Interview with CJ McMahon

First of all, thanks for taking the time to answer these questions. Tell us a bit about what it was like to tour around Australia with heavy metal legends Fear Factory recently. Was it a lot different compared to say touring with younger and less experienced bands?

Yeah it was amazing! Fear Factory and the Truth Corroded guys were great dudes. It was refreshing to be involved in a tour where everyone was on the ball, it made things work smoothly.

What was it about the Metal scene that made you decide to become a front man for a heavy band over all other genres?

Just the feeling Metal gives me. When I perform onstage I feel like an immortal God, so powerful and strong. Plus Metal is one of the only few pure music styles going around. I love all styles of music, but Metal is the best to play for myself.

As a collective group, I'm sure Thy Art Is Murder all have different tastes in music. But being in a Death Metal band, who are the biggest influences in terms of heavier bands?

Well we do listen to some strange styles, but yeah, Metal bands that influence us would have to be Behemoth, Decapitated and Gojira. But we listen to so much that it's hard to say what really influences the most. We just write what we want and hope people like it.

There have been a couple of line-up changes over the years; do you think you've now found the perfect members to take the band on the rest of its journey?

Oh for sure, we have had a few line-up changes, but not as many as some other bands. The current line-up we have now is indestructible. We could not go on if one of us dropped out now, you could say we have cut all the fat from the beast and we are now left with a lean, destroying, well-oiled machine.

Your new album 'HATE' is about to be released on October 19th, we are all very excited after hearing two new tracks from the album. What are your thoughts on this release compared to The Adversary?

Well the difference is massive. We had more time to write, we recorded with Will Putney at "Machine Shop" in New Jersey which is the best studio in the World. The boys really push themselves and the boundaries. We honestly put everything into this album "HATE".

What's your opinion on the current Metal scene? Not just in Australia but overall.

The Metal scene is always there, it never dies and it never grows. It's a monster that is always there destroying. The Metal world has been so grand to us. I just hope we can represent the 'Metal' stereotype well and keep Metal alive and well here in Australia.

Who are some Australian bands that you think everyone should check out?

All my mates’ bands. Boris The Blade, Resist The Thought, Northlane, The Amity Affliction, Far West Battlefront, Signal The Firing Squad and Graves.

If your band could play a show with any 3 bands in the World, who would they be?

Well it's hard to say, there are so many bands I'd love to play with. But it would have to be The Amity Affliction, Parkway Drive and Behemoth.

After this new album is released, what's next for Thy Art Is Murder? Overseas touring perhaps?

Yeah we are going back overseas as much as possible. We love touring here but it's such a small place as far as touring goes. Going overseas is good for us to spread our music and grow our band name. We just want to push it as far as possible.

Thanks so much for being a champion and answering these questions for all the readers. We can't wait to listen to the new album and see you live at a show really soon. Cheers!