Deicide on Till Death Do Us Part

Interview with Deicide Drummer Steve Asheim on New Deicide Album

Apr 22, 2008

Deicide drummer and main songwriter Steve Asheim talks about the death metal band's new album Till Death Do Us Part and considers whether it's Deicide's most brutal yet

Steve Asheim, drummer and chief songwriter with death metal legends Deicide, talks about the new Deicide album Till Death Do Us Part in an exclusive Suite101 interview.

Deicide's Most Brutal Album yet?

Suite 101: Till Death Do Us Part is being touted as 'Deicide's most brutal album yet'. Is that the case?

Steve: “Of course (laughs). It's the record company's job to write this kind of thing. I mean, as a drummer I try to push myself a little further and faster for every record so some of the fastest stuff I've ever done is on this record. As far as it being up there with some of the most brutal stuff we've ever done, that's a subjective call but yeah, I'd say it's up there challenging.”

Suite 101: Is it difficult after all this time to still work up the intensity and aggression required?

Steve: “You would think so, wouldn't you? We're not getting any younger and maybe sometimes I'll get a little tired but when it comes to writing music and stuff – no, it's really not hard. It still comes naturally and when I write that's still what I like. I still like fast, intense, heavy stuff and I've gotten pretty good at it I guess. If anything it's actually getting easier to do.”

Dysfunctional Songwriting

Suite 101: How does your writing dynamic work right now – do you give Glen (Benton, vocals/bass) a full song and he goes away and puts words to it?

Steve: “That is how it's been working. In the early days we would all collaborate but over the years and especially with this record I would write, arrange and demo the song and then hand it over. In this case it was pretty much the completed album, minus the finished solos and vocals. From there I'd say to Glen: 'If you have any complaints or suggestions, let me know and we'll go over it' but he didn't have any major disagreements with it so it all worked out pretty good.”

Suite 101: It seems quite a dysfunctional way for a band to operate...does it feel natural to you at this point?

Steve: “It does – we've been working this way for such a long time that it is natural. When it's time to write a record I know I'm the one that's gonna be sat down writing the music. I really would be interested to see from the inside how other bands go about doing their business, just to compare the different systems people use.”

Deicide on Tour

Suite 101: It's been well documented that you've had issues with touring in the past. Are we liable to see Deicide out on tour to support the release?

Steve: “We don't have any dates booked but I would think it's inevitable we'd be out on the road at some point. Personally, I'd hope we'll be in time to hit some of the summer festivals over in Europe – they're always some of my favourite shows to play. Like I say, there's nothing booked at the moment but I can definitely see us getting on the road before the end of the year.”

Glen Benton for President

Suite 101: Apparently, the limited edition of the album comes with a free patch reading 'Glen Benton for president'. Do you think that would be a good idea?

Steve: “Erm...no (laughs). I don't think that would be a good idea at all. Glen has his own agenda, let's say.”

The copyright of the article Deicide on Till Death Do Us Part in Death/Black Metal is owned by Paul Travers. Permission to republish Deicide on Till Death Do Us Part in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.