Filth Is Eternal's Knockout Punk Strikes Again on "Find Out" (Interview)
Filth Is Eternal are primed to pop off with their excellent new record Find Out, a nearly 30-minute hardcore punk dirge with slowed-down elements to make it feel like a more complete package. The album, music, art, and all, feels like an encapsulation of their live show, which is a sight to behold and an absolute event. They were also the last band I saw live before the Pandemic shut the world down in 2020; since then the band has changed their name and released a record in 2020 called Love Is a Lie, Filth Is Eternal. They've played some shows here and there, and now finally this year they are finally able to grace us with new music.
I spoke with front person Lis Di Angelo and we talked about the last few years of the band and how Find Out was written in Covid related isolation, the concept of mental health and even discussed the lyrical content of the album. Filth Is Eternal is readying for an aural assault on the road in 2024, but for now a few shows are planned to support their first release of MNRK Heavy. Read on below and check out the new album on 9/29 until then whet your appetite with this interview and their music videos for “Crawl Space”, “Pressure Me,” and the brand new one for “Cherish”.
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I haven’t seen you guys since you did a show as Fucked & Bound in Montclair at The Meatlocker in Montclair, NJ in March of 2020 right before everything went down.
Lis Di Angelo: I love that we are getting to hang out and do this interview. I love that place, it was one of my favorite shows. We all have those different shows that pull at our heartstrings; there is something about the alchemy of that show that has resonated with me, there was even a dash of chaos. Those are the kinds of shows that make us love this thing that we do.
The people and the space came together perfectly.
I can remember where I was in that space and time and have the visual of it perfectly.
It has been a few years since you changed your band name to Filth is Eternal and then dropped your Love Is a Lie, Filth Is Eternal album. What has been up since then?
It’s really tricky to contextualize it since so much has happened to everybody since then. It was written in lockdown with songs that we were fleshing out. Everyone was dealing with different things and collectively going through the wringer. Lyrically it had a huge impact on what I wanted to talk about. Members have come and gone. Myself and Brian are the only ones who stayed, Emily is new on drums, we have Colin picking up 2nd guitar and a rotating cast of friends on bass. When it comes down to things as a band, we want to tour more in general. I’m really glad to just get back out there and talk to people in person; it’s everything to me.
There is no replacement for being in that live environment with likeminded people.
Absolutely. Things are definitely going to pick up pace wise, especially next year. There is a sensation of enhanced energy at shows right now; a different energy at shows and people are going off. It’s different and I’m into it.
You are front and center on the album cover this time around. Is that just a live show to showcase you guys as a live spectacle?
For sure. I think someone rammed into me and I was falling backwards. It was a perfect thing to coalesce what we do as a band and it was rooted in something real and raw.
What was the process of getting onto MNRK Heavy like? What does it feel like to be a part of that record label and what they have been doing recently?
We had a lot of offers and to even be at that point was pretty special. They were all equally great options, but the conversations we were having are what changed it to feel like instant family and super chill. They were so supportive of the vision and the sound and where we were taking it. I needed to know that I was working with people that I could talk to, homie to homie.
I know another band on that label you could be a two-headed monster with would be Escuela Grind, an insane 1-2 punch.
They never stop. If you look at some of these bands they just go. The community really appreciates it; it’s inspirational. I would love for us to be in that spot. Looking towards next year it should hopefully change for us. It is inspiring and we are inspired and now we are leaning in. We’re ready for it.
If now is the time, it’s go time.
I feel grateful for having the chance to breathe so that we can hit it straight away. It gave us an opportunity since we have a ton of more material that is still very relevant. We have this record we are putting out and one we are working on as well.
That’s a pause that no one can plan for, but it can feel good to have it.
There are moments where I just wanted to get on the road and see my friends. We want to go to as many places as possible and we are going to make it happen.
Any particular life experience that lent itself to an individual song?
