(((O))) : Interview: Erik Rutan from Hate Eternal

Florida death metal legends Hate Eternal just released their 6th album Infernus through Season of Mist, 4 years after the release of Phoenix Amongst The Ashes. Gavin Brown caught up with singer and guitarist Erik Rutan of the band to find out more about the band, the new album and his recording studio. And what his proudest musical moment is. Read on…

(((o))): The new album Infernus is fantastic, it’s really heavy and everything a death metal album should be. Can you tell us a bit about it?

Erik: Well thank you very much first of all. Second of all, every record we do with Hate Eternal, I feel like we want to improve with what we’ve done in the past, but at the same time keep true to the roots of what Hate Eternal is and never lose sight of who we are as a death metal band. With this record, it’s been four years since Phoenix Amongst The Ashes so we had a lot of time to really craft the songs. With this record I really feel like it captured a catalogue of what Hate Eternal has done in the past, leading to the present and then working towards the future, so I feel like this record from a production standpoint, performance standpoint, songwriting standpoint, I think it captured a really dynamic, diverse album in a death metal way.

(((o))): The opening track ‘Locust Swarm’ sounds just like that, did you want to go for the jugular from the start with the album?

Erik: 90% of every decision I make in the studio is gut decisions. ‘Locust Swarm’ to me seemed like the first song on the record as soon as we started writing it. It’s hard to explain but it’s just intuition. My first though was that it was meant to be first and that’s just how it happens sometimes. The songs as they’re coming together and the whole record as it’s coming together, you just know this should be the last song or this should be the first song. ‘Locust Swarm’ definitely felt like the right song to begin with.

(((o))): One thing that struck me listening to the album was how epic the tracks are, especially on closing track ‘O Majestic Being, Hear My Call’. Did you set out to write epic tracks or did they just evolve into something epic.

Erik: I’d say since Fury & Flames there’s been more kind of epic tracks, more dynamic tracks. On this album Infernus, the title track and ‘O Majestic Being’, those songs are more dynamic and epic. I think a lot of it has to do with my playing. I have this dissonant kind of sense of playing, but I also have a melodic sense of playing, like the complete opposite of each other. They’re both a part of me so I try to interject everything I have to offer and it’s the same for JJ [Hrubovcak; bass], a lot of the songs we wrote together. We’re always trying to expand over everything we’ve done but never completely change as a band. We’re a death metal band, we’re always going to be a death metal band but we’re always going to add in new elements and explore new territories but never completely change our style, if I was going to do that I’d just start a side project. I always want to keep Hate Eternal a death metal band but I always want to explore new territory as well.

(((o))): ‘Chaos Theory’ is an insane song. The musicianship on it is amazing. Did you plan to have an instrumental song on the album?

Erik: It wasn’t intentional. It’s funny, all these songs, the only intention I ever think when we’re writing these songs is to make it a great record and to make it more dynamic. With that song, me and JJ wrote it together, just jamming and the way the riffs were coming together sounded like an instrumental song, I was like this would be a really cool instrumental and we worked in some cool little solos.

(((o))): Is there a main theme with the lyrics throughout the album?

Erik: The themes through this record are something that’s been in the last three records really. In the last ten years I’ve experienced a lot of loss in my life and that has really affected me in many ways. I’ve lost two of my best friends at a young age and I lost my bandmate who died at a young age, a lot of family members have died over the last few years too do that’s really affected my lyrics and my songwriting approach. I’ve always used music and writing as a way to express myself to use as a vessel to deal with moments in life that are tumultuous.

(((o))): Do you have a particular favourite song on Infernus?

Erik: The title track. I’m very happy with all the songs but Infernus, the title track is a very unique song for Hate Eternal and for me as a writer. I put a lot of work into it and wrote it during a time where I had experienced some loss in my family and I think that’s why it has a melancholy and sombre vibe to it, a doomy kind of vibe almost. I think it really represents a moment in time for me like many songs do so it has a special meaning to me.

(((o))): You have a new drummer, Chason Westmoreland. How are things working out with him? He does an amazing job on Infernus.

Erik: Chason did a great job on the album. We couldn’t be happier with the job he did for us. It’s been great jamming with him for sure. He’s a young guy and he has a lot of potential.

(((o))): JJ has been in the band for years now. The dynamic between you is clear to hear. You must be excited about this new line up?

Erik: JJ has been in the band for seven plus years now and he’s like my partner in crime. We’ve been working together for a long time and we’ve got a great work relationship. He’s one of my best friends and he’s definitely been there like Jared Anderson was, my old bass player who passed away. Me and him had a bond and it’s really hard to find that in a musician. I always had that bond in Morbid Angel with Trey, Pete, Steve and David and to find that bond takes the right chemistry and me and JJ have that and obviously Chason just started playing with us a year ago and we’re building that. It’s been nice to have JJ for the last  seven years, it really helps with the stability. It’s always cool to play with new people and different talent but it’s also great to have a consistency going as well especially with the songwriting.

(((o))): It’s refreshing just how brutal the band still are. How do you stay as heavy as the years go on?

