DEPRESSION are a brutal grindcore band from GERMANY. They've been around since 1989, and have quite a big discography. They have a new 4 way split cd released through Noise Variations. This interview is kinda long in length, but read on to learn more about DEPRESSION. Make sure to also visit their site. Interview with Kai Sattelkau.
September 2003
Interview by DJ
DJ: Depression has been around since 1989 right? Could you give us a history of the band?
Kai: “First of all, a big HELLO to you and all readers of Bushmado Zine! Well, it is a long story, but here we go:
The band was started back in 1989. My former bands Gods of Grind and Mortuus weren't very active at that time, so I wrote a couple of songs on my own. I wanted to play in a band that combined the brutal power and heaviness of Death Metal with the incredible speed and kick-ass structures of Grindcore. But in my area there were no musicians who wanted to join such an uncompromising project, so I wrote a couple of songs for my own and DEPRESSION was born as a one-man "band". I released these songs on the first demo "Tal der Tränen" (1990). This was more Noisecore than Grind, but I was on the right path. It was the first recording I ever made, so it was really bad and only a few friends got a copy!
In the year of 1992 it was time for my second demo "Vergessene Welten". It was a lot better than "Tal der Tränen", especially the sound and the layout. The music style shifted more to Grindcore with some Death Metal influences. I sold some tapes in Germany, but without much promotion and only for a short time.
In 1993 there were enough songs finished for another demo and this time I tried to find a vocalist for DEPRESSION, because I didn't like my growling. I found the perfect shouter in Marc Miekeley. He really liked my music and so he joined DEPRESSION. Since 1993 DEPRESSION was a two-piece-band! Marc has written most of the lyrics on the third demo "...in Verzweiflung". It was Death Metal with Grindcore influences. This demo was spread all over the world and we got nice responses from the fans and the critics (certainly not from all, but most of them). Due to various reasons (we both joined Dismal) it got very quiet around the DEPRESSION camp after this demo.
Well, in 1995, after a long break of two years, DEPRESSION were back! A lot of fans asked us about those old demo tapes, but we don't sell them anymore. Marc and I both still like the old stuff and so we had the idea to release the three demos again (new recorded and with new layout) on our fourth demo "Erinnerungen". This tape was really a big success, as the two different editions we made (400 copies altogether) are sold out and we got a lot of cool new underground contacts. In Autumn of 1996 we released our debut 7" EP, "Ein Hauch von Moder" on Gulli Records. We were really satisfied with this EP. We got absolutely fantastic reactions and responses from the underground world-wide, and needless to say it was a huge step forward for DEPRESSION! This EP was limited to 800 copies and it was pressed on purple vinyl and we pay tribute to one of our main inspirations, Blood, with the song "Dogmatize". But instead of resting on this success we carried on with DEPRESSION to keep on corrupting the world with "groovy Death/Grind".
And so, in late summer of 1997, "Böses Blut" (a split-CD with the gods Agathocles) came out of the dark! This was certainly the pinnacle in the history of DEPRESSION at the time, a dream come true, you could say! I'm still very satisfied with the whole CD. The songs, the sound and the layout are very nearly perfect to me. This time we covered "Thy Beauty" from Grindcore legends Fear Of God. With this release, we reached so many freaks on the globe who hadn't heard something from us before. The very positive letters showed us that there was still an active and enthusiastic underground scene for such brutal music!
At the end of 1997, we released a new split 7" EP, "Die Zeiten ändern sich" with German grinders Maggot Shoes. It was strictly limited to 500 hand-numbered pieces of orange-coloured vinyl and it is well within the DEPRESSION style and attitude. Some people said that this was the best recording from DEPRESSION so far and I still like it, too (and not only because of our crazy version of "Heart Of Illinois" from Impetigo!).
To have a good start in 1998, Hierba Records unleashed a DEPRESSION split-tape with the Spanish Noise-Grindcore band Hierba. Our part contains really old rehearsals and party-live recordings. There are really funny versions of Impetigo's "Boneyard" and Blood's "Dogmatize"...don't take it seriously, it's pure fucking Noise and a cool remembrance to the ancient times...Enjoy or die!
