Introduce yourself…
This is Chris, vocalist and founding member of Iconicide. We’ve been around since December 1988, and have had over 100 members pass through our ranks. Many have been a joy to work with, while some have attempted to destroy the band from within. You should read our Band History. It’s highly entertaining.
How did the band start?
Throughout a horrendous childhood, I always had music as a direct pathway to the Truth. Big Bands and Polkas, Oldies, the Crooners, and even hymns in church. Then Black Sabbath and KISS when I was 5, AC/DC when I was 10. And then, Hardcore was born, and at 12 years old, I heard bands like Negative Approach, Nihilistics and Dead Kennedy’s when they were *NEW*. Got it so far? Then heap on Sex Pistols, Venom, Crass and Devo when I was 13, and the birth of gothic/Dark Wave, and European speed metal, and Prog Rock, when I was 14, and Japanese thrash when I was 15. And an adolescence spent Digging through the Crates for everything from Smak to Stark Naked, Deodato to Dark Day, plus exposure, through tape trading and college radio (WFMU, WSOU, WNYU, WSIA...), to HC/Punk/Thrash/Metal/Underground music from around the world. When you listen to Iconicide, what you are hearing is a cross section of this lifelong hodgepodge of styles. That’s not the complete story, but the whole thing would take too damn long to tell.
How did you come up with the name?
At seven years old, in Sunday school, the first thing I ever wished for was to kill god. It stems from the realization that all forms of authority are artificial.
Who would you say are your influences?
That is the most tired, offensive question in the history of punk interviews. Tell you what. Go in another room and hit yourself with a brick. I’m busy.
What is the punk scene like in New York?
Man, why didn’t you ask me what it was like in the 80s? Back then you could go to four shows in one day, and be surrounded by people and musicians who gave their all to everything they did. Nowadays the only worthwhile scene is what worthwhile bands create, for the sake of building something straight up and honest. When I go to places like Hill Tap, though, it almost feels like a throwback to Tin Pan Alley, because it’s so rare to have people (like Mike SOS from Seizure Crypt, and Chris from Yo!$cunt) who put on shows, not for any empty, puffy chest pigeon bullshit, but just cause they get off on it. I’ve put a bunch of shows on over the years, and, ask anyone, I’m up to my elbows in it from the day I contact the venue, and I deal straight, right down the line.
Describe the song writing process...
Someone pisses me off, like hipsters (“Everything Is Awesome”), or our new ex drummer Johnny Mars (“Godspeed”), or society in general (“United… And Fucked Up!!”). Something makes me happy (“Voluntary Human Extinction Movement”). I look at the empty robots our society creates (“First Communion”). Mostly it’s a snapshot of life as it is. The truth is there, the momentum is there. All that’s left is to tap into it.
What have you released?
From 1992-1998 we put out 13 demos, starting with “Catechlysm”, with Mario (later from Sinner Steel) on drums, Ken (who later became a stalker of mine – see our song “OTK: Ode To Ken”) on guitar, and yours truly on bass, vocals and keyboards, and ending with “Spit or Swallow” (it’s a communion reference), which was a compilation of outtakes and unreleased tracks, paired with the second demo from an underground Hip Hop group I was doing. Then 6 CDs, only the last of which is currently available. That would be “Jesus Corpse: DNR”, featuring Jimmy Duke from Ultra Violence, the Blame, Urban Waste and Status Quo No Show on drums, Nonlee from High Teen Boogie on bass, and some spoiled rich kid on guitar. That’s available in a bunch of places, including here http://www.interpunk.com/item.cfm?Item=191089& and here http://music.napster.com/iconicide-music/videos/13554186 .
Who are some of the bands you have done shows with?
Too many to list. Reagan Youth, Armed Citizens, Step2Far, Olde York, the Undead, Psycho… On July 31, I’m bringing Social Decay to Tompkins Square Park. WHEE!
Have you toured?
Not as yet = refer to question #1.
Do you prefer small clubs or large venues?
Size has nothing to do with quality. I’ve seen big places where the crowd is dead, and holes in the wall where the air is electric and full of flying bodies everywhere, and vice versa.
Is there a favorite band you like to do shows with?
We speak to a wide range of styles, so that’d be difficult to say. I really dig Seizure Crypt, and Chesty Malone & the Slice 'Em Ups, and the Accelerators, and Nothing But Enemies/Slimy Cunt and the Fistfucks, and Caught In A Trap, and Dealin With It, and the Autistics... But playing Goodbye Blue Monday in Bushwick with The Scarring Party was the most fun I’d had in a while. So that list would be rather long.
Is there a favorite place you like to do shows at?
Anywhere that someone GETS IT. We’re not on a mission to win fans, or to make friends. But if we can open some eyes (even to stare knives at us), then Mission Accomplished.
What do you see is the future of Iconicide?
Another hundred members. Another stack of CDs recorded. Another string of shows, either that we put on, or that friends bring us in on. And, when things line up right, mini tours to New Orleans, or Ireland, or Japan, or Germany, or the west coast. All we need is everyone pulling in the same direction.
How can people contact the band?
http://www.iconicide.com
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