Raspatul
Calvin (guitarring) here explains the important info about the band Raspatul. "Devils in Renewed Birth" is the album Calvin is talking about. This album has a cool underground feel that takes its cue from classic thrash and death. The riffing is compact, instant-impact, tight stuff. The vocals are growled, scowled, with a slight touch of that vomit-feeling. Fun! And the drumming sounds organic and in-your-face, not clicky at all. The cd has a quote from Jeff Becerra from Possessed saying that Raspatul "have a unique sound that is all their own, but yet in the truest vein of underground metal".
There you go. Jeff knows. Now we do.
Note: Raspatul's vocalist Ayim died in 2005 in a motorcycle accident. Calvin gives an update on the band here.....
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What is the current situation with the band?
Calvin Raspatul � Hi Mauricio, it's a great pleasure doing this interview for Metal Bulletin! Well, the current situation of Raspatul is pretty much dormant and nothing much is going on, although I am still active in doing as much promotion as I can for 'Devils In Renewed Birth'. As of right now, we are just waiting for the 'Devils In Renewed Birth' cassette tape release from Canada....'s Total Death Records which probably should see the light of day anytime now. This release is a limited edition version and will be released in 150 hand-numbered copies, which a brand new artwork by French artist K. and a new Raspatul logo by legendary logo master Christophe Szpajdel.
When Ayim passed away, it was a unanimous decision that Raspatul will not find a replacement for a singer spot. Ayim was the singer since the very first day and it was totally pointless for us to get another singer, and which also explains why Raspatul is no longer active as a live band, but rather a studio band as we speak.....
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"Devils in Renewed Birth" is the only cd I have heard. How many cds have you released and what are they called?
Calvin Raspatul � We have released 2 other official CDs in our discography, namely 'Menghitung Ajal' and 'The Perfect Realm Of Jharkyannarkh'. But what you are hearing on 'Devils In Renewed Birth' is just a collection of all the songs on 'Menghitung Ajal' and 'The Perfect Realm Of Jharkyannarkh'. Two reasons why we have decided to compile all the songs we have recorded into a CD; both our previous releases were released on CD-R format, due to the fact that we do not have the financial capabilities to release them in professional CD format and so I felt that we did not give them the justice they deserved. And the other reason was that since Ayim had left us in this way, we felt that by releasing 'Devils In Renewed Birth' would be the perfect way to retain the Raspatul legacy as it was, and that would be to have it in a professional CD format.....
The legendary James Murphy was brought in to handle the mastering for 'Devils In Renewed Birth', who actually gave all our songs a much fresher sound. James did an amazing job with the mastering and we could not be much happier with the final outcome of the production.
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What was Ayim like as a person? When did you meet him?
Calvin Raspatul � Ayim was probably the person I was closest to in the band. I knew Raspatul back in 1999 when I was playing with another band called Deviant, and so I am not one of the original members in Raspatul. Ayim was really a quiet person by nature and unless he was with a group of good friends, or else he would be just by himself in the background. Ayim and I talk to each other a lot all the time, and the times I had with him will definitely be the most unforgettable times of my life. If anyone knew Ayim in person, he was like a clown and would often crack jokes. But at the same time, and like anyone else I would say, he would have a weird attitude whenever he was in a bad mood. But sad to say, the last few months before Ayim passed away, all of us were very busy with our own personal lives and the only time where we could get together was during our rehearsals. I didn't get to talk to Ayim so much like before and sometimes he would miss our rehearsal sessions because of his shift work hours.
Ayim is definitely one of the best Metal singers in our scene here and anyone who had heard him sing live can attest to that. He used to say that he is the least important person in the band but he was so wrong. Not only was he a great singer, he also had a great ear for good riffs and a strong sense for song arrangements. Ayim is truly missed as a fellow bandmate and most importantly, as a friend.
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How did you get into metal in your country? Did you have friends into metal or was it your parents?
Calvin Raspatul � It's really strange because I got in Metal without anyone else's influence and I just decided to explore this form of music by myself. Being in Singapore where it's a country that most people think that Metal music does not exist; there really wasn't anyone around my circle of friends into Metal at all. Back then, there wasn't CD format yet, so I would go hunting for Metal cassette tapes at anywhere available and there were only a few shops that sold Extreme Metal stuff. The urge to buy Metal cassette tapes was definitely an addiction and back then, I just wanted to get hold of the most extreme or most brutal stuff available and sometimes by just looking at the cover artworks, I would just buy it! But it was a great lesson for me as I got to understand the different genres of Metal very quickly.
My parents were absolutely the last people to support my form of music. In fact, when I was young, they were totally shocked and confused as to why I was listening to this form of music that they could not understand and they even threatened to kick me out of the house, believe it or not. But now, they have entirely given up on it and they know that Metal is not just a growing phase in my life. There are still people who cannot understand why I am still so much into Metal at my age and all I can say is that Metal is not just about the music, but it's also a lifestyle and it also changes my way of seeing a lot of things in perspective.