Unrestrained! Interviews Pessimist by Aaron McKay (2002)

Unrestrained!: To begin, congratulations on re-signing with Lost Disciple Records and the incredible effort, "Slaughtering the Faithful"! It must feel free good to have achieved the stature Pessimist has attained! Generally, things must be progressing well for the band... Yes?

Kell: Well yes we couldn't be happier really... our third CD is out, the lineup is more solid than ever and we are looking towards the future!! We are currently planning our first full-scale US Tour and we're already writing for the next release, an EP due out later this year.

Speaking of progressing well, I am curious how the tour came off with Dying Fetus on April 27 in Providence, RI. (I am a friend of John G. from D.F.)

We had a great show in Providence! Unfortunately at the last minute Dying Fetus was unable to make the show...but we have played tons of shows with Dying Fetus over the years - we live in the same area and so we are great friends...

Speaking of tours, I know Pessimist has played with Morbid Angel, Amon Amarth, Diabolic and Burial (among A LOT of other). What are some of the finer points of having exposure provided by these various bands?

It's great to be able to play in front of different crowds whether we share the stage with bigger acts or smaller, less-established bands.

Is there anyone you have NOT hit the road with that you might like to if money, time and label agreements were NO PROBLEM?

Slayer... or Ozzy!!

Is there a "learning curve" when Pessimist tours with other outfits? That is to say, do you pick up anything from other acts you share the stage with?

Definitely...there's no teacher like experience. Pessimist has played a lot of shows over the years, with many different bands. The band is definitely ready for the next level.

Other than total brutality, is there any other "goal" Pessimist has when putting forth an effort? If YES, why? If NOT, why is that the case?

Well Pessimist is not a band that concentrates solely on being brutal... there are plenty of bands who do that. We try to focus on musicianship and creative songwriting as well... plus there's an actual concept to Pessimist, and what the songs are about. It's not like a lot of typical gore/grind bands who just want to be brutal, or play a certain style to be "popular".

Right or wrong, a lot of individuals would consider a band of your sound and caliber to hail from a state like Florida. What is the scene like in Maryland?

The Maryland scene right now has a lot of hardcore kids...there's almost no real "scene" for death/black metal, and not many clubs to play. There are some really good bands from here though...some people notice FL death metal influence in our sound, but I think we have a more brutal approach.

Where does a band like Pessimist draw its aggressively from?

You'll notice a lot of the anger on this album focuses on a hatred of religion, and the world in general. These are violent and brutal times!!

Looking into your crystal ball, what band MIGHT Pessimist look at doing a "cover" song of?

We have no plans for Pessimist to record any cover songs at all in the near future.

Generally speaking, how has "Slaughtering the Faithful" been received among Pessimist fans?

The fans have been totally supportive! We have heard a lot of comments - people have said some great things about this album...most are saying this album takes the band to an all-new level amongst the death metal elite!

If you would, how would you say "Slaughtering" compares to "Cult of the Initiated" and "Blood For The Gods", for instance?

"Slaughtering" is the absolute fastest and most intense album this band has ever created. It's definitely completely different album than our previous CDs, in every aspect except that it does retain the "Pessimist" sound! We wanted to do a vicious, brutal and fast album, which is what we have done.

I realize that this question must have come up a lot, but how did your relationship with Erik Rutan come about? Was it a fascinating experience to work with such an accomplished gentleman?

Working with Erik was actually a really cool experience! I had been friends with Steve Tucker, Morbid Angel's previous frontman, and had met Erik through Steve. We had been in contact for a couple years now... after that, Pessimist ended up getting an opening slot for a show with Morbid Angel in Rochester, NY, and we had just re-signed to Lost Disciple...after the show Erik asked us about our new CD, where we were recording, and if we'd like to fly to Tampa, FL to record. We were honored that Erik would invite us to record at his studios, and he had chosen us out of several other bands that wanted to record with him at that time...so of course we agreed.

In my personal opinion "Summon to Suffer" is the most interesting on the new effort? Why do you think that is? Do you agree? If not, please tell us what is the cut most near and dear to you...

That's interesting that you chose that song...maybe it's because it's one of the shorter songs and a catchy/quick song structure...it has some trade-off vocals too...some others have said that "Infernal Abyss", "Stripped of Immortality" or the title track all stand out. My favorite is probably "Baptized in Blasphemy" or "Resurrected Torment".

As far as influence can carry a band as solid as Pessimist, who play the biggest role in influencing you and the band?

We all have different musical influences but for the most part we all share certain influences like Morbid Angel, Deicide, Suffocation and Immolation...and also bands like Krisiun and Angelcorpse.

"Sick" Mick Kimock strikes me as one helluva technical drummer and a true asset to the band's aggressive tendencies. Do you agree? Tell me a bit about more about his style and participation.

Well, Mick did not play on the new album... we had some problems with the drummer on the album so after we recorded the CD we got a new drummer, "Sick Mick" Kimock, (formerly of NJ-based death metal band Corrupture, also former band of Pessimist bassist/vox Reaper). We've been playing together for about 6 months and already played several shows and two of the largest US Fests: NJ Metal Meltdown, and New England Metal & Hardcore fest. Mick is really the best drummer this band has ever had, and the only drummer I've ever found who could play [previous drummer from Cult and Blood CDs] Chris Pernia's parts exactly, but faster...writing together is almost effortless... the core of the band remains solid and we are already writing for the next release.

Outside of the aggressive musical nature, how much of a part would you say a band like Pessimist's vocalist plays? Is the vocal style in which Pessimist's message conveyed as important as say the harshness of the guitars or the driving rhythms of the drums?

The vocals were supposed to be much more dynamic and up-front in the recording... yes the vocals are a big part of our sound, even on previous albums.

On that topic, how about the message delivered to the listener? Is the (violent) subject matter a prerequisite, in your opinion?

Definitely, of course!

I want to thank you for you very valuable time in answering these questions for the Unrestrained! readers as well as myself. Please feel free to put across any thing here you might like to say, and THANKS again!

Thanks for the interview and best of luck with Unrestrained! A special thanks to all who have continued to support Pessimist since our last album...look for "Slaughtering the Faithful" out now!

Taken from Unrestrained! Mag, 2002