U.S.A.DARKNESS WEBZINE
Tell the readers about VEHEMENCE, like your style and sound.
The style of Vehemence consists of a variety of music we have listened to that influenced us. The bands
we used to listen to when we first started were bands like Carcass, Gorefest, At The Gates, Arch Enemy,
Suffocation. We blend our riffs together in a way that the vocals are used in a guttural and midrange
way. The style of guitars sounds we use in Vehemence are midrange heavy riffs to fast brutal riffs. The
solos we use are harmonized, some fast and some slow, some trade offs. The drums have always been
blasting and technical. Our bass player also does vocals which are high screams. The lyrics take a great
part in this band as well that puts the reader in the characters shoes to feel the intensity of the
stories being told.
What kind of stories? Religious? Political?
The stories for our new album (God Was Created) are a collection of stories written all by our singer
Nathan Gearhart. He would be the best person to answer this but the lyrics for the album. All lyrics are very
descriptive that can set you in a scenario.
Did you play in other bands before now?
The bands and projects that I have played with were two bands. Brides of Christ was my first band which
was located here in Phoenix, Arizona. The style we played required me to use a 7 string tuned to A. The
music we played was compared to Meshuggah, King Crimson, and Cynic. I was 16 at the time and I was
upgrading my skill working with the other Guitarist K.C. Bradham. The band didnt want to sign to a label
that was huge which is not what I wanted. I wanted something bigger than only playing in the United
States. The second band that I played for is Deprecated from San Diego, a project put on lay away till
further notice. Derek Boyer (Bass) a great friend of mind liked what I had to offer to the band and
recruited me in to Deprecated camp where I left Arizona for a while to live with Derek and Torrey (Drums).
Being the only guitar player was hard due to their prior material still hanging around which I learned
first. We completed 9 songs for an album we wanted to release but never got released due to member line up
changes and the singer leaving our band. The time I spent there upgraded my skill to a new extreme level
and I will always be glad to work with them again.
So, you are scheduled to release something on Metal Blade Records, correct?
Yes, we start recording the afternoon of January 9th, 2002 a 10 song, 60 min album for Metal Blade
Records. The album will be called God Was Created and will be found worldwide. We also have a compilation
that Vehemence will be in called Uncorrupted Steel Released in Late February by Metal Blade Records. It
will include bands such as Cannibal Corpse, The Crown, God Dethroned, and new signings such as Beyond the
Embrace, Callenish Circle, and Cattle Decapitation. Our 6 minute song called (Fantasy From Pain) released
will be a Pre-Production Metal Blade Demo we made in August 2001 for God Was Created.
How do you feel about the underground scene in general at the present?
I think the underground in the United States is different between scenes in other countries in a big way.
In Europe, Extreme Metal seems to qualify as a topic. While in America it is not cared for. For example,
if you were to see a list of music styles on public American national television, Death Metal, Melodic
Metal, Grind, or Black Metal wouldnt be on there. This is why some Americans travel to Metal Fests
across the world to be with the surroundings that count in their daily metal life. I would say that the
underground scene here reflects more Death Metal and is thirsty for more spectacular bands from other
nations. What we dont know wont hurt us. Tape trading is not as big anymore compared to the media we
have out now such as CD-RS and the usage of the internet. What impresses me is that more people are
getting involved with the internet and learning how to use machines as their source of music, news, and
friendships. The early 90s I respect because it was hard to promote your band without emails, webzines,
cd-rs that hold 30 songs. The underground is still here, but used in a different way, taught in a
different way, played in a different way. Underground bands are now noticed and can be heard, it is just
up to the Metal Listener to listen to their surroundings such as friends, strangers, and guesses to what
they are buying or downloading. Radio stations and Zines play a part in the underground that are all
respectable sources to gain Metal knowledge from. Having shows in living rooms, rehearsal rooms, back
yards is as underground as you can get and is what I like about this scene. There was a time were my
friend and I , threw a show for a tour called Blood Letting North America 1. Since the club couldnt book
any more bands for the week we ended up doing it at our Artist Evil Daves band rehearsal room. It
couldnt get more underground than that having a small crowded room packed with crazy metal listeners. We
did charge at the door though so it wasnt completely free, but respectable to pay for the trouble.