There were still a few songs left from the "Ein Hauch von Moder" studio-session '96, so in April of 1998 we finally released these songs on the "Ein Hauch von Moder Part II" split 7" EP with German gore-deathers Rejectamenta. In the vein of our debut EP in 1996, this split-EP is limited to 500 hand-numbered copies and was a return to our roots. It's a typical DEPRESSION release the way we like it. Similar to our debut EP, it was pressed on purple vinyl and the cover is also a negative of an ancient ruin.
Time goes on and at the first day of 1999, we split the 10" LP "Und keiner weint uns nach" with the Brazilian Grindcore-legends Rot, released on Deadly Art Production. To me, this release was quite important for DEPRESSION. And it seems that the fans liked this piece of music, too, because the first edition of 666 hand-numbered green-coloured vinyl sold out very quickly and so did the second pressing on blue vinyl as well. We dismembered "Suicide Fuck" from Abscess on this record because Chris Reifert and Autopsy are one of my all-time-faves. This DEPRESSION stuff is more Death Metal-influenced than the previous stuff and I suppose it was the heaviest release DEPRESSION had ever made...at least for the time being!
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! In Autumn 1999, DEPRESSION celebrated their ten-year anniversary! So we released on the 1st day of January in the year 2000 (again on Deadly Art) our first full-length album "Chronische Depression" on CD and in spring as a limited two-coloured LP. It was a present to ourselves (and maybe to a few of you as well). It contains a bunch of new songs, the obligatory cover version (this time, "Bloodcraving" from the godly Mortician), the outstanding song "Depressionen" and as a bonus, one song from each DEPRESSION release in the last ten years! We thought it was time for a little break...and so it took more than a year to fuck the mainstream with the next sign of life!
But since X-mas-day 2001 the Split-CD "Zur Stille finden" with the lunatics from Haemorrhage is available (on Cudgel Agency) containing ten new tunes of devastating groovy Death/Grind from DEPRESSION. This time "Enough" from Agathocles is the cover-song and I suppose this recording is the most groovy one for us so far. By the way, it is the first output featuring Ron Sanders on guttural grunts!! He is a friend of us for a long time (former Dismal shouter) and his vocal-style fits perfectly to Marc’s eruptions!
It's time for a new release in 2002! So we did the split-EP "Schatten" with German goremongers Gonorrhoeaction (again on Cudgel Agency). The 8 DEPRESSION songs (including "Radio Hit" from Anal Cunt) are totally back to the roots!! The tracks are fast, more brutal and raw as fuck! The vocal-battles between Marc and Ron are brilliant, and we are all very satisfied and happy with this release!
2003, our debut EP "Ein Hauch von Moder" is sold out since a long time now, and also the second part of this session, the split-EP with Rejectamenta isn’t available anymore. But people were (and are) still asking for this stuff, so we decided to re-release the complete studio-session from 1996 again, for the very first time on CD format! All songs are re-mastered and see, refreshed , the light of day as a 4-way split-CD together with Meatknife, Intestinal Infection and New York Against The Belzebu, released on German underground label Noise Variations. But not enough: The long-time-sold-out split-Tape with Hierba was only available for a short time and there were only a few copies every made, so we took the offer from Noise V to release some of these old rehearsal/live songs totally re-mastered as a split-7" with Intestinal Infection!! Feel the ancient spirit again!!
As long as the flame of the underground-spirit and the life-philosophy of true metal-music burns in my heart and soul we will always carry on like this! DEPRESSION are dedicated to the world-wide metal underground. Keep the spirit alive, and the underground will never die!!
We don't care if you think that DEPRESSION isn't very original or new, because we play the music we want to play!! Nothing else!!!
DJ: Where are you guys from, and how is the metal scene over there?
Kai: “We are from Germany. We started in a small town called Lüdenscheid. No one there except us are into Grindcore and Death Metal!! Later one I moved to Dortmund, a bigger city where I still life. Well, I’m watching the scene in Germany for 15 years now, and it changes every few years. At the moment it is quite strong and there are some really cool and professional bands around who deserve your attention. The quality level is much higher then years ago!”
DJ: So what is new with Depression? I heard you now have a 4-way split out, what's that about?
