Atomizer: World Music.

Atomizer play the QUT Club, Gardens Point on Friday and Overcranked at the same venue on Saturday.

“Not as many people actually knew it as you’d expect,” Atomizer bassist and vocalist Jason explains of the band’s short-lived cover of the Cycle Sluts From Hell classic I Wish You Were A Beer. “We all liked it, it was cool. We had to change some of the lyrics. Even through the chicks were really staunch it wasn’t going to sound right coming out of my mouth.”

The track did make an appearance on the band’s limited edition Gimmie Natural Selection 7” a couple of years back, alongside the Motorhead track Ace Of Spades. While Lemmy and Co are not an obvious influence on Atomizer, there’s a certain level of respect.

“I really like Motorhead. They’re not really an influence on us, but I think they’re a really great band. They’ve had their highs and lows, but I really respect the way the general vision of the band has stayed the same. You can learn a lot from bands like that, doing what you believe in and what you want to do. Even if you’re not successful, your vision is what keeps the band your own, and if you do have some success it’s because you’ve keep that vision and refined it. You see plenty of bands that will jump onto any bandwagon in order to succeed, and they can’t even look at themselves and say we did what we wanted to do.”

There’s no doubt Atomizer have dived straight into what they want to be doing. Let’s face it, black metal is hardly Top 40 material, and the passion with which Atomizer assault the senses obvious.

“We’re just doing what we think is best for the band. At the moment I think it’s the closest to the original idea I had for the band that it’s ever been, a black metal band with some really strong rock and roll orientation.”

To date, European labels have put out the majority of the band’s releases, including their current Death Mutilation Disease Annihilation opus. Australian releases have often followed after European pressings are well established or no longer available.

“With total respect to Australian labels, the ideal as a band is to get yourself heard in as many places a possible, and not caught up in the let be the biggest band in Australia kind of thing. It’s sad seeing all these band vie for the same little piece of pie, and whoever gets it is just going to realise that the world is a massive place. Get out and play to the world, that’s what it’s all about.”