DAVE PYBUS of CRADLE OF FILTH Interviewed by FOUNDRYMUSICHAMMER

While many metal fans might be satisfied with the latest crop of Nu Metal bands the music business has puked out this week, there are still death/black metal thrash weenies like me who still thrive on insane, intense, hard and heavy, the-darker-the-better, don't-look-at-me-or-I'll-kick-your-teeth-in METAL. Gorilla needs to hit Steve over head with some heavier music, I swear. CRADLE OF FILTH is a band that I’ve followed for years; about ten years to be precise. I have had the chance to interview C.O.F. frontman Dani Filth already, so I figured I'd take a closer look inside all the blackness and go for an interview with one of the other band members. Considering these guys released one of their finest CDs to date, Damnation and A Day, this year,so I felt after holding onto this interview for a few months it would be a good time to blow the dust off of it and type it up. Also, the band hits the East Coast with Ozzfest tomorrow, so why not give them a little push while they're in our neck of the woods, right?

Strap in and take a gander at the interview I did with Dave Pybus, the bass player from the UK slash masters, CRADLE OF FILTH.

FoundryMusicHammer: I start the interview by letting him know that I interviewed Dani like ten years ago and that all went well. I thought I was gonna talk to him today but he’s very busy.

Dave Pybus: Yeah, I picked up most of his interviews today. He has a family commitment to sort out so I got the shit.

FMH: How long have you been with the band now?

DP: I did session work for the first year (June 2001) and I’ve been in the band for a year or so. I guess you can call it two years. I’ve known them for about ten years, probably the same as you. I’ve known them all as friends, as people and have never been into the music before now.

FMH: Really?

DP: I kinda hated them, as he laughs.

FMH: Really?

DP: Not musically, I never paid to much attention to them. You know I was always curious about them, how they got so big. I used to do gigs with them in my old band. (Anul Death was his first band-FMH). I was very aware of them but the music never penetrated my subconscious, until they asked me to start sessioning for them. I had three weeks to learn thirteen tracks and penetrate my conscious with them and that I did. And it’s been downhill ever since.

FMH: I was gonna bounce that… Just because you are in a black metal band doesn’t mean you’re a follower of the black arts or whatever? Doesn’t mean you have to be.

DP: Not at all. I think it’s more of a lifestyle kind of thing. I always naturally dress in black and I naturally listen to horrible music. And naturally wanting it to be Halloween everyday, you know?

FMH: As I’m laughing my ass off, Yeah!

DP: So for me it’s not such a big thing you know. I guess there is some real hard-core black metal kid in Norway that probably thinks; yeah you have to be into Satan and go around burning churches down. I don’t particularly get much time to do that anymore.

FMH: Like when I talked to Dani it was like the black metal gods and he’s so normal.

DP: I know, we are normal people.

FMH: Some people don’t get that. They are this or that… Satanists, OK whatever.

DP: You know what its like; I think the more vocal you are about stuff you feel like that. The more unbelievable it becomes. I’m not gonna say I’m a Satanist right now, but if that is something that is within me? I don’t join a club, I don’t promote it any way or openly talk about it. It is something that is inside you. If you don’t like a particular thing or feel a particular way then it’s wrong? For me Satanism is about individuality. 2-300 years ago I would have been killed for that for just saying that. I would have been a wizard, a Satanist and burned at the stake. Today you can just say it. People think that you’re not eating goats and drinking blood and listening to Darkthrone so you’re just a bullshitter. Just because you don’t say it… Its something inside you, being an individual, it’s like that you know.

FMH: Right

DP: Whether you can relate to Satanism like that or not. I think that’s the only pure way. I am like that so. I don’t go around promoting it. I don’t give a fuck what people think.

FMH: I always go on if there’s God or whatever, that it is all inside that person. It’s the way your gonna make it. You’re gonna make your fate go that way sometimes you know.

DP: Yeah, I don’t particularly… I’ve read Aleister Crowley and Anton LaVey sort of angle on it. I don’t think it is meant to be dealt with like that. Its just womanizers, I think?

FMH: Do you like horror movies at all and have any favorites? Did you see House Of A 1000 Corpses yet?

