SOURCE – We’re about a week off from your highly anticipated CD Ten Thousand Ways To Die being released, what are you and the rest of Obituary feeling as the countdown is getting smaller?
Donald Tardy (Drums) – We are super excited about this release and hope that the fans enjoy a couple new tunes to give them a taste of what the new album will bring. The song “10,000 ways to die” is the official single and will be on the New Album.
Loathe is an exclusive track just for this release…We also included the live songs that we recorded on the American tour with cannibal corpse. We were lucky enough to have Joe Cincotta from FullForceStudio on the road with us with his full ProTools rig. That was an awesome luxury that we took advantage of and recorded every night.
SOURCE – Your performance show high energy showmanship, but at the same time everything seems to natural and effortless, have you always performed like that or does practice make perfect?
Donald Tardy (Drums) – We are a live band. It is always fun and a challenge recording albums but we are and have always been known for our life performances. We decided to grab a song from each city so the fans can get an idea of what the band sounds like night after night and to hear the production from each venue. We’ve never done anything like this before and can’t wait to hear what the fans think about these live tracks.
SOURCE – Do you prefer being in the studio or touring, or are they equally compelling to you?
Donald Tardy (Drums) – Is this a trick question? Let’s break this down shall we?
In the studio you are in a room, by yourself with headphones on trying to play your ass off when you know the record button is capturing your every move. Live you are in front of fans who love you, who could care less about a mistake or two and are loving every beat and riff you throw at them. Oh yeah, and there are probably cold beers and whiskey flying on stage. Which sounds more fun to you?
Next question.
Just kidding, I like both challenges. The studio is the biggest Challenge because you know the record light is on and your every move is being documented for all eternity. Live on stage it doesn’t matter, the fans love anything you give to them and it’s loud and awesome. Again I guess I will ask? Is this a trick question.
SOURCE – It has been about two years since the last Obituary album – Inked In Blood. When did you actually begin the writing process for the new record?
Donald Tardy (Drums) – We probably started writing the day after the album was complete. Anytime we are together in the studio we always think about new ideas and while we are jamming are always ready to record any ideas that might pop up. The recording process is much quicker than the writing process. We have been riding for nearly 2 years these new songs for this new album.
Obituary is not the band to sit in the studio for 10 hour days trying to create new music. We don’t think too much about it, we don’t try too hard, we just let the music find us. A couple two, three beers and we go for it if something happens, wonderful. If not we try again tomorrow. It is a never ending cycle of creating new music and always thinking about what is next but again we do not try to hard we simply have a good time and go for it. After all it is only music right? Music is there to have fun, release and let go.
SOURCE – With how much the music industry has changed over the past few years, where it’s now all about streaming and Spotify and downloads instead of actual sales, as an artist how do you even determine if an album is successful or not these days?
Donald Tardy (Drums) – That is a damn good question that I don’t have the answer for. We love music. Always have. So we don’t think about anything except what we love which is creating new songs for our fans. It is no secret that the music industry is not the easiest of livings. We just love playing our songs for our fans and they deserve it so we keep grinding. Who knows maybe one day will write a hit and being able to see real money. I am not holding my breath, just my drumsticks.
SOURCE – Obituary have influenced countless bands over the years. Who are some younger bands and/or musicians that impress you?
Donald Tardy (Drums) – It is amazing when you see these new bands and the abilities they have. Some of these young drummer’s run circles around me and I am amazed by their skills. I will stick to what I do well which is Midtempo, solid, grooving drumbeats that makes your head nod, or as we call it: Caveman Metal.
To answer your question I’ll keep it simple, my favorite band on the planet right now is Dust Bolt. If you do not know who they are do yourself a favor and find them, listen to them, worship them. They deserve it and trust me you will love it if you are a metal music fan.
SOURCE – You guys are very active on social media. With established bands that have a lot of followers and immediate contact with a lot of fans, is there a point where you don’t even need a record label?
Donald Tardy (Drums) – No, hey record label is still extremely important because they are the highway to get the product to the fans. Even though much of the world are simply streaming from their smart phones thank God there are still fans that want and by physical copies from us and we could not appreciate that anymore as that is the only way we really do get credit or paid.
Socia media is also very important and that is why we stay active on it because our fans want to know what we are doing and we are happy to keep them updated with everything in our lives. It is a different world for sure right now on the Internet, so we do want to thank the fans that still by the records from us. Thank you very much for your support. These old rednecks would not be able to do it without you guys. Cheers!
SOURCE – Do you remember anything about your last visit in Brazil?
Donald Tardy (Drums) – South America is always a blast for us. We do not get there often enough, but we always have a good time with our fans in Brazil that’s for sure. We are really looking forward to making it down there for the new album and giving the fans what they deserve, a kick ass Florida metal show.
SOURCE – When you’re approaching an international tour like this, how often do you get together to practise?
Donald Tardy (Drums) – Once.
SOURCE – Have you got a message we can send out to your Brazilian fans ahead of the release of Ten Thousand Ways To Die?
Donald Tardy (Drums) – We love our Brazilian fans and it is very clear that they love us back. It has been a long relationship that we have had with Brazil and we hope to see all of you very very soon. We are planning our 2017 schedule right now for the release of the new album and we promise we will be in Brazil ready to kick your asses. You have been warned!
Cheers and thank you very much for all the years of support.
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