With ounces of motivation, swarming within a sea of talent, it is not logical that nothing would be coming out of it. Being Brutal and technical, yet in a refined manner, can be a thing of beauty, within its horrid created reality. Beheaded are back with a new offering, switching labels, maintaining their purpose to be better than before, not remaining on top the same slab. Steinmetal had a chat with longtime member, David Cachia, about their new album "Only Death Can Save You", philosophy, songwriting and more…
Hello David, it is amazing having you for this interview for Metal Temple online Magazine, what have you been up to lately?
Thanks for having us for this interview, it has been an active year for Beheaded with the album release, touring Europe and Brazil and also handling business with Malta Death Fest events between the festival for next year and the single events.
Indulging on the continuous hunger to create massiveness within the all-powerful Death Metal direction, Beheaded returns with guns blazing, bearing "Only Death Can Save You". First of all, congratulations. How has been the reactions from the new album so far?
The reaction has been good overall, I feel that most listeners have understood and appreciate the direction the band has been taking especially since "Beast Incarnate" swaying into ODCSY. You will always find some naysayers but that is normal in this business and anything you do in life.
What is your perspective on the new album? Did it come out as you envisioned it to be? If you had the option, would you have changed anything or perhaps add additional tracks?
As an 'insider' you always wonder if somethings could have been done differently and how much that would have impacted the final product, but at the end of the day I believe every album has its own story, its own life cycle if you will and ODCSY came to life in this form, which I have to say we are very proud and happy with
For the release of "Only Death Can Save You", you guys signed with the Polish Agonia Records, I think it is a good move. However, since you have been in relations with a label that is mostly your type of bands, Unique Leader Records, I wonder what happened back then that made you shift? Weren't you treated right or provided with the services you deserve throughout your time as part of the roster?
We have only good things to say about Unique Leader Records, 3 records in a more than a decade of partnership. It was time to change the air a little bit to give a bit of an impetus to the band's momentum and Agonia came about, which is a great label.
How has been the work with Agonia Records surrounding "Only Death Can Save You"? Does it feel like home to you folks?
The guys at Agonia have been nothing but great, very helpful, collaborative and professional.
We can probably start a long philosophical discussion regarding the title of the new album, yet I think we can probably do that using a different platform. In short from my end, it is straightforward, yet also raising questions of existence and about the limited time we have on this Earth. What is your take on it? How deep does these five words go in your book?
We aimed for a direct, straightforward title which would have a strong and immediate impact whilst being memorable. Sometimes less is more, and on the surface the album title is an imperative which goes hand in hand with the music. Once you read it, it makes you stop and think and if you dig deeper there is a lot more to find.
The artwork as well is no less than impressive. At first, I had to truly understand what I was looking at, until I could distinguish main features in the image. Who made this portion of brutality? What was the vision behind this artwork?
Daniel Corcuera did the artwork. We had the concept in mind and explained it to him the best we could and let him do the magic. It's a sick, twisted artwork which was just perfect.
Beheaded for me have always been in the boundary between old school and modern Death Metal, going groove, yet wildly unleashing the brute chunks of meat of the early 90s, when musical elements in Death Metal scaled up with their brutality. Listening to "Only Death Can Save You" made me think that your musical pattern didn't change much after "Beast Incarnate". In your viewpoint, is Beheaded proof of yet another band remaining loyal to its heritage, or there are distinctions on "Only Death Can Save You" that showed that the band went forward?
Musically we go back to our roots and the old school since that is the stuff we grew up with but we try not to fall into the trap of clichés into just trying to emulate an old school sound just for the sake of it. Those are our influences but at the same time trying to be relevant to the current times.
How can you describe the songwriting process on "Only Death Can Save You"? Would you say that it is group effort or rather a single or a duo of songwriters that carry the torch until the rehearsals that shape the tunes?
It usually starts with riffs upon riffs upon riffs which are worked together into structures alongside a basic idea for vocal patterns and lyrics. Once that is done we go on to adding all the other components.
When you guys sit down and writing material, what are your main focuses while you form the songs' arrangements and musicality? Was the work on "Only Death Can Save You" any different from previous releases?
We have 2 aims, that is to write death metal songs which sound like actual songs not just a pile of riffs glued together. It is the direction we have undertaken since "Beast Incarnate" and it is a formula which seems to work well for us.
A gut feeling tells me that there is no unanimous lyrical theme on "Only Death Can Save You", as its title, it sends one wondering. Can you shed light on the theme, or themes?
There is but it is a loose concept in the sense that the lyrics are written within the context of ODCSY but not as a story
Which of the album's tracks is the one that makes you become attached to it? That one tune that turned out to be beyond your expectation?
"A Greater Terror" and "The Charlatan's Enunciation" are probably the 2 songs which best represent the album and probably the best written songs. "Embrace Your Messiah" definitely stands out but also tracks such as "The Papist Devil" and "Unholy Man" really deliver.
This time around, when it came down to mixing and mastering, you decided to work with your drummer, Davide "BrutalDave" Billia. I have to admit that "Only Death Can Save You" sounds way better than the previous, a much old school direction. Certainly one of the reasons I enjoyed listening to it. What is your opinion on Billia's work? Would you continue entrusting the sound production on him?
Of course! Davide is a multi-talented guy who not only plays drums but also works as an engineer at his own MKII studio, plays guitar, does vocals. He's a jack of all trades, master of all.
Due to the technological advancements, which also affected the process of making music, making it available in home studios, there have been a vast wave of bands out there, trying to prove themselves, to become relevant in the market. As a veteran musician, and part of that vast scene, what still motivates you to go on forward? Do you feel that you have to compete for a rightful place or rather taking it to the sidelines, minding your own thing, no caring for whatever is hot or not?
It's an ever-changing thing. Growing older you start looking less at the 'personal glory' side of things and go back to the basics of enjoying playing extreme music while sharing it with other likeminded people. It's less about the destination and more about the journey
What are the upcoming challenges of Beheaded to support "Only Death Can Save You"? Are there plans for 2020?
We have moved to Avocado Booking as an agency so we will be working with them to get on the road play more shows, festivals and tour as much as we can
Though we are living in an expect the unexpected situation constantly throughout our lives, where do you see Beheaded in the coming years? Let's go with five years forward for that matter
Beheaded is not going to become the next Slayer but it's not a band which is going back to being nobody. In 5 years' time I believe the band will be doing more of the same. Meat and Potatoes is the dish we serve and it's a fine dish
David, I wish to thank you for this interview. The new album is a cracker and without mercy as it should. All the best
Thanks for the interview and see you next time !
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