Music

Interview: Brendan ‘Slim’ MacDonald From Bury Your Dead

Published

13 years ago

August 3, 2011

With the release of Mosh N’ Roll yesterday, the sixth studio album from metalcore outfit Bury Your Dead, Bloody-Disgusting had the chance to catch up with guitarist Brendan ‘Slim’ MacDonald to discuss the new album and, of course, some good ole’ fashioned horror. If you haven’t had the chance to check out the album, I suggest you do so. Warning: you might want to kick some ass afterwards (and possibly during).

You can check out the interview after the jump along with European tour dates and the latest video for Slaughterhouse Five.

1) ‘Mosh N’ Roll’ is about to come out and is the band’s 6th studio album. How do you feel this album compares to the previous five? What can fans expect listening to it?

I think the people who have ever liked this band for what it brings to the table will appreciate this record. I feel like it’s just as much a BYD record as the previous 5 with a more straight forward back to basics vibe. I like to be able to say each time we put something out we out do ourselves by making it heavier and this is no exception.

2) With all the line-up changes over the years, including a few this year alone, how do you think that affected the sound and tone of ‘Mosh N’ Roll’?

Honestly as long as I am writing the songs, the music will always be heavy and groove oriented. As far as our singer situation the majority of people who are familiar with us know only Mat or Myke and with each of those dudes came a difference in sound, having said that this sounds like a record Mat would sing on but heavier.

3) You’ve got the rest of the summer pretty much full of touring dates. What are the plans after summer?

Go home and sort out our plans for the rest of the year , then keep on keeping on.

4) Bury Your Dead has often used darker themes, both visually and lyrically. What is it about that aesthetic that appeals/resonates with you?

BYD has always written songs musically and lyrically that have applied to our lives both past and present, the vast majority of have had a pretty colorful past both family and otherwise and that reflects in not just the songs but art as well.

5) Heavy music and horror have long had a strong connection, though it was never exactly clear why. What do you think is the reason for this?

I think they are just like music and tattoos, they are both taboo so the connection between them is a no brainier, people have always just found a correlation between the two through the music.

6) Does horror influence Bury Your Dead? If so, how?

I wouldn’t say influence really, I would say that the name would be what bridges the gap from music to horror. I mean all of us like horror movies and have in one way or another been involved in them one way or another in the past, but aside from everyone thinking we are a funeral home when I tell them our name that’s pretty much it.

European tour with For The Fallen Dream and Betrayal:

Aug 05 Wiesbaden, GER @ Schlachthof

Aug 06 Leisnig, GER @ Suck ‘N’ Summer

Aug 07 Essen, GER @ Brotherhood Fest

Aug 08 Berlin, GER @ Magnet

Aug 10 Wien, AUT @ Viper Room

Aug 11 Augsburg, GER @ Kantine

Aug 12 Comacchio, ITA @ Voodoo Club

Aug 13 Stuttgart, GER @ Juha West

Aug 14 Ieper, BEL @ Ieperfest

Aug 15 Birmingham, UK @ HMV Institute

Aug 16 Manchester, UK @ Academy 3

Aug 17 Glasgow, UK @ Ivory Blacks

Aug 18 London, UK @ Underworld

Aug 19 Trier, GER @ Exhaus

Aug 20 Kassel, GER @ Hot Spot

Check out more Bury Your Dead info:

JonathanBarkan

Managing editor/music guy/social media fella of Bloody-Disgusting

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Music

“He Walks By Night” – Listen to a Brand New John Carpenter Song NOW!

Published

2 weeks ago

April 9, 2024

John Squires

It’s a new day, and you’ve got new John Carpenter to listen to. John Carpenter, Daniel Davies and Cody Carpenter have released the new track He Walks By Night this morning, the second single off their upcoming album Lost Themes IV: Noir, out May 3 on Sacred Bones Records.

Lost Themes IV: Noir is the latest installment in a series that sees Carpenter releasing new music for John Carpenter movies that don’t actually exist. The first Lost Themes was released in 2015, followed by Lost Themes II in 2016 and Lost Themes III: Alive After Death in 2021.

Sacred Bones previews, “It’s been a decade since John Carpenter recorded the material that would become Lost Themes, his debut album of non-film music and the opening salvo in one of Hollywood’s great second acts. Those vibrant, synth-driven songs, made in collaboration with his son Cody Carpenter and godson Daniel Davies, kickstarted a musical renaissance for the pioneering composer and director. With Lost Themes IV: Noir, they’ve struck gold again, this time mining the rich history of the film noir genre for inspiration.

“Since the first Lost Themes, John has referred to these compositions as “soundtracks for the movies in your mind.” On the fourth installment in the series, those movies are noirs. Like the film genre they were influenced by, what makes these songs “noirish” is sometimes slippery and hard to define, and not merely reducible to a collection of tropes. The scores for the great American noir pictures were largely orchestral, while the Carpenters and Davies work off a sturdy synth-and-guitar backbone.

“The trio’s free-flowing chemistry means Lost Themes IV: Noir runs like a well-oiled machine—the 1951 Jaguar XK120 Roadster from Kiss Me Deadly, perhaps, or the 1958 Plymouth Fury from John’s own Christine. It’s a chemistry that’s helped power one of the most productive stretches of John’s creative life, and Noir proves that it’s nowhere near done yielding brilliant results.”

You can pre-save Lost Themes IV: Noir right now! And listen to the new track below…