DAVE LOMBARDO On New SLAYER Album: We're Basically Taking Off From 'Seasons Of The Abyss'

Ernest A. Jasmin of The News Tribune recently conducted an interview with SLAYER drummer Dave Lombardo. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

The News Tribune: What kind of sound are you channeling on the new record? And how far into it are you?

Lombardo: If it isn't done it's almost there. I would have to say it's unlike any record SLAYER's done since "Seasons of the Abyss".

The News Tribune: So you're channeling some "Abyss" sound on there.

Lombardo: Yes. We're basically taking off from "Seasons of the Abyss". It has a nice variety. It has a great groove, the whole thing. This producer, Greg Fidelman, that did the METALLICA record, he's done an amazing job on my drums and the production. Like I said, it's taking off from where Rick Rubin left off.

The News Tribune: You said some of the songs have a nice "groove." You guys are known for your blistering tempos. Are you slowing the songs down?

Lombardo: Yeah, there's fast and faster for SLAYER. What we've always had but maybe never really paid attention to is this kind of mid-tempo drive that SLAYER could achieve or I could achieve as a drummer. And we focused on that and elaborated a little on that. There's the fast stuff and mid-tempo; a little slower stuff that ends up fast. I think it's a well put together record as far as variety goes. ... It has peaks and valleys.

The News Tribune: Throw out some song titles.

Lombardo: There's a song called "Hate Worldwide", which is great. It's a Kerry song, you know. There's another amazing song called "Americon" ... reflecting all the embezzlements of money that these corporate (jerks) have taken in and just the whole Wall Street finance thing. "Beauty Through Order", that's phenomenal. It's great. It's about a countess who lived in either Bulgaria, Romania — somewhere out there where they had these countesses and stuff. She would kill virgins and drain their blood, and she would bathe in their blood thinking that it would preserve her beauty or their youth.

The News Tribune: It sounds like you're exploring familiar subject matter. So you're not tempted to switch up and do, like, a patriotic country ballad or something.

Lombardo: "Americon"! That's it. It's patriotic. It's a pissed off American. When you're angry about something you hold signs and you march and whatever. But we have a way of putting it in music.

The News Tribune: I was being kind of facetious. But you've had, I guess you would say, relentlessly morbid themes in your music.

Lombardo: I think that what ends up in longevity of a band, is staying true to what you started. Once you start changing and flip-flopping, people don't know what's going on. But you have to work within your boundaries and parameters and elaborate on these songs and make 'em as interesting and fresh as you can. I mean, Stephen King isn't going to write a love novel. SLAYER won't either.

Read the entire interview from The News Tribune.