Pic courtesy of: Amputated "We want to gross people out and that’s the first thing that happens, then they message us or talk to us after a gig and get to know the real band!"

CR: How are you man, hope everything is working for Amputated!
Gareth Arlet: Cheers, things are pretty cool at the moment - if a bit stagnant!

CR: According to your site you guys opened the Vital Remains tour early this year in the UK, how did that work out for you guys? What in your opinion was the biggest musical difference between you guys and the North American band?
Gareth Arlet: What a fuck up that was! We WERE supposed to do it but we ended up getting screwed and only did one gig. Nothing to do with Vital Remains but the tour management. Dave, Tony and co were cool guys and watched our set despite all the fuck ups. Probably the main difference is that they are quite orchestral in the way they produce their music, particularly with Dave's leads. We, on the other hand, don't care!! We just want it to be as brutal as fuck and really primal. We couldn't write fancy riffs if our lives depended on it!!! Low Brow all the way!! Hahaha!

CR: Your new album “Gargling With Infected Semen” has a different cover art work from your previous debut split “Up to Our Nuts in Guts” that one was very “realistic” and now you guys have decided to go for a drawing presentation of all the gore that a title like “Gargling With Infected Semen” has to offer, why that decision, where you concern at some point that some sort of censorship may affect the distribution of your debut full length?
Gareth Arlet: We originally we're gonna go with a similar picture for the album, however a guy we met at a gig in London said he would love to do the artwork and it would be cheap. He emailed Mark (Amputated Vocalist) a few ideas and we all liked it - seemed to fit in more with what we wanted at the time. Most demo bands use pictures from Rotten.com and we wanted to move away from that and be a bit more fucking grim!!! You can get away with alot more in cartoon picture form than if you used a doctored photo. Ollie and I were abit concerned about censorship because of our jobs and especially as Ollie had already been through all that shit with Desecration. We couldn't have cared less about the distro as we weren't expecting it to go anywhere near as far as it has!! We thought we'd only sell about 10 copies!! When Sevared picked it up they couldn't care less either!!

CR: “Gargling With…” has a very peculiar mix of brutality provided by the deep haunting vocals and a catchiness that is very hard to find in a brutal metal band; how do you guys manage to balance brutality and rhythms without one taking over the other?
Gareth Arlet: Its a complete fucking mystery!!! Hahahaha! We don't consciously sit there and think about it. We all love the technical shit like Origin, Psykroptic etc but we also love old school DM like Autopsy so we just write what we think is cool and fuck everyone else! As far as the drums go, I just play what I think sounds cool and then the rest of the guys will say 'why not try this or that beat' and we see what feels right. Same with the guitars.

CR: How long did it take you guys to record this album? What was the toughest part of the recording?
Gareth Arlet: Fuck......too long! Well, that’s a lie. We recorded it over 4 weekends in 2005 at the practice room of a band we know in Birmingham , UK. They had it rigged up as a studio so to save cash we used it. The recording went pretty well, although there were a few incidents but those will stay within the band!! The worst thing was having the album hanging around for nearly 18 months while we shopped for a deal. When Sevared picked it up it was already a year old plus the songs were nearly 3 years old!! It was such a fucking relief when it was released!!

CR: There are a couple of tracks with segments from the movie “Quills” what was so fascinating about that movie or about those lines that you guys felt compelled to add to the album? And by the way Geoffrey Rush is awesome!!!
Gareth Arlet: The film was just fucking awesome! Very dark and disturbing. When Mark and I were watching it we were thinking could we use any samples from it. The ones we picked out just seemed to feel right about the songs they were used on.

CR: What’s the name of the porn star on the intro of the album “Anally Disemboweled (Weapons of Ass Destruction)” dude you have to know your porn stars!
Gareth Arlet: Man, I can't remember!!! Mark is the one to ask about that as it was his film!! He just turned up one day and said 'We gotta use this!'. However, a certain jailbird hotel heiress is on there too!!!

CR: The title of the songs are very peculiar, not really for the gore scene but they do catch the eye of a more “traditional” metal fan, how long do you guys think about names like “Menstrual Cunt Fart”? By the way that is gross man jajaja!!
Gareth Arlet: Not long really. Mark comes up with them, the rest of us don't really bother as we don't need to!! He could be just sat on the bus and all of a sudden he'll come up with a title and scribble it down!! Hes one messed up fucker!!!

