With song titles like “Death to Jesus” and a frontman with a penchant for burning an inverted cross on his forehead, the most shocking thing that death metal pioneers Deicide have done, according to drummer and founding member Steve Asheim, is by comparison quite tame.
“I think people are shocked that we are still around. And I am too, to be honest with you,” he says.
The band, which formed in Florida in the late 1980s, predates the term death metal — “it kind of came up later,” Asheim says — released its 13th album, “Banished by Sin,” in April and its North American tour will hit Brooklyn Monarch on Sept. 10. We chatted with Asheim, the lone remaining founding member along with singer Glen Benton, about the formative days of death metal, why Florida has been a hotbed of the genre, the making of the new record and more.
Glen said this album is “Deicide as it’s mean to be.” Do you agree?
It’s a smoother operation with the guys we have now. Our original lineup with the Hoffmans, Glen and them never got along that great. There was always kind of trouble there. Ralph (Santolla) and Jack (Owen), he had his troubles with both of those guys, so that wasn’t perfect either. Then we had Mark English in for a record, and that never really worked out between Glen and him. And so with this record, he really likes Kevin (Quirion), he really likes Taylor (Nordberg), plus everyone is very talented. So in that sense, it is perfect.
You’re the main composer in the band, while Glen writes the lyrics. How do you put together a song? Do you start with a drum beat or work on guitar?
Riffing around with a guitar. I hit record and once I’ve accumulated parts I go back through ’em and piece ’em together.
While you are doing that, is Glen writing lyrics or does he wait until you give him music?
I think he comes up with the lyrics specifically as we are writing. He’s not like Jim Morrison who has a book of lyrics.
Do you suggest any lyrical themes to him when you give him the music?
I kind of do what I do musically and hand it off to him, and he does what he does. I kind of leave it to him and he prefers it left to him. I’m always surprised and enjoy hearing what he’s come up with.
How do you feel about “Banished by Sin” and how it fits in with the Deicide catalog?
I think every time we complete a record we think it’s the best one we’ve ever done. It’s just amazing completing a record. Once you kick back and have a listen to it, it kind of sits in order of how much you like it or is it objectively better than another record. Certainly we’ve put out some clunkers over the years, so we know it’s better than those. But fans don’t see it that way. They get attached to a record for whatever reason. Maybe it’s the album they were introduced to us with, that’s become their favorite. Some people attach to what they think is the best record over time. Me, I kind of analyze them objectively. As far as the new record, I do think it’s up there.
When you started out playing this style of music, was the term “death metal” being used?
No, it kind of came later. Kind of like how people used to call Pink Floyd acid rock. There was kind of thrash metal and speed metal but it was being called speed metal for a little while then everyone called it thrash metal. When we came along it was just sort of called that. Possessed had their song “Death Metal.”
Why have so many death metal bands come out of Florida?
The studio (Morrisound) was a big part of it because we all had a place to go record. And I think I remember in ’86 we weren’t together as Amon yet, but there was a local show over in Tampa. The Obituary guys were called Executioner but were covering all Celtic Frost. You can kind of make the correlation between them and Celtic, where they got their inspiration from. I remember Morbid Angel was together and also Nasty Savage, they were more thrash. I don’t know why in particular there were so many bands, just a kind of thing that happened. One band saw another local band. The scene was globally getting. heavier. Why it was from Tampa is a little weird. Bands from here were doing local gigs and seeing each other kind of inspired other bands.
Who were some of your drum influences?
Starting off I was a Kiss fan, so like Peter Criss, ’70s kiss, before the makeup came off and all that garbage. Clive Burr with Iron Maiden. Judas Priest, Dave Holland was a solid drummer. He was influential in a sense that he would just hold down a heavy line and let the guitars do the heavy lifting. After that, Lars with Metallica, Dave Lombardo with Slayer, Gene [Hoglan] from Dark Angel. A couple other drummers, Tommy Aldridge, Vinny Appice. That’s really all is took. After that it was “Let’s start blasting,” and that was its own thing that came up. I saw Pete (Sandoval of Morbid Angel) blasting at that point. That’s how that developed.
Drumming this fast night after night on tour must take its toll on you physically. What do you do to keep up your endurance?
I used to work out with weights a lot. I don’t really do that anymore, getting a bit old for that. Playing the way I do has given me tendinosis, like if someone was working a jackhammer for 20 years, it has an effect on your tendons. I tore my bicep, I blew my calf out, and it’s always on the left side for some reason. Just recently even, I stopped drumming because it was affecting my pulmonary and cardio health. At practice, once we get going I feel like I’m about to have a fucking heart attack (laughs). Also my asthma was getting worse. I started drumming about January 1 this year and noticed all of that stuff was kind of getting a little better. My heart felt a little stronger. I haven’t needed my inhaler for a few months.
In that sense, I need to maintain a certain lifestyle without literally having a fucking heart attack during a gig, because people have done that. Nick Menza playing in a hot club stroked out. That’s not happening to me (laughs). I’m tellin’ ya. At least I don’t want it to happen. I like my weed and booze was my thing. Now not so much the booze, at least for now. As long as I have to play at this level worldwide, I can’t do that crazy shit.
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