Issuu

HANK

VON HELL 1 9 7 2 - 2 0 21

INCLUDED Don’t see it? Then subscribe!

FEBRUARY 2022 // No. 208

FLEXI DISC

$7.99US $7.99CAN

EXTREMELY EXTREME

February 2022 [R 208] decibelmagazine.com

upfront 8 obituary:

hank von hell Remembering when things weren’t so grim

10 metal muthas The dirty work of motherhood 12 low culture Keeping your expectations nice and low 13 no corporate beer A year in (p)review

16 wombbath How much is HM-2 much? 18 hypocrisy A thinking man’s conspiracy theorists 20 earthless A monstrous undertaking 22 hyperdontia Even more for us to chew on

14 in the studio:

wake

Deep in thought

features

reviews

24 q&a: scorpions Rock legends Klaus Meine and Rudolf Schenker just want to write some tunes and save the world

69 lead review Though we cannot confirm Venom Prison’s literary knowledge, we can certainly quantify their death metal chops on their newest album Erebos

28 special feature:

the top 20 most anticipated albums of 2022 Finally, a list without Carcass at the top

40 exclusive:

turned inside out: the official story of obituary excerpt In which a lion of death metal gained his mighty roar

70 album reviews Releases from bands that have survived another bloody year in service of the War on Christmas, including Helmet, Malignant Altar and Mizmor 80 damage ink A Witte comeback

44 the decibel

hall of fame

Death Never Dies COVER STORY

Texas’ best kept secret dead horse may have come up short on commercial success but are rich in Decibel acclaim with sophomore LP Peaceful Death and Pretty Flowers

COVER PHOTOS BY TIM HUBBARD, GENE SMIRNOV, KIP DAWKINS AND SEAN JORGENSEN CONTENTS PHOTO BY GENE SMIRNOV

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. 2 : FEBRUARY 2022 : DECIBEL

www.decibelmagazine.com

REFUSE/RESIST

February 2022 [T208] PUBLISHER

Alex Mulcahy

alex@redflagmedia.com

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Albert Mudrian

albert@decibelmagazine.com

AD SALES

James Lewis

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

james@decibelmagazine.com

As I write this, today is both the 40th anniversary of Venom’s Welcome to Hell and the 30th anniversary of Cathedral’s Forest of Equilibrium. The latter was a massive wrench of crushing doom thrown directly in the grinding gears of speed-obsessed death metal, and the former was some of the dumbest, most rudimentary trash I’d ever encountered in my 16 years on planet Earth. That’s what I thought upon hearing each record for the first time in 1991. Back then, death metal mania had already engulfed me, but Forest of Equilibrium revealed another unexpected path forward—ironically through essentially looking backwards. Darker, heavier and more languid than Sabbath at their doomiest, there was a gravity to Forest suggesting that extreme metal could be introspective. One track’s lyrics were a reinterpretation of a 100-year-old poem. The LP’s slowest dirge featured a flute as one of its main instruments. And my insecure, pretentious high school ass was all about that shit. Venom, however, were clearly your older hesher brother’s heavy metal band. Sure, they were more legit than what passed for mainstream metal 30 years ago. But compared to Carcass, Napalm Death or Paradise Lost? You couldn’t take Welcome to Hell seriously. And the death (and now doom) metal I adored was serious business. Am I really supposed to believe those pasty British dudes who dressed in spandex and sang about venereal diseases worshiped the devil? Venom was no Glen Benton. Now that guy definitely worships the devil! I mean, just look that inverted cross he cooked in his fucking forehead! I mentioned that I was 16, right? Context and self-awareness would mercifully come for me in my early 20s. Through growing older and embracing the genre’s history, it was easy to appreciate how groundbreaking, influential and, well, extreme Welcome to Hell was in 1981. All the dumb stuff about it was still pretty dumb, but it was now also fun, as I had embraced the very simple concept that maybe not all great extreme metal is supposed to be so grave. A generation separates Welcome to Hell and Forest of Equilibrium, but that gap seems like a sliver compared to how it felt three decades ago. Both records are no-doubt, first-ballot Decibel Hall of Fame inductees that laid the groundwork for a pair of subgenres that still flourish today—with or without the support of unenlightened 16-year-olds. Welcome to equilibrium, I suppose.

