Out of Everett, Massachusetts, Harvesting Horror's dark satire themes create a style of gothic / punk music that deal with isolation and despair. From the cemetery to the stage, Harvesting Horror is guilty as sin for delivering an inferno sound to their fans. We got a chance to speak with vocalist Chris Ferrino and guitarist, Greg Jandrys to learn all about their music and how they came together to form Harvesting Horror.

Fizzkicks: Tell me about your song "You Call This A Party" . Is it about your own isolation, insecurity and pains of growing up or is it about "what is so good about this so called world we live in"?

Chris: I actually wrote this song as a sardonic response to a certain social scene at a particular party in my town. There are certain ways people carry themselves at parties that sort of sketch me out and I realize we are all guilty of this . I feel that these awkward social settings bring out the best and worst of us. In this way I feel a lot of my witting reflects our insecurities and not only that but explores them. I am always looking for answers when I write, sometimes I get them other times I don't. In this case I feel I still haven't got to the bottom of these social settings!

Greg: I completely agree, this is exactly why I have drifted out of the whole party scene, and why we always get drunk in my basement alone! (all laugh)

Fizzkicks: Your style seems dark, sinful yet playful. How has your excessive drinking, smoking, satanic extravaganzas and partying help to mold the sound of your band?

Frank: As a matter of fact we are all straight edge, catholic, and alter boys! (all laugh)

Chris: I think our life styles definitely have helped mold our sound a great deal. I have always enjoyed dark literature, horror movies, and....... well........ drinking! This is the atmosphere we all agreed to portray because its real for us. Plus sinning is way too fun to go without mentioning. (all laugh)

Fizzkicks: When it comes to throwing a kick-ass show - what type of things do you do before performing?

Greg: Well... drink, make sure we look better than all the girls at the show, and try to loosen up our vocals...

Ronnie: Before our set, you can usually find Frank and I outside of the venue, chain smoking. The most important thing for me is trying to sustain a high energy level, because when we play out, I usually play really fucking hard, and fast.

Chris: I personally stray from the group and chill either at the bar or in the bathroom. I happen to feel that the more alone and isolated I feel before playing, the better I will perform on stage. I ussually have a drink and zone out. Then when I'm on the stage I just explode!

Fizzkicks: Harvesting Horror is a unique name. Tell us about your candle lighting and satan worshiping, and how you came to name your band Harvesting Horror?

Chris: Well to be perfectly honest I thought of the name when I was walking in Salem Massachusetts, on a very drunken afternoon. I had taken my liquor to go and I was headed to the graveyard with my sketch-book. It was mid-October and I was absorbing the atmosphere, when the name occured to me out of the blue. I stopped in my tracks and wrote it down in my sketch book. From then on I was destined to re-start a band! I did, and here we are! In regards to the satan worshipping and candle lighting well the millions of goat carcasses in our basements speak for themselves. (laughs)

Fizzkicks: What is the perferred drink at rehearsals?

Greg: Im not gonna lie... one time out of comedic value I stopped at a gas station and bought pre packaged martinis they were call "Jenn" and they came in a purse. we all thought this may be the funniest thing ever. Then I realized that Jenn perfectly opens my throat for singing...it may just be all beverages with 17% alcohol...but it did the trick (all laugh)

Chris: Jenn has been a hit from then on!

Fizzkicks: Tell me about your song writing process?

Greg: I'm always writing anyways. sometimes I come up with riffs by accident that I'll use. Usually though, I'll read some of the lyrics that chris has and il'l use my guitar to convey how his words make me feel. if they piss me off, ill write an agressive riff, and if they make me feel sad ill write a slower clean part etc...

Chris: i personally am writing all the time. sometimes i have a rythm and riff in mind and other times im just writing to vent. but either way, i always have at least 3 full notebooks full of songs and poems that are ready to be put to music...

Frank: Usually, Greg comes to me with a riff and ill put my 2 cents in and i create something that complients gregs guitar work in my own personal style...

Ronnie: When we come up with a part or idea, ill play it over and over until i find a sound that enhances the mood and gives the structure depth.

Fizzkicks: I understand you guys recorded your album at home. How long did it take and what where some of the challenges your band faced while recording your 2007 album "Confessions of Blasphemy and Regret"?

Greg: we recorded our first ep at home in chris' basement. "Confessions of Blasphemy and Regret" was actually recorded at the Getaway Group in Wakefield, MA. there were still alot of challenges though....

Frank: While in the studio, my hardest challenge was finding mike tysons punchout in a video game emulator because the second letter in "punch" is a "U"....(all laugh)

Ronnie: Recording the album was pretty time consuming. We recorded the music in 2 full days. The vocals were recorded off and on during a 2 month span. The process, itself, went smoother than we had expected. Jay was one of the easiest people to work with, and he gave some amazing insight into what we were trying to get out there. He was also helped in the fact that he corrected Frank's grammatical error in looking for Punchout.

Chris: Of course there are always the boring challenges such as mixing, notation, volume, amp settings, and mood portrayal, but I'll spare you the details. my single most memorable challenge of the recording phase was when Jay "mix master" Maas (our recording engineer and new found friend) informed the band of a certain 30 dollar chocolate bar he and his friends desired, or shall i say NEEDED. we divided ourselves into 2 teams (team HEIST, and team DISTRACTION). HH was originally part of team distraction. we were sent off on our mission to the local 7-11 to distract the clerk from team heist who were assigned to make the grab of the 30 dollar candy bar. We thought team heist succeded until upon leaving i saw that the chocolate bar was still present. i decided to take it upon myself to hide it under my coat and leave the store. suprisingly enough, we were greeted by the police outside of the store, called to the scene not for the theft, but, because we did too well at our job of distracting the clerk. in other words, we were assholes...BIG ASSHOLES. I, not knowing that the cops were called for the public drunkenness, told the officers that i would return the candybar that i had stolen. and in response to this they said, "what candybar?". At this point, confused, I pulled out the 5 pound candybar. They laughed in my face...

Frank: I then said, "officer, not to be an asshole, but would you pay 30 dollars for a chocolate bar?" at which time we were let go by the fuzz.

Chris: The whole time, the clerk was outside the store screaming "they should all be cuffed and taken in!!!" the moral of the story is, the harmonies were kinda hard...(all laugh)

Fizzkicks: What are your summer plans for touring for the new album?

Band: Hopefully, we can play as many shows as possible around here. We are aiming for touring next year, however, we do have 3 festivals planned in the summer and early fall. All the info will be posted on our sites...

Fizzkicks: What is the most single common bond you guys all have with each other and where do you see your band 2 years from now?

Greg: We bond on many different levels, which is why we have been friends for so long.... as for two years from now, i would hope were still doing what we like to do...write good music.

Chris: I feel we all have a love for a darker esthectic, a love for music, horror, and lots and lots of alcohol. I feel these are great intrests we share and contribute alot to our own personal style. However I feel its our vast differences that really create a uniqueness in style for the band. We all have intrests that are similar but also have many differences espeacially musically, oddly enough. This I feel, really makes our band stand out in the masses. In two years .......... I see us still drunk, loving saddness, and embracing the dark via music.