Interviews About Albums: DYSTOPIATE - Filth Film (2026)

In this new interview, we sat down with the American Blackened Crust/D-Beat/Hardcore Punk band DYSTOPIATE to ask questions about their album, "Filth Film".

1. Filth Film was created during a period of major lineup changes. How did becoming a two-piece influence the songwriting process and the overall sound of the album?

Yes, that's correct. We had our drummer and 2nd guitarist quit not far apart from one another, but that didn't seem to stop Tom and me from continuing. If anything, it opened up big creative doors that were always there yet held back for some reason or another. I have a feeling our metal influences stepped up to the plate a bit more on this record, while keeping the hardcore punk thing going just as much, far more than our last album, "Terminal Dissonance." Compared to the other, this one's far more what we want. We just basically wrote what we wanted and recorded it. The sound itself/production is a bit nastier than our last record, which was recorded in a pro studio, Witch House Studio. I think that we were able to record this at Tom's home studio adds to the whole feel of the record itself. We got songs done much faster, in addition to being exactly how we wanted it. We didn't have that before when we were all jamming my old songs in the Barn. In a nutshell, it opened up how we wanted to do things, what we wanted to do, and how we wanted it to sound.

2. You recorded the album at Studio Dystope, with Tom handling the recording, mixing, and mastering. How did having the entire production process in-house affect your creative freedom?

Creatively, it just made it that much easier to do exactly what we wanted. Since we had all the necessary equipment in-house, the songs happened very quickly. It took us over a year because I live 1 1/2 hours away from Tom. I manage to get rides over there once a week. Sometimes Tom gets caught up with work. But the creative process happened very fast. Every couple of weeks, we had a fully fledged song. Tom's ideas rule, and he likes mine as well. We work together very well.

3. The title Filth Film immediately evokes vivid imagery. What inspired the album's name, and is there a central concept or message that ties the songs together?

Oh yeah! "Filth Film" definitely has its meaning. You know when you see something or someone that's completely filthy? Well, in my world, those people have a layer of film all over themselves, or it could be a filthy THING as well. It's got this film on it of dirt, grime, sweat, cum, shit, piss, all that shit. I call that "Filth Film". That's basically what the songs are all about, mostly filthy people, filthy establishments, filthy actions, just the filth of the world under my breath. And they all have filth film all over them. Thus, the title and common thread in the songs is "Filth Film".

4. Your music combines elements of blackened crust, d-beat, hardcore punk, and metal. Were there any new influences or experimental ideas that found their way onto Filth Film compared to your previous releases?

Yeah. Actually, there are quite a few things that made this a better release than "Terminal Dissonance". First, it's much more hardcore punk, according to me. I LOVE Discharge, they're one of my favorite bands in the world. I LOVE that D-Beat, and that's one thing Terminal Dissonance did not have. A defined D-Beat. That's pretty essential to how we sound, and their lyrics are dead on time, which inspires me as well as Goat from Von. Second, at the same time, it's way more metal! There is as much hardcore punk as there is metal. Especially in the song "Atrophy", we added a lot of traditional metal ideas to the riffing. Twisted arpeggios, melancholic tones, heavy guitars, pounding drums, it's all there. And third, it's a bit rawer-sounding than our last album. This is what we wanted to do. All aspects of "Filth Film" were taken seriously, explaining the filthier production. It's still audible music, but yeah, it's filthy sounding.

5. Tracks like "Burn," "You're Next," and "Atrophy" have powerful, confrontational titles. Are there any songs on the album that carry a particularly personal or timely message for you?

Actually, you named 2 songs on the album that are my favorite, and among my most personal. "Atrophy" is about just how we're all rotting away; I take that extremely seriously. "You're Next" is a confrontation. It's basically about anyone or anything that keeps you from going on. The song is telling the listener to take power.

Also, I HAVE to add "Whistlin' Dixie" is a favorite and a half. It's one of our lighter songs. More headbanging, like. That one's just a funny story I made up about this woman's peculiar night.

6. Despite setbacks and lineup departures, DYSTOPIATE has continued to release music at an impressive pace. What keeps the project moving forward, and how has your determination shaped the band's identity?

Basically, what keeps us going is that we both have this amazing force to want to write music. I can't explain it really. All I can say is that it's awesome. I go through hour-and-a-half rides both ways every other week or so to work on Dystopiate. He spends the little free time he has on Dystopiate. We're just both really into this band. I can't see it stopping. As far as it shaping our identity, if you take a listen to "Filth Film", you'll hear our brand right from the first few seconds, compared to the last album, which was just a collection of my very first songs, which were dripping in Discharge influence, drums like Slayer. The drive has given us the time and energy to do exactly what we want now.

7. You've mentioned that you're already working on new material as well as a series of DEVO covers. What inspired that tribute, and how do you plan to reinterpret such an influential and stylistically unique band through the DYSTOPIATE lens?

YES! The DEVO covers EP! Well, where do I start with this one? DEVO has been in heavy, heavy rotation in my player over the past few years, really into the Hardcore Devo album and the stuff from the late 70's the most, although point to any DEVO era and well....as Mark says, "That's good." Their music is really infectious, especially when you dig into their older, weirder stuff. And it's very powerful. The concept of de-evolution is one we are all far too familiar with. So far, we finished "Too Much Paranoias," which, through the Dystopiate lens, is just a really heavy, highly faithful to the live version cover. I use my usual vocal style and do it over DEVO's original style. It's quite bizarre. very DEVO. The guitars, bass, and drums are a pounding, faithful homage. We plan to do a few more including "Social Fools" and "Penetration in the Centrefold". It's going to sound like a lot of weird fun, this release, just like the living legends themselves.

8. Looking ahead, where do you see DYSTOPIATE evolving over the next few years? Are there any musical directions, collaborations, or touring goals you'd still like to explore?

Well, we're gonna keep going with music: we have planned another full-length, another full-length's worth of material for a split with DIAGNOSE from the Philippines, and the DEVO covers EP. And we would love to tour. We're looking for a drummer, so if anyone is interested is reading this, there's a spot. Musically, we just plan to expand on the "Filth Film" sound, wherever that takes us. Just gonna write with no "goal" in mind. That's the best way we write.

Support independent metal journalism — Visit the official BTC store