Interview: Chepang - Bhotey Gore talks 'Jhyappa', Grind Respect

 

"Metalheads? They’re all just big fuckin grumpy pandas. They don’t bite, all they need is a hug." - Bhotey Gore.

While it has been a big year of loss for metal with the deaths of true greats like Ozzy, Tomas Lindberg and Allen Blickle, the genre is forever flowing and alive thanks to the efforts of all who hear the call!

2025 has seen some incredible extreme music and more yet to come from the likes of Revocation, Today Is The Day and many more. One record we insist doesn't go under your radar this year is the best grindcore effort of the year, Chepang's near invincibly relentless Jhyappa (Relapse). I outright dare you to not get whiplash by the time the intro section of "Gatichad" alone conquers your speakers, body and mind. Intense grooves, sickening grindage and powerful "immigrindcore" messages make this another timely and potent platter from the Kathmandu via Queens geniuses. 

 Bhotey Gore took the time today to answer my enthusiastic questions. 

1. Great to talk today! This record has some of my favorite riffs and moments of the year so far! Really just a ton of energy and inventiveness as well as cool traditional elements to grind and pit along with. Did you feel a bigger responsibility right now to represent innovation, diversity in metal and punk and New York City's legacy? Obviously of course there are a fair amount of great underground bands from Nepal who also deserve to be more well known. I hope your latest record is a step for more people to become aware of you and other bands in the United States.

 Bhotey Gore - Thank you for taking the time to talk with us. Giving a platform to voices that need to be heard is important as sometimes speaking when it’s not your turn just drowns out the voices that matter.

For us, it’s about staying true to who we are. We don’t intentionally represent anyone else as we can only speak from our own experiences. So, it wouldn’t be fair to claim anyone else’s experience without walking in their shoes. What we do comes from what we’ve lived and the ethics and morals we’ve learned along the way.

If there’s responsibility, it’s to stay honest with ourselves and let that show in the music. The energy and inventiveness comes naturally because we push each other. It’s never about copying or chasing validation.

2. You have many songs over a variety of full lengths, splits, etc. How did you decide what direction you wanted this new record to take? Was Jhyappa complete before the Relapse label heard it?

Usually Kshitiz comes with scratch tracks that give us an idea of his vision and how the flow of the songs will be. Then, Gobin and Kshitiz finish the skeleton of the track and I start mapping out my lyrics to that. If a song calls for different elements, we reach out to our friends who can contribute what they do best, whether it’s saxophone, noise, guitar solos, or a different voice style.

At our core, we’re always trying to bring Kshitiz’s vision to life in the best way possible. Jhyappa had the same process. By the time Relapse heard it, the record was already mastered.

3. That's so cool they gave you that trust. Obviously people do self-immolation for protest, but what about Masato Chaos's wonderful album art spoke to you on a spiritual level as far as letting go of burdens or ego or however the intention?

Masato-san is an incredible artist who we deeply admire, and he’s also a dear friend, so it was an obvious choice to work with him. When we pitched the idea and explained the theme, he immediately understood and brought it to life. He knew exactly what we wanted and delivered something that goes beyond words. There were no drafts, that was the final product. That artwork doesn't just represent the album, it amplifies and gives it a life of its own. Even some of the lyrics I wrote didn’t fully hit me until I saw the art. It was more than just an image, it became a mirror and helped me clarify my own thoughts and connect more deeply with what we were trying to express.

 4. I remember when New York had a lot of grimier noise bands like Unsane, Dripping Goss and Cop Shoot Cop, so it is nice for me to know a band as intense as you is still inhabiting and representing New York and Queens, etc. Was it always the intention to make sure the album rushed by like a fast train while still leaving a strong impression amidst the urban sprawl?

I guess that is just our style and taste. We like to make our point and then fuck off. We make sure every moment to hit with full impact instead of dragging things out. Short, sharp and to the point.

 Coming from Kathmandu, we see a lot of similarities with NYC. The diversity, the crowd, the hustle, the food, even the struggles. That energy is part of us. So when people say our music captures the chaos and intensity of New York, it makes sense, because we grew up surrounded by something very similar.

5. Your band, despite the volume, has a sophisticated connection and bond as well as intent behind the songs. Even in your music videos it feels like witnessing something special and powerful. I know some people have written about commodification and how Kathmandu has been impacted due to tourism. In New York City so much gentrification has sucked the edge out of a lot of it, especially in the Lower East Side which used to be a much more artistic and edgy place for fun and creativity. Do you feel like this is inevitable in popular destination cities as they grow or can it be resisted more like in Philly where it seems they have managed to keep more emphasis on regional identity and subcultures within the city?

 Tourism is an important industry. It definitely has its pros and cons, but for a small country like Nepal it plays a big role. You can’t always just read about a place, sometimes you need to go and experience it to really understand the culture. And it’s not just about taking pictures of statues and monuments. What matters the most are the human connections, the people you meet and the lives you share a moment with. Technically, every time we tour, we’re tourists too. We walk into new places as outsiders, but we try to learn, connect, and carry a piece of culture with us instead of just consuming it.

 That's what keeps the spirit of a city alive, whether it's Kathmandu, New York or bumpfuck nowhere. Growth and change is inevitable, but as long as human connections and subcultures remain strong, the identity of place can’t be completely erased.

6. What was the hardest part about making this album that challenged you with either playing or inner growth? How did James Plotkin get involved in the mastering? It sounds so crisp but brutal.

The hardest part was slowing down. Kshitiz was really adamant about focusing on groove and not just speed for this album, and we fuckin struggled harrrrd.

As for the mastering, James Plotkin is a legend and we admire his work. We feel blessed that we got to work with him.

 

7. What do you say to newer metalheads who maybe know like Metallica and might feel intimidated if they don't know every grindcore or extreme metal band but want to get more involved? It seems like a lot of younger people are becoming more passionate than ever about punk and metal and don't deserve to be kept out by older heads.

 Music can feel intense and I get that. But metalheads? They’re all just big fuckin grumpy pandas. They don’t bite, all they need is a hug. You’ll be fine. This community is very open and accepting. If you are genuine, people will happily help you navigate through it. Just dive in, follow what moves you, and don’t worry about knowing every band.