Despise You Interview with Chris Elder. FFO: A frankly awesome conversation about hardcore, DIY and being passionate about music!!!

Fuck me if you are in extreme music, hardcore and the like you need to blast Despise You, one of the pioneers and pretty much the finest hour of much loved (along with No Comment) subgenre of powerviolence. If you don't know this band definitely check this excellent artist profile via Bandcamp features; it's a very solid read with fantastic tracks from the band inserted between the article:

https://daily.bandcamp.com/features/despise-you-feature

But personally, I would recommend listening to every release of this gritty, energetic and abrasive band, and go see them when they play in Australia this May, support them hard, BUT FIRST HAVE A LISTEN TO THIS AMAZING INTERVIEW with Chris Elder, the vocal powerhouse of this band. Chris doesn't do many interviews, so I was so pleased to have the chance to chat with him at length-like for well over 60 mins, he is such a genuine person who was very open to any questions and super inspiring. The importance of this band cannot be underplayed, they have inspired so many bands and they never let you down with their uncompromising brutality.

We discussed among other things:

-The terrific formation of this classic band, the humble beginnings stemming from an underground radio show with a friend

-influences on the band in particular the skating and punk intersection, mags like Thrasher and Flipside, spotting like-minded people and that kinship

-local area vibes, life experience and hardship

-how he never imagined an Australian tour and the excitement around that prospect

-how Powerviolence is a unique and quite small subgenre, but so necessary

-early musical influences on the band

-we spoke about Mike Muir's record store, Dogtown skates, skating pools and the culture

-West Side Horizons, how important and popular this incredible release is, how it keeps getting repressed

-the quality of the band's split releases

-Chris and his label Pessimiser Records and some of its brilliant releases

-Despise You taking some time before their live debut, speedy recording sessions

Part 2:

-Chris Dodge(Spazz/Slap-a-Ham records) pushing them to play live

-the busy insanity of some tours, like 15 dates in a row in Japan, Choof supporting them

-Some of Chris's fave releases on his label

-how his fanzine turned into a record label

-me seriously nerding out on the great releases he put out

-the crazy prices of international mail these days vs yesteryears

-Chris and his fantastic artwork on some releases and the importance of the DIY ethic

-Maximum Rock'N Roll and their remarkable ads

and heaps of other chatter that was all worthwhile and passionate.

here's the two-part gem of an interview:

Part One:

Part Two:

So now you have the detailed scoop on the band and wisdom regarding the legacy of this band. So what are you going to do; BUY A FUCKING TICKET TO THE TOUR IN YOUR AREA AS IT'S NEXT MONTH, IN FACT, GO TO A COUPLE OF SHOWS, BUY THEIR MERCH/RECORDS AT THE SHOWS AND SUPPORT THEM HARD. ONE OF POWERVIOLENCE'S UTTER DEMIGODS ARE HERE REAL SOON!!!!

HERE ARE THE DETAILS FUCKOS:

BUY TICKETS HERE:

https://deadset.oztix.com.au/Default.aspx

THOSE NUTTER MATES OF MINE CHOOF ARE SUPPORTING THIS TOUR AT EVERY GIG, PLUS MENTALLY WARPED KILLER SUPPORT AT EVERY SHOW!!!!

SO GO BUY THE TIX AND SEE YOU IN THE PIT FUCKFACES!!!

(Photo credits: Anthony Mehlhaff, Paul Verhagen and others We stole from the Internets!!)