Kai: “Damn right!! We just released a 4-way split-CD with Gore grinders Meatknife, a legend in Noisecore Intestinal Infection and the crazy horde from New York Against The Belzebu!! Our part on this CD contains the complete “Ein Hauch von Moder” studio-session from 1996! Ten songs, re-mastered and with a new intro. We decided to re-release the stuff, because the EPs are totally sold out since years and so it is the first time on CD! The record was released August´03 on Noise V Records and contains nearly 1 hour of pure fucking underground!!”
DJ: Is Depression on a label? If so, how do they treat you?
Kai: “DEPRESSION is not signed to any label for years and we do not have a five-album-deal or stuff like this. We release different records (CDs, LPs, 10”Vinyls, EPs, split-releases) on different labels. Until now we worked together with Gulli Records, Deadly Art Production, Cudgel Agency and Noise Variations. We are very satisfied with the work of the labels, especially with Deadly Art and Cudgel Agency. They are 100% professional and still underground! That’s perfect for DEPRESSION. No label ripped us off and it is always something like a friendship and not only business partners. I like it that way. So if there is any label out there who wanna release something from DEPRESSION, feel free to ask me, ok?!”
DJ: Depression is a very cool name for a band, what is the meaning behind using this term as a band name?
Kai: “Thanks for your nice words about our name! I love it, too and I am still 100” satisfied with it!!! I want a band name that is only one single but strong and meanfull word. And it should be timeless, so that I am not limited to Grindcore and that I don’t like the name anymore in ten years more, you know?! So I suppose DEPRESSION is a very nice choice! A lot people say that it fits more to a Doom or Gothic band than to a Death/Grind band. But hey, who cares?! I am very satisfied with the name Depression! Of course I am not depressive in any way, but when I chose this band name back ten years ago, I was a bit. Everything around me I didn’t like and I had a lot of problems with my parents, in school and with the society. So I forced my anger and hate in DEPRESSION. But the main reason why I choose this name was because I really like it and I always loved these single words with a strong meaning. Names as Blood, Grave, Death, and Autopsy are nice. I want to have such a name for my band, too but it should not sound that gory. It should be more open-minded, so that I could use it as long as I am active with the band, if you know what I mean?! I suppose if I call my band Decomposed Vulgar Puss OF Infected Gore rotted Blood Cadaver or something like that I won’t be satisfied with this name in twenty years or so. But DEPRESSION is timeless, so it is perfect. In the beginning, my lyrics are depressive, too, so it wasn’t a big deal to choose this name.”
DJ: How would you describe the sound of Depression?
Kai: “We play old-school, groovy Death/Grind exclusively!!”
DJ: Who are some of your main influences, both musically and lyrically?
Kai: “In the beginning I was influenced by the Death Metal/Grindcore underground worldwide, specially by Blood, Agathocles, Necrony, Master, Sarcofago, Impetigo, Autopsy, Gut, Napalm Death and tons of others! I like the Swedish Death Metal a lot. Nowadays we are more inspired than influenced, I think. Lyrically we write about everything that is interesting for us. No special theme, so we have no image, not satanic nor political or something else. There are so much depressive things out there that we never get rid of any new lyric.”
DJ: What subject matter do your lyrics usually focus on?
Kai: “As I already explained in the previous question, we have no usual focus on our lyrics. They deal with all kind that happens around like relation-ships, society, nature, pollution, religion, fantasy, etc, etc. Feel free to check our website for all our lyrics!”
DJ: What previous bands have members of Depression been in?
Kai: “I started my musical “career” with Revolution Scream, a punk influenced Metal band, back in 1987. But the first serious band I was involved in was Gods Of Grind, a very, very cool Death/Grind band, influenced by Swedish and US Death Metal at the same time. Later on I played drums in Dismal, a unique Death Metal band, and in some other bands/project like Hel, Animus, Glasnostfastnotconfirmated, etc. Beside DEPRESSION I play in the Hellrock band Speedway 69.”
DJ: Play any cool shows lately? What bands do you normally play shows with?
Kai: ”We do not play live! As I play all instruments by myself, and Marc and Ron are just the growlers, we are not able to play gigs… But to celebrate the 15th anniversary of existing, we will play our first and exclusive show in autumn 2004 with session musicians. Watch out!!”
