Mark Adams

Saint Vitus

Last time the American gods of Doom Metal, SAINT VITUS, released a studio album was back in 1995, afterwards everything went down the shitter with an inter band conflict. With that resolved over the years, they are back with "Lillie: F-65" right from where they left off, and now signed to Season Of Mist. Phil had a rather short chat with Mark Adams, the band's co-founder and bass player, about the new album's sound, the band and short history. 
By Phillip Lawless
September 21, 2012
Mark Adams (Saint Vitus) interview
Hello Dave, thanks for taking the time for this short interview for Metal Temple. Could you describe the songwriting process for "Lillie: F-65"? Were you guys able to write the new songs together, or did different members bring in pre-written material?

Dave pretty much wrote everything.  He would send us rough ideas and then we all met at Henry's and collaborated to make the final product.

The guitar sound on "Lillie: F-65" is amazing. Did you use vintage equipment to capture that classic Saint Vitus sound or did you use modern equipment to create the same tone?

Dave used his Schecter and the pedals he already had, I used the Thunderbird bass that I last used on Die Healing.  I had an SVT head and Dave had a Marshall head.  Tony Reed is the main reason why we have the classic sound.  He is in Stone Axe and toured with us and got a grasp for what we wanted by seeing us play every night.  He is the reason it sounds so good.

On the new album, Dave's riffs and guitar solos and Wino's vocals are the stars of the show, but they're based on the solid foundation of your's and Henry's playing. Tell us what those guys contribute to Saint Vitus' overall sound.

I use a heavy solid bass line that brings the boom.  I use a lot of low end.  Henry plays with a low end of a different kind.

I know there was a bit of bad blood after the split with Wino. How were you guys able to repair the rift and move forward with this lineup again?

Just by sitting down and talking. Dave & Wino sat down and time heals all wounds. Everyone wanted to move forward again.

Saint Vitus has already done a good bit of touring since Wino rejoined the band. What response have you guys seen since Vitus' return?

A bigger, wider audience.  In the past it was only people our age and now there are people of all ages.  There are a lot more girls at the shows these days.

In the early days, I know you were signed to Greg Ginn's SST record label and spent a good deal of time on the road with Black Flag. How did those early U.S. punk crowds typically respond to Saint Vitus?

Initially they gave us a lot of shit but they learned to accept us just like the bands we played with. Thank God they learned to respect us as we stood up for what we believed in and they realized that we were a lot like them even though we had long hair and they had short hair.

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