Dimmu Borgir at Stubb's photo by Jeff Barringer - Staff Photographer

by Nokturnel Tom
club kingsnake staff

Dimmu Borgir
Hometown: Oslo, Norway
http://www.dimmu-borgir.com/
Dimmu Borgir Concert Photos
Monday, April 21st, 2007
Stubb's Bar-B-Q (Austin, Texas)
Also: Keep of Kalessin, Behemoth

Ah, it seems like yesterday that these three bands were "new." Here I am standing in a sea of hundreds of people on a Monday night. Now understand, Austin is not bad for national acts as far as metal is concerned, but it's not often the famous Stubbs BBQ hosts a night of black metal.

This tour would have been considered underground ten years ago; now it has come full circle. These bands are veterans and this is considered mainstream by most. It's safe to say these are bands that may have lost their original fans and gained ten times as many new ones.

This is not my idea of "true black metal," nope, not at all -- though I will give respect to Dimmu for keeping the theme evil. Dimmu has always been pretty much the same, although the sound of the records gets better with every release and they have really perfected their style of metal.

I had the chance to catch up with a good friend of mine, Dave Witte, drummer for the extremely popular thrash band Municipal Waste. In the early 90s our bands did many shows together and even way back then Dave was very well respected. Dave is having the time of his life playing for Municipal Waste, and I had a killer time at the show talking about all he'd done since I last saw him. Dave rules! Read on...

Club Kingsnake: Of all the bands you have played with which one of them was your favorite? I understand if you name a few bands as you have done so much since Human Remains.... did a clash of personalities or musical tastes have anything to do with you playing in so many bands?

Dave Witte: Human Remains was my first real band so that has a place in my heart that no other band can match. As for playing in so many bands, I guess I had more needs to express myself in multiple ways than others, I wanted to do everything I could so I was always in a few bands at the same time.

Club Kingsnake: Did playing fast get old for you? Do you prefer the older style of say Municipal Waste over the blasting?

Dave Witte: Never. I love the speed aspect of drumming and music in general. Speed has its place in every kind of music.. I just think people lost the creativity of speed and it became more of a contest with the music taking a back seat. I still love blasting and I sure did my share of it, but for me personally...you can only do the same thing for so long.

Club Kingsnake: How much cooler is life since you left that shit hole of a state New Jersey?

Dave Witte: Way cooler. Whenever I go back, I can only take it for a few days and I just wanna leave. I'm so much more relaxed and I enjoy the quality of life as opposed to being high strung and stressed out in the rat race. I can't deny where I am from at the same time, I learned a lot of great things and met some really great people living in NJ and for that I am grateful. Scott Ruth and Jack Monahan had a lot to do with my musical upbringing and if I wasn't in NJ I probably wouldn't have met them. I also wouldn't have met Martin O'Connor, Mot, Donut, Bekov, Wickmen and Nokturnel. :)

Club Kingsnake: Do you have any endorsements, how'd that come about?

Dave Witte: Yes, I proudly play Trick drums, Paiste cymbals and Vic Firth drumsticks. I submitted myself for all these companies time after time and never gave up. It was hard work, but I never gave up. There were some people that really helped me with Paiste 'caue they were super hard to get through too. They get thousands of submissions yearly ya know?. Chris Hornbrooke (Poison The Well), Aaron Harris (Isis), Mike Ambrose (Set Your Goals) and Matt Byrne (Hatebreed) really went to bat for me and I'll never forget that.

Club Kingsnake: I noticed Municipal Waste has an outrageous amount of views/plays on your myspace page. When I spoke to the guys about it they all seemed shocked. Who keeps up on the industry stuff and who handles booking the tours? You guys play everywhere and never seems to stop....is this all planned out far in advance or are you able to pick up and leave at a moment's notice?

Dave Witte: I never really pay attention to the Waste myspace page, or read the interviews or press about us. I know there is a good and bad and fortunately more good than bad. We are lucky to be able to work so hard to get a great response. The music we write is what carries us after all, but the people who come see us show after show is what keeps us going. We are a pretty democratic band and all handle duties within the band. We all work together to plan our schedule around our lives for the year, it's planned pretty far in advance.
We have plans into December '08 at the moment.

Club Kingsnake: Name a few drummers who you think are worthy of praise in the extreme metal scene.

Dave Witte: One of the greatest and most underrated is Brandon Thomas of Ripping Corpse/Dim-Mak. He had the biggest effect on m when I was younger. Roddy, Laureno and Longstreth are in leagues of their own. I'd say Nick Barker is the Neil Peart of extreme metal drumming. Everything beat and fill is so tasteful and thought out, I love listening to him. The drumming on Dimmu Borgir's Death Cult Armageddon is perfect.

Club Kingsnake: Is playing drums for you a full time thing or do you also have a day job?

Dave Witte: I still work 'cause I like to be constantly busy. I work in a kitchen for a catering company. I love it and the people who work there. They are the people who let me come and go over the years as well, so I'll work when they need me.

Club Kingsnake: Do you have any desire to play in the technical metal category any more? Is it more rewarding to play music people have an easier time following?