DJ: Most memorable show Depression has played?
Kai: “This show has still to come, haha!”
DJ: I seen you have many recordings out, could you please give us a discography?
Kai: “Here it is:
1990 - "Tal der Tränen" Demo
1992 - "Vergessene Welten" Demo
1993 - "...in Verzweiflung." Demo
1995 - "Erinnerungen" Demo
1996 - "Ein Hauch von Moder" 7"EP
1997 - "Böses Blut" Split-CD with Agathocles
1997 - "Die Zeiten ändern sich" Split-7"EP with Maggot Shoes
1998 - "Enjoy or die!?" Split-Tape with Hierba
1998 - "Ein Hauch von Moder" Part II Split-7"EP with Rejectamenta
1999 - "Und keiner weint uns nach" Split-10"LP with Rot
2000 - "Chronische Depression" CD/LP
2001 - "Zur Stille finden" Split-CD with Haemorrhage
2002 - "Schatten" Split-7"EP with Gonorrhoeaction
2003 - "Ein Hauch von Moder" Part I & II Split-CD with Meatknife, I. Infection, NYATB
2003 - "Der Wahnsinnliche" Split-7"EP with Intestinal Infection”
DJ: What was the first concert/show you attended?
Kai: “Oh, I cannot remember… I was 9 or ten years old and my older brother took me with him. It was a noisy Punk concert with a lot of crazy people, and for me, as a little child it was a strange experience! But my very first METAL gig was Black Sabbath! I was 14 years old and they just toured for “The headless Cross” album. I was infected right away and I still feel the spirit I had and my eyes are still flashed by the very huge white cross at the back of the stage! Wow!!”
DJ: What band got you into Metal?
Kai: “Well, to be honest AC/DC. My neighbour, a ten years older guy than me, was into Hardrock and Heavy Metal when I was thirteen. I spend a lot of time at his home, fascinated from his huge LP-collection. One day I take “Highway to Hell” and “Iron Fist” with me and dubbed it on tape to listen to it in my old walkman. That was the beginning…hehe…”
DJ: Do you listen to other types of music besides Metal?
Kai: “Yes, I also listen to Punkrock, Stonerrock, Rock´n´Roll, and stuff like this. I like it simple and fast. My favourites are Zeke, Peter Pan Speedrock, Supersuckers, old Turbonegro, old Gluecifer, Aerobitch, etc…”
DJ: Top 5 All Time Bands?
Kai: 5 bands are definitely not enough, haha, so I wrote down my top 20, ok?!
1.Bathory - "The Return..." and "Hammerheart"
2. Impetigo - "Ultimo Mondo Cannibale"
3. Sarcófago - "I.N.R.I."
4. Autopsy - "Mental Funeral" and "Severed Survival"
5. Impaled Nazarene - "Ugra-karma"
6. Terrorizer - "World Downfall"
7. Disrupt - "Unrest"
8. Napalm Death - "From Enslavement to Obliteration"
9. Mortician - all
10. Cryptopsy - "Blasphemy Made Flesh"
11. Suffocation - "Effigy of the Forgotten"
12. Necrony - "Pathological Performances"
13. Demigod - "Slumber of Sullen Eyes"
14. Incantation - "Onward to Golgotha"
15. Brutal Truth - "Extreme..."
16. Carnage - "Dark Recollections"
17. Possessed - "Seven Churches"
18. Pungent Stench - "For God your Soul...for me your Flesh"
19. Master - "Master"
20. Zeke - all
DJ: Top 5 All Time Albums?
Kai: “see above!”
DJ: Favorite Movies?
Kai: “From Dusk ´til Dawn, Pulp Fiction, Braindead, Bad Taste, Austin Powers and some other, more “intellectual” stuff like French art-movies.”
DJ: What are your thoughts on the world and its current state?
Kai: “Oh, difficult question. I see the world and the humanity with a lot of criticism. People are not one with the future and this will kill the planet one day. This theme is way to complex to give a satisfying answer here in this interview!”
DJ: Anything you'd like to add or close with?
Kai: “Thanks for the nice interview, check out our website www.depression-grind.de and listen to our MP3s. Keep the underground spirit alive and stay fast, heavy and brutal !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Depression Web-Site
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