Some things are worth waiting for. You can use some clichés here about cheese and wine that get better if you leave them for a while, but we are talking about Australian Black/Death Metal with a touch of Thrash: Destruktor. Okay, I admit I’d love it if we were served something from their exquisite cuisine a little more often, but at least it’s always value for money. No 5 bucks a gallon wine or fake cheese, Destruktor is always the real deal. Recently, the band came out with ‘Indomitable’, almost a decade after ‘Opprobrium’, and despite, or thanks to, the long wait, it was a feast once again. I asked chef de cuisine Glenn to reveal some secrets from his cookbook…
Hi Glenn, welcome, welcome… Let’s start things off with my earliest memory on Destruktor. I have first heard the band name through a hilarious interview of some 20 years ago in which you were asked about how your first time having sex was and at what age. I remember you answered something like “6 or 16, depending on how you look at it”. Don’t want to go back that far and into those details, but if you look back at the formative years of the band, how would you describe those first few years?
Hey mate, cheers for getting in touch! The things people remember!! No males or animals were part of that process!!! Those years were a lot different to now. It was before the internet took a hold of most people’s lives.
I was absorbed by the underground, partly due to the Slayer and Petrified magazines I picked up around 1994/5. You had to go to very specific shops to find anything of the extreme realm (for us, 2 hours’ drive away). LP’s/CD’s/Tapes, magazines, photos and even more so, videos were few and far between, Norwegian Black Metal (in particular) had an aura unlike any other music before or after, and as a 16 year old, mildly troubled white male metalhead musician from a regional city with next to no other appealing avenue for creative output, the themes and imagery matched my thirst for more extreme music as I evolved from Metallica to Morbid Angel. It was a moderately lonely journey, but I had my one particular mate Jamie who had the same passion for the extreme shit that I did, and we were always discovering bands, showing each other shit, testing each other’s knowledge, getting wasted, going to gigs and doing our own thing. Hooking up with Jarro and getting the Aphasia demo done, then the Destruktor demo in 1997 gave me closer contact to more like minded people outside of my very small metal circle and was the best avenue for “exposure” for a band of our ilk as we were not in a position to play live, nor was there any “scene” where we lived, unless a “scene” can be considered me doing APHASIA/DESTRUKTOR and the radio show (which is what got Jarro in contact with me), barely a handful of extreme metalheads, and basically zero gigs or venues supporting such extreme music. Most of that handful of people that did like some extreme shit liked grindier shit, and lived the other side of town, so it was mostly just me and Jamie hanging out and listening to Black/Death/Doom Metal in the early years.
Now, time for serious business. You have recently released your third album ‘Indomitable’. It arrived nine years after the last sign of life we got, 2015’s ‘Opprobrium’, which, in return, was presented to us after a six-year wait. In this second half of your career, you’re taking it all pretty quiet. How about that exactly?
Many reasons for many different things within the band and personal life. Firstly, I was never desperate to release things often, I was not writing music to appeal to my friends and family. We were a one man band at times. I had other things that occupied my time and gave me some satisfaction, I was often “on the go” and I learned to not obsess over it, and make it a stress free thing, like some form of therapy. For most of the journey, and even more so now, the best times are in the shed or bandroom, rehearsing, having a fucking laugh, talking every day shit, drinking, smoking, jamming a bit of non-Destruktor shit here and there, coming up with those “gold” moments that become part of a Destruktor song etc. I tend to hold back on trying to write songs quickly, and rather spend time on 2 or 3 songs at a time working on the riffs and ideas I have, and craft them together in the jam room with which Jared, Chris and I bounce off each other to get the end result. I am quite picky and once they are fairly established, going through the songs in my head whilst drifting off to sleep seems to pick up any flat points etc. On top of that, the arrival of my daughter and son to our family slowed things, and then the Covid bullshit stopped rehearsals of any sort for some time. Chris only joined the band a few months before Covid restrictions were implemented, and as someone who does not like having 5 new songs on the go at once, and does not care for evolving songs via drum programming/computer rehearsal and the like, we sat on the first 3 or 4 songs and then ramped things up post Covid. We also never agree to any timeframes with Hells Headbangers, we do our thing, they do their thing, and our worlds collide spasmodically. In essence, it is a pact made in hell until either ceases to exist… we do well for each other, and unless that changes, HHR ’til death.
Without wanting to go on too much on your hibernation of late, I am really curious to know which spark reignited the fire and made you decide to breathe the life back into the band. How does such a thing work for Destruktor?
