Tag Archives: andy laplegua

Combichrist “This is Where Death Begins”

              Combichrist put out a new album, “This is Where Death Begins” last month and it is worth listening to. The styling that Andy LaPlegua has gone for has changed quite a bit, instead of the pure industrial sound that many of us have listen too for over a decade, Combichrist has transformed into a metal industrial band sounding musically much like older Tool music, which is by the way fantastic. Now notice how I said musically, lyrically they sound like Avenge Sevenfold, which is not good. My expectation of his lyrics is like those of “Throat Full of Glass” which at the time was much different then their older work.

      At first lyrically it did not bother me, I just kept listening to it but as I was pulling weeds and listening to the album, I felt like something was off and as  cunt (Destroy Everything) was being yelled at me, and my dad snarled asking what kind of lyrics this band was singing,  I realized that either he has a new writing partner or  a different  inspiration either way the lyrics are not on the same level as the music. For instance the first track “We are the Plague” has a strong lack luster of giving a fuck about the lyrics. Not all of the songs have crappy lyrics, “Don’t Care About You” is fantastic musically and the lyrics are much betters then half of the album, but the lyrics do stand out on the album.

      Musically however this album is beyond on point. Despite the change in sound, there are the stable industrial sounds in the songs. In fact musically this is quite enjoyable and makes up for the lyrics for me. The drumming on this album from Joe Letz is impressive, in fact personally I think he is a fantastic drummer and I enjoy hearing the progression in his career. This album over all is a good album. This is a big change for everyone, and it is going to be a successful change for the band and it will be enjoyable to see these songs intermixed with older ones while they are on tour. 

Andy Laplegua and Sin Quirin interview

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This is the first interview I ever did and I'm reposting it because it was awesome enjoy.

 

Combichrist and The Great AmeriCon performed together at the Galaxy, Santa Ana on May 19,2011. This is a part of their Monsters tour, and was also the first show for The Great AmeriCon band. It was apparent that the whole band was very excited to be playing together for the first time. The band consists of lead singer Joshua Bradford (Revolting Cocks/Stayte), guitarist Sin Quirin (Ministry/Revolting Cocks/Lords Of Acid), guitarist Karma Cheema (American Head Charge, Otep). bassist Clayton Worbeck (Revolting Cocks/Stayte), and drummer Salvador Krk (Lords Of Acid). I was lucky enough to be able to talk with Sin, and he had a lot to say about the new band.

L11-Do you like that this is a super group?

Quirin-I like that we all get along and we click musically.

L11-What kind of bands influenced this one?

Quirin-The ones that we came from helped but we have heavier guitars and we have more electronic sounds. The review that we heard so far was a combination of Jane's Addictions and Ministry.

L11-Are you going to be touring?

Quirin-Yes, we're already booked to play five Sounds Wave Festival in February and March 2012.

L11-Are there any songs that you are excited for the audience to hear tonight?

Quirin-Yes it's all of our first show we are excited to introduce our music to everyone. For most of us this is our hometown.

L11-When does the album come out?

Quirin-The EP is out with 3 songs, but we are hoping to have a full length out by the end of this year.

L11-Do you like that you are playing in a smaller venue for your first show?

Quirin-Sure, I like them.

L11-What do you like to bring on tour?

Quirin-Lube and magnums.

When The Great AmeriCon came out on stage, they were ready to play. They said they have only played together a few times, but by their performance no one could have guessed that. Each band member thrived off of one another's energy. There wasn't a single dull moment while they were on stage—a stage like those seen at multilevelmodularstaging.co.uk. Although it would've been nice if they announced some of their songs titles either before or after they played the song, still made me want to go out and buy the EP. Every band member held their own and did amazing. Drummer Salvador Krk looked like he was in a sea of symbols. I was excited to see exactly how he would manage to play all those instruments. He pulled it off fantastically, how he did I'm not sure, but he played them all. Bradford, the lead singer, was all over the stage. At some point he even jumped off of the stage and allowed a member of the audience to strip off his shirt. After seeing that I now understand why Sin needs to bring lube and magnums with him on tour.

The whole band was very much into what they were doing. It didn't matter that they were not on stage for very long, they still put their all into it. I would've liked to have seen them perform more of their songs rather than spending time on the earlier acts. Especially the electronic band, all those guys had were computers, The Great AmeriCon played real instruments and were more into what they were doing. This made them by far more interesting then the first two bands that performed. I would've preferred that those spots were filled with more of their music instead. When their cd comes out, I will be sure to get a copy because it is sure to be worth listening to.

