After Massacre’s sudden 2014 break up, Floridian death metal stalwart and pioneer Rick Rozz found himself with a killer drummer and a slew of brutal, authentically old school death metal songs. Like the unstoppable machine that he is, Rozz started over with a new band, branding it with the unsmirking, beyond-ironic moniker of The End. We caught up with Rick Rozz and The End’s bassist/vocalist Michael Grim to exacerbate our need to hear Age of Apocalypse, their debut EP, out this September on FDA Rekotz.
What made you decide to start The End? How do you think it differs from (‘M’) Inc.?
Rozz: Well Mike Mazzonetto (Drums) and myself have been writing all the music over the past 6 years, which includes (‘M’) Inc. and Massacre. So after Massacre split, we had over 10 songs just about ready to go, so Mike and I had a talk about what we wanted to do, ether throw in the towel, or find a singer/bass player and form a trio, so we talked with Tim Vazquez (CGM Studios) owner about demoing 4 songs to shop to singers, and we did.
So you brought Mike Mazzonetto over from (‘M’) Inc./Massacre but where did you find that maniac Michael Grim?
Rozz: I was put in contact with Grim years ago through a mutual friend, and we would talk every so often about writing riffs/music, and were fans of each others music as well. Grim is no stranger to extreme metal in any way, and has paid his dues on stage, and in the studio recording over the past 23 years in a handful of bands including Death Before Dying that he put together, wrote all the music/lyrics, and did all the work/investing for as well. So when Massacre split, and Mazz and I decided to continue, we already had 4 songs demoed without vocals, I sent the tracks to Grim so he could demo them for Mazz and I to hear, he did, and it blew us away.
What have you learned about playing death metal since your days in Death and Massacre that might have informed how you wrote the music for The End?
Rozz: Less is more.
Did you write these four songs yourself or are they the work of a collaborative effort between all three of you?
Rozz: Mazz and I wrote the music for the Age Of Apocalypse EP, but Grim is a great writer, along with Mazz, so now we have a supreme song-writing “Florida Death Metal Machine” to be brutally honest.
What inspired the lyrics for these songs? Like the “Age of Apocalypse” for instance. They’re pretty pessimistic, but at the same time realistic.
Grim: Yes they are. the lyrics are about the true horrors of mankind, in the event of an apocalypse. Instead of helping one another, people would burn, rape, and pillage. Whether it be The Rapture or a zombie ppocalypse, the outcome would be the same. Other lyrics are inspired by Horror films or true life horrors. We stay away from over-the-top gore and Satanic lyrics. There are plenty of other bands doing a fine job at covering those topics.
What do you see as happening next for The End? Have you started working on a full length yet, or is the band looking to play live shows or tour at all?
Rozz: Release the Age Of Apocalypse EP on FDA REKOTZ Sept. 23rd, and we are now working on a South American/European tour before The End of the year, and we will have a full length ready to release early 2017. I would like to thank Tim Vazquez at CGM Studios, Scott Pivarnick at SP Custom Guitars, and Rico Unglaube at FDA REKOTZ, you all rock… THE END.