Dave Witte: Yeah, that part of me is still there. After a while of playing the same songs all year long I need another something ya know? I don't miss the pressure of technical music. When I was younger and I would make mistakes, I would get really down on myself. I've learned to let that go and have a good time, it's a better mental state.

Club Kingsnake: You guys are so god damned lucky to have a spot on the At the Gates tour. Tell me a little about the friendship you have with them and how long have you known those guys?

Dave Witte: We are very lucky and we know it; it's a dream tour for lots of people. I've been a fan since Gardens of Grief, so it means a great deal for me. Anders and I were pen pals in the early 90s death metal underground before email existed and we traded demos. The Waste also toured with The Haunted last year as well. Needless to say we all very excited when they invited us on the tour.

Club Kingsnake: Hollywood seems to have run out of ideas with tons of remakes hitting the cinema. Do you see the same redundancy is metal?

Dave Witte: Yeah, of course, but I'm a firm believer that the clones are needed to spawn the next thing. Everyone jumps on some band wagon one time or another and in time, "that one band" will realize and change. Take At the Gates, for example; they came out of Sweden in the death metal heyday, evolved into greatness and changed the whole US hardcore scene. I'm still waiting for something to come out of there though, haha Human Remains was a total Ripping Corpse worship clone before we figured it out, but we flew over people's heads, we went way out there.

If you're asking yourself why this review is a comparison between these two awesome bands, understand that this is not exactly the type of metal I listen to. But these solid releases have dominated my stereo for weeks, and I keep thinking these two together would be a hell of a show.

Their music tracks a very natural progression of classic metal becoming more extreme. Being a death/black/ thrash metal head, it took me a few listens to get used to these "real" vocalists who actually sing. Once I got past that, I have to admit these records are nothing short of astonishing. Incredible music, captured perfectly by the recording engineers.

This is going to be one long review so get yourself a frosty beverage, some popcorn or whatever, and read on. These bands absolutely deserve some attention.

It's about time I got something to review that is nothing short of pulverizing. The name of this band is pretty out there, but to hear the music for about 30 seconds was enough to get past it and give them a chance.

I'm finally hearing a band that understands how to be heavy as fuck without sounding like a pile of shit. Way back when, a now-legendary band named Carcass came onto the scene and set a new standard for heaviness. Many god-awful clones appeared, and not many of them ever went anywhere. But some bands took influence from Carcass and made killer records. One such band -- one of my favorite bands -- is Exhumed. Another one of my faves is Macabre, who have some of the sickest lyrics imagineable and have always been very fast. The thing that sets them apart from every other band is their ability to merge this zany humor and downright kooky childlike music into their brand of death metal, which must be heard to be fully understood and appreciated.

Macabre is absolutely incredible to behold live, and I highly recommend both Macabre and Exhumed, but here's the relevance: Birdflesh is like a perfect union of Exhumed and Macabre.

Birdflesh is not a technical band. The riffing is usually very straightforward and easy to follow. The arrangements of the riffs and drum work will keep your head banging and blood pressure rising. Just when you think you'rw about to smash something due to a surge of adrenaline, they make you laugh. And I mean that in a good way.

I popped Necrophobic's Hrimthursum into the stereo and was immediately taken by the intro. It's majestic and powerful and sets the mood for METAL. It really is one of the best intros I've heard in a while as I find most pointless. Then at the first listen, track one let me down just a bit. I thought the guitar sound could have been a lot heavier. There was just something about the record that made me think they could have done things differently, creating a heavier record overall, but I soon got over it and realized I was wrong.

One of things about Hrimthursum that makes it great is the fact that nothing is overdone. Nothing is too over the top. It is a bunch of killer songs that are also arranged in an order that gave the record a cool feel to it. It seems very well thought out and put together. Being a guitarist myself, I have a tendency to over-analyze things and look at music in a sense of how difficult it is to play. The song "I Strike With Wrath" has what guitar players usually refer to as the AC/DC or Iron Maiden bounce-the-notes-off-the-high-E-string riff. Almost anyone who can play guitar at all could easily play it, but it really ads a lot of feeling to the song. The riffs have some mildly technical parts, but again it's all very basic. Don't think that takes away from it; this is one hell of a record.

Surprisingly, the vocals hack into the mix, and you can actually understand a lot of the lyrics. Song topics are typical for the black/death genres, but I found the cheese factor to be minimal. The levels of all the instruments really were put together brilliantly on this disc. It doesn’t sound over processed and that only helps you get into Necrophobic's music. The underground used to be dominated by old school production, and since every other band has an engineer capable of recording from their garage on equipment that is quite high tech, way too many records have come out that sound too digitized. Metal isn't supposed to be that way. This record is clean, but it still has balls. I would guess Necrophobic had a decent budget for recording Hrimthursum and thankfully they didn't go overboard on the production.

The drums are also arranged perfectly. There are many tempos, but nothing gets lost in the speed of it all. It's never so fast that you're distracted by the impressive speed many modern drummers possess. That aspect of metal in general really damaged the genre as drummers were suddenly looked at as not much more than speed freaks who would try to be as over the top fast with blasting and double bass to the point where that's all people would speak of. I love speed, but what about the fucking guitar riffs? Guitars create songs, drums keep the beat... and Necrophobic created an awesome disc, as Hrimthursum is very much so worth a listen. Chances are it won’t soon leave your CD player as it's a quality release that's down right addicting.

