Interview with Cannibal Corpse's Paul Mazurkiewicz

Here is the transcribed version of the interview.

LoudTrax.com  Prior to and during the recording of the last album �Evisceration Plague�, you changed many aspects of your drum playing.  Playing to a click track, sitting higher, different sticks, etc� A kind of revelation for you in terms of drumming.

Over a year has passed since you implemented those changes.  How do you feel about the changes now looking back and how has it changed your live performances?

Paul Mazurkiewicz  I think they�re going really good.  Definitely.  Those changes that you were talking about that I made really were still new at that point during the recording.  So a year later of playing live, especially as I didn�t implement those changes up until that point, it was all playing at practice and in the studio.  So my concern was going into the live venue and how it would affect me.  It was weird at first.  We don�t use the click live, that would almost be pretty impossible.  Hopefully at practice will be enough to keep the tempo pretty even, especially the new stuff since everything else wasn�t done to the click.  But so far so good really.  I think having the practice that we�ve had with the click and writing the new songs, I think it really helped out the other songs as well.  But playing live now, it�s a great thing.  I�m really glad I did what I did.  I�m feeling a lot more comfortable up there live with the new sticks and sitting up a little higher.  Still a work in progress, but it�s going good. 

LoudTrax.com  Will you stick to those changes for the next album?

Paul Mazurkiewicz   We�ll use the click track of course.  Obviously all those other changes are already going to be in place.  So really it�s just going to be a matter of incorporating the click track once again into writing and recording.   It�s not concerning myself about new sticks or sitting higher, new beaters, that�s already in the works.

LoudTrax.com You guys have always liked to get new death metal bands on tour with you to help them get exposure.  What new bands, death metal or other,  have caught your attention in the last couple of years?

Paul Mazurkiewicz  AEON (points to the Aeon hat he was wearing).  That�s the one that got me.  �Bleeding the False� is a great album.  Heavy album, just great song writing.  I�m old school I guess so to me the heaviest albums are going to be the ones that stick.  The first Deicide, the first Morbid Angel  and all that kind of stuff.  A lot of things just don�t seem to catch me these days.  There�s great bands, great musicians out there, but nothing was grabbing me.  However when I first heard the �Bleeding the False� album in 2005 it really blew me away.  I think they�re an amazing band with great precision.  The epitome of a death metal band.

LoudTrax.com Have you heard their upcoming album �Path is on Fire�?

Paul Mazurkiewicz  No I�ve haven�t but heard it�s good though.

LoudTrax.com  Artwork plays such an important part of Cannibal Corpse.  With digital downloads becoming more popular, have you guys thought of a new way to offer your fans the same pleasure of a cd booklet, or vinyl gatefold, but digitally.  For example, some bands are including pdf files of their artwork with their downloads, or an �app� that contains the booklet, lyrics, and photos.

Paul Mazurkiewicz  I don�t know to be honest.  A lot of things are taken over with management these days.  So I am not sure what their plan is for any of the digital stuff.   I know we�ve hit that way.  We have the box set with our entire catalog available digitally for a decent price. I would imagine to keep up with things that you have to.  So I would think that at least for the next release we�ll probably be doing something like that.  I�m sure management will do what�s needed to keep up with the times.

I�m sure it would happen, I don�t see why not.  If people do buy our stuff digitally as opposed to buying the CD or what have you, I think they�re going to want the artwork.    And that�s why I think we still sell good numbers on CD �cause people want the booklet, the cover, the lyrics, it is important to have that.  Great question, that�s something we need to be asking the proper people above us.

LoudTrax.com   Speaking of the people �above you�.  You�ve been with Metal Blade Records for your whole career.  How important is your relationship with the label and how has the relationship changed since you first signed.

Paul Mazurkiewicz  It�s always great when you can be with someone you�re whole career like that.  It becomes more than just a business.  We have some personal relationships with Brian sl*gel, Mike Faley.  They�re great guys and even though they�re our record label, we�re still friends with them, as much as you can be friends with your record label I guess. 

I think we were always treated great by them, we�re always given creative control.  Why should we change it up you know?  Over the years, unfortunately it might be a kind of slide in some ways, �cause we never had management in the past.  So we were always doing things ourselves, which means you�re talking to the record label a lot more.  Then when management gets involved, you have a middle man. I used to talk to Mike Faley on the phone all the time about business, but now with management in there you find yourselves not talking to these people as much.  You�ll see them and everything�s great and fine but as opposed to talking to them every couple of weeks or months I might have spoken to him in a year or 2.  So that�s probably the big kind of change, other than that I think they�re doing great for us and always have.  In all areas that a record label should be, regardless if you have a personal relationship with them. 

LoudTrax.com    The band hasn�t started thinking about a new album yet.  How does a new album come about for you?  Do you think �ok, it�s time for a new album, let�s start writing�� or more like, �hey guys, I got some great new ideas for new songs, let�s start working on something new�.

