Summon: How did the band get started?
Topon Das: I started Fuck The Facts as a recording project in the late 90’s. In 2001 I got some friends together and that was the first incarnation of FTF as a band. We went through a few line-up changes since then, but we’ve had the same line-up now for 6 years.
Summon: What kind of music do you play?
Topon Das: When we started it was very grindcore and noise influenced, but over the years I think it’s become more of a grind and metal hybrid. Noise and a lot of other styles like death metal, punk and hardcore also play a role in our influences and the music we create.
Summon: How has the fan response been?
Topon Das: I guess if someone would consider himself or herself a “fan”, then it’s probably pretty good. I know that some people like different eras of the band more than others, but that’s to be expected considering we have such a long history and a pretty dense discography. In general things have been getting better over the years. We create the music that we want and we see a lot of support from people that enjoy what we do. I couldn’t ask for anything more.
Summon: Where did the band name come from?
Topon Das: I got it from a Naked City album. It’s one of the songs on the album and I found that it summed up really well what I wanted to do with this project.
Summon: Introduce the band members and what they do in the band.
Topon Das: Mel is our vocalist, Vil is the drummer, Marc plays bass and Johnny & I both play guitar.
Summon: Who writes the music? Lyrics?
Topon Das: Mel handles most of the lyrics and the rest of the band writes the music. We’re all involved in the creation of the songs, so there’s no one main songwriter in the band.
Summon: And where do the lyric ideas come from?
Topon Das: Mel bases them on a lot of personal experiences and topics that interest her. We have a pretty wide range of lyrical themes, but it can all be linked backed to the human condition, the way we live our lives and world observations.
Summon: What is your view in Satanism and Occultism?
Topon Das: Not really something I’m personally involved in, but I don’t have anything against it.
Summon: How many albums/CD’s have you released?
Topon Das: We have a pretty big discography and I’ll admit that by now even I’m confused by it. We’ve released 6 full length CD’s, and numerous splits, EP and songs on compilations since the project/band began.
Summon: Tell me about some the songs on the latest CD?
Topon Das: Our latest release was actually only released on 10” vinyl, cassette & as a digital download. It’s an EP called “Amer” and has 7 songs in all (just over 17 minutes). Like I said before, we’re all involved in the writing so I find it to be a pretty eclectic release. We usually like to keep things fast and intense, but I think we slowed it down a bit on this release and added more melody as well. This doesn’t mean the songs aren’t as heavy though. Some of the songs are the most challenging to play and we’ve explored a few new ideas on this release as well, such as in songs like “A Void” & “Une Triste Vue”, that might even be a bit stoner rock influenced.
Summon: Do you have any side projects?
Topon Das: We have a dark ambient noise doom project called Merdarahta. It’s very different from what we normally do in FTF, but all members are involved in it with collaboration from some other friends as well. You can check it out here: http://merdarahta.bandcamp.com
Summon: Who are some of your musical influences?
Topon Das: I first got into music with Metallica and Anthrax and then transitioned to death metal with bands like Carcass, Cannibal Corpse and Deicide. From there I got more into more grind bands like Brutal Truth, Phobia, Plutocracy, Agents of Satan & Unholy Grave. Bands like Mr. Bungle & Naked City also played a big role in the creation of FTF, as well as noise artists like Masonna and Merzbow.
Summon: Which current bands?
Topon Das: Recently I’ve been listening to new stuff from Year Of No Light, Russian Circles & Alpinist.
Summon: What is the band like when you play live?
Topon Das: Playing well live is very important to us, and one of the things we spend the most time getting ready for. I really feel that live is where it matters. In this day and age, anyone with a computer and enough time can sound amazing on CD, but to have a killer live show is what really takes years of practice and dedication. We always do our best to have a intense and tight live show that sounds good and is full of honest energy.
Summon: Have you guys ever played in another country?
Topon Das: We’ve played the US and Europe numerous times.
Summon: How big of crowd shows up at shows usually?
Topon Das: It’s always different and we play a lot of different kind of shows. We’ve played festivals to thousands of people and small basement shows to a handful of people. We love to travel, so getting to play and visit as many different places as possible is important to us. Obviously some of these places won’t have as many people that are into this kind of music as others, but we never concern ourselves with the number of people that are there. If people come out to see us, it doesn’t matter if it’s thousands or just a handful, we’re going to make sure we give it our all.
Summon: How is the crowd response when you play?
Topon Das: People that come to our shows have always been extremely supportive of us. I feel very lucky that we get to travel all over the world and people always make sure to come out and support us. Again, it’s not about the amount of people, it’s all about the energy of the ones that are there.
Summon: What do you think of the US Black Metal/Death Metal scene?
Topon Das: I honestly haven’t really followed it as much as I used to, but from what I’ve seen there seems to still be a very strong death metal scene in the US. Like I said, I grew up on bands like Cannibal Corpse, Suffocation, Deicide, Morbid Angel, Monstrosity & Dying Fetus, so the US death metal scene has played a bit role in influencing the music I write in FTF.
Summon: What do you think of the Overseas scenes?
Topon Das: I love touring in Europe. They have band hospitality down to a science and we always feel very welcome every time we head over there. I wish the US and Canada would have the same ethic when it comes to making sure bands are fed, given a place to sleep and taken care of in general. We’ve also played with some really rad bands in Europe. Check out Hell Division from Spain and Chiens from France.
Summon: What are some of new favorite black metal/death metal bands?
Topon Das: Not sure how new these bands are, but I recently discovered Puteraeon and Entrails.
Summon: When do you guys plan on writing any new material?
Topon Das: We have a couple of new releases in the works right now. We have our own studio space, so we’re always writing and recording.
Summon: What does the future hold for the band??
Topon Das: We pretty much finished up our touring for 2013, but we will be playing some weekend dates in the US as well as Ontario & Quebec. We’re also working on finishing a new album that I hope we’ll be able to get out in 2014.
Contact them at:
https://www.facebook.com/FuckTheFacts
http://fuckthefacts.bandcamp.com/
http://fuckthefacts.bigcartel.com/
