DAVE LOMBARDO says he felt 'a little frustrated' in 1989 'after doing the same old thing day after day' with SLAYER
26-03-2025
Fistful Of Metal magazine’s Oran O’Beirne spoke to legendary SLAYER drummer Dave Lombardo prior to the release of the new VENAMORIS studio album — a project that he and his wife, Paula Lombardo, created.
Below are some excerpts from the article, which can be found in the latest issue featuring cover stars MOTÖRHEAD. Issue No. 18 is now available in WH Smiths (U.K.), Barnes & Noble (Canada and USA) and online via www.fistfulofmetal.co.uk.
On the new VENAMORIS album, “To Cross Or To Burn”:
Dave: “This is such a personal album, that is born and created in our home. We have full control of sounds, rhythms, atmospheric drones and textures, etc. We decide on everything and that makes it so special. The fact that these are Paula‘s lyrics also is kind of scary for her, as it’s some very personal lyrics for her, and that can be very daunting to show the world. Making this album was a very liberating experience for both of us. I’m used to a producer breathing down my neck, or a tight deadline for some projects, but with VENAMORIS everything was on our terms.”
On his approach to his long relationship with Mike Patton (MR. BUNGLE, FAITH NO MORE, FANTÔMAS) and creating new music:
Dave: “I’ve worked with Mike on so many projects, and he always told me to follow my instincts and not to be afraid to put out my art into the world. That made a huge impact on my confidence, and was a big part of the decision process when it came to my solo stuff. I’m also very aware that social media is a monster and as good as it can be at times, it can also destroy artists. So that’s always in the back of my mind, but then that punk attitude kicks in and I just don’t give a fuck of what anyone thinks.”
On what led him to working with other bands in the late ’80s:
Dave: “Way back in ’89, after touring month after month with SLAYER, I was feeling a little frustrated after doing the same old thing day after day. It became so repetitive and I really had an overwhelming urge to do something different. Something that really challenged my ability. I wanted to branch out and work with other musicians, so in the early ’90s, I started working with TESTAMENT and FANTÔMAS. I felt that I was a little bit of a chameleon, where I could just adapt to so many different styles of music and work with a varied range of guitar players and tempos — especially with FANTÔMAS. The dynamics change so fast with FANTÔMAS, so I had to adapt very quickly to the arrangements, and I’m so thankful that Mike saw my ability to do just that. It was a lot of fun working together back then, and still is today. I’m eternally grateful to him for inviting me along for this wild ride — not to mention introducing me to John Zorn (jazz-metal composer). That was really the moment for me that changed so much. This was what I was really hungry for when I think back to that frustrated feeling in ’89.”
“To Cross Or To Burn” came out on February 28 via Ipecac Recordings. VENAMORIS, is the project featuring legendary extreme metal drummer Dave Lombardo (SLAYER, FANTÔMAS, TESTAMENT, MR. BUNGLE, MISFITS, DEAD CROSS) and his wife Paula, signed with Ipecac Recordings.
Watch last year’s “In The Shadows” below.
Paula Lombardo states: “‘In The Shadows’ is a song that arose from real-life feelings. The pulsating drum wholly evocative of marching forward even when internal unrest is still close at hand. It is a call for self-acceptance with the heaviness of a life well lived.”
Dave Lombardo added: “VENAMORIS is such an intimate project for the two of us. To have our sophomore album in Ipecac‘s exceptionally skilled hands is a dream realized. We are estatic to be a part of this audacious label.”
VENAMORIS captures the essence of a sound that is alluring and deeply emotional, blending sultry vocals with mesmerizing instrumentation to create an enveloping experience that is as hypnotic as it is emotionally charged. Like a whispered secret, there’s something seductive yet provocative about the noir-tinged songs they create. Brooklyn Vegan, describing an earlier single, adeptly said VENAMORIS has “PORTISHEAD-meets-David Lynch vibes.”
Founded in 2021 by what can only be called, astral influence, VENAMORIS was launched a result of some persistent persuasion on Dave‘s part. The 59-year-old musician, who was in charge of drums and production on VENAMORIS‘s debut album, 2023’s “Drown In Emotion”, explained: “Several months after meeting Paula in 2010, she hesitantly shared with me her past decade-long career as the lead backup singer for Wayne Newton. She later played me some of the demos she recorded throughout the years, and I was floored by her sonically soothing, rich tone and natural, instinctive ability to harmonize. I was determined to persuade her to return to her creative self. It’s been a deeply gratifying journey witnessing this music come to life.”
Canadian-born singer/songwriter Paula Lombardo, who performs vocals and piano for this project, bursts with vulnerability and intimacy, addressing a broad scope of emotion: anger, healing, pain, hope. It’s evident that VENAMORIS was founded out of love, passion, communication, respect, and trust. One person thriving in music encouraged the other, who had abandoned music to find their way back. It is the result of many late nights with too much wine, and even more truth laid bare: an aural couple’s journaling generously shared with the world.
