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Monstrosity - Mike Poggione

23/08/04 || Lord K Philipson

Chazz: Mike Poggiones’ letter(s) in our hatemail-section has made him a pretty popular guy. We got quite a response after posting his email to Lord K so I decided to offer him an interview and set the record straight. He agreed. I sent the questions and once he read them he decided he didn’t want to do the interview anymore. Lord K and I got ready to prepare some comments to rip this guy a new asshole since he did agree to an interview, and basically pussied out. Well, Mike had a change of heart and did end up doing the interview. No matter what anyone thinks of guy for his original email to Lord K, I do have to give a little respect to Mike for having the balls to do this. I offered to allow him to respond to any question he didn’t want to answer with a “no comment”, but he answered each and every one. It would have been pretty easy for him to ignore me, or make up an excuse and say he didn’t have time to do the interview.

Lord K: Look at the picture… Did we just interview a bassguitar? Nope, but this guy plays a 6-stringed bass, and a 6-string bass needs to be shown so that’s why we have that picture here instead of his fucken mug. Fuck that for now. As you can see from the mails he sent (go to the Hatemail-section), spelling might not be this dudes’ strongest quality, so for the hell of it we have left this interview un-edited. Seeing that there’s not too many typo’s (don’t worry, there are still some) in this one, we kinda figure why this intie took some weeks to send back, he probably worked on it more than he’s used to, which is fine by us. I have stated what I think of this guy in the Hatemail-section, no need to bring it up here again. Lemme just say, no matter how much of a tool I think this guy is, Monstrosity is still a killer fucken band. And killer bands who write hatemails to us based on a good review that we gave them, deserves a spot in the Global Domination limelight. Before we go thru with the interview, here’s some (un-edited ofcourse) mails from the guy that describes what we had to go thru to make this happen… Chazz mailed him the following:

“Hey. Saw your email posted at the Global Domination website, it looks like you took issue with our review of Rise to Power ( I didn’t write that review, in case you were wondering ). Before this gets into some internet drama of back and forth pissed off emails between you and the guy who wrote the review, I’d like to offer you a short interview, maybe 10 questions. We can just do it over email, I’ll ask about that particular review and you can set the record straight once and for all and end this instead of becoming the most popular guy in our hatemail section. I’ve also got some questions about Monstrosity, the Rise to Power album, your band’s history, and some bassist type questions I’d like to ask too, in other words, a real interview. I email the questions, you type the answers and send them back, that’s it.
Lemme know
/Chazz”

... and got this reply:

“hey pal… sorry to go off in my letter but whoever did the review, in my opinion… really didn’t know the band like he should have to do a real review… I mean if this clown has never even heard of us before… then jesus christ… I mean we are they the florida pioneer or frontal groups of death metal… cannibal.. deicide.. morbid .. .m.creation… i mean—if u know deathmetal—monstrosity is a household name…. n ways….. I really like your site and was disappointed when I read what was posted…. that’s all
interview is fine—-theres nothing really though to set the record straight on though….... I just have issues with whoever wrote review….when I replied to site—I thought I was emailing him—-sorry if it was u….. don’t worry about gay internet drama—- that’s not my style. well let me know what u want to send… interview is fine buddy…
later mike poggione”

Well, so far so fucken good… “don’t worry about gay internet drama—- that’s not my style”. Ex-fucken-scuse me? Knock, knock… Anybody home? Elvis has left the fucken building, people… By a rocket. Another mail is sent back explaining questions will come soon…

“OK BUDDY—I SEE—NO PROBLEMS—OR HARD FEELINGS—SEND ME WHJATEVER U WANT——I LL GET IT RIGHT BACK TO U…
COOL
MIKE ”

So we sent whatever we wanted and got this as a reply (un-edited as always):

“dude—I anit gonna do this inteview—-towards the end of it I can see where u are trying to go—make me feel bad and bullshit—-or appolize for being brutal(real) the reason I called lord queer a faggot is because of this—he states he dose not know much about us—-expecting b level material—-,,,secondly he talks about the bass being low—-is way loud—I made sure of it—-I love bass in the mix—if he cant hear a the fucking distorted bass fuzz in the mix and alone—he s on crack—ok? thirdly…. he quotes a big”fuck off” to us for the out-tro—-oh welll—it s what we wanted to do—10min loop of total noise destruction—-then like a
reactor—-blows up(off cd) so no—I was not drunk when I replied—I prefer smoke (bud) weights and chemicals…. so whatever u guys want to think—I wrote back because I didn’t like those 3 main things—what do u expect—someone says bullshit to u and u just gonna sit there and take it—and not back yourself up… come on man—- and yes I would bash a reviewer—-I have before—and if u think I ‘m fucking crazy—-my singer jason is twice as crazy and big—SO WHEN PEOPLE PUT THERE HEART INTO THEIR music….. hearing bad shit about it don t make you feel to happy… so…....... so take care overthere—or whatever——-MAYBEE I WILL GET TO MEET U SOMEDAY..
>MIKEP
u see kinda cool chazzzzzzzzzz but I see where u are headed with this “interview” so I doubt I will do
PS….IF U LOSE RESPECT FOR US…OHWELL—-WE WILL SURVIVE ..PAL”

Wow, can anyone explain what he actually said? After that, Chazz summed shit up in the beginning of this so…

Enjoy the un-edited interview, fucko’s.

