Twenty-one years ago, the ordinary Chris Cerulli was laid to rest. In his stead, Chris Motionless arose, cracking open his coffin and clawing up through six feet of dirt and worms to front metalcore-via-goth stars Motionless In White. With their love of theatrical horror, the band embraced metal’s passion for the macabre.
But it’s not all bats and belfries; with industrial grit and gothic gloom, Chris’s aching introspection has seared its way into the hearts and minds of Creatures the world over. With a new Motionless record in the works, Hammer sat down with the frontman to reflect on the taxing graveyard shift he’s been working for more than two decades, and learn how he’s trying to start focusing on himself.
SUCCESS DOESN’T ALWAYS EQUAL HAPPINESS
“Focusing on my career has had a huge impact on my personal life. I gravitated towards a one-sided work life for so long; I got lost in how fast all of it moves, the touring, the record cycles… I’ve learned that you’ve got to find ways to exist outside of your career. I don’t want to be left with absolutely nothing once this is all over, y’know? I used to neglect relationships and friendships, but focusing on those people that will stick around after the music stops has been instrumental in feeling fulfilled and happy. It requires time and effort, and I’m still trying to get the balance right, but I’m trying to live a complete life.”
THERAPY IS FOR EVERYONE
“Above everything, make sure you are happy. If you’re not, everything else is going to suffer and crumble down. You’ll just be left with a shell of what you thought your life would be. I’m a very vocal advocate for therapy. It can feel daunting, but it’s vital. For me, therapy feels like opening a door into a dark room – you’re lost and confused, but you have to feel around and find out how to light a fire in there. It’s scary, but it makes me want to open the next door. I want to keep exploring what’s going on in there and find happiness. I’ve made good progress, but there’s a long way to go.”
ENJOY WHATEVER THE HELL YOU WANT TO
“People are baffled if I say I love Taylor Swift, and it’s such a closed-minded way of seeing the world. I guess people see what I look like and just take that at face value. I enjoy lots of things outside of the ‘spooky dark’ realm Like, do people not realise that most of their favourite metal artists also enjoy pop music?”
YOU CAN HAVE MANY INTERESTS
“I’ve also been vocal about loving ice hockey, and people just couldn’t grasp that idea. It’s odd that people decide what interests an artist is allowed to have – and even weirder when those people also limit their own tastes. You don’t want to drown in the quicksand and live in a dull, sterilised environment of interests. You can exist on an incredibly wide spectrum! You can find something you like in almost anything. There’s no limit to what you can enjoy – and I think being open to new things can help you live a fuller life.”
TAKE THE REINS
“My life mantra is ‘If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.’ Motionless turned 20 years old last year. Over that time, I’ve been burned by so many people I thought we could rely on - some of whom were paid and appointed to help us on labels or whatever There’s been countless times where I’ve thought, ‘I wish I just did this myself.’ I started to do that around 2012 – I just got so fed up with being taken advantage of or relying on other people. It stings way less to know that if something’s fucked, at least it’s your fault.”
IF IN DOUBT, TAKE A STEP BACK
“The record that we’re working on now is taking longer than any other record we’ve made, and it’s partially because, in the past, we went straight from one album cycle directly onto the next. We were machines. But we had a break in the pandemic and it made me realise how important it is to step away. You need time to process feelings, hang with your friends. It’s easy to get tunnel vision when you’re a perfectionist, but every time I’ve stepped away from the album, I come back and I see the bigger picture.”
TREAT YOURSELF
“Every month, I’ll walk away for a week, two weeks, and do something for myself. It might be going to concerts or catching up on movies… Anything to shift the mental focus somewhere else. If you’re ever feeling creatively fatigued, just leave it for a moment. Come back to it later.”
TAKE CARE OF YOUR BODY
“In the past, I’ve been so unhealthy while on tour. Unfortunately, it affects absolutely everything – your body is affected, but there’s also an impact mentally when you’re fighting through sickness all the time. It’s easy to get so invested in a project that you forget to focus on yourself. Everyone should try to be aware of their physical and mental health. It’s crucial. Personally, I’ve been learning how to how to cook better meals and going to the gym more.”
BE AUTHENTIC
“I’ve never worried about being myself. As a kid, I remember being at the mall and my dad pointing out the punk kids, and I didn’t fully understand why – to me, they just looked a bit different. When you have a polarising look, people are more likely to stop and acknowledge you, maybe criticise you or make fun of you. But that’s never stopped me. If anything, for a long time, that was a fun thing. I think all of us can relate to a period of our lives where it was fun to piss people off! Everyone deserves that period of discovery – it’s good to take things to the extreme, and then dial it back and find where you’re most comfortable.”
WORK HARD – YOU’LL THANK YOURSELF LATER
“Don’t expect that things are just going to be good right away. With everything, you have to be willing to put the time in. We really grinded to get where we are now. We kind of starved for a bit, and that hunger rumbled and propelled us into the success that we craved. Because of the internet, some artists nowadays can bypass that grind and that’s great, but I think the grind made us appreciate things a lot more. When you know how hard you’ve worked, you find a sense of accomplishment that’s unlike anything else. It just furthers your passion and motivation, knowing where you came from and how much further you want to go.”
KNOW YOUR WORTH
“Every band out there needs to realise: you’re in charge. Sometimes, when you’re younger or just starting out, you feel like you have to go along with things. With Motionless, we were so excited and grateful for the opportunities, that we kind of forgot that the label and all those people back then were working for us. Obviously you can’t kick the door down and tell them how to run things, but, to a degree, you do have the power to speak up for yourselves. You can assert what you want for your band. If you don’t, you may end up at a point where you have a lot of regrets for not speaking up. Recognise that it’s your band. That goes for everything in life – sometimes only you know what will serve you best.”
THE INTERNET HAS RUINED WELLNESS
“The self-care movement has radicalised a lot of people to use it disingenuously. It’s why it can feel cringe. There are people who speak about self-care and self-help as if it’s this weird joke, and there are also people who talk about it without realising the weight of what self-help really has the potential to be. But that’s the fucking internet for you.”
LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKES
“It can be really hard to move on from the past and things that you can’t change. I’ve spent every single record writing about how you can’t change the past. While that hurts and stings and plagues me every day, I have come around to the idea that the best way to change the past is to live a better future. You need to focus on not repeating mistakes, implement the lessons learned from your past. I’m trying not to get too poetic here or spit out ‘wisdom quotes’ - but I’m about to say something that sounds corny. Really let those past feelings in – let them fucking burn you, and the better you’ll be when you come out of the ashes.”
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