MATT PIKE DOG DAYS OF THE PANDEMIC
VOIVOD THE FUTURE IS NOW
THE
RED CHORD CLIENTS HALL OF FAME
REFUSE/RESIST
WITH
CROWBAR BLOOD INCANTATION ORIGIN SOUL GLO CEREMONIAL CASTINGS ALLEGAEON FRIENDS OF HELL
JON
ZAZULA 19 52 - 2 0 22
FLEXI DISC
INCLUDED
APRIL 2022 // No. 210
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April 2022 [R 210] decibelmagazine.com
upfront 10 obituary:
jon zazula Losing a force to be reckoned with
12 metal muthas United States’ Benevolent Mom 14 low culture Remembering to forget 15 no corporate beer Bring hand sanitizer 16 in the studio:
origin
A monthly basis
18 friends of hell Heavy metal may or may not be doomed 20 allegaeon Grudges be damnumed 22 messa Further away, closer together 24 nequient Jane No 26 konvent Anger calling 28 soul glo Go with the flo 30 ceremonial castings Everything old is new again
features
reviews
32 voivod Anarchy in the CA
67 lead review The time to kill for Rochester death metal wunderkinds Undeath is very much now with sophomore release It’s Time... To Rise From The Grave
34 blood incantation Parental advisory? No, surgeon general’s warning 36 crowbar Heroes of zero 38 q&a: matt pike The High on Fire/Sleep mastermind uncovers the truth behind his new solo album 42 the decibel
hall of fame The Red Chord put forth a face that only an exploding extreme music audience and this metal mag could love with their classic Clients
68 album reviews Releases from bands that aren’t physically ill by what Decibel events have become, including Abbath, Falls of Rauros and Napalm Death
54 MIDNIGHT Thrash ‘n’ Burn COVER STORY COVER AND CONTENTS PHOTOS BY HANNAH VERBEUREN
80 damage ink Count on it
Decibel (ISSN 1557-2137) is published monthly by Red Flag Media, Inc., P.O. Box 36818, Philadelphia, PA 19107. Annual subscription price is $29.95. Periodical postage, paid at Philadelphia, PA, and other mailing offices. Submission of manuscripts, illustrations and/or photographs must be accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. The publisher assumes no responsibility for unsolicited materials. Postmaster send changes of address for Decibel to Red Flag Media, P.O. Box 36818, Philadelphia, PA 19107. © 2022 by Red Flag Media, Inc. All rights reserved. ISSN 1557-2137 | USPS 023142 Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of the publisher is strictly prohibited. 4 : APRIL 2022 : DECIBEL
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REFUSE/RESIST
April 2022 [T210]
“I just found a photo of Greg with his PUBLISHER
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To order by phone: 1.215.625.9850 (10 a.m. – 5 p.m. EST) To order by fax: 1.215.625.9967 To order online: www.decibelmagazine.com Decibel (ISSN 1557-2137) is published monthly by Red Flag Media, Inc., P.O. Box 36818, Philadelphia, PA 19107. Annual subscription price is $29.95. Periodical postage, paid at Philadelphia, PA, and other mailing offices. Submission of manuscripts, illustrations and/or photographs must be accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. The publisher assumes no responsibility for unsolicited materials. Postmaster send changes of address for Decibel to Red Flag Media, P.O. Box 36818, Philadelphia PA 19107. Copyright ©2022 by Red Flag Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of the publisher is strictly prohibited. PRINTED IN USA
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PHOTO BY PAUL ROMANO
balls hanging out.” This preceding distress call came from Decibel’s longsuffering art director Mike Wohlberg. The artist photo in question was the Red Chord. And the testicles belonged to bassist Greg Weeks. Could I have warned Mike that a photo ball-bomb was likely waiting for him when he went searching on our server for images of Decibel’s spring 2005 photo shoot with the Red Chord? Probably, but he should have known better. Mike’s been following the band since their Fused Together in Revolving Doors debut album, much like yours truly, getting to know its members personally around that time through mutual friend and renowned Philly-based artist Paul Romano. That shared appreciation for not taking yourself too seriously, but putting a serious amount of work into what you’re creating was the foundation for a friendship between the band and Decibel that’s lasted the better part of two decades—the second of which the group has remained largely inactive. So, when Mike planted the seeds for a Red Chord rebirth way back in 2019, it likely resonated in a manner that Promoter X kicking the tires on them would not. It still took nearly three years for the band to fully commit to performing at a Decibel event—and even longer for one particular member, who was still on the fence just days before our announcement, but it finally happened, and I don’t think it ever transpires without Mike’s perseverance. He’s also responsible for assembling and executing this month’s Hall of Fame induction on their sophomore stunner Clients—which, you may have heard, the Red Chord will perform in its entirety at Metal & Beer Fest Philly later this year. Looooooongtime readers may recall that Clients was (in)famously the first 10 out of 10 review score Decibel ever awarded a record, which raised some eyebrows at the time. One of which belonged to a label manager friend from Philly, who sarcastically suggested that I just skip the 10-year waiting period for eligibility and express-induct Clients into the Hall of Fame. Well, it took 17 years, but the record has now been rightly enshrined on Mount Extreme Metal, and, dude, you can come watch them play the whole thing live! See you in June. And don’t worry about any rogue nuts. I think it’s gonna be alright. I think it’s gonna be OK.
