Metal, Hardcore, Indie, Rock
Slaughter To Prevail is now known as one of the most relentless live acts in contemporary metal. At the heart of that storm is their leader, Alex Terrible, who talks with the kind of unadulterated truth that few musicians dare and commands Walls of Death like ritual offerings. Beneath the fear, however, is something more nuanced: a guy juggling his responsibilities as an artist, collaborator, and soon-to-be father. Alex is obviously happy with the response to the band’s most recent album, “Grizzly”, which was released in the summer.
People love it, festival crowds have gone crazy no matter what.
But there is a price for that pandemonium. Fans have made the notorious Wall of Death practically synonymous with their performances, a demand that Alex occasionally challenges.
People love that. People ask me to do that every single festival and every single show, so we have to do that, you know, we have no options. But actually, when I spoke with the guys who got to experience the Wall of Death at Inkarceration Festival last July, they said they felt terrified because it was so packed. And when they just slammed into each other, and there was no space at all. And they just felt that pressure, and they couldn’t even stand. I was like, ‘This sounds bad’. Maybe I don’t want to do that anymore. But the fans keep demanding it. ‘No, you have to do that.’
Naturally, the topic of discussion turned to “Grizzly”‘s creative process and the singles’ release schedule. Slaughter To Prevail takes a less structured approach with their most recent album, in contrast to bands that meticulously plan out their records. As soon as they were composed, singles like “1984” were released, driven by a desire to share and eagerness.
If we write the song, we want to drop it like right now. Our manager and label said, No, you have to wait… So we just wrote the rest of the album, like five or six songs, you know. And it is what it is. First of all, we write the music and then the lyrics, yeah. But maybe for the new album, I will write something serious. Because I never took the process of writing lyrics too seriously. I just enjoy it, then write stupid sh*t. And my English is very poor, you know. But for the next album… I will focus more on lyrics. Make it more like a dude. And like, how do you call it, kind of reflecting?
The band also ventured into unanticipated creative terrain with “Grizzly”. A song with Babymetal, which may have appeared improbable but came together very effortlessly, was one of the highlights.
We met one of the guys who works with Babymetal at Resurrection Festival in Spain… He just very quickly was like, ‘Hey, how about we collab?’ So we just wrote it together on the road, sent it to him, back and forth. Done. It was easy. Yeah, it was simple. Very good. They’re very efficient.
His dream would be to collaborate with…
Till Lindemann. Of course. I would collaborate with Lindemann. And I would say Slipknot. I know it’s maybe impossible. Maybe it’s possible. I don’t know. I’m living in the matrix sometimes, you know… What if we did an actual collab with Slipknot, like with Babymetal, so even merging the visuals or something like that would be great. Instead of just a Corey Taylor collab or whoever, I think just the actual bands. You guys are like 17 people on stage. That’s what we want.
Alex disclosed one weakness for someone who exudes invincibility on stage: spiders.
I’m not allergic. I’m just afraid of spiders.
With bears, it’s different.
I remember when I was three years old and my mom told me that I would be riding my three-wheeled bicycle in the kitchen, always telling her stories that I was hunting in the woods, found a bear, and killed the bear. I’m not lying, this is exactly what she said I would repeat, literally every single day. Maybe in the back of my mind, or in my previous life, I got killed by a bear. I don’t know.
Here’s his advice for new generations.
Stop being f*cking snowflakes. Stop searching for your weaknesses and make it your priority. You have to find your f*cking weaknesses. This is what metal is about. You have to fight and be a better version of yourself. Be stronger and make this example for your kids so they will be stronger than you and build a f*cking good society you can live in. It’s a philosophy rooted in hardship, in memories of his parents working endlessly to provide, and one that has shaped how he sees modern comfort. Right now, we have everything, literally. We do nothing, just chilling on the sofa. It’s actually bad for the next generation, because that’s the mentality they are seeing.