Earlier that day, I had also interviewed lead singer and founding member of Combichrist, Andy LaPlegua:

 

L11-Do you find yourself doing a lot of research for your music for songs such as God Bless and Brain By Pass?

 

Laplegua-Sometimes I know a lot about it and sometimes I think I know a lot about it. I

just have an opinion. Sometimes it's personal and sometimes a social observation.

What do you prefer to perform songs with a lot of vocals or songs without a lot of vocals?

Whatever I wrote. I really like what we have done lately, you always keep changing and it is one of the things that tie every album together. It's the red line of what I want to do and not what others expect me to do. And that's what ties it together it doesn't matter how different the music is the idea of the music is the same.

L11-When writing Master Control why did you use that line from Dazed and Confused? Of all the lines why that one?

Laplegua-I think it was because I was out of my mind on something and I thought it was the greatest line and I was probably sitting there starring at the dollar bill. That's the only answer I got to that. I'm completely straight edge now. It's a big difference.

L11-Where do you find the add in speeches for songs such as The Corpse Under My Bed?

Laplegua-I was studying was history for a long time. I got a lot of documentary's and old interviews with people that were deep. My friend and I were doing rounds in retirement homes and interviewing people that were in the second war. I have a lot of stuff from people who were in the war, not only my own recordings but from documentaries and stuff like that.

L11-What kind of music do you listen to?

Laplegua-I listen to a Billie Holiday, Fletch Henderson, I even like up to Sinatra and Johnny Cash.

L11-Do you listen to classic rock?

Laplegua-Yeah I listen to rockabilly and even 60's soul. I don't listen to much electronic music, I still like it, it's not that I don't like it, but I try to keep myself objective. It's away to stay original, to try and not be influenced too much. The only way to do that is to not listen; it's a self-conscience thing.

 

Although the stage at the Galaxy is small, it had been structured so that appeared much larger. The drummers and the keyboardist were placed on risers, which gave everyone on stage more room to move around. The setting of the stage was very dark and there was a lot of smoke. Lights were mainly used in reds, blues, greens, and had off setted the music; they also helped with the visual effects given on the band. In turn, the dark stage complimented the dark notes that are played in the songs. Combichrist wore a lot of black and white make-up, and with the help of the dark lights it enhanced certain parts of their appearance. It gave them a very theatrical look, which didn't take away from the set yet rather added depth; because it wasn't just about the music but instead about the entire act. There was no barrier to separate the band from the audience. Due to this it gave LaPlegua more room to interact with his audience, which he took full advantage of. He was very into playing the show for everyone and although he is a very well spoken and quiet individual in person, on stage he is just the opposite. I would describe his on stage persona to be fairly menacing and his alter ego comes out quite strongly. For the song Follow the Trail of Blood, singer Brendan Schiepatti came out to do his part of vocals. When he came out he was not announced at all, rather Schiepatti simply walked out on stage, grabbed the mic and started to sing. His vocals didn't seem to be as clear as they could've been, but I'm not sure if that was his fault or the mic's. Either way Schiepatti's appearance was appreciated, and it added to the performance, thus making the song just that much better.

Many of the songs played were those that fans knew. Electro head and Deathbed are some to mention, along with Body Beat. Although the crowd was screaming for This Shit Will Fuck You Up, it was never played for good reasons I'm sure. Personally. I'm happy that that particular song wasn't played. All of the songs chosen had heavy vocals, but it was nice because it showcased the talent that is possed. For the encore Sin came out and performed three songs. He fit perfectly on stage with the rest of the band. Sin also gave it his all, and his energy levels matched that of the bands. Drummer Trevor is one crazy ass motherfu**er when drums. His set up was done so that he is on a riser, but at a slant as well. This is done to enable him to have his regular drum set, then an extra one to the side of him. He manages both by playing straight on, then he throws one arm to the side to hit the other drum. How he does this is beyond me, especially because he is on key every time. For the encore he tore up his set, and then the stage crew quickly put it back together. However, one of his drums went toward "Rock of Love" star Lacy. She awkwardly avoided it, but it did look like she was about to slip up under her heels. Lacy had come out to sing for a few songs during the encore, but there was nothing too great to worth mentioning.

To sum it all up, it was an excellent show, and I'm grateful to have seen them in a smaller setting, rather then at the Forum the very next day. The intimacy of the show made their performance that noticeably bettter. Each band played their best for the audience, and it was an amazing show because of it. The Great AmeriCon was a great surprise. Hopefully when they put out their cd, both bands will go on tour together again, because it would definitely be a show worth seeing again.