Interview with The Absence guitarist Patrick Pintavalle

Death metal band The Absence has just released their third full-length record, Enemy Unbound on Metal Blade Records. Guitarist Patrick Pintavalle answered some questions for me about said record, which to me is a blistering, ferocious attack that hits like a ton of bricks. The sheer power of this CD will take your breath away. If you are a fan of death metal this album is for you. Here is what Pintavalle had to say about the band and the newest CD, Enemy Unbound.

The name of the band The Absence is interesting to say the least and sounds as if there is a story behind it. Where did the name come from and what is the story?
Patrick: I don’t think there is a story behind it. Our first drummer came up with it; we really liked it because it doesn’t confine us to any particular genre of music. We can pretty much play whatever kind of music that we want to in the future. If we had the name Cannibal Corpse we would have to play death metal forever.

Now that your brand new CD, Enemy Unbound complete how do you feel about it? Are you satisfied with the outcome?
Patrick: Yes, I think we got what we wanted out of it. We wanted to simplify our sound and just have good songs to play. We wrote most of these songs by how they would come across live.

What was the writing process like for this CD? Did you guys all write together? How long did it take?
Patrick: No, it was different this time. Peter and I wrote mostly at home with Pro Tools and we would record Justin at Mike’s house in Tampa and take those tracks and cut up the songs to fit. There was actually a lot of thought going into such a simple record.

Give us some insight into the meaning behind its title?
Patrick: “Enemy Unbound” is basically our disgust for the music industry. The Enemy Unbound has many meanings being the labels, promoters, booking agents or anyone exploiting the bands that should be the main focus. We hate that everyone is reaching into the cookie jar and what’s left is for us and it is usually crumbs.

Give us some insight into the album lyrically. This is a super pissed off sounding record.
Patrick: Exactly, That’s the proper word for it. It’s a melodic Death metal album that is more punk rock than most people would think. We have been doing this for a while and are still at the bottom of the barrel. We find it weird because we feel our music is pretty decent and strong. There are so many people who love this kind of metal but haven’t heard of us.

This is your 3rd full-length album. How do you feel the band has matured over the years?
Patrick: There has been a lot of maturity in the last few years being as hungry as we are for success. We have had to put up with crappy jobs and having to quit going on tour and the list goes on and on. Some of us have kids to raise and wives to piss off. I think our lives outside the band are just as important as the time we spend as a band. We all bring our issues on the road and that effects how we write as well.

I feel that this new material is significantly heavier and more aggressive than the previous two discs you guys released. Was this done consciously or do you think it was a natural progression?
Patrick: I think it was natural but I don’t think it is as aggressive as Riders was. We made a conscious decision on most of the song structures though.

Tell me about a book or two that you’ve read that you think other people should read?
Patrick: I don’t read books to be honest with you. I play poker, video games, guitar and ice hockey. I think people should read this interview though.

Do you have any touring plans made yet?
Patrick: We are on the road with Firewind and then we are just waiting to hear something from our booking agent. We want to tour and are sick of sitting around this shitty town.

Any closing words?
Patrick: Thanks so much for the interview.  [ END ]