In this one, Pivotal Rage’s Bill Hugel checks in with Jamie Stewart, vocalist for The Absence.  We’re talkin’ real Florida death metal here!  Their latest CD, Riders Of The Plague, is out now on Metal Blade Records.  The photo was taken by Jeremy Saffer.

Let me start by thanking you for taking the time to answer these questions. I know you guys are busy. Now, your Orlando stop on the Metal Blade 25th Anniversary Tour had to change locations due to Disney banning metal shows at the House of Blues in Disney World. What do you have to say about the matter? Did it make you angry?
 
Not really. It was a bummer that we couldn't play the HoB at HOME, but that's not really something to worry about too much.
 
Other than that, how was that tour? Was it a success? Which stop had the wildest audience?

Your new album, Riders of the Plague, has a few guest appearances (James Murphy, Per Nillson, Jonas Kjellgren, Santiago Dobles, and Jonas Granvik). How did this come about, and what was it like working with those guys?
 
Great! Jonas, being who he is, helped out in the Swedish department, and we had already known James and Santiago for a while now. Like I said, it was really awesome watching James and Jonas rip their leads in the studio. Everyone else did their respective parts on their own time at home.

What did you try to do on Riders of the Plague that you didn’t do on From Your Grave? Do you see the new CD as marking some growth in the band? If so, in what way?
 
It's an older, wiser Absence as some magazine put it, haha. We just took the time to craft a great record that we could all enjoy on our own time, along with outside listeners.

Has the response to the new album been positive so far? Any criticisms that seemed unfair to you?

Judging by the fan response and all the plays we have been getting on the band MySpace so far, yeah it’s good. Criticism? I'm sure, but who has time for that shit?

How did you go about making your cover of Testament’s "Into the Pit"? How did you make it your own? Have you heard anything from any of the guys in Testament about it?
 
We haven't heard anything yet. We are really anxious to hear what they think. It's a tribute, you know, so it's kind of a big deal to us.

Jeramie quit because of internal tensions. There is a lot going on with that now, so that's all I will say.

Former Pivotal Rage writer Derek Hubbard played bass with you guys for a while. Did it help during interviews having someone who had some experience on the other side? What’s he up to now? Do you stay in contact?

Derek is an awesome tour mate and friend. We do stay in contact actually, and he's been living in Orlando and playing in various bands from what I heard last time I saw him.

Any embarrassing stories you can tell us about Derek?

Haha, I won't do the man like that.

Everyone always talks about Slaughter of the Soul when discussing classic melodic death metal albums. What are some other important albums that you think are usually overlooked?

A couple of the band members have some pretty killer beards. Do you guys have any tips on caring for facial hair?
 
Just let it go, man. Just let it go.
 
Thanks again for your time. Good luck with the new album and drummer!
 
Thanks for the interview! You can check us out at www.myspace.com/theabsence or
www.metalblade.com.