Slaughter To Prevail vocalist Alex Terrible has once again addressed his past decisions which continue to haunt him. The Russian deathcore musician has previously spoken at length about his controversial Nazi-associated tattoos he got in his youth which he has since covered over.
In a since-deleted 2023 video, Terrible spoke at length about getting tattoos of a Black Sun and an Othala Rune, stating that at the time he fell in with far-right individuals in his native Russia. He claims that while he never personally identified as a Nazi, he fell into the subculture associated with his friends at the time after overcoming a nearly fatal drug addiction. Terrible stated in that video:
“It’s funny, because one day I was hanging out with anti-fascists, then I met the guys, and they f*cking right-wing guys. I didn’t care they right-wings, ya know? I just loved them because they hit gym everyday, they try to work on themselves, pretty much the same as I do. But they were f*cking right-wing. And of course, when you’re hanging with people like that, you just take something from them, ya know?
And I start to consider myself a member of this subculture. But I never identify myself like a Nazi. I never being racist for somebody or some sh*t. And they never been racist, same… same as I. But they have their f*cking political right views. I didn’t care. but anyway, I was around 20, 21 or something like that and I start to hang out around these people.
And just because I wasn’t smart enough. Just because I was looking for somebody to help me—or something to help me—I start to go hard with this sh*t. Like ‘OK, right now I’m a f*cking tough guy. I’m a f*cking bodybuilder. I’m a fighter, or whatever you know? I’m dangerous man right now… F*ck weakness in myself, f*ck drugs, f*ck drinks, f*ck all of this sh*t you know.
Right now I’m f*cking strong and you have to be as strong as me, or you f*cking pussy. This kind of person I was, after I almost died from all the drugs. And I did the f*cking black sun tattoo, I want to looks cool, dangerous and stuff. And I was dressing up like a skinhead, or something like a gopnik, whatever. Dangerous motherf*cker. Hooligan, I was fighting…
Right now I’m 30-years-old and I look at myself like I was just [a] f*cking teenager. It’s OK. But at the same time, it’s not OK because at the same time I start to build my character in the internet. And people start to recognize me a lot. I have a lot of followers already.
And that means I have this responsibility. And that means that people see me with all this image and tattoos and all this sh*t ya know? So this is of course my fault people think I’m Nazi, or whatever. Because I have a f*cking black sun on my elbow—had.
I was hanging with the right-wing guys. I was listening to the f*cking music and all that sh*t. Of course people think I’m Nazi. But I was just f*cking teenager. Lost teenager. And I’m not regret about that. Not at all.”
Newly speaking with Metal Hammer, Terrible was asked if he felt he’ll ever manage to beat the allegations of Nazism that continue to circulate against him. He responded:
“No, because people try to hate me and find any reason to hate me. Which is fine. No matter what I say, no matter how I say [it]… I get used to it. It is the internet. I never get hate in real life – this is a very interesting thing. Every time I read about myself and my band on the internet, it is very different to real life.
At festivals like ‘Bloodstock‘, in real life, I get nothing but respect from the other bands, other artists, from people in general. They tell me that the internet is not real life and of course, I understand that and I understand why people hate me. They have read something about me on the internet, and they have made up this image of me which is not real. So, probably, it will stick with me forever.”
Regarding the aforementioned tattoos shaping that public opinion, Terrible offered:
“Yes, I understand that. I have had to come to terms with that and I am paying the price now. I am paying the price for the stupid decision to get the black sun tattoo and hanging out with the right-wing guys [when I was younger].
They were not even Nazis, they were just right-wing guys, but we used these f*cking symbols in Russia to, like, look more tough, and that was our culture. I don’t know. I understand the hate, I really do. I am paying the price.”
Asked by Metal Hammer if he would have done the same thing if he was able to go back in time, Terrible responded:
“Listen: if I went back, I would not get any of those tattoos because my mindset [has] changed a lot. I don’t understand why I got that tattoo [in the first place]. But you have to understand that all of this gestures to his body has built who I am, has built me as a character, for good and for bad, I am just a human being. I make mistakes as well.
People call me a Nazi and say that I don’t deserve to live, but I just hung around with these right-wing guys. I didn’t kill anybody, I didn’t stab anybody, I didn’t bully anybody, I just made some stupid mistakes, and I am not a Nazi. I never was a racist or any of this horrible stuff.
People just hate me, and yes, I wish it wasn’t like that, I regret that I have made people feel like that about me. But at the same time, I didn’t do any horrible stuff to anyone else. I did horrible stuff to myself; I took drugs and I almost died from my drug addiction, but I never beat anyone on the streets because of who they are, that they are another colour or from another country.
I never killed anyone or bullied anyone. Never! I don’t want to live my life full of regrets, but I do regret that there have been times when I have been wrong, you know what I mean?”
Terrible also addressed the continued allegations of transphobia and homophobia that continue to dog him, after past comments on social media were interpreted as such:
“I don’t get the hate. I posted once on my social media about children being brainwashed, but I don’t like, in general, young people being brainwashed by religious stuff and by military stuff. I do not mind if you are gay or trans, that is not my business; that is your business and I support your lifestyle.
I was talking about how I didn’t like, as a parent, my child going to school and being force-fed religious education or be[ing] told about the ‘glorious military’. Right now in Russia, a lot of kids, like 9-year-old kids, 8-year-olds, they’re getting pushed so much military stuff…I don’t like it!
I think it’s bad, the war [with Ukraine] is bad, in general. I understand that history shows us that war is part of human nature, I get it, but I don’t want to be involved in that and I don’t want my child to be told that war is good and that he needs to be patriotic and die for your country and that you owe your country. No, no, no! This is my child and I want to educate him morally myself. This was what I was saying, and it became the LGBTQ+ people saying that I was homophobic. But I’m not. It’s funny, because in Russia there is this mentality where they are very homophobic, a lot of Russian people, and I actually grew up hearing some of that in my family.
I remember when I was 16, 17 years old, I was sitting with some of my family at breakfast and they were discussing that they had a problem with some gay people in a club and members of my family said, ‘F*ck these guys, they are gay, they are disgusting!’ I said, ‘Hold on, what would you say if I turned around and told you I was gay?’ I was told that I would not be a part of this family. What?! I was so angry, I told them I was ashamed that they said that… and then people call me homophobic!
I have a critical mindset. I ask myself, before I judge something or somebody, a lot of questions. But these people [online] are not asking themselves any questions; they see something and, bang, they f*cking believe in it or create some image. That is their business. It’s very funny; sometimes in my surrounding I see homophobic people in this music scene, and the LGBTQ+ community say, ‘Wow! This is a sick band!’ but they are literally homophobic! Not all the members, but some of them. I don’t know…it’s stupid.”
Earlier this summer, Terrible made a flurry of posts online in response to local pushback over the aforementioned allegations being cited to protest the band’s live appearances overseas. While he went on to delete his posts, they found him expressing his exasperation with the continued allegations and his public apologies over the matter not being enough for some.
