Encore quelque peu confidentiel dans la masse des groupes européens, CRIMINAL continue son petit bonhomme de chemin attendant son heure. La sortie de "Scario" était l'occasion d'en apprendre un peu plus sur cette formation anglo/chilienne.

VS : Hey Anton, before we talk about this new album you guys have just released, I wanna know the circumstances that made you move from your native country ?
Anton : It was mainly a personal decision. I felt at that time that the band wasn't really going anywhere, and also that I was sort of stuck with my life, so I decided to make this radical change. Just to move away. Pretty soon I realized though that I needed to carry on making music, and fortunately it all happened in a way that allowed Criminal to survive and to actually get stronger and stronger.

VS : To go on in this way, do you feel some times frustrated that most metal heads have forgot your previous band ? PENTAGRAM was cult around the late 80’s.
No, not at all. The people that matter do remember. I've met people like the Napalm Death guys or Tomas Lindberg, and those guys telling me that Pentagram was an influence for them is enough of a reward for me.

VS : You called your new album “Sicario”. I know that’s a word for “killer” in the South America’s mafia language. I guess that’s your way to stay close from your origins and beware people about the killing they can expect on this album but do you think S
Anton : Ha, yeah, I've thought about that, too. But I don't think anybody would get pissed off, because the way I wrote the lyrics I just tried to describe that way of life, I tried to imagine what it would feel like. I know it's impossible to accomplish that, but I did what I did responsibly and respectfully.

VS : CRIMINAL is well known for its political lyrics. That’s a bit unsual in this kind of metal. Does it mean you’ve choosen music to express your revolt, to say some truths people have no idea about or prefere to ignore ?
Anton : To me it's something that needs to be said. To be honest, the music is more important to me than the lyrics, but then again, it would be a pity to use your music as a vehicle to express any old bullshit if you can also transport a meaning and a content. So I write about stuff that's on my mind, that worries me and pisses me off, and that is usually of a political nature.

VS : CRIMINAL had some determinant changes with this new record. I’m especially thinking about Mark Royce who left with his keyboards. I know you had some problems with him but do you think this lack of synth had a specific impact on your music ? Do you t
Anton : Maybe, maybe... I think what happened on the previous album is that in a way we tried to write for the keyboards instead of just writing riffs like we always did before. And for some part the result was great, but for another it lacked the essence of what we've always been about.

VS : There’s always one song in spanish on each album (except “No Gods”). Did you ever think about recording some full spanish versions of your recordings ? Don’t you think some words have to be express in native language to gain their maximum meanings ?
Anton : No, I wouldn't consider doing Spanish versions of songs that were originally recorded in English. I think that's cheesy. Like something Robbie Williams would do. I've been thinking about doing something though, maybe an EP, completely in Spanish, but who knows when we'll be able to do that. But you have a point about the meaning, usually the songs I write in Spanish have very significant lyrics to me, that I probably wouldn't be able to express in English that well.

VS : You’ve chosen to add a new version of the classic “Self Destruction” as a bonus for the european release. Does it mean you didn’t have any unreleased tracks in front of you or was it a way to show your fans CRIMINAL’s evolution with years ?
Anton : We actually left another track, a new one called "Stop Believing", for a bonus track for South America, so it definitely wasn't lack of original material. We just thought it would be cool to introduce that song to our European fans, seeing that it's one of our most popular songs in South America and that we still like playing it live.

VS : For the first time your worked with the mighty Andy Classen for this album. I wanna know if your felt a bit shy when you’ve started working with him. He’s not exactly cheap, did you feel under pressure thinking about the money Metal Blade have put in
Anton : Umm, we never felt intimidated or anything, but we always knew that we HAD to record a great album, not only for Metal Blade, but for ourselves. But Andy is such a great guy that he made us feel really comfortable and welcome from day one, so all possible worries faded and we just concentrated on working. And I would definitely go there to record our next album, because I think Andy really understood what we wanted. Even when we were not in agreement over a certain decision he would always listen and consider what we had to say. And the result is for everyone to hear, it sounds bloody excellent!

VS : Explain me your logo. Jesus Christ’s mother between these two guns. That’s a strong image, I’ve always thought south-american people were seriously catholic. Is that your case ?
Anton : Absolutely not. I'm more of an agnostic. That logo is actually connected with the lyrics to "Sicario", because it talks about how these killers are usually very religious, even if there's a huge contradiction in that. And the image we created is very provocative, I like that.

VS : How do you explain, you guys aren’t playing that much over Europe ? I didn’t hear about any upcoming tour for the new album ? How is that possible ? Is that a promotional problem ?
Anton : It's a little bit of everything. Since we haven't been in Europe for so long we still don't have the right connections and stuff, and also the fact that we don't all live in the same country doesn't help either. But there's a couple very interesting tours on the horizon that I hope we will be able to announce soon.

VS : You guys are playing with Zac O’Neil, EXTREME NOISE TERROR’s drummer, since you moved in England. Now tell how is that possible for a grind/crust drummer to have this terrific result with CRIMINAL ? Did he take any lessons ? (lol)
Anton : Zac is a very talented musician. He doesn't only play drums, but guitar and bass as well. He told me right away when we met that he wanted to do something more, that he felt a bit limited with what he was doing in ENT. And we make sure to give him enough breathing room so he can really live out all his musical potential.

VS : Well it’s done, it’s time for the traditional last words…
Anton : No last words from me, just buy the album !