SLAYER's DAVE LOMBARDO: 'You Can Have Very Dark, Extreme Music With Melody'

Darryl Sterdan of Sun Media recently conducted an interview with SLAYER drummer Dave Lombardo. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

On touring with MEGADETH again (as part of of the "Canadian Carnage" run) after so many years:

Lombardo: "Obviously, we go back to the '80s. We did Clash of the Titans back in '91. And this has been a long hiatus. So I guess it intrigues everybody in one way or the other. But for me personally, it's just another gig. It doesn't mean anything. I haven't seen Dave [Mustaine, MEGADETH mainman] in many, many years. We've never crossed each other's paths in any way, shape or form."

On whether there's any friendly competition between SLAYER and MEGADETH:

Lombardo: "Competition? No. Nooooo. There's no competition. It's never crossed our minds. At least, not for me. Whether it's us playing with MEGADETH or us playing with anyone else, it's not going to change our performance. We're still going to kick ass. There's only one thing on our mind, and that's to deliver the best possible music and the best performances."

On the new SLAYER album, which — according to the band's publicist, is titled "World Painted Blood" (something that Lombardo appears to be unaware of):

Lombardo: "It's not done. There's no title. We haven't done artwork. They're only about 3/4 done mixing. But I have to say that it compares to the classics — 'Reign in Blood', 'South of Heaven' and 'Seasons in the Abyss'. And I wouldn't say that if I didn't mean it. [Singer-bassist Tom Araya's] vocal melody and singing approach is very listener-friendly — not in a way where people are going to say, 'Dude, they went commercial.' No way. It's just more melodic. People are scared of the word melody because maybe it sounds like a happy word. But you can have very dark, extreme music with melody. It's not something to be afraid of. There's only good music and bad music — and good music has hooks and something to carry you through and entertain you."

On playing new material live:

Lombardo: "We might do one or two new things — maybe 'Psychopathy Red'. That's the newest one. But aside from that, it'll be the classics at full-force energy — just pure energy out there."

On SLAYER's fans and haters:

Lombardo: "Our music brings out an animalistic instinct in human beings. It's animalistic music. It's driving, it's very extreme. It's just like a caveman, you know? But people that take it too seriously, I think personally they're too tightly wound. We can't forget that it's just art, self-expression, pushing the envelope of controversy and the envelope of offence. But you don't see us killing or shooting people."

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