TYPE O NEGATIVE

Discography

Albums:

Slow, deep and hard (1991)

The origin of the faces (Not live at Brighton beach) (1992) Bloody kisses (1993) October rust (1996)

World coming down (1999) Life is killing me (2003) Dead again (2007)

Singles, promos & EPs:

Unsuccessful coping with the natural beauty of infidelity (1991) ? (1993) Christian woman (1993) Black no.1 (1993) Summer breeze (1995) Rust cuts (1996)

My girlfriend’s girlfriend (1996) Love you to death (1996) 3 track sampler (1996)

Ozzy Osbourne / Sepultura / Type O Negative on tour (1996)

In praise of Bacchus (1997)

Pictures of matchstick men with Ozzy Osbourne (1997) Cinnamon girl (1997)

Présentation Multimédia (CD-Rom, 1997)

Everything dies (1999)

World coming down cassette sampler (1999)

Radio only sampler (1999) Everyone I love is dead (2000)

Static-X / Type O Negative - Levi’s spark radio broadcast (2000)

I don’t wanna be me (2003)

Life is killing me sampler (2003) Santana medley (2006) Symphony for the devil (DVD, 2006) September sun (2007)

Iced Earth / Type O Negative / Engel - Setian massacre (2007) Highway star (with Deep Purple, 2013) I don’t wanna be me (with Trivium, 2018)

Compilations:

The least worst of (2000) Absolutely live High Voltage (2004)

The Least worst of / Blood kisses (2001) Slow, deep and hard / The origin of the feces (2002) The best of Type O Negative (2006)

None more negative (2011) The complete Roadrunner collections 1991-2003 (2013)

Collage by Slam Jameson www.instagram.com/slamjameson

Ihad the chance to spend almost a day with the Instructor guys, specifically Dario & Bert in the first days of September 2022. After having moved to Amsterdam for 10 days or so, me & my girlfriend decided to travel to Brussels and check out the Instructor / Verzet / Burning Kross gig at Cobra Jaune. Dario and his girlfriend were super kind to host us at their house, cook us and show us around. Such a great night! Prior to this, I have listened to the 3 Instructor tapes and watched them live in London in November 2021 in an ultra-fun and great set at Damage Is Done festival, with lots of stage-dives and high-fives! When I started planning the new issue of this zine, Instructor were one of the first bands in my list, no second thoughts. Check them out, new record coming out soon by (guess who?!) Quality Control Records! If you like late 80s NYHC, a la Killing Time & Breakdown, with a noisy/punk vibe, do not sleep on this! instructorbxl.bandcamp.com

Photos by Emilie Desir, Bobby Annihilated, Call Me Killer and Kevien Pictures.

Hello Dario! Hope you are fine brother! How’s Brussels?

Hey Apostolis, I’m doing well thanks. There’s not much happening in Brussels at the moment I must say, let’s go to the next question haha.

Tell us a bit about Instructor; when and where did you start, who’s in the band, where have you played till now and the usual titbits!

Instructor is Charlie, my brother, at the drums, Bert at the guitar, Xavier at the bass and me singing. We played our first show in 2019 and had our first demo tape released by QCHQ a few months later. Since then, we’ve released 2 more tapes on our own via Maximum Labour Records. We played quite some shows here and there, including London, Toulouse, Paris, etc. Besides that, our stomping ground is the infamous Cobra Jaune bar, located downtown Brussels, where we started booking hardcore/ punks shows in 2018.

Brussels has a rich hardcore history with legends like Arkangel and Length of Time still being active there! How did you first get in touch with hardcore? What was your first show and how big was the influence of the aforementioned bands on you to get involved in the scene?

I got into punk via my father when I was pretty young and then quickly got into the Belgian hardcore/punk scene. Back then I had more interest in thrash bands like Reproach than Arkangel or LOT. This Brussels metalcore scene mostly had an audience of people in their late 20’s-30, so it wasn’t the same, you know. This being said, Arkangel and LOT are 2 bands that I love now and it’s always cool to see them live.

You have released 3 demos so far but as far as I know your first full length is on the works! Give us some more info about it! What should we expect?

We recorded this LP in March 2022 and we are pretty happy about it. Some of its tracks sound like our usual stuff, but there’s a few surprises as well. It took us some time to finish writing every track ‘cause we had high expectations about this release. QCHQ offered to release it and we couldn’t have hoped for a better label to work with for this release. A single track has already been released on the QCHQ Bandcamp, but the full thing should come out in fall 2022.

