Interview: CAULDRON BLACK RAM

It’s no easy task tracking down the trio of Australian pirates known as Cauldron Black Ram. When they’re not busy crafting twisted, old school death metal, they’re out pillaging and plundering across the seven seas. Their latest recording, Slubberdegullion (Weird Truth Productions), is one of the most downright bizarre pieces of heavy music you’ll hear this year; a concept album based on the exploits of a nefarious buccaneer known as Black Douglass, rife with sea-serpentine riffage and demented vocals. After several months, I finally caught up with CBR bassist/vocalist Ishum between voyages to discuss pirates, sluts and olde evil. Here’s to swimmin’ with bowlegged women…

THKD: After a 6 year wait, Cauldron Black Ram returns with Slubberdegullion. Why such a long delay between albums?

Ishum: Because the miscreants that make the collective Cauldron Black Ram were up to secret, nefarious activities that can’t be revealed here. There were also some delays with the CD, but the people that were responsible were found and dealt with accordingly. The next album has been written and recording will commence soon. So there will not be as long a wait for the next CBR opus.

THKD: What can you tell us about the creation of the new album? What were you looking to accomplish this time out?

Ishum: We recorded it a long bloody time ago, and a few important factors delayed the release. But overall, we are satisfied for it is what we were looking to achieve. That being a unique album of old-schooled death metal, with a compelling story of booze, sluts, pirates, and olde evil. It’s an album that takes repeated listens and new things will be discovered upon every indulgence of this fine heavy metal release.

THKD: What was the recording setup for Slubberdegullion? The album has a dense, gritty- sounding atmosphere.

Ishum: Well unlike Skulduggery, which was recorded in a cave, this was recorded in a back-alley brothel. This of course led to a different sound from previous outings, and we were quite distracted by the scenery, if you get my drift. The main reason we chose a different recording location was because we couldn’t find that fucking cave again, and we couldn’t be bothered sailing out trying to locate it.

THKD: How would you describe Cauldron Black Ram’s songwriting approach? How has it changed/evolved during the years between Skulduggery and Slubberdegullion?

Ishum: We get drunk, brawl, wake up, and a new song has been masterfully conjured. It’s that easy. The difference between the two is that now they’ve got a better looking bass player, who can not only drink like a pirate, he’s a winner with the ladies.

THKD: Is Slubberdegullion a concept album? How does the album tie into the overall concept of Cauldron Black Ram?

Ishum: Yes it is. The concept will be finished on the next release. We wanted to create an album of not just music, but aural soundscapes that help develop and enhance the story. Even though we have focused largely on the pirate theme, newer material will take a different path. But expect the same dark, twisted, old-schooled death metal quality.

THKD: Who is Black Douglass? Is this a reference to the historical Sir James Douglas or is he a character you created?

Ishum: Neither. The information you seek is within the lyrics. For me to reveal any further here, I would need to dispose of you and watch my back. Ha!

THKD: According to my research, “slubberdegullion” is a term that can mean villain or fiend, but can also refer to a worthless or slovenly person. Why did you choose this word for the album’s title?

It sounded good, it ties in with the concept, and we’re sure no-one else has used it.

THKD: Another interesting word that pops up on the album is “blunderbuss”, which refers to a type of muzzle-loading firearm. Do you do a lot of research to find these terms?

Ishum: Research? Ha! We are hard-drinking, womanising, brawling sons-of-bitches. We know this shit because we live it.

THKD: Much of Cauldron Black Ram’s lyrics deal with pirates. What lead you to choose this as the band’s primary theme?

Ishum: Pirates like to drink, brawl, bed the curvy women…. and so do we! We have, and will, cover other subjects of debauchery. But we do not want to be lumped in with these other so-called pirate bands of today. They celebrate the glitzy, Hollywood side of piracy. We delve into the darker, sinister elements of high seas smuggling. Not this puffy-shirt, wooden-leg, parrot-on-the-shoulder facade.

THKD: Both Slubberdegullion and your previous album Skulduggery were released by Japan’s Weird Truth Productions. How did you hook up with the label?

