(Note: this interview was done in the end of 2017).
From the bits and bytes (and megabytes and gigabytes….ok, you’ve got the picture) of the forgotten side of the World Wide Web hails this nice underground net-label, founded by my two good friends, Lorenzo (otherwise known as the singer of Septulchu and Enbilulugugal) and Izedis (founder of – surprise, surprise! – Enbilulugugal). And because friends support each other, I’ve decided to promote this collection of filthy, dirty, unlistenable sounds and noises to you, unexpected readers of Rubber Axe webzine.
Prepare to get dirty. Really, really dirty. You’ve been warned.
Hello, Lorenzo, and thanks for your time spent on this interview. I hope everything’s great with you and let’s jump straight to the first question, or, better say, introduction…So, what can you tell our readers about yourself and Skull Dungeon? What was the reason behind creating the net-label and, mentioning it, why a net-label? And why the Skull Dungeon name?
I started Skull Dungeon inspired by Dipsomaniac and thanks to Izedis who helped me a lot. After I lost my job I had to quit my previous physical label (No Tomorrow Prods). I always hated SPECIALIZED labels and that’s the reason why I’ve never had a big success. I found the idea of releasing stuff for free and without spending money the right one for me. With a net-label finally I got total freedom of expressing myself as a label. The name is simply a stage of Zelda for SNES (one of my favorite of the saga).
The approach of the SD is fascinating, I quote: “Every style of music or noise is permitted”. Is there any reason for this broad embrace of the music(k) besides being a vehicle of the artists never be heard or discovered otherwise?
That sentence is the core of SD. I’m a random listener, I love to get weird stuff none would release. Artists and bands here have total freedom and a chance to get something officially released. I DON’T choose stuff… I wait for someone asking me and I very rarely I say no.
Your very first release was “Anatomical Inordinatio” by CLITORODECTOMIA, an one-man grinding machine from Ecuador. What can you say about it, being the first release? Was it by a chance or by some previous agreement?
Cesar Palacios (Money Hater and tons of other projects) proposed the deal for that album. He also released physical stuff by Clitorodectomia wih his label Cthulhu Fanclub. I did nothing but uploading the album.
How many releases did you put out to date and what is the most downloaded album? And what would be your personal favourite album released by Skull Dungeon?
(At the time of the interview it was – ed.) 390 releases (now close to 500 – ed.) . It’s hard to say which album had the most downloads since I started to put a free download link related to Archive.org. Bandcamp gives only 200 free downloads per months so it was impossible for me to save them with all those releases. Anyway the most listened album is sure Beastiality Boys / Cum Book split. Hard to say which release is MY favorite. I can tell No-Joy is the artist I followed the most and of course albums released by Izedis.
Although from what I can see, you mainly release goregrind and noise stuff, it there anything special in your releases you would like to point out? Like, say, any polka album? Or salsa dancing music?:)
As I already said I’m opened to every style but it’s not easy to get some of them. Noise stuff is the most easy cause noise artists usually release tons of albums! Second comes lo-fi grindcore or noisecore, goregrind etc. Anyway I released also some noise-rap, speedcore, emo, drone doom and a lot of quite imossible to define stuff!
Do you co-operate with any other labels, be they net-labels or with physical output?
Sometimes I co-release some albums with other net-labels but bands and arrtists are completely free to release whatever they want and, yes, some releases have also a physical release.
Bandcamps seems to be a perfect vehicle to put the music out, but I read about artists complaining about the limitations for downloading and stuff, do you have similar experiences with it?
(see answer 4)
It’s the end of 2017, what albums/bands caught your attention this year? Any recommendations?
Oluparun –discography- (blasting nasty grindcore at it best!)
Kharms / Bassookah Split (Piggy and catchy grindcore)
La Droga s/t (noisestep by Enjoyable Music members)
Attualità Nera / No-Joy (disturbing crime beat fueled noise)
Vallemme Dogs –anthology- (old italian crude industrial)
33 ways to annoy your neighbors –compilation- (A mess! Ahah)
Lil Quewrtyasfd “Deleted FM” (intense ambient noise rap)
Girl With An Upset Stomach “Toilet farst and diarrhea splats” (scatgrind for scatlovers!)
And as usual – any plans for 2018? What’s lined up for immediate release?
For the moment I have nothing planned… I’m slowing down since a lot of new and good netlabels are working good and also I’d like to dedicate more time to record my stuff!
Thanks a lot for your time and stay noisy!!!!
Thanks to you for the interview!
