Live 4 Metal - Immolation Interview

Interview with Bob Vigna of Immolation
By Dave Schalek - April 2010

I can safely say, even this early in the year, that the latest album from Immolation, Majesty and Decay, is going to reside very near the top of this year’s Top Ten List. In addition, the recently completed Nile/ Immolation/ Krisiun tour of the U.S was hard to top, as all three bands put on a monstrous show (for a full account of the Los Angeles show, please go here).

At any rate, I had a chance to interview Immolation guitarist and co-founder Bob Vigna about the album, the recently completed tour, and the future plans of Immolation.

Congratulations on the release of an absolutely stunning album with Majesty and Decay. What was the band’s reaction to the finished album? As the album was being put together, was there a feeling that something special was taking place?
Thanks, glad you like it! We think that Majesty and Decay is one of our strongest albums to date. It is definitely the best produced and really has a powerful sound and feel! We are very happy with the finished product for sure!

Although we did record and track the album at Millbrook Sound Studios with Paul Orofino, we decided to take a different approach on the mixing and mastering. This is where we had Zack Ohren take over, and he did an amazing job! The production is really strong and you can really hear everything great, plus the emotion and atmosphere is still present!

I think being that we did some pre-production for the first time, in writing the songs on my computer, we were able to get a good idea of how the material was going to sound when it was done. So the whole writing process was completely different this time. I think once we started hearing the completed songs as we went along, one after the other, we started to get a good impression that this was going to be one Hell of an album! Haha!

Are you pleased with the media’s and the fans’ responses to Majesty and Decay?
Yeah, we’ve been getting really great responses all around. This is probably the best response over all that we’ve ever had for a record, so we are glad about that! We think it’s a very strong record, and it’s good to see that the fans and media agree!

You have recently completed a tour with Nile and Krisiun. Do you enjoy touring with those bands?
Yes, it was a great time. We’ve known the Nile guys for years and the Krisiun boys are like brothers to us. This was our third tour with them, and we always have a good time and look out for each other, so it was cool. We shared a vehicle with Krisiun, too, so it was a lot of fun. We also met Dreaming Dead for the first time on this tour, and they were a really good band and really cool people. So, the whole tour was pretty awesome!

Describe the crowd’s response to Immolation’s performances on the recent tour. Although I saw your performance in Los Angeles, describe to our readers your choice of set list, including new material.
Well it gets harder after every album I can tell you that! Especially on a tour like that when we had a half hour set. So you’re talking about trying to fit eight albums’ and one EP’s worth of material into seven songs! Haha! So, we decided to do “The Purge” as it is the opening track on the new record. Being that the album wasn’t out at that time, we didn’t get too crazy with the new stuff. Only on the first couple of shows did we do two songs each night as we had a little more set time on those first couple of shows.

But, the crowds were great! The new stuff went over well as did the older tunes! All the bands did really well actually. We had some really cool crowds on this one, supporting all of the bands involved!

What other plans are in the works to promote the album, and are you pleased with the support that you’ve received from Nuclear Blast Records over the last few years?
NB has been doing a great job! They are very helpful and very involved, so it has been really cool!

We are going to Europe in a week to do five shows/fests. Then, we are planning some more stuff in Europe for August. We are working on a headline tour for the US in September/ October, and then we plan to hit Europe again shortly thereafter.

We also want to see if we can get out to some other countries, etc, that we haven’t been to before with this record, such as Japan, Australia, South America, and Greece. We are working on it!

Many members of the media have remarked at how well the album flows together. How much thought was given to the album’s track sequence?
A lot. It is always are hard choice as we go through the tracks as we write them, from one to ten. We don’t figure out too much about the CD running order until we can hear everything in its finished state. But, the album does need to flow well, that’s real important. It’s almost as if you have one big song, broken down into ten parts, just like a song it needs to have that flow that makes it all work.

Are there any plans to perform the album in its entirety? Has the band discussed this possibility?
Haha! No, not really! Although I personally would be down!!! Haha! Maybe in the future, we’ll see. But, for now, I think we will be playing a lot off of Majesty…, that’s for sure!

A lyric sheet was not provided with the promotional material. Describe the lyrical themes present on Majesty and Decay. What differences occur with previous albums, and how have the lyrical themes of Immolation evolved with time?
I think that over the years we have developed a bit. Our earlier records focused on religion a lot and the harm it can cause. Of course, we had other subjects in there, too, but the anti-religious theme was more of the dominating factor.
These days we have broadened things up a bit on the last few records, dealing with more of what is going on in the world today, looking more at the overall darker sides of mankind.

On Majesty and Decay we look at mankind’s obsession with power and opulence and how that abuse of power and greed causes the decline and deterioration of our society. We look at the darker events in our recent history, and how those events helped shape where we are today and also show how history repeats itself. From war, religion, megalomania, atrocities, and even how we abuse the planet itself. The world can be a very twisted place, and we focus in on that side of it.

Immolation have been going strong for over twenty years. What has kept you and Ross Dolan going over the years? Has your enthusiasm for remaining in death metal periodically waxed and/ or waned over the years?
I think it’s just the love of the music, the passion for creating interesting songs, it’s something that is a big part of our lives. Now, after all this time, we still feel like a young band, believe it or not. We are creating some of our most intense material, we are the best we have ever been in a live setting, and now with Majesty…, we feel we have a new chapter opening up here. To us, this is just the beginning. We feel we have only just begun to tap the potential of the band, and we are more driven and ambitious than ever before. Metal keeps you young, and the music keeps us going! We love the whole process, we love touring and getting out there in front of crowds. Travelling to different countries and places that we haven’t been, it’s all part of the big picture for us. Through the band we have gained experiences that are priceless and, more importantly, some great friends all around the world. So, for us the enthusiasm is very strong and only grows stronger with every album.

After the touring cycle for Majesty and Decay has been completed, what are the long range plans for Immolation?
Well, let’s just get some touring done first! Haha! The album just came out! We will do as much touring as we can with this one, and then of course get to work on a new record when the time is right. For now, we want to enjoy this ride first, and we are just at the start here. We have a long road to go before our mission on Majesty… is complete!! Haha!

Thank you for your time.
Thanks for the support! We appreciate it! Visit us at www.myspace.com/immolation
See all you metal fanatics out there on the road soon!