The Voice of the Black Beast Growls About G-d, Gush Katif, etc.
a generally untouched MSN chat

MI: OK here we go! Drumroll please…

YZ: Stagadish!

MI: I’m going to pretend I never heard u or anything of u…what’s stagadish?

YZ: drum roll

MI: and what’s a Schvortcccccccccccccccccchtsechaye

YZ: is this the first question?

MI: yep

YZ: first of all, its schworchtsechaye

MI: u gonna get a lot of people fkn up the name methinks but it adds to ur charm

YZ: and the literal meaning is “black beast”, but there is also a metaphorical meaning

MI: what

YZ: it is a an insulting nickname for sephardi jews which was used to suggest that the sephardim are black barbarian creatures, not cultured and primitive. but for me it stands for each and every scapegoat in this world and it stands against the elite in every way.

MI: why is that important to u?

YZ: i cannot stand aside when i see the injustice in this world and in my immediate surroundings. just now 8000 people were kicked out of their houses without a proper solution. there are very few people who can ignore this kind of action and this kind of governmental brutality.

MI: Oh, don’t start me.

YZ: I thought you started me!

MI: heheheh i meant don’t start me on Gush Katif, I gotta seashell from there around my neck with the word revenge written on it. Are there particular lyrics that you think aptly describe what schworchtsechaye is all about?

YZ: We sing about many issues, and our music expresses a strong point of view: we have a song called “Aristocratic Brutality” which talks about the position of the Europeans and how they relate to Israel. a song like “Nowhere Land” that talks about our way of life and why its the only way of life which is possible in this reality. or a song like “I Blame” that talks about how people are dishonest with each other. There is a wide variety of subjects we are interested in. mostly political and social. There is no specific song that can define our beliefs. You need to see our material as a whole.

MI: Are you guys active in anything u can talk about without getting arrested for it?

YZ: We are active in promoting the metal scene, which is totally legal.

MI: Have you or will you write anything about the Gush Katif situation?

YZ: with pleasure. But what do you want to know?

MI: What do I wanna know? A lot of things. Like, for example, you heard of this ISHC movement? Someone named Tzachi told me about it, Israel State Hard Core. Do you have anything to do with this?

YZ: um, no. Look, about Gush Katif, the most annoying thing is the fact that people got thrown from their homes without a proper solution. I don’t understand how a democracy can do that to their people. I dont think such a thing can happen in any other western country. second, there are many Arabs who live among Israelis. If we would try to touch even one of them the international community will do to us what they did to Yugoslavia. But to kick Jews from their houses is ok, right? third, there is no doubt that we are creating a new hostile nation on our borders. It’s beyond me how a nation can do this to itself. And all this is happening when the right wing is the ruling power in the government.

MI: If they had invested a half of the soldiers they needed to tear the Jews out of their houses in going into Aza and making shish kebab out of the terrorists… It’s not beyond me, I got all the reasons, papi. 1. the government wants to prove that it is a nation like any other. It wants to prove that they’re not racist elitist Jewish. That they want to be good to everyone and they would rather cut themselves then cut the person that needs to be cut. It’s called battered wife syndrome. “Maybe, one day they’ll love us..”

YZ: Yes. Tomorrow..

MI: Another thing, it’s a lot about the religious thing too. The media made monsters out of these mostly sweet and innocent people. And even the Jewish people were screaming “O yes tear those fanatics out, they deserve it.”

YZ: I just want you to understand that im not anti-Arab, anti Palestine, or anything like that. I’m anti terror. And as long as terror is in control there is nothing to talk about. I don’t think that the media did that. I think that they were very pro-settler in this particular case. It touched me very strongly to see these pictures on the television, and it was a very emotional experience.

MI: Before, they sure as hell did. Now they don’t. But leading up to it??? They were printing stuff like “Those monsters! They want to shoot at the IDF!!”

YZ: only during the process they stopped the demonization of the settlers. These are people who throughout their whole lifetimes were brainwashed by the government to go live there in the name of Zionism. I think that zionism has just died and there is no more jewish movement, only a jewish state. a place to live with no heart.

MI: well, how much do u know about religion?

