Interview with Peter Hasselbrack...The One Man Killing Machine!

Peter it's a brutally great pleasure to do this interview with you. After listening to your album countless times in the past week I had to hear more from the man behind the band.

Who are your main influences that drove you to the release "Brutally Butchered"?
Myself I guess…LOL I am 36 and have been into Death Metal for years and I wanted to see if I could write, record and release a CD myself that I loved and I did.

What are the reasons you choose the style your bloodsoaked sounds like over any other type of music?
I love old-school death metal like Deicide, Pestilence, Obituary, Death, Malevolent Creation and Morbid Angel so I tend to write death metal with an old-school feel to it. 100% Pure Death Metal.

How did you choose the name of the band?
Bloodsoaked came from my old Promotion web site (Bloodsoaked Promotions) and then my old Record Label (Bloodsoaked Records). I love the name Bloodsoaked and it makes for a great Death Metal band name. I also have the Bloodsoaked logo tattooed on my left arm.

From your site you mentioned you used to run "The Intense Sounds of Death Metal" I'm not too familiar with the site what was it? And what happened to it?
I used to run "The Intense Sounds of Death Metal" web site. It was a promotional web site for all kinds of extreme music. That site turned into Bloodsoaked Promotions and was around for about 4 years. It was pretty big as I would get about 20,000 visitors a month, that was back in 1998 or something. I got to busy with Bloodsoaked Records and stopped doing the promotion.

Does "Bloodsoaked Records" only have bloodsoaked titles or does it have any other band featured on the label as well?
Well, Bloodsoaked Records has been out of business for a few years now. Bloodsoaked Records release 3 CD; Sons of Chaos - “Redwork”, Blood Vomit - “Up From The Grave” and Beyond Fatal - “Sanctuary In Misery”.

I'm sure you love all your songs but what is your favorite song from the album?
I just love Self Mutilation, I think that song is killer from beginning till the end!!!

Since "Bloodsoaked" is a one man assault do you ever perform live? If so where so people can check you out?

At this time I do not play any live show but it is something I am looking into. Maybe doing one man shows like Putrid Pile does.

You seem to have some killer skills on drum programming do you have any advice for people starting to just use one?
Keep practicing and don’t make it so crazy, keep it simple and find some home recording forums online and ask for help and tips.

How long have you been playing?
I have been playing guitar since 1987 I think. I stopped for a while but I have had a guitar for about 20 years. I have only been programming drums from 1 year.

Is there any other band you have played in or currently playing with?
From 1988 to 1990 I played guitar in the Boston, MA based Thrash/Speed Metal band Deslok. I also sing for Archaic Winter, another Death Metal band from North Carolina. Greg Maupin please all the instruments and I do the vocals.

What instrument brands do you prefer to use?
I have a Jackson guitar and I love it. Anything that feels good I guess.

Describe your sound as you begin the artist has the best way of describing it, Please explain more on that?
100% Pure Death Metal. Old school Death Metal with a bit of the newer Death Metal sound to it. Bloodsoaked is not trying to be the most brutal band in the world, just a killer Death Metal band that people will remember.

If you had to pick a band that doesn't get the respect or exposure they deserve, whom would you pick?
Damn, that is a hard one………Well, I love Autumn Leaves! Their first release Embraced By The Absolute is insane, I love that CD so damn much. That CD came on in like 1997 I think. Everyone should get that CD!!!!

You have a very professional release where were they produced at?
My apartment….LOL I wrote, recorded, mixed and mastered the entire CD in my apartment over the course of a year.

You have you own small label if you where to say get signed to a bigger label what label would you choose to be on if you could? Why?
My old label (Bloodsoaked Records) has been out of business for a few years now. Bloodsoaked just got signed to Comatose Music and I would not be happier. Comatose Music has been putting out killer release for a while now and knows how to run a label. Comatose Music will do great things for Bloodsoaked!!!

What Band(s) annoy you the most? Why?
I don’t think any bands annoy me really. Everyone has their style of music they like to play and not everyone is going to like it.

How's the response to the new album been?
The response so far has been great! I have had all positve reviews and killer comments from the fans that have bought the CD.

What do you do in you spare time when not playing Metal? Hobbies?
I love to watch TV, play SOCOM, go to the movies, hang with friends and my girl friend. I try to enjoy life as much as possible.

What's your feel on the whole mp3 or bootleg trading on the Internet?
I think it help bands for the most part. Someone can hear your CD instantly online and even if the get a burn CD-R of the CD if they like it enough most fans will buy the real CD so they can have the full layout, lyrics and stuff in their hands.

Do you miss the old tape trading days as much as some other metal brothers do? Any cool stories you like to share about those days?
Tape trading has turned into mp3 trading now and I think it is cool. So many more people can check out your music and so much faster. Bands can build a large following with just a few good songs on mp3 and have them available on the internet. I was never a huge tape trader myself. But I would always listen to college radio shows that played death metal and listen to them over and over again.

What's in your CD player? What do you listen too the most?
In my 12 disk CD changer in my car from what I can remember I have:

HATE ETERNAL - I, Monarch
PESTILENCE - Consuming Impulse
DEICIDE - s/t
RATT - Invasion of Your Privacy
DEATH - Leprosy
DECIDE - Stench of Redemption
And I can not remember the rest at this time…LOL

Do you think cover art is just as important as the music? If so give some reasons why?
Maybe not as important as the music but I do think it is pretty important. That is the first impression some gets from looking at it. If it is eye catching someone is going to pick it up and you will have a better chance of selling that CD. Not to mention that good artwork and layout show you put some time and money into the release.

Who does all the artwork and album designs for your band including flyers and any promotional stuff?
The CD cover and layout for "Brutally Butchered" was done by Tony Koehl. Tony has done work for Internal Suffering, Goratory, Beyond Fatal, Suffereign, Contorted, Eat The Living, Infernal Revulsion, Incinerate, Nerlich, Deamon, Enthraller, Intestinal Strangulation, Abysmal Torment and many more. Tony has worked with tons of great death metal bands and is probably one of the best artists in the scene today. The Bloodsoaked logo was designed by the one and only Christophe Szpajdel!!! Christophe is known for doing many great logos such as: Emperor, Enthroned, Desaster, Old Man's Child, Borknagar, Abazagorath, Thus Defiled, SoulBurn and hundreds more!

Do you have a website or link so people can get more info or merch from the band?
Check out both my sites:
Web Site: http://www.myspace.com/bloodsoakedband
Web Site: http://www.soundclick.com/bloodsoaked

Is there anything else you would like to add to this interview?
I want to thanks all the fans that have supported me while I recorded the CD during the last year and that support has turned into a killer signing of Bloodsoaked to Comatose Music: http://www.comatosemusic.com

Is there anything you think we could do to better improve the webzine?
Dude, I think your webzine is kick ass and I like everything about it. I would not change a thing. Looks and is laid out totally professional and is a great asset to the underground metal scene!!!