by Chris Barnes
September 10, 2005

It wasn’t that long ago when Finland’s Reverend Bizarre were pressing their Doom on CD-Rs with homemade covers. Now their signed to Finnish metal giant Spinefarm, have a brand new distribution deal in the U.S. receiving rave reviews on their new album II: Crush The Insects and are playing major metal festivals. A lot has changed for the three members of Reverend Bizarre, but as you’ll soon read, the song does indeed remain the same. Guitarist Peter Vicar discusses the new album, the occult and their recent tour of the States.


Hellride Music: . I have the fond memory of you guys burning the original Slice of Doom hand numbered CD-Rs to hand out. Now, some four years later, you are signed to Spinefarm with a U.S. distribution deal with Season of Mist... not to mention playing large festivals, a featured interview in Terrorizer, and rave reviews of your latest II: Crush The Insects. What do you guys think of your success so far? Do you think it's changed you as both a band and as individuals?

Peter Vicar: Great memories… It’s been a great journey with some very shitty twists and turns, though. The change has certainly happened with us being more known, and actually being able to do things more freely because we got more money to do things, pure and simple. Musically I don’t think we have evolved or changed too much, at least the song material is ideologically and production-wise the same. Some of the material is even from the same period. I am not the same man I used to be back then, but that has more to do with having children and starting a work life after my studies than with the band. Even if we get better marketing it does not mean we would do things differently than we used to.

Hellride Music: Speaking of which, how do you feel about the new album in comparison to your previous material? You guys pretty happy with how II: Crush The Insects came out?

Peter.: I am extremely happy with the new album, it’s pretty much the same I had imagined it to be earlier. Others are insane in their perfectionism, so it might still take time for them to accept the album as it is.

Hellride Music: I noticed that on the new album, you have quite a number of uptempo songs... or at least uptempo compared to your previous work. Was this a conscious effort to speed things up or just a natural progression? Is this a sign of things to come for Reverend Bizarre with more speedy material?

Peter: This has nothing to do with natural progression, more with strict planning of albums with “plots” in a way… We want our albums to have these loose concepts with a beginning and an end… even if the songs are mostly separate… Sure as hell this is not a sign of our future direction more than any of our albums. We just want to explore different sides of True Doom Metal.

Hellride Music: Please explain what is going on with all the bar chatter and clinking of bottles during "Doom Over The World".

Peter: We just had some good time in the studio for a change. Even Void, our absolutist, could have easily been labelled as a drunkard for a while if the soundscapes were to be believed, hah hah!

Hellride Music: You quote both Ragnar Redbeard and Aleister Crowley in the booklet of the new album. Both profess the power of the individual and is the direct antithesis to the "sermon on the mount". How much do each author's philosophies play in both the band and in your personal lives? How did you discover both Redbeard and Crowley?

Peter: Albert noticed this interesting parallel between the two citations you mentioned. I’d say Crowley is more important for us as a freethinker, eccentric and a very scholarly occultist. Redbeard, then again, has the theme of survivalism (or social darwinism if you like) in his writings… even if I hate the racist bullshit talkers I still am a firm believer in the law of the nature. You can see it everywhere, and the usage of technology has just made it worse. Mankind is waiting to be crushed by the bastards who rule things, be they political leaders, corporate fools who obey the blind eye of stock markets, or religious fanatics. This is the way of the apocalypse and most of us have chosen to follow the path all the way down to the flames of Tartaros. That’s the real doom of men.

Hellride Music: I can’t say I disagree with you. I know Albert has dabbled in magick here and there.... what about the rest of the band? What are your thoughts on the occult? Do you think it has real power or is it just wishful thinking?

Peter: I don’t think Void is too interested. He is more of an activist, interested in the rights of the people and animals.

I am deeply interested in occult in the scholarly sense, not as a practicing mage but as a researcher. I am historian by profession, and the fact that western esoteric tradition still has firm believers is very interesting in this era of scientific wonders and spectacles. I think some symbols and rituals have very profound influence on us if we focus our will on those things and dig deep enough. So in a way ceremonial magick has very much real power. To follow the path of a mystic and occultist would mean a whole lifestyle away from the decadent world, away from the hedonistic pleasures I so much enjoy. I would never want to totally give up meat, hamburgers, kebabs, malt whisky, dry cider and beer to name some. Even if I wanted to take the path it would be impossible when having a wife and daughter to be taken care of. I am writing a second MA-thesis on The Golden Dawn by the way, so one could say my interest has some material forms.

Hellride Music: Interesting to say the least. You recently came to the U.S. for the Templars of Doom fest and for the Pilgrimage of Doom Tour - what did you think of the US? How do the US audiences compare with the European audiences? (aside from the obvious lack of numbers over here).

Peter: Well even if the crowds were indeed small I still enjoyed our trip immensely! The people were very supportive and some of our best friends live there. Those who came to the shows seemed to be very aware of what we are all about, some singing along to the songs as well – always a sight I have enjoyed as it means the people have studied the lyrics at least to some extent.

Hellride Music: Any good stories from being over here? Did the guys from The Gates of Slumber try to sodomize you or anything like that?