YZ: Enough. im an athiest.

MI: Alright, well, there’s a bunch of people, who live here that never needed a state to live here, cause they believe the land is holy with or without a state. People would spend every penny they have n risk their lives to come here, even if this was an Arab government, chalila.

YZ: Yes, but after a few times they got slaughtered, I think that even they will understand that we need a state, and not to talk about what happened in Europe 60 years ago and in many other places.

MI: According to ‘charedi’ and ‘dati’, i guess, for lack of better tools- the land is still holy. The yerushalmim lived here the whole time. No state.

YZ: And now there are 6 million Jews here.

MI: Thank G-d. Yeh, so dati says that they needed the state.

YZ: How many lived here back then, less than 100,000?

MI: Fine, but im saying they still lived here and even if people were in Europe or America they were still thinking land is still holy no matter who has control of it and it’s still a commandment to live here. So even if the secular Zionist dream is dead, BFD. That doesnt make the land any less what it is. BFD – Big FKN Deal.

YZ: I don’t believe that any one thing is holier than anything else.

MI: Fine, but religious people of all walks do.

YZ: Fine, I’m not religious.

MI: So, like I argued with another of my secular friends who doesnt believe in this, in this type of argument neither of us will come away feeling fulfilled because we both come from completely different platforms.

YZ: Religion only brings wars to the world, and speaking of the “holy land” brings war to the world. The war here is about religion.

MI: Every war is. Bush is making his Crusades. In China, against Tibet, what is it?

YZ: Colonialism. Even you, as a religious person, speaks in a very brutal way. This is ours, we need to shish kebob them, etc. You said it.

MI: For sure. That’s straight out of Tanach though. Ever read the story of Pinchas?

YZ: I don’t believe in Tanach. I’d rather read the fucking news.

MI: Alright…well, I don’t believe that violence is bad. If it is used in order to save ourselves.

YZ: Or in my shows!

MI: Stam, to go fk someone up for fun is not nice.

YZ: Unless it’s in a show.

MI: You guys have a brutal pit?

YZ: Yes, the most brutal in Israel, or one of the most, at least.

MI: Back to your music – when I heard it, it sounded like a cross between standard black metal and hardcore….what are your main influences?

YZ: Not black metal, that’s the first thing. We have hardcore touches because we had an American drummer and we could feel the influence of the NY scene, but it’s mostly thrash metal with Middle Eastern touches sometimes. Now we have a new drummer, and he brings a new style to the band. Each and every member brings his own thing.

MI: What bands do u list as ur major influences?

YZ: Slayer.

MI: what do u think about the ‘Slayer are Nazis’ accusation?

YZ: But they are so fucking good! and besides, I think (hope?) they are over it…

MI: Well, lemme ask u about the atheist thing but only if it doesn’t annoy you.

YZ: Ask…

MI: why?

YZ: No one convinced me otherwise.

MI: Don’t tempt me. first off, there’s a rule of philosophy, there is no way u can prove a negative. Tell me agnostic, ok. Agnostic is dunno for sure.

YZ: The way things are working it cannot be that god exists

MI: why?

YZ: I don’t believe in G-d because it cannot be that G-d exists. And if he does, He is a big motherfucker if He permits the kind of thing that has been happening to go on. In other words, even if he exists, i wouldnt want to be on his side

MI: Man, what if i were to tell you that all this shit happens because of people’s free choice and if we did right none of this shit would happen – shift the blame, k’eelu.

YZ: That is your opinion.

MI: Well, that’s what the whole religion thing is about, being a better person cause every deed u do brings energy into this world.

YZ: I think that I’m trying to be a better person, but it has absolutely nothing to do with religion.

MI: Who makes the rules of what is a better person? Of what is good n bad? Don’t tell me every man for himself, cause if that was it i have a nice death list I would be happy to execute.

YZ: As long as you don’t harm anyone else you’re OK. When you hurt other people you are not ok. Rules of the jungle.

MI: What if u harm yourself? And how do u know what harms another if u are not that person?