Ishum: One of the members, Alim, knew of them through one of his other bands. We asked, they agreed. They’re an excellent label, dedicated to supporting their bands!

THKD: All of the members of Cauldron Black Ram are involved in other projects. Does this make it difficult to find time for the band?

Ishum: No. It just naturally comes around that it’s time to work on CBR. No other projects cut into each other. It just happens sometimes other projects are the main priority over others and vice versa. It just happens at the moment, since the Slubberdegullion release, that we have been concentrating on CBR.

THKD: I posed this question to Vomitor when I interviewed them recently and I would like to get your opinion also. Is the Australian metal scene really as amazing as it seems?

Ishum: Yes. We are in it! But Australia’s heritage in the hard rock/metal scene has always been high calibre, and still is.

THKD: How you think your heritage and surroundings influence Cauldron Black Ram, if at all?

Ishum: Realistically, this country was colonised by convicts. So in essence, we are all convict scum. That sums up Cauldron Black Ram quite nicely, don’t you think? We also live on the coast, and us Australians are known to be hard-drinking bastards, which we excel at.

THKD: Will you be doing any touring in support of Slubberdegullion?

Yes, we are supporting Coffins on their Australian tour, playing our own shows here and will be conquering and plundering European soil next year. Unfortunately, we had to cancel European shows we’d organised for this year, as a few factors fell through.

THKD: Are there any final thoughts you’d like to add?

Cheers for the interview. New shirts, CDs, patches, vinyl are available through The Cave distro. You won’t be waiting as long for the next CBR release, which should be released next year. In thuggery and buggery!

Cauldron Black Ram – Slubberdegullion (Weird Truth Productions, 2010)

As far as I know, metal is the only genre where a band can base its entire career on one subject.  I don’t know of any pop or jazz bands who only write songs about ancient Egypt or the Vikings, for instance.  Metal however is rife with these types of bands, every note and every lyric in service of a specific historical period, people or event.

Enter Australia’s Cauldron Black Ram.  The band has based their musical output on tales of pirates, but not in a lame or silly way.  If you’re looking for that shit go listen to Alestorm or Swashbuckle.  Cauldron Black Ram’s dark metallic sea shanties are twisted and gnarled like the planks of a ghost ship.  Their sound reflects the grit ‘n’ grime of the age of Blackbeard and Captain Kidd, with not a hint of the humor or quasi-drinking song nonsense that other pirate-centric bands tend to incorporate.

From what I can gather, Slubberdegullion is a concept album about a villainous buccaneer named Black Douglass.  Whereas I could not find any historical evidence of a real pirate by that name, there was a Sir James Douglas who fought for Scotland’s independence and was known as “the Black Douglas”. However, there is nothing stating that he ever engaged in piracy, so I am fairly certain that the album’s story was entirely concocted by the band and is not related to him in any way.  I find it refreshing that Cauldron Black Ram opted to take some creative license with their concepts rather than the “painstakingly researched” route that many historically minded metal bands opt for.  However, the band does use authentic terminology such as “slubberdegullion” and “blunderbuss” to add an air of legitimacy to the proceedings.

Musically, Cauldron Black Ram’s specific influences are difficult to pin down. Though I do hear some Hellhammer/Celtic Frost in the riffing and tonal departments, the band has a very unique approach to rhythm and composition which is aided by a thick, crusty and bottom-heavy production scheme.  The trio’s song-writing sense is simplicity itself, yet there is something decidedly off-kilter about it that makes it difficult to describe or draw comparisons.  Essentially, Cauldron Black Ram is just too goddamn weird to be derivative.

With Slubberdegullion, Cauldron Black Ram have conjured up something sonically and conceptually unique, cementing their place as one of Australian metal’s most underrated bands.  Easily the most creative black/death metal album I’ve heard this year and one that isn’t likely to leave my playlist for a long time to come.

(Note: Be sure to check out Cauldron Black Ram’s first album, the equally impressive Skulduggery, as well.)