Uberbyte - 'Do they get it? Do I care?'

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Posted on 15 Jul, 2009

Uberbyte - 'Do they get it? Do I care?'
"The object of Uberbyte is not 'world domination' or any other such clichés," states Uberman when queried as to whether his goals have changed between their debut and their new album, DOS. With it being the second successful release within two short years, Uberbyte may not quite be on their way to fulfilling such a rote goal, yet they are quickly becoming one of the hottest electro-industrial sensations to come out of the United Kingdom in recent years. Now that Uberman and his cadre are on a hiatus after wrapping up a multi-date stint with Combichrist, it seems an appropriate time for Side-Line to pick his brain and learn about Uberman's transformation from gothic rock vocalist to EBM mastermind, his adoration of Mexico and distaste for religion, plus what he has planned for 2010. (by Vlad McNeally)

SL: There's numerous mentions online of Uberbyte's style being rooted in the old-school of the EBM scene, though one can certainly draw connections between you and newer artists like Modulate, Hocico, and Grendel as well. What do you see as those 'best of both worlds' elements that you try to incorporate into Uberbyte? What clichés of missteps from both do you try to avoid?

U: I'll try and incorporate anything that I think is good and fits into our sound� and pretty much all the stuff you mentioned there is good.

As an industrial fan, I was first brought over by 242, (Nitzer) Ebb, and Leaether Strip, so of course those bands are an influence. In contemporary terms, sure, there are loads of influences, too. Although I'd add that one thing I'm trying to do right now is keep my listening varied so I don't get too focused on a style to the point it becomes staid, or overly influenced from only a couple of sources. One thing I do want to achieve is to take Uberbyte's sound into something that stands purely on its own. A damn hard thing to do, but I've got focus and determination. Hopefully, it'll work out.

You kinda have to keep your mind on several levels open to your influences, but also not blinkered to what's around you. Sometimes you can throw something weird and unexpected into the mix and achieve that hard-to-define sense of uniqueness. That can come from anywhere.

SL: You've described Uberbyte's style and image as a mix of both your English heritage and Charleen's Mexican heritage. Beyond the new album's 'Neo-Aztec' artwork, how do you see these two backgrounds coalescing within your music and presence?

U: Char definitely has a huge role in defining what Uberbyte is visually, conceptually, and so on. In many ways, she guided me through the development of this band, gave it an identity and direction, to which I then applied my love of writing. I guess given our backgrounds, there's this slight fusion-feel to Uberbyte. We're not a strictly UK band in the sense that I see most UK bands� although we are grounded in part in the culture and music in which I was brought up.

Also, I should add that I'm a real 'Mexophile'� or whatever you'd call it. I'm in love with the people and culture of Mexico, and I'm pretty sure I'll end up there permanently one day.

SL: Under the biographical section of Uberbyte's site, I caught that you are 'considered one of the UK scene's most enigmatic and controversial figures'. Enigmatic and controversial? How so?

U: This is one of those questions in which I could stir up a real hornets' nest. I do champion and represent progression over stagnation and nostalgia, I believe in bands selling themselves on their music and integrity� I believe in music as something above the mundane nature of scene politics.

I'm proud right now that Uberbyte is a band that is all about the music and the performance, and that we've not descended into begging people one-by-one to like us. We work hard and with honesty and integrity to achieve the things we do, and I feel very strongly about that.

I want the UK scene to recapture a sense of vitality and excitement, to invest in music for its own end. By believing in these things, I guess I have annoyed people who want to keep it all their own little friends' cabal. Not cos I wanted to, cos truthfully I'm not interested in having enemies anymore� but I do seem to get them with whatever I do, I guess.

SL: One ingredient to your work that is rather unusual is your sense of humor. Why do you find it an important facet to Uberbyte? Do you think that most people 'get it'?

U: Do they get it? Do I care? I write first and foremost for myself. It's all about how I want it to sound and what I want it to mean. And to me, satire and social commentary go hand-in-hand.

Not that our message isn't serious. It often is. There is a political, social side to the lyrics� it's not preaching, but there is a firm message and outlook. It's just that woven into all of it is my own rather cynical view of the world and my liking for a good old-fashioned piss taking. I guess it's serious, but with a slight sneer of mixed contempt and amusement at the state of the human race in general.

