HR091 - Viktimized Karcass - Trial Of Murder - C46 — 1988
REVIEW by Jerry Kranitz
Trial Of Murder features the Viktimized Karcass quartet of Richard Martin on vocals, Robert Henson on bass and FX, Roger Moneymaker on guitar and FX, Chris Phinney on synths and drum programs, plus past member Mike Jackson on synth who was in town visiting from Boston. And we get a bonus treat of Mike ‘Mystery Hearsay’ Honeycutt contributing vocals to one track.
Side A opens with ‘Pump Station #9’, a trio track with just Chris, Mike Jackson and Richard. Murmuring drones, intense air raid howls, cascading electronic bubble-gurgles, and crunchy angsty buzzsaw space guitar, all come together to create a gumbo collage of atmospheric terror. But the alien horror show is offset at times by playful bits, like the frenetic pennywhistle sounding runs amidst the crash, slam, bang space-noise assault.
‘Holly Holy Hard Ass’ propels us into cool grooving, space-drone-industrial-goth-rock territory. Karcass lay down a hip-shaking though valium restrained beat, with tormented drone vocals, plodding rhythmic bass, and tastefully serpentine guitar solos.
‘Can't Beat The Feeling’ has a similar groove. While the vocals are also similar, it sounds like there are some lyrics buried in the droney delivery. The guitar is more swing rocking, but there’s also chunky rocking riffs interspersed with scrumptious solos. Lots of guitar variety and a great spaced out finale.
‘Those Southern Belles’ kicks off Side B and features a sorcerer’s stew of dirty space rock ‘n’ roll, demented vocals, swirly electronic effects and oscillations, melodic, ripping, and brain damaged guitar solos, and a dancefloor worthy groove.
The grungy, interstellar lo-fi party atmosphere continues on ‘Soul Train’, which has FOUR vocalists: Richard, Chris, Mike Jackson, and Mike Honeycutt. I had to go back and listen closer based on the interview that follows. They all sing separately. My guess is Richard is up first, with his garbled singing. Whoever is next is slightly more discernible as you can actually make out the repeated ‘Soul Train’ words. I later hear the dick grabbing Chris refers to in the interview. And from there, who knows?! Musically it’s got rocking and tripped out guitar leads that conduct the proceedings along with the vocals, chunky bass riffage, and a dancefloor popping groove. I love the latter part of the track where the guitar is ripping and wailing in acid drenched space, as the bass chugs along steadily but relentlessly. Freakin’ awesome rocker!
(NOTE: If you listen to the album on Bandcamp you’ll hear some severe tape drag on this track. It’s a 33+ year old master on Denon cassette tape that unfortunately didn’t hold up to the test of time. But dive in because the whole track is there and fully listenable.)
INTERVIEW with Chris Phinney by Jerry Kranitz
Jerry Kranitz (JK): The ‘Trial Of Murder’ title refers to the cover. It looks like a newspaper piece from the 1800s?
Chris Phinney (CP): Exactly, that’s what it is. It’s the trial and conviction of George S. Twitchell for the murder of his mother, Mary E. Hill. And somebody else, it got cut off.
JK: Was that a Memphis newspaper?
CP: No, I pulled it off the internet.
JK: You were on the internet in 1988?
CP: Yes, I was on the internet with dial up
JK: When we were interviewing Mike Jackson for the HR090 Cancerous Growth ‘Desecration & Fornication’ tape he commented that ‘Trial Of Murder’ is a companion piece. I see he is in the credits. Is that because he recorded with Karcass on the same trip as the recordings for HR090?
CP: Yeah, he was here for a few days from Boston and we recorded a load of stuff in 2-3 days, both Cancerous Growth and Viktimized Karcass. He was only on synths and vocals on the last track, ‘Soul Train’.
JK: Is that the same for Mike Honeycutt on ‘Soul Train’? He guested on HR090 and is also credited with vocals on ‘Soul Train’. He just happened to be over at your place recording and you guys used some for both tapes?
CP: Yes. He came over to see Jackson and was on the same recordings. We used recordings for Cancerous Growth and Karcass.
JK: How did ‘Pump Station #9’ happen to just be you, Mike Jackson and Richard?
CP: We were the only ones recording at the time. Roger and Robert were late getting there so we just started recording and came up with that track.