Global Domination: I don’t really know where to start this fucker off at, so lets do some bass guitar questions, since you are a bass player. How long have you been playing? Did you start off on guitar and switch to bass like so many others did, or did you always play bass?

Mike Poggione: actually I did switch from guitar to bass. I was about 17 yrs old and played with some friends in school and my town. I was asked to fill in on bass one night for a school gig and found out that bass is where I’m at.

Who did you look up to as a bass player when you were just starting out? Anyone you look up to nowadays?

well for deathmetal… there was always alex webster, who is now a good friend of mine, glen benton, david vincent.. steve digorigo… ect for now… them still but as well jazz bassists or wizards of bass like billy sheenean, victor wooten, steve baily, jacco… ect players like that. it s a good level of me these days to learn from and play along with… I’m headed in the best direction of my practice and skill these days…

What’s your bass rig look like? Do you still play a 6-sting bass guitar, I’ve seen photos of you with one. Is that really needed with Monstrosity, the six string bass, or did it just look so bad ass you had to get it?

I play a 6 string… started with a 5. 4 strings are faggot. and yes I use all strings—whichh honestly most deathmetal players don’t. I focus on the 6th string mainly and use the 1st for taping and scale runs. for me, using the 6 string bass is to give a major difference in low end and when need—a bit of high end—- like a tenor bass.

Monstrosity came out of the same Florida scene and at around the same time as a lot of other death metal bands, like Cannibal Corpse, Deicide, Malevolent Creation, Morbid Angel, Obituary, etc. What was the scene like back then, in the early 90’s with all these bands getting record deals/endorsements/music videos and really taking off at around the same time? Must have been insane.

well I don’t mean to sound like dick but I wounld have a fucking clue or could have given a fuck about it. I didn’t join the deathmetal scen til 1998. sorry to say but during the mid 90-s I was in gay school and into gay sports and weights. I joined monstrosity when I was 19 so I missed all the tampa shit—but from what I hear and have scen now—the mid 90-s ruled metal… florida especialy made it s mark for everyone.

I’ve never heard of this “gay school”. I suppose David “Evil D” Vincent is a graduate… What is the scene there like now, any new bands really impressed you lately? Is there still a big death metal scene in Florida?

the scene now is up and down and seems to change overnite. There’s a big scene for gay metal (mall metal) or new metal these days but there is still a constant brutal crowd. some shows are great and some suck.. .usually depending on day and if promoted well or not. as far as local acts… not too sure… there is a cool band called neomortum and infant slaughter. they grind balls!

I have to say, Monstrosity is probably a better band than most of the ones I listed above (Cannibal Corpse, Deicide, Malevolent Creation, Morbid Angel, Obituary, etc.). Why is it, do you think, that Monstrosity isn’t as high profile those bands? Is it just a matter of their record labels funding advertising and such for them? I don’t understand why I can go into any record store in the US and find a Deicide or Morbid Angel album at every store, but not a Monstrosity one.

I hear that!. I anit gonna say much but I think if there was better promotion and management for a longer period of time…. things would be very different.

Are you guys bitter at all that a lot of the bands out of the Florida scene went on to so much success, (for example Cannibal Corpse passing the million album mark last year) while Monstrosity still remains more or less underground compared to them? Especially considering you guys are every bit as talented as any of those bands, and groove more than they do.

I think it sucks fat cock that we don t get as much recongition as those bands. it sucks bad because everyone that knows cannibal knows monstrosity… they are common names in the same area. but u always see more about cannibaL OR deicide or whatever….... it s frustrating.

Lets talk about Jason Avery, in case anyone is living under a rock, he replaced George Fisher (now in Cannibal Corpse) as vocalist in Monstrosity. I always liked Fisher’s vocals, but on Rise to Power, Jason impressed me and may be the better vocalist of the two. How did you guys hook up with him? Are you happy so far with him as a band member? Are you going to give Jason a cheesy nickname like “Corpsegrinder” any time soon?

jason hooked up with band way before I knew them. I think he is a great vocalist and probely has the best frontman stage presence I ve worked with. he s a mean fuck and hates everything! he s a great pal of mine. jason already has his own nickname…. going back from his days in EULOGY.

