Pic courtesy of: Fatality "The scene here is like my penis. It’s not overly huge but big enough, in demand, and definitely growing"

HK: Hello Fatality! Which member am I dealing with here?
Tom Morrison: Tom here. Lead guitarist, vocalist and founder of Fatality.

HK: Have there been any glowing reactions to your new release, ‘Metal As Hell,’ already?
Tom Morrison: Of course! Lots of emails and kind words of people making connections to our songs, not the cheesy ones as much but the lyrics for the songs ‘Gritface’ and ‘Terminal’ has gripped a few, and we haven't got a bad review yet, but the whole idea behind ‘Metal As Hell!’ was simple metal. No long breakdowns or any of that, just metal songs, much different to next years follow-up called ****** *** ***** which is completely experimental (might I say synth and harmonica?). The direction Fatality is supposed to go because for a first release we just wanted a ‘young’ sound.

HK: Played a gig recently? Where and what the fuck happened?
Tom Morrison: Emmm… Dublin, it was our bass player Jason's 21st birthday so we got completely wasted and gave away a whole pile of free CDs and dared people to buy him three-pint jugs of beer to see if he could down it in one go…he could. Time before that we got girls up from the crowd to dance while we played nothing better than some eye candy.

HK: Honestly now, how would you rate yourselves as a live band?
Tom Morrison: Crowd interaction is a must so we are always looking for new ways to improve ourselves. We always interact with each other too and we like to show off, playing guitar behind our heads or on our knees isn’t too impressive in the studio but take it on a live stage and you’ll see some jaws dropping. We are always thinking we can do better.

HK: So you’re the singer and guitarist… do you consciously try to sound like Dave Mustaine from the ‘So Far, So Good . . . So What!’ album?
Tom Morrison: Hehehe… I thought that might come up. Well I grew up listening to Megadeth and basically taught myself how to play by learning Dave’s songs. It’s not conscious it’s just what I’ve practiced. I listen to a lot of American stuff so I understand when people say I put on an American accent too, but the Northern Irish tone ain’t the most cool sound you’ll hear. I am trying much harder now in improving myself because I know I am not a very good singer but I’m a damn good frontman and I’m not letting some other numpty sing my lyrics, Fatality is a four piece!

HK: Wow, you’ve actually had more lineup changes than Megadeth… even before you released a first album! Would you mind guiding us through Fatality’s Hall of Shame? Who are the privileged few who served with little distinction under the Fatality flag? You don’t have to give names if there’s still any bad blood.
Tom Morrison: Our first drummer was a pretty boy jazz drummer called David that I went to music college with. He thought he was something and basically wanted six drum solos between riffs. I’m sorry, I love drum solos but there’s a time and a place and his place wasn’t in Fatality. Bassists were always a problem with us because either they were not good enough or avoiding practice. We went through four before Jason. One of the longer serving guitarists was Dave Roberts, who was a great guy and all but there was a point when I was having problems with alcohol and other things so I broke up Fatality and when we reformed he wasn’t included. I think I’m a very demanding person to work with which sent a few others the other way, there was also a drummer we auditioned that ACTUALLY brought half a drum stick and a marker pen to drum with. After a lot of tough thought it was a ‘no’ for him.

HK: It’s our duty to provide the readers with the details behind your albums. What was happening behind the scenes of ‘Metal As Hell’? Did the band handle all the details or was there a label and a distro who looked after your pale, white, Irish bums? How much work did it take to bring this baby (‘Metal As Hell’) into the world?
Tom Morrison: Nope. No labels or anything. It was all self produced. We aren’t gonna get any decent label interest until we’ve got our name out there properly and I don’t wana be stuck with a bum deal. It’s nice to be able to take your time and do what you wanna do. ‘Metal As Hell’ cost about £2000, which we funded ourselves. In all honesty it was one of the easiest things I’ve ever recorded. It’s just so raw, without ridiculous amounts of layering, and everyone knew what they were doing. What took the longest was the artwork and CD design because we just didn’t have a clue, hahaha! But it’s here now!

HK: Which songs on it do you consider the band’s finest?
Tom Morrison: We always close the set with ‘Bring Back the Days,’ so that could be the one that seems to get people moving. I personally like them all apart from ‘Shock Treatment’ as much but in every review ‘Shock Treatment’ has been mentioned as one of the better songs so one man’s dump is another man’s dinner I suppose.

	Pic courtesy of: Fatality "I know I am not a very good singer but I’m a damn good frontman and I’m not letting some other numpty sing my lyrics, Fatality is a four piece!"

HK: Where did you learn to write songs and compose lyrics? Was it all trial and error until the music you were coming up with kicked ass?
Tom Morrison: I really don’t know, I always write the title of a song first then make the riffs and lyrics around the title. I’ve always had a very good imagination so I’ve always been able to picture the way a song would sound before it’s even recorded. I’ll write songs while walking to the shop or when trying to go to sleep or sitting in the car. I very rarely use the guitar to write something unless the idea is first sounded out in my head. Sometimes I’ll have to practice something I’ve thought up before I can play it, which is a good way to improve your guitar skills too.