I dare to say that your music style is something between 80s NYHC and late 90s Euro-core! What do you think about this? Which bands or scenes have influenced Instructor?

Yes, that’s correct, I guess one of our biggest influences is Breakdown. All in all, we’re mostly inspired by 80s NYHC but try not to have a too narrow vision on influences, as we also all listen to other styles of hardcore/punk.

Instructor is a new band but you have already managed to play lots of shows in Belgium, France, UK, etc. What was your best moment till now and what was the worst one? I feel that you have a strong connection with the London scene. Your show last year in Damage is Done was fire!

It’s true that we have a strong connection with the London scene, or UKHC in general. We’ve been to a lot of shows in the UK and made some good friends over there. Also, QCHQ has been supporting Instructor since the very beginning of the band.

The first Damage is Done fest in 2019 was one of our coolest gigs for sure. We hadn’t played a lot of shows before that and were stoked to be featured on such a bill. This gig and the whole fest were beyond crazy, as soon as the opening bands played their first notes. Coming from Belgium, this whole stuff seemed surreal to us.

I really like your artwork, too. All 3 demos has this kind of dirty yet eye-catching and definitely old school artwork. They have that urban feeling that is so distinct! Who’s responsible for your aesthetics? Is it true that Spoiler is taking care of the artwork of your new album?

For these 3 tapes we’ve worked with Max Lab, Nicky Rat and Dave Decat. They’re our friends and knew what we wanted to do, but of course they did it with their own touch and we’re really happy about it. I guess you’ve already seen

Nicky Rat’s work, but you should also check out Max Lab, who did some artworks for bands like Culprit and Domain, and Dave Decat, who’s a great illustrator and made dope record covers and stuff, including artworks for Hangman’s Chair and Sheer Terror. For the new LP, it’s planned that Spoiler will work on the cover. We all love his art and are really looking forward to it.

I also dig the covers you are doing! CroMags, G.I.S.M., Cockney Rejects, what else? I think that the covers represent your influences, too. Would you try any nonharcore/punk cover in the future ?

Those 3 cover tracks were featured in our latest tape, ‘Private Execution’. We’ve never played them live, except the Cro-Mags track, ‘It’s the limit’. Besides, we’ve already played covers of the 4 Skins, Side by Side and Sheer Terror. I think ‘Wonderful world’ from the 4 Skins is my fav cover to play live. We never wanted to play any of these cover songs too much though, we prefer playing new cover tracks a few times and then to go on for something else.

Besides Instructor, almost all of you are active in other bands like Terre Neuve & Verzet. Please give us some more info about them!

Terre Neuve is a side-project with ¾ Instructor (Bert is the one missing in action), in which Charlie sings in French. We have a 7” coming out soon on the amazing Mendeku Diskak from

Basque Country.

Bert is filling in at the guitar in Verzet, a new band from Antwerp and Brussels. He’s going to be busy with them for a few more months, since their guitar player is still recovering from a bad elbow injury. They just released a sick demo tape on PMT records from London, go check them out!

Tell us the story behind Cobra Jaune Skins! I recently visited the CJ place and even though is not the regular place you would expect a hardcore show to take place, I can truly say that the atmosphere was so welcoming and that you have a strong crew working on shows!

Cobra Jaune is a dive bar where we started booking shows in 2018. It’s located in a really sketchy area of town. Back then, the place was only hosting darts competitions and Congolese or Brazilian parties, so it was probably weird to start doing stuff there but for some years we couldn’t find any other place in Brussels, and thus decided to give it a try. It quickly caught the attention from people and bands and in a few months we could host some solid bills. As you say, it’s not really the usual place for shows but I think most people enjoy coming to our shows and like the vibe, and so do the bands.

What was the best show you have organized Cobra Jaune! I cannot even imagine how was the Arkangel show there!

I’ll probably start with the Big Cheese/Illusion show in August 2018. That was one of the first gigs we ever put up at Cobra Jaune and it was the first time we had such big bands coming over. I remember seeing a lot of people coming from far away and discovering this new place. It was really cool to feel something was happening at our local shithole, and that we were putting Brussels back on the map. A few months later, Game/Stigmatism played a sick show and that was also our first show as a band and we were stoked to be able to play at Cobra Jaune. Lately, the Rixe and Arkangel shows were crazy with everybody going wild, because a lot of locals know all of their songs. And luckily, there has been only 1 K.O. during the Arkangel set.