In case you haven't noticed, all my reviews are for death and black metal bands. This is NOT a typical review for me. Time Requiem (Regain Records) is an incredible group of musicians very influenced by classical music adapted into the genre of progressive metal. Regardless of your personal tastes, as a musician you find yourself at times unable to ignore music you would not normally pay attention to. This record had that effect on me. It is simply brilliant.

Coming up on their 25th anniversary with a collection of records behind them any band would be proud of ,Vader still continues to release nothing but top notch death metal perfected with their signaturistic song writing.

There are many reasons to support this band. Live, they are just about perfect, and their sound is always audible. The songs are memorable and follow the tried and true formula this band has stuck with since the beginning. They do not ignore their past, and include songs from many older releases in their set list, which is something fans, including me, really appreciate. Many bands push newer songs from the most recent release, which is understandable, but fans always want to hear the classics. Vader is the type of band that delivers them with a fresh ferocity that makes their music timeless.

Cattle Decapitation is incredible, and their new release, Karma Bloody Karma, is really something unique. I need to talk a bit about the band before the review as these guys are far from your ordinary death metal band. Grind bands are usually guys who just want to be as brutal as possible, and although lyrically some of these bands really give you something to think about, you’d really never know what the fuck they were screaming about unless you bought the CD and read the lyrics. Cattle Decapitation seems to have matured into a great death metal band but the brutality is a major factor. Throw in some multi-genre influence and you have a finished product that could be easily overlooked as just another band - but that, they are not. They’re practically in a league of their own.

I read the lyrics to this CD (since Metal Blade Promos come with the covers, which is really great! Many labels only send the discs) after a few listens. I was a little confused, but impressed at the same time. This made me look at the band's site as well as what the label has for them on their site, and I came to realize just how different this band is from most. Most death metal is very typical. It consists of horror and gore movie influence, anti-religious themes, violence, and brutality. This record is full of hate, but it is towards humanity and spells it out quite clearly.

One of the most powerful moments for me on this record is in track one, "Unintelligent Design." When speaking of humans the hatred is delivered in a crushing hypnotic riff....
Idiots!...Backwards!....Self-serving!...Self Righteous!...All Consuming!...Bastards!

Lyrics like these can be considered common, however the band's lyricist/vocalist has been known for his “obsessively gore orientated musings laced with pro vegetarian/anti human posture.� There’s the twist. Some metal bands try to be cooler than the next by basically hating everything, and there is no explanation needed. It usually revolves around religion. There’s reason behind the hatred on this record and it is pretty bold in my opinion to go against the grain and offer something that not many other bands would dare try. Their bio mentions their Humanure album, featuring artwork described as the ultimate revenge on humanity. A cow excreting human remains. Now that is fucking smart...and sick! I mean, the record doesn’t make me wanna be a vegan, but hell, it makes you think about the sickness us carnivores support, since we do not often think about how the food we eat gets on our tables. I mean being a snake breeder the amount of rodents I personally basically kill doesn’t bother me much, and I am not too sympathetic when I drive past a field of cows. I’d kill the damn thing myself if I was hungry enough.

Regardless, this record gets under your skin. It makes you think about things, and it points out the faults that we should be ashamed of but aren’t, as well as mocking the way some people follow what they believe without much question. It is harsh and it goes in many directions from technical arrangements to an occasional simple haunting moment - as I mentioned before, almost hypnotic. The guys know how to play, and they do it well. I would like to know how long they worked on writing this record because it is phenomenal. The sound quality is killer, and each member has done an outstanding job, but the vocals and lyrics are just too much .... I mean fucking amazing.

There’s an abundance of chaos on the record, but this is not grindcore. I would call this death metal. Plenty of blasting drums, but that does not equal grind. The same goes for a few sweeping arpeggios, that does not make a guitar solo - but I think this guy knows that. His guitar work is excellent and the minimal soloing keeps the heaviness of the record at the level of intensity that sometimes is lost when death metal guys become possessed by Malmsteen. I’d bet this guy was a Human Remains fan. Either that or he must have relatives in New Jersey where us oddball metal musicians come from. Some say there’s something in the water.

The band will be touring again soon, something they apparently do a lot of. They have Kevin Talley (ex-Dying Fetus) drumming and will be on the road with Goatwhore. I will not miss this tour and have to tell you, I have listened to this disc no less than fifty fucking times. This review has taken me so god damn long I have a pile of discs collecting dust on my desk and many of them are great. The thing is, I feel I have barely done my job here. I hope I piqued your interest in hearing this record. You'll understand after you listen to it and read the lyrics why I felt it was so important to make you understand this is not a typical band or record. This is the type of record you could overlook, and that would not be cool. This record is a masterpiece and it is addicting. I myself almost stuck with the initial thought that this was some sort of typical record and I am glad I took so long to really take it in. The more you listen to it, the angrier you get. It is fucking powerful, chaotic and brilliant. Check it out

When I started writing for this site I announced I would not waste much of my time on bad reviews - and I won’t. This record has some good points, but I will never put this on again, one spin was enough for me, thanks.

