BLOODLUST

I am pretty sure our older maniacs can and will recollect the band called BLOODLUST from the city of Nowa Ruda. Despite the very fact the band was responsible for two releases only, yet their name has been firmly carved into the history of our metal music underground; as an interesting and extreme metal outfit yeah! As Holocaust/Hideous recordings will be re-released shortly I thought it`d be a good idea to refresh your memories about this amazing band. It is beyond me why they weren’t too successful. With so much potential they had. BLOODLUST were aptly able to compete with such "tycoons" of our scene as ARMAGEDON, BETRAYER, LASTWAR or MORTAL SLAUGHTER. For some reason it didn’t work out and after the Hideous album was out, the group disbanded in 1995. And me, after all those years, I still can’t comprehend fully how powerful and good those recordings are. Killer for sure. Ok, no need to waste our time, let’s read what BLOODLUST`s front man, Dariusz Kulpinski had to share with us…

 

1. Hello Darek. Next year will be the 30th anniversary of BLOODLUST. How do you see the band from a historical perspective; how do you perceive BLOODLUST in the context of our metal music scene?

Hi. Well, hadn’t you told me it`ll have been thirty years next year, I would have never guessed it myself! I am the kind of guy who never looks back. Time flies, we experience this and that and on we go. Well, BLOODLUST was, back then, a part of our lives, music ambitions, hopes and plans. We managed to write some amount of music, record it and play a bunch live shows here and there. It was fun times but also stood for hard work and various commitments. I should say the band name "bloodlust" was recognizable in the contemporary metal underground; that meant a lot to us. Yup, those were our first steps in (to) the metal world and, as it is clearly seen, those steps are still palpable as we`re talking about BLOODLUST right now.

 

2. Since we`re talking about the re-release of your both (and only) recordings, let me ask about the very beginning of BLOODLUST, ok? Officially, the band formed back in 1989. Can you still remember how you guys started BLOODLUST off? How did you folks meet up and who came forth with this "bloodlust" by the way?

Well, one can experience a number of different life scenarios, so BLOODLUST experienced their own ones too. Me, as a youngster deeply in love with harsh tunes, used to jam and rehearse with a bunch of local metal music bands/guys here and there. One day, I learned that Jan Kowalczyk, the contemporary OPEN FIRE`s guitarist was after starting his new, own project and by some miracle, me and him got together and began rehearsing. After a couple of weeks, we relocated to Nowa Ruda to hook up with the best local drummer (he was able to use two pedals which was quite a novelty back then). I need to mention that we were provided with a rehearsal room at a local community center so it all was going well. After some time, Jan gave up rehearsing due to some unspecified reasons but I got to know the locals as well as OPEN FIRE`s manager quite well so we decided to get it going on our own. And this is how it all started off.

 

3. Candidly, your band name seems to be strongly connected with one of mighty VENOM`s tracks. Is it where this came from, huh?

It was Krzysztof Brankowski who came up with the band`s name. We were supposed to play live at some gig and he was the guy responsible for that gig`s organizational side. We weren’t too sure how to name our band, no serious ideas at all so Kris, as the guy who paid close heed to what and how we were doing, did what he had to do and baptised us BLOODLUST.

 

4. How did you get into metal? Can you still remember your first metal band?

Of course, I can! TSA! They even made it to my hometown of Strzegom for two live shows, in 1982 or 1983 if my mind serves me well. Me and other people into metal/hard rock were really pleasantly surprised to see them. I was at primary school back then so I was too young to go see bands play live in other cities – but there you go! They came to my town. I managed to see the first gig as well as the second. I was broke and not able to buy a ticket; their both concerts had already been sold out, people were plain crazy about TSA. Thanks to some immensely nice female attendant I managed to hide in one of the venue`s washrooms; with plenty of other people, by the way, who were hiding in there too! I was just stunned with all what was going on! Long hair, extreme music and mayhem on stage! So impressive! When I got older I also managed to see SAXON, IRON MAIDEN and ACCEPT at Hala Ludowa in Wroclaw. That was how I got, so to say, "infected". And you know, all those albums from METALLICA, SLAYER, SEPULTURA or MORBID ANGEL made me eager to play music even more!

5. Was BLOODLUST your first band whatsoever or had you been involved in other projects/bands before it?

As I mentioned previously I had tried different "options" too; learning the ropes, so to speak. Played live shows too. Same for other guys. But I would say that was BLOODLUST where I did really pick up how to make/write/compose music seriously.  