Peter: I think it was mostly the opposite, hmmm… brother Karl was sodomized by the furry friends travelling with Void… and then Albert sodomized the furry friends… I guess I need to send pics of those events to escort this interview, among others… There are million good stories from that journey, some of which I won’t tell here so people would not be insulted. Let’s just say that some medleys should have not existed at all. But we enjoyed walking around NYC for example, doing these unholy rituals at Lennon’s memorial site at Central Park. No peace!!! enigamI, hah hah!!! Swimming in the pool at Mike Waske’s (Orodruin’s drummer) home barbeque was one of the highlights… the thunderstorm at Washington DC… Temple club at Lansing being what the name says… Listening to Johnny Cash and Conan soundtrack back to back… TGoS brothers were so great to travel with… Tom Phillips, my blood brother… Jim Hunter & Jessica, their friendship and hospitality… Orodruin, Pale Divine, Metal Mary and Matt from Penance (R.I.P.) in Iron City Pittsburgh… oh man, I miss all of them and all of that… The only thing that really pisses me off is that we couldn’t find the dates to do a show with Slough Feg, they were only a day or two behind us on the same fucking route!

Hellride Music: What's next for the band?

Peter: Tomorrow morning we fly to Belgium and Holland to play this mostly slow death metal festival Ashes To Ashes, Doom To Dust with Electric Wizard, Esoteric, Worship and Thee Plague of Gentlemen among the others. Not my cup of tea most of this death/doom stuff featured, as most of Hellride people know, but we will spread the gospel of True Doom Metal the best we can! Interested to see EW, even if their masterpieces are the two first albums. I love TPoG brothers, it’s always good to see those Belgian fuckers… thanks for the blowjob!!! Esoteric people we met in Finland already, some nice folks there, even if their slow death avant-garde is more art music than metal.

Hellride Music: Thanks for being so patient and answering these questions, I really appreciate it. Best of luck with everything. Feel free to leave us with a few words.

Peter: There is death to the dogs. As this interview is already in Hellride I guess there’s no point advertising our strange forum down there in the pit. Fuck off Neat-O.


Purchase Crush The Insects , Harbinger of Doom and In the Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend / Return to the Rectory at the Hellride Music Superstore

Read the Hellride Music review of II: Crush The Insects

Visit the Reverend Bizarre forum

luciferburns

Very cool interview. Peter tells it like it is no bullshit. They crushed all the insects at TEMPLARS for sure.

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do what tho wilt and harm none, shall be the whole of the law.

The Wrath

I haven't read the interview yet, but the pictures alone are amazing, Right off the bat the flood gates of memories are unleashed.

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C.O.T.D.

Widget

Peter Vicar

Nice, Chris, the way you combined the infamous occult pool pic and the text that goes with it. Would also like to add that the Ashes trip was a great success and Electric Wizard great and heavy as fuck!

And perhaps it was a good desicion to leave that pic out where Albert was sodomizing the furry friends of Void. Karl treated them right!

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Lord Vicar,
http://www.myspace.com/lordvicar C.O.T.D.

ORNE,
http://www.myspace.com/ornemusic

lordofslumber

I think it was the Hippo that sodomized Albert really... the little dog just whispered in his ear telling him to let crusty girls flirt with him.

The highlight was Doom Dancing with John Gallo, his wonderful sister, Butch, Void, Brandon from Well of Souls and a cast of a few more in Pittsburgh! What a killer night! The Angelwitch and Piledriver sing-a-longs were great!

Thanks for not using the picture of me taking a crap with a hangover... .

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Well of Souls

That show and party was definitely the highlight of the whole tour for me.
Vomiting pizza after the party wasn't so fun, and my fucking bandmates got
it all on video. DOOM DANCING
I forgot all about the thunderstorm in D.C. I've never seen it rain so hard outside of a hurricane.
Luckly we didn't get caught outside in it like you guys did. We were in that coffee shop\theater
trying to get some sleep on that couch they had. Then it started raining. They had some play going
on in the back. And apparently there were alot of nude scenes in the play. Well one of the drainage pipes
broke in the theater and the place emptied out into the coffee shop. We were laughing our asses off at all the
old guys trying to hide there erections by holding newspapers in front of themselves.
Even though the traveling was hard, it was great to get to hang out with you guys every night. Hopefully we
will get to do it again sometime.

Brandon

Peter Vicar

Here's one more from the road, outside the Warehouse Next Door, Washington DC...

__________________
Lord Vicar,
http://www.myspace.com/lordvicar C.O.T.D.

ORNE,
http://www.myspace.com/ornemusic

Doomcifer

Good read. Doom on.

"Fuck off Neat-O = LOL!

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With mind distracted, never thinking death is coming... To slave away on the pointless business of mundane life, and then to come out empty is a tragic error..

neat-o

i made 'em say: "neat-o"

BRILLIANT!

Vitus_Frank

lordofslumber

the 'man' is back... all Thai Lady-boy lovers take note... and take a number. America's answer to the crossdressing lolita fantasy prostitute: neat-o, is back in town.

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LordOfTheLeft

Temple Club is a pretty sweet place

__________________
He is descended from a race of heroes,
a noble band, gold-helmed and generous.
Honoured, weathly, hawk of men,
sturdy his limbs upon his horse;
swift to accomplish overthrow in battle,
a falcon excellently wise in argument,
a stag who does not die ...

-Dafydd ap Gwilym