Cannibal Corpse

Interview with Alex Webster of Cannibal Corpse in May of 2006.

First of all, there’s been a huge buzz for the Sounds Of The Underground tour, even from before the line-up was announced because of the sheer success of the tour this year. Now that the line-up is complete and dates announced, how do you guys anticipate the tour will be this year?

ALEX WEBSTER: I think it’s going to be a great tour. We are really excited to be part of an extreme music variety package like this. Each of the bands on the bill has their own fan base, so if you put them all together on one festival bill like this, it’s bound to be a big success.

Are there any bands in particular that you are excited to share the stage with during the summer’s tour?

ALEX: Well, we’re really interested to check all of the bands out, but of all of them I’d say I’m most excited about BEHEMOTH.

You guys have several bands sharing the stage from Metal Blade. How has Metal Blade and its roster of bands been to you guys throughout your time on the label?

ALEX: We’ve always had a great relationship with our label and the other bands on it. For example, we’ve toured with Black Dahlia Murder before, and it was great. I’m sure we’ll get along great with the other Blade bands on the tour this summer.

How has the reaction been while touring for the new material from your latest album Kill? Do you anticipate a long time of touring before another album is recorded?

ALEX: We just finished touring Europe, and all of the songs we played from the new album (KILL) were received very well by our fans. We probably will write some songs between tours, and hopefully we won’t have to wait too long to get another album out. Still, at the moment our top priority is touring in support of Kill, so we have no clear schedule for making the next album. I can’t imagine it being released until sometime in 2008 though.

Is there another live album or DVD in the plans for Cannibal Corpse in the near future?

ALEX: Well, the European branch of Metal Blade released a live DVD recorded in France in 2004 as a bonus for a special version of Kill, but that was only available in Europe. We have been collecting some live shows over the past few years, and I think a compilation of these might make a good DVD. We have no plans to do this right now, but in the future we may.

What are the touring plans for Cannibal Corpse after Sounds Of The Underground?

ALEX: Right now the only thing we have lined up that’s confirmed is a tour in Australia. That tour will be in October. I’m sure we’ll be doing a few more tours for Kill, but I have no details at the moment.

What bands are particularly striking as new, fresh, and really talented artists that you guys think should get more attention?

ALEX: There’re actually quite a few great newer bands on the death metal scene that deserve more attention. Some that immediately come to mind are: AEON, SPAWN OF POSSESSION, NOX, MANGLED, SEVERE TORTURE, UNMERCIFUL, and NECROPHAGIST. There are plenty more though. The amount of talent there is in today’s extreme/death metal scene is really incredible.

Was there any particular reasoning behind the name Cannibal Corpse other than the blatant lyrical content you guys possess?

ALEX: Really, it just had a ring to it. It fit perfectly with our style of music and the lyrics we wanted to write, so we decided to go with it. I guess some of the inspiration might have come from the zombie horror classics like DAWN OF THE DEAD and ZOMBIE.

Do you have any final words to those fans who are reading this or people interested in coming out to the Sounds Of The Underground tour this summer?

ALEX: First of all, we want to say thank you to all of our supporters who might be reading this. As for the Sounds tour, I think any fan of extreme music should attend. There will be great bands from several different genres of extreme music performing (death metal, hardcore, metalcore, melodic death metal, etc.), so it’s really a great opportunity for fans. Where else could you see such a wide variety of killer bands in one day? Don’t miss this tour, it’s going to be awesome!