The write up on the Metal Blade site says there’s almost a raw punk vibe on this record. Really? Where the hell is that? This to me is 85 percent Slayer worship to the point of cloning. The vocals are different and some of the drumming is faster, but the guitars have Slayer written all over them. Why Slayer is not mentioned in this write up is just ridiculous.

It is a great sounding record. I am sure some people will find this very appealing, but if I wanna hear Slayer I'll listen to Slayer.

The production leaves nothing to complain about. Crisp and heavy and very audible. The vocal style fits the music well, no singing or melody here. The guys can play, it's a tight record without any sloppiness. I think for me, it's just the fact that after listening to the disc, and reading what the label and band has to say about this band, I'm sitting here wondering, how you could say you’re old school but doing something different as compared to bands of today? There has been a resurgence of old bands making comebacks and current bands showing this influence, so I don’t get it. To claim nothing thrashy is coming out anymore? Huh??? They describe themselves as street metal? I just can’t stand it.

The lyrics... Well, here’s an example:

Assassins unscavenge.
Aesthetic trauma.
Bringer of the rising tide of low carb suicide.

I seriously hate this guy's lyrics, can’t stress that enough but....

In all seriousness. If you like the type of metal with the first few notes of "Reign In Blood" rearranged eighty-nine different ways, this record is for you. It does not suck at all, it's a good record, but for me it's something I've heard a million times before. I love the older metal records and I'm glad these guys are trying to rekindle some of the old spirit, but hopefully their next record will be a bit more original. This record shows potential, as they as a group have the ingredients to make great records, but I don't think this is one of them.

Hatebreed
Hometown: New Haven, Connecticut
http://www.hatebreed.com/
Hatebreed Concert Photos
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
La Zona Rosa (Austin, Texas)
also: The Black Dahlia Murder, Napalm Death, Exodus, First Blood, Despised Icon

I feel pretty old as I write this review. I mean, I remember hearing Exodus before they even released their first record, and they were a very influential band for me in 80s. Paul Baloff was a nut case which is exactly what I wanted to see and hear for a band like Exodus, but when they got the next singer they lost me for a while. The band's lyrical content and style was altered and I was just not into it. Still, after over a decade of not seeing the band live I was anxious to see them.

So they take the stage, and the only original member is Gary Holt, a guitar legend in my eyes, and what kind of freaked me out a bit was he looked so much the same after all those years. Then to my surprise they open with the title track of their first record, Bonded By Blood. I just about fell over. Talk about a flashback, I mean I saw the original lineup many times and this incarnation was delivering the goods as it should have been, played with the “fuck all trends, we are who we are� attitude and man, I was just shocked at the presence they had. They emanated true Bay Area thrash and it was freakin' awesome.

Then I'm noticing this new singer (new to me anyway). He was fat, gross, obnoxious, and well......I was thinking: Has Paul Baloff's spirit been reincarnated in this new madman? I really think they have found the perfect frontman. A friend of mine was telling me that their new record was great and they played a track off it and I thought it sounded pretty damn good.

I've listened to this disc a lot and it really grabbed me from the first play and hasn't let go. This band really has some serious potential. I love the drumming, which at times is as brutal as death metal, but no bones about it, these guys are very melodic.

The vocalist is really impressive. No screaming here, this guy can sing his ass off and his voice is very complementary to the music. He reminds me of a young Bruce Dickinson and the guitars seem influenced by Maiden, but a hell of a lot faster and much more technical.
The musicianship is top notch and the songs are well structured. The record flows from song to song and holds your attention. The type of CD that gets to the last track, ends and starts again and more often than not gets a second spin instead of playing another record. The opening track is my favorite and horns up to Eric Rutan (Hate Eternal/ Mana Studios) for engineering such a great sounding disc. He really did a great job of making this band burst out of your speakers and I’d bet the band themselves are stoked to have had their art captured in its finest form. Freaking awesome!

There’s a fair amount of melody and harmonies for both the guitars and vocals which make me wonder if anyone in the band sings back up for their live performances? Regardless I can not wait to see these guys. I bet they tear it up. The art work on their CD cover is impressive and the packaging is top notch. A fine power metal release from Metal Blade that is sure to bring a lot of attention to a well deserved band. This is the kind of record that older metal heads who moved onto the heavier genres, namely death and back metal, could hear and say something along the lines of “now this is something I can really appreciate.� This is just incredible, I mean traditional metal gone over the top. Harsh screaming or guttural vocals would have ruined this record. It is flawless! This is so god damned metal MANOWAR probably listens to it! It is so god damned metal you’ll shit bullets when listening to it! Cheese free power metal! It is so god damned metal you will basically be a total poser for not buying it, so get you hands on this disc and be god damned metal!

I had no idea what to expect when I put this disc in the player, I ended up playing it three times in a row. I then put on two other newly acquired releases......they didn’t last 5 minutes, and I listened to the Torchbearer two more times. This is a great release, and with hooks like these you’d swear your brain was bleeding from them latching onto your mind.

