Interview

An Interview with Death-Rapper Necro

Most people are no doubt aware of Necro's departure from the Sounds Of The Underground Tour over the summer, which is why when we received the opportunity to interview the man, we leaped at the chance. Since I am a Necro fan the task was given to me. I chose to not just to talk about SOTU 2007 but also Injustice (his early death metal band), his appearance at Donnington, and lyrical themes to show why metal fans should know Necro's name just as much as the hip hop crowd.

Here are the questions and Necro's responses:

Diamond Oz: What made you decide on the name Necro and was this your name from the start of your hip hop career?

Necro: I got the name from Slayer's "Hell Awaits" album, the song "Necrophiliac." I wanted a brutal name and that seemed like the sickest. I was first Mad Mooney, a character from a Clive Barker book.

Diamond Oz: Back in the Injustice days, what bands influenced you the most?

Necro: A lot of bands. Slayer, Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax, Destruction, Kreator, Sepultura, Obituary, Pestilence, Testament, Vio-lence. The list can go on.

Diamond Oz: In my mind the "Inhuman Conditions" demo from those days carries alot of credibilty with it and I'll go so far as to say I think it's better than some of the bands who have made a name for themselves in that era. Was the band ever approached by any labels?

Necro: We never had the luck of getting signed. Roadrunner passed on it. I had personally sent it to them, and a ton of other labels. We were young and didn't know better, and I didn't have much control over the group since I was young. I didn't know how to keep it together. I just played dope shit and knew how to promote a bit, so we eneded up disbanding and doing hiphop.

Diamond Oz: Would you and Bill consider reforming Injustice for the fun of it? Maybe for an album through Psycho-Logical?

Necro: I dont think so. It wouldn't be fun. It would be mad work. Fun to me would be making a new metal band with some real credible artists with me on main rhythm guitar, and maybe I'd do bass too.

Diamond Oz: What made you go from playing brutal death metal to being the most brutal rapper on the planet? Were any of the metal-rap collaborations an inspiration to do so?

Necro: We just loved extreme music so our first rap was practice and then we started developing the sick style. It took like 3 years to transform into it fully and by '94 I was Necrophiliac in full effect. I was never influenced by the metal rap shit that was done previous to my shit. I mean some of that stuff is legendary like Run DMC and Aero, but it didn't make me wanna do it. It was me deciding it was time to create a fusion for my own goals that I did it.

Diamond Oz: Do you ever feel overwhelmed having legendary metal musicians perform with you? Do you have a particular favourite track with any of those guys?

Necro: Nah, I dont get overwhelmed. It's really no big deal. My favorite metal hiphop joint would have to be the new one, "Suffocated To Death By God's Shadow."

Diamond Oz: When it comes to writing a song, do you hear a beat first and then write the lyrics? Do you DJ yourself while in writing mode to get a better feel of the song?

Necro: I have no specific format, but lately I have written to the beat. In the past I would write verses with no beat on. It all depends on how I feel. I'm a moody person, so I work in moods.

Diamond Oz: What is your opinion on the La Coka Nostra project that Bill's working on? Were you a House Of Pain fan back in the day?

Necro: They're doing their thing. It's Bill's project and I have his back with whatever he chooses to do. I am more worried and focused on my shit, as there isn't enough time in the day to focus on 20 different projects. Blowing up takes focus. I liked some hop joints back in the day, they always had hot muggs production and I respected the Irish pride in the lyrics since im a proud Jew.

Diamond Oz: Are there any musicians from the metal genre that you haven't worked with but would love to?

Necro: Yeah, Slayer, Metallica, Ozzy, Sabbath

Diamond Oz: Would you ever consider moving from Psycho-Logical to a bigger label?

Necro: Sure, if it was the right deal, I do what I do because it's the best I can get, and I have control and make all the decisions. If a better situation presents itself or I can make a better one then I will run with what is best for Necro.

Diamond Oz: You recently played the legendary Donington Park here in England. How was that experience? Do you like coming to the UK?

Necro: It was awesome. Once you do it, you become desensitized. So I did expect more, but im glad I did it and it was an honor. I love England because England shows me a lot of love and I hope to do more shows and business in England.

Diamond Oz: Are there any countries you haven't played yet but have a strong eye on going to?

