Officially parting ways in 1996, Chandler was the first to admit playing with Saint Vitus was no longer fun, as tensions between members hit an all-time high. Though as these musicians pursued other endeavours – through outfits such as Debris Inc. and Shrinebuilder – time worked its wonders to mend the divide left in Vitus’ wake. It was a pure chance discussion that got the band back together for a once-off reunion in 2003.
“I was talking with some people after a show with Debris Inc. in Germany one time and people were asking how come you don’t do a Vitus reunion,” Chandler says. “I was like, ‘I don’t know, let me just ask’. I asked Mark (Adams; bass) and Armando (Acousta; drums) first and they were into it. Wino (Scott Weinrich; vocals) had three bands going at the time, so he had a few more time restrictions on him – but he was into it. That’s how it got started and it was just meant to be a one-time thing in 2003 for the DVD we put out. The first practice was really trippy because we fucked up the first song and we stopped and went, ‘okay, this is really weird’. We got a bizarre vibe. But then we started again and it was fine. It had just been so long.”
The time together left a lasting impression. Although it would be another five years before they would revisit the idea again, this time it was the opportunity to headline Europe’s biggest doom festival, Roadburn, that got the creative juices following. “After that, we didn’t do anything until 2009 when Roadburn asked us to play,” Chandler says. “Then Hellfest asked us, which was when we really got back together and it got really big. Ever since then, everyone is getting along really well. It’s really cool because everyone’s having fun again. That’s the main reason Vitus stopped in the first place; because we lost the fun.”
After a few years of reliving their early days, Saint Vitus knew it was time to hit the studio again. Their first release in 18 years, Lillie: F-65 not only sated the desires of the older crew, but brought a whole new wave of fans to the table. Now with new drummer Henry Vasquez behind the skins, after Acosta passed away, Chandler says he put pressure on himself to not ‘sell out’ on their eighth offering. “The fans were the ones that sparked us to get back together in the first place,” he states. “They are the ones that keep us going. You do everything for them. So I wanted our new sound to remain true to what fans remembered of the original Vitus all those years ago. We’re really grateful that people remember us after all these years. We didn’t want to make anything too modern for this album and have our fans say ‘oh they sold out’. Because I hate when bands put out a reunion album and it doesn’t sound like they did before. That’s terrible and I didn’t want that to happen.
“I felt quite a bit of pressure about regaining that old sound again. I was in a different state of mind back when we originally had the band. I was miserable and now I’m happy. But once I started writing, it all fell into place. Everyday gave me a few things to bitch about.”
With their first Australian tour starting this week, Saint Vitus is already looking towards writing new material. “There’s stuff dripping into the pot,” he says. “I’m not going to rush into anything. If you rush into something, it sounds that way. I would rather take a little more time and have it be really kick arse. Lillie: F-65 will be a hard little girl to follow.”
BY JESSICA WILLOUGHBY