albert mudrian, Editor-in-Chief

DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND SALES

ART DIRECTOR

Aaron Salsbury aaron@decibelmagazine.com

Michael Wohlberg

michael@decibelmagazine.com CUSTOMER SERVICE

Patty Moran

COPY EDITOR

Andrew Bonazelli

BOOKCREEPER

Tim Mulcahy

tim@redflagmedia.com

CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS

Chuck BB, Ed Luce Mark Rudolph

patty@decibelmagazine.com

Online DECIBEL WEB EDITOR

Albert Mudrian

DECIBEL WEB AD SALES

James Lewis

albert@decibelmagazine.com james@decibelmagazine.com

MAIN OFFICE

P.O. Box 36818 Philadelphia, PA 19107 Tel: 215.625.9850 / Fax: 215.625.9967 www.decibelmagazine.com RECORD STORES

To carry Decibel, call 1.215.625.9850 x105

Vince Bellino Adrien Begrand J. Bennett Dean Brown Louise Brown Chris Chantler Richard Christy Liz Ciavarella-Brenner John Darnielle Chris Dick Sean Frasier Nick Green Raoul Hernandez Jonathan Horsley Courtney Iseman Neill Jameson Sarah Kitteringham Daniel Lake Andrew Lee Shawn Macomber Shane Mehling Justin M. Norton Andy O'Connor Dutch Pearce Fred Pessaro Forrest Pitts Greg Pratt Jon Rosenthal Brad Sanders Joseph Schafer Rod Smith Matt Solis Kevin Stewart-Panko Eugene S. Robinson Adem Tepedelen Jeff Treppel J Andrew Zalucky Bradley Zorgdrager CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

Jason Blake Hillarie Jason Ester Segarra Hristo Shindov Gene Smirnov Levan TK Hannah Verbeuren Frank White

DECIBEL SUBSCRIPTIONS

Decibel subscriber service/change of address: 215.625.9850 x105 or contact@decibelmagazine.com To order by mail: Consult the subscription card To order by phone: 215.625.9850 x105 To order by fax: 1.215.625.9967 To order online: www.decibelmagazine.com VISA/MASTERCARD/DISCOVER accepted Subscribers: please alert us of any change of address 6-8 weeks before the date of your move. Decibel is not responsible or obligated to re-ship issues missed because of a move we were not informed of 6-8 weeks before the move took place. DECIBEL BACK ISSUES/MERCHANDISE

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

ISSN 1557-2137

USPS 023142

Distributed Worldwide “Wherever Good Books and records ARe Sold”

and appreciate bands like Baroness and Judge that I might not have considered otherwise. It’s been a pleasure to continue with you guys over the years!

Ron Steinhauer Chalfont, PA

You’ve been an active subscriber for over a decade. First, thank you! Second, how have we managed to keep you around for so long?

Simply put, Decibel has a genuine passion for the metal scene—along with the history and culture around it—that’s clearly evident throughout each issue. I think many metal fans appreciate this music far more deeply than what is simply on the surface, so it’s refreshing to see that your writers take a seriously intellectual approach with their coverage, with just the right degree of subtle humor. Your recent in-depth special reports on subjects such as the impact of immigration regulations on overseas artists and the devastation the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked on live shows offer insights that many fans might not consider when it comes to the scene. And, thanks to the Hall of Fame articles and coverage of newer artists, the Decibel team has led me to discover

6 : FEBRUARY 2022 : DECIBEL

You were the bassist of Mortal Decay from 1994 through 2003. Those were arguably the leanest years for death metal’s popularity. What can you tell us about that period that might shock today’s brutal death metal bands?

Even though death metal’s overall popularity at that time appeared to shrink compared to, say, European black metal, it thrived on a more regional level in areas like the Midwest and Texas, so bands like Mortal Decay, Internal Bleeding and Dying Fetus always had places to play outside of our areas where there was strong turnout and great audiences. But the drawback to the scene becoming so insular during that period was that many of the newer bands that came after were in a creative vacuum and had a more limited pool of resources from which to draw their inspiration. It wasn’t until we saw Cryptopsy, Nile and Deeds of Flesh emerge—and bring in an all-new set of influences and dynamics—that death metal started to become exciting again and gain traction on a wider basis. That being said, there were some bands from that time—namely Deaden, Fleshtized and Somnus—that managed to put out some criminally slept-on releases that are well worth checking out.