I was starting to think that some of this was very predictable, which at times can be annoying. Then I realized to my surprise what I was predicting was actually what I was hoping to hear, not dreading. After about 20 seconds of the first song you start to think things like these guys are going to be great, and man the sound is crisp, modern and heavy. There’s so much influence from many genres of metal that it is astounding they could be meshed together in such a great way without anything being overdone, and nothing weak to ruin it.

The guitars are catchy, sometimes a little more melodic than I like to hear but the record in itself is irresistible. I guess you probably figured that out since I listened to it 5 times in a single day. If you read my bio you will know I prefer the harshest heaviest types of metal, and this is not exactly my favorite style. However what makes this band so killer is I could see them opening for some tough crowds with any major death or black metal bands and them being more than tolerated, I can see this appealing to many metal heads regardless of what they prefer to listen to. This record has no boring parts, it is an interesting listen and it astounds me that things so familiar could enter my mind seeming so fresh, as if it is a rejuvenated improved version of more traditional metal gone as heavy as modern metal of this day and age.

I was not a big Testament fan, but I definitely acknowledge Alex Skolnick as one of the most phenomenal guitarist I ever had a chance to see. Some of the soloing on this record reminded me of his style and that is seriously impressive. This band could somewhat be described as a power metal band gone death metal. The drumming is more aggressive and the vocals are much heavier than the overly melodic operatic type power metal that people who listen to much heavier music find annoying. Vocally it is death/ black metal, no actual singing here. These guys are extremely talented. This a well written, great sounding record and this band shows some serious promise. I look forward to hearing more from them and hope you check them out. This is not regurgitated crap, this sounds like a record written by guys who know their metal and found a phenomenal way to manifest their influence into one great record, buy it!

From the Candelight Records site:

The debut album Yersinia Pestis was released by Metalblade under license from Cold Records throughout Europe/US in 2004. The new album Warnaments is, like the debut album, a concept album lyricwise. While the debut dealt with the black plague and its way through medieval Europe, Warnaments deals with two special occations from World War One. Mainly itÌ?'s about the Battle of Jutland, which was a massive naval battle between the British and the Germans. Apart from that, two of the songs concern the sinking of a German submarine outside the coast of Great Britain in 1915.

I had a chance to interview one of the most popular drummers in the extreme metal scene, Derek Roddy. He has played for Hate Eternal, Malevolent Creation, Nile, Divine Empire, Aurora Borealis, and Council of the Fallen, and is currently working on his own new band, Serpents Rise. This man plays some of the tightest blast beats on the planet and reaches light speeds almost effortlessly. Drummers take note, this guy generously shares his techniques and has helped tons of aspiring drummers become better musicians. Read on.

club.kingsnake: Last we spoke you seemed determined to take some time out to focus on instructional aspects of your playing style. I know you have a DVD available and your own website outside of bands you’ve played for. Do you prefer recording and touring or doing clinics and teaching your techniques to other drummers?

Derek Roddy: I love to perform and tour. I will continue to do it but, right now I need to focus on making my life comfortable before I go out and starve for a band. Most of the bands that play extreme metal are playing for 500 bucks a night. That doesn't even cover the cost of gas right now. If you've got four members, a sound guy and merch guy.......You're going to come home with nothing. That's the problem I see with bands nowadays. It seems that everybody is looking for the "ticket out of life" and band members will go on tour so they don't have to deal with real life. It's an escape for most people. But these guys don't understand that your life is the same after a tour....it's just 6 weeks later. Bills are still due! One day they will "wake up" and have NOTHING and will be 45 years old. What then? These people aren't taking the necessary steps to put themselves in a place that will allow them to go tour and feel good about it because they rely on it to pay there way through life. AND THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN. That's why I've decided to take a break, get my personal goals under control. I've got the "evolution of the blast beat" book coming out, a clinic tour in October and a lot of other interesting musical endeavors to take care of. I do have a band here in Florida named "Serpents Rise" and will be recording that at the first of the year. Honestly, I think it will be something that we just give away. That's the goal in the long run right? Getting as many people to hear your music as possible. No better way to do it than FREE! I don't care about making the money and whatnot. I don't play music to make money, I do it to make me fulfilled and encouraged. Therefore, I'm looking at other ways to make money and still be able to play music and feel good about it.

club.kingsnake: Do you feel that with practice anyone can become a killer drummer or are some people just not meant to be behind the kit?

Derek Roddy: I do feel like anybody can learn the mechanics of playing the drums.

"Feel" is a totally different animal and what separates the great drummers from the good drummers. It took me until I was more mature musically to notice this but... I often wondered why Ringo Starr inspired more people to pick up playing drums than Buddy Rich did. So the answer would be...

No, I don't think everyone is capable of being a great drummer but, surely everyone is capable of being a drummer.

club.kingsnake: In my opinion......drums have become a little distracting in extreme metal. A lot of fans focus too much on the speed and stamina and barely pay attention to the song as a whole. Do you agree?

