International Interview: Dave Ingram talks about Nefasturris’ upcoming album and more

 After playing in different bands bassist/vocalist Dave Ingram decided it was time to record an eclectic mix of ideas, those that wouldn’t fit into any of the projects he is – and has been – part of. That was the beginning of Nefasturris. 

 

 

FMBR:Please give us a brief bio about Nefasturris.
 
I started Nefasturris in 2013, though didn't start actively working on it until early 2014. It really started as a “solo project”, for lack of a better phrase; just something I wanted to put together to get some music out there. No strings attached, no massive goal or delusions of success, I just had a lot of ideas in my head that I felt I wanted to release to the public. The discography so far is just the ‘Male Supremacy/Nothing to Gain’ single (any money made will go to the Ronnie James Dio Cancer Fund). A couple of years ago, it came to light that my good friend Malcolm Shipman – who runs the Snooty Fox, a well-loved rock and metal venue here in the UK – was facing some very upsetting financial difficulties, and having hosted the Full Thrash Assault festival there for five years (not to mention being very good friends with Malcolm), I couldn't just sit back and let things get worse. So Nefasturris changed: the upcoming album now has a full band behind it, plus a lot of guest artists contributing to it, with the end goal being to release a record and give every penny of the proceeds to Malcolm and help him out.  After all he's done for the British metal scene, it only seemed like the right thing to do – everybody has been very excited about the idea.

FMBR:You recently posted online a cover version for Carnivore’s ‘Male Supremacy’, which is actually a teaser for Nefasturris’ upcoming album. Why did you choose to make a version of that particular track?
 
I really like that song! I genuinely believe that ‘Male Supremacy’ is one of the greatest tracks ever written, and Carnivore – despite being hugely influential – never seem to get mentioned that much in comparison to bands like Vio-lence or Sacred Reich. Plus, it's a little bit raunchy; rock 'n' roll is supposed to upset people, and Carnivore were the masters of pissing people off. And finally, it goes without saying that Pete Steele is one of my biggest influences as a bass player, so it doubles up as a big heartfelt salute to him as well.

FMBR:What can we expect from the new album?

Variety! As I mentioned earlier, Nefasturris was initially conceived to just get music out of my head and onto a CD. Being in other bands, there's creative freedom, but you still have to adhere to that bands vision. You wouldn't get Thin Lizzy-esque guitar harmonies or big clean sections in the middle of a Demolition Hammer album, because that's not what they do. So it's a real mixed bag from start to finish, without giving too much away, but the release is a little way off yet.

FMBR:The band’s name is based on the video game Devil May Cry. What are the lyrics about?

foto/divulgação

 
Hahaha, you're the first person to get that connection! You're absolutely right, the name was taken from a boss in Devil May Cry 2, because the translation from Latin is “Tower of Sin”, which isn't just metal as fuck, but it pretty much sums up my view of humanity... And fits nicely into the second half of your question! A lot of anger towards attitudes and behaviours I see wearily often today, including the state of the music scene itself, but there's also a bit of silliness in there too. One again, Peter Steele is a huge influence on me, so there's a lot of blunt sarcasm thrown in the mix as well. There aren't any Devil May Cry references though, sorry!

FMBR:You are also involved with Vindicator and crust legends Hellbastard. Please fill us in.
 
I joined Vindicator UK (I have to stress that, no relation to the American band of the same name) in July 2010, having known Vermintide for about four years at that point. We've just finished our full-length album, Black Sacrament, which we're hoping to have released in July. Very old fashioned stuff; think Venom, Carcass and Death mixed into one, a rather fine mix of styles (if I do say so myself). As for Hellbastard, that came out of nowhere – I've been a fan of that band for damn near 15 years, and I came home about a month ago to an email from Scruff Lewty asking me to play bass for Hellbastard in Europe for a few shows! To say I was shocked would be a massive understatement, hahaha. We
just had rehearsal this past weekend, it was fantastic. Can't wait to get onstage with them, though as for anything with the band in the future... I couldn't say. You'd have to ask Scruff!

FMBR:The result of last week’s referendum took the world by surprise. How do you see the UK’s departure from the EU affecting people’s lives?
 
I was rather upset, to be honest. Most of that upset was based on fear of the unknown, as a majority of people in this country have no experience of life outside of the European Union and it really is uncharted territory for us. It's future generations that would end up suffering the consequences if things go sour, but the decision has been made now. We just have to live with it, roll up our sleeves, and ensure that everyone is looked after properly. It's going to make playing the mainland VERY difficult for bands now, as everyone will have to fork out for work visas that may end up rendering any income from tours completely redundant, but only time will tell. That said, if I was going to hand complete control of an entire country over to anybody, it sure as shit wouldn't be the conservative party.

FMBR:How do you see the heavy music scene in the UK nowadays?
 
Listen to the Nefasturris song 'Nothing to Gain' and you'll get a pretty good idea!

FMBR:You seem to be confused with your namesake (Benediction’s singer) quite often.

foto/divulgação

 
Ha! It never ends! Dave (or Dingram Snr, as I affectionately call him) has been one of my dearest friends for over a decade. The lad gave me sound advice when I started out in this whole music horseshit, but man... As soon as I got older, the mixups started. If you go onto Google and type in my name, his profile will pop up on the edge of the screen with MY photo on it; oddly enough, a photo taken from my Metal Archives page, where it clearly states “Not to be confused with Dave Ingram (ex-Bolt Thrower, ex-Benediction)” in big letters! Come on internet, do your research. That said, we absolutely love the chaos that ensues – we actively play on such mishaps whenever they occur on social media. I keep joking that when I'm at Obscene Extreme Festival next month, I'm just going to roll with anything people ask me about 'my' joining Hail of Bullets. Sorry, Dave!

FMBR:What are your next moves for the rest of the year?
 
After these Hellbastard shows in Europe, I'm straight back into writing and demo'ing the Nefasturris album, as learning the setlist has put a huge dent in my writing schedule. Fingers crossed, we'll be able to get the drums recorded around Christmas and we'll see what happens from there. We have some Vindicator shows coming up near the end of the year, including one with Onslaught, who're my favourite band of all time. Apart from that, working my shitty day job!


By:Denfire