If you can't laugh, I think this world would drive you mad, to be honest.

SL: Speaking of "DOS", between "Under The Cross" and "(Let's Put The Fun In) Fundamentalist", you seem to be broadcasting a rather staunch anti-religious stance. Why is that? Where does it come from?

U: I went to a Catholic school� I'm tempted to say here, 'enough said'. Ha!

Apart from the various unpleasant stories about communion wafers and sodomy, however, I certainly think it's fair to say that I have a beef with the Christian church and Christianity in general. Mainly because, philosophically, I feel it's become the defining standard of hypocrisy in society and used to justify 2000 plus years of stupid bullshit.

I've been particularly horrified by various Latter-Day fundamentalist movements. '(Let's Put the Fun In) Fundamentalist' pretty much grew out of a couple of samples of the Phelps family. Look them up. Seriously. They will scare and amuse you in equal measure. I don't think they are representative of all Christians, but they do underline the basic craziness and contradiction that underlies organized religion.

SL: Speaking of religion, how did you come to incorporate Cthulhu into "Aeon"?

U: It's not the first time I've messed with Lovecraft in my lyrics and it probably won't be the last. H.P Lovecraft is probably the best bad writer of all time. His imagination, mythos, and mythology are unmatched. Weird, warped, and brilliant. Shame he couldn't write prose too well.

I've actually used that sample before, but never built a song around it. I guess it was crying out to be done. Hopefully, someone will play it at the right kind of party and weird things will start to happen. If our music can open a crack in reality and cause hideous creatures to spill out and wipe out humanity, I guess my job will be done.

I don't think that's terribly likely, though. Even I'm not that good.

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SL: Apparently, you suspect that "Time And Paper" may cause some rumblings from your audience. Why is that?

U: I guess it was a bit of a departure in one or two respects, as it was kinda grooving in the same territory as SAM, C/A/T, and the like. It certainly felt like one of those envelope moments on the album which was gonna either be loved or hated. So far, it was not so much as I'd feared or hoped� but there you go. Maybe people were more than up for the challenge we laid down for them, so on the next album I can push that side of things even further�!

SL: You've described on your site the track "Rewind"' as 'introspective' and that it's 'an angle EBM bands are not supposed to have'. Why is that, and what brought on this particular track?

U: Mayhap I overlooked the likes of Mind.In.A.Box when I made that rather rash statement, but it was obvious from early on that "Rewind"' was gonna be a very esoteric, strange kinda song. It reminds me of Faithless, actually, although I couldn't explain why� maybe it's the tumbling vocal delivery. It's just a strange, acidic, and distant sounding kinda song� but in a good way.

In terms of what brought it on, I think I was just in a weird mood when I did it, kinda reflective and broody. Maybe that comes across, I couldn't say. It developed kind of organically and the lyrics in particular were almost free form, expressing structure in a totally unstructured kinda way� if that makes any sense.

SL: From what I understand, you first started working on electronic industrial music back in 2001, when at the time you were still a part of your former band, Killing Miranda. What was that proto-Uberbyte material like?

U: I did have an industrial side project from about that time. KM's then manager talked me out of pursuing it, because he was afraid I would alienate some of that band's following, who already were occasionally like, 'why is he wearing dreadlocks and Cyberdog clothes?'. I let it slide, but yeah, when I started to kick Uberbyte into gear in 2007, it seemed like a rebirth of that project. It was just given a new name, identity, and so on. Some of the songs on the early demos did survive from that prior project, but none made the cut for either album. Nevertheless, it was indeed not entirely a new start!

SL: What exactly prompted you to move from rock to EBM? Was it a change in tastes, boredom, or something else?

U: I'd spent the last couple of years trying to push a more industrial vibe onto Killing Miranda, and anyone who heard me DJ from 2000 on would remark that my taste in music was quite removed from their overall sound. However, in a democratic band like KillingMiranda, I couldn't get my own way to the extent that I wanted, and the other guys were getting more and more into straight up guitar rock, so a split was inevitable. Maybe there's a hint of backlash to that� I dunno. Maybe it was Char, as I said, that provided the impetus for me to do a fully electronic project, that being her background more than mine.

