DECREPID INTERVIEW
plus ‘LUST FOR DEATH’ PREVIEW
(EXCLUSIVE)
Comprised of a truly international line-up, London-based death metallers Decrepid have spent the last decade or so carving a name for themselves as an unapologetically old-school powerhouse. Eschewing the sterile and technical direction much of the genre has taken, the band instead champions an aggressive and passionately morbid sound, full of pummelling percussion, inhuman vocals and dirty, malevolent riffing.
The band’s official debut, 2011 album Devoted To Death, quickly won the group an underground following, impressing fans of acts such as Dismember, Bolt Thrower and Suffocation. One such fan was industry legend Dave Rotten of Avulsed, and the band was soon signed to his iconic label Xtreem Music, this unholy union resulting in the 2015’ Osseous Empire and its devastating 2020 follow-up Endless Sea of Graves.
The group has spent the intervening years touring with the likes of Krisiun and Nile and crafting new material. Now they present the results: a crushing four-song EP entitled Lust for Death, issued this month by Cult Never Dies, incidentally our first death metal music release despite our numerous death metal fanzines and books. With its uncompromising nature and energetic, visceral sound, this is an essential injection of aural violence for both longtime fans and new listeners, and we now proudly present a preview with a video of the song ‘Vortex of Chaos’ – as well as catching up with guitarist and founding member Danny Price.
Cult Never Dies: For those unfamiliar with Decrepid, please give us a bit of background on the band’s inception and history.
Danny Price: “In 2005, a close friend and I decided to form a band. To be honest, I’m not entirely sure how the idea came about, as, at the time, we were more focused on partying, but one day, we just became a band. During that period, we wrote a few thrash-inspired songs and even recorded a home demo, but unfortunately, it was lost or deleted. Eventually, everyone but me lost interest and moved on to other things. Around that time, I was asked to join another band, which had more going on, so I played with them for a few years and put Decrepid on hold.”
“Fast forward to around 2008. Things weren’t working out with the band I was in, so I decided to leave. I still had a strong desire to make music, so I reformed Decrepid and started writing again. In early 2009, a friend of mine, Katia Redraven, invited Decrepid to open for Nunslaughter at one of her shows. I immediately agreed, but in reality, I only had a drummer, a lead guitarist, and about five minutes of material at that point! I had committed to a half-hour set, and the show was just six weeks away. Despite the challenge, I managed to put together a full line-up and enough material to perform. On the night of the show, our bassist and vocalist were just session musicians filling in, but after we played, both of them – Cris [Bassan, vocals] and Marni [Adam Martin, bass] – approached me separately and asked to join the band full-time. I like to think of that night as the true rebirth of Decrepid.”
What would you say were the biggest influences on Decrepid’s sound at that point, and has that changed at all?
“The influences on Decrepid’s sound haven’t really changed much over the years. From the start, I’ve always wanted to combine the heaviness of Death with the aggression of Slayer. Jeff Hanneman and Chuck Schuldiner have been my biggest influences when it comes to writing riffs and leads – both had such a unique way of shaping their music. Max Cavalera and James Hetfield also play a huge role in influencing my approach, especially in terms of rhythm and raw energy.”
So you see there still being a significant thrash inspiration, then? Decpreid definitely seem to lean more toward classic death metal, but perhaps that’s partly a result of the very death metal vocals.
“There’s definitely a thrash influence in our music, but I don’t consciously aim for it. I’ve always focused on writing riffs that I enjoy and challenge me as a guitarist, and the blend of thrash and death metal naturally happens from that. I can see why our sound leans more toward early 90s death metal, especially with the vocals contributing to that feel. In terms of songwriting, I don’t follow a strict plan. Most songs start with me loosely mapping out ideas on guitar at home, then jamming them with the drummer before bringing them to the rest of the band. From there, we all flesh out the song together with second guitars, bass, and vocals. I like to say I present the skeleton, but the whole band brings it to life. While we’ve had a few rare moments where a fully completed song is brought in by someone, we all prefer working together – it makes the process more enjoyable.”
The death metal scene has latterly splintered into many different subgenres and subcultures. How do you feel you’re treated as a band, given your very uncompromising old-school approach? Do you have a sense of your audience, or is it quite diverse?
“Honestly, I don’t pay much attention to the scene or our audience demographics. I’ve been doing this for over 20 years now, and for me, it’s always been about having fun with my friends once a week at rehearsals. We’ve never been driven by money or success. All of us in the band have full-time jobs and family commitments, so Decrepid is something we do because we genuinely enjoy it, not because we’re chasing trends or trying to fit into a particular subgenre. When people ask why we do what we do, I usually explain that it’s similar to how ‘normal’ people play Sunday league football – it’s just for the love of it. We stay true to that old-school sound because it’s what we love – if others appreciate it, that’s a bonus, but we don’t go out of our way to cater to any specific audience.”
It’s been three years since 2021’s Devoted to Death EP. What has the band been up to in those intervening years?
“Our last album came out in 2020, and we had planned a European tour to support the release, but as we all know, COVID put a stop to everything. When the pandemic started, like everyone else, we stayed home. During that time, I wrote the skeleton for a whole new album. We also went through some line-up changes – Steve [Brennan, guitars] quit, and Lander [De Silva, also of Incarcerated and Keelhauling] joined us for a few months. With Lander, we wrote the four tracks that will be released on the new EP through Cult Never Dies. Around that same time, we began renting a private rehearsal space, which was basically an empty room at first. I decided to turn it into a recording space and really got into music production. Both Lust for Death and Devoted to Death were recorded there, and I mixed and mastered them myself at home.”
“After a while, Lander decided that Decrepid wasn’t the right fit for him and left to form a new project. That’s when Mans [Chris Mansfield, ex-Bludgeon] joined the band. Because the four tracks we worked on with Lander didn’t fit the album’s direction, we agreed to release them as a separate EP, which became Lust for Death. This meant we needed to write new material for the album, so we worked with Mans to fill those gaps. During this four-year period, our previous drummer, Tom, had his second child and bought a house in the countryside, which meant he couldn’t continue as a full-time member. For a while, we had Joe [Burwood] from Anti-Sect as a session drummer, but that limited our rehearsal time to once a month and allowed us to play only select shows, including one at Symbolic Fest in Czechia and six dates in the UK and Ireland supporting Krisiun and Nile. In March of this year, we finally found a full-time drummer, and since then, we’ve been preparing for our European tour in November, supporting Mortal Skuld. After that, our focus will shift to releasing the new material that was mostly written back in 2020.”
Can you tell us about the new EP; how do you feel it compares to previous recordings and how would you describe it to those who have yet to hear it?
“I’m really proud of how it turned out, especially in terms of production. It’s my second time recording, mixing, and mastering everything myself, and being self-taught, I’m extremely happy with the result. In terms of songwriting, these tracks were written during the lockdown in 2020, which gave us much more time to focus on the material. We had just started renting our private studio (Raise the Dead Studio), so we could really dedicate time to perfecting the tracks. I personally spent a lot of time alone in the studio, working on ideas and figuring out the recording setup in the space. Lander had a big hand in writing these songs, which was exciting since it was the first time working with a new guitarist after being with Steve for 16 years. You can hear more thrash influences throughout, and there’s definitely a progression in the songwriting compared to our earlier releases. Around that time, I also spent a lot of time studying music theory and production, which I think really helped expand our sound.”
