*Hey dudes, cheers for being a part of TERRIBLE MUTILATION zine. What's up?
Adam: Thanks for having us! Just staying busy these days.
*FIEND started a few years ago as a two piece and has stayed that way so far. Did you two know each other already? What was the intent of the band upon forming and has much changed in that regard?
Johnny: Crazy to think its been 4 years already since the band started.. at first we were a 3 piece with our old friend at the time Michael. As time went on things started to not necessarily work out so we ended up parting ways shortly after the demo had been out for a while. Ever since we've just kept it the two of us it just works easier that way.
A: At the time all of us were really at a down and out point. Broke as fuck every day, going through the motions and being surrounded by the Chinatown area of Fresno at the time. Fiend quickly became an outlet to really channel all of that frustration and negativity we all felt and still feel to this day. Fiend will always be very personal to the both of us in that regard because we put a lot of what we're seeing, feeling and experiencing into the band.
*I really dig the dynamic mix of whirlwind blast and tough as shit groove in FIEND. To me, it sounds like that your influences probably lie in stuff like LA gods EXCRUCIATING TERROR, WARSORE (if your cover of Stop Posing And Kill Someone wasn't gonna give it away) and a bit of classic powerviolence/hardcore like INFEST. Would you dudes agree?
A: Thank you man! Haha really glad you enjoy the stuff! Excruciating Terror and Warsore are DEFINITELY huge influences in the music! Another really big player in what we do is the Lee Dorrian/Bill Steer era Napalm Death stuff. Shit kills and fucking rages! We definitely try to lean towards a more old school sound and approach since that's what we really enjoy most but we love all kinds of stuff for sure! We listen to a ton of punk as well so that definitely shows in the band's sound here and there.
*The Derailed tape was the first thing of FIEND's to attract my attention. That's a sick slab of grind punishment! What was the reaction to that tape like? How many copies were pressed in total?
J: The reaction to that release was definitely beyond our expectations and every single ounce of support we've received in any way has been absolutely amazing.
A: I second that! Haha. I believe total out of all the different presses (that we know of) there's roughly 450 pressed but there could be way more. We've seen colors of that tape we didn't even know existed! haha but it's rad though!
*That DEAD ISSUE/FIEND split 7" smashed my head in good and proper too. You guys along with HAGGUS did a run of shows up the west coast of the US together around the same time. Obviously being stuck over on other side of the world, I didn't get to see any of them... how'd they go? Any gnarly stories to share from that coupla weeks?
A. Thanks! Glad you enjoyed that one too! The west coast tour we did with them last summer was seriously so fucking awesome in every way. Every day was a blast and those are some of the funnest and best dudes to spend time like that with. Haha two weeks of utter stupidity and good times for sure! Most of the shows were seriously awesome with great responses and the best hospitality hands down. I have nothing but good things to say.
J: Touring with Haggus definitely brings out the children in us haha. A couple days before tour we decided on a couple games to prank each other with which lasted the entire duration of the tour and still to this day which causes for countless embarrassingly hilarious and great moments haha. Also being able to play 4+ days out of that with Catheter was a pretty awesome treat in itself and playing Anti Border Fest in Seattle was easily one of the best shows we've ever gotten to play and the best folks.
*I saw only recently that there was a FIEND/HAGGUS tour split tape. Was that in support of the aforementioned tour? What's on it and I assume I missed out on a copy 'cause you fuckers limited it to 40? Ha!
A: Haha yeah we made those for the second half of the tour. We would've tried to get them done earlier but it just didn't work out that way so we only did that small run which pretty much only made it to the PNW. The tape contains all the songs from each band's setlist that were played throughout this tour. Compiled studio recordings from both band's releases.
*What's coming next for FIEND? Splits? Touring? You guys gonna record a full length sometime?
J: We have 3 new split 7"s coming out with Endless Demise (Bloody Scythe Records), Suffering Mind (Drop Out Records) and Recalcitrant (Agromosh Records)! Very stoked on those! We also have a European Tour in the works for this July based around Obscene Extreme Fest with our good friends in Plague Widow which we seriously can't wait for! We've been talking here and there about getting a full length together to release but we've just kinda focused on getting some split out there in the meantime with what we just recorded. Its definitely something I know Adam and myself wouldn't necessarily want to rush to get out there.
*While I must say that FIEND gets by fine as a two piece with no bass player, what's your opinion on the trend(?) of newer grind bands not bothering with bass? FIEND are an example where it doesn't affect how hard the band rips it but there are others where I can't say the same.
A: Thank you for thinking so! It just works easier with just Johnny and I so having a bass player was just something that never really came to mind if we could find a way around it (which we did). Its definitely something I stress over to try and deliver a good sounding live tone and have consistency with doing so outside of what we try to execute with the sound of the releases we put out. Ya know, in the end its all about preference of what works best for everyone and ultimately that's what matters. For me personally I like a thick, thunderous and pummeling live sound and really strive to try and deliver that within my financial means currently haha.
*Thoughts on the insane split 7" mania some bands seem to succumb to? With a couple of exceptions, I'm not much into a handful of splits having mostly the same shittily recorded songs rushed out ASAP.
A: I could agree with you on that. Given there are bands that can totally rip release after release while putting out new material and then there are others that might not be able to do so. For me personally I know I'm a slow writer and I'm that way because I'd rather strive to release something that's quality that someone would want to go out of their way to listen to rather than just crank out stuff that would be deemed filler stuff. Quality over quantity through and through for me.
*It seems like there's a good amount of sick grind/gore coming out of the US recently. Some picks of mine aside from FIEND include NAK'AY, RADIATION VOMIT, GOWL, ACID FEAST, GIRTH, DEAD ISSUE and DETERIORATION... any others to add that deadshits like me mightn't be aware of?
J: All of the ones you just mentioned are definitely fucking killing it right now! As well as Of Corpse, Bob Plant, Bruce X Campbell, Recalcitrant, Endless Demise, Concussive, HAGGUS, GLOB, Slugged, Bathtub Barracuda, Your Enemy, Monte, Cave State, Hoy Pinoy & any other homies we may have forgotten. We love you all!
*Looks like I'm out of bullshit to dribble. Cheers for the interview and hopefully I'll catch you dudes live one day!
A: Thanks for having us be a part of it man! It was a pleasure. Hopefully we can make it out that way at some point! Cheers!