6. So Holocaust was your first recording, spawned three years after the band had formed. The cassette was out through Master Sound Records. Can you please tell us some more about that stuff? Can you still remember how many copies were sold?

 

To be precise, Holocaust had been released before the Master Sound edition saw the light of day. No idea how many copies were sold but we were happy that people got to know about that tape and our music, which was of utmost importance.

7. I am really curious to know how the recording session looked like. Please provide us with a bunch of details. How long was the session itself? Where did the recording take place?

The session took place in the city of Rumia at a local studio. Different times and different technical conditions. And the very first lesson how to play music professionally. Because all of us had to play every song flawlessly in its entirety – we weren’t able to correct/alter anything afterward. Not possible. We were aware of that condition and readied ourselves really well. As far as I can remember, we did really OK and it all wasn’t that expensive, that session after all.

8. How do you rate this stuff now?

Man, I can’t even remember what this stuff actually features, I am not too sentimental a guy to think about it anymore. It is our past. Past years. This music is what we were and stood for back then. Not a big deal. Some people helped us out to get it recorded. I would say this recording depicts quite well what we were back then, what we listened to and how we were looking for our own music identity. Yeah.

 

9. BLOODLUST`s performance at Shark Attack Fest in Biala Podlaska (July 28, 1991) went very smoothly. Certainly, that wasn’t the only gig at which you promoted your demo Holocaust, eh? Please tell us some more about your live performances at the time? By the way, how do you recollect that Shark Attack Fest now?

Some time ago, a friend of mine sent me the You Tube link over to that gig. VADER and MAGNUS played at that festival too. Awesome fests, all those surely were; one could meet up with plenty of people involved in the UG scene. It was always nice to participate. Plus, you know, we always had fun afterwards (after parties).

10. The late 80s is the time period when radio stations heavily influenced our metal maniacs here in Poland. Thanks to people like Kris Brankowski we were able to listen to what was new out there in the West as well as in our local scene. Can you still remember how you guys began your cooperation? And Kris was your first manager, is this correct?

Krzysiek Brankowski took care of a number of bands back then. He also hosted a radio show (Muzyka Mlodych) with his unique Metal Top 20. I can still remember when he used to come over to see us rehearse, we would go out for a beer and stuff. We got to know each other better and better so, in result, we were invited for two live shows in Moscow/Russia (with SLASHING DEATH and VADER). I will never forget it.

 

11. Thirst for music, no music stores and difficult access to albums which, back then, would cost an average fan a small fortune. And very, very few live shows of Western bands. That was Poland in the past, all over. But still, our underground scene was pretty strong, don’t you agree?

Plenty of young people aren’t, these days, able or willing to realize how difficult life was back then. Some sort of abstraction really. To watch some brutal metal music videos I had to travel for two hours in order to get to another city. No nothing at stores. No merchandise, no groceries. Each and every store was empty. All was grey, dirty and shabby. Streets full of potholes, ruined buildings. Well, despite our enormous willingness (since we didn’t know the right people to help us) it was very hard to get by, so to speak. All we heard was – no way, we don’t have anything like this, we won’t help you. And that was the time when I just started to play music. We dubbed tapes (using a Grundig cassette player or similar), adding some sort of "unlicensed" covers. We were always struggling to get strings, cords, drum skins and so on. In general, we need just everything, every single bolt and piece of wire. We used to buy heat-press shirts to put our favourite bands on those. We had to barter with all we had to get some band poster in return, not even thinking about Western music – too difficult to get. We had to struggle for ever cm of our hair so that they didn’t tell us to get our hair clipped short. We always looked forward to the Muzyka Mlodych radio show. We used to rehearse in some obscure basements or garages, working on our first tracks which weren’t exactly what we wanted as we had to utilize Eltron 30W coupled with three guitars which was a way too many for it. It all didn’t, in result, sound like the western groups we wanted to mime whatsoever. Imagine that our lyrics got always censored before live shows; if we hadn’t corrected those the way they wanted us to, the band wouldn’t have been allowed to perform at all. Our lyrical message was incomprehensibly interpreted and understood as politically suspicions. We literally had to struggle to get anything. We had nothing - not like it is these days. Hard times, but we were full of passion. Today, the young generation has all their need. But neither will nor passion to use it properly. When I started off with BLOODLUST the situation actually started to improve step by step. Yet, still the beginnings were hard. Well, now I can just smile and laugh at the past.

