Summon has been receiving a ton of news as of late regarding the violent departure of vocalist Sean. Could this be the end of Summon? Chas (Necromodeus) fills us in.
The Gauntlet: What's going on?
Chas: Oh not much man, just a lot of drama. I finally talked to the drummer today to see what is going on. I keep hearing all this shit on the internet. I just wanted to see if he was going to jam. He said he is helping out another band for a couple of shows and after that he'll see what's going on. As far as Sean, I haven't talked to him so I don't know. I'm not fucking getting a call. That whole thing was bullshit. Some drunk bitch started the whole think and he just got the bad end of it.
The Gauntlet: So it's like The Beatles when Yoko came into the picture?
Chas: Oh for sure man, it's like that. We said months ago when we found out she was moving out hear he would probably quit the band. I feel bad for him though. He's my boy, we have been friends forever. In the heat of the moment I was so fucking pissed and he was in my face and that's just what I did.
The Gauntlet: How exactly did it come to throwing blows on stage?
Chas: It didn't happen on stage. It happened after we were done with our set. We were just sitting at the bar drinking. We were just talking and then Sean's girlfriend just hocked a lugi at my mouth and it went in my mouth. I stood up and said 'You fucking cunt!' I spit right back at her. Right there we should have been even. Then she threw a fucking beam and coke in my face. I stood back for a moment as it was burning my eyes and then threw a beer in her face. Then the chick grabbed me by my pony tail and tried to through me the fuck down. It was really fucked up as we went flying through the bar. The bouncer probably thought it was a cat fight and pulled me up and saw I was a dude. We got outside and I told the bouncer that this crazy bitch was just losing it. She started saying I pulled her hair. If I pulled her hair, I better have pulled a handful of hair for you to spit in my face 'cus that is pretty disrespectful; I wouldn't even do that to some fucker I didn't like. Then Sean came out and he was saying I hit his girlfriend. I was telling him I didn't hit her in the face. Her mouth was bleeding, but that was from her head hitting the floor. I told Sean she attacked me. He kept yelling that I hit his girlfriend. I told him she spit in my face. He wasn't hearing and wasn't listening to reason. I was just sick of hearing this shit so I pushed him down. He got up and pushed me so I slugged him. I was still pissed off from all the shit that just happened. I had a bunch of bouncers trying to kick my ass. I was just already pissed and freaking out. When I punched him, my knee gave out and I slid down and got my arm all cut up. He then took a couple steps to me and I hit him again and that was pretty much in. That's when the drummer pulled me and sat me down in a chair. I then just walked away. It was just a fucked up thing. We have been bros forever and I love the dude. Brothers fight. He can't let some girl come between us. I understand he loves this girl and shit. My wife has been around since the beginning. So Sean was just saying Summon is done, but Summon ain't done. I have busted my ass forever and Summon will go on. This is like the fifth time he quit. The last time he quit, I did vocals. My vocals are different. Sean has a fucking great voice, he's got some badass vocals, I can't take that away from him. I just hope all this works out. Their relationship probably won't last forever.
The Gauntlet: Do you think there is a chance for reconciliation with Sean?
Chas: I don't know. I haven't talked to him yet. We have been sending emails back and forth. The last email I got I haven't responded to because I am saying if he acts like a child, I'll treat him like a child. If he wants to talk, then let's talk. He says I am too controlling of the band. But I am the one that does everything for this band. I carry all the gear, I do the booking, I pay for the travel. Being in a band isn't just writing 50 songs. Me and him have been in this band longer than we have done anything else in our life. He has been unhappy for a long time though. I don't know man, I don't know what's going on these days; too much drinking, too much drugs. I quit drinking for a while and everybody was just wasted. I was like 'whoa, what's going on here?' It's just the same shit over and over. I think there are a lot of issues though like depression and drinking. That shit doesn't go well together.
The Gauntlet: It sounds like there were issues in the band and the girlfriend just set everything off.
