NOX-your currently working with will rahmer of mortician on a side project which is supposed to be in the hell hammer mould.you two working together sounds like a match made in hell.are there any release dates set yet?mortician is far removed from engorges black metal assualt.whats the musical and personal connection between you two?i know you played drums for mortician but is will a very old friend?
KEP-Evoked Damnation has been put on hold...indefinitely, due to Will's extensive touring schedule with Mortician and me now living on the west coast. Maybe one day we could gel and get it together!! For now it lies in wait to be created. When we were trying to realize it, we needed a guitar player that would know what we wanted to do, style wise. We were unable at that time to find one. Not too many old schoolers out there nowadays. Will is one of my oldest friends in metal.

NOX-dark horizon is a small but growing black metal company with awesome bands like sauron and fog but it is somewhat limited in terms of distribution in comparison to relapse or metal blade.with the popularity of underground black metal in magazines like metal maniacs and terrorizer the underground scene seems to be getting even more press than many major underground label bands but with only a quarter of the sales.do you always envision engorge on a small more independent label or if the offer came could you imagine jumping to a major label like cradle of filth did or recording for Columbia records like cathedral and carcass did back in the early eighties?i mean if black metal somehow broke through into the mainstream would you be willing to crossover or do you feel it would permanently damage black metal?does black metal have to be limited and kept underground to stay true to its roots?
KEP-I believe that black metal should maintain at least a hint of underground flavor.Thats what it was built on. I would hate to see Engorge t-shirts in the mall at Hot topic!! We will continue to work with Dark Horizon Records and grow with them. Engorge is far to harsh of a band to be accepted at any level in the mainstream. There will be no crossover.

NOX- your hatred of Christianity is very evident in your lyrics and interviews but are you a practicing Satanist and if so what is your personal philosophy of satanism?how do you envision the dark lord?as a horned figure in black or an extension of the base human instincts that all must bow to and worship?
KEP-paganism and Satanism are all inside of us. No horned figure, no fiery hell...it all dwells in our souls. I am Pagan in the sense that I worship ancient evils,primal urges, barbarianism and free will. Satanism is an extension of that and is a nice creamy topping to all of it. Laveyans,Death worshippers...unite.

NOX- on the track vampyric blood you speak of vampyrism and blood letting a subject I have a great interest in.i wonder are you a vampyre in the magickal or lifestyler sense?i am magickal but i have enjoyed and gained great power from bloodletting more in its uses in voodoo rituals as well as blood magic but i was once a member of sabretooth.do you belong to such groups or offer them support?what is your opinion on psychic vampyrism and Michelle belangers work?do you find it compelling as i do?what is your personal philosophy of vampyrism or do you have one?i met father Todd many years ago and was somewhat enamored of his work.do you support unity among the vampyre clans or are you more a solitary practioner?
KEP-I Am a solitary practioner. Not so much a lifestyle more so feeding off my beautiful, ivory skinned mate...privately. Blood soothes my inner beast. It livens me. The taste is refreshing. I’ve been invited to take part in many vampire groups. I choose not to. To me, its a primal/sexual act, very personal. Like eating a good steak, drinking some Heineken and getting a blow job...that kind of elation. I liken it to food,replenishment. It soothes that cannibal side of me...in a way. Keeps me in line as to not exercise my bloodlust outside of my mate. I am not familiar with Michelle Belangers work though I will research it now.

NOX-on your site you hype yourselves as the most hated band in the underground!is there real hostility against engorge or is it just hyperbole?is there a racial or jealousy element to it?you are a very well known booking agent in the tri state area.
KEP-WE ARE THE MOST HATED BAND IN THE UNDERGROUND...yes, it is a true statement. Hostility towards Engorge? Not so much the band more so myself. Most people cant understand how I’m able to do the things I do with Engorge and my business. It puzzles most ignorants as to how I’m able to play the music I play, book the bands I book and maintain respect in the Underground. It is most certainly racial, as all you will hear is "Engorge has a black singer". What the fuck!!! A black guy playing our elite and precious black metal and doing it well?!?! Hogwash!!! Spread the propaganda!! The singer from Engorge is a former rapper with big lips, nappy hair, bling bling and jive talk!!! Holy shite!!! How the hell is he able to do this?!?!? He’s ruining OUR scene!!! Holy fuck!!! WHAT?!?!?! He dates white women?!?! Oh man...I heard he was a pimp and rapist of white women!! Fuck man...we better get some Klan down here!! This nigger needs to be shut down!! What?!?!?! He's a drug dealer!!!!?!? What?!?!?! He’s a pedophile!?!?!?!? LETS GET HIM!!! GO ON EVERY MESSAGE BOARD IN THE UNDERGROUND AND SPREAD THE WORD!!! WHAT?!?!?!? He books bands from Europe?!?! HOW?!?! How can he do this?!?!?! Must be from all the drug and pimp money!!SHITFUCK!!! I’ve only dreamed about sucking off the bands he’s brought here!! That’s a WHITE MANS job!!! LOL I’ve heard it all man...You name it. It just makes me and Dark Horizon richer.