Soundgarden’s Ultramega OK very shortly before Chris Cornell passed away. Such a vital band for me, and the article and inclusion in the HOF were 100 percent spot-the-fuck-on. Who is the best heavy metal band, and why is it Midnight? Please note that Midnight are on the cover of this issue and are the best heavy metal band.
Rob Gross
Los Angeles, CA You're a music industry veteran, but you have been a paid Decibel subscriber for nearly a decade. Don't you realize you can just request a comp from us? Or are you a nice guy and just expensing that shit to your boss?
Wait, you’re just telling me I can expense this NOW?! I think of Decibel like I think about vinyl, merch and shows. It’s supporting artists, the arts, creative entities, etc. I look forward to getting Decibel in the mail every month for not only prime bathroom reading, but also to learn about a ton of new bands (and get learned on some classics I either missed or were before my time). You guys also did a fantastic Hall of Fame on
8 : APRIL 2022 : DECIBEL
I have nothing but love for Midnight, but when it comes to the best heavy metal band ever, I’m just a sucker for Pantera. Their progression from local glam heroes to the torchbearers for metal throughout a very difficult mainstream decade for our genre is just too pivotal to deny. Their mark has been made and continues to be learned, taught, ripped off (mostly poorly) and covered by thousands of bands around the world. Pantera made metal fun, but also introduced me to what a vicious pit was like at a very young age. I once saw a guy get his bottom lip ripped off at a Pantera/Anthrax show in West Palm Beach in 1996. The Great Southern Lipkill, if you will. I’ll see myself out. You’re a superfan of Clutch’s vast and diverse catalog. A couple years back, we inducted Blast Tyrant into the Hall of Fame. Did we pick the correct record, or did we totally blow it?
I am an obsessive Clutch fan to the point of annoyance to both my friends and my wife (although she does fuck with Clutch a bit; one
of several women on this planet to dig on ’em, haha), and I can confirm that you hit the nail on the proverbial head. Blast Tyrant is to 2000s Clutch what [Clutch] was to ’90s Clutch. BT is just DIFFERENT. It’s heavy, it’s melodic, it has HITS, it has their first foray into acoustic work, it’s lyrically wild and tells such a vibrant story. Neil [Fallon] is a master storyteller. The man has written a song with a killer recipe for motherfucking crab cakes. I cannot wait for their new LP this year! Tomorrow morning, we will announce the lineup for the Philly edition of this year’s Metal & Beer Fest. So, guess it now and we’ll see how close you came! Seriously, though, who are you booking for your dream metal festival?
Truth time: I saw the post before I answered this. However, I was going to guess Cannibal Corpse! I also absolutely love seeing All Else Failed on there. I worked their masterpiece Archetype at college radio and was obsessed. Such an underrated band. Kudos to Decibel for giving them the platform to shine! OK, my dream metal festival: A mix of some weird shit will do it. Mr. Bungle playing Disco Volante front to back. Katatonia plays The Great Cold Distance in its entirety. Amon Amarth, Cult of Luna, Anthrax with John Bush, Zao (what can I say, us Jewish guys love us some Christian metalcore) and, what the hell, a tribute to Caleb Scofield and Zozobra featuring members of Cave In, ISIS and Converge.
Chuck BB is the illustrator of the graphic novels Black Metal, Vol. 1, 2 and 3 For more info and art, head over to chuckbb.com