How’s the Brussels scene now? Any standout bands? And what about the rest of the Belgian scene? It seems there are lots of active bands in the last years. What’s the thing you love and what’s the one you hate in the scene?

As for the Brussels scene, you should check out Fucked Up Minds, they’re a bunch of younger kids who play fast hardcore/punk. Tesson are our close friends and will soon release a demo, they’ve already played a few shows and sound really cool.

As for the Belgian scene, there’s a lot of active bands in Flanders, which is the northern part of the country. Flanders has a rich scene, as it can be seen on the bills of Ieperfest or, since last year, Return of Belgian Hadcore fest. All in all, it’s a decent scene for such a small country, but I think it definitely lacks some newer bands with a real DIY/punk attitude.

What’s next for Cobra Jaune, Instructor and all your other bands? Any plans on touring excessively?

We should play some shows in the UK soon, early next year or something. Also, a small tour through France, Basque Country and Spain is in the plans for the spring. The first EP of Terre Neuve should be out by then, so it would be a great occasion to play some shows with both bands over there. Also, we’re putting up a fest at Cobra Jaune on the week-end of March 17-19th 2023. More info will follow soon.

What’s your favorite H8000 record and why?!

To be honest I’ve never cared that much about the H8000 scene. I’d probably choose ‘Blackened persistence’ by Congress, even if I’m much more into the 2 first Arkangel LPs, which were recorded only 100kms east of the H8000 area haha, does that count? Also, if you’re into H8000 and don’t know about Backstabbers, which were also from Brussels, you should definitely check them out !

You are not on social media, why is that? Do you want to keep Instructor underground? How can someone get in touch with?!

We don’t feel the need for a social media account, I think people usually know where to find us and then where to get our releases. Besides, I think that some bands spend way too much time building their Instagram reputation and I’m happy not to be among them.

Thank you very much! See you soon! Last words are yours.

Thanks for the interview, I’m looking forward to reading the new issue of the zine when it comes out. Cheers to everybody who’s helped us as a band.

My first ever zine, Keep It Real, hosted an Integrity interview at the pages of its last ever issue (no.10), that was released on 23rd December 2010 (according to issuu.com). Well, to think that 12 years have passed, and I am still here, doing zines, it’s something, at least... On the other hand, time flies unbearably fast, but that’s another discussion, I guess. So, what I remember the most from that Dwid/Integrity feature back in 2010 is his short answers, and when I say short, I mean short. ‘Funny’, ‘intelligent’, ‘shitty’ – was some of the feedback I received back then for the Integ interview. Go check it out at issuu and find out yourself.

Fast forward to September 2022, and here we are again with Dwid as a guest in my new endeavour! Integrity is one of my favorite bands ever, period. It was about time for good ol’ Dwid and his straight, to the point, shorter than short answers to my questions! By the way, I had the chance to watch Integrity live in Rotterdam a few weeks ago (mid October 2022), during their European tour – as mentioned below – and the band still riiiiips; don’t miss them if they visit your town!

Photo & logos provided by Dwid. www.instagram.com/integrityofficial www.integrity.band

Hello Dwid! Welcome to Soulcraft IV! What’s going on in Integrity’s headquarters?

I am preparing for 2 Integrity concerts next week in the USA, followed immediately by a European tour. My early Integrity albums have started being reissued by Relapse Records and I am working on a new album.

I have interviewed you for my previous zine, Keep It Real, 12 years ago and I remember everyone getting pissed off because of the short answers that you gave, which on the contrary I definitely loved! Actions are louder than words, right?

Haha

You are still based in Belgium as far as I know.

Yes, I have lived in Belgium since 2003.

How’s life there?

The region in Belgium where I live is a rather calm & quiet place to live.

Do you miss the States?

I am frequently in the USA for concerts. I fly to the USA about 5 or 6 times each year.

What’s happening with Integrity when you tour outside US? Do you bring the guys over here?

There are 2 live line-ups, but on this upcoming tour the lead guitarist from the USA line-up will be performing on the EU dates as well as the USA dates.

Who’s in Integrity right now, by the way?

I assume that you mean on albums? Domenic Romeo and I are currently writing the new album.