I think I sort of answered that in the last question. Destruktor has never been on hiatus, nor ceased some activity of some sort since our inception. We have fluctuated from times being a one man band on more than one occasion, to a 2 piece, to a 3 piece, back to a 2 piece, etc. I did not decide to breathe life into Destruktor. When we were a one-piece, I was still doing mail, spreading the word, keeping my eyes open for another member, writing another riff, writing some words down for lyrics. I did not get side-tracked in the solitary times, and did not care too much about how productive we were. Many bands disappear or disband, and some reunite, cashing in on reputation and past glories rather than keeping the wheel spinning over the course. No particular issue with that, but we did not “grow up”, “mature” or cease the passion for extreme metal creativity. We never allowed the smoke to stop rising from the smoulder, regardless of the hurdles, but generally continued to lurk in the shadows…
‘Indomitable’ is a glorious record that proudly wears the Destruktor-name. Yet, while it is clearly crafted to the full Destruktor formula, it is also quite a bit of a different record. I would almost say a “fresher” take on the same old sound. Can you reflect on the making of this record? How would you describe it to anyone who is interested?
Thank you. It seems over the years, we have managed to keep the Destruktor sound/style consistent without repeating ourselves.
Once Jared and I started working on ‘Indomitable’ as a 2-piece, we decided very early in the piece that this album was going to be a bit more wild, a bit more feral, a bit more straight to the point. We did not want to explore things too much. Indomitable was intended to be straight to the point, intense and riff heavy. It might not be so obvious, but the tracks on ‘Indomitable’ have less of an initial build up in the songs than what we wrote for Opprobrium, and instead, kicking into the vocals or verse or whatever much earlier in the song.
We did use a well tried and tested studio with a new engineer this time around (the last 2 albums had the same studio and engineer). This time around, the recording process was probably a little more organic. Instead of more time spent cleaning drum sounds up, and tightening up the guitars, it was left a little looser, and Adam just brought it all together at the end, not so much as we went along. It is a better performed album, with plenty of lengthy sections of live playing for all instruments (as in the past), not broken down into very small sections for what some think of as “perfection”. To me, that approach just adds to the clinical and lifeless process, and lessens differentiation from the next band doing the same shit.
And how would I describe it? Well, judging by the reviews etc, it is fair to say that it is relentless, dark, extreme Black/Death Metal. No doubt, we are hard to pigeonhole aside from the extreme side of things. Whilst some people mention bands such as Destruction, Kreator and Sodom, the next person is saying Morbid Angel and Krisiun. To us, maybe it is fair to say, it’s riff heavy like classic thrash metal, intense and heavy like death metal, and darker and more sinister like black metal? You tell me if that sounds right!
Something that I always found most interesting with Destruktor is that it seemed that the band was built out of three major blocks, equal in size. Black Metal, Death Metal and Thrash Metal. Okay, maybe not unique per se, but it worked well, especially in a musical constellation that offered only few like-minded bands. How do you yourself look at the musical DNA of Destruktor?
I guess that has been answered in the previous question, but I don’t feel the thrash stuff shines in Destruktor as some seem to, and certainly think the Death/Black Metal description is about right. Drums blasting away death and black metal style, vocals are unintelligible to the untrained ear, heavily distorted guitars at high pace, but less technical and minimal leads leans to the Death and Black Metal style as far as my ears hear. It is probably my playing a lot of Metallica songs though my early teens that might give us that thrasher touch more than the “German 3” does, might I add!
To me, that ‘fresher’ sound is a result of further balancing that trinity of Black Metal, Death Metal and Thrash Metal. Which in reality mainly means a reduced influence of Death Metal in the mix, at least compared to earlier Destruktor material. There is also a somewhat brighter production enveloping it. To what extent is this all a conscious choice or the result of a more natural evolution of the music?
