THE BEAST

Diabology Interviewed By MHF !

Diabology is a perfect example of why it is so important to introduce younger people to the Arts. Whether it is literature, any type of artwork or in this case music, the impact art has on them and subsequent effect it has on society is immeasurable. Diabology is the result of School of Rock and nurturing friends and family…and a love of Metal didn’t hurt either. Their sound is fast, heavy, a bit dark at times and yes, still maturing. No one is over 18 years old, but you would never know it. Their recently released debut album Nobody Believes Me kicks serious ass and I look forward to seeing what these guys evolve into. We wish them all the best. 

Jesse Bergen: guitar and vocals

Jack Kleinman: guitar

Joseph Mazisyuk: bass

Matt Morales: drums 

1. Greetings from MHF and Colorado! How are you guys?

Jesse: I'm great! Just holding on tight waiting for my Fauci Ouchie.

Jack: Excellent!

Joe: I'm good.

Matt: I'm doing pretty well.

2. You guys met up through School of Rock. Tell us about those days and how things have transitioned.

Jesse: The band was actually formed through School of Rock, but all those other members have left by now. The School of Rock is where I got my start playing music when I was 7 years old. It was a lot of fun, but after a few years, playing the same old covers got boring. I wanted to start writing original music, so at 14 I got some friends from the school who also liked metal together and we formed this band. As for the current lineup...

Jack: I met Jesse at a show, and he was looking for a guitarist, so it was a natural agreement.

Joe: I found out about the band through my parents who have known Jack's parents for many years.

Matt: One of my teachers from an after school program knew Jesse from School of Rock. She ended up inviting me to one of Diabology's shows and the rest is history.

3. Congratulations on Nobody Believes Me. I am sure you are tired of people fixating on your age, but you really do sound polished beyond your years. Tell us about the album. Brag a bit.

Jack: Well thank you! We had an absolute blast writing and making that album, glad to hear people enjoying it.

Jesse: I think our biggest goal with the album was diversity. We wanted every song to sound unique with traces of different sub-genres throughout. For example, the opening track "The Voices" borders on hardcore punk, which is followed by "Deicide", a more traditional thrasher, before going into "Defiling Innocents" which is full-on melodic black metal. It was a challenge to make the songs different but still cohesive.

Matt: The album was fun to record, a new experience and it just felt good being in a studio recording for the first time.

4. Being young has some obvious detriments in the industry, but what are some situations when you have been able to use this to your advantage?

Jesse: I'd say people underestimate us a lot, which can be good and bad. We catch a lot of people off guard and exceed expectations. At the same time though, since releasing the album, we noticed a lot of reviews with absolutely no criticisms at all that abruptly end with "They have potential" or "They're good for their age." I don't know if they withhold criticism cause they think we can't handle it, but a lot of the time it feels like they wrote that line before they even listened. It starts to feel like a teacher who won't give an A on the first assignment even if they don't have any criticism.  

5. All your lyrics are posted on Bandcamp. Thanks for doing that, by the way; not everyone does. Your songs involve subjects and imagery that other artists (in their own way) have also used. I’m talking artists that are now in their 40’s and even 60’s! From a younger person’s perspective, what is the common thread that links all of us Metalheads, regardless of generation?

Jack:I think what unites metalheads is love of metal. It's just as simple as that and everyone who loves metal is a metalhead in my eyes regardless of lifestyle.

Jesse: I think that regardless of time or subgenre, all metal has a similar attitude. It has an element of rebellion and aggression, but it also promotes unity and camaraderie. As for our lyrics, I try to find new themes, but of course there are always some images that will always go hand in hand with the aggressive sound of metal: blood, Satan, destruction, etc. 

6. For your video for “Seas of Eternity,” which we will post here, you commented all of you were underage when this was filmed. How old are you now? Who is the young kid in the video, the “focal point” for lack of a better term? Is he okay after all that  tormenting?  Tell us about the video.

Jesse: We're all 18, except Matt who turns 17 next week.

Jack: The kid is my younger brother and had a good time. Neither he nor any other children were harmed at all during the making of that video.

7. I would like to visit the song “Seed of the Prophet.” In part, this song takes on an air of Black Metal. I have listed a few lyrics. Can you expound on them and the song in general?
   "The seed of the prophet shall seat the throne.
   And drown in flames, the mountains of man.
   Through baptismal waters I shall be cleansed.
   I will be born again."
   
   Jesse: The lyrics are about a self-righteous religious leader who believes anyone who doesn't follow his doctrine is unworthy of life. The song is meant to read as a sermon, warning non-believers to convert or perish. It ends with a long guitar solo, and during that I like to picture the man raining his fiery, insane judgement down.
   
   8. Two new songs are available, “The Softest Grave” and “Writhe.” Are these still part of a new album? What are you working on currently?
   

Jesse: They are! Obviously things have been hard with COVID. We had to record those two songs in my living room, and we've had trouble getting together safely to practice. We have been spending a lot of time writing and fine tuning songs though. We hope to start recording the second album before the end of the year.

9. What's the best piece of advice you have been given? Have you used to the fullest?

Jesse: My mother always told me that money isn't as important as happiness. I would be much happier making a basic living playing music than making millions as some big corporate hotshot. 

Jack: The best advice I've received so far is just to go all in when you make a decision that you're certain of. When you commit to making music, you can achieve a lot more.

Matt: My advice was "Don't give up, even if you're exhausted or feel like you are not going anywhere. Don't give up because at the end that hard work will pay off."

Joe: Mine is the same as Matt's, just don't give up.

10. As usual, I must ask, if I were to visit Los Angeles, what is the one thing I simply must see?

Jack: Come see Diabology.

Jesse: The Smell is an awesome non-profit venue that constantly hosts cool shows and supports the underground. If you can stand the stench, I highly recommend a visit.

Joe: Pink's Hot Dogs. It is an amazing hot dog place in LA. It is amazing, you must try it.

Matt: MeowMeowz is an awesome little store in Pasadena that hosts shows and sells cool clothes and rock/metal memorabilia.

11. We thank you for your time and wish you all the best…with lots of years to come. Any parting words for our readers?

Jesse: Buy our shit, stay safe, and rock on!

Diabology destroys the polls in December 2020 winning the battle of the bands and becomes band Of The Month for January 2021 with 14,770 total votes!

Diabology are a teenage thrash metal band from Los Angeles, CA. Members Jesse Bergen (guitar and vocals), Jack Kleinman (guitar), Joseph Mazisyuk (bass), and Matthew Morales (drums), met up on the rock school circuit. They were united by a love of metal and a desire to break out of the rock school mold to start working on original material. Defying the many subgenres of metal, they choose to simply call their music thrash, a tribute to the old school sounds of the late eighties, with a young and refreshing voice.

The band began playing many well-attended and prestigious gigs around the Los Angeles area, but things really took a turn when they released their debut LP, 'Nobody Believes Me'. Taking the metal world by storm, the album was featured in countless magazines and received a fair share of radio play but the icing on the cake was when their song "Defiling Innocents" made it to the top of Kerrang's American Excess Spotify playlist. 

There is no saying where Diabology will go from here. Catch them locally while you still can. 

Album Links:
https://diabology.bandcamp.com/album/nobody-believes-me

https://soundcloud.com/user-113498032/sets/nobody-believes-me

Social Media:
https://www.facebook.com/Diabology-1735649090085063/
 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoRQeXQiH1XOqDyqJG6gPBw
 

Https://twitter.com/Diabology_band
 

https://www.reverbnation.com/diabology?profile_view_source=header_icon_nav
 

https://www.instagram.com/diabologyband/