NEW DIRECTION FOR EVIL BLIZZARD’S LATEST ALBUM? “THE BAND HAS CHANGED”
PRESTON’S unholiest sons EVIL BLIZZARD return with their most furious, compelling and diverse album to date – ‘Rotting In The Belly Of The Whale’ – released via their own Crackedankles label.
Evil Blizzard have been confusing people for over a decade, infamous for their masked multi bass guitar assault, their gigs have become synonymous with chaos and celebration in equal measure, while managing to avoid any pigeonhole with their mixture of psych, metal, punk, and krautrock, building a loyal following across Europe. To date, they have played alongside bands as diverse as Hawkwind, Killing Joke, Public Image Ltd, Embrace and Space.
The new album, their fifth, was written during, and post lockdown. “The band has changed,” said guitarist, ‘Filthydirty.’
“One of our four bassists, Kav, left and we were joined by ‘Fleshcrawl’ (aka Mr. Dibs, Hawkwind’s vocalist and bassist for 12 years). Kav was inimitable as a musician, so it never crossed our minds to try and replace him, so when Fleshcrawl scurried in, he brought a whole new range of sounds and toys to the sandpit. Also, we’d run out of sonic space to play with, having just the basses, and everything had got a bit stale, so I switched to lead guitar which brought a whole new range of possibilities.”
‘Rotting In The Belly Of The Whale’ is more representational of the band’s record collections, retaining the ‘Sabbath meets PiL meets Killing Joke’ sound found on their earlier albums, but now encompassing dub, goth and electronica in its eight tracks, with clear nods towards Sonic Youth, Jane’s Addiction, Leftfield and The Mission.
“The album took us completely by surprise,” adds Filthydirty. “We normally go in, press ‘record,’ make a racket and then maybe do a couple of overdubs. With this one we deliberately used a studio that uses ‘Logic’ to record. We played to a click track, so all parts were the same speed, and went in and recorded for three days. Then I took these ‘loose jams’ home and rearranged the structures to something more formulated than a jam – which is fine, but I find this boring and self-indulgent. And yes, I mean our previous albums that delved into this territory at times.
“We then went back in the studio and re-recorded certain parts. We experimented more with synths and keyboards, which reflects our own tastes a bit more than the old ‘Sabbath meets Killing Joke’ vibe we’ve always had.
“But ‘Blizzard have always been an organic band – we sound a certain way when we all get together – and I wanted to keep that vibe even though it was more considered this time around.
“When we heard it all back, because the recording procedure was very to-and-fro between me and Jamie the engineer, we were pretty impressed, and so when the reviews started coming in and they were all gushing, we knew we’d got it right.
“We only ever do things for our own amusement, and we were really bored of doing the same thing again and again, so we didn’t know what to expect but just wanted a different recording technique to our previous albums.
“And next? Who knows? We almost split before lockdown, we’d got bored, but as a band we’re friends more than band mates, most of us have known each other for 35 years as mates. So, when we stopped gigging for two years we discussed if we should even continue, but the new album, and how well it is being received, has given us a new lease of life.
“We’re treating the whole thing as fun. The last album we toured, and it was a slog. We all have full time jobs, kids, or dependants and so we have no intention to go back to that touring thing again. Less gigs but in better places.
“The follow up album? Don’t hold your breath. This one technically took five years but actually took six months to write and record, so you never know!”
Featuring cover designed by Nick Blinko, the artist and member of the cult UK art-punk band Rudimentary Peni, ‘Rotting In The Belly Of The Whale’ is released in gatefold sleeve on limited edition pink vinyl, regular black vinyl, and compact disc.
