Pierrick: PHAZM has been created in 2003. Our first line-up contained members from SCARVE, as Dirk Verbeuren (who also plays in SOILWORK) and Patrick were part of the crew. We did a first album called 'Hate a First Seed', recorded in Denmark; went on a European tour with IMPALED NAZARENE and YYRKOON. Now the line-up is different, we have a new drummer as Dirk is living in L.A. Here we are with a new album called 'Antebellum Death 'n Roll'. Our objective is simple: to play a fucked up mixture of death/black metal and rock 'n roll. Heavy, twisted, fat and groovy.

What (if any) story is there behind the band's name?

PHAZM refers to the insect that looks like brambles, leaves and spines. In middle ages, people used to call it the "stick of the devil". In Greek, phasma means ghost, apparition. We thought using an insect name would bring us good luck. Just look at the BEATLES.

Although you're just released your sophomore album, it's easy to tell that the band is very determined to make a statement in death metal. What do you want your fans to walk away with after listening to a Phazm album?

The wish to rock the world, to have fun with death and macabre things... We try to be ourselves through our music, and we don't wanna sound like the other thousands death metal bands that are nothing but a pale copy of CANNIBAL CORPSE. PHAZM is the perfect link between SATYRICON and BLACK LABEL SOCIETY. Get drunk and lost in a forest, make love with your friends in a graveyard and listen to our album. Just pure Death 'n Roll.

How was the recording process for ANTEBELLUM DEATH 'N ROLL different from HATE AT FIRST SEED? Was there any added pressure this time around?

Well, not really. We were proud of the songs we were recording and confidant about the result. I was so impatient for the album to be done; I can remember being drunk every night in the studio during the mix... Talking about how much we loved the sound and the structures etc... I guess a second album is not the worst passage in a band's life.

Speaking of the new album, how was the idea brought up to make it a dual disc?

It was an idea of our label, Osmose Productions. It's a great idea to avoid kids downloading our stuff. And for the price of three beers, you got a great package, CD+DVD!!! We filmed a show in a special venue that looks like a big wine cave. The sound is huge, you should check it out.

Recently the band lost its rhythm guitarist. Is there any light you can shed on why Pat is no longer with the band?

As I said before, Pat is also playing in SCARVE. We are about to release a new album in march (I also sing in SCARVE) and that was too much work for him. PHAZM is my band, and the problem is that I demand a total devotion.

How do you think the loss of Pat will affect the band? What positive(s) or negative(s) do you see stemming from this?

Well, honestly, I see only positive things. We're only three on stage, the sound is awesome, clear and powerful, just like MOTORHEAD or MACABRE. And it's more money, chicks and beers for everybody hahahaha !

It wasn't until just recently I've been getting into French death and thrash metal thanks to bands like Phazm and Yyrkoon. How do you feel about the current French metal scene and who are your favorite French death metal artists?

Everybody is asking me this question. Let me tell you: I like good bands; I don't care if they're coming from France or Russia. We have good bands in France, and that does not go back to yesterday ... I think it's time for French bands to kick everybody's ass, as we, YYRKOON, SCARVE, GOJIRA, ABORTED and so are doing. If you have a problem with French people, you can just fuck off. I do love U.S.A, and I know what rock 'n roll is. I ride a Harley Davidson and watch Californian porn. But at the same time I love my wine and cheese. We're part of the world, and you can't avoid us.

It's a little more than evident that the band has some sort of sadistic infatuation with inanimate objects and living people performing sexual acts with one another (Just look through the HATE AT FIRST SEED CD booklet or the cover of your new album for proof). Not that that's a bad thing *laughs*, but where do the ideas for these come from?

My twisted brain. Sex and death are the two topics that rule the world. Combine them and you will get a pure scary concept. I wonder how can some people be sexually exited by corpses... I write with a lot of dark humor, you must take all of this with second degrees. Let's have some fun with macabre things. Back to the time in France when whorehouses were legal, you could find a very special attraction. In a cold room that looked like a mortuary, you could pay for a whore acting like if she was dead. You see, there's more people into necrophilia than you think...

On HATE AT FIRST SEED, you did an amazing cover of Motörhead's "Dogs". Out of the hundreds of Motörhead songs, why was it the band chose to cover this?

We love this song, and it was easy to make it sound "phazmish". The lyrics are perfect too. Lemmy is god.

Something that makes Phazm such an interesting band to watch is the fact that you incorporate different styles of music (usually sounds unaffiliated with death metal, i.e. the usage of the harmonica and the overall feel of songs like "Sabbath") into your overall sound. Do you think this separates you from a lot of other death metal artists?

Of corpse ! We are fans of southern rock. We can easily listen to LYNYRD SKYNYRD and jump to a DARKTHRONE album... Why shouldn't we combine all our influences and start a new way of riffing? We use dobro guitars, harmonica, bottleneck... and play heavy twisted death metal.

With a new release and new tour dates with Decapitated, Blindead and Hate, what else can we expect from Phazm in 2007?

Our stage set is amazing. You can see these beautiful corpses and other cool stuffs. It helps to create a kind of "Captain Spaulding" atmosphere while we're playing. People like to see more than three dunkies playing in jeans and sport shoes. We wanna propose a true show. We'll be playing everywhere in this side of the planet. Please support us and give us a chance to come to U.S.A. That would be a dream coming true...

Finally, I'd like to thank you for taking your time to speak with me. Are there any final words you'd like to leave us with?

Thank you ! Thanx to all the people enough curious listening to our music. SUPPORT DEATH 'N ROLL ! SUPPORT PHAZM !

www.truephazm.com