This interview was done for Terrorizer -one of the best world metal magazines around- January issue (2010). This is the whole article I sent to the editor in chief, James Hoare-. He claimed to be very happy and surprised about the answers.

Take your time, and read them.


1) What made you start this project?

When Daniel Ekeroth sent me his book “Swedish Death Metal” I was very impressed. Immediately I started to remember those glorious years when Swedish bands such as Treblinka, Grave, Nihilist and Unleashed would send me their demos. In retribution I would send them original Chilean metal. Those were the days of tape trading! So, I thought: “I have enough material to do a book similar to Ekeroth’s but related to the Chilean metal scene”.

I consider that even though the musical heritage that is what was edited in the eighties within the Chilean scene is not a whole lot, it still deserved acknowledgment and respect similar to the one Swedish bands have gotten. I mean, bands like Pentagram, Atomic Aggressor, Torturer, Massacre and Necrosis did outstanding music and never got a chance to move forward in their careers. They could’ve gone far, but it just didn’t happen. They were sort of ambassadors of our metal. Also, taking into account that I was in touch with the majority of the founding members of the local scene I got enthusiastic about the idea of doing a book that would tell the story of metal in Chile and just went through with it and set forth on what I consider to be a tremendous odyssey.

In short, it wasn’t really that hard to start. What was really complicated was to organize all the data. There was just so much stuff, so much information, that it was hard putting the puzzle together.

I have been editing underground fanzines since 1989. I started with the fanzine “Impulso Repulsivo” (1989), then came “Violence” (1989 -1991) and then “Grinder Magazine” (1993 – 2009). With all that experience I felt that I could measure up to the challenge. That experience as fanzine editor allowed me to gather a great deal of other fanzines, demo tapes, bootlegs, etc, all dealing with the Chilean metal scene and the bands that comprised it.

2) What do you think makes Chilean metal special?

To fully understand the answer that I’m going to give you we must first consider some aspects that I consider extremely important.

Chile is located at the last corner of the world, away from everything and with a natural barrier that is the Andes Mountain range separating us from the rest of humanity. No matter the day, the hour or season, that big mountain range is there always reminding you that it stands as a natural barrier. For those that don’t know Chile, this long and thin country, has more than 3,000 kilometers of mountains stretching from north to south. Something quite unique in the world.

In the mid eighties Chile was living a very special time: The rest of the world knew about us only due to the atrocities of Pinochet’s dictatorship. This sad time lasted 17 years – more than a decade of terror that Chileans had to suffer-. One of the worst consequences of the dictatorship was cultural stagnation. Back then there was this curfew called “Toque de Queda” which basically meant you had to stay home after a certain hour, couldn’t walk the streets like a regular person would, you couldn’t express yourself artistically and the people always felt that they could be prosecuted for being considered communists, etc, etc. It was hell!

Even though thrash metal was a musical style that did not take sides politically, during the first decade of the movement there was constant repression against it coming from the police. Thrashers were constantly terrorized by the police, stopping them on the street for no reason whatsoever. They could do so because there was a law called “Ley de sospecha” or “Law of Suspicion”. That meant that if the police thought you were planning on breaking the law they would stop you even if you were there just talking to your friends. Also, the conservative thought or mind frame of society thought of us thrashers as garbage, lowlifes, the scum of society thanks to unprofessional journalists that now and then on the local newspapers drew attention to thrashers labeling the music and the whole scene as being the home for delinquents and drug addicts. No one cared to notice musical proficiency or cared to find artistic value in the music, which undoubtedly was there. Take also into account that the word “thrash” was confused with “trash” by so called “professional” journalists unaware of their linguistic limitations and quite simply ignorant in English.

Returning to the police. They arrived to every fuckin’ show, I mean every show or metal gig. Many times they would just interrupt the concert and shut it down. That also brought on fights and thrashers being arrested was nothing new. The hostility between police and thrashers was constant.

However, and despite everything, it was around 1983 that the first artistic manifestations related to thrash metal began to appear. I’m talking about fanzines and metal bands. Now, the young thrashers behind the fanzines and bands had no experience whatsoever on how to write a magazine and some of them barely knew how to play their instruments. Anyway, the scene started to grow thanks to the help of everyone involved one way or another and slowly but surely the scene became more professional over time. You must remember that in Chile no musical industry existed dedicated to metal and there were no good places to play. Most of the time bands would play in venues destined for other activities, especially academic.