There are some things that are consistent, but there are other parts that feel like outliers. Like with a song like “Roll Critical”; gaming has always been a part of my life. I was shy most of my life and still I feel that way. Gaming is one of those things and it has made me more social, I guess I needed to lean into it and it helped me to stay connected. It was D&D and other things. That’s an example of a song that brings me joy every time we play it.
“Body Void” is probably my favorite song on the record; we are supposed to be so present in our bodies and part of our lives, including the world that we live in and I think about this whole record Find Out as a precursor to the next record which is touching on themes of possible worlds. It is about what is real and trying to find my feet in terms of my mental health, to the construct and what are we doing on this rock. I was dissociating a lot and feeling out of body and what is the purpose, the great vastness of space; what does that all sound like? Some of these songs can come across as playful since I have to sprinkle a little bit of humor through every one of these songs.
I always think about bands like Dead Kennedys in that vein with the lyrical material often being very serious but at the end of the day they are a bunch of goofballs.
I love that juxtaposition because it feels more real to me; that’s how I see it. No matter how dark things are, existence itself feels absurd to me; it always brings me a chuckle. I did it deliberately maybe not successfully, but we gave it a go.
I watched the video for “Pressure Me” and it feels like a total burst of energy and it feels fun.
We were trying to make sense of something, there is a lot of pressure on us to produce. The way I deliver it is funny and I hope people don’t miss that. At its heaviest moments with this record I try to brighten it up here again.
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I can’t help but look back at the album art again and how you got wrecked.
Yeah. That’s how you feel. I know there are people who are out there who haven’t experienced clinical depression, people are suffering and navigating through it all. There is an old expression of “life is hard, be harder.” It happens to us for all sorts of reasons. I wanted to explain what it was like to be in that state. I try to reach for joy and be there for my community and keep my head up and on the other side where you are in the pits of hell and why do you even try.
It would be nice if things were more of a straight line. Where is my center point? Where do I fit and belong in this great vast universe?
It is something I brought up with a song like “Pressure Me”. It is hard to be in a place where we can be highly functional. I have become more empathetic in the last 3 or 4 years than I have ever been.
It can be very difficult to forgive others if you can’t forgive yourself. With mental health and addiction I might not be a sufferer and cannot be a person who understands what they are going through because that’s not who I am, but I can be a sounding board for what they are going through. I can support people through whatever is going on.
Addiction is something that has been peppered into this record. It can be difficult to help someone in those situations. They need people to talk to and isolation is honestly the worst thing for all of it.
Are you still running your venue in Seattle?
We were with The Black Lodge. We at some point needed to pivot and The Vera Project was able to pick that up. We went back and Brian and I have been volunteering some time with Vera Project.
I was thinking about some of your other Seattle peeps up there in Colony Drop speaking of the scene up there.
Oh my god, I love Colony Drop. I tell people all the time. I am friends with those guys especially Joe and Ari. So happy for all of them. The music is so uplifting, and we need Colony Drop at this point and time.
How has the Seattle scene been since it has been getting back on its feet?
Luckily certain venues have remained and have been able to keep going. I just reached out about a show we are doing in January at Clock-Out Lounge and it is run by Jodi who is one of my favorite people on earth. Luckily Vera Project has lived on as well as Neumos; we are friends with them all. There are still some DIY spots but not as much. We talked about this being the ebb and flow of things and I bet there will be more DIY places popping up over time. Seattle is a great music scene but I have to mention Tacoma; they are killing it, like one of my favorite bands of all time Denial of Life. Curating a healthy scene down there and our friends at Real Art Tacoma; if you haven’t checked them out, please do. Also check out Northwest Hardcore Talk who are on Discord , they are so good about talking about the scene in the whole Pacific North West.
Anything else to be excited about?
I am excited for people to listen to it. So much love, blood and tears went into this record. Beyond that I am so excited to see everyone in person. We have been humbled by the last 3-4 years and we hope people are into it. I can’t emphasize what a privilege it is to be able to get out on the road and see everyone.
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Find Out releases this Friday via MNRK Heavy.