CR: There is a Jungle Rot cover on the album “Immersed In Pain” why that song in special? And for how long have you guys been into that North American band?
Gareth Arlet: We've been playing it since we started, really. Martin (our first Bassist) brought the CD to practice one day when we were thinking about songs to cover. He was the only one who was really into them. Immersed in Pain was the first we picked up as it was pretty easy!! Its a cool song and has become a fan favorite, hopefully we have turned on a lot of people to them.

	Pic courtesy of: Amputated "It wasn't until we actually got into the house that we knew what we were doing!!! We had a blast though , drinking our weight in Jack Daniels and all paid for by the BBC!!! Fucking sweet!! We haven't received any grief about it to be honest. Most people just want to see us make complete wankers of ourselves!!!"

CR: “Gargling With Infected Semen” is a fairly short album, in time that is; just a little over 23 minutes, do you think that’s enough for somebody to get into Amputated, for somebody to really get the “idea” the band is trying to put out?
Gareth Arlet: Fuck yeah!! People into the DM and Grind will know straight away. We only ever get trouble from people who are trying to fit in to the crowd at gigs. We want to gross people out and that’s the first thing that happens, then they message us or talk to us after a gig and get to know the real band!

CR: Like I mention before there are pretty much in all the songs some movie intros, probably from movies that really impacted you, I heard some American Psycho and Hannibal in it as well, why is it that so many brutal death or gore, or porno death metal bands use so much pieces of movies to introduce or finalize a song, do you thing is some sort of trade mark for the genre or just a common practice borne out of smart ways to start a song?
Gareth Arlet: Yeah, I think it is a bit of a trade mark. However, unlike Mortician, we just put them in for the hell of it!! We used some comedy sketch stuff as well on the last CD and we are looking at putting some Monty Python stuff on the next album!! It’s got to the point where all the good horror samples have been nicked already!!

CR: What’s the biggest improvement from the previous split album to this, and I mean regarding the composition of the songs and the structure that you are trying to present now?
Gareth Arlet: Probably the speed! Listening to Raped with a Jackhammer now and it sounds much faster than on the split. As for composition.......we've started using more blastbeats and breakdowns as opposed to the more old-school influences. Our newer songs are also a lot longer, more brutal and a lot more thought has gone into arranging the songs. We're starting to take more of an influence from the US based gore bands like Waco Jesus.

CR: You guys were part of a reality TV show for the BBC called “Singing with the Enemy”, how did that opportunity presented to you guys? Have you received any grief from some “metal purist” you know those people that believe that metal should never be involved in anything pop culture related? And is there anyplace where we can watch it…like youtube or something like that?
Gareth Arlet: Yeah, it hasn't been televised yet but we are hoping that the BBC will allow us to release or use some bits on a DVD. Dunno if it'll end up on YouTube but it probably will at some point! I dunno how it happened. All I know is that we got contacted by Endomol (who are the production company) about doing a TV programme. It wasn't until we actually got into the house that we knew what we were doing!!! We had a blast though , drinking our weight in Jack Daniels and all paid for by the BBC!!! Fucking sweet!! We haven't received any grief about it to be honest. Most people just want to see us make complete wankers of ourselves!!!

CR: Is it true that Ollie is a mortician? Dude that’s creepy jajajaja but really cool, no wonder the band plays death metal! Does he ever bring human remains to rehearsal?
Gareth Arlet: Yes he is, although he doesn't see it as being anything other than a professional interest. He gets pretty sick talking about it all the time as its the first thing people pick up on! It is a cool job, I can testify as I did it for 4 weeks on school work experience (although I didn't get my hands dirty!!), but like anything else... it’s just a job!! It does however make it into his lyrics for Desecration!!!

