Interview with Anthony Begnal of CHESTY MALONE AND THE SLICE ‘EM UPS by Dave Wolff (second interview)

Interview with Anthony Begnal of CHESTY MALONE & THE SLICE ‘EM UPS

You just released your latest EP “Satanic Brooklyn Scum” on Bandcamp the other day. Will you also stream it on other social media outlets?

The whole record (three songs) is on Bandcamp now. More importantly, it’s out now on 7” vinyl, came out on April 1st on 1332 Records out of the great state of Idaho. Eventually it’ll be up on iTunes, Spotify and all the other streaming sites.

How many labels did you seek before working out a release deal with 1332 Records? Did they only release it on vinyl (how many copies this pressing) or will they also release CD copies?

I think I only wrote one other label about putting out our new record. It’s on vinyl and digital, no plans for a CD release. I think they pressed 500 copies, give or take. Somebody said there’s a listing on Discogs with all that info but I haven’t checked.

Were any of the songs on “Satanic Brooklyn Scum” inspired by movies or TV programs, or based on ideas the band thought up? Describe the concept of each track.

No. We got the title “Satanic Brooklyn Scum” from a NY Daily News headline. The story was about how someone vandalized a nativity scene outside a church somewhere in Brooklyn and spray painted satanic symbols. The song is not about that though, it’s about us and other vile miscreants who reside in Brooklyn, although we recently temporarily re-located to an undisclosed location in the wilds of Pennsylvania (as the saying goes, the rent’s too damn high!). We’ll be back though! It’s also about satanic demonic possession, complete with biblical references. The other two tunes, “Cannibal Girl (Don’t ya Wanna Eat Me?)” and “Everybody Hates Me” are two lovely paeans to the wonders and beauty of everyday life as we see it.

What is the band’s current lineup? Is this lineup for live shows as well as recording?

The current Chesty lineup is of course myself and Jackie B along with Kyle “Haunted” Haust on drums and Buddy Jon Hell on bass. We’ve been playing shows with these guys since St Paddy’s ’19. Smoking’ rhythm section! Here’s a pic of us taken in Nazareth, PA at the Jacksonian Club. We of course still love all past and present members of Chesty Malone!

Did you visit a recording studio to record the EP or record and produce it independently? If the latter option, does the band have equipment to record with for their desired sound?

We recorded SBS at Seizures Palace in Gowanus, Brooklyn in mid-December of 2018 with Jason Lafarge at the helm. We make demos at home but we always record at real studios.

Why did you choose April Fool’s Day to release “Satanic Brooklyn Scum”? Is there any significance to it coming out on that day?

It just kind of happened that way due to international postal services (it was pressed in the Czech Republic). Perhaps it was sort of unfortunate due to some people maybe thinking it was a joke.

Is the making of SBS your first time working with Jason Lafarge, or have you worked with him before?

This is our first time working with him. Great place and a great guy to work with for sure. The building dates back to the 1800s, but it’s being overshadowed by the Whole Foods that opened by the nearby fragrant Gowanus Canal. 

If you made demos of the EP’s three tracks, in what ways are their final versions improvements?

They’re the same basic songs, just in demo form. I kind of like our home demos (we’ve made a bunch of them over the years) and someday maybe they’ll end up on the Chesty Malone box set. 

The band shot and released a promotional video for the song “Satanic Brooklyn Scum” which can be viewed on Youtube. Was it made with the same people you worked with on past promotional videos or did you find new people to work with?

Our long time video collaborator Sam Snead made this one for us. The awesome husband and wife team of Chris and Kirsten Jerome, from the great state of New Hampshire made our last video before this for “Fun Things to do During Robberies” off of our last album.

In what ways did Sam Snead help the video visually represent the song? How much exposure has it gotten?

He did a terrible job representing the song and we are locked in a personal battle that I’m not sure will ever be resolved. But we do love the video anyway. Check the YouTube stats to see how the exposure is going.

Are you planning to make more promotional videos to advertise the new EP, with blood, gore and horror themes?

There are only two other songs on the record so… maybe? We might do one with a love and flowers theme.

Are you still designing artwork for flyers, shirts and personal projects as you were the first time I interviewed you for the zine? What have you designed lately?

Of course I am, that’s what I do. I’m always doing tons of artwork. My current favorite is the “Satanic Brooklyn Scum” record graphics.

Describe your design of the “Satanic Brooklyn Scum” cover, and how it was meant to represent the three songs on it.

Here it is, check it out! Listen to the songs and look at it, it speaks for itself.

Besides the EP’s cover art, what have you designed recently to sell through your website, for commissions or for other bands?

I have a pretty extensive website where people can check out my artwork: www.anthonybegnal.com. I’m available for any kind of art project, so get in touch if you’re looking for an artist.

How often have you been performing lately, and at which venues? Are fans of the band responding to the new material?

