Hatebeak stands out among metal bands with non-human lead vocalists by featuring its bird-fronted grindcore group from Baltimore. Led by Waldo, an African Grey Parrot from Congo Africa that screeches brain-rattling songs over Blake Harrison and Mark Sloan’s instrumental beats.
Hatebeak will soon release their album ‘Number of the Beak,’ so VICE interviewed drummer Harrison to gain more insight into how Hatebeak creates their music.
About Hatebeak
Hardcore metal fans generally shun novelty acts, but even die-hards must admit that hearing a parrot sing metal can be slightly off-putting. Waldo may be capable of handling grindcore music but is no match for former Kataklysm singer Sylvian Houde or Cannibal Corpse frontman George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher; parrots also can’t compete with Cradle of Filth singer Dani Filth’s unique screeches and growls from Cradle of Filth’s Dani Filth who sounds more like snake than human voices!
Hatebeak’s popularity among death metal fans remains undiminished and there’s no sign that they are going away anytime soon. Soon to release a new album titled “The Number of the Beak”, this birdbrained grindcore outfit are poised to unleash demonic pigeon crap upon all their enemies. Drummer Blake Harrison from Pig Destroyer (and Hatebeak drummer himself!) graciously joined Rock it Out! Blog in an exclusive interview about Hatebeak.
Though they never tour to protect Waldo from traumatization, Hatebeak and Waldo have released several albums since 2005; their 2010 record “Birdhouse by the Cemetary” featured Waldo’s screeches perfectly complimenting Hatebeak’s paint-peeling guitars and frenetic drumming; its songwriting may not be groundbreaking but stands as a solid example of genre music.
On the back side of this album is a five-track demo from Caninus, the human-only sex metal project led by Pig Destroyer guitarist Mark Sloan. More melodic than Hatebeak but still packing some heavy riffage. Sloan’s vocals may not be quite as eerie but still work perfectly alongside Caninus’ pulse-pounding metal soundtrack.
Hatebeak’s debut vinyl offering, “Beak of Putrefaction/God of Empty Nest”, marks an exciting beginning to their discography. The clear vinyl 45 features three songs (including “Title Track: Beak of Putrefaction”) and two instrumental tracks that provide a powerful debut into death metal for non-parrot listeners alike. Loud yet intense music meets no specific message through lyrics- it provides an intense yet highly enjoyable introduction into death metal that even an impassive parrot might find difficult.
Band Members
As a genre, death metal is widely renowned for its ever-evolving lineups. Although some influential bands had permanent lineups, others such as Death (from Florida) had more fluid lineups. Death was among these latter groups and helped shape an entirely new sound in metal during the late ’80s; its founder Chuck Schuldiner went through numerous iterations before evolving it from rawer styles into something more refined over time.
Death’s initial two albums were recorded with different drummers, such as Rick Rozz of Dark Angel and Dave Lombardo from Repulsion. By the time of Individual Thought Patterns’ recording, Schuldiner had recruited new members – bassist Scott Carlson was from Genocide; drummer Chris Barnes played with Tirant Sin; while guitar player Bob Rusay belonged to Leviathan briefly before rejoining Death as part of Leviathan.
Schuldiner brought on board singer/bassist Michael Sweet and drummer Bobby Koelble from Florida underground band RockFire Funk Express; as well as keyboardist James DiGiorgio and bassist Skott Carina who had played together in Sadus. For their 1995 album Symbolic recording session he switched out Santolla for bassist Kelly Conlon of local Florida outfit The Dirty Rotten Imbeciles.
Schuldiner continued touring and recording with the band up until his death from glioma and pneumonia in December 2001, even through lineup changes. Since then, their influence on metal music remains.
Hatebeak are back with a brand new Death homage album called “Number of the Beak,” set for release through Reptilian Records on June 26. Furthermore, Hatebeak have announced US tour dates in support of this latest offering from them.
Cadaveric Incubator may be relatively young, but their 2017 album Sermons Of The Devouring Dead delivers all of the visceral grind that death metal fans crave. Their style owes much to early Death and Morbid Angel riff-heaviness but their music stands out as more complex than most in its genre.
Albums
Hatebeak from Baltimore stands out by employing a parrot as their lead singer; their menacing singing is punctuated with various screeches and wails for added effect, creating an intimidating sound that really stands out in this genre.
Hatebeak was initially an anonymous studio project. Over time however, its members became known. Pig Destroyer drummer Blake Harrison and The Index’s Mark Sloan collaborated in creating this group – with Waldo, an African Grey parrot from 21 years ago serving as its frontman – singing about toys, food, his name, Morbid Angel references in his lyrics as well as making references back to Carcass and Morbid Angel in its songs.
Hatebeak released their debut album, Number of the Beak, through Reptilian Records in 2015. This avian metal outfit certainly made an impression with their debut LP release. One side features newly recorded songs while its flip side collects several from out-of-print EPs of Hatebeak’s extensive catalogue. Hatebeak certainly left an unforgettable first impression!
Though many novelty metal albums tend to fade into obscurity quickly, this release stands out. This can be attributed to its lineup being comprised of experienced metal musicians: Harrison and Sloan are members of Pig Destroyer while Waldo appears regularly on Decibel Magazine’s biweekly “For Those About to Squawk” column.
Number of the Beak is an impressive metal band with no intelligible vocals that will leave fans of this genre yearning for more. Although their unique approach may not appeal to all listeners, fans of metal will surely enjoy hearing more of what this band offers – something metal needs more of today – bands who go against the grain and don’t follow what others are doing!
Tours
Metal has long been known for being unafraid of unusual musical arrangements. From leather-clad Marvelettes and satanic popes cloaked in anonymity to bands comprised of orcs, metal is home to an abundance of unconventional approaches to music that stand out. But perhaps none has made as big an impression as using a parrot as lead singer!
Hatebeak, the world’s renowned death metal band featuring a parrot as lead singer, released their second album titled Number of the Beak through Reptilian Records on June 26. The group features Blake Harrison (drummer for Pig Destroyer), Mark Sloan on guitar/bass and Waldo, an African Grey parrot from Congo Africa singing vocals for this second record release from Hatebeak.
Hatebeak may never tour due to their difficult moniker, but their debut album should please fans of heavy music with songs like “Hellbent for Feathers” and “The Thing that Should Not Beak”. With such an appealing songlist you can’t help but be intrigued to see what Hatebeak will come up with next!