Paul Mazurkiewicz  That rarely happens �in the Mode� if we�re not in writing mode.  Right now we�ve been touring and we have little down time.  We�re really working on our live set.  For instance, at practice before this tour we had no time to write any new stuff �cause we�re re-learning some old songs that we want to bring back for this tour.  I know Pat (O'Brien, guitarist) has a few ideas he made us hear which were killer.  But we haven�t had any time to do anything with them at that point cause we�re working on our live set and we gotta to be ready for that.

It rarely happens where we have any material of a substantial matter after we�re done with the touring.  When we�re not touring anymore, then we set a �day 1� where the process of writing begins usually.  We starting from scratch from that point.  Hopefully this time around, Pat already has a couple of ideas floating for a couple of songs.  Maybe Alex (Webster, bass) has a couple of ideas too, so at least we�re ahead of the game in that way.  We�ll be under time constraints knowing that we�re going have to come up with a period where we�ll be in the studio and we prepare before that to get everything together.  It�s sort of a crunch time, but usually we�re pretty good.  There�s never been an album that we started from scratch and then went to record that�s taken more than 7 months.  We work pretty efficient when we know we need to get an album done.

LoudTrax.com  You guys have  a heavy tour schedule.  Do you go to shows often?  What bands do you like watching?

Paul Mazurkiewicz  Usually on an off night, I don�t want to go anywhere near a venue!  It would have to be someone that I just have to see.  If it�s just �somebody�, I don�t really want to go � I�m in a venue every night playing.  When you just played 13 shows in a row, and get a day off, the last thing you want to do is go to a venue with loud music.

LoudTrax.com  What are some of the drummers you like enjoy listening to?  Metal, and non metal.

Paul Mazurkiewicz  It�s really kind of the guys I grew up with that were my influences in metal.  Dave Lombardo�s (Slayer) been a big influence.  The guys that I grew up listening to that helped form Cannibal Corpse and form my drumming style.  Bands like Kreator.   I listen back and I realize how much guys like Gus Pynn from Sacrifice is just a huge influence on me and my playing.  When I listen back to his drumming, I feel like I play a lot like him and I know he was a huge influence on me growing up.  I love the first 2 Sacrifice records.  I enjoy the stuff that I grew up listening to.  I just met Reed Mullin for the first time in Raleigh.  The original Corrosion of Conformity drummer.  A legend! "Animosity" is one of our favorite albums � amazing drumming on that record!!  It was kind of special meeting him and hangin� out with him. 

I�m not a big fan of listening to a lot of obscure crazy music.  I know there�s a lot of great drummers out there like Vinnie Colaiuta and Dave Weckl and I know of them, but I don�t really seek all that out.

Neil Peart would be one of my all time favorites.  He was big influence on me as well growing up.  You can still watch the guy now and be blown away and amazed by his abilities.  The fact that they�re still kicking is incredible.  He was a huge influence on me and still really is.  I love his drumming, how can you not really?  Incredible!

LoudTrax.com  You�re a hockey fan� and you�re in Montreal�.

Paul Mazurkiewicz   Lol! I know it�s cool that they won yesterday (apr. 26).  I wish the game was tonight just to see what the excitement would be here.  I�m glad for Montreal.  My team�s out, Buffalo Sabres lost.

LoudTrax.com So you catch any hockey games on your off nights?

Paul Mazurkiewicz  Of course we try.  We�re not always in a place where we have an off night and there�s something going on.  If it does happen, I love to go.  For instance if we were in town and there was a way to go, I would love to go.
We just played the Scion festival in Columbus, Ohio, and my dad came to the show.  He�s a big hockey fan and we were 5 seconds from where the Blue Jackets play hockey, so we went and saw the St. Louis Blues play the Blue Jackets.  It was cool just being in a different city and in a different arena you�ve never been to watching hockey.  I wish it happened more, I�d love to see games wherever I can.

LoudTrax.com Any Stanley Cup predictions?  (note, this was asked before the Montreal � Washington Game 7)

Paul Mazurkiewicz Well, my prediction is over at this point �cause I picked the Buffalo Sabres to win the Cup.  It�s hard to say.  You would think Washington would be the favorite but it doesn�t mean much anymore.  How many teams win the President�s Trophy and then are out or never even make it to the finals!?  Montreal might end up beating Washington, Halak is playing great. 

At this point I'd prefer if the Penguins and Red Wings don�t win it as I�d prefer someone else to win it.  Maybe Vancouver.  I�d definitely like to see a Canadian team win it because it�s a Canadian sport.  It sucks seeing a Canadian team leave, like Phoenix.  Would be cool to see Vancouver win.  Montreal would be cool, it�s the Mecca of hockey, I wouldn�t be upset if they won it.  

Thanks to Sarah Lutz at Metal Blade Canada for organizing this interview.