JK: If it was just the three of you I assume it was Mike Jackson playing guitar on that track.
CP: Yeah.
JK: There’s some pretty crazy contrasts, but also both intensity and playfulness on that track. Drones, air raid howls, gurgles and buzzsaw guitar. But then you also have this pennywhistle sounding instrument or effect. I keep saying this with the Karcass tapes but I love the variety.
CP: That’s what it was. We were waiting on Roger and Robert to show up. So we recorded this track that we decided to use. We were limited on time because Mike had to catch his flight back to Boston. So this is a companion piece to HR090 as Mike said because all the recordings were done in the same sessions.
JK: ‘Holly Holy Hard Ass’. I like that title. Is there some joke behind it?
CP: There’s no joke behind it. It was some shit Richard was singing about.
JK: Again, I was inspired to all kinds of descriptions in the review: space, drone, industrial, Goth, but you’ve also got dance grooves and more of Roger’s amazing guitar solos. It’s different following ‘Pump Station #9’ but adds a rhythmic element and even more wild contrasts.
CP: Yeah, we got Roger and Robert in there and just did our improv.
JK: ‘Can't Beat The Feeling’ has a similar groove. But while the vocals are similar, it sounds like there’s some lyrics buried in the delivery.
CP: That’s just Richard. There’s words there if you can make them out. It’s just the way he sings. If you go back and listen he had a weird way of singing. And ‘Can’t Beat The Feeling’ is something he was talking about. That’s why I gave the track that name. I pulled the titled out of the song.
JK: There’s a lot of fantastic guitar variety on that track too. It’s really swing rocking at first, but also chunky riffs and really cool solos. I think Roger really shines on this track. And it’s got a great spaced out finale. Was this all really done in one take?
CP: All done in one take.
JK: I marvel at how it’s improv and yet you arrive at such a smooth ending.
CP: We did a lot of smooth endings. All improv. Back in the day we used to practice. And we got tired of practicing and writing down songs. And practicing the same damn songs over and over again. So we decided that we could play any damn thing we wanted to because we knew each other’s style and we could get a groove together in a matter of seconds. Because we were so familiar with each other.
JK: If we consider from the first Karcass tape to where we are now you’ve gone through quite an evolution.
CP: There’s another we did much later that’s nothing but noise (HR113, ‘Cruelty’). It’s a noisy ass motherfucker. It is the noisiest Karcass tape ever done. And we did it on purpose. We wanted to have a noise tape.
JK: Can’t wait to hear that one. ‘Those Southern Belles’ is another hot one. Just a dirty space rock ‘n’ roll song. Crazy vocals, spaced out electronic effects. But it’s also melodic in a way. And more dancefloor grooves. I keep saying this but I think an important part of Karcass is the way you guys brought together crazily contrasting variety. And it just works.
CP: I had to do all the drum programming because we got tired of trying to get drummers. When we get to the ‘Live At The South End’ tape (HR114), which was a benefit for some Russian defectors, we did have a drummer then who used to play in Corn For Texture. We had him at that live show.
JK: So this was not the end of drummers in Viktimized Karcass?
CP: There was a drummer on the upcoming live tape. And I think there were drummers on some of the Karcass tapes released on other labels. But they’re way later. So we had drummers sporadically. Drummers were always a day late and a dollar short. It was the same with Skoptzies.
JK: Finally we’ve got ‘Soul Train’…
CP: I hate that the track had tape drag but at least we got the full recording. It doesn’t drag that much. It only lasts a few minutes. It’s that damn Denon brand tape. I had a Denon cassette deck as well.
JK: Oh yeah, it doesn’t kill the listening experience. But it’s enough that it needs mentioning.
JK: Also on ‘Soul Train’, you, Mike Jackson and Mike Honeycutt are all credited with vocals…
CP: All of us are singing.
JK: If I didn’t see it in the credits I wouldn’t have known.
CP: You can hear me singing about someone holding my dick. And, I’m not sure but I think Richard sang on the damn thing too. Yeah, he was on ‘Soul Train’. There’s four singers on there.
JK: Were you singing at different times?
CP: Yes. At different times singing about different shit.
JK: So you had four lead vocalists at different times.
CP: Yup. We were experimenting man! (Laughs). It’s a damn good tune. Roger’s playing the fuck out of that guitar.
