Interviews: Our Hate

On this new occasion, we have had the opportunity to interview the Metal/Hardcore band Our Hate, from Belgium. Check out the interview and follow the band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

1. Where did you get the idea for the band name, you planned it or came out just like that?

We started making music together without really thinking about a bandname. After we had finished off a number of songs, business went into detail.We wanted to play live and obviously needed a bandname. Our music and lyrics are far from extreme, yet aggressive and sometimes hard so we were looking for a name that could reflect that. Moreover, we wanted to keep it short and powerful. Everyone sometimes has a certain hatred in themselves, be it religious, social, political or ordinary small everyday things… so we soon came to “Our Hate”. AND there was no other band with the same name yet, as far as we know.

2. Why did you want to play this genre?

In our younger years, most of us listened to hardcore music, mostly with metal influences as well. That was very popular in the early 1990s. The shows that we attended from bands like Pro-Pain, Deviate, Biohazard, … have made a big impression on us. The energy between the band and the audience has always been important in the genre. During our teen years it was fantastic to get rid of your aggression in a culturally responsible way. This pure nostalgia has stuck in our heads and we love to feel that energy during our own shows. We could not do it in any other way. In addition, we do not want to think in boxes and try to make our music as varied as possible. I guess the 5 tracks on our latest EP “Defiled By Evil” prove that.

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed?

Yes, we all have a past in former local bands in which some of us played together. Our guitarists Dave and Dennis are even brothers and always played in a band together. We all come from the same area in our tiny country Belgium and we often ran into each other in pubs or on shows. We were actually already friends before we started Our Hate together. So it didn’t took long to complete our line-up.

4. Each band member favorite band?

Like most musicians will probably answer this question, it’s extremely hard to choose one favorite from such a multitude of excellent bands. Over the years our preferences have been very extensive, making it a very difficult choice. But if we try anyway; for some a choice of life, for others a choice of the moment -

Tom (Vocals): Madball 

Ibanez (Drums): Pantera 

Dennis (Guitar): Biohazard

Dave (Guitar): Upon A Burning Body

Kris (Bass): Suicidal Tendencies

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

Life! Both positive and negative. Things that happen in our own lives or in the lives of friends and family can be a source of inspiration. Although we live in a prosperous country, the path of life is never straight and there have been passages for all of us that have left some impression. We try to give this a place through our music. As mentioned, this does not always have to be negative. For example, our song “Together As One” is about positivity and friendship. Only political matters we try to avoid as much as possible.

6. Where was your last gig?

This dates from just before the current Covid-19 crisis in Skulls Rock/Metal Café; a nice and cozy local pub in Geel (Belgium) where a lot of metalheads were present. We had a great time there and it is certainly far too long ago. A lot of shows have already been canceled due to the crisis. Sorry but necessary. Health must come first at any time!!

7. Where would you like to act?

We want to play as much as possible, wherever we can, on both big and small stages. Although we would love to do it, big festivals are certainly not a must. It’s fun (and probably overwhelming) to play for a huge and diverse audience, but we also love to play at smaller shows where people really come for the bands and where interaction between band and audience is usually much more intense. Good shows make great memories!

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

It’s not the most important with whom we share the stage. As long as we can have fun! Of course we all have “secret desires” to play together with big names. Bands like Hatebreed, Pro-Pain, Sepultura, … should only ask once!! (LOL)

9. Whom not?

We respect every band or artist, whatever music or genre they play. I don’t think we have ever said: “We never want to be on the bill with those guys!” :-D Let’s keep it that way for now.

10. Any of you has ever suffered from stage fright? Any tip for beginners on how to beat that?

Definitely! I believe everyone has some sort of stress before a show. That adrenaline makes it even more fun, but of course you should not freeze. A good tip: drink a few beers. But not too many of course! Or take a break in a quiet place somewhere in the backstage and warm up for a while. Just to relax. In the end, we also learned that it doesn’t have to be a disaster if you make mistakes. You can only learn from them.

11. What bands have inspired you the most?

A lot of bands somehow influenced us musically. Bands like Hatebreed, Madball, Kilswitch Engage, Chimaira, Devildriver, Upon A Burning Body, … are some of the many that stimulate our inspiration

12. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

I can’t remember a weird question that was asked, but one time something funny happened after one of our shows. Our singer stood behind a table selling our merchandise when a girl came up to him, leaned over and asked if we got CD’s with us. She couldn’t see them because they were covered by her huge breasts (LOL)

13. What do you think of your fans?

A band without fans is like a café without beer! If nobody attends your shows or listens to your music, you better stay in your rehearsal room, right? So only respect and gratitude for all the people who follow and support us! A small example of how fanatical some fans are: last year some diehards traveled to Spain to see a few shows of us there. That was really, really special !!

14. What do you think of our site?

The site looks great! Professionally built with a lot of information. Many new and lesser known bands are featured, which is a great thing. The roster is almost bursting at the seams and there are some cool Spotify playlists to be found. We wouldn’t mind if Our Hate was ever added to such a playlist (hint hint)

15. Something add?

We are very grateful that we were picked from an abundance of bands to be allowed to do this interview. We would like to say hello to everyone who reads this .. stay metal .. but more important; stay healthy and take care of each other \m/