Former MORBID ANGEL Frontman DAVID VINCENT Promises 'One Brutal Show' With I AM MORBID

Metal Mark of Ghost Cult recently conducted an interview with former MORBID ANGEL and current I AM MORBID frontman David Vincent. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Ghost Cult: I'm excited for you, man. When we talked before, it seemed like people were still in that "holy shit, David Vincent has an acoustic guitar and cowboy hat on" mode, but now that you've played more shows [with your outlaw country project], and people have seen more footage, it seems like people are really digging what you're doing.

Vincent: "I do feel that way, but ya know, when you do something new and completely opposite of what you're known for, people are going to react. It's human nature. I knew people would be shocked, but ya know what? I'm having a blast with this new music. Once I moved to Texas, and immersed myself in this culture, it really had an effect on me, and I think people who hear this new music can hear that. Honestly, there is less hate than I expected. [Laughs] I think it's because people can see that I'm doing something I love, and the music speaks for itself. I'll tell you this too — my folks are really happy about this stuff. [Laughs] They've always been very supportive of me in my musical journey, but they never really liked or understood the metal side of me. So when I showed them some stuff off of 'Drinkin' With The Devil' last summer, they were ecstatic. It was really nice to see them smile at something I wrote for once. [Laughs] It's not the reason I did it, but to see them enjoying this music was an added bonus for sure."

Ghost Cult: Let's talk about the record for a bit, because people are excited as hell to hear it. We've seen you play originals and covers live, so what can we expect on the record? All originals?

Vincent: "The record features mostly original songs that I wrote, but I do throw in some covers from artists that I like, and artists that inspire me. The thing about when I do covers, is that I make them mine. I've never understood the point of doing a cover just like it was, because that's nothing new. There's no creative process in that. It's just flipping a burger. So I like to put my stamp on these songs, and bring new life into them. Music is very personal to me, so if a song connects with me, that's everything. I've always been that way. I can hear someone going through the motions right away, but I can also hear someone that truly puts their heart and soul into it, and those are the songs that I want to cover, and make my own."

Ghost Cult: With the announcement of I AM MORBID, fans quickly realized that metal was going nowhere in your mind. I read in a recent interview that this project was talked about, even before the split with MORBID ANGEL last year. When exactly did this all come together?

Vincent: "It's been discussed off and on for a few years now, but as they say, actions speak louder than words. While it was exciting to discuss, it was held off for a few years until I decided to go through some personal changes in my life, and really absorb the possibility of it happening. I went ahead and focused on my roots music, but this kept lingering, and now it's time for I AM MORBID to finally happen.

Ghost Cult: I AM MORBID is confirmed to play only material from the first four MORBID ANGEL albums, and so the set list must be a pain in the ass. There are a ton of hits, but I know you want to bring out songs you haven't played in a while too.

Vincent: "Yeah, like everything I do, I want to make this special. This is very different from MORBID ANGEL. If you want to see a MORBID ANGEL show, you know where to go, but this isn't it. I'm only going to be performing songs that I wrote on this tour. If I didn't write it, we aren't playing it. We are going to throw in things, here or there, to make things more unique, but it's going to be one brutal show. I can promise you that."

Read the entire interview at Ghost Cult.

In addition to Vincent, I AM MORBID features ex-MORBID ANGEL drummer Tim Yeung and guitarists Bill Hudson (CIRCLE II CIRCLE, TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA) and Ira Black (METAL CHURCH, LIZZY BORDEN).

The new band, which will play material from MORBID ANGEL's "Altars Of Madness" (1989),"Blessed Are The Sick" (1991),"Covenant" (1993) and "Domination" (1995) albums, has scheduled two shows in Brazil this spring: March 24 in Belo Horizonte and March 25 in São Paulo.