EXODUS Bassist Talks About Forthcoming Album

Way Too Loud! recently conducted an interview with bassist Jack Gibson of veteran San Francisco Bay Area thrashers EXODUS. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Way Too Loud!: Something I'm wondering about the new album, are the songs pretty long like they were on "The Atrocity Exhibition… Exhibit A"?

Jack: There's a couple that are long, and a couple that are shorter too. Song kind of write themselves. Anyone who creates music or art, and even people who write stories — it takes on its own life. If it's an epic tune, it's a crime to cut it short thinking it could be on the radio or whatever. Especially in today's day and age, radio and video don't mean shit. Radio has never meant anything to a band like us. Maybe now that there's XM satellite radio with real metal stations. We really wouldn't unwrite a song so it could be on the radio. The songs are just the way they come out. The new album has a couple short sweet ones, and I think one of 'em is 10 fucking minutes long!

Way Too Loud!: Is there a theme running through the album?

Jack: The first album was "The Atrocity Exhibition… Exhibit A", and this one is "The Human Condition… Exhibit B". Lyrically, it has to do with the depravity of man, how fucked up things have gotten, and how perverted in the dark corners of everything from religion to politics.

Way Too Loud!: What's it like working with [producer] Andy Sneap again?

Jack: It's our fifth album with him, and he's mixed some of our live stuff too. He's almost part of our band, and a good friend of ours. We've known him since '97. He loves our band, he loves our creativity, and when he comes out he's really part of what happens. We don't want o make a record with anybody else because we have a system with him. He knows what we're going for, and it just works out perfect for us.

Way Too Loud!: Do you feel like the band has been reinvigorated since 2004? You guys have been super busy since then.

Jack: Right before "Tempo of the Damned" (2004),when [former EXODUS vocalist Paul] Baloff died, it hit Gary, Rick [Hunolt, guitars, no longer in the band] and Tom really hard, and they got deeper into their drug use at the time, then all of the sudden they woke up and got clean off the dope, and Gary instantly turned into a guitar hero, and started walking in with songs, and ever since then we have been reinvigorated. He started writing cool, relevant material again.

Way Too Loud!: Do you ever pay attention to anything that goes on at message boards, or Blabbermouth? There's a lot of smack talk.

Jack: I think it's pretty funny! Sometimes it's a little rough reading somebody that's really railing on you, but for the most part they're pretty fucking creative, and it's pretty funny. I know we've had some issues with some people making videos mocking us, and while it stings, it's still pretty fucking funny too! It's the kind of thing you have to deal with. If you put yourself in the public like that, then you have to deal with peoples negative opinions as well. It's just like being a movie star or a politician. If you put yourself out there, you have to take the good with the bad. That's just the way it is. It's an excellent filter for people to get rid of bullshit because people get to judge what they say, and I think it's good because it gets you right in touch with the fans.

Read the entire interview from Way Too Loud!.