YZ: First, it’s my right to harm myself. Second, if I hurt anyone I expect him to tell me that, so then I can stop. Nothing is on purpose. If he doesn’t say it, how can I know? I try not to hurt people, but when someone hurts me I’ll hurt him ten times more. This is my way of living. I do not live by any book of rules. I think that is for insecure people.

MI: so you just said you believe in violence after all which goes against what you were griping at me before :p. Which is the exact thing I agree with except when its a fellow Jew cause it’s forbidden (which sucks but hey, makes the world less of a jungle)

YZ: Did I say I believe in violence? I believe in just punishment for a wrong deed.

MI: Ten times more which is usually what?

YZ: It doesn’t have to be physical, does it?

MI: No, sometimes physical is better. But it more than likely ends up being physical and don’t give me no bs that u wouldn’t.

YZ: Only when there is no other choice.

MI: Alright, fair enough, soo.. tell me more about the band. You have 2 releases and are working on a third, correct?

YZ: Correct. But you dont have the first release

MI: I have 14 Minute Dive. And I actually misplaced the new one but I will find it.

YZ: The latest thing you have we didn’t release becasue we weren’t pleased with it, and plan to re-record it

MI: what are your goals with Schworchtsechaye?

YZ: Goals? To gig with the greatest! Our first release was called “Nightmareality”.

MI: I know the 2nd, what’s the 3rd gonna be called

YZ: Raise your Arms.

MI: you said in ur bio that you were singing a lot about the terror sitch. Is that what nightmareality is about?

YZ: Yes. Back then was the worst time in Israel, I think. But also the new album, Raise your Arms, speaks about that.

MI: It’ll get worse G-d forbid, Don’t worry. Yo, back to this. What do u mean ur not anti Palestine as a state. Why not?

YZ: All they need to do is be human beings and not animals. Every nation has the right to self definition and nationhood.

MI: They were never a nation historically until 1967.

YZ: So who are these people who we fought against in 1948?

MI: Nomadic arabs that had only been there for 200 or so years. A mix of Circassians, Turks, Bedouin.

YZ: And there were more of them here than Jews.

MI: Depending. The last Jews left Aza in 1929. There had been a huge community that peaked in the 1600s. Then in 1929 when they massacred a bunch of Jews in Hebron the last Jews there left, there never was a Palestine.

YZ: Aza is the historical home of the Philistines.

MI: Right. And there are no blood ties between them and the ‘Palestinians’ of today. “Palestine” was a name given to Israel by the Romans, it was Judea at the time.

YZ: Fuck blood ties. There was a people, maybe a mix of peoples, who have been living here. These are the Palestinians of today, like it or not and they are still here.

MI: For how long, compared to us?

YZ: Doesn’t matter.

MI: These people never asked for anything from anyone ’til they saw the Jews were getting it.

YZ: I mean in terms of length of time, they are here, and they are not going anywhere, as are we.

MI: Now that’s a shame.

YZ: Be realistic.

MI: Realism states that if we can kick Jews out of their homes we can kick Arab terrorists out of theirs.

YZ: I think with an agreement we can do a transfer of populations. Without an agreement, unfortunately, we can only kick out our own brothers. This is war.

MI: Israel is too afraid of world opinion.

YZ: OK, it’s true, but it doesn’t change the fact that there are 2 communities living here, Jews and Arabs, who, because of stupid politicians and stupid religions, cannot live side by side. One says “this land is holy to me” and the other says the same. From all this holiness bullshit all we get is blood on the streets, on both sides. And the politicians think that they can make some sort of solutions, but instad of negotiation with the right people they brought some terrorists from Tunisia and created this horrible situation. The Palestinians are suffering from it as much as we are.

MI: But they want all of it.

YZ: You want all of it too. Not you, and not them, can have it all. I, for example, just want to live peacefully, as does the common israeli man on the street or the common Palestinian. This is exactly what we are singing about. The world opinion, the point of view of the common man, the idiocy of politicians. What we don’t touch are the religious issues, the issue of religion, b/c we think that everyone has the right to his own belief.

MI: You can’t separate it.

YZ: Yes, but I dont have to sing about it. I told you what I think, but I’ll not express it in my art. I think I’ve said it all.