Derek Roddy: Yes, I do agree. It seems that nowadays... fans just want to hear a band play as fast as they can but, don't seem to care if the band is repeating what has been done for 10 years....just faster. I don't get it. Yes, speed is an important element in this type of music but "how fast" isn't.

club.kingsnake: What do you think of guys who cheat? You know what I mean......the ones who play connect the dots in the studio and paste a bunch of crap together to create the illusion they’re good drummers. I have been friends with some guys who can tell what’s what as far as when the old fix it button gets pressed and these days it seems most studios have this technology as standard.

Derek Roddy: This is something else I've wondered about a lot. If the message of the music is to be as "real" and "brutal" as possible, why be fake and lie about your abilities as a band? I understand that we all want our records to sound as good as possible but I would think that you would want it to sound like your band. I've seen plenty of bands play live embarrass themselves because they didn't (in any way) sound like their recording.
I don't want to be know as a fake so I choose to do no editing with my drum tracks.
I leave mistakes and all. As long as it feels good...I can live with a few mess ups on a track.

club.kingsnake: Do you think the equipment such as pedals available now are superior to a few years back? This is in relation to speed....I mean I am asking if you play on certain equipment does it disagree with your style and cause you to not play at your best?
Derek Roddy: I will say that most drummers can't execute these tempos on any other pedal than a AXIS. I can't. And 95 percent of the drummers who play this stuff use them. Of course, there are exceptions but generally speaking most use the Axis pedal. It's the combination of the direct drive (as opposed to a chain) and the weight of the pedal, make it the "champ" for speed. No other pedal has this combo. They've been around for over 15 years so I would say that equipment on the whole doesn't matter too much. Practice does.

club.kingsnake: Do you trick out any part of your kit and have you had others copy you?

Derek Roddy: No not really. Set ups are so variable. I think I was one of the first drummers using really small drums with-in extreme metal. 8, 10, 12 toms are as big as I like to play. Seems to be the standard now, but when I joined Malevolent Creation in '96...Nobody was using drums like me or had a sound like mine.

club.kingsnake: I see a lot of fast drummers now, they’re everywhere. Ask some of these guys to play a slow beat and they just suck at it. Have you noticed this? Do you feel being a good drummer in an extreme metal band mostly means you are very good at playing fast or do you feel some drummers are recognized as masters of their instrument yet really they are only capable of playing a few different beats?

Derek Roddy: This runs rampant throughout the metal scene. I don't know but two or three "metal" drummers who could go do a wedding, restaurant, or bar mitzvah and get hired to do it again. This goes back to drummers not concentrating on feel and more on being fast. When you're 50 and all, your body can't take the strains of playing this way....do you want to be forced to stop making music because you can't really Play the drums? I don't. That's why I always try to play with as many people and as many styles as I can.

club.kingsnake: You have a lot of fans, they want to hear any recording you have ever done. Do you care what they would say if you decided to change your direction and play other styles of music?

Derek Roddy: I'll ALWAYS record and release my own metal music but, I have always played other styles. In fact, metal came much later for me. I grew up on fusion and jazz. A little bit of country in there too. I didn't start getting into metal until I was in high school. I had already been playing in clubs with my brother and cousin ( playing southern rock) for a few years. I started playing live gigs when I was about 12. I'm just a drummer at heart and I love all types of music, If someone has a problem with that, then they have a problem...not me. I've got all types of things I've played on over the years but none of it I would release. Maybe in the future I'll show up on a fusion record of some sort.

club.kingsnake: What can we expect from you in the future and how can people contact you?

Derek Roddy: My website www.derekroddy.com is the best way for anybody interested in my playing to go. Tons of video and updates from me daily. Right now, I'm finishing up a blast beat exercise book that will be released world wide. Also, Just finished a track for the Drum Nation CD from Magna Carta records. It will be out in August. Other than the clinics I will be doing this year, I have a recording coming up with guitarist Ron Jarzombek and bassist Alex Webster called Blotted Science. Hopefully that will be out by the first of the year.

club.kingsnake: I know you are a snake fanatic and you actually breed Pythons. Have you had times where your two jobs/hobbies clashed making you want to chose one or the other?

Derek Roddy: When I lost all of my Blackheaded Python eggs this year... It really made me look at what I was doing. I could no longer see spending thousands of dollars to go on tour when I have thousands of dollars in snake eggs in a incubator. At 34 years old, one can't afford to keep losing thousands every time you want to tour or as I like to say "escape your life."

I don't rely on either one of those things to carry me through life as I have a good job and also give lessons. Both the drums and reptiles are a hobby that just so happens to be profitable. It DID suck losing the BHP eggs this year though. Wasn't going to sell anyway. Haha.

club.kingsnake: Do you intend to bring your snakes more so into the picture as far as who you are and what you are about now or will being involved with music be the most important thing for you?

Derek Roddy: No, I have room for a lot of things and interest in my life. I mean, that's what it is all about right. We're only here for a short time and I feel that I'm going to make the best of it and do ALL the things I want. All it takes is hard work and dedication.

club.kingsnake: What snakes are you currently working with and what do you hope to get into in the next few years?

Derek Roddy: Right now I focusing on the BHPs And I have a pair of Womas just because.

