INTERVIEW: GORE-DRENCHED SICILIAN DEATHSTERS HAEMOPHAGUS PREPARE TO INFECT EUROPE

There're few European nations with as proud a history of trashy, exploitative horror as Italy. The heavily stylised and downright sick giallo films of Sergio Martino, Lucio Fulci, Dario Argento and Mario Bava have become such a vibrant code for cinematic thrills that Argento, amazing, voiced one of the characters in the Italian version of tense sci-fi horror game 'Dead Space'. Coming close second would be Spain, but while the 'Tombs of the Blind Dead' series have being inducted into the doom canon through Cathedral and Hooded Menace, there's also a shuffling legion of homegrown horrors as well, of which Gruesome Stuff Relish, Haemorrhage and Machetazo are the best know. Where are the Italian gorelords ready to celebrate their native culture?

“I don’t know,” admits drummer David of Sicilian old school gore metallers Haemophagus, “maybe ‘cos Italian horror films are in a paradoxical way more famous in other countries than in Italy, or maybe ‘cos there are more posers in Italy than in Spain.”

More than making up for the high poser count, Haemophagus play rumbling classic death metal, right on the cusp of goregrind – the reference points being Impetigo, Autopsy, mid-period Carcass, Master, and getting home from the Grindcrusher tour with an armful of Morbid Angel t-shirts and a blown mind, and forming your own band.

Having released a staggering array of splits to compensate for the rough hand dealt to them by geography – getting into Italy itself is a pain in the cock from Palermo, let alone the bit of Italy that tours pass through  – and 2009's menacing 'Slave s to the Necromancer' full-length, Haemophagus are keen to keep the pace up.

“Nothing is going to make us forget that Italy is one of the worst countries for our type of music really,” explains David, “but thanks to guitarist/vocalist Giorgio’s paranormal creativity, we have always many songs to use for every kind of release and so we are distributed enough.”

Their most recent release, a split with Norway's Grind Crusher is the most recent exhumation from the creative mortuary.

“It’s our third split EP, and I think it’s our best material on vinyl at the moment; we used three songs for this release, in which, in my opinion, you can hear our Napalm Death/Terrorizer influences in two of them, 'Ways To The Flesh' and 'Gaseousness, Bloating And Flatulence', and a thrashier vein in the third, 'Cannibal Whore'. It has been great to share this 7”s with our Norwegian mates Grind Crusher, we have a similar taste about death metal and grindcore, and we passed four nice days with them during our mini-tour in Italy last year.
“At the moment I can announce we have the following upcoming releases: 'Slaves To The Necromancer' LP, Haemophagus/Bonesaw split CD/LP, Haemophagus/Repuked split 7”, Haemophagus/Mesrine split 7”, and we’re just working on the next album - it will be ready sometime in 2012.”

2011 though will see them shuffle across Europe, spreading their vile infection at the Czech Republic's Obscene Extreme and the Netherlands' Bloodshed Festival – both of which you better damn well attend.

“We’re just organizing a three-week European tour with Mesrine after OEF,” enthuses David, “and we plan to do the same with Bonesaw before Bloodshed Fest; we’re psyched for sharing these tours with two great bands like them and to be part of these festivals!

“At the moment, seeing the just confirmed bands at OEF, I can’t wait to see Benediction, Brutal Truth, Entombed, Entrails, Impaled, Interment, Lock Up, Magrudergrind, Suffering Mind, Psycho, Rotten Sound and Squash Bowels.”

So, er, what're your favourite Italian horror films?

“Mario Bava’s 'La maschera del demonio', 'Gli orrori del castello di Norimberga', 'Reazione a catena', 'I tre volti della paura (Black Sabbath)', 'Shock', Antonio Margheriti’s 'Danza macabra (Terrore)', 'I lunghi capelli della morte, La vergine di Norimberga', 'Nella stretta morsa del ragno', Riccardo Freda’s 'I vampiri', Lucio Fulci’s 'L'Aldilà... e tu vivrai nel terrore (From Beyond)', 'Zombi 2', Pupi Avati’s 'La casa dalle finestre che ridono'' - maybe the best Italian horror film!, 'Zeder', Umberto Lenzi’s 'Mangiati Vivi!', 'Incubo Sulla Città Contaminata', 'Cannibal Ferox', Dario Argento’s 'Phenomena', 'Suspiria', 'Inferno', 'Tenebre', 'Opera' - even if I maybe prefer his thriller films like 'Profondo Rosso', Quattro mosche di velluto grigio e L’uccello dalle piume di cristallo' - Claudio Fragasso’s 'Monster Dog', 'Zombi 4', Joe D’Amato’s 'Buio Omega', Bruno Mattei’s 'Virus', Michele Soavi’s 'La chiesa'...”

There was no way that was going to be a short answer.