{"id":13365,"date":"2012-11-08T07:30:21","date_gmt":"2012-11-07T20:30:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/maytherockbewithyou.com\/mtrbwy\/?p=13365"},"modified":"2012-11-08T08:43:58","modified_gmt":"2012-11-07T21:43:58","slug":"paul-allender-of-cradle-of-filth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/maytherockbewithyou.com\/mtrbwy\/2012\/11\/paul-allender-of-cradle-of-filth\/","title":{"rendered":"Paul Allender of Cradle Of Filth"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"
\n<\/a>\u201cWe\u2019re a lot more focused metal band now (laughs) well, we\u2019ve always been a metal band despite what people say, if they want to tag us then fair enough, but we\u2019ve always been a metal band and always will be.\u201d<\/p>\n

From album press release: Cradle of Filth formed in Suffolk in 1991 and after a string of demo recordings released their debut album, \u2018The Principle of Evil Made Flesh\u2019 in 1994. The band have gone on to become one of the UK\u2019s most successful metal acts, known for their dynamic symphonic style of gothic black metal, along with the dark poetic lyrics from the hand of enigmatic front-man Dani Filth. Now with their new album \u2018The Manticore And Other Horrors\u2019 it possesses an altogether new atmosphere for the band, incorporating a heavier, faster NWOBBM (New Wave of British Black Metal) punk vibe that is both current and cruel, blended with ornate orchestration and the quirky immediateness of 2000\u2019s Midian opus.<\/strong><\/p>\n

We had a great chat with Cradle of Filth guitarist Paul Allender about the band\u2019s new album \u2018The Manticore And Other Horrors\u2019, the sound of the band, an ever changing fan base and tribute bands\u2026<\/p>\n

Hey\u00a0Paul, thanks for taking the time to chat today.\u00a0\u00a0So your new album has just been released in\u00a0Australia \u2013 however it\u2019s been released earlier in other parts of the\u00a0world.\u00a0\u00a0From what you\u2019ve\u00a0heard\/seen, what has the response been to the album so far?<\/strong>
\nTo be honest I don\u2019t know\u2026 it\u2019s only been out a few days.\u00a0 Through some of the comments I\u2019ve seen from fans I\u2019ve talked to they really like it, but the press seem to be getting into it way much more than the fans do (laughs) which is really good to know, but the press are completely all over it, they love it, saying it\u2019s finally gone back to true to form and various other things which is great.\u00a0 It was purposely done like that so the way I started writing it and how I wanted it to come across is how it worked.<\/p>\n

Over\u00a0the course of the bands history, you\u2019ve managed to musically keep adapting and\u00a0changing things up and this new album does that by bringing an increased level\u00a0of intensity \u2013 is that a true summation of what you really tried to shoot for\u00a0on the album?\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>
\nFor this album?\u00a0 Yeah totally.\u00a0 I wanted it to be really aggressive and I felt like over the last few albums it got really nice, like all nice smooth edges and stuff.\u00a0 The aggression and the anger side of it wasn\u2019t there anymore, so I decided I wanted to do or try to do an album that has more of the original influences, like the punk influence off the first album, that whole punk hardcore influence and I wanted it to sound more aggressive as well and get back more of the spikiness in the band that we\u2019d seem to have lost you know?<\/p>\n

On\u00a0this album, yourself and Martin composed all the music \u2013 whereas on past albums\u00a0that seems to have been more of a whole of band affair.\u00a0\u00a0Was that a specific decision you had\u00a0made for this album, to write this way?<\/strong>
\nBeforehand, one reason why we did it, well because half the players are session players anyway and half the time they\u2019re not free to do stuff, so what hat we did, me and Martin ended up doing this one, but before we ended up doing group sessions and stuff and I felt like if we\u2019d all done an album all of us again, we\u2019d have come up with the same old stuff over and over again. Something had to be changed, not in a bad way, but something had to be like \u2018no, no it has to go in this direction\u2019 because otherwise I felt we\u2019d have come up with another album like the last couple we\u2019ve released.<\/p>\n

One\u00a0of the things that strikes me on this album is that the guitars really seemed\u00a0to leap out of the speakers and are highly prominent was that something you wanted to do?<\/strong>
\nYeah, at the end of the day I\u2019m a believer in any metal band you need to hear the guitars (laughs) so it wasn\u2019t a conscious thing, actually to be honest it was more of a conscious thing that the producer was doing, Scott Atkins, he really wanted the guitars out there and he was the one really pushing for the groove and stuff and a bit more stuff that we used to do back in the day, even on the demos, that type of stuff.\u00a0 So he kind of steered in that direction which is really good.<\/p>\n

