Interview with Pat Ranieri, the vocalist/guitarist of the cult '90s death/thrash band Hellwitch |
Considering the amount of reverence and adulation that a certain Chuck Schuldiner (RIP) receives from both subterranean and mainstream circles, it has always baffled me how Hellwitch isn't the biggest band on the planet. Arriving simultaneously with more acclaimed peers like Atheist (Piece Of Time), Death (Spiritual Healing), Pestilence (Testimony Of The Ancients) and Cynic (early demos), Hellwitch in my mind held their own against each of these , their solitary 1990 record Syzygial Miscreancy merging dizzying, labyrinthine Voivod complexity with the naked aggression of primal death/thrash, striking an immaculate balance between both, refusing to forsake their affinity for primitive cacophony in lieu of overly progressive (read: shitty) inclinations. Perhaps it was their staunch refusal to evolve with their more illustrious Floridian brethren then, their subsequent Terrasymmetry EP and Anthropophagi demo displaying more refined songwriting yet remaining firmly entrenched in spinecrushing METAL, for to this day Hellwitch, along with the Midwestern cult Fatal, have yet to receive their due for being one of the most hectic, breathtaking outfits in death metal history. Bend your knee, fuckers, here's an interview with mastermind Pat Ranieri - Conducted by Nin Chan |
Diabolical Conquest: Hails, Pat! Hellwitch is clearly one of the most severely, shamefully underrated acts in metal history, and I suspect that 99% of our readership is still oblivious to your brilliant output. If you would be so kind to briefly outline the motivation behind Hellwitch's original formation and a brief history of the band, we would be very appreciative.
DC: I think as well as the thrash and death metal inclinations of the band, there was always this deep-seeded punk sensibility to some of the music that Hellwitch produced, that probably stemmed from the earliest death metal like Master, War Cry, Slaughter and Onslaught. This was particular Pat: Ummm….I don't know. I LOVE old punk/hardcore, but I've never felt we had any punk/crossover elements. I always tried to scream like no one else and have lyrics like no one else. I always thought about metal though when composing. Never had any punk-ish thoughts while composing. But again, we all hear something different and that's whats so magical about music. I like that deduction, though I'm not sure I agree with it.
DC: I think you have had a really fucking hard time with the band, reading all the stuff written on the band over the years and the liner notes of the "Final Approach" CD. Clearly, Hellwitch deserves its place amongst the celebrated pioneers of so-called ‘'technical death metal'', but a whole host of lineup problems have affected the band since its genesis. You've had people lose interest in playing music, people leaving the band to become rappers (WTF? Hahahah) etcetera. Right now, you are back and on the tour circuit. How frustrating is it for you when an asshole like me suggests that all this internal strife has held Hellwitch back from receiving wider acclaim and are you planning on cranking out any new material with the present lineup? Pat: Oh Nin man, your questions are all good and sensible and I don't ever cop an attitude when that's the way someone asks me things. I really don't think that line up problems/changes affected us. I was always able to find musicians to carry on and teach them the ropes and I continued as always to compose most of the music and all the titles/lyrics. So, the band moved forward regardless of who was in it, really. I think our originality and lack of accessibility has held us back. Too many tech parts that didn't flow well together is what I hear now on a lot of the “S.M.” songs. That's not what the average metal listener is really into. Our newest demo flows better than anything we've ever written. Repeating chorus, catchy riffs, not too many parts per song. The '05 demo should bring us to the forefront of the scene I think. The new demo will be sold on our tour. We're not sure how else it will be distributed at this point.
DC: Often I don't know if you realize how much of an impact you've left on the underground. The people who have heard Hellwitch tend to fucking ADORE Hellwitch, waving their banner in message boards and parading the Hellwitch name for all traders and collectors to latch on to. As a result I think your music has had an indelible effect on many of today's most extraordinary bands, Canada 's Axis of Advance for instance, to me at least, really takes the blueprint you laid and renews it for a new aeon. How does it feel for you to know that, despite the fact that Hellwitch's name might not be surrounded by the hollow praise of ignoramus metal writers, that you guys were always ahead of your time and have had such an effect on the bands you've influenced? Pat: Ummm…. I don't know. I was not aware of this fact, really. I've never even heard of Axis of Advance. If what you say is true, I'm totally flattered. Again, I've always just tried to be original and NOT sound like anyone else. That will always be our goal. I've never felt HELLWITCH was/is a big influence as I never really hear any bands that resemble/emulate us. Though I'm definitely not as up to date on new bands as I used to be in the 80's/early ‘90's.
Pat: Hell yea Nin, that's what I'm all about. I've never been a fan of flashy solos, especially within songs. I think a solo should be an integral PART of a riff or song. NOT an avenue to show ones virtuosity or whatnot. Screw that rockstar shit man!! When HELLWITCH goes off on a tangent in a song, it's for the sake of that particular PART, not that particular musician! I'm very happy you realize what I consciously strive for as far as so called “solos” go. I actually even try to make my guitar solos part of the riff that lays behind them. Listen to solos in songs like “Opiatic Luminance” or “Mythologicalies”. They actually, at some points, do the guitar riff notes at higher octaves.