I’ve read through several reviews of Rise To Power, and the album seems to get very good ratings everywhere I look. The one complaint I see in almost every review has to do with the song “Shadow of Obliteration” and the last 6 or so minutes of it being just a bunch of guitar and other noises. What’s the deal there? Is it just that no one “gets it” or did you guys have to make the album a certain length so you just added some shit to the end of that track?

THE END OF THAT SONG HAS A POINT… A CHAIN OF EVENTS IN SOUNDS THat ENDS IN A BLOW UP—- LIKE A REACTOR OR nuke… it’s also what is played after we end our set with that song….... outro music…..

Wow… You are also a member of the band Capharnaum. How did that come about, is this just a side project, or another full time band for you? Explain to everyone what Capharnaum is all about, and how they differ from Monstrosity.

I joined up with them through the guitarist.. jason suecoff, a friend of mine. it s his band, I just play bass. the point of the band I guess is straight up technical as fuck and brutal as fuck. technical is a word that too many bands are getting said to be these days… it s a fucking crime.. tech to me means full on shred balls fret board athletics… u know—just about impossible to play….. capharnaum is that… real shit that makes u want to never play your guitar or bass or drums again…... like give up….

The reason we are in contact with you all started with an email you send to the site, taking issue with Lord K’s review of “Rise To Power”. He rated it a 7.5 out of 10, which is alot higher than most of the stuff he reviews. In your email you said things like “u are a fucking faggot queer—-about the monstrosity review. first of all—-figure out there history—-if u anit heard of them—-u don’t know fuck about deathmetal “ and “I hope to see u soon—-on tour—-so I can bash your faggot face open”. How could you be that pissed off over a review that says Monstrosity is better than any of the other Florida death metal bands right now, and actually recommended that album? Set the record straight here and seriously,what the fuck were you thinking? (Please bring us a story about being drunk when you wrote that so no one loses any respect for Monstrosity).

the reason I called lord queer a faggot is because of this—- he states he dose not know much about us—-expecting b level material—-,,,secondly he talks about the bass being low—- is way loud—I made sure of it——I love bass in the mix—- if he cant hear a the fucking distorted bass fuzz in the mix and alone—- he s on crack—- ok? thirdly…. he quotes a big”fuck off” to us for the out-tro—-oh welll—-it s what we wanted to do—- 10min loop of total noise destruction—-then like a reactor—-blows up(off cd)—-is out outro on stage, so no—-I was not drunk when I replied—-I prefer smoke(bud) weights and chemicals…. so whatever u guys want to think—-I wrote back because I didn’t like those 3 main things—-what do u expect—-someone says bullshit to u and u just gonna sit there and take it—-and not back yourself up…come on man—-and yes I would bash a reviewer—-I have before—-and if u think I ‘m fucking crazy—-my singer jason is twice as crazy and big—SO WHEN PEOPLE PUT THERE HEART INTO THEIR music…..what do u expect

I prefer smoke(bud) as well, but the “weights and chemicals” you can keep to yourself… If you happen to see an actual bad review, say someone says the album sucks and gives it a 2/10, would you actually hunt down and kill the reviewer, seeing how you treat people who praised the album…

yes

Of the people that gave the album a good review, like this site did, howmany of those did you email, and do you actually plan on kicking someone’s ass for a review on an internet site?

sure… why not u only live once right….?

Would you mind telling us what you think about your new friend Lord K Philipsons’ all-star death metal band God Among Insects? Here’s a link to a song for you to download. Scroll down and look for the link. I’m sure he’d like to know yer opinions on his shit. And while we are at it, can you hear the bass?

I downloaded it… yes u can hear the bass… with pick.. correct? ...

How many albums do you guys actually sell? What’s the biggest royalty-check you ever got?

plenty…being on an indepent lable has it’s perks—-no one to pay back so all the album loot comes back to us. not that it even matters.. .everyone who actually has a working band knows real loot$$$ comes from shows and merch sales.

What’s next for you and Monstrosity? Except for threating to “bash faggot-faces open”? Do you plan on getting back to the studio soon, are you planning on doing any touring this fall/winter? Small shit like that…

small shit huh?—well doing anything with us usually anit small… u mean like to go to south america again and play for another 80,000 plus fans…? – but things are fucked now because our guitarist tony norman now tours with morbid angel. it s been hard to work things out lately.. in these past 6 months

*Feel free to add anything else here, web site links, threats, your shoe size, favorite food, whatever you want:

yeah… .fuck the middle east… everyone overthere and everyone that came here to america from there.

Chazz: And on that note I ended the interview. I had some comments to add here and there but decided to let the interview and Mike’s answers speak for themfuckenselves.

Lord K: Some time after this interview, Mike approached us again, being upset over something. We asked for another interview with this genius and he accepted. Until he got the questions ofcourse, then he chickened out. Just like we expected. We unfortunately don’t have the questions left or we would have posted them here for you.

Interviews