You\u00a0also were involved in producing the album \u2013 how was that experience and\u00a0balancing between obviously also being an integral part of the writing and\u00a0recording process?<\/strong>
\nIt was quite different to be honest because even though I live in the States , I was constantly on the phone and Skype with the producer and constantly with Martin as well and when we were writing the tracks, so it was quite simple.\u00a0 By the time we actually got in the studio, myself, Martin and the producer all knew what the music would sound like before we got there, so we were part of it from the actual beginning.\u00a0 So when it came time to actually record it, me and Martin recorded it live we kind of knew what it was going to sound like already, so it\u2019s kind of the producing that had already been done.\u00a0 Apart from just getting the heads and the guitar sounds, everything was already done before we got in there.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>So\u00a0where did you record this album \u2013 was it a specific block of time you hit the\u00a0studio, or was it done in between touring?<\/strong>
\nNo, we set up a time, me and Martin spent seven months writing the music and then after that went straight in the studio and spent two months I think it was, well I wasn\u2019t in there for two months, but the whole process was two months including the mixing you know?<\/p>\n

Do you record live?<\/strong>
\nThis one was actually recorded live, a lot of it was recorded live, hence the reason why you\u2019ve got the really good organic feel to it, it sounds like a band, it doesn\u2019t sound all processed and produced.<\/p>\n

Is that the way you\u2019ll continue to do it now?<\/strong>
\nOh hell yeah!\u00a0 Even on this one I even tried to get in to a studio that we could record it on tape and leave digital behind, but trying to find a studio that does it on tape and when we did find one, they wanted stupid amounts of money for the tape and we were like nah forget about it. I think this album would\u2019ve had a warmer feel if we\u2019d done it on tape.<\/p>\n

From\u00a0a guitar playing point of view specifically within Cradle Of Filth, where would\u00a0you say you are at here in 2012, compared to the early days?<\/strong>
\nWe\u2019re a lot more focused metal band now (laughs) well, we\u2019ve always been a metal band despite what people say, if they want to tag us then fair enough, but we\u2019ve always been a metal band and always will be.\u00a0 Now we\u2019ve kind of focussed on it a little bit more, as at the end of the day there\u2019s people out there doing a lot of the keyboard stuff and the orchestral stuff still and other bands in the same scene as us still doing it, so I can\u2019t see the point in doing something that\u2019s already been done, so we decided to made a conscious effort to go off in a different direction as we always do.\u00a0 We\u2019re definitely a metal band for sure.<\/p>\n

For\u00a0over twenty years the band has been going strong \u2013 how do you compare the level of\u00a0interest in the band here in 2012 compared to the early days?<\/strong>
\nIt\u2019s very hard to say really as there\u2019s a lot of factors involved really, I don\u2019t know, the interest is still the same, but record sales for arguments sake, the internet has completely killed record sales, full stop, and compared to what it used to be, when the internet wasn\u2019t around it used to be brilliant.\u00a0 You had people tape trading, but it wasn\u2019t as immediate and fast as what the internet is, but as far as sales are concerned, it\u2019s really damaged record sales.\u00a0 Shows, people still come out to shows and still buy merch, so the interest is kinda still there but it\u2019s different and there\u2019s a lot of other factors in place, so you can\u2019t look at any band, like us and say well we\u2019re smaller now because of this, this and this, but back then we never had the internet, never had x, x, and x you know?\u00a0 So it\u2019s really hard to say, I personally think it\u2019s the same.<\/p>\n

Do you feel the increased level of\u00a0interest in the pop culture to all things horror has maybe helped or hindered\u00a0all things Cradle Of Filth?<\/strong>
\nI know there\u2019s a lot to do with Vampires and Zombies out there now isn\u2019t it?\u00a0 I don\u2019t know, it might bring a bit more attention, we\u2019ve actually just shot our new video and it\u2019s like a small zombie film, s we\u2019ve done something a bit different then, at least for us, so I think the whole zombie thing, vampire thing and the dark atmosphere stuff around may help us to be honest.<\/p>\n

Which track is the video for?<\/strong>
\n\u2018For Your Vulgar Delectation\u2019 a real punky one, it\u2019s good though, we\u2019ve got a guy in, a special guys that did I think it was \u2018Gladiator\u2019 I could be wrong but I think it was\u2026 he did some amazing work, we\u2019ve got zombies set on fire, we had people being set on fire properly, we\u2019ve got hands coming out of the ground, people eating brains and blood and guts flying everywhere, it was fucking great!\u00a0 It\u2019s like a five minute long zombie film.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0first film clip for the album was for \u2018Frost On Her Pillow\u2019 how did you come up with the concept for the video?<\/strong>
\nIt was kind of like a modern day \u2018Red Riding Hood\u2019, obviously we didn\u2019t have the wolf in it, but it was loosely based on Red Riding Hood to match the lyrics, but instead the wolf was a big voodoo guy bringing her back to life.<\/p>\n