During a question-and-answer session with the readers of U.K.’s Metal Hammer magazine, Lombardo was asked if he would play with SLAYER again if the band reunited and wanted him to be part of the lineup. He said: “I don’t think that’s ever going to happen. But, yeah, I’d listen to whatever it is they had to say. That’s it. You can’t go any further than that.”
Lombardo, who has spent most of the recent years between crossover pioneers SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, horror-punk icons MISFITS, hardcore supergroup DEAD CROSS and MR. BUNGLE, was effectively fired from SLAYER after sitting out the group’s Australian tour in February/March 2013 due to a contract dispute with the other bandmembers. He was later replaced by Paul Bostaph, who was previously SLAYER‘s drummer from 1992 until 2001.
Shortly after his dismissal, Lombardo said that he discovered that 90 percent of SLAYER‘s tour income was being deducted as expenses, including fees to management, costing the band millions and leaving them with about 10 percent to split four ways. While he and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya hired auditors to figure out what had happened, Lombardo said he was never allowed to see any of the information obtained.
Last weekend, SLAYER played its first reunion concert at the Riot Fest in Chicago. Joining Araya and Bostaph in the band’s reunited lineup are guitarists Kerry King and Gary Holt.
Lombardo released his debut solo album, “Rites Of Percussion”, on May 5 2023. via Ipecac Recordings.
Watch “Separation From The Sacred” below.
The 13-track collection, previously previewed with the release of “Journey Of The Host”, is the result of a 40-year career that saw Lombardo rise to prominence as a co-founder of SLAYER, earn two Grammy Awards, and expand his repertoire across genres. The Cuban-born Lombardo‘s resume includes outings with the acrobatic, Mike Patton-led FANTÔMAS, the critically revered John Zorn, experimental hip-hop artist DJ Spooky and the resurrected punk icons MISFITS.
Watch the previously released “Journey Of The Host” below.
“Mike Patton originally gave me the idea as far back as 1998,” explains Lombardo. “He introduced me to Tito Puente‘s ‘Top Percussion’ album. I was already familiar with Tito and was a bit shocked that Patton was so musically diverse, and that he surrounded himself with musicians of the same mindset. That inspired me. I have had ideas that I’ve recorded on cassette over the years, but Patton kept insisting that I had to do a ‘drum album.’ So, the idea behind the album is years in the making. I just had to find the right time — for me — to do it.”
“When the pandemic hit, I thought, ‘Well, I can’t tour now,'” he says. “I immediately started working on the record. It was one of the greatest experiences I’ve ever had. I had my studio, all my drums. Nothing was in storage for once! My home became a place where I could be free and creative. On the one hand, the touring part of my livelihood had been taken away, but on the other, I finally had the time to educate myself on different software and recording techniques. It was a very educational and gratifying experience.”
The recording process of the film score-like album had a simple mantra: drums had to be drums. Mixed in early 2022 by Lombardo‘s son, David A. Lombardo, the self-produced release features a large concert bass drum, a timpani, a grand piano, and a flock of shakers, maracas, Chinese and symphonic gongs, Native American drums, congas, timbales, bongos, batás, wood blocks, djembes, ibos, darbukas, octobans, cajóns, and cymbals.
“Rites Of Percussion” track listing:
01. Initiatory Madness
02. Separation From The Sacred
03. Inner Sanctum
04. Journey Of The Host
05. Maunder In Liminality
06. Despojo
07. Interfearium
08. Blood Let
09. Warpath
10. Guerrero
11. Vicissitude
12. Omiero
13. Animismo
Album orders, which include CD, digital, and three vinyl variants: standard cigar smoke, indie retail exclusive blood sacrifice, and Ipecac-exclusive purple haze, are available now.
Dave Lombardo was born in Havana, Cuba, relocating to Los Angeles when he was a mere two years old. He began playing drums as a teenager, and co-founded SLAYER (and created the band’s logo) in 1981. Rolling Stone, in their list of the “100 Greatest Drummers Of All Time,” dubbed him the “Cuban speed demon, ” Modern Drummer proclaimed him “The King,” and Drummerworld gave him the title of “The Godfather of double bass.” Lombardo‘s eye-popping resume includes over 100 studio albums/recordings and includes both recorded and live stints with GRIP INC., FANTÔMAS, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, DEAD CROSS, MR. BUNGLE, MISFITS, DJ Spooky, John Zorn, TESTAMENT, and most recently creating the soulful duo VENAMORIS, with his wife Paula.
Lombardo was effectively fired from SLAYER after sitting out the group’s Australian tour in February/March 2013 due to a contract dispute with the other bandmembers. He was later replaced by Paul Bostaph, who was previously SLAYER‘s drummer from 1992 until 2001.
Shortly after his dismissal, Lombardo said that he discovered that 90 percent of SLAYER‘s tour income was being deducted as expenses, including fees to management, costing the band millions and leaving them with about 10 percent to split four ways. While he and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya hired auditors to figure out what had happened, Lombardo said he was never allowed to see any of the information obtained.
SLAYER played its last-ever show in November 2019 at The Forum in Los Angeles.