I have a crap load of Carpet Pythons but I'm slowly putting them on the back burner.
I've been breeding carpets for the last 10 years and I love them but BHPs have always been my dream collection. Right now I have a 2.5 group.

Thanks for the interview Derek, see you in Daytona!

Thanks to Candelight Records US Office for contributing to club.kingsnake.com! One of the first discs they sent me to review is the new Gorgoroth. What a tremendous release it is!

This band has been around for many years now and the name Gorgoroth has been etched into the minds of many worshipers of Norwegian black metal. This record is definitely my favorite but I think some fans of their older harsher releases will not be too into it. Tough shit on them, as this is really a killer record

Rather than draw comparisons to the old recordings I will focus on the new one. The production is awesome, a good sounding record without being too over produced. Everything is audible and clear but not too digitized. I hear some death metal influence and even some traditional metal riffing thrown in the mix,. I remember years back when black metal was very specific as far as the style and sound, very un-death metal. This has changed a lot and this record has balls, as the heavier guitar sound of death metal is apparent. The song writing is excellent. The vocals are varied and really fit in with the feel of this record, I love it. The record is the type that really held my attention. Zoning out with the different feel from song to song and of course when the band goes into brutal mode it is definitive of what extreme metal should be, especially from a legendary band out of Norway.

The long list of musicians who have contributed to the history of Gorgoroth must be raising their swords in honor of this glorious attack on the senses. I think this record will attract some new fans who may not have been much into the older records, but if the next record was a slopfest of harsh destructive noise, or ambient melody or anything in between, nothing would surprise me. Black metal has mutated a lot since it’s rise to popularity. Some of it sucks and some of it is just a gift to the world of extreme music. This release seems to be in comparison to the way bands like Behemoth and Immortal chose to go in a more serious direction. What I mean by that is some bands prefer to stick with recordings released by themselves through mail order only or despise the thought of appealing to the masses. They care little for sound quality and expect to attract a small audience of “true� kult fans. They try to come off as the harshest of the harsh as if their lives revolve around the band and destruction of serious ideals of what most people would see as normal is what they want you to believe they focus on. This attitude works well for some, but what they don’t tell you is they live with their parents and spend the majority of their time looking for the most obscure bands on the planet in an attempt to be cool. Gorgoroth are apparently trying to spread their message and music with better song writing that does seem more appealing to the masses, but not in some bullshit sell out way! It is just a very easy-to-get-into record. Easy to inspire you let out your aggressions and get your neck in a brace.

Knowing the band's strong beliefs and history in the back metal uprising this must be a very important record to them. With unbelievable set backs to people unfamiliar with black metal such as suicide and imprisonment and of course not being on the same page with some of the former members this record is a triumph. Founding member Infernus has overcome a lot and hopefully has secured a lineup to deliver their message of hate and a true wake up call to ask yourself what you believe in,.....and why? Infernus has had some well known musicians contribute to Gogoroths recordings such as Frost of Satyricon, Samoth of Emperor/Zyklon, and now Dirge Rep from Enslaved for live performances. It seems the three members who will be looked at as names to be heard again in the band are Gaahl on vocals and King on bass and of course Infernus on guitars. Frost played drums on this recording and as usual he did a tremendous job.

I highly recommend this release, it is by far one of the best I have heard in a while. To run through this band's discography and get to this phenomenal record would be a journey into darkness with times being almost too much to handle mentally, yet to finally get to this record would leave you in shock, with screams of anguish and hate and a violent whirlwind of noise in your mind......this is the real deal. Horns up for Gorgoroth, this record is worthy of worship. TRUE Norwegian black metal from some of the most serious men in corpse paint. Buy it.

In the US it’s on Candelight Records, the release date was July 15.
In Europe...Regain Records.

Demilich
Hometown: Finland
http://www.anentity.com/demilich/
Friday, May 26, 2006
The Back Room (Austin, Texas)
also: Split Eye, Biolich,Sothis,Abythos, Averse Sefira

The head liner of this show is a band of legendary proportion. The fact they made a stop on their one and only tour here in Austin was a stroke of luck. But before I get to that I will have to mention a little about the other openers and the show in general.

I missed the very fist band Split Eye, so I have nothing to say about them, but I will tell you I wish I missed the second band too. I read a few comments about this Biolich band on the net and people were saying how great they were. I guess they were replaced by these imposters cause I can not believe how god awful they were. One of the worst guitar sounds I have ever heard and an over all mish mosh of worthlessness. I could not wait for them to end, and I think the majority of people at the show felt the same. Terrible.......

Sothis took the stage in full on Black Metal attire. Spiked from head to toe. It was a shame that they had technical difficulties delaying and shortening their set. When they got their shit together they really put forth an effort to deliver the goods. Serious thrashing and full on assault with their fierce music and some great shredding incorporated into Black Metal, something you just do not see a lot of. I was pissed they only played 3 songs....but for a band I was totally unfamiliar with I have to say they were memorable and were a band I’d want to see live again. I hope these guys get a record deal soon, I think they’d make a great disc.

