Skinny Puppy
It’s always an honor to interview someone that has contributed to the genre they play in. Not every disposable band can say that, but most any historical document on the industrial music scene will include skinny puppy. It’s always cool when a seminal artist can find a way to keep on going and keep on creating at a high level, which can also be said of this band. What makes all of these factors even more cool is when said artist opens up and really talks during an interview. Read that interview between HM Editor DVP and Ogre...
First off, congratulations / major props on being an integral part of a great genre.
Oh, thank you! (laughs)
You’re quite welcome. But this genre has somehow been marginalized or at best not exploded in popularity. How do you feel regarding your contributions going somewhat unnoticed?
Well, I think that… In regards to that, I think where it split ... where it became more of a hybridized nu-metal sort of thing... When industrial music kind of reached that wave or that peak of its popularity within popular culture in a way that it kind of hybridized metal into something that was more of ripping music with synthesizers now (and) became what’s commonly known to us as industrial music. We kind of continued on in the same fight or flight of making what we refer to as industrial music or what I think originally was the intent of industrial music was there was no boundaries to it. It was by design and a musical composition that really defied boundaries or defied classifications. We’ve always kind of… Although we’ve kind of maintained some kind of signature sound based on the personalities involved, I think we’ve tried to continually change the direction of each record. Maybe much to our… probably not as far as anything like, I guess, a commercial success. We haven’t tried to recreate each record in the same way and try to re-do a record that was popular or anything like that. It was really kind of something that we chose to do this on our own. As far as getting props, we’ve certainly had props from certain situations and certain bands, but I don’t think that’s really what… I don’t know. Part of me kinda goes, ‘Okay, yeah. Why haven’t we been recognized? We’ve been all over the country.’ Part of me now goes, ‘Well, in the bigger essence of everything, it’s probably the benefit of the work and in a lot of ways the benefit of the project to have a really strong cult following. It is something that, I think to an audience, it becomes something that’s more special, because it hasn’t really been exploited.
Yeah, good point. What is your honest assessment regarding the art of Marilyn Manson?
(clears throat) Honestly, I haven’t really followed Marilyn Manson, other than just his aesthetic, which I think is really pretty wonderful. I think the people he’s come in contact with – as far as where his reach has gone, as far as collaborations with different artists – has been pretty amazing. I think some of his stuff… You know, he’s borrowed from a lot of sources, but everybody does. I think that his biggest sin is to not acknowledge those sources, but I think at times that just comes from insecurity and you kind of set yourself apart from the pack in a lot of ways. I think some of his music has been pretty good. At times I think his politics (are) certainly challenging. I don’t know if it’s benefited or … I’ve always kind of taken the tact of you approach somebody with ugliness, then you show kind of a very different kind of side underneath all the dressing of how you’re presenting something. You’re kind of causing people to look at things differently. I don’t know if he’s really had that effect on the public or maybe that’s not the effect he wants. Other than that, I don’t really know where he’s at right now. I don’t really know what’s going on. I think that’s as much – for me to say. I can’t be a critic of anybody’s work.
Skinny Puppy - Finish this feature by Doug Van Pelt in the new HM Magazine. Available now, Issue 125 can be found at select stores or for a reduced subscription rate.
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