Back in those days it was a miracle if you could just manage to publish a fanzine or record a demo. It wasn’t an easy thing to do. So, what makes the Chilean scene special? Well, I believe that Chilean thrashers, and all South American thrashers in general have something in common and that is the passion and commitment that they feel for the music. I think it’s much greater than that of Europeans and the people from the States. And maybe the reason for that is that here in South America everything has been so much harder. Things like liberty and the right to express yourself in whichever way you choose are taken for granted when there’s no restriction for them. In Chile, I think we felt and remain feeling that is us against the world. Now, it’s true that the recorded material from the early years of the metal scene (Demos and Lps) might not be too professional, but they do reflect the precarious state of the scene when it started and the real spirit that drove the young musicians to create such music.

Demos from groups such as Pentagram, Necrosis, Massacre, Nimrod or Warpath, just to name a few are faithful reflections of a culture that was constantly being trampled by local authorities. That is one reason why a band of such relevance as Pentagram could not grow or develop like, for example, Morbid Angel or Napalm Death. Chile had hundreds of musical talents that sadly were left buried and left for dead. It’s about time to pay tribute to those musicians through this book.

3) Was there anyone you weren't able to get involved?

I would say no. Almost 99% of the people that were able to leave their mark on the first decade of Chilean thrash metal, which is the period of time that this book covers, were interviewed with the idea in mind of them leaving a testimony that would last forever. And from Arica to Punta Arenas, the two cities farthest from each other from north to south, there were hundreds of artistic manifestations expressed through underground bands, fanzines, radio shows, tape trading, concerts, etc. All the people involved kept the movement going and helped pave the way for the upcoming generations.

4) Have you had any interest in getting it published in English?

Of course. Personally, I believe that it is important for the whole world to know the truth about the real Chilean culture, that compared to Anglo-Saxon culture is so much different. If we compare ourselves to other countries, for example Sweden, a country, which has even fewer habitants than Chile, we come to realize how important it is to have a good education. I mean, here in Chile we are still very far from reaching higher levels in standard of living and things like that. All that has an impact on artistic development so for thrash metal it was hard to do even the simplest things such as play at a concert. And to go outside of the country and play was simply out of the question. And to make a living with this music just simply nuts. And being so far away from everything...

5) Do you think the English-speaking world need to hear these stories?

Without question! I believe that many metalheads and thrashers ought to know of how hard and complicated was to be a thrasher in this freaking country. That way they could understand our culture that up to this day is still considered Third World. There were many thrashers that suffered torture, beatings and whose rights were trampled just because they would not follow shitty mainstream culture. This book reveals some of that, so it not only talks about the music, but also about how special was the eighties in this country.

6) If you had to pick three albums that us ignorant Anglo-Saxons should hear, what would they be?

Sadly not many bands from the first decade were able to leave a debut album for posterity. So, more than saying “this or that album” I would prefer to talk about cornerstone bands that are absolutely essential. And to just name three it would be unjust.

So, here are my choices:

Pentagram:
7" EP (1987) (Chainsaw Murder, Swiz)
Demo 1 (1987)
Demo 2 (1987).

Atomic Aggressor:
“Bloody Ceremonial” – Demo 1989
"Resurrection” – Demo 1991.

Necrosis:
“The Search” (LP 1989, Heavy Metal Maniacs Records, Brazil).

And others that can’t be forgotten are:
Massacre:
“Pissing into The Mass Grave” (Demo 1986)
“Altazor” (demo, 1986)
“Beyond The Psychotic Redemption” (Demo, 1988)

Torturer:
“Oppressed by The Force” (CD/LP, 1992 Infest records, France)
“Kingdom of the Dark” (Demo tape 1991)

Sadism:
“Perdition Of Soul” (Demo, 1989)
“From the Perpetual Dark” (Demo, 1991)
“Tribulated Bells” (CD 1992, Toxic Records)

Totten Korps:
“The King Of Hell Reclaims His Throne” (Demo, 1990)

Death Yell / Beherit,
(Split 7”EP 1991, Turbo Music USA)

Necrosis:
“Kingdom Of Hate” (Demo, 1987)

Belial:
“Homo Lycanthropus” (Demo, 1989)

Nimrod:
“Time Of Changes” (Demo, 1988)