You mentioned that you see the fanbase kind of staying the same, but have you noticed the demographics in your\u00a0fanbase changing over the years also?<\/strong>
\nOh no, well the thing is they\u2019re either getting younger or we\u2019re getting older (laughs), it\u2019s one or the other, knowing that you\u2019ve got twelve or thirteen year olds in to your music, it\u2019s great but you\u2019re like \u2018Holy Shit, that\u2019s young\u2019 but then I remember that I got in to metal when I was twelve, so obviously I thought \u2018fuckin\u2019 hell, that\u2019s really young\u2019 but the fanbase does seem to be getting younger, but, we\u2019ve still got people that got in to the band in \u201994, they\u2019ve followed us, they come to every show and they\u2019re the same age as us.\u00a0 That\u2019s really cool.<\/p>\n

Anyone\u00a0that springs to mind that took you by surprise as being a fan of Cradle Of\u00a0Filth?<\/strong>
\nHmm\u2026 I know Doug Bradley is, he\u2019s been on our records, I don\u2019t know, the thing is I can\u2019t remember their names (laughs) there have been a couple of people where I\u2019ve been \u2018like, really?\u00a0 You like Cradle of Filth?\u2019 it\u2019s not so much famous people, it\u2019s more like doctors and lawyers and stuff.\u00a0 Like I\u2019ll go to the dentist and you tell them you\u2019re in a band, they say \u2018what band?\u2019 and you tell them and they say \u2018Fuckin\u2019 hell, I just bought your last album, it\u2019s brilliant\u2019 and I\u2019m like ‘really?’<\/p>\n

Free dental work?<\/strong>
\n(laughs) exactly!\u00a0 That kind of stuff just really takes you by surprise.<\/p>\n

What\u00a0touring plans do you guys have on the back of this album \u2013 are there extensive\u00a0International touring plans in the works for next year and of course, will you work Australia in?<\/strong>
\nI\u2019m hoping we\u2019ll come to Australia, but unfortunately that\u2019s down to the powers that be ie the promoters and booking agents.\u00a0 We\u2019re touring, I actually flew to England to rehearse as our first show is on Wednesday in Holland and we\u2019re on a European tour for seven weeks. Then we\u2019ve got a month off then we do America through February and March.\u00a0 April we\u2019re doing South America and hopefully, it hasn\u2019t been confirmed yet, but China and Indonesia and I think if we do those, it might make sense to do Australia as well.<\/p>\n

So are there any territories that you haven\u2019t been to that you\u2019ll be touring?<\/strong>
\nWell we\u2019ve never done China and we\u2019ve never done Indonesia (laughs).\u00a0 So that will be really, really cool to see what they\u2019re like down there because in Indonesia they did a Cradle of Filth tribute band but they did it as a huge festival and there was a tribute band playing loads of our stuff, basically playing one of our gigs and the festival completely sold out. That was with a tribute band. It\u2019s mental isn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n

You\u2019d want to hope that you guys get there and do the same\u2026<\/strong>
\n(laughs) yeah I know, hopefully.<\/p>\n

Three people turn up and well, yeah\u2026<\/strong>
\n(laughs) bring on the tribute band, they\u2019re much better.<\/p>\n

Lastly, do you have a message for your fans?<\/strong>
\nI just want to say thank you for the support that everyone has given us and if it wasn\u2019t for you guys, the fans of the band, we wouldn\u2019t be able to do this, it\u2019s because of you the reason we can keep writing music for you.\u00a0 I hope you like the new album, we\u2019re completely in to it and believe me if you can see us live, it\u2019s gonna rock like fuck, it really is.\u00a0 We did rehearsals today and holy shit, the fuckin\u2019 roof lifted off, it fuckin\u2019 rocked big time.<\/p>\n

Well good luck with the album and thanks for your time Paul, was a pleasure.<\/strong>
\nThanks man, thank you very much. Yeah, it was an absolute pleasure, it was fun, was really, really good, thank you.<\/p>\n

Essential Information<\/span><\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n

From:<\/strong> UK<\/p>\n

Band members: <\/strong>Dani Filth \u2013 Vocals, Paul Allender \u2013 Guitar, Daniel Firth \u2013 Bass, James McIlroy \u2013 Guitar, Martin Skaroupka \u2013 Drums, Caroline Campbell – Live Keys<\/p>\n

Website:<\/strong> http:\/\/www.cradleoffilth.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Latest release:<\/strong> The Manticore And Other Horrors (Roadrunner Records Australia)<\/p>\n\n

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