Abythos are locals, and I had seen them before a few years back. They have improved but the singer got on my nerves; in my opinion he is the weak point of the band. The problem with the band in general is they seem to be influenced by a few genres of metal and incorporate that into songs that just go into too many directions. I think the guys can play well, but they need someone who can help bring focus to them, to get them writing songs in a specific style that a listener can associate the band with. They have a decent sound, and some of the slower guitar parts were played with emotion showing some promise. But that singer's wannabe-ish one minute this, one minute that style makes it hard to know where they're coming from.

Averse Sefira have been around for many years now with several releases under their bullet belts and have traveled quite extensively in support of their records. I had hoped to get a few questions answered but in all honesty I was too busy listening in on and contributing my own questions with Demilich. It is my guess they’d have said they think as I do, that the Austin scene sucks for extreme metal but they would not pass the chance to play with a band like Demilich. These guys had a good response from the crowd, and do have some hardcore fans who truly appreciate their efforts. A band like Averse Sefira cares not for quantity as far as support, but for quality, meaning people who exist for the underground, not the mainstream crap that misinforms people to what extreme metal is really all about. The show would have been much more enjoyable if the lineup was Abythos, Sothis, Averse Sefira and Demilich, but none of that mattered once Demilich hit the stage.

I assured Jeff [Barringer, who met me there with his cameras] during the openers that Demilich was going to be a spectacle to behold and holy fucking shit were they ever. This band is nothing short of legendary with only one full length record released and re-released, which was recorded over a decade ago. The addition of a third guitar player for this tour had me worried as far as a lousy mix, but the sound was absolutely devastating. The drumming was flawless, the execution of the songs was perfection, and the champion of THE most gutteral growls ever recorded delivered by Antti Boman did not disappoint at all. He sounded exactly like the record. The stage presence and performance were incredible, but the timid talk between songs was the only evidence that this is not a touring band. This was well known to all and was the only thing that could make you believe they did not play live much but it did not at all take away from the show. They were one of the best bands I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. The crowd was blown away and anyone who saw this tour will be rubbing it in the faces anyone who did not get off their asses to witness this one last chance to see such a phenomenal band. Horns up to Demilich, for me I’d rate them a solid 10 out of 10 skulls, absolutely incredible!

I spent a lot of time before the show listening to the never ending questions some of us had for these guys. We were shocked to hear their biggest fan base was here in the US. These guys are from Finland and most would assume since metal is accepted more widely in other parts of the word, especially Europe....that they’d have been much more popular elsewhere, but this is not the case. Lyrically the band is weird as hell, and not very typical of death metal; I got the impression they did not even truly consider themselves to be death metal but it was apparent that is the type of bands they preferred to be associated with (does that make sense?). Lyrically it is an odd sci fi poetry, multi dimensional misery, fear of death and violent entities devouring souls....very off the wall shit. Two examples of their song titles are "When the Sun Drank the Weight of Water" and "The Sixteenth Six-Tooth Son of Fourteen Four-Regional Dimensions (Still Unnamed)."

Antti let us all hang when the question of certain letters being replaced by numbers when their lyrics are printed as far as what that means....?what is its significance? We’ll never know...dammit! The only good news as far as the disbanding of Demilich was that all the members planned to continue playing music, and Antti said he would continue signing in his unique style of the lowest of the low burping gutteral vocal style. The icing on the cake for Jeff and me was that he mentioned he had kept reptiles in the past including, of course, the ever popular corn snake. Funny how some of the most brutal bands out there are just regular guys and are so completely laid back and mellow. These guys from Finland were all very cool and even a bit quiet, but they let if rip on stage and were nothing short of impressive. By far one of the best shows I have seen in years. When asked if they thought their record would be worshiped with a kult status all these years later they said absolutely not. It was also revealed the album was recorded on a small budget (which to some was obvious but hell, some bands with great budgets for recording cranked out some total shit). Their English was fine, that is now....and I hinted that since their record was recorded many years back that I wondered if they could change anything (especially the lyrics). would they. The answer was yes, but unfortunately I could not find a way ask if they meant the lyrics without sounding insulting towards their knowledge of the English language back then ... but myself I will always wonder.... since these lyrics are just so damn weird.

Regardless, they are one hell of a band and should be very proud of their achievement in the archives of metal history. I feel extremely lucky to have witnessed this show and to have had the chance to meet the band. I encourage you to seek out this record and get an earful of something that is so unique, yet blends into the scene and sound of death metal like a nightmare you hoped would never end, but this was it. This was a closure for the band, I wish them the best and thank them for coming to the US and giving their fans one chance to see them tear it up. It is something I won’t soon forget.

Releases........
Demilich Nespithe 1993 Necropolis Records
then the European rerelease of
Nespithe on Repulse Records in 1996 which included “ The Four Instructive Tales........ of Decomposition� demo and new artwork
One of the new records which will be released on LP only limited too 397 autographed copies from Morbid Thoughts Records should be available soon titled em9t2ness of van2s1ing

The other final release form the band will be in CD format through Xtreem Music soon titled v34ish6ng 0f emptiness
I heard both pressings of these rare gems are all pre sold and considered sold out...
For more info and downloads go to http://www.anentity.com/demilich/.