Interview by Kris Peters
Forming in Melbourne, Florida, BODYSNATCHER deal in all things dark, furious and sonically threatening extreme music. Combining crushing breakdowns with eerie ambience, scathing riffs and grisly grooves, the band have become synonymous with “heavy,” invoking violence in every city they happen to visit, spawning mosh pits that leave nothing but craters in their wake. Proudly and loudly putting the "core" back in deathcore, BODYSNATCHER have graced stages supporting the likes of Chelsea Grin and Slaughter To Prevail, with the band also in command of multiple albums and EPs, including 2017's Death of Me, 2020's This Heavy Void, 2022's Bleed-Abide and Vile Conduct released in September 2024.
And now, for the first time, Bodysnatcher are making their way to Australia, supporting good mates Lorna Shore on a run of shows that has already sold out. Which would be catastrophic for Bodysnatcher fans except for the fact the band has just announced three select headlining sideshows which will undoubtedly follow suit and sell out in quick time.
HEAVY sat down for a chat with drummer Christopher Whiten to chat more.
"Very excited to see the sun," he laughed when we bring up the tour. "We've been in Europe for the last three weeks and it's been cloudy. Except for Spain. Spain was nice and sunny."
Being their first time to Australia, we ask Chris if the band have done their homework on what to expect.
"I heard the crowds are awesome," he smiled. "I haven't heard any negative things, I guess, so we're stoked." HEAVY brings up the fact that the one thing we do know about Bodysnatcher is the propensity for action and insanity in their mosh pit, and ask if it's true.
"Yeah," he said quickly and decisively. "We definitely instigate it. We like that high energy. We like the aggressiveness in fans. We definitely ask for it quite a bit. The shows are just very, very intense with high energy. Constant telling people to get on stage and get off stage. At some of the Lorna dates, I'm sure there's gonna be barricaded venues so no-ones getting on stage (laughs)."
In the full interview, Chris talks more about his expectations of Australia and what we should expect from them, their history with Lorna Shore, the excitement of already selling out every show, their headline shows and what different to expect, the early days of the band and where they fit in, recent album Vile Conduct and how it was received, future plans and more.
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