You’re an unassuming-looking family man today with a deeply undeath metal office job. Are your co-workers aware of your extreme metal fandom?

I work for a small firm that performs collateral audits of companies for commercial lenders, which is about as far removed from death metal as you can get. Since there are only 10 people in our firm and I wear my passion for this music like the print on a longsleeve, they’re all aware that I’m a die-hard metal fan. Prior to the pandemic, my job required a decent amount of travel, which gave me an opportunity to visit local record shops and, on occasion, go to a show if one was in the area. Obviously, that hasn’t been happening recently now that we’re all working from home, but I’m sure my co-workers are at least thankful that I’m not subjecting them to the likes of Severe Torture, Dark Funeral or Vio-lence on a regular basis. This issue’s cover story features the longawaited return of the Decibel Magazine Tour. I realize we don’t have a PA date this year, but are you still coming out or what?

Let me first start by saying welcome back! It’s a shame that there’s no PA date this time around, but thankfully Baltimore is a reasonable distance, so it’s certainly within the realm of possibility. It’s been absolutely wonderful seeing that tours are starting to resume again and all of us—bands and fans alike—are getting the opportunity to enjoy this music in a live setting once more, so I hope to be one among many to (safely) welcome the tour back to the stage!

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

OBITUARIES

HANK

VON HELL 1 9 7 2 - 2 0 21

would be easy to look at Norway in the late ’80s and ’90s and think

that black metal was the only revolution taking place in the country. Elsewhere in Oslo, Hank Von Hell (born Hans-Erik Dyvik Husby) and friends were taking music in an entirely different direction with Turbonegro, a band that coupled classic rock, punk, big choruses and juvenile humor in a genre they called deathpunk. Their music was part AC/DC swagger, part Meatmen scatology and part Kinks pop—a volatile-but-infectious brew that spawned an enormous international fan club called Turbojugend and made Von Hell an unlikely celebrity in his home country. He was both an inspiration to wayward souls and court jester for the underground. ¶ Turbonegro formed in the late ’80s in Norway, around the same time a group of misfits started forming black metal bands a few miles away. Their earliest lineups took inspiration from punk as well as the Butthole Surfers. Unlike the earliest black metal, Turbonegro’s music wasn’t a colossal fucking bummer that made life feel like a hopeless vortex. It teemed with energy and life, and never took itself seriously. It made you want to chug beers and shake your ass and howl at the moon. Despite that rebellious spirit, Turbonegro kept working and improving as a band, sharpening their sardonic music into a razor-sharp scythe. They were arguably at their peak in the late ’90s with career-best albums Ass Cobra and Apocalypse Dudes. Apocalypse Dudes in particular is like Turbonegro’s version of AC/DC’s For Those About to 8 : FEBRUARY 2022 : DECIBEL

Rock: part singalong, part summons to arms, and all rock ‘n’ roll fury and bluster. Von Hell took that spirit to another level with his pseudo-King Diamond/Alice Cooper makeup and a stage act that included lighting roman candles in his ass à la Jackass. Von Hell’s personal life, sadly, was often a

challenge, and at times derailed his musical career. He left Turbonegro in the late ’90s to get help for heroin addiction and depression before reuniting with Turbonegro again in 2002. He left the band for good in 2009, but their profile only seemed to grow in the new millennium. Von Hell’s November 19 passing was mourned not just in his home country, but globally. I have a close friend who is a huge Turbonegro fan and could memorialize Von Hell far better than I could. This is what he said: “In a time when Norway’s underground scene was focused on who could be the most evil, along came this roly-poly, larger-than-life, AliceCooper-eyed fauxmosexual whose lyrics and presence were endlessly sardonic and camp, but also razor-sharp and clever. What’s more, his band seriously fucking rocked. They—and he, as their impertinent frontman, and ultimately the face of Turbonegro—truly changed the face of rock ‘n’ roll.” We’ll never forget the other revolution that took place in Norway in the ’90s, one that was a hell of a lot more fun than what was happening down the road. Thanks for the headbanging and laughs, Hank. Safe travels—you will be missed. —JUSTIN M. NORTON