Interview BLOOD RITUAL

Interview with Ben of BLOOD RITUAL Rock N Roll,Thrash Crossover Band with Hardcore influences from North Carolina US.

1. Can you tell us about your childhood ? Do you remember when you first came into contact with loud music and what were your first concerts ?

I was a really scared kid growing up. My cousin had huge poster of Gene Simmons from KISS spitting blood in his room. It terrified me. When I was 6 he sat me down and made me listen to KISS. I was hooked. That was my first taste of rock music and I devoured anything I could find. KISS led to Van Halen, which led to Iron Maiden, then to Metallica, then onwards tpo Anti-Cimex and Razor. Finding Punk and Hardcore through skateboarding when I was 11 really changed the course of my life. It took what I knew from these big bands and made it more accessible to a kid like me. Municipal Waste was hugely influential. I remember hearing them for the first time at our local skate park and couldn’t believe that they were a current band. They rocked!

2. Can you describe the local scene where you grew up, what bands and venues were important to you and can you share some of your greatest memories about these bands/places ?

I’m from Greensboro, North Carolina. It’s a weird little town centered around a number of Universities. There has always been a pretty significant Punk and Hardcore scene in the area. When I was young most shows were centered around a place called the Somewhere Else Tavern. There were so many cool local bands like Live Through, NUGGET, and The Nondenoms. That was where I realized that ANYONE can make music. It was a shitty little bar, but I learned a lot of great lessons about how to create and how to act.

The first real concert I saw outside of my hometown was North Carolina’s Valient Thorr in Raleigh North Carolina around the year 2008. They were on tour with Early Man (an incredibly underrated band) at a now defunct venue called Volume 11 Tavern. That was my first time experiencing stage diving and moshing. Valient Thor was my favorite band throughout my teenage years and I still love that band so much.

3. Did anyone play in any bands before Blood Ritual ? If so, can you tell us something about them? Were there any releases? Can you share some good memories about those bands ?

Our guitarist and I were in a band called Future Primitive. That project was largely influenced by Propagandhi and melodic hardcore punk bands like Kid Dynamite. As we both progressed musically our sound shifted into pure crossover thrash. I met some of my favorite people in the world while playing in that band. We had a ton of great shows and a great tour up to Philadelphia.

4. How did you come up with the band name Blood Ritual , do you describe your musical style ? And can you tell us briefly the history of your band’s creation ?

After Future Primitive broke up, Cameron and I wanted to go full steam ahead into writing thrash, completely away from what we had been playing. Our drummer, Mitchell Williard, has tattooed us for a long time and was looking for a band to join. We began jamming together around 2017. Our lead guitarist, Josh Francisco was originally going to play bass but once he showed off his solo-ing chops I switched over to full time vocalist.

The name came about in a weird way. We began with an entirely different name and had our first show booked. There seemed to be a bit of controversy with our name at that time so we shifted it around and became BloodRitual. It fits. It’s a dumb wacky name and we have a cool logo drawn by Indonesian artist LouDeath that adds to the flavor.

We’re undoubtedly a thrash band, but we wear our hardcore influences proudly. We’re about as “Crossover Thrash” as anyone can get. Everyone in the band came from different musical backgrounds and it shows. It gives us a really unique approach to how we play and what we play.

5. Why did you want to play this genre ? Who or what inspires you to write songs. What bands have inspired you the most ?

We just like to play hard and fast. It’s as simple as that. Rock groove with Thrash intensity and a hardcore punk mindset. We’ve trimmed all of the fat. So you’re getting the best of it all.
Each member of BloodRitual comes from a different musical background and that merges together to create a sound that is uniquely us. Some of our influences are Iron Age (Texas), Razor, Morbid Saint, and of course fellow North Carolinians Corrosion of Conformity. Comic books inspire most of my lyrics. Stuff like Mike Mignola’s Hellboy and Jodorosky’s The Incal. The song “Seed of Destruction” is a direct reference to Hellboy.