That clearly depends on who you speak to. Some think it is more Death Metal, and is the central point to this album. There is not a lot of consciousness in writing. We are not thinking about every step we take. Simply no weak shit, no filler, no rushing. Play it, get it together, and refine it to ensure it is not filler, rushed or weak. Adam Calaitzis (engineer) is easily one of the most experienced extreme metal engineers in Australia. He understood we had certain things we do, and did not try and change our way of going about it. He just added to it and brought it all together once we got the performance side of things done. I recorded with the most simple set up I could do really, direct into a Marshall 100V head, using the amp distortion only. The rest was just done with the mixing/engineering, no fucking pedals and boards and shit. I almost find it amusing that many people comment on how the guitar tone is crushing. They would not envision things to be so simple, but that is just modern thinking for you hey! I used the same head and cabinet I used on our recordings from early 2000. Same with the guitar, though I use my other Ibanez along with my RG these days. When it comes to bass, Chris really zoned in on his role in the recording, helping with the more technical side of things, elevating the bass to the next level and used his Darkglass and a mighty fine Ibanez that has given a somewhat fuller and heavier bass sound, and Jared’s drums were less touched and more fucking human!!! I guess there are a few reasons things have come up different to our previous recordings, though I do not think there is a drastic change at all.
Your Australian origin also obviously played a dominant role in the shaping of Destruktor. Australia’s scene in Extreme Metal has always been dominated by the likes of Sadistik Exekution, Slaughter Lord, Deströyer 666 and Abominator. Yet, Destruktor’s primal roots also go as deep as 1994. How would you describe those formative years of the Australian scene, and how do you see Destruktor’s position in this whole grand scheme of things?
I was just a 17 year old from bumfuck nowhere back in 1995, and had very little connection to the scene down in Melbourne, but that grew between 1995 and 2000. I missed the Bestial Warlust and Sadistik Exekution days due to age and little knowledge of the Melbourne scene, but did go to Deströyer 666’s first gig. In fact, Jarro left Destruktor to play for Deströyer 666 only a year or two after that gig when Keith heard the Destruktor demo. I don’t think he cared for the demo much, but Jarro’s playing got him the shot at the D666 drum stool, which he occupied for a couple of recordings and some gigs.
Then you take into account that Chris Volcano (from D666/Abominator etc.) played drums on our ‘Brutal Desecration’ 7” release, and for our first gig, and I guess it is fair to say the connection to that scene is strong. Whilst there is certainly connection, Jarro was with Destruktor before anything Melbourne based, and Volcano offered his services to record the 7” but then decided to play a gig before Jarro re-appeared. Those that have any decent knowledge of the history of Melbourne’s metal scene would know of our position/connection to it, but we were always based in the regional area, and I never really formed overly strong alliances with the city bands and shit, but had good relationships far and wide. There are those we know and respect, and vice versa, but we are not in league with anyone but ourselves. Fuck the scene, those that care can have their fun, but most bands are shit anyway, it is just a social outlet like 10 pin fucking bowling or a fucking disco. We play to a scene of some sort occasionally, but not often. We are not here to appease the masses. We don’t need any reassurance or gratification for what we do.
A question I tend to ask more often, something that intrigues me, is about how much recognition a band gets. This also applies here, because despite the fact that you guys were around early on, Destruktor is not very likely to be mentioned when it comes to Australian Extreme Metal, even though your records are certainly not lacking in quality. Still, I never got the impression that you are very bothered by that and you just boldly keep doing your own thing. Is that perception correct?
I guess I sort of answered that one just before also. I think Jared and Chris would like to push things a bit more because they have the flexibility, conviction in our work and know we have a solid base/reputation/history that has been built over a long time. So even if we drop off, the true metalheads remain strong, loyal and trust we will not disappoint. I do not compare likes on Social Posts, or followers etc. I take note of bits and pieces I see, but I don’t ask people to “like” my band, I don’t really give a shit, you know. I know many bands that have built up “likes” and all that shit, but have barely sold a fucking physical piece of music in their lives. I know we have thousands and thousands of copies of our shit sitting in the collection of people worldwide. I know we do not have the fanbase of 1,000 metal bands that do the same shit over and over, playing the circuit to the same easily pleased metal heads. Destruktor are a bit more feral, a bit more unpolished, but also not using fucking gimmicks, or spending more time on how we look than how they play. Give us a bass, a guitar, distortion, 2 amps, 2 microphones and a usable drumkit, and we will come to fucking play. We don’t need anything else. Not a fucking tuner, not a fucking click track, not a fucking earpiece. This is fucking real man. And in this day and age, people like fake more than real. Obvious isn’t it?
Speaking of keeping things nice and simple, your line-up is also very clear: there have hardly been any changes of personnel. That’s something many bands can only dream of; no fuss in the ranks. Where does this magic lie?