Trial Of Murder features the Viktimized Karcass quartet of Richard Martin on vocals, Robert Henson on bass and FX, Roger Moneymaker on guitar and FX, Chris Phinney on synths and drum programs, plus past member Mike Jackson on synth who was in town visiting from Boston. And we get a bonus treat of Mike ‘Mystery Hearsay’ Honeycutt contributing vocals to one track.
Side A opens with ‘Pump Station #9’, a trio track with just Chris, Mike Jackson and Richard. Murmuring drones, intense air raid howls, cascading electronic bubble-gurgles, and crunchy angsty buzzsaw space guitar, all come together to create a gumbo collage of atmospheric terror. But the alien horror show is offset at times by playful bits, like the frenetic pennywhistle sounding runs amidst the crash, slam, bang space-noise assault.
‘Holly Holy Hard Ass’ propels us into cool grooving, space-drone-industrial-goth-rock territory. Karcass lay down a hip-shaking though valium restrained beat, with tormented drone vocals, plodding rhythmic bass, and tastefully serpentine guitar solos.
‘Can't Beat The Feeling’ has a similar groove. While the vocals are also similar, it sounds like there are some lyrics buried in the droney delivery. The guitar is more swing rocking, but there’s also chunky rocking riffs interspersed with scrumptious solos. Lots of guitar variety and a great spaced out finale.
‘Those Southern Belles’ kicks off Side B and features a sorcerer’s stew of dirty space rock ‘n’ roll, demented vocals, swirly electronic effects and oscillations, melodic, ripping, and brain damaged guitar solos, and a dancefloor worthy groove.
The grungy, interstellar lo-fi party atmosphere continues on ‘Soul Train’, which has FOUR vocalists: Richard, Chris, Mike Jackson, and Mike Honeycutt. I had to go back and listen closer based on the interview that follows. They all sing separately. My guess is Richard is up first, with his garbled singing. Whoever is next is slightly more discernible as you can actually make out the repeated ‘Soul Train’ words. I later hear the dick grabbing Chris refers to in the interview. And from there, who knows?! Musically it’s got rocking and tripped out guitar leads that conduct the proceedings along with the vocals, chunky bass riffage, and a dancefloor popping groove. I love the latter part of the track where the guitar is ripping and wailing in acid drenched space, as the bass chugs along steadily but relentlessly. Freakin’ awesome rocker!
(NOTE: If you listen to the album on Bandcamp you’ll hear some severe tape drag on this track. It’s a 33+ year old master on Denon cassette tape that unfortunately didn’t hold up to the test of time. But dive in because the whole track is there and fully listenable.)
INTERVIEW with Chris Phinney by Jerry Kranitz
Jerry Kranitz (JK): The ‘Trial Of Murder’ title refers to the cover. It looks like a newspaper piece from the 1800s?
Chris Phinney (CP): Exactly, that’s what it is. It’s the trial and conviction of George S. Twitchell for the murder of his mother, Mary E. Hill. And somebody else, it got cut off.
JK: Was that a Memphis newspaper?
CP: No, I pulled it off the internet.
JK: You were on the internet in 1988?
CP: Yes, I was on the internet with dial up
JK: When we were interviewing Mike Jackson for the HR090 Cancerous Growth ‘Desecration & Fornication’ tape he commented that ‘Trial Of Murder’ is a companion piece. I see he is in the credits. Is that because he recorded with Karcass on the same trip as the recordings for HR090?
CP: Yeah, he was here for a few days from Boston and we recorded a load of stuff in 2-3 days, both Cancerous Growth and Viktimized Karcass. He was only on synths and vocals on the last track, ‘Soul Train’.
JK: Is that the same for Mike Honeycutt on ‘Soul Train’? He guested on HR090 and is also credited with vocals on ‘Soul Train’. He just happened to be over at your place recording and you guys used some for both tapes?
CP: Yes. He came over to see Jackson and was on the same recordings. We used recordings for Cancerous Growth and Karcass.
JK: How did ‘Pump Station #9’ happen to just be you, Mike Jackson and Richard?
CP: We were the only ones recording at the time. Roger and Robert were late getting there so we just started recording and came up with that track.
