When Morbid Angel released Illud Divinum Insanus, their first album in 8 years and first with frontman/bassist David Vincent in 16 years, fans weren’t exactly pleased with the end result. Namely, the album was heavily criticized for its overuse of industrial sounds. Well it turns out that drummer Pedro “Pete” Sandoval (who has been sitting out of Morbid Angel due to a back injury) wasn’t a fan of the album either.
During an interview with Brazil’s Som Extremo, Sandoval was asked about his thoughts on Illud Divinum Insanus, which featured Tim Yeung on drums. At first, he replied “No comment! I don’t play on that album!” But when they asked what he would’ve done differently if he had recorded the album, Sandoval had the following to say:
“More exreme deathgrind metal and less DJ, boring awful typical I care less industrial experimental same as everybody boring bull! This is not what Morbid has been all about! …Hmmmmmm, and I really care less…!”
Interesting enough, while Sandoval said he’s slowly making his way back behind the drum kit, he still won’t be returning to Morbid Angel for another couple of years. His main focus, he tells the site, is on his other band Terrorizer (who he hopes will return with another record and tour early next year).
It would be unfair to say, though, that now there’s a riff between Sandoval and Morbid Angel (even if he’s been vocal about Illud Divinum Insanus’ flaws). Shortly after the album was released, the band announced that they were selling a “Pete Commando Sandoval” T-shirt on upcoming tours to help the drummer raise money for medical bills. One thing is for sure, though: if Sandoval does record another album with Morbid Angel, he’ll do all he can to not include any industrial elements. Hopefully his band mates will listen to him (and the fans’ reactions).