Necro: I'd love to play Japan and South America. I can't wait to finally do all of Europe. I love Canada and cant wait to do an extensive Canada Tour

Diamond Oz: If you could pick any band or rapper in the world to tour with, who would it be?

Necro: I'd love to tour with Metallica, and opening for someone like Eminem could give me a lot of fans. 50 cent maybe. There are so many angles, and I'm not sure what fanbase would love Necro the most, so right now we are putting Necro in front of every fan base and seeing what works. Wether its with ICP or the Sounds of the Underground, or doing shows with Madball and Psycho Realm, I will crush any stage I'm on. So its a good thing to experiment and find those fans out there
I'm gonna get them all.

Diamond Oz: You left the Sounds Of The Underground tour due to bad reception this year. Did you have any concerns about the tour before it began?

Necro: Nah I dont give a fuck, no worries. I just did my thing. I was able to handle every crowd no matter how hostile. I proved I'm a trooper to the touring business world. They seen me in action and respect me.

Diamond Oz: Looking back, is there anything that you'd have done differently if you had to do it again?

Necro: Hells no. I wouldn't have changed anything, except, maybe went on a different summer tour - one that would have had a better reception to me. But if I had nothing poppin I would have re-done it again. It's like sparring - not every fight are you gonna win with a knockout, some might go 10 rounds.

Diamond Oz: Were there any bands on the tour that kept their distance from you due to genre difference or other reasons?

Necro: For the most part, most of the bands loved us as people and as artists. A lot of those dudes are Necro fans, so it wasn't bands that had issues. It was emo fans and people working the sound crew, getting nervous cuz people were throwing shit at the equipment and because they hated hiphop deep inside and just weren't feeling us, but the bands were all cool.

Diamond Oz: Who do you have DJing for you at shows at the moment?

Necro: Right now Klee from Riviera Regime is doing it.

Diamond Oz: How's the hype for the new album "Death Rap" going? Gracing the front cover of Hip Hop must feel pretty good!

Necro: It's great, we had a great first week sales, heatseeker on Billboard, and fans are loving the record. I wanna reach my goal for this record and keep it moving to more new shit.

Diamond Oz: Has the writing changed in any way from your previous efforts?

Necro: Everything changes, but you need to be fluid and keep progressing. I just do me. I think I get better and better and always have something new to give, and it will always be hardcore.

Diamond Oz: Is there any song from the album that you really can't wait to perform?

Necro: Performing is something that has its own life. Every track has to be rehearsed enough times before it feels natural. Right now im getting to that stage. I havent done enough of the album to really feel the groove yet, where it's natural. Plus the few places I did do songs from death rap, their sound systems were shit. So once I get to do some of these tracks in a really good sounding room it will feel right.

Diamond Oz: What's your favourite song to play live?

Necro: Too many to name, but "Your Fucking Head Split," "Beautiful Music For You To Die To," "Push It To The Limit," "Who's Ya Daddy?"...so many go over well with the crowd.

Diamond Oz: Are there any songs you haven't performed live for a while that you might wanna bring out on the next tour?

Necro: Not sure. I will have to think about that.

Diamond Oz: How's Psycho-Logical going at the moment?

Necro: It's best ever with the success of "Death Rap" so far. I have big goals for the sales of "Death Rap" and if I reach that goal I feel alot of doors will open for me. I have a lot to fucking prove, man,

Diamond Oz: Do you have a tour planned at the moment for "Death Rap"? If so when does it start and will it be a U.S. only tour or will you be coming to the U.K., Ireland, Canada or any other countries?

Necro: I have tons of touring planned. I just finished Australia, did record release shows in NYC and LA. I now go on tour with ICP for all of October in mostly the midwest United States. Then I have Europe lined up for November including shows in England of course. Then in December, I will be doing something with a huge metal band. Opening up. Can't announce yet. Then in January, I will crush all of Canada with a sick package of opening acts. Then after that, another tour with artists that have an audience I haven't hit yet. So shit is popping. I'm a touring motherfucker right now. After 2 years goes by, when we are in 2008 deep you will look back and be like "damn Necro killed it since April 06 when he did his first show in VA." Not my first show ever, but my first show since dropping tons of records.

Ollie Hynes has been a writer for Metal Underground.com since 2007 and a metal fan since 2001, going as far as to travel to other countries and continents for metal gigs.