Photo courtesy of Backslider and Suren Karapetyan
If you’ve spent any time at all listening to Philadelphia powerviolence trio Backslider, then you understand that simply labeling them as powerviolence is damn near disrespectful. Utilizing a collage of sounds and channeling a very unique, artistic aggression, it’s easy to hear that the band is no slouch when it comes to crafting their tumultuous compositions.
With their latest release, Psychic Rot-out now via To Live A Lie Records-Backslider develops a jarring atmosphere by experimenting with instrumental noise, sound samples, vocal variety, and erratic outbursts, in what I consider to be the band’s biggest musical achievement to date.
Although Backslider’s sound is rooted in raw powerviolence and punk, they’ve managed to evolve tremendously. Guitarist, vocalist, synth operator, and visual artist, Logan Neubauer, has been along for the ride since the band’s formation back in 2008. He’s responsible for nearly 14 years of radical riffs and songwriting, aiding in the transformation of the band’s sound into what he now describes as “dark sonic telepathy and chaotic excess.” We were able to catch up with Logan to uncover more details behind the explosive new album.
After being a band for roughly 14 years, what excites you most about writing music for Backslider?
Honestly, at this point writing songs for Backslider is almost a compulsion. In day-to-day life I’m a pretty solitary, reserved, and quiet person, but Backslider is kind of based on being outrageous and confrontational so I get to indulge those aspects of my personality through our songwriting. I feel lucky that I get to play with people that are close friends that share a similar musical vision and are more than capable of executing that vision.
Reflecting just a bit, in what ways have you noticed yourself evolve as a musician since Backslider’s last full-length, Motherfucker (2016)?
It’s a night and day difference in my eyes. Total overhaul. I had a severe alcohol problem during that time period and it really dulled the blade and made me a lazier musician. I feel that all of my contributions to that record were pretty poorly conceived and executed if I’m being honest. If people dig it that’s cool and I appreciate that, but it’s very difficult for me to listen to those songs without cringing.
I quit drinking 5 years ago and these days I’m way more focused and serious about writing, probably to the point of being obsessive. I’m pretty ruthless with myself when it comes to practicing. I don’t want to waste my time or the time of others writing half-assed songs ya know?
What does the phrase Psychic Rot specifically refer to in the eyes of the band?
It came from a conversation that I had with a friend a few years ago. We were talking about mental health and the brutality of everyday life and she said something about trying to avoid ‘slow psychic rot.’ Psychic rot is basically what I felt I was experiencing at the time, it was a feeling I had.
What sort of aesthetic do both ‘Interlude’ and ‘Interlude 2’ achieve and how does that aesthetic play into the entire atmosphere/mood of Psychic Rot?
I wanted them to have a bit of a ‘70s/’80s horror score vibe like Goblin or John Carpenter- little sections that can momentarily distract you and build tension before we blast off again. I’d like to think that they add an extra element of darkness and a different set of sonic textures for the record. Overall I wanted the flow and vibe of the album to be like if the movie Mandy was a set of songs.
Furthermore, how does the cover art for Psychic Rot compliment the overall mood of the album? Did you make this artwork specifically for this album or was it a piece you had completed already and thought it’d be a perfect fit?
I mean it’s hard for me to objectively say one way or another since I made it, but to me it FEELS very representative of the music- it’s chaotic but the symmetry of the piece gives it a bit of order. The individual images were pulled from a drawer full of cut out shit that I have in my desk but I know that the central image was pulled from a book about the supernatural and superstitions, others were pulled from old articles from the ‘60s or ‘70s about advances in Psychotherapy.
What visual elements do you find yourself most drawn to when piecing together imagery?
It depends what I’m trying to convey, really. Eyes are pretty consistent through a lot of my art, there are whole worlds within them and can tell you so much. Eyes carry sadness and pain. I try to use skulls in a way that’s reminiscent of a vanitas, whether or not that comes across is another story haha. I like using portions of faces or obscured faces that feel vaguely familiar but distant. Organic matter, microbiology, the stark and grand imagery of photographers like Ansel Adams. Whatever catches my eye and can be used to create a semi-cohesive visual aesthetic. I don’t like to use overtly violent/macho imagery.
What were the writing sessions like for Psychic Rot? Were you guys able to really focus on putting together these songs or did you notice a lot of distractions getting in the way-either personally or as a group?
I wrote and arranged the vast majority of the material myself, always wildly high and watching different movies. Some of the songs were finished in a different form since 2017 but I drastically re-worked them in 2020. I was coming out of an intensely dark and self-destructive time in my life and had a ton of almost manic energy to work on new material. ‘Floating Door’ is largely based off of a song that Jake (Smith, bass) had written but I kind of dissected and re-assembled it with other riffs that I had accumulated that had a similar vibe.
After months of constant tweaking we finally did some demos with programmed drums to send to Jake (Cregger, drums), then we’d meet up in person and put our own spin on everything together. The recording sessions got rescheduled two or three times out of covid-cautiousness, and then we finally started recording the day after the ‘insurrection.’ We probably only had two full practices where we actually knew all of the songs the way you hear them now.
The tone on Psychic Rot is so damn big and roomy sounding. What was the experience like recording and putting this album together in the studio? Having sections that are both slow, heavy, and percussive on one end, and fast and chaotic on the other, the mix totally captures every detail, especially in the drums-and I love that.
Thanks for that compliment! And yea, I agree- Kevin (Bernsten, Developing Nations Studios) did a great job capturing what we wanted to convey. We all share a love of big, intense sounds and raw yet refined recordings, inspired in part by the Steve Albini approach to recording. We wanted to have the beef and depth of tone of metal without it sounding metallic necessarily, more like a brutal, extreme version of a hardcore punk record.
In what ways do you like to incorporate synth into such an extreme sonic landscape?
I just think of them as a different sonic texture that we can use, as long as it’s complimentary to the song/album and done tastefully. I like that they can provide ambient atmosphere but also be used in a way similar to how Deep Purple used organs- beef them up, run them through an amp, and create a block frequency to accentuate emphasis riffs.
How would you describe the sound of Backslider?
Dark sonic telepathy and chaotic excess.
Who would you regard as some of your biggest inspirations when it comes to music/art?
Musically-Man is the Bastard, King Crimson, Melvins, Dead Kennedys, Tangerine Dream, Morbid Angel, Lack of Interest, Nine In Nails, Celtic Frost.
Visually/artistically- Amos Pitsch, Harmony Korine, Francis Bacon, Julia Ducournau, Mark Pauline, Winston Smith, Hilma af Klint, David Huggins.
There’s a riff that I love at 3:18 of ‘The Floating Door.’ Do you remember coming up with that riff?
Thanks! Yea, I do actually- it was either December 2019 or January 2020 and I was stoned in my room watching Road: The Movie, which is all just gnarly, real-life dash cam footage from random people’s cars. Anyway, I was playing guitar and the goal I had was to write a heavier, nastier version of this one riff in ‘Pistachio’ by Smashing Pumpkins. That’s what I came up with and when we recorded it I played it with two different guitars and quadrupled it.