Photograph: Maciej Pieloch

Since his firing from Megadeth, bassist David Ellefson has stored busy, hitting the street with also-former Megadeth member Jeff Younger in Kings of Thrash and by beginning death-thrashers Dieth with guitarist/vocalist Guilherme Miranda (ex-Entombed A.D.) and drummer Michał Łysejko (ex-Decapitated). Ellefson spoke to Decibel concerning the new band, turning over a brand new leaf and what his future holds.

That is your debut album, To Hell and Again, however you and each member of Dieth have lengthy musical histories. Do you’re feeling like you must make some further sturdy assertion with this document?
Truthfully, we had no preconceived notion of something. This actually fell in our laps. I used to be launched to Guilherme from my good friend Opus who performs within the band Useless by Wednesday and all I knew was that he had been in Entombed A.D., he was trying to begin one thing new and he thought I ought to play on this observe with him.

That was what turned “Within the Corridor of the Hanging Serpents” and I favored the guitar patterns, I dug the drumming—as completely different as our three backgrounds had been, we’d in some way made some fairly cool music collectively. Guilherme mentioned “Hey, I believe this got here out very well, let’s do some extra.”

This factor shaped very unpretentiously, it’s not a supergroup. It was about as unassuming as you will get.

You’ll be able to hear your entire backgrounds on the document without delay.
It was enjoyable for me. I’ve been doing quite a lot of these things, beginning with working with Max Cavalera 20 years in the past, F5, being a part of Metallic Allegiance. I’ve by no means achieved this as a type of advertising and marketing try or some supergroup mentality. The individuals in my telephone e book occur to be well-known too as a result of we’ve all had careers.

There was a heartfelt authenticity that each one 3 of us had been shifting previous prior teams. We’d gone by transitions in our life and I believe there’s one thing very trustworthy about that. The way in which we collaborate is enjoyable and it’s received a lightheartedness about it.

You’d say you had the creativity to do what felt proper for the challenge? There wasn’t one one who oversees the general route of the factor and it strikes in that route, like a few of your tasks previously.
100%. Out of respect, I defer to Guilherme as a result of he introduced the primary music in. He and Michał had been type of the unique collaborators, so out of respect you don’t stroll in and take over. I used to be rapidly invited proper to the entrance traces.

I may sense that Guilherme discovered the important thing to unlock the door to his subsequent chapter and there’s part of me that’s all the time favored championing the underdog. You see it for the final 40 years, be the wind in individuals’s sails, whether or not it’s a “Fuck you or a fuck yeah,” get behind that. To me, that’s the rock ‘n’ roll rebellious spirit and we’re going to do it by our songs.

It sounds such as you’re studying new methods to work together with the music you’re writing. It’s simple to surrender after 40 years and say “I performed in Megadeth and I performed on these information, I don’t want to vary.”
I believe singing is the subsequent frontier, whilst I’m studying the songs to take them into rehearsal and onto the stage. After I was first beginning enjoying bass, in all my bands I used to be one of many singers. Then it turned this factor the place we recognized a singer in a band and we went by the lead singer mentality, after which I sang much less and fewer. I’d leap in and do the concord, background stuff nevertheless it’s humorous how that’s the brand new frontier for me now, is singing. Actually caring for my voice and studying new issues. What a enjoyable factor to do at my age and at this level in my profession.

What higher time, although? You don’t have anything to lose and nothing left to show.
That’s what it’s. It’s “Let’s come collectively and never simply must recreate our previous. Let’s do one thing of a brand new path.” You’ll be able to inform in case you’re within the room—the grins, the high-fives and the “Fuck yeahs.”

There are issues that sound very Decapitated or death-thrash or what I might have anticipated in Megadeth, however there are psychedelic elements, some stoner grooves, some Sabbath-influenced stuff.
One in all my favourite information is that Temple of the Canine document. I bear in mind when it got here out as a result of it was the very best of the very best of those guys. It’s type of a hidden gem document of mine as a result of I really like Soundgarden, first Pearl Jam document’s nice… after which this document got here alongside and I used to be like “I want there could be one other one.”

I believe quite a lot of it was simply the sudden nature of it and the way intelligent issues come collectively. I’m glad that is persevering with within the movement that it has. And likewise, for us to get pleasure from doing it. Fuck, I’ve by no means been to Poland so many instances in my life as I’ve this final 12 months. I’m going to Europe each couple months. I’m flying throughout the ocean and I stay up for it, there’s all the time a historical past lesson in it for me.

That historical past has made these individuals who they’re. That historical past comes into the music. You actually really feel it as a result of I believe Dieth is a cultural occasion as a lot as it’s a music occasion.

Cultural occasion in what sense? That it’s the mix of various individuals doing one thing steeped in numerous histories?
Guilherme is from Brazil, lives in Portugal, however performed in Entombed A.D. out of Sweden. He actually understands the pipeline of that tradition, identical with Michał with Decapitated being primarily based out of Poland. We had been in Krakow once we had been capturing the “To Hell and Again” and “Don’t Get Mad, Get Even” movies. We had been in Katowice, that was the primary city I ever went to when Megadeth performed Katowice with Bruce Dickinson opening for us. There’s an understanding the historical past, that Auschwitz is simply half-hour from there. You’ll be able to see the physique language within the individuals. In America, it was all Bud Lite and babes on the seashore, California ladies, and then you definitely go over there and also you perceive this deep historical past and the struggling that has occurred there.

Possibly it’s that struggling that brings a couple of type of new launch. “Free Us All,” I imply, fuck, there it’s. Watching personally ??? and Guilherme and myself being free of previous conditions that we’re now free to maneuver on and get on with our lives.

You sound extra like issues are previously than in earlier interviews. With this new album, it feels such as you’re turning over a brand new leaf. You sound extra free than in previous interviews.
I admire that, and for certain. I do. That was then, that is now. I simply went out and I celebrated the earliest days with Kings of Thrash, which I believe was, for me, the last word getting over the hurdle. No arduous emotions, no trying again. Even excessive fives on that entrance. Fuckin’ A, are you able to consider all of the shit we did over there?

Dieth’s To Hell and Again is out on June 2 through Napalm.