It’s been more than 5 years since your last release ‘Howling, For The Nightmare Shall Consume’, do you plan on releasing something new soon?

Yes, Dom & I are currently working on a new album.

Relapse Records has been reissuing my early albums with enhanced mixes and updated artwork. At the time of this interview, my first two albums are available, ‘Those Who Fear Tomorrow’ and ‘Systems Overload’.

You have several other projects besides Integrity, wanna give us some updates? It seems you are always busy with something!

Psywarfare performed in Chicago (USA) for Dreary North Fest last Saturday.

I am working on a new full-length album for Psywarfare which will be also released by Relapse.

Your lyrics always deal with parallel worlds, the supernatural and the hate towards humanity. Do you still believe that humanity is the devil, especially in the context of the last years with the pandemic and wars going on?

The pandemic certainly did not make my opinion on Humanity soften.

And if humanity is the devil, who’s God? Wanna elaborate a bit on your religious beliefs? Let’s talk about Holy Terror and the Church of Process if you don’t mind! I bet that you are being asked about this all the time, but please spare some moments to let us know!

“Humanity Is The Devil”, as a title, was intended to imply that humanity generally behaves with evil intentions. Whether its actions are conscious or unconscious, the outcome remains the same, selfish and soulless.

It would appear that we are living in a Hell and that God is no longer interested in hearing your pleas for salvation. The Devil holds the key.

You have been using the image of Charles Manson a lot. What does Charles Manson, or his image, mean to you?

Actually, I have not used Manson imagery in about 10 years. But, to answer your question, when I was growing up in the 1970s and

1980s Charles Manson was portrayed as the living embodiment of the Devil. This depiction of a living Devil imprisoned in a cell on earth intrigued me. Manson’s involvement with The Process Church also captured my attention. There is also an interesting component to all of this where Manson’s court trial was corrupted by a book deal offer to Vincent Bugliosi, the prosecutor of the case.

Manson’s public persona was that of an outlaw Devil, a Devil which held the United States population in a constant state of inescapable fear for decades.

How do you connect with his philosophy?

This is a complicated question. The short answer is, I do not connect with Manson’s philosophies nor do I connect with the imagined philosophies of Manson as misrepresented by Vincent Bugliosi.

You recently did a cover of Motörhead’s Ace of Spades along with other musicians from the metal/rock spectrum. You like doing covers, varying from Donna Summer to Septic Death. What’s a guilty pleasure you haven’t been able to cover yet?

Nothing that I do is a guilty pleasure. Those insecurities lie upon other people’s allegiance to conformity which they project onto others. I live without constraint, fear or confinement.

To address your question, I might enjoy recording a Meat Loaf song someday.

Do you follow today’s hardcore scene? Any bands that you really like? What’s your top hardcore band, by the way?!

I enjoy listening to music, I do not conform to any one genre nor comply with the restrictions associated with any one genre.

Some current musical groups that I enjoy listening to are: Devil Master, Full Of Hell, Choir Boy, House of Intolerance, Duma.

Is G.I.S.M. one of the best bands ever?! What’s your favorite song / record?

G.I.S.M. is one of my favorite bands. G.I.S.M. released 3 albums and I enjoy all 3 albums as well as their compilation contributions.

If you were to erase from history one Integrity record, which one would that be?

Integrity was not created to appeal to everyone’s taste.

You are also a great artist, doing paintings and artwork. Who are your all-time favorite artists and who are the contemporary ones that you admire their art?

Max Ernst, Felicien Rops, Francis Bacon, Sakevi Yokoyama, Pushead.

Integrity is almost 35 years old, what empowers you to keep going after all these years?

I do not dwell upon nostalgia. I unleash musical sermons which manifest within me.

Is music paying your bills? Have you ever thought of the vanity that goes hand in hand with playing hardcore/metal music while getting older?

I try to not pay attention to what other musicians do, so I am uncertain what you mean about their general vanity.

Seeing almost every band from the 80s reuniting makes me happy on one hand (because I have the chance to see some of my ‘heroes’ for the first time), but on the other hand most of the times saddens me a lot because of their sloppiness on stage. What’s your view on reunions? Have you watched any decent one?

I have never attended a reunion concert, so I cannot comment on this.

Are we just before the dawn of a new apocalypse?

With each generation, the world is always seen as coming to an end. Humans desperately clinging to the notion that their time is the single most most important era of history.

Merci, see you out there!