The response was so positive it became a permanent reunion. Original guitarist Gus Pepa was replaced by Ted Aguilar, but the rest of the lineup was intact. Their comeback album was 2004’s The Art Of Dying. Death Angel’s latest effort is Killing Season, which was produced by Nick Raskulinecz (Foo Fighters, Rush, Velvet Revolver). I spoke with guitarist Rob Cavestany about topics old and new, including the latest CD, how the band is getting along these days, and the lasting impact of Bay Area thrash.
Chad Bowar: Give us a preview of Killing Season.
Rob Cavestany: You can expect to hear the latest and greatest from Death Angel. It’s a powerhouse album as far as we’re concerned and it’s our best work to date. We’re extremely excited. It’s dark, brutal, driving, heavy, a relentless attack.
How did you decide on Nick Raskulinecz to produce the album?
We really respected the work he has done and are fans of his production. We didn’t think we would be able to work with such a high-caliber producer on a non-major label budget. But it turns out Nick is a total metalhead and an old school Death Angel fan. That was the key. Little did we know that he knew our music and was into producing our album. It was great.
How long did it take for you to learn how to pronounce his last name?
That’s funny. By the end of the session I had it down, but damn, my kid could say it before I could.
What is his producing style?
He was the perfect amount of what we needed. He knew how to collaborate with us. He was the perfect style of producer for a band like us. We totally know what we want already, so if we work with somebody that pushes their sound on us too much, we might start butting heads. But he knew where we needed to be pushed and where to not push. We were on the same page about most everything, so there wasn’t too much of a push and pull. He pushed us forward. Everything was on point.
Do you have any specific expectations for the CD?
We’re pretty excited. Everything we’ve been hearing and all the feedback from people that have heard it so far has been really positive and very energetic. We know that we worked really hard on this album and are very proud of it and confident with it. We expect good things.
Has the band’s writing and recording process changed much over the years?
It goes through different stages, but it has evolved quite a bit. This was the smoothest experience we had creating an album, ever. We’ve grown to know how each other works, and it’s been pretty much the same guys writing for this band the entire time. It came to the point where we figured out how to deal with each other in the best way, which results in a more positive and less head-butting experience. Everyone was open to change and accepting someone else’s suggestion or idea. We got on a flow for this album after we broke the ice and came up with some exciting stuff. We wrote a lot for this album and it was hard to whittle it down to 11 songs.
How is the relationship and attitudes among the band members during this second incarnation of the band after you were apart for several years?
The way it is this time around is different in that we’re older and wiser. We use experience to our advantage. We’ve been able to do that on this album. We don’t cram ourselves down each other’s throats. When it’s time to take a break, we take a break. We manage to keep it where we’re not wanting to kill each other and actually appreciate hanging out and playing music together. We’re having fun when we hang out. We’ve come to a point where we are geared up and are going to be pouring it on for the next few years.
Do you have any tour plans lined up yet?
The tour plans are being worked on as we speak. It’s going to be a true world tour for this album. Our goal is to tour more than we have ever toured in the past. The tour dates will soon be posted. We’re talking about hitting the road at the end of March and going to Europe for a month, the U.S. for a month, back to Europe for a month, maybe back to the U.S. for a month and then start heading out to Australia, Asia and South America. By then it will be the end of the year and we’ll see how we’re doing. We’re fired up and ready to go.
Is there any place you haven’t played live that you would like to get to?
There are many places. It’s ridiculous how many places, for some reason or another, we haven’t played. We’ve had South America booked so many times, but have never followed through and played there. Australia is another one. We’ve had so many tours there that have fallen through for one reason or another. It’s not because we don’t want to go there. We are dying to get there. There are many countries in Asia and Europe we haven’t played. We’ve never played in Portugal or Greece. We want to expand things on this tour.