JK: If it was just the three of you I assume it was Mike Jackson playing guitar on that track.
CP: Yeah.
JK: There’s some pretty crazy contrasts, but also both intensity and playfulness on that track. Drones, air raid howls, gurgles and buzzsaw guitar. But then you also have this pennywhistle sounding instrument or effect. I keep saying this with the Karcass tapes but I love the variety.
CP: That’s what it was. We were waiting on Roger and Robert to show up. So we recorded this track that we decided to use. We were limited on time because Mike had to catch his flight back to Boston. So this is a companion piece to HR090 as Mike said because all the recordings were done in the same sessions.
JK: ‘Holly Holy Hard Ass’. I like that title. Is there some joke behind it?
CP: There’s no joke behind it. It was some shit Richard was singing about.
JK: Again, I was inspired to all kinds of descriptions in the review: space, drone, industrial, Goth, but you’ve also got dance grooves and more of Roger’s amazing guitar solos. It’s different following ‘Pump Station #9’ but adds a rhythmic element and even more wild contrasts.
CP: Yeah, we got Roger and Robert in there and just did our improv.
JK: ‘Can't Beat The Feeling’ has a similar groove. But while the vocals are similar, it sounds like there’s some lyrics buried in the delivery.
CP: That’s just Richard. There’s words there if you can make them out. It’s just the way he sings. If you go back and listen he had a weird way of singing. And ‘Can’t Beat The Feeling’ is something he was talking about. That’s why I gave the track that name. I pulled the titled out of the song.
JK: There’s a lot of fantastic guitar variety on that track too. It’s really swing rocking at first, but also chunky riffs and really cool solos. I think Roger really shines on this track. And it’s got a great spaced out finale. Was this all really done in one take?
CP: All done in one take.
JK: I marvel at how it’s improv and yet you arrive at such a smooth ending.
CP: We did a lot of smooth endings. All improv. Back in the day we used to practice. And we got tired of practicing and writing down songs. And practicing the same damn songs over and over again. So we decided that we could play any damn thing we wanted to because we knew each other’s style and we could get a groove together in a matter of seconds. Because we were so familiar with each other.
JK: If we consider from the first Karcass tape to where we are now you’ve gone through quite an evolution.
CP: There’s another we did much later that’s nothing but noise (HR113, ‘Cruelty’). It’s a noisy ass motherfucker. It is the noisiest Karcass tape ever done. And we did it on purpose. We wanted to have a noise tape.
JK: Can’t wait to hear that one. ‘Those Southern Belles’ is another hot one. Just a dirty space rock ‘n’ roll song. Crazy vocals, spaced out electronic effects. But it’s also melodic in a way. And more dancefloor grooves. I keep saying this but I think an important part of Karcass is the way you guys brought together crazily contrasting variety. And it just works.
CP: I had to do all the drum programming because we got tired of trying to get drummers. When we get to the ‘Live At The South End’ tape (HR114), which was a benefit for some Russian defectors, we did have a drummer then who used to play in Corn For Texture. We had him at that live show.
JK: So this was not the end of drummers in Viktimized Karcass?
CP: There was a drummer on the upcoming live tape. And I think there were drummers on some of the Karcass tapes released on other labels. But they’re way later. So we had drummers sporadically. Drummers were always a day late and a dollar short. It was the same with Skoptzies.
JK: Finally we’ve got ‘Soul Train’…
CP: I hate that the track had tape drag but at least we got the full recording. It doesn’t drag that much. It only lasts a few minutes. It’s that damn Denon brand tape. I had a Denon cassette deck as well.
JK: Oh yeah, it doesn’t kill the listening experience. But it’s enough that it needs mentioning.
JK: Also on ‘Soul Train’, you, Mike Jackson and Mike Honeycutt are all credited with vocals…
CP: All of us are singing.
JK: If I didn’t see it in the credits I wouldn’t have known.
CP: You can hear me singing about someone holding my dick. And, I’m not sure but I think Richard sang on the damn thing too. Yeah, he was on ‘Soul Train’. There’s four singers on there.
JK: Were you singing at different times?
CP: Yes. At different times singing about different shit.
JK: So you had four lead vocalists at different times.
CP: Yup. We were experimenting man! (Laughs). It’s a damn good tune. Roger’s playing the fuck out of that guitar.