefly. Steve O'D layed down guitar but it did not flow freely enough around the beats so Kipp and I asked Jimmy to come down to jam and produce the shindig. SOLARUS evolved in the studio. For all who care, SOLARUS is the brainchild of bassist/programmer lyricist Kipp Johnson. Q: I've heard about a new band you've put together - NEVER HEALED. Care to give us the lowdown on who/ what/when/where/why/how? A: Grindcore mixed with jazz, blues and rock. Whenever I get my ass in gear. First, rehersals with Scott Hull and Rich Hoak in my garage studio then into a 24 track studio. To rock! Bass, guitar, drums and vocals - old style grind with more weird parts than EXIT-13 ever had!!! Thanks for the interview, man, wish you good luck in all your upcoming projects. Thanks Jay, for the support.