 

12. Can you still remember your first gig? What bands did you share the stage with? By the way, tell us about your most liked live performance of BLOODLUST?

I must confess our gig situation was very good. Thanks to Krzysztof Brankowski who did a lot in that field. We opened Metal Madness in Wroclaw (on the Slodowa Island) for TURBO, ACID DRINKERS, and VADER and so on. As well as Metal War in Nowa Ruda with PASCAL, IMPERATOR, and ARMAGEDON. Plus that cyclical Thrash-Kai Festival (in Strzegom).We also went to Bydgoszcz and some other live shows you`ve already mentioned. As well as two huge festivals in Moscow, Russia. The first one featured was us and SLASHING DEATH. A huge ice skating hall, like 5000 people, man that was a real gig! The second one was together with VADER and Mariusz Kmiolek. The audience thirsty of brutal sounds. It all was awesome, went very well; we spent almost a week at some ship-like kind of hotel (Walerij Briusow). We had our own cabins, there was a bar and a restaurant. Sightseeing during the day and partying at night. Plenty of funny stories. All right. We also performed at Jarocin and Metalmania.

13. When I listen to your stuff, I just can’t fathom why BLOODLUST weren’t successful back then? Holocaust was a way above the average – even taking into account the stuff considered "excellent" back then. What were the reasons, hey? Since there were plenty of bad, average or excellent bands at the time. All one needed was some good luck. What did BLOODLUST lack success-wise?

Good luck? No, not at all. The problem was the band itself. We were more or less sure what kind of music we wanted to make, the lineup was rather solid. Heter, the guy with plenty of ideas, was already firmly established in our band but something was, indeed, going wrong. Kerry was an excellent guitarist (back then) but the issue was he kept coming to our rehearsals totally unprepared. Lack of time or lack of interest? Or was it both? Well, we could notice that "deterioration" every time we played live. It affected the band itself. Plus everyday issues played their role too. Our drummer Lech became involved in a number of different bands at the same time. Five, if my mind serves me well now. Not surprisingly, he started to get really confused, too many bands and too many songs to play and remember. And you know, too many gigs and rehearsals to attend them all. So one day he called me up to say he would quit. So we were done with going to Nowa Ruda to rehearse. But I and Heter decided not to give up. But start off with a new band. This was how DISSENTER was born. All well that ends well.

14. A year after Holocaust was out, your second recording Hideous saw the light of day. It is, stylistically speaking, quite different…

Our guitarist Ludwig left and was replaced by a young fellow, Heter. A truly talented guy, young but with plenty of good, fresh ideas. And after a couple of rehearsals we realized he was a true volcano of riffs, ideas etc. which he skillfully transferred into guitar lines. All we had to do was to sort those out, polish them up a bit and voila, a new song ready and good to go. Hideous featured two tracks composed by Heter. He got more and more involved and started to bring forth more and more good quality music every time we rehearsed. You know, to want to play music is one thing. To be able to play music well is another. That guy matured and "produced" a lot of good stuff.

 

15. Did it ever cross up your mind to reactivate BLOODLUST? The time is right for this kind of rebirths these days.

To be frank, I will tell you it did not. The present seems to fly by faster and faster. BLOODLUST is just a piece of history you`ve excavated. Since BLOODLUST there have happened thousands of other things, more or less interesting I think. Or maybe we`ve been forced to make decisions based on other issues? Too many different things in life to cope with, how can one find time to deal with all these I want to ask?

16. A year after bloodlust disbanded you guys spawned another death metal beast – DISSENTER (with a much more abundant discography). Anything about that band to add, thank you?

DISSENTER is a totally different band, much closer to my heart I would say. The music that opened a totally different chapters in our lives. The lineup was initially different; including me, Stoker, Robo, Młody, Heter, as well as Sivy and Maniac (our initial recording only). A new band but we were all well-seasoned veterans. With plenty of faith in what we wanted to do/achieve.

17. Time to wrap up I guess. Thank you very much for your answers. Anything to add for BLOODLUST worshippers? Go ahead, the floor is all yours.

Thanks a lot, man. Hello to all the fan (both diehard and not that diehard ones) of extreme sounds. All the best to you all. What doesn’t kill us will make us stronger. 

Leszek Wojnicz-Sianożęcki

Poprawiony (wtorek, 01 maja 2018 07:15)