DP: I actually haven’t seen that yet, no. I love some of Rob Zombies stuff but I’m sure it can be ok, but it’s not in general release, is it?

FMH: It just came out for a national release (Months ago, the DVD is out NOW!!!-FMH). I was pretty happy with it. It was crazy. There were some things that didn’t fit. That is the way it is. Look at old Italian horror and say look where Scream got that from. Killing with insects, where did it come from, hum?

DP: I’m sure Rob Zombie had really done it to the point where it’s sorta anti film. I know people won’t get it. It is kinda like when Dani did Cradle Of Fear. People were expecting some sort of Star Wars production with a brilliant sort of storyline. It was a fucking B Movie gore film.

FMH: Its not supposed to be greatness. Everybody I see they are like that stuff sucks. And its like go watch your cartoons and your action figures. That’s OK.

DP: I don’t particularly like the film but I think the gore is well done. I don’t understand it as a Gone With The Wind style film. It’s not a classic in anyway; it’s just a gore film. It’s a bit funny watching it with a few beers and your friends and have a laugh. That’s the point. Yea, I love Zombie films and Dawn Of The Dead sort of shit. I love Re-Animator and all that kind of crap.

FMH: Jeffery Cooms.

DP: Yeah I love Coombs, he’s brilliant. Dani and I were on MTV yesterday. We sorta had an onscreen argument about the movie Evil Dead being Shite! He loves it and I hate it. I didn’t know that. So he was like what do you mean that the Evil Dead is shit. It a load of shit, I mean…

FMH: Trees and bushes!

DP: Yeah! We’re on TV arguing about Evil Dead. I remember when the second part came out and I missed the point of it. Is it supposed to be humorous?

FMH: I don’t know, I’ve seen it and sat there like OK.

DP: Me too. I was just like well.

FMH: Army Of Darkness was funny

DP: Exactly, I didn’t know that that was the point. It was supposed to be a horror movie but it was done so badly that it was funny. I don’t know I must have missed the boat, I’m stupid.

FMH: Stupid question… How many voices does Dani have now?

DP: Oh god, um it could be up to about eight.

FMH: I think he had six around ten years ago.

DP: He’s expanded it a bit and dropped a few.

FMH: I was really surprised because this album is like RAHHHHH, really.

DP: Yea and he can do it. You can be getting ready for a show and you can hear him in the toilet, and its like did he just trap his finger in the door or is it one of his voices, laughs… I don’t know what is real sometimes or not. I had this little chat with him about doing some sort of thing on stage were we do some sort of, not poetry but curves where he’s doing all these voices. As a fan you’d find that really like, WOW! How does he do all that shit? It would be quite intriguing to see him doing it on his own.

FMH: To add to the show.

DP: More like an Alice Cooper thing. It won’t be a Cradle Of Filth thing. It would be so unusual to hear him doing all these voices like a written down bit of poems as part of the set. I really think the fans would be intrigued and fascinated.

FMH: How would you explain how members go in and out of this band?

DP: All of the nice people have left and all the people that have joined are just cunts.

FMH: And that’s how the band gets along.

DP: I’m not gonna get in the band by being the nice guy. Dani asked me to join because I was a complete asshole! I have absolutely no talent whatsoever. No really, it’s all true. The old line-up three four years ago when the band was totally different; those guys were purely talented and brilliant and were excellent people to be around. Now we are just in it for the money. Laughs

FMH: Has the band been approached to do any soundtrack work? I know Dani was going that way sorta.

DP: Yeah he was. We still get it thrown at us every now and then. People come up with crazy ideas and get into production and call us and say we love your stuff, can you start work on it and shit. Then the production gets dropped. You start tripping over your heels all the time. It is like is this gonna happen or not? It sounds good but it’s not gonna happen. We are serious about stuff like that. But we don’t get further than, OK someone has called us.

FMH: I just think its time because you guys cranked out stuff that sounds like it should be on a horror soundtrack. (They are on the Faust soundtrack) Are all the members still from England?

DP: No, Adrian the drummer is from Sweden. And James the session guitarist that we are using right now replaced John and is sorta half Belgian. He lives in London and you can barley tell he’s Belgian. An when we got to Belgium he was talking all these foreign languages as if it were his own, so we sacked him for that! What the fuck are you talking like a weirdo for? Where did you learn to do that? You never told me you were weird. Carry on.