Our last show as of this interview was April 5th in Nazareth, PA at the Jacksonian Club, good place. We played with the Nihilistics and the Undead and a couple others for a Joey Image from the Misfits benefit. It’s a good cause we were happy to be a part of. We played in State College, PA on St Paddy’s at Zeno’s, first time we ever played that God forsaken town (kidding! Relax everyone). Good show. We’re also playing in Delaware and Philly soon. And we return to Brooklyn on 6/15 at Lucky 13. We’re really happy to be playing some places we’ve never played before and returning to some that it’s been a while since we were there last. So far, from the new record we’ve only been playing “Satanic Brooklyn Scum”. People seem to like it. It’s got a slightly different groove from most of our other stuff. For our Brooklyn show we plan on playing the record in its entirety. And there might even be a ritual from the Satanic Temple of Brooklyn to start off the show.

Has the band been involved in other causes, or do you plan to do so in the days to come?

Sure, we’ve played some benefits and been on some benefit comps but we’re not really a “cause” kind of band and it’s kind of gauche to talk about that stuff in my opinion anyway, announcing to everyone what a good person you are and that kind of thing. Although Michael Jackson did ask us to be a part of We Are the World Part Two a while ago. It never worked out though. We do what we can, we ain’t so bad.

You played a show or two with the Murder Junkies (GG Allin’s band before he passed away). How did those go? Would you play with them again given the opportunity?

We’ve played with them a few times over the years but the last time was a year ago so that’s not part of our recent shows at all. Happy to hear Dino Sex is doing ok though! Sex Kills Cancer! And yes, it’s always fun to play with those wacky guys.

One of the shows where you will be supporting the new EP is at the Killadelphia Slasher Fest in Philadelphia this July. Tell the readers a couple things about this event.

Yup, Saturday July 13th in Philly at Voltage Lounge with the Jasons, Voodoo Death Cult, Splatterhouse and lots more. It’s being put on by Horror Punks USA, who are also doing the Hellaware Fest in Wilmington, Delaeare on May 18th with DR. CHUD and us and a ton of other awesome bands! We’ve never played Delaware so this should be interesting. Check our Facebook page for all the events for the shows. Philly is a great town and we love playing there so we’re stoked for sure.

Who else will be appearing at the Hellaware Festival? How long has the band known the people involved with Horror Punks? Do you expect to return to Delaware if the fest goes well?

Like I said above, check our Facebook page for the show events for all the details. I don’t know how long we’ve known them, a little while I guess. Good folks. No, we will never return to Delaware after this one show no matter what. Yes of course, if the show goes well we’d expect to return for more. Why not?

You were interviewed on Bob’s Asylum Radio to promote SBS. How did you hook this up and how much did you talk about the new songs? Where can the interview be heard?

Someone asked us to do it, probably Bob? I’m not sure. No, we did not talk about the new songs at all. Ha, of course we did, what a question! We also talked about tacos and pizza, was a good time. His show and a bunch of others is on www.whatever68radio.net.

On your Facebook profile you mentioned planning an interview at noecho.net. Talk about how you arranged the interview. Is it to promote the band, your artwork or both?

The good folks at No-Echo premiered SBS for us back in March but I’m also doing a series of interviews with classic era Hardcore band members called “A Hardcore Conversation”. You’ll have to wait and see who I interviewed.

How much of a buzz did No-Echo create for SBS on their show? Did they play one song or all of the songs from it?

We checked our trusty Buzz-o-Meter after the article came out and it was off the charts for sure. No-Echo is not a radio show; it’s like a news site for Hardcore, punk and metal type stuff.

How soon do you expect to post the interviews you are conducting for “A Hardcore Conversation” and where? Or have some of the interviews been posted already?

The first one’s up now, with Bryan Migdol, original drummer of Black Flag. Pretty epic.

What did you and Bryan Migdol of Black Flag discuss? Was the interview mostly about the band or was there some talk about the punk/hardcore scene they were part of at the time?

Go read the interview and find out!

What gave you the idea to start taping “A Hardcore Conversation” and where on the internet can people stream it?

My “A Hardcore Conversation” series is interviews that you read, it’s not streaming anywhere but you can read it at noecho.net. I’ve always liked the interview format and I had the idea to interview some folks from the OG Hardcore era that maybe don’t get as much attention as they deserve.

Where else in the U.S. are you thinking of performing? How about eventually appearing in other countries?

Anywhere that wants us and can give us a couple bucks for gas and stuff. Get in touch people! As of right now, pretty much limited to the Northeast portion of the US unless someone wants to pay for us to fly somewhere, in which case, definitely get in touch! And also, yeah other countries would be awesome but someone would have to wanna help pay for airfare. Ideally, we wanna play anywhere and everywhere. We’re like Black Flag and Van Halen in that respect.

Does the band have any other plans or projects you plan to undertake in 2019, that you want to briefly mention in this interview?

Right now we’re focused on SBS and playing as many shows as possible and getting to places we’ve never played before. But we’ve also started writing some new tunes for a 4th Chesty album and Jackie B and I have been talking about writing a concept 7”, as opposed to a concept album, called “The Youth”, as opposed to “The Elder” (KISS).

What is the storyline you and Jackie have been discussing for “The Youth”?

It’s a concept 7” (perhaps the first of its kind?) about old school Hardcore.
Check out Chesty Malone at our official site, Facebook, Youtube and 1332 Records.

-Dave Wolff