SYSTEMATIC DEATH…
CVLT Nation interviews KROMOSOM

“Things that anger me make me happy, ‘no hope, no future’ kinda shit” – Yeap, frontman of KROMOSOM.

Noisier, nastier and rawer. This is the doctrine that Australian punks KROMOSOM live by. Borne from the ashes of Pisschrist, the dirty crust roots of this longstanding outfit paved the way for a more stripped down approach. One that holds chaos supreme.

Built from a passion for ‘80s hardcore, the Melbourne four-piece took their strong Scandinavian and Japanese groundings and pushed them to the foray. Unveiling their debut self-titled LP last year, a recent 7-inch on Holy Terror Records sees the band taking a more melodic approach.

 CVLT Nation talked to frontman Yeap shortly after its release.

CVLT: 2011 marked a big year for the band.

 YEAP: “Most definitely. 2011 was a huge year for the band, with the release of the 12-inch and three tours. The 12-inch took a long time to conceive. There has been two presses so far. The first we were not so happy with. So we got it remixed and remastered for the second press. In the end we are happy with the product.”

CVLT: The band finished an east coast Australian tour with Toxic Holocaust earlier this year. Did you guys meet on the U.S tour last year?

YEAP: “We did not meet in U.S but on the internet. Joel (Grind, vocals) got in touch with me two years ago to suss out a tour for Toxic Holocaust. The tour did not happened due to lack of funds. Then Heathen Skulls picked up the ball and got us to support them.

“We’ve got a few shows Australian shows and we just did Evil Invaders this month. But we aren’t doing any international tours this year so far. Still in the midst of planning a Hardcore Victim Festival in Melbourne for November. There will probably be a special guest band from Japan.”

CVLT: The U.S tour was pretty chaotic. There must have been a few memorable shows.

YEAP: “Too many good memories. At our first show in Boston, people were going real hard and beating the shit out of each other. The show in Atlanta was wild because we played with the mighty Mauser and then had a raucous after party at the Claremount lounge. Then the show in New Orleans, we basically went to war with the mosh pit. People were chucking shit on stage and we were giving it right back. There was a boat show in Austin and I threw a coke dealer off the boat; I didn’t know this at the time. He had 200 USD worth of coke in his pockets. He was ok with that after my sincere apologies. I was lucky he liked the music. The whole of west was awesome because we got to watch the mighty Warcry every night.”

CVLT: The raw self-titled 12-inch has been making waves recently. Give us a bit of background behind the album?

YEAP: “We recorded at Headgap studio by Sloth in early 2010 in one day. The mastering was done by Jack Control from Enormous Door. We produced our own record. We ran out of cash so we had to mix ourselves. It was weeks and weeks of mixing. Mainly because I didn’t know how to use Pro Tools. I think it could have been harsher like our split 7-inch. The sound is huge but lacks the raw edge. The 12-inch is the first time Kromosom went to a proper studio to record. The sound engineers didn’t really know what to make of us. We have since gone back to recording on our eight-track in our studio. It is much better for capturing our sound.”

CVLT: Writing-wise, how long did it take to bring the album together?

YEAP: “It took about two years. Some of the songs that I original wrote for Pisschrist but didn’t quite suit. I usually write the songs and then we arranged it together in the jam room. Since joining the band, Cormy (guitar) has brought some songs to the table.”

CVLT: The album wears a lot of Kromosom’s influences in its sleeve.

YEAP: “My influences come from everywhere. Hardcore, crust, punk, metal, new wave. I been listening to some of these bands’ since I was a kid. So it’s quite natural when you write music you are influenced by what you have been used to listening. We try to write memorable riffs and interesting arrangements. But, at the end of the day, if it makes us rip shit up in our jam room, then that’s good enough for us.

“ Lyrically, most of the stuff I write about is influenced by daily fucked up life. Excessive media consumption, consumerism and politicians. Things that anger me make me happy, ‘no hope, no future’ kinda shit. Just my point of views. It’s just my ideas because they it affect me everyday.”

CVLT: 2011 was also a turbulent time, in terms of solidifying the band’s line-up. Is this formation locked-down now?

YEAP: ““Yes, I think we’re settled now. Penkie (drums) and Cormy joined the band just before we release the 12-inch and did the U.S and Japan tour. Bart, our old bass player, left the band for personal reasons. So Penkie joined. When Matt our old singer left the band, I switched from guitars to vocals and Cormy joined. When our old drummer left we had problems looking for a drummer. So we decided Penkie would play drums as he is an awesome drummer. So Luke returns to the band to play bass. He was in the original line-up but left to concentrate on his other band Leprosy.

“We get along great – on stage, off stage and in the pit. We did the hardest yards. We survived three tours and two records together. And we ready for more.”

CVLT: The Paranoid four-track EP has just been released via Holy Terror. How’d that come about?

YEAP: “Dwid really liked our demo tape and 12-inch. So he was more than happy to release a 7-inch for us. Like the split 7-inch with Isterismo we recorded it on an eight-track in our jam room. Recorded by our mate Torsten, mixed by me and mastered at Noiseroom studios in Tokyo. The songs are bit more melodic. There are different beats and tempo changes. It’s U.K ‘82 hardcore with a strong Scandinavian and Japanese hardcore grounding.”

CVLT: Is there hope for a sophomore 12-inch later this year?

YEAP: “We have some material written but we are taking our time. There is no rush at all. We wanna we get some solid tracks before we think of recording again. Each record needs to hit harder than the last.”

CVLT: There have been many comparisons between this band and your previous namesake project Pisschrist. How is Kromosom the next step in your progression as a musician?

YEAP: “Musically the tunes of Pisschrist and Kromosom have the similar song structure. Both bands are riff-driven. While both bands are heavily influenced by 80’s Scandinavian hardcore, Kromosom explore different styles of 80’s hardcore.”

CVLT: What elements does Kromosom have, that were lacking from Pisschrist?

YEAP: “It’s noisier, nastier and rawer. We’re getting older, harder and stronger but we still have the same burning spirit.”

The Paranoid EP from Australian outfit Kromosom is out now through Holy Terror Records.