Big Choclate Interview

Photo taken from myspace.com/big.chocolate


One of the biggest names in metal is a 19 year old originally from the small town of Minden, Nevada and he isn’t even in a band that’s signed to a major label. In his years lived he has produced dozens of songs dabbled in electro, done vocals for Russian slam metal band, Abominable Putridity and more recently recorded the vocals on Mediaskare record’s very own Burning the Masses. He has recently finished a stint in Europe on the “Legacy of Blood Tour” with Burning the Masses, Nervecell, Annotations of an Autopsy and death metal legends, Suffocation. I’m of course talking about Cameron “Big Chocolate” Argon who has made himself famous throughout the metal community. He discusses Burning the Masses, Disfiguring the Goddess, Betty White as well as some future projects he’s getting into.

-Into the Pit: To begin, how did you get contacted to do the vocals for the new Burning the Masses album?
Big C: Hahaha, just a myspace message to start off then a few phone calls. Then we met up and further discussed it.

-Into the Pit: When did you know that you didn’t want to become an official member of BTM?
Big C: I knew I was uncertain before I joined and I told them how I felt about it. After the Legacy of Blood tour was over, I took a few weeks to decide on how I felt about my true status in the band. I knew it wasn't for me and that I wanted to pursue other projects in my life right now. They understood and respected that. I kept it upfront and real with those guys since day one about everything.
-Into the Pit: Since you’re not on their latest tour, what are you doing to fill your time now?
Big C: Right now: I'm working on a few more remixes, working on tracks for Commissioner (My new project with Mitch Lucker of Suicide Silence), getting ready to record the DTG full length in July, and film for Suicide Silence during Warped tour, working on my new electro release, and DJ’ing as much as I can, along with recording vocals for Abominable Putridity (Russian Slam Metal)

-Into the Pit: Do you ever expect to tour with Disfiguring the Goddess or is that solely a studio band?
Big C: As of now, I can't say for sure. I know sometime DTG will be doing somewhat of a tour, I just can't see a time frame.
-Into the Pit: Which bands or even vocalist are you most influenced by?
Big C: For metal? Hate Eternal, Defeated Sanity, Meshuggah... Metal bands that have been pushing the limits since day one and continue to evolve. Some of my greatest influences have mainly just been family and friends. Support goes a long way for me.
-Into the Pit: What is the writing process like for Disfiguring the Goddess?
Big C: I'll write full songs with my guitar, vocal chords, and a drum machine just like the Promo EP. But rather than just stopping at that, I send the music files to Joe (guitars) and he goes through and re-writes the guitar to be more 'colorful' as we've been calling it. I basicly draw a line drawing of a picture and Joe comes in and paints it. Phil (drums) gets the mp3s and click tracks to practice to. Phil, we'll take into a studio to track his drums and then we'll record guitars and vocals at home. Mixing will be done at home as well.
-Into the Pit: What bands are you listening to now?
Big C: Caspa and Rusko, Portal, The Bloody Beetroots, Borgore, Cannibal Corpse, Vomit The Soul, and Inherit Disease.
-Into the Pit: Who would you say is the next big name in metal that has not been nationally discovered yet?
Big C: Probably Betty White judging from that SNL skit.
-Into the Pit:How did you get into the electro genre of music and how long have you been doing that for?
Big C: I've been into electronic music just as long as I've been into metal, but I've never focused on JUST electro until about 6 months ago. Once I figured out how to successfully use side chaining, it was OVER for me.
-Into the Pit: How do you think the internet has played a role with your success as a musician/producer? And to follow that up; do you get calls from all over the country or even the world to be a part of certain projects?
Big C: Internet has been #1 in my 'success' as a musician/producer. I started making music while living in Minden, NV which is a very small town. If I didn't have the internet to obtain an audience for metal, I would have had probably 4 fans based on Minden’s musical and 'hip' make up. The internet has also allowed me to avoid working with indie labels and indie management, because I could easily promote, market, and distribute on my own through networks like youtube, myspace, and itunes. I also would have never gotten the opportunity to work with Russian slam giants, Abominable Putridity. The Internet is an amazing tool for any sort of goal or hobby.