I’m a fucking top bloke to play metal with mate, what can I say HAHA! Being a 3 piece is part of the whole set up you know. Easier to travel, easier to vote if need be (rarely needed), easier to mix, easier to play in time, easier to avoid egos of lead guitarist or stand-alone singers, easier to cover costs, easier to arrange logistics and rehearsals etc, and when you pull this shit off live as a 3 piece, it has a different impact. Each member’s contribution seems more important, or impressive. There is less space to hide. I have no reason to feel I have to sing all the time, or play leads and harmonies and fucking melodies to be noticed. Principally, Chris locks his bass playing in with Jared to keep things rock solid, tight and heavy, but as the only other person front of stage, he has to be switched on, engaged and has vocals to nail as well. One of us fail, it is more obvious. Jared fucking stands out wherever he plays, and as a 3 piece, Chris and I can play on each side of the stage, and allow people to watch Jared without some singer bouncing in front of him all the time.
I started the interview with a bit of a personal anecdote, that was actually more personal for you, but I’d also like to start ending the interview with something more of a personal thing. Although the ‘Brutal Desecration’ 7” EP from 2002 is not commonly hailed as your best effort, I do love it. But my favorite is ‘Nuclear Storm’ EP. If you look back at your respectable back catalogue. What would you pick as your favorite? Do you have some specifically fond memories of one of those recordings?
I won’t go through splits and demo’s etc, but ‘Brutal Desecration’ was rather special. It was a time when I had control of many aspects of my life and some freedom to (within reason) do what I want, how I want, when I want, unlike most of my life to that point. This EP perfectly represents what I wanted at the time. Of all releases from our first 10 years, ‘Brutal Desecration’ has the best sound of all our recordings in my opinion, and I have great memories of the treks in the car with Regan driving to Melbourne to rehearse with Volcano.
‘Nuclear…’ has its charm I guess, and is a “right place at the right time” thing almost, but it is our worst sounding release between all EP’s and LPs the 3 full lengths. The guitars are flat and compressed when they should have cut through like a razor. Looking back, it was more rushed than I generally prefer, and I took on some advice on guitar sound/tone that ultimately I should have bypassed. The band was a becoming somewhat uncohesive, and by the time I got back to the studio to get a final mix, Jarro had left the band. ‘Fight Like The Devil’ and ‘Nuclear Storm’ still get played live sometimes, and I still consider them classic Destruktor tracks.
‘Nailed’ served its purpose very well and I look back on those times fondly. That was recorded not long after Jared and I left our hometown and moved to Geelong, and committed to doing it as a 2-piece after Regan left the band. It was the culmination of consistent work and some moderate hurdles. It showed that I knew what the fuck to do with Destruktor and cemented the fact that Jared was the man to move things forward with, and is basically the best thing to happen to the band. Our alliance is fucking tight, and has been for years.
In my opinion, ‘Opprobrium’ topped ‘Nailed’, with better song writing/dynamics, better playing and stronger vocals. It is probably the tightest of all recordings we have done, which mostly comes down to the engineer, Sam Johnson, who was also great to work with, but different to Adam (‘Indomitable’). Near ten years later, there is little I would have changed.
To top ‘Opprobrium’, I felt like we had to do something a little more focussed, a little more unhinged and little more straight to the point. I think we have done that with ‘Indomitable’, but only time is going to be the determinator in that regard.
The inevitable question, of course, is what we can expect from Destruktor in the coming period. Over the last 15 years, we have seen that the band has not been the most prolific, but previously you also released some good short players and splits. So, should I set the alarm clock for another few years or is there more in store now?
Feb 2025-May 2025 will see us playing some Interstate gigs, hitting 3 or 4 of the bigger cities in Australia. Short term, more locally, we are playing with Sinister in Melbourne next month, and we will play a Melbourne headline show in March.
The Australian winter will see us play maybe one or two more local shows, rehearse more of the ‘Indomitable’ tracks for future shows, and nudge a few new riffs in, with a vision to album 4, which is not going to be in the next year or 2, but if things remain somewhat as they are now, I’d be taking the piss if we did not have an album out before 2030. I think 2027 sounds about right. I’ve been caught out before too often with estimations, so take it how you will.
It would be nice to play outside our shores later 2025 or 2026, and that will be looked into before long. I think there is enough support/desire to make something happen. We are open to discussions if anyone wants to talk tours. We have our responsibilities, but will find time to play anywhere for the right offer at the right time.
Glenn, thanks for your time and sharing your thoughts. It’s up to you to wrap up this interview…
Thank you for the support!