FMH: Did they put you through any rituals before you joined the band?

DP: I did ten months of touring with them. If anybody can survive that then I think it can be done. They can probably join the Green Beret or something like that. I did America first and my first gig was in Seattle. Where are you right now?

FMH: I’m in New Jersey. If you hear banging, its flooring being put in upstairs.

DP: If you hear banging here, it’s the Genocide Superstars. They are a punk band on Relapse records. I have a huge pile of CD’s to listen to because we finished touring (The first part of many shows) around Europe. I have a shitload of Fucking CD’s to listen to. Bit by bit, only picking out one or two good ones. I’m really into music again. I don’t read much anymore, I don’t watch TV, or go to the cinema. I just listen to music. It’s kinda insane, because a few years ago I had given up on music. I’m back into it again. I’m excited by it all.

FMH: Anything happen in life?

DP: I don’t know? Rock music seems exciting again. About five years ago I thought it was dead. Now traveling around and meeting bands and new bands. Also listening to all my old punk CD’s and picking stuff up on tour. And just listening to music the whole time. I don’t know, I’m real passionate about it again and don’t know why. I love getting involved. I live in this small town with Dani and when I come back I hang out with DJ’s in town. They are always putting up flyer posters and putting bands on. It’s all worth it and I’m excited again. I just don’t want to sit in a high castle and pretend I’m in a big band. I love these guys, its cool.

FMH: You plan on sticking around?

DP: Well I mean, I’ve only have been in the bands for two months and John left and he’s been in the band for years. You come to realize alright and we’ll work it out the way we can, and we enjoy it as much as we can. And what comes is what comes. You can’t control it yourself. If you get lazy or feel like the boat is drifting away from you then its difficult to get back on it. I’m not gonna say that I’m gonna stick around next year, I might not be here but I just want to work hard and I’ve got the opportunity to do that with Cradle Of Filth, because we work everyday. That’s a cool thing.

FMH: Do you have things in the works for your future or yourself.

DP: Uh, no. I’d love to do a Misfits cover band! I really would. I hear the Misfits and ear bands doing stuff like that everyday and I think fuck, I wanna do that. I just love them to bits. And I just rock out sometimes if you know what I mean. I know some new bands with a rockabilly style, sorta horror bands and I love all that shit. Everyone says it’s easier and more simple. It seems that you can have more fun with it. Cradle Of Filth is fucking Chaos sometimes.

FMH: Sounds like your interests are all over the place music wise.

DP: Yeah! I mean we are involved in different aspects with the band everyday. Like yesterday Dani and I doing MTV, today interviews, tomorrow we are in the studio. The day after we are getting preproduction for a studio session we have coming up.

FMH: Another EP kind of thing?

DP: Sony wanted to do a single and witch song are you gonna put out there. I don’t know, we talked about it and honestly America don’t want it. We recorded it already recorded “Mr. Crowley” from OZZY and we did that last year. And they said fuck it. You are going on Ozzfest, why don’t you just finish that and we’ll stick that out as a single and we got two new tracks recorded for that, so. We are just finishing that. People think that you have two months off before Ozzfest and its bullshit! Still fucking working!!!

FMH: What’s going on behind the scenes?

DP: A lot of the time people don’t know what’s going on behind the sense. It’s a full-time job and we get a positive out of it.

FMH: Do you feel that the Ozzfest will spread COF black metal word? Sorry stupidity saying that.

DP: Not really, I don’t know the true line-up yet. I know it Korn and Marilyn Manson.

FMH: I was curious in another interview with an American band Over Kill, I wonder why they’ve never been asked to be on Ozzfest being around 20 years and all. And they are not on it. Finally!!! A heavy, heavy band and more for that matter. Instead of going to see just Black Label Society. The last few years I made sure I saw them. As for the rest of the bands, uh?

DP: It is sometimes to be considered the new thorn in the side band. Exciting, little thorn in the side band. Controversial stuff, were probably gonna get arrested a dozen times. It gives them a little bit more hype. Weather the kids are into it or not I’m not sure. Our fans will be there and the rest can all get fucked I don’t care. The more people that are here is better really. We don’t give a fuck. We are there to piss people off. We are headlining the second stage. A few trick up our sleeves. We aren’t a gimmick band; we do this from the heart.