NOX-in the summer of 2004 a great deal of schism occurred at the vengeance festival in.between grom and yourself.there was a great deal of controversy because grom is ns and you are of mixed race.the band in the end were unable to defend themselves and were thrown out of the organization known as the pagan front.the issue was discussed heavily on the unholy records site which is managed by grom member ymir g. winter.there were even death threats aimed at you and encouragements to grom to either kill or attack you.since the incident got so much press online ive been wanting to ask you what exactly went down that day?did you know grom were ns and if so why did you book them?did you have any previous relationship with grom or ymir before the show?grom seem like pretty hardcore guys was there ever any fear of violence or reprisal?
KEP-Look, here’s how it happened...THE TRUTH. Ymir contacted me about playing one of my shows. He had heard lots about them, heard about the following I have and so on. He liked the band (Engorge) and the bands I booked and wanted to play. I had contacted Ymir a couple years before about playing (not knowing of their NS/PF affiliation) and he kindly advised me of their stance...and we just left it at that. Once VF2 rolled around again (2 years later), Ymir had expressed interest in playing, in that they had "matured" and just wanted to be a part of the show as a band not a "racial" band though they still played racial events. Me, being the business man I am, said..."ok". No artist should be denied a forum, if I did that. how hypocritical would that make me? Ymir had already supported my shows by selling Unholy Records merch at a few of them. I had/have no problems with Ymir. So, the show rolls around...granted it had been promoted EVERYWHERE beforehand and everyone knew about the lineup. We all play. Grom played to a mixed crowd...blacks,latinos,long hairs,skins etc (metal heads come in all colors in the tri-state area). All of them headbanging,moshing and enjoying the show. No sieg heils,no white power shouts, just Grom sharing the stage with Eviscium,Engorge,Methadrone etc. We had a blast...took pictures,shook hands and went our separate ways, 2 weeks go by. THEN...the SHIT started. All of a sudden...all over the PF message forum and others alike...GROM PLAYS A MULTIRACIAL EVENT. YMIR G. WINTER A TRAITOR. It was crazy man. I never buy into the subculture on the net known as NSBM but they made a point of making it seem like Grom played to a crowd of blacks and Latinos only. They were mad at Ymir for trying to spread his message to a larger crowd (wanting him to play to the same 50 idiots in the NSBM scene in the tri-state area) and pronounced them as not only commercial but race traitors, etc. NOW...PF (by my examination) is about 10 or 15 KIDS that all live in Greece,Italy,Germany etc. They have no hand in the American BM scene at all but the internet is a powerful tool and it soon turned into a circus. Fact is...if you dig just a little bit online, they are still talking about it today. Grom was tossed out of PF and denounced. They were threatening Ymir to some degree ONLINE and although I saw no death threats to me outright I did see that they were trying to rouse up their affiliates as to attack me with propaganda,slander via the internet. There is no animosity between Engorge and Grom..there never was. We subsequently had to cancel our July 3rd appearance with Mortician at the Redzone in Queens because some assfinger called the club and made a bomb threat,boycott if we were kept out on the bill. The actual person/persons are still in question as even today I think the call was made by someone in my then "inner circle" of friends...although there are a couple fudgegpackers in NYC/VA who I do suspect, that belong to a band that we used to share the stage with some 4-5 years ago. They know who they are. Jealousy,contempt,malice...high school shit. From that point on, I know longer affililiated myself with ANYONE...and hence Engorge is still the weapon I use to piss people off. From wearing corpse paint and mocking their "elite ness" to challenging the assholes to come and get me...put up,step up or shut up. Everyone is a big tough internet warrior until I’m standing in front of you...then they don’t have shit to say.

NOX-you are one of the few minorities or mixed race people in black metal other than brazils mystifier i cant think of many black men in black metal.many might find it odd for a black man to enjoy metal music in general even other black men.youve been fairly outspoken against ns on the scene have you ever had a problem or been confronted because of your race or anti ns stance?ns isnt that widespread on the scene but it still present
KEP- Like I stated earlier...it appears that NSBM is a subculture on the net. Of course there have been personal attacks (online) because of my mixed heritage. I’m a proud Euro/American. I never have claimed anything else. My father is Italian/German , my mother is American Indian/African American (hehehe, mighty PC of me, isn’t it?) Janssen,Powell,Gebhardt,Bigelow,Van Schloss , Jackson,Rogers, Marillio and Rasmussen are all of my family names. The relatives on my dads side are all white, the relatives on my moms side are all fair skin. Blond hair, blue eyes,black hair, brown eyes,red hair, green eyes...is what you see at my family functions. So, when people call me a "nigger" or claim I should go back to my roots in the rap/hip hop scene, I laugh till my cock hurts. I never listened to rap,hip hop , r&b etc. though I have no problem with those styles of music. I was raised on eclectic sounds of the 60's, 70's and 80"s, jazz,rock,folk,blues and classical. Punk was a big influence on me as was very early thrash. Music has no color...it never did. Ethnicity (however diluted) should have no bearing on what music you like/listen to. I am an aggressive individual...therefore I sought the most aggressive music I could find. Metal was my outlet and has been since I was 12. I think myself, Caller (of the Storms of Blasphemy), Katon W. Depena (Hirax) and the guys from Mystifier (though of South American descent) may be the only "men of color" that participate in extreme music...though it has no bearing on anything. So fuck everybody who thinks metal/black metal/death metal is for whites only. Its a path that one is born with, not chosen. You are born with it. I really don’t give a rats ass what other "black men" (or white men for that matter) may think of my path. I guess due to all the internet ramblings, the "NSBM,BM Elite" think that I’m some dark skinned, big lipped,flat nosed, nappy haired, knuckle dragging, white woman raping, former gangsta rapper, drug dealer turned BM musician. It pisses them off even more when they find out (if they actually took the time to dig) that I’m just the opposite. Fuck em, up against the wall, with hand cuffs on, with Crazy Glue on their lips!! Rape them with white hot pokers in their pathetic close minded asses!! Let the blood run...guts on the floor. Feed them their own shit. NO ONE knows shit about me. DIE!! Hail Thyself!!