Ive heard that there are quite a few shows every year in AZ, is that true?
Fortunately it seems the scene in Arizona is getting bigger and better. There is a lot of old school
listeners here that attended tours in the early 90s that like Suffocation, Carcass, Exhorder, Sinister,
Cynic, Ripping Corpse, Resurrection, Autopsy, Broken Hope, Immolation. The standards were set and the
mind frames are all here to accept the new kind of bands that are breaking through to this new generation
of bands. The old bands are becoming remembered and the new are the products of what was. It shouldnt
seem discouraging but delighting to have new music to listen to. In 1997 the scene was larger which had
more than 500 or more a metal show. It varies in every city and what is better about the shows here is
that you can actually meet the bands with out pushing your way through a crowd of crazed fans. Clubs and
bands are less tolerant to let you film their shows here as well. Bands are now learning that Tempe, Mesa,
and Phoenix are places to stop by on every tour that makes fans more acceptable to joining the metal
scene. California is only 7 hours away and many people from Arizona like to see shows there as well
simply because of the large community of Metal Heads there. I feel that are scene will only grow stronger
if clubs and promoters are acceptable to the high costs of bringing some of these large tours over.
Anyway, listen, thanks for your time and support of my zine. I wish you much success on your album and Ill look forward to seeing you guys live out here in Los Angeles.
Thanks for this Interview and we will be touring in the summer of 2002. We look forward to your letters, emails
so feel free to contact us!
Await our second release due out in the spring and thank you readers.
Fans can reach Vehemence at:
E-mail = vehemence@brutaldeath.net
Vehemence website - http://vehemence.brutaldeath.net (MP3's, news, bios, tourdates, and more!)
Vehemence still has available their self-released rare 8 song 50 minute
CD released in August of 2000 called "The Thoughts From Which I Hide" for $12
Send check or cash to John Chavez
3916 W. Gelding Dr.
Phoenix, Arizona 85053
Tell the readers about VEHEMENCE, like your style and sound.
The style of Vehemence consists of a variety of music we have listened to that influenced us. The bands
we used to listen to when we first started were bands like Carcass, Gorefest, At The Gates, Arch Enemy,
Suffocation. We blend our riffs together in a way that the vocals are used in a guttural and midrange
way. The style of guitars sounds we use in Vehemence are midrange heavy riffs to fast brutal riffs. The
solos we use are harmonized, some fast and some slow, some trade offs. The drums have always been
blasting and technical. Our bass player also does vocals which are high screams. The lyrics take a great
part in this band as well that puts the reader in the characters shoes to feel the intensity of the
stories being told.
What kind of stories? Religious? Political?
The stories for our new album (God Was Created) are a collection of stories written all by our singer
Nathan Gearhart. He would be the best person to answer this but the lyrics for the album. All lyrics are very
descriptive that can set you in a scenario.
Did you play in other bands before now?
The bands and projects that I have played with were two bands. Brides of Christ was my first band which
was located here in Phoenix, Arizona. The style we played required me to use a 7 string tuned to A. The
music we played was compared to Meshuggah, King Crimson, and Cynic. I was 16 at the time and I was
upgrading my skill working with the other Guitarist K.C. Bradham. The band didnt want to sign to a label
that was huge which is not what I wanted. I wanted something bigger than only playing in the United
States. The second band that I played for is Deprecated from San Diego, a project put on lay away till
further notice. Derek Boyer (Bass) a great friend of mind liked what I had to offer to the band and
recruited me in to Deprecated camp where I left Arizona for a while to live with Derek and Torrey (Drums).
Being the only guitar player was hard due to their prior material still hanging around which I learned
first. We completed 9 songs for an album we wanted to release but never got released due to member line up
changes and the singer leaving our band. The time I spent there upgraded my skill to a new extreme level
and I will always be glad to work with them again.
So, you are scheduled to release something on Metal Blade Records, correct?