FMH: Have you guys just stripped down and not have all the tricks…

DP: Yeah did a five week tour of Europe. They were cut short due to Dani’s illness. There was the last show of the tour with the big production and huge stage with projectors and dancers it was cool. The last show was a mall 500 capacity place. It was Leather and make-up and the crowd. It was the most aggressive fucking gig I played. It is you and them right in front of you and I love that. I think they were scarred to death of us. We just did five weeks and were like let’s go fuck them!

FMH: I was when I first signed on and then I was like this is what I was waiting for.

DP: We are like let’s go get them. We sometimes forget that the crowd is younger than us and it might even be their first gig. They don’t expect a band to be right on the money with the guitar right in your face. They need to fuck off. You are just playing like a motherfucker spitting blood and everything. It’s just chaos. We are playing the fastest we every played. Adrian had a broken hand for the last week of the tour so he was just playing with gritting teeth. It was just horrible. He still plays luck a motherfucker though.

FMH: I noticed on the new album that there is erotic stuff but no breasts and nudity… I always thought that there wouldn’t be a compromise. Was there a compromise?

DP: I don’t know. I think it purely went along with the story. We could have put in a few gratuitous fanny shots if you wanted. It wouldn’t have fit with the storyline. On a lighter note you say having a woman on the cover with her tits out. We have a naked guy. I tell that people get the impression. It is this character came down from heaven to conquer earth and didn’t even get dressed. He could at least put on trousers. It’s kind of funny.

FMH: Does it tie in with the meaning of the album? Danation In a Day.

DP: It is a biblical sort of reference. It never mentioned Lucifer. It is supposed to be a fallen angel the first part of the album. It’s about him falling to earth. Him then dealing with the whole purgatory thing. Then afterwards he started destroying earth. Realizing he’s one of gods toys and he’s meant to destroy earth. He is just a pawn in the whole plan. Lightly going over it; I don’t want to go into detail.

FMH: Is there anything besides the Babylon AD video coming?

DP: Yeah! I guess it’s the single. The America said we don’t want to do that Cliff Richard shit. It was just a concept so they said pick another song off the album, we had a little budget left. And we’ve got a guy in the states who did a Type O- and Danzig video. He’s really into working with us and no matter the budget he will get a crew that will do this. We are gonna make a really cool video with some good ideas. I don’t think it comes down to money, its new ideas. It’s simple and not a lot of money. I know MTV won’t play Babalon AD so it will get repackaged as a band video. They won’t play it. It’s MTV being MTV. I think were gonna do a gone video.

FMH: How did the Budapest Film Orchestra and Budapest Film Choir involved into the music on the new album? Didn’t you guys scare the crap out of them?

DP: Yeah, with laughs. It was a friend of Doug Cook (the producer), Dan Presley and he work with the Film Orchestra before so when Doug knew we wanted to use a real orchestra have gave Dan Presley a call. He set all of the interpreters and all together. Dani and Dave went. They didn’t hear Cradle OF Filth until day three. And they had to do the first song on the album through the headphones then you get 40-50 people in an orchestra with their mouths open going what the fuck! They never heard drumming like it. Even the percussion guy was blown away by the sheer power and intensity of one person. We came back with the tapes and mixed in Paris. And Doug mixed it on the top. We could drop out guitars in parts when the orchestra got good. We didn’t know it was gonna come out that good. So we dropped parts out of the songs so you could hear the orchestra. You’re not writing a song you’re producing it. We never wanted a song that plods along and by the third song you’ve heard the whole album. We want to go up and down and everywhere. It keeps people interested I think and it worked. You get maturity to do a whole album. Its like we wrote this music two months ago and it sounds like a fucking soundtrack.

FMH: (We go over a few personal things like him shaking hands with Frank Bello from ANTHRAX and how having the guys in 'thrax watch 'Cradle' play onstage was a big highlight for him. Take them for the brilliant music they have unleashed over the years...Then again, you could just go F yourself.

Check out the official CRADLE OF FILTH website.

Also, you can check them out at Ozzfest this summer as well.