NOX- do you stand on Satanism versus paganism in black metal?many feel Satanism is just an offshoot of Christianity and they prefer the pagan ways.have you ever thought or considered exploring more ethnic forms of the occult in your music or personal life such as voodoo or the yoruban faith.both have a darkside.i have practiced voodoo rituals and even as a white man I know.
KEP-I practice no real religions of any sort. Satanism...on the whole...can be as oppressive as catholocism/christianity but only if you let it. Paganism (my definition) is more rooted in heathenism,personal ritual,worship of the ancient spirits of the earth and indulgence of the highest order. Voodoo and other ethnic religions have roots in christianity. Santeria and other south American/afro Cuban religions also have roots in Christianity to some degree. I choose to worship power...of the self...mind...body. Empowerment. Rage, anger, perseverance...those things are much more rooted in reality.

NOX- titles like cold black ejaculation,dead...fuck...blackness and within the realms of blasphemous fornication many of your lyrical ideas seem somewhat removed from the dark satanic rantings of black metal figures like fenris and nattefrost.why so much overt sexual imagery?are you working some strange shit out in your lyrics or is there another explanation?
KEP-sex,death,Life,blood,ritual,malice,indulgence,loathing,power,war,reincarnation,spirits...have all been the corner stone of Engorge lyrics/imagery. Satanism and anti-church propaganda are great topics...but like I said earlier, I root myself in reality. Engorge is an extension of my cock...I have said this before. Blood,cum,muscles rippled,sweat,veins bulging...powerful thrusts into the loins of a woman after a battle is won. A world where sexual prowess,rage and power are the law. Pride,responsibility,goal achieving through decimation of the enemy...all of this is what Engorge is made of. Sex,more sex,blood ,death...a sweaty embrace of power and rut....all in the name of the spirits...to please them...abide them. Pleasure is pain, pain is pleasure. Reality... I’ve heard enough about Vikings, winds and the woods...not that that is bad...I just choose to speak of things that have influenced me.

NOX- what bands in the global black metal scene do you feel are worthy of your support.obviously darkthrone would come to mind but what others?
KEP-Yes...the mighty Darkthrone!! I identify heavily with this band. Others would include Celtic Frost (RIP), Nattefrost (as you stated earlier), Capathian Forest, Pentacle, Autopsy (RIP), Funeral Mist, Clandestine Blaze, Xasthur, Craft, Marduk, Typhus, Profanatica (All Hail Ledney!),Impaled Nazarene,Obituary,Deicide,Niden Division 187, Mysticum, Khold (Tulus), Destroyer 666 and a few others come to mind as far as great presentation and identity.

NOX-obviously engorge has served as a vehicle for you to vent your inner rage and blasphemy yet at the same time your a family man.what personal ideology do you live by as a musician and a human being?what fuels you morally as well as artistically?
KEP-irregardless of your battle with the world...it is very important to have family be a first priority. They are your backbone...your support system. I have 2 little Queens. My two girls that I raise to have strength and confidence above all. They of the rager that daddy can be and of the provider he is. I keep true to my euro/American traditions as far as family goes. You have to have structure, a foundation...or else you may as well be as shiftless as the ignorants that try to detract you. That’s what I preach to my girls. Having artistic wants and needs are important. Always follow your dreams. Make your fantasies reality. With hard work and dedication to your craft anything is possible. I tell them not to fall into the lies of the church rather believe in themselves and empower themselves to get what they want and need out of life. No one ever gives you anything. If you want something you have to work for it.

NOX-and finally I have heard much about your intense live performanes.what drives such dark rage filled performances out of you and your band?is it personal frustration or the music itself that fires you onward?
KEP- Engorge is the weapon...we feed off the crowd. We project the anger and hate into the music...when you have left a Engorge show, you feel as though you have been hit with a million razors all over your body...and you love it. Naysayers, bullshitters beware. The rage is real...not a prop. Pick up Cold Black Ejaculation on Dark Horizon Records...and slit your wrists. NS fags can and will eat my shit...

NOX- well I do thank you for this interview.