This is a question that I must do. What happened with Enemy Soil?
I broke the band up after the last drummer quit. There had been another
round of lineup changes a few months previously so I wasn't feeling 100%
great about the band, I suppose. I figured after seven years trying to get
it to work it was okay for me to start another band, so I did!

How would you define the music that you make in Index? It seems death
metal but at the same time is very different from death metal too.
Yeah, that's true. I usually describe it as a mix. Not crossover, but
taking different influences and putting them together. We had a review in
an American magazine called "Metal Maniacs" that said we were a cross
between rhythmic post-hardcore, crust-edged grind, and Swedish death metal.
That's a good description, I think. I guess we're pretty much a metal band,
but there's a lot more going in the songs than just that.

How has been "Index" received by people who didn´t know the band and by
Enemy Soil´s fans?
Some Enemy Soil fans are disappointed because it isn't as extreme as Enemy
Soil, but others like it just as much or even better. Some fans of Enemy
Soil don't like it as much, but still like it. Other people who aren't
familiar with Enemy Soil like it too, on its own. They appreciate the
heaviness and the rhythms we use, as well as the vocals.

Are the vocals of Elysia Braun the distinctive element of the band? I
think they sound great. (also in some places I have read comparisons with
Destruction or The Accused)
I have read a comparison to The Accused but not Destruction. We've also
been compared to Darkthrone, Righteous Pigs, Machine Head and Sepultura,
among other bands, and some people say we sound like Carcass in places. I
think it's great that people come away with so many ideas of what we sound
like. Elysia's vocals are distinctive to be sure, and it's one of the
things that gives us our sound, but it's the music, too.

Is there something in the "Index" CD that you would like to have changed
or do better?
I'd like to record the whole cd over again, because we don't like how it
came out. It could have been a lot better.

How is the deal with Displacer Beast Records?
They initially pressed 1,000 copies and they have tried to get a lot of
reviews for us online, which is very good. They made some buttons for us,
too, and are very supportive in general and love the band. They come to our
gigs and we are friends with them.

Is the 7" that I saw you have planned to release this year ready?
It's coming out in the summer. It came together pretty quickly once we got
our shit straight.

Are you presenting "Index" live? How have been your shows up to now?
They've been pretty good, some better than others. You know, musicians have
good nights and bad nights. We're working on becoming a better live band.
We did a brief tour last year and we're trying to play as much as we can,
mostly up and down the east coast of USA.

What're the lyrics in "Index" about?
They're about different things. Some are personal, like about
relationships, and some are our views on certain subjects, not as a band but
from the one who wrote the song in question.

Are you composing new material at this moment? Is it going to be
different from the one in "Index"?
It will be different up to an extent because we're a four piece now and so
the former fifth member isn't there to contribute ideas. So the newer stuff
will sound more like the more raw, faster, straightforward material on our
cd.

What did you reflect on the cover art of "Index"?
Nothing, to be honest. We stole it out of a book, and I changed the colors
around so it wouldn't look the same.

Which are the band´s main influences as musicians?
The "Swedish death metal" one is Mark, one of the guitar players. I also
bring a sort of Enemy Soil influence into the music ("Crust edged grind"),
but we're also influenced by later Neurosis in a big way, and we're starting
to bring more heavy stuff into the music, like Godflesh or Swans. There's
other stuff too, like Voivod and Discordance Axis.

Is there something more that you want to say?
Yes, thank you for the interview, Federico. Our split 7" with Hippies of
Today is coming out on Broken Brains Records from France. I would like to
say hello to your readers and ask them to go to
www.whatistheindex.com

Index - CD (2000)