Interviews

Interviews: Cattle Decapitation

Cattle Decapitation blends a unique style of grindcore and death metal with gory and dogmatic vegetarian lyrics. Under the extreme and technical music and uncompromisingly brutal lyrics is a palpable sense of humor. Hailing from San Diego, Cattle Decapitation will reach the east coast for the first time as they tour the US with GWAR this fall, followed by a tour supporting Cannibal Corpse. Katherine Davidson caught up with Travis Ryan on a beautiful September afternoon to ask him about the evolution of the band, the metal scene in Mexico, and the irony in supporting Cannibal Corpse with a song called "Testicular Manslaughter."

Katherine: How has Cattle Decapitation changed since you started?

Travis: Big time, because we started with guitar, drums, and vocals- then we got a bass player finally after 2 albums. We didn't really care to have one until that point. We decided we wanted to change our sound- we had to get more heavy, had to get a bass player. Our guitar player Gabe took off because he had stuff going on with other projects, I think he had somebody more stable, so we were trying out this guy Josh, for second guitar at that time. So we had him come over and pick up where he left off. So our sound's drastically changed because we got a new bass player and he's actually the one who writes all the songs now. Different from the old stuff but still has the same intensity and energy.

K: Right on. What would you do with your life if you weren't a musician?

T: I don't know, I'd probably just work and try to go to school or something. I kind of quit college halfway through, so I'd probably do something like that.

K: What did you study?

T: I was doing medical assisting for a long time and I wanted to go into mortuary science. I was going to do that but then I decided I didn't think I could handle that, not every day. So I just said, 'screw this, I hate school.' I got sick of it.

K: What is the worst wound you have ever gotten?

T: My sister hit me in the head with an aluminum bat one time and the doctor stuck his finger in my forehead.

K: I know that you are touring with GWAR and then Cannibal Corpse. Do you like touring, and how does it compare with recording?

T: We've never toured. Last October we did eleven days up and down the west coast. So we haven't done it yet, but our drummer has toured all over the world and our guitar player has toured all over the US. It's just way better than being locked in a stupid studio. Recording is one of the most tedious, boring things in the world. It's still kinda cool to go in there and do everything, but god, it sucks! Especially for vocals. If you're not ready to do them that week or whatever, you're screwed. It's all good, they both have pros and cons.

K: What would your ideal tour be?

T: Discord from Mexico, Carcass reunion show…

K: Wow…

T: [laughs] and I don't know, Necrohphacaster, [sic] an Atheist reunion, that would be killer. Something like that, I guess, as far as metal.

K: What other metal bands do you like that are happening right now?

T: Discord from Mexico is pretty much my favorite. They're the best. This guy from Germany called Necrophagast, [sic] they're insane. I like prog stuff like Frederick Dorganal, Special Defects, stuff like that. The technical shit, I like that the best.

K: What is the metal scene like in southern California?

T: It's weird. L.A. is kind of cool sometimes, it just depends. San Diego kind of sucks as far as metal. That pretty much comprises all of southern California. The big name metal bands who come through play L.A. but you have to pay to play at them. At least until now we haven't bothered with that. We haven't done it before, we aren't going to do it now as far as paying to play and selling tickets and all that stupid crap. We don't need to do that stuff, we don't advise that to anybody. So that's pretty much the L.A. scene. San Diego is different, it's just about getting the word out there and flyering and stuff. It's pretty small so word of mouth travels pretty quickly. It's getting bigger, it's getting better right now.

K: You mentioned Discord, a band from Mexico. Do you know much about the scene there?

T: Oh yeah, it's gnarly there.

K: Do you have plans to get down there?

T: We have yet to get down there. The shows down there I know for sure are crazy. We were supposed to play one one night, with Phobia, and we had to cancel at the last minute. I went down there and the place was just packed with tons of crazy fuckers. Us and Phobia cancelled, and everybody was all bummed, it was kinda cool. But no, we didn't end up playing. But it's a crazy scene down there, tons of crazy people come out.

K: Cool. I read on your website that you were #2 on the CMJ loud rock charts for college radio. I'm a DJ at WXJM in Harrisonburg, VA and we have your album in rotation. I was wondering what you think of this college radio exposure?

T: I think it's cool. I hope enough people tune in. I know that when I was in high school or college I wish I'd had a radio station in my town. We didn't have that kind of stuff. I wish I had that resource when I was in college. I hope people are taking advantage of it.

K: Do you consider your lyrics political?

T: Sort of. There are hidden things… well it's actually pretty blatant. As far as politics go it's also kinda hidden, kinda woven in the lines, but not blatantly at all. It's blatantly gory and not so much "fuck the government!" It's not punk-political. I try not to be too blatant as far as being political goes.

K: Is the whole band involved in creating your message?

T: It's mainly just me. I mean, none of us eat meat, but I'm the one who writes the lyrics so I'm the one coming up with the ideas. They write all the music and I write all the lyrics, that's just how it is.

K: Cool. You're going to tour with Cannibal Corpse at the end of the year and they sing songs that graphically depict rape, but your song "Testicular Manslaughter" describes the mutilation of a rapist.

T: Yeah.

K: Can you comment on that?

T: Yeah, they did it first. You can put forth anything and you don't have to stand behind it. But for somebody to see that and say, "yeah, that's what I want to do"- like for all the rape-metal bands that come out after the fact- they did it first. They're the first to do it, anybody who follows after that, it's like, come on, do you really hate women that much? Cannibal Corpse did it to be brutal, and that's cool, but I was showing the flipside of the coin with "Testicular Manslaughter."