HK: I’m sure the title ‘Metal As Hell’ didn’t take years to finally dawn on you. It fuckin’ owns, in my opinion. Did the phrase ‘Metal As Hell’ arrive on your thoughts like an epiphany?
Tom Morrison: Hahaha! Thanks very much. It was actually the last song that joined the rest, the album was gonna be called bring ‘Back In The Days of Metal.’ I think I was listening to KISS at the time and liked the idea of a chorus they had where they said the first word then the full phrase hence I came up with ‘We’re metal, metal as hell!’ It just sort of popped out and we went with it.

HK: How much leather apparel is worn between all members of the band? And do you like your t-shirts sleeveless?
Tom Morrison: Steve is the man responsible for at least 600 cow deaths. He owns everything in leather the rest of us just own a few jackets. I used to wear leather trousers on stage but they don’t fit anymore so now we just go with tight jeans and sleeveless T-shirts all the way! Think we’re gonna pay hundreds for tattoos and not get to show them? Get Fatality ‘I R METAL’ vests now!

HK: Fatality is from Belfast. How cool is it to live in Belfast? Are there a lot of painted walls and murals of people killed during the Troubles around your neighborhood?
Tom Morrison: Yeah, lots of that stuff here but we don’t care too much for it and we aren’t sectarian in any way. I’d like to live somewhere like Berlin, it’s a beautiful place.

HK: How far does each member of Fatality live from one another? Are you guys old enough to hang out in the pub?
Tom Morrison: It’s about a 20-minute car journey from Keith’s but the rest of us are close to each other. Yeah we love any pub, Steve and I are regulars at our favorite bar in Lisburn. The youngest in the band is Jason but most of us have been getting served since we were 15 anyway like most metalheads.

HK: I always ask this when I interview European bands: How much does a pint cost in your area? Care to recommend any particular brew?
Tom Morrison: It costs around £2.50. There’s nothing better than an ice cold Harp.

HK: So you’ve given me your name, your house, and your favorite hangout. Don’t worry, I won’t ask for your credit card number. But I will ask where does the band practice and play its gigs? That’ll be two questions in one.
Tom Morrison: That’s good because I ain’t got one! We practice in a farmhouse, it's a nice big place and there’s no one around for miles so we can make lots of noise. We’ve started regularly putting on shows in a place in Belfast called The Rosetta where we get five bands from all around to come play with us. It doesn’t matter what level they are its basically first come, first served. We enjoy helping out bands just starting because it’s so hard to get good gigs when you’re starting out.

HK: Has Fatality toured yet? How did you get around and balance schedules, budget, and everything else?
Tom Morrison: We were going to organize a tour for the start of the summer but then we just got so involved in writing that we are going to wait until next year. By then our new album, ******* *** *****, will be finished because it’s all pretty much recorded pre-production wise and we might as well have two full sets of songs to promote when they are there.

		Pic courtesy of: Fatality "We always interact with each other too and we like to show off, playing guitar behind our heads or on our knees isn’t too impressive in the studio but take it on a live stage and you’ll see some jaws dropping. We are always thinking we can do better."

HK: How would you grade the bands individual chops? Has there been light years of improvement since Fatality had its first rehearsal?
Tom Morrison: Me, myself, from wanting Fatality to be an impressive band has motivated me to improve my chops a million times over. We are always trying to impress and better ourselves. When Keith first heard the demos I had done there was no doubt in his mind. He said he knew he had to play that style. We want people to put effort into learning our songs. There are some riffs on ‘Metal As Hell’ that if any of us don’t practice then we’ll lose it and mess it up. We always have to keep our chops fresh. Steve and I grew up together and cut our chops together so he understands the way I play. As for Jason, there is nothing he can’t play. I only had to hear him play once and knew he was in. The biggest improvement I would have to say would be Keith. We all have just watched him get better and better and it is great because you’re not limited to only doing one style. We can all try anything and chances are it’s gonna work.

HK: Are you friends with the guys from Mass Extinction? This interview will be appearing side-by-side with theirs? Based on your on-the-ground experience, how big is the Irish Thrash scene?
Tom Morrison: I’ve never spoken to them personally, but I have seen them live before. They are a great, tight band who are a lot like Slayer and have a good following. The scene here is like my penis. It’s not overly huge but big enough, in demand, and definitely growing.

HK: This is the part where we talk about your favorite artist’s work. Would you mind going into your musical pedigree? Which artists were instrumental in motivating you to become a musician and play Thrash/Speed Metal?
Tom Morrison: My rhythm style comes very much from Megadeth and Dream Theatre though my lead style would be Yngwie Malmsteen, Marty Friedman, and Steve Vai. I just always admired musicians that sounded like they practiced or put the effort in. I used to practice seven hours a day and hated to just see so many bands just playing power chords or tremolo picking as fast as they can for five minutes and call it a song. Although it’s even worse when there are people out there that can play but do that anyway... it infuriates me!

HK: Unfortunately time’s up, Fatality. Thanks for your time. What will you be doing after this interview?
Tom Morrison: You are very welcome. I’ll be going outside to put posters about for another gig now then go for a pint.