SL: From what I've read online, you've stated that you think the current Northern UK scene has a sense of camaraderie comparable to that of the old punk scene. How so?

U: I think the likes of us, Coreline, and Modulate have the right kind, the positive kind, of rivalry. It's one that's about the music, as much as anything� and not necessarily about in-scene cock fighting. We've got a couple of great clubs in the North now, especially Mutate in Leeds, so we're hearing good and cutting-edge music on the dance floor,.. and there's Infest, too. So, we have the best of all worlds, and right now this little enclave between Sheffield, Manchester, and Leeds seems to be producing the best vibe and music, in my honest opinion. Although London has a couple of emerging bands, too, so they might one day catch up. Possibly.

The right kind of rivalry is a good thing. I think a defining moment for me was an all-dayer that we played with Modulate in Leeds. We went on before them and had one of those 'we have arrived' kinda moments in Uberbyte's gig history. I was blown away by the reaction. Most bands would have curled up after that, but Modulate went on and took the roof off. I think that's a good thing. I really respect bands that do it that way, with their music, their performance and not just sniping and bitching to a bunch of scenester-wannabe friends.

SL: After "Total War" appeared on the "Endzeit Bunkertracks III"-comp, you've mentioned that it's subsequent success 'sent shock waves through the UK scene'. How so?

U: We just weren't expected to 'happen', I guess. To people who weren't closely watching us and weren't aware of our pedigree (such as it is), I guess we must have seemed to have come from nowhere. To some extent, when doing it off the strength of your music rather than talking yourself up, the acquired audience always seems to catch people off guard.

We could have been hanging around the clubs three nights a week and talking people into liking us and kissing ass, but I opted to inject that energy and time into improving our music. I stand by that.

SL: In the past, you've had a reputation for your skills with the guitar. Though you have live drummers on hand right now, is there a chance that these skills may be put to use for Uberbyte in the future?

U: Yeah, it's quite possible. The next album, "EXS", dabbles a lot more with noise and extreme electronics� but at some point, I'd like to do a more 'Ministry-esque' take on the Uberbyte sound. So indeed it's likely, but I don't feel like it's quite the right time yet, though.

SL: There have been quite a few comparisons made between yourselves and Combichrist... with whom you just toured. How was that experience, and do you think that that assessment is an apt one?

U: We are comparable sound-wise and they are an influence, not to mention sharing a good few common influences too.

I'm totally not gonna beat myself up and live in denial of that comparison. Firstly, cos I do have a huge amount of respect for Andy's work, and if I was gonna be influenced by anyone right now making industrial, then it would be him. Secondly, cos I guess I accept people's need to pigeonhole you and try to understand unfamiliar music by using familiar comparisons.

Touring with those guys was a blast and, yeah, our compatibility helped. We're both bands who like to put on a show and have a kinda fierce, song-driven take on this music, so that helps. Plus apart from the fun aspect, professionally we learned a lot from them, and if one day we could be anywhere near as good as they are live, I'd be a very happy man.

Besides, I could say 'go pick on the endless bands that rip off Suicide Commando', if I were being churlish. I won't deny the similarities, but I don't feel that we're a clone, either. That's my opinion, of course.

SL: Speaking of tours, I hear that Uberbyte's working on putting together a North American tour. Is there any truth to that?

U: There's some truth to that, but it might be 2010 before that sees fruition. Partly, I don't want to get ahead of our profile and end up playing to no one� but it makes sense to get over there, as we do have an American-based label.

SL: Now that "DOS" is done, what do you have planned next?

U: There's the next album; it's already underway, as we have a gap in our schedule right now. I'm putting eight hours a day into it at the moment and trying to push the music as far as I can. It's sound is a lot more extreme and vicious and insane than our previous albums. It's almost power noise in places� although roped into a song format. There's also some more experimental parts, more organic sounding vibes, and overall it's hopefully another step towards achieving our goal of a perfect album. Or as close to perfect as we can get.

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