Yes, we start recording the afternoon of January 9th, 2002 a 10 song, 60 min album for Metal Blade
Records. The album will be called God Was Created and will be found worldwide. We also have a compilation
that Vehemence will be in called Uncorrupted Steel Released in Late February by Metal Blade Records. It
will include bands such as Cannibal Corpse, The Crown, God Dethroned, and new signings such as Beyond the
Embrace, Callenish Circle, and Cattle Decapitation. Our 6 minute song called (Fantasy From Pain) released
will be a Pre-Production Metal Blade Demo we made in August 2001 for God Was Created.
How do you feel about the underground scene in general at the present?
I think the underground in the United States is different between scenes in other countries in a big way.
In Europe, Extreme Metal seems to qualify as a topic. While in America it is not cared for. For example,
if you were to see a list of music styles on public American national television, Death Metal, Melodic
Metal, Grind, or Black Metal wouldnt be on there. This is why some Americans travel to Metal Fests
across the world to be with the surroundings that count in their daily metal life. I would say that the
underground scene here reflects more Death Metal and is thirsty for more spectacular bands from other
nations. What we dont know wont hurt us. Tape trading is not as big anymore compared to the media we
have out now such as CD-RS and the usage of the internet. What impresses me is that more people are
getting involved with the internet and learning how to use machines as their source of music, news, and
friendships. The early 90s I respect because it was hard to promote your band without emails, webzines,
cd-rs that hold 30 songs. The underground is still here, but used in a different way, taught in a
different way, played in a different way. Underground bands are now noticed and can be heard, it is just
up to the Metal Listener to listen to their surroundings such as friends, strangers, and guesses to what
they are buying or downloading. Radio stations and Zines play a part in the underground that are all
respectable sources to gain Metal knowledge from. Having shows in living rooms, rehearsal rooms, back
yards is as underground as you can get and is what I like about this scene. There was a time were my
friend and I , threw a show for a tour called Blood Letting North America 1. Since the club couldnt book
any more bands for the week we ended up doing it at our Artist Evil Daves band rehearsal room. It
couldnt get more underground than that having a small crowded room packed with crazy metal listeners. We
did charge at the door though so it wasnt completely free, but respectable to pay for the trouble.
Ive heard that there are quite a few shows every year in AZ, is that true?
Fortunately it seems the scene in Arizona is getting bigger and better. There is a lot of old school
listeners here that attended tours in the early 90s that like Suffocation, Carcass, Exhorder, Sinister,
Cynic, Ripping Corpse, Resurrection, Autopsy, Broken Hope, Immolation. The standards were set and the
mind frames are all here to accept the new kind of bands that are breaking through to this new generation
of bands. The old bands are becoming remembered and the new are the products of what was. It shouldnt
seem discouraging but delighting to have new music to listen to. In 1997 the scene was larger which had
more than 500 or more a metal show. It varies in every city and what is better about the shows here is
that you can actually meet the bands with out pushing your way through a crowd of crazed fans. Clubs and
bands are less tolerant to let you film their shows here as well. Bands are now learning that Tempe, Mesa,
and Phoenix are places to stop by on every tour that makes fans more acceptable to joining the metal
scene. California is only 7 hours away and many people from Arizona like to see shows there as well
simply because of the large community of Metal Heads there. I feel that are scene will only grow stronger
if clubs and promoters are acceptable to the high costs of bringing some of these large tours over.
Anyway, listen, thanks for your time and support of my zine. I wish you much success on your album and Ill look forward to seeing you guys live out here in Los Angeles.
Thanks for this Interview and we will be touring in the summer of 2002. We look forward to your letters, emails
so feel free to contact us!
Await our second release due out in the spring and thank you readers.
Fans can reach Vehemence at:
E-mail = vehemence@brutaldeath.net
Vehemence website - http://vehemence.brutaldeath.net (MP3's, news, bios, tourdates, and more!)
Vehemence still has available their self-released rare 8 song 50 minute
CD released in August of 2000 called "The Thoughts From Which I Hide" for $12
Send check or cash to John Chavez
3916 W. Gelding Dr.
Phoenix, Arizona 85053
