For those that dwell in the depths of the more extreme styles of underground metal, Bestial Warlust need no introduction, but for those that don’t, Bestial Warlust were a main contributor in shaping not only the extreme sounds from Oz in the 90’s, but worldwide, and the announcement of a one off show in Melbourne has people from all corners of the globe salivating at the prospect. In this Forte exclusive, we got some time with drummer Marcus Hellcunt. Read on…
Hello Marcus! Welcome to Forte! We are here to talk about a big gig coming up next year, being a one-off Bestial Warlust reunion, with the original line up form the first full length Vengeance War ‘Till Death. Firstly, how sure can we be that this is a one-off?
Hey mate. Thanks for the interview. At this stage we’re positive this will be a one-off reunion gig. We want to make this an event which people from all over can come to. We have had numerous offers over the years, we have only really considered three, but this one from High Voltage was the best one.
I’ve known Rob Wog for years and toured with him on the Blasphemy/Vomitor Aus Tour last year. It was totally professional and he and Jason Fuller treated us really well. All the gigs were mental. Melbourne being out of control. This is BWs home town so it was only logical the show should be here. Going for this offer for the Bestial reunion was a no brainer.
Dark Mofo approached us but that never eventuated due to members being committed to other bands, line up differences and a few other logistics. That was a shame because I really like that festival. Spoke with Chalky after Blasphemy played DM two years ago. He’s a really good bloke. Covid has also been another factor here obviously.
NWN in Berlin Germany was considered a couple of years ago. Again the logistics did not suit our requirements. Most Recently Mayhems management contacted me for a show in Norway.
We’ve had offers from promoters in Italy, Canada and the States also.
Are you rehearsing together somehow, or are you just practising alone and will bring it all together when you all hook up in person?
Two members live overseas. At this stage we are doing everything online with the help of Andrew Gillon from Cemetary Urn/Abominator who played bass with us after the departure of Phil Bullet Eater. When we get a date locked in after postponing the original date this year (because of flight restrictions and C-19), we will be setting up a weekend session here and going through stuff as a band. We will be nutting out the set a week prior to the show. In the meantime, we are all doing self-rehearsals.
What prompted this? Skullfucker (guitars/vocals) a borderline recluse when it comes to the metal scene. I certainly didn’t think this would happen, as did many others.
As previously mentioned, we have had numerous offers and constant requests from fans. I personally never thought this would happen and I flat out said NO FUCKING WAY! Obviously, a few members have been active in other bands since BW and a couple virtually vanished of the face of planet stench. After speaking with Chalky from Dark Mofo falling through and talking to the guys, which took me a lot of convincing, Rob Wog approached me after the Blasphemy tour and reignited this idea. All the guys were keen and it went from there. Hopefully COVID does not fuck this up. Not to mention another disease that I won’t talk about here…
You have been in the scene a long time with various bands? Do you think it is harder for a band to get up and running now than it was back when the underground metal scene was dare I say it, at its peak?
Yes and No. The internet has made things easier and most bands get a label somehow. If they don’t, they can release stuff online. Personally, I think it is too easy these days, whereas back in the day only the good bands were signed. Now every shit band has a record and the scene is flooded.
At the end of the day people can make up their own minds. There is definitely no shortage of bands out there. Things change and people adapt. Not necessarily for the better as we have seen in recent years with the influx of political correctness which has ruined the essence of basically everything artistic. This has most definitely made things harder for bands, labels, promoters and venues.
Can you recall a couple of highlight gigs from the days Bestial Warlust was an active band? Any wild stories for our readers?
I remember being in the crowd for Corpse Molestation at the GB and thinking “what the fuck is this?” Definitely the heaviest thing I have ever seen. The demo was just as good.
Then the Morbid Angel support at the Palace in Melbourne 92. That was so good, I went the next night. I have that gig flyer framed on my wall.
The first Bestial show we did with Carcass and hanging out with Cronos. We were drinking with him and throwing VB cans at Carcass. That was really funny.
Also the last gig in Melbourne which turned into a massive brawl that spilled out into the carpark. There must have been at least 20 people going hammer and tong, smashing the fuck out of each other. It was awesome.
Bestial Warlust was not exactly for the faint of heart! Did you ever get much grief from the PC brigade in the 90’s?
Most certainly. There was a guy threatening the band back then. He would tear down flyers and was boasting about coming to gigs and shooting us with a cross bow. We would stomp through the streets in full leather and spikes looking for him, going from venue to venue. I bumped into him at a goth club one night and put a stop to that.
There were quite a few altercations back then and naturally we dealt with it how we knew best. We all had each other’s backs which was great. A few crusties at the GB did not take too kindly to our winning games of pool which turned into a bar fight. They just did not like us which was cool. The feeling was mutual.
Ahh the good old days. No keyboard warrior wimpery. No safe spaces to go and hide in.
Is there already a temptation to tour the States or Europe if this one-off gig goes well?
Most of the ticket sales so far have been from people overseas. We have tons of great friends from all over the world that we have met, drank, snorted and travelled with so we want this to be a one-off event that everyone can attend. This is why we have announced it so early, for people to be able to make plans well in advance.
We’re also looking at having an after party somewhere the next night to make it worthwhile for the long-haul travellers. It will also be good for us to let loose after the show.
There are no plans to do any touring or other gigs. We are solely focused on doing this one-off show in Melbourne.
Can we expect to hear something from Satans Fist? Forgive me if I am wrong, but none of these songs were played live back in the day?
We will be playing the entire Vengeance War til Death album. It is highly unlikely that anything from Satans Fist will be played
as the demo was done by myself and Skullfucker only. I can not confirm nor deny anything else at this stage.
And to finish off, are you going to be armed to the hilt with the stage show? The imagery that came with Bestial Warlust was very bold! Blood, spikes, chains, leather, warpaint!
If you have seen a Bestial gig you will know what to expect. Blood, Spikes, Leather and Satan! We are also going to have stripper poles onstage with girls swinging from them. Harleys also.
A bit like the ‘Girls, Girls, Girls’ film clip. That was Damo’s [Bloodstorm, vocals] idea. He’s going to be wearing a long leather coat and cod piece like Rob Halford.
Can’t wait to see the show, any final words?
This will be a KILLER night with a lot of friends not only from Melbourne, but the whole of Australia, Asia, American and Europe. I would like to apologise for postponing the original date, but this is out of our control. We are looking at doing this in March 2021 so please keep your tickets but hold off with booking flights and accommodation until the date has been confirmed.
Keep your eye out for further announcements from the band.
Written by Glenn Lynch
