With their latest release, The Anthropocene Extinction, Cattle Decapitation are most definitely on the rise. The LP marked the deathgrind group’s highest charting album and was followed by an extensive amount of touring including Summer Slaughter, Cannibal Corpse, and a headlining run. Guitarist Josh Elmore delved into the album, future plans, and recent/upcoming touring with Metal Insider.
First of all, great show at the San Diego House of Blues during Summer Slaughter. It’s a shame the lineup got a bit butchered by the end though. Reflecting back on the tour, what acts would you have preferred to fill the spots of the two missing bands?
Amongst other bands on the tour, we discussed a similar thing and we realized that the groups we’d want on the bill wouldn’t gather a ton of people. The ones making these lineups have to be more business-minded, which is understandable. Personally, I think there could be a more blackened element to some of the bands or at least a bigger one that would bring a decent amount of people. A consistent complaint from people is that there is one or two “real” death metal bands and a bunch of other Sumerian-esque “core” bands. If I had to pick a band, Nightbringer is a band that comes to mind.
You’re currently on your headlining tour with King Parrot, Black Crown Initiate, and Dark Sermon. Can you talk about how that has been so far with more of the new material live and discuss your take on the bands you’re with?
We were recently talking with a couple of the other Black Crown Initiate and Dark Sermon guys and everyone’s made the comment that this was better than they thought it would be as far as turnout and having a good time. I think top to bottom, it’s a strong bill. We usually go out in four or five band packages and there’s a couple bands we’re familiar with or one we really like. But for this tour, everyone’s enjoying themselves and contributing their own unique angle.
And then right after this tour, you’re going back on the road with Cannibal Corpse and Soreption. Would you consider Cannibal Corpse an inspiration or influence on your personal or the overall band’s style?
It’d be hard to say they weren’t because they’ve been around for so many years and they have such a presence. Back in the day, the introduction to death metal always had some mention of Cannibal Corpse and they’ve proven to stand the test of time. They’ve produced actually interesting albums further in their career. I think it’s something to look up to in terms of the longevity. They’re just a good model.
I understand that Cannibal Corpse will be playing at Knotfest in the midst of the tour, will you guys be performing as well there?
That is just Cannibal Corpse actually. We tried to have our booking agent and manager get us on there, but apparently by the time we tried to get added, the festival had already been booked solid. It’ll be nice have a day off and do some laundry.
The Anthropocene Extinction came out last month. Was there any specific elements during the recording or writing process that stood out in comparison to past albums?
I think we all had very high expectations of each other. We just really wanted to exceed above and beyond what we did with Monolith of Inhumanity. Elements like our producer Dave Otero’s input accelerated and made the album rise above what we did in the past.
Last month, I spoke to Author & Punisher, who recorded the intro to the third song, “Plagueborne” and he expressed interest in a possible larger collaboration with you guys in the future. Is this is something you’re aware of or also interested in?
Yeah, I just recently heard that. I think it’s just a matter of finding time. When we’re done with our touring cycle, I would love to do that. I could see like an EP or something. He’s an amazing fellow and a super nice guy. What he does to create his music and the machines he makes, no one is doing that. There are people that obviously have made their instruments before, which is great, but his stuff is very unique and fantastical. Especially his live show, you need to see him perform..
You had a few other special guests on the album. What musicians would you wish to collaborate with in the future?
Some of them wouldn’t even want to do it, but I think each member would have a certain wish list as far as who we’d want. I don’t know how it would fit, but it would be great to do something with Ihsahn. I really love his solo stuff, so it would be an honor to work with him. Our drummer is super into Devin Townsend and he has a similar function as Ihsahn as far as being a multi-instrumentalist.
So, after your tour with Cannibal Corpse, are you guys do for a break or do you have any more plans?
After Cannibal Corpse, we’re done for the year. At that point, we’ll have been on tour for three months, so we’ll be ready to go home. Starting in January, as far as I know, there’s four dates we have in Mexico. We’ll be going down to Mexico City, Chihuahua, Monterrey, and Guadalajara, I believe. We’re confirmed to play Witch Fest in South Africa, which is in late March. We’ll probably be in Europe three times next year: in February/March, in June for a couple festivals, and come back for the typical festival run in August. We were offered a summer tour in the US, but I don’t know if we’re going to take it.
What do you see in the far future of the Cattle Decapitation in terms of more albums and experimentation?
As far as next record, I haven’t looked that far ahead, but I would almost want it to be more abrasive. I don’t mean necessarily like lo-fi, but make it really suffocating and uncomfortable the entire time. With Monolith of Inhumanity and The Anthropocene Extinction, we’ve got into a certain groove, but I don’t want to rest on that or rely on people’s perception of what the next record should be based off those records. The goal with The Anthropocene Extinction was to make it darker than Monolith of Inhumanity and we’d like to continue that, so maybe make the next record even darker.