Erik: It comes from a dark place I think. My life, my upbringing has been challenging. I’ve had many challenges in my life and certain things that have happened in my life have created a well of anger inside me that before I played music, I never had an expression that was appropriate to deal with that rage. When I started playing guitar, I found something that I was able to turn a negative into a positive attribute by playing music. That well is deep because I’ve experienced a lot in my life and I use music as a way to express that and I’ve been able to tap into all kinds of emotions through my instrument and I think that’s something very special and that’s what separates our music and what we write is that it comes from a deep place. With Hate Eternal you can feel the aggression and the emotion in there and I think that’s what makes Hate Eternal what it is today.

(((o))): As well as Infernus, you also produced Krisiun’s Forged In Fury and Black Fast’s Terms Of Surrender. We’re you working on all three simultaneously?

Erik: Back to back to back! August is a good month for me, I’ve got three revords coming out that I produced. Black Fast and Krisiun, they’re both amazing bands and amazing people. Black Fast, they’re young guys, but they’re on top of their game and Krisiun, of course they’ve always been on top of their game, it certainly made that transition from record to record to record a smooth one considering I had a combination of producing those three records lasting six, seven, eight months. I’m certainly proud of all those records.

(((o))): Can you tell us a bit about your studio?

Erik: I started it 16 years ago and slowly built it up from nothing. We did the first Hate Eternal record there and some other bands and slowly but surely built my way up. A lot of bands like Soilent Green, Cannibal Corpse and Goatwhore, if I think of three bands that have really helped my producing career, it’s certainly those bands and through that they’ve allowed me to other bands like Agnostic Front, Madball, Mountain Goats, Tombs and Belphegor. I’ve done so many records that I’m so proud of. The studio is about 2300 square feet with a big drum room and tons of gear. It’s my home away from home. I probably spend as much time at the studio as I do at home! It’s a great place, two miles from the beach do that helps if people are having a bad day, they can go to the beach and relax. Something I always aspired to was my own studio and to produce my own records and my friends bands and that was really the goal when I was in my late teens going to audio engineering school in New York before I joined Morbid Angel and it’s something I always wanted to do.

(((o))): Is there anyone out there that you would love to produce an album for?

Erik: Oh man, there are a few bands that I haven’t worked with yet. Immolation. Suffocation. Hatebreed, that’s another band, they’re just do heavy, they’d be a great band to record. Those are the first three bands that always come to mind. I’ve loved Immolation and Suffocation since day one!

(((o))): Back to Hate Eternal. What are your live plans for the future? You recently damaged your hand. How is that healing?

Erik: It’s about 70% healed, it’s been a slower process than I’d have liked. It’s my ring and pinky finger on my fretting hand so it’s been a very frustrating healing process. It’s been eight weeks now and I’ve had to go through therapy. I couldn’t even bend my fingers halfway until about three weeks ago. I’ve just started playing guitar again and it’s painful and stiff but I’m keeping my fingers crossed, my bent assed fingers! that they’ll be healed in the next month or so. We are doing a fall tour in the U.S and we’re looking at coming to Europe sometime in the spring next year. It’s been a while since we played England so Im looking forward to coming back for sure and to Scotland, Ireland and Europe. We’re also going to Asia,  South America and Central America too.

(((o))): It’s been 20 years since you first joined Morbid Angel. Do you have good memories of those times?

Erik: When I first started playing with Morbid Angel in 1993, I was twenty one years old. I was just a kid playing with one of my favourite bands and then to do Domination when I was twenty three and write five songs, to me those are some of the best times of my life. I got to do three records and tour for four albums. I learned so much and had so many great experiences with Trey, Pete and David and then Trey, Pete and Steve and Trey, Pete and Jared, he sang with us for a few tours. We toured with Pantera and Slayer in arenas. I did so much with Morbid Angel and I’m so proud of everything we accomplished. Part of me inside still feels like I’m in Morbid Angel, I joke with people if I could clone myself I’d still be in the band. I love Morbid Angel and always will be grateful for the opportunity that they gave me.

(((o))): And finally, you’ve been involved in mousse for most of your life. What has been your proudest musical moment?

Erik: That’s a tough question! I’ve got to say Infernus is up there. It’s so hard to play all the rhythm guitar, the solos and do all the vocals and produce and track and mix. It’s a lot of responsibility that I put on my shoulders to do all this. If someone says “what’s the hardest record you’ve done?” I’d say the six Hate Eternal records because I have do much going on. With Infernus, the production, the songwriting, the performance, the tone, everything came together the way I’d envisioned. Infernus is up there. Doing Domination with Morbid Angel and touring with Slayer and Pantera. Playing Wacken and some of the big festivals. Those are huge accomplishments that I’m proud of. Producing Cannibal Corpse and Goatwhore albums and all those other bands, I could go on for a long time! People sometimes ask how I deal with criticism and for me I’m my worst critic for sure and I’m really hard on myself to be better and get the best out of what I have to offer, but beyond that it wasn’t until I hit my forties that I was able to reflect. I’m always looking ahead, I’ve got to do better, I’ve got to do more and I’d think that constantly, of building my legacy and what I’d leave behind but lately I’ve been able to reflect on what I’ve done. Almost twenty five years ago I recorded my first album with Ripping Corpse and when I look at my career, touring and doing records, it’s been a nice feeling to once in a while reflect on what you have accomplished and to appreciate everything that’s happened and it’s very humbling to do that.