LIDI
Vol Vod...wicked and sneering...snarling at the crowd.
AND
OD
PHOTO: BRUCE HOOR
by Mike Gitter
Some facts to take care of: 1) Punk is dead. It swan songed and blew its brains out five and six years ago, although the most vital
outfits, i.e. Minor Threat, Youth Brigade and Black Flag, had neither the good sense to break up nor the motivation to move toward different
sounds. 2) Speed metal, the bastard child of punk and Iron Maiden-type metal, has run its course, with the ground-breaking four, Metallica,
Anthrax, Megadeth and Slayer, running far ahead of the thrash-crazed pack. So where do we go from here? Who's keeping the thunder
of speed and power alive when virtually all contemporary products seems little more than uninspired regurgitation?
Sometimes described as "high-tech" metal, Quebec's Voi Vod are the harbingers of the next generation. While neither imitating hardcore
nor pandering to metal, the French Canadian four-piece delivers a raucous bulwark of high-energy rage that is distinct from the spew
of any satanic speedsters or system-fighting mohawks.
Quite simply, their's can only be
described as Voi Vod music. Axeman
Piggy churns forth the sounds of
hardware which is complemented by
the rumble of bassist Blacky's
plucking and drummerffounding
member Away's pounding, Vocalist
Snake, in a style similar to his
reptilian namesake, licks his lips.
shakes his tongue and rails through
a thick French-Canadian accent
against the dangers of nuclear war
and man's inability to deal with new
technologies. Voi Vod's live show
incorporates both the band's
unbridled musical ferocity and a wild
pyrotechnic display, which has
Snake emerging from a rising
mushroom cloud, his lean face
hidden behind a gas mask.
Through the band's three albums,
"War and Pain" (Metal Blade).
"Roooaaaarrr" (Noise/Combat) and
the recently released "Killing
Technology (Noise/Combat), this
rabid machine has developed from
speed-oriented origins to a high level
of technical competence, similar to
that of Die Kreuzen and Metallica.
MG: Explain the Voi Vod concept.
Away: At first I created the Voi Vod
character to put out my negative
views about this planet. When we
formed in '82, we decided to use Vol
Vod as a name. The Voi Vod can
represent many things, as it
represents oppression in some
songs and in others it can take the
nature of schizophrenia or mental
disorders. The Voi Vod is a character
for putting out whatever feeling that
we want to put out.
Wasn't there a medieval tribe
known as Voi Vod?
I heard the name Voi Vod when I was
young. There was a tribe in Northern
Europe that was known for drinking
blood after slaughtering their
enemies. We kept the name and
created the Voi Vod as a nuclear
warrior and we put nuclear weapons
in his hands.
So I would say Voi Vod has a
particularly anti-war statement.
At first we were talking about the
craziness of the nuclear war, but we
were simply describing it. We were
neither shouting against it or for it.
We were only describing it and some
people took that the wrong way. They
called us pro-nuclear war tacists and
Nazis. When you look at the cover
of "War and Pain," you see both
elements and you can see that is is
a reaction against war. When we
formed, all people were talking about
was sex, drugs and rock 'n roll or
satan. We were more like punkers in
the streets than satan freaks or drug
freaks. We decided to talk more
about nuclear war, which is
something we see as a real evil. From
the beginning we were kind of a
punk/metal band.
Your roots lie in punk as well as
metal?
When we started, we listened to
Venom and Motorhead as well as the
Sex Pistols and GBH. We haven't
changed. We've only improved. We
haven't changed the concept either.
Voi Vod is a concept band. Each
record cover represents the evolution
of the band and the evolution of our
minds. "War and Pain" represents
the rebellion and psychological
confusion of a kid in front of the war
of international politics. After "War
and Pain" came out, we had to
change record companies, we got
our equipment stolen and basically
had a lot of problems. We put out
"Roooaaaarrrr, which showed that
we passed through all of our
problems without losing our energy.
The mechanical creature on the
cover is known as Korgull The
Exterminator, which reflected the
improvement of the musicianship
technically. The music became more
technical and more mechanical. With
"Killing Technology" we moved even
further. The first album showed the
Voi Vod after one or two nuclear wars.
the second one is after six or seven.
and with "Killing Technology."
everything is defeated and the Voi
Vod have to go into space.
Ah ha, you are making a statement!
With this album, we tried to express
the social chaos that occurs when
technological improvement is faster
than social improvement, which is
something we feel to be very
dangerous. We are all into high
technology, such as computers and
space travel, but we don't like the
underside of it, which is the political
side. We called the album "Killing
Technology" and tried to discuss the
Star Wars project, the Challenger
explosion and the China syndrome.
As Canadians, you live in the first
zone of detection for incoming
Soviet missles. How does that
make you feel about Star Wars?
I think the Star Wars project is a big
political joke. We don't shout against
it directly, but instead, we use images
to explain how we feel. On the third
album you can see we're against it.
We know that there isn't much we
can do about it, but we also realize
that we have the right to put out our
views on it. Nobody will improve their
minds talking about Satan or sex and
drugs and rock and roll, so we want
to take the kids and put something
concrete in their minds. We want to
warn them,
Do you believe that there will be
a nuclear war?
I think that there won't be a full
nuclear war, but if there is another
war it will be fought with soldiers and
chemical bombs. I don't believe in
the planet exploding. I do believe that
there will be more wars and more
atrocities in other countries as the
product of money making. All other
people in certain countries know is
war and they believe in it, while the
big countries simply make money.
War will always happen, but I don't
really believe in the nuclear
holocaust.
Aside from a technological
warning, songs like the new
album's "Ravenous Medicine"
take a firm stand (Cont on page 9) ►
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