Scrape came together during the pandemic as a jam between longtime hardcore musicians whose résumés include Left for Dead, Cursed, Lifespite, Insult, Citizens Patrol, Blind to Faith, and Abusive Forms.
What started as a loose instrumental project without much of a plan eventually turned into four tracks of ugly, feedback-soaked sludge and noise rock indebted to the likes of Iron Monkey, Unsane, and 16. Bassist Ronny recorded the songs at Overdose Audio, and Chris Colohan later added vocals that Peter Mahoney recorded in Toronto. Marc at Perimeter Audio Studio handled the mix, while Erwin at Toneshed Studio mastered the record.
After sitting unreleased for several years, Scrape's self-titled 7" finally arrives today via Oblivion Records, with Monkey Bite Company and Too Circle Records handling editions in the Czech Republic and Japan, respectively.
I caught up with guitarist Willem-Jan Kneepkens to talk about how Scrape came together, the band's love of ugly '90s heaviness, and why it took several years for these songs to see the light of day. Chris Colohan also joined us to discuss the bleak inspiration behind my favorite track on the record, "Deliverance."
In your initial email to me about the band, you called SCRAPE “Iron Monkey/Unsane worship,” and that influence is clear. When I listen to the songs on the record, I’m also reminded of ’90s sleaze like Eyehategod, Buzzov•en, and Noothgrush. Fudge Tunnel’s big-dumb-riff gold is in there, too. Tell me a bit about the stylistic direction and how it developed.
Willem (guitar): When we first started jamming during COVID, we still had no idea what direction the project was going to take.
The initial idea was to just jam and see what came out. We had some Crossed Out-style riffs that ended up sounding like Unsane once we slowed them down. That song became the catalyst for us to play sludge and noise rock instead of fast, blasting stuff.
Iron Monkey and early 16 also influenced the songs that followed. Scrape was born. It’s our tribute to that specific ’90s sound.
Who's in the band, how did your paths cross, and what led to this collaboration during the pandemic?
Willem: We had all shared bands and/or stages at one point or another: Lifespite, Insult, Cursed, Citizens Patrol, Left for Dead, Probation, Blind to Faith, and Abusive Forms.
Lifespite and Probation shared the same rehearsal room at the time, and because both bands were inactive, some members came together to jam and eventually form a new band.
The lineup was Frank on guitar, Ronny on bass, Rob on drums, and me on guitar.
We started jamming and writing without a vocalist. That wasn’t a concern at the time, since we just wanted to write stuff as an outlet for the frustration, isolation, and depression of the pandemic. At that point, it was still an instrumental band.
You recorded the record during the pandemic, but you're only releasing it now. What caused the delay, and what finally pushed you to release it? Why did you choose to release the 7" through your own Oblivion Records rather than another label?
Willem: Our bass player, Ronny, recorded the songs at his studio, Overdose Audio. We discussed potential vocalists and decided to send the raw mixes to our old friend Chris.
He was stoked and wrote some lyrics. His friend Peter Mahoney recorded the vocals in Toronto and sent them back to us. Marc from Perimeter Audio mixed the EP.
Several setbacks left the final recordings sitting on the shelf and collecting dust for a couple of years, which made me decide to put it out myself through Oblivion Records. Shingo from Too Circle Records and Alex from Monkey Bite Company stepped in to co-release the EP in Japan and the Czech Republic.
My favorite lyrics on the record are in “Deliverance,” which is about as bleak as it gets. What was the inspiration there?
Chris Colohan: All these songs were written as both the pandemic and the dissolution of the rule of law — which we’re seeing the later stages of now — were unfolding in tandem.
I’ve written a few times on pro-choice themes, as I was raised the opposite and had to disentangle and dispose of a religious indoctrination when I got old enough to see that the control of reproductive rights has always been the ultimate measure of control over a population.
But those are two very different songs, before and after the machinery of church and state gets its way. “Deliverance” was a reaction to the full repeal of Roe v. Wade in the U.S. and the preposterous tech-assisted stalking and tracking of people that came immediately after it, and will intrude further from here, unfettered.
I’m in Canada and grateful for whatever ways we’re still one thin democratic half-step ahead, but culture war is universal, and the same forces are pushing for the same undermining of personal autonomy everywhere.
That song basically reflects on the hypocrisy of such a predatory and misanthropic group using the sanctity of life as a front to control that same life once it goes from a hypothetical person to a real one with its own thoughts and opinions.
You’ve spent decades in hardcore and heavy music. What does Scrape offer that’s different for you musically? For me, listening to the record these past couple of weeks has inspired me to go back and listen to some of the bands we’ve been mentioning in this conversation.
Willem: For me personally, it doesn’t offer anything different, since we’ve always written heavy music in one form or another.
The fact that Scrape makes you want to listen to the bands mentioned earlier means a job well done [laughs].
Do you have any plans for Scrape beyond this record?
Willem: There are more songs written, so...
What are some of your favorite records this year, hardcore or otherwise?
Rob:
- Raw Peace — To Dust
- Escape — Krascore Deluxe
- Abusive Forms — The Demos 10" (I said what I said)
- Czarface Meets Franky Pulitzer
- From the Crypt — Born in the Grave
Willem:
- Savage — Septic Tomb EP
- Stephen O’Malley — Spheres Collapser
- Tubs — Hard Life
- Trenchwar — Overlords of Cold
- Visceral Contempt — Sequester
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Scrape's self-titled 7" is out today and limited to 300 copies. The record is being released by Oblivion Records in the Netherlands, Monkey Bite Company in the Czech Republic, and Too Circle Records in Japan. It is also available digitally via Bandcamp.
Tagged: blind to faith, cursed, left for dead, scrape, sect