CR: Just how boring the Bristol metal scene really is? This according to your myspace page!
Gareth Arlet: Fucking terrible!!!! It’s full of trend followers that don't really know what the fuck they want to do. Also, the public are so lazy that they just bitch that no descent bands come to Bristol but when they do no fucker goes unless its like Killswitch Engage or Megadeth. Also the venues are so anti-metal that they just don't book them. A few years ago we had an awesome year with Deicide, Nile, Anthrax, SYL all playing and getting good turnouts, however the venues just don't seem bothered! The last good venue got turned into a trendy pub last year and that was it! You either have a 100 capacity pub to play or a 1500 capacity club..........no common ground. However, if we were a covers band or a 'punk' band then we would play gigs every week!! The same goes for the UK. The quicker we can get out the better!!!

CR: You guys have a DVD out “Live amputation” who recorded that DVD, how much distribution did that had?
Gareth Arlet: It was a mate of ours, can't remember who, but they recorded it on a digital camera. We didn't know about it until Paul Whitehead (Vocalist with Crepitation and main bod wih Clanglestrim Pro-duck-shins) spoke to us about releasing it as a DVD. We agreed and.............the rest is history!! Its got around, even to the point of bastards bootlegging it!!

CR: How many line-up changes has the band had since its beginnings?
Gareth Arlet: Fucking loads!! We originally started as a five piece before kicking out our original guitarist. We were then joined by Ollie before Sicky Martin's (Bass) departure. Andi Morris (Bass, now with Desecration) joined before leaving in 2006. Then another Andy (Byles) a long time friend joined. Our current line up is Mark - Vocals; Daryl - Guitar; Ollie - Guitar; Andy - Bass; Garry (Me) - Drums.

CR: What’s the band that has personally impacted you the most and why?
Gareth Arlet: To many to fucking mention!!! Carcass, Cannibal Corpse, Disgorge (Mex and US), Autopsy and on and on!!!

	Pic courtesy of: Renee Van der Ster "This country is so fucking sycophantic. It’s alright for sons and daughters of normal people to go in to combat and end up getting their brains blown out, but just because someone is a Prince"

CR: Would you call your music, and visual media that help shape the music your way of creating art? This because I have actually heard many people said that gore pictures or paintings cannot be categorized as art because of its content. Can art be classified because of what it displays?
Gareth Arlet: Bodyworks is art, floating half a cow in fucking chemicals is art.........why can't porn or disturbing images be classed as art!! People who say that it isn't art are afraid of real life and the consequences of living. You see much worse when watching the news on TV or reading the paper! Death and perversion are part of real life and things like that happen every day.

CR: There was in the news a couple of months ago that Prince Harry (I think that’s the one, not sure really) was to be deployed in Iraq for his tour of duty, but then they change their mind. What do you think will happen to public opinion if the Prince should have died in Iraq?
Gareth Arlet: Fucking let him go!! This country is so fucking sycophantic. It’s alright for sons and daughters of normal people to go in to combat and end up getting their brains blown out, but just because someone is a Prince...........?? He wanted to go, fuck the public opinion and let him earn some respect for himself! Prince Andrew fought during the Falklands War, why not Harry!! What’s good for one is good for another!!

CR: Do you think that the current world events, the pictures of war, injured civilians, decapitation videos, road side bombs have fuelled a more extreme and brutal imagery that actually has increased the level of brutality in metal music, or was metal already violent before the war (I know it was but I definitely believe it has become a topic that helps artist to push the envelop in many art forms)? Has the war inspired Amputated to write more brutal lyrics?
Gareth Arlet: I think it has pushed the boundaries a bit further. Especially with the art work etc. Because of the images on TV, things can be a bit more extreme and slip thought the net. I dunno if it has a direct impact on things. It definitely hasn't for us as Mark and I are into WW2 anyway, but it has never been a subject for vocal or artwork influence since Amputated started. If we were like Nuclear Assault maybe!!!

CR: All right man thanks for your time, to finish, what’s next for Amputated, any tours in the horizon, perhaps a new album on the works?
Gareth Arlet: Well, things are a bit slow as we are working towards our second album. We are hoping to release it through Sevared sometime in the new year, although no concrete plans have been put into action as we are still demoing material. As for shows, we are supporting Dead Infection in July in the UK before the possibility of a UK tour supporting Putrid Pile. As for next year we are hoping to tour Europe again, play the fests and hopefully make it to the US, but we'll have to wait and see!!!