Though, on the latest album there are a ton of homages to 70’s Punk, KISS, and a lot of the Outlaw Country Music that everyone in the band grew up on.

6. Can you tell me something about your new Album “Do You Believe” Recorded at Bitter Melody Records ? What is the story behind your Album Title?
We’ve worked for years on the songs that went onto this album. We took our time to make them the best we possibly could. our lead guitarist, Josh Francisco is an absolute shredder. Some of the solos he plays blow my mind. They’re very technical but also HEAVY and based in classic thrash and hard rock. When the solo hits, it hits you in the guts.

We recorded with Jeremy White at White Noise Recordings in Kernersville, NC. Bitter Melody Records is the label that very graciously helped us get cassettes made. Grant from Bitter Melody has been great to work with. He’s an incredible mentor.

The album title comes directly from Don McLean’s “American Pie.” The line is “Do you Believe in Rock n’ Roll, can music save your mortal soul?” I took that and redirected the intention. I’ve been playing in bands for over half my life. It’s hard. It’s expensive. There isn’t good that always comes from it. So why do I keep doing it? It’s in me. I can’t stop. If I stopped I don’t know who I would be anymore. I do it because I believe in rock and roll.

7. Which places to play were important to you and why ?

There is nothing better than playing a really good show in our hometown. Good friends come out and people party hard.
Richmond Virginia is always an incredible place to play. There are so many legendary bands that have come from that city that it is inspiring to be playing where so many other incredible acts have played and cut their teeth. People love metal in that city and we love ‘em for it!

Some of our biggest fans and friends are in Winston Salem, NC. Shout out to them for being loyal soldiers in the BloodRitual Army.

8. What was your Weirdest show you’ve ever played and why ? feel free to mention more than one, and don’t hold back on the details ?

Let me give you two:

We’ve played a ton of weird shows. From basements out in the middle of nowhere, to empty clubs. You gotta deal with the weird shows to keep moving though!

In Future Primitive we played a weird show in the basement of a church in the middle of nowhere. I was pretty drunk and somehow people started asking what it would take for me to piss in my own mouth. Eventually a group of people came up with $9 for me to do it. I did it and even though I’m not proud of it the legend of what I did followed me around for a bit and I was able to buy Taco Bell that night.

9. What is l Blood Ritual – Show like? What can somebody expect when they go to one of your concerts ? How was your 2022 tour with D.R.I ?

If you come to a BloodRitual show expect to see us give EVERYTHING we’ve got. I tend to flail around and cause myself a pretty significant deal of bodily harm. I don’t know how many more years I can keep doing it but people paid for a show, so I’m gonna give them a show. The rhythm section is a direct assault on the senses at live shows.

10. Are there other types of music you would like to play with a band ?

Our guitarist, Cameron Phipps, and myself have been writing riffs for a pure rock band that we’d like to start. More in-line with 90’s Corrosion of Conformity and bands like The Hellacopters.

11. Which Festivals would you still like to play ,and Which festivals do you have the best memories ?

We’ve played a few small local festivals. Nothing Major. We’d love to get out and make more happen. Maybe even make our way to Europe someday soon!

12. How can fans and future fans locate, ,listen to and buy your music & merchandise . Is there anything else you would like your fans to know ?

Hey I did forget to add the links to our Bandcamp and where to buy cassettes and CD’s

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/bloodritual666

Bandcamp:

Bloodritual666.bandcamp.com

Casettes:

bittermelodyrecords.bigcartel.com

White Noise Records:

https://www.facebook.com/whitenoiserecord

Bitter Melody Records:

https://bittermelodyrecords.bigcartel.com/

13. What were your best moments in 2023 as a band ? And are your plans for the future ?

We played more places than we ever have in 2023. Like I said, BloodRitual started playing shows in the hardcore scene and 2023 was the first year we fully crossed over to almost only playing metal gigs. The reception from fellow heshers and thrashers has been incredible. 2024 is going to be a big year for us and I can’t wait to get out on the road and show the world what we’ve got!

* These were the questions, thank you for taking part in this interview and all the best to you and your band!