DC: I think with a lot of bands that were spawned from that whole ‘'technical death thrash'' boom, there was a progressively prevalent fusion jazz influence that manifested itself across the latter Death records, Pestilence's “Spheres” and of course the Atheist stuff. Whenever people talk about metal bassists and list Steve Digiorgio or someone like Jeroen Thesseling in there, I can't help but cringe, because those guys didn't play metal, they played fusion jazz bass in a metal band. Hellwitch, I think, were always METAL, never anything else. The riffs were always thrashy, the music was always aggressive and in your face, the playing was always firmly entrenched in traditional metal, in my mind you never tried stealing fusion structures and cohering them in metallic form. Do you think that's fair for me to say? How do you regard other bands turning to progressively jazzy structures? What else influenced you other than metal this whole time? Pat: Yes, that's totally accurate. I really do NOT like Jazz fusion music so it's no problem for me to stay away from that shit. Haha! As for other bands doing it, good for them. As I said, we all hear something different, we all like something different, and musicians all envision something different. If that's what some writer wants, so be it. I don't like it personally. To me, jazzy parts in metal are just awkward/out of place. And don't get me wrong, I appreciate/understand the musicianship that it takes to play such parts, but to me, they just don't fit well in death metal. As for influences, as I said, I try to be unlike all others, that's my influence. Inevitably some things do seep in. I'd say Slayer, Destruction and Possessed were a big influence in the mid ‘80's. Nowadays, I really like the new Swedish sound like Dimension Zero, Anata, Defleshed, etc. Though I don't think they are influences in our sound.
DC: A really cool thing about Hellwitch is you guys have always had this lyrical preoccupation with evil in mankind and how he tends towards nihilism, not just destroying his surroundings but also decaying within. There's all this imagery of corrosion, of rotting, of physical degeneration (“diseased, inflamed, carcinogenated /bloated, burning, inundated /decrepit, rotting, degenerated /of living death you've created”). There is this very hellish, nightmarish and APOCALYPTIC feeling to many of the themes you explore, a lot of visions of a disgusting future that completely fits the futuristic and oppressive feeling of your music. I definitely appreciate this a lot more than the astral, cosmic, pointless themes that dominate the later Pestilence stuff, or the positive spirituality that pervades Death. Describ Pat: I'm very much into writing reality based lyrics as well as some slightly fantasy oriented stuff. Actually, in one of the previous questions you mentioned HELLWITCH and hardcore/punk influences. I think lyrically we are a bit akin to punk. I write mostly about the negative side of reality as do many hardcore bands. Overall, I think that our planet is pretty much doomed both physically and humanity wise. Simply put, resources continue to be consumed faster than they are replenished and air continues to be polluted faster than the atmospheric structure can cleanse it. Also, our increasing production and development of elements that hurt the earth continues at an escalating pace. There are advances being made to protect and preserve the planet, but I think the destructive forces are winning the battle. As far as humanity goes, morals are deteriorating, recreational drug use/development is increasing. Traditional values regarding “respect” are losing ground and greed seems to be causing worse and worse behaviour within society. I'm speaking about North America generally. I know in other parts of the world, these issues may not be as bad as they are here. But again, American culture sadly seems to be a BIG influence on the rest of the world's cultures. My goal is to simply bring my views to light. I do not preach, only present.
DC: That's about it from me for now, Pat. Do let us know here about any impending tour plans, any available merchandise and what we can expect from the legendary Hellwitch in the future. It's been such an honor for me to conduct this interview being such a massive fan of your work, and would like to thank you for this. Pat: I must thank YOU Nin for presenting one of the best, if not THE best interview I've ever done! You really understand this band and asked very productive and valid questions. I'm honored to have answered them! As of now, we just finished a new 4 song demo that we will shop to labels and sell in some capacity. It will be a limited CD release. It truly is our best work and the best production we've ever had. We will be doing a 17 date headlining US tour that will go from FL. To CA. (and even one show in Mexico …our first foreign gig!) from 7/16-8/6/05. The bands Fecal Corpse and Cataglyphis will open for us. We have demos, t-shirts, longsleeves, hoodies, bumper stickers, lighters, LP's, EP's, CD's and more available. Check out our new OFFICIAL website at: or write to us at: And of course, I have OVER 11,000 concert videos available on VHS or DVD! I've been collecting since '84!
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© 2005 Diabolical Conquest |
ly apparent in your vocals, which are fucking RAW AS HELL and some of my favourite vocals ever, haha. Though your arrangements were certainly dizzying, at the very heart of Hellwitch I think there was always a crossover feel to some of the riffing, some of them being crossover punk riffs sped up and improved by a thousandfold. Do you think that's a fair deduction? 
guitar, etcetera. With Hellwitch, everything was so geared towards writing a cohesive SONG, trimmed of fat and unnecessary frills. The playing on all the Hellwitch stuff is of course fucking brilliant and mindbending, but Hellwitch was the kind of band you could play a traditional metalhead, one who isn't a musician, even, and have him headbang all the way through without being alienated or bored. So in many senses Hellwitch, like early Voivod I think, was trad metal with more complex flourishes, and I really appreciate that. When you DID do spacier stuff, like the end of “Mordirivial Dissemination”, it actually works because it is an unexpected turn, the listener doesn't sit there and expect it like you would with a band like later Cynic and Death stuff. I wanted to say how much I love that. 
e this bleak vision and how it informs the experience of Hellwitch? 