Chas: Yeah, well, I think you should live your own life and if you're happy, then do it. If you are unhappy with the band that's been working so hard, then don't do it. Sean and I started this band. I totally want Sean to be there. So much shit has happened. Maybe everything will work out. Josh was saying he thinks we all need a break. We have been going strong for a while and need a break. We were starting to write a new album. I told him we all need to talk about this. He is our drummer and I need to know if he is in. I want to do this tour we are booked for in October. If we need a new person on vocals, we will get someone. I hope everything works out, I really do. If not, Summon is still going to roll. We already have four songs in the works and they are more brutal than anything on Fallen.
The Gauntlet: What is the new material like?
Chas: It is kinda like Fallen. It is really loud and as fast as fuck. The new songs are a little bit faster and more intricate. They are more thrashy for sure. There are some serious death metal breakdowns for sure. I was talking to Ed about it and told him I want to go more simple. That's what he is into, the old Kreator. He loves jamming with Summon, but he's really into that old thrash. I am really going to push on Ed to do a lot of writing though. He has already writing a couple songs and they are fucking sick. It is really straight forward. I really want Sean singing on this. That's what will make this. But if I can't have him, I'm not going to stop. I think it's still too early with him and things are still too fresh. We have never thrown blows.
The Gauntlet: He might have his girlfriend telling him not to rejoin.
Chas: Yeah, I don't know. He might not be able to think on his own. If she is doing that or not, whatever. The thing is, he is my brother. We have been through a lot of fucking shit, a lot. He is my boy. I am just letting it cool down. It is just too early. I am just going to let it be dead for a minute. In the meantime, we are going to start working on the new album. When it comes time, we will just go forward with or without him. I have talked to John Longstreth a while ago and he was welcome to the idea of coming back. I think he is still with Origin. He was down for coming back 2 times and it didn't work out, so I don't want to ask him and stand him up a third time as he'd just say 'fuck yourself.' So I need to get everything figured out here first.
The Gauntlet: Summon has been around for over 15 years now. You were also in Masochist with Sean and Elrod who recently passed away. A lot of people don't realize, but you were making black metal music before the black meta scene took off in the early 90's in Europe, and you are in Michigan, US. Do you ever think Summon or Masochist will get the credit they deserve?
Chas: I think we have already. The people that know who we are know. I think we have influenced a lot of people. A lot of people now say it wasn't true black metal. But it's like 'fuck you faggots, we were first!' What was true black metal back then? You had Bathory, Venom and shit like that. When we were doing it, the only other black metal band in the US was Absu. Nothing against Absu, but I don't care for their new shit. I love the old shit though. I don't get into the new vocals. We have gotten a lot of credit, but we still have people bitching. We were doing shit before anyone. We were wearing corpsepaint back in Masochist. That was true black metal. It was angry and pissed off. We had our own black metal sound. When Jeff left Summon, he wanted to keep Masochist as his thing. Summon was before Masochist so we kept Summon. We painted for a while in Summon, but then I turn around and all these other bands that suck were painting. The paint was great in Masochist. In Summon, it was like we went through a big change when Josh joined. The percussion stepped up big time. We stopped doing the paint and people wondered why. 9 times out of 10 I see a black metal band doing it and I know they suck. There are only a handful doing it that are good. We did a Masochist show for Jeff's funeral and we painted. I would definitely paint my face again for Masochist if we brought it back. But not for Summon. When you put that paint on, you are a different person. I come out and I am a totally different being. You are not smiling or having a good time. You are up there and fucking pissed. It is a very angry show. With Summon, the music is angry and we are having fun. We are always smiling and having a good time. Summon was fun to me. Masochist was always so angry and so negative. Nobody pushes the music hard. We don't play a lot of shows, but for the most part, radio and MTV has fucked up music. Kids don't even know. I had a guy at work the other day tell me he is into heavy metal like Nickelback. I was like who the fuck are you, it blew me away. I started listing off bands like Christ Aversion and Necrophagia. It's just not in your face. 9 out of 10 kids if they heard it would like it. They think the heaviest band out is Slipknot and that's not heavy. People hear it and want to know where they can buy the bands I listen to. I tell them to come to my basement, they can buy them all.
The Gauntlet: If there is a radio edit, the band isn't heavy.
Chas: Exactly, I am tired of the radio. All this hip hop and metalcore crap. I can't stand that crap. I'd rather listen to Southern Rock than the garbage on the radio.
