Interviews

Interview: Cataract

Having parted company with founding member and guitarist Simon Füllemann (as well as short-term bassist Kay Brem) since their last album release, Swiss metallers Cataract have undergone a period of introspection and come out fighting with a sparkling self-titled album to mark the 10th anniversary of the band. Sonic Dice found time to discuss this new change of direction with an extremely articulate frontman, Federico “Fedi” Carminitana, on his latest visit to London amidst the madness of the Hell On Earth tour.

You enjoying this tour?
Yeah, it’s going really well. Every night, really packed, lot of people. Many different venues - comparing this, The Underworld, with yesterday which was an old hall, really huge - something really different, very interesting… a lot of different people and cultures. UK’s totally different from mainland Europe… which is really cool.

What do you think of the line-up on this tour? Is there a downside to having too many great bands together?
No, it’s pretty cool. Most of the bands here are completely different to each other. Stick To Your Guns are more like this hardcore thing. Then you have Animosity which is a really crazy metal and technical thing… and The Red Chord are the same kind of thing. Then you have this beat down stuff going on with All Shall Perish. We’re more in the thrash direction, and then you have Walls Of Jericho who are more into hardcore, but more 80s/90s-based. A really good mixture and different kids coming to watch. Like a really big melting pot.

The new album is self-titled. What was the thinking behind that?
Yeah. We had a lot of trouble with the line-up. We split with one of the family members. He was a big part of Cataract and we thought we have to do something new; like a new beginning. The other thing it’s our 10th anniversary so we wanted something special.

What kind of subject matter do you explore on the album?
For me, it’s a kind of expression of frustration, of anger, of all the negativity I have inside of me. It’s about social, environmental and political stuff. I see stuff in my studies at my University in Zurich. There’s a lot of stuff going round in this world at the moment and that’s the stuff I pack into the lyrics.

What do you study at University?
Sociology and geography. More in the direction of human geography.

Are you getting a good reaction to the new songs?
Yeah. The new songs are mainly a lot longer and a lot of people didn’t expect that. Also a lot of people didn’t think we’d be able to make a good record at this time. We never got such good reviews as we did for this record so it‘s fantastic for us.

What is the Swiss hardcore metal scene like?
It’s pretty strong. I remember, when I joined the band in 2001, Cataract played 2 or 3 shows a year in Switzerland. Now, we’re able to play almost every weekend and pack in 700 kids. We had a record release party with 1000 kids there and on the emotional side it was very, very strong. It took, like, 7 years to get these people to come to the show and now they really support us. It’s so great to play in Switzerland now.

Is there more of an American or European influence there?
I think it’s definitely more European. In the 90s there was a real American influence. I was a promoter and none of the kids would go if there wasn’t a US band on the bill. Today you can do a festival with only European bands and it’s, like, packed. Only Swiss bands and it’s packed. That’s the cool thing. So definitely more of a European influence, even if we’re not in the EU! (Laughs).

I hear you had a throat infection and had to cancel a festival.
Yeah. That was right before the tour and I didn’t want to risk it. I was really sick. I was really disappointed as we were headlining this festival in Belgium. And this guy said “oh fuck, if you don’t come we’re fucked”. And I said “I can’t come cos it’s my throat and I need it to go on”. So, yeah, I was really sorry about that.

When these things happen do you chalk it up to fate or does it make you more determined to put things right?
This whole thing is a really important thing in my life. It’s not only for fun; it takes the balance in my life. I can get rid of the shitty things that I see. I can be with the people I like. You can go to many different places and see old friends. So it definitely makes me more determined to put things right.

Have you noticed changes in the places you’ve been to over the years?
Of course. Some places, like in Germany, shut down which is sad. Youth culture and music culture is really important and that’s what I like about the UK. Because they recognise that it’s a really important thing for society. If kids don’t have the place or the space to do this kind of stuff they go crazy, you know. That’s where a lot of these social problems come from.

As you’ve said, it’s your 10th anniversary as a band. How have you managed to keep things fresh?
This is not our job. It’s something you do because you love it. That’s why we keep going on and always striving to move forward.

How did you inject this passion for music into the new album?
Everyone evolves and therefore the sound evolves. So in the new album there’s more melody, there’s more changes in the music. It involves naturally, I guess.

What advice have you got for bands starting out?
I get e-mails from bands asking how did we get so big. The truth is we never wanted to be that big from the beginning. We just wanted to play the music we want and be true to ourselves. We don’t care what the media says, what is in, what is out, we don’t care how to dress, how the haircut is. We just do the music we love.

What bands inspire your music?
There are two main influences. There is the 80s/90s thrash metal thing, with bands like Slayer, Testament, Death and Obituary, and then there is the 90s New York hardcore thing, with bands like Integrity, Madball and Cro-mags.

What’s your least favourite thing about touring?
I don’t like that my girls are not here. When you come home it’s… ah shit, it’s so cool. I’ve got like my bathroom, my girlfriend, my television. Then after two days it’s like, “shit, I want to go on tour again“. It’s so funny, you know? Cos’ when you’re on tour it’s, “oh shit, I wanna go home“. (Laughs). The other thing is waiting to go on stage. What we do, though, is go sightseeing around these beautiful cities. That’s what I like about Camden, y’know? It’s where punk was born, more or less. I like it when the club is in the middle of the city. When it’s outside you can’t go downtown. But if you’re with people you like you can have a lot of fun - do shitty photos and all that.

Finally, where do you see yourself in five years?
I’m gonna be a teacher in a gymnasium. (Laughs). No, I’ll hopefully be finished with my studies. I’m definitely gonna be doing music. I think Cataract will still exist and we’ll still be playing true music from our hearts.

Cheers, Fedi. Have a good show.
Thanks for the interview. It was awesome!

Band Link:
Cataract

Big up to Andy@Metal Blade for helping set this interview up.

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