Interview with DISPLAY OF DECAY

What got you into music, and if you had not gotten into music what would you be doing today?  

My brother who’s 6 years older than me introduced me to metal. White Zombie - Astro Creep 2000 was one of the first CDs I ever got from him and it really got the ball rolling for me. Eventually, I just graduated to heavier and heavier from there. I don’t even know what I’d do without music to be honest, probably just grinding out the daily job here wiring up homes. Love the job, but I feel like without music life has very minimal purpose. Family and music are most important to me…..and Runescape. I love my virtual world there hahaha.

How long has your band been around?

We formed in 2007, so it’s been 16 years for me. Time flies, that’s for sure.

Where are you based out of and how did that influence your music?

 Edmonton, Alberta Canada. Geographically, Canada is a terrible place to tour as there’s so much distance between cities so i’d say very minimal influence that way but our scene is strong and dedicated because not too many shows come through this part of the country.

How did you come up with the name of your band and what does it mean to you?

Right around 2005, we were just hanging out around the fire having some drinks, and a buddy started talking about this weird dream he had where he was a cannibal and had literally visioned eating all of us around a fire (kinda ironic timing right?) and we were all like…..alright this is kind-of weird, next thing you know someone else blurts our ‘Woah, that would be such a Display of Decay.’ It wasn’t one of those lightbulb moments, but it was cool enough that we stuck with it.

Tell me about your most memorable shows.

Most memorable, is Las Vegas Deathfest. I dreamt early on of playing it, formed a lineup in a few months and built a tour around that date. It was a blast. Honorable mention, playing with Carach Angren and Kataklysm. Jack Owen from Deicide/Cannibal Corpse was filling in for CA, and I remember seeing him check out not only our soundcheck but our entire set and just love it. Ended up hanging out and having drinks with him the entire evening, talking music and old-school wrestling. Was a great time and a great memory.

What is your favorite venue to play at, and do you have any places you want to play that you have not already? The list of places I’d love to play is incredibly long. Japan for me is the number one place I’d like to go to, then all the large European festivals. In terms of my favorite place to play, I’d have to say The Starlite Room here at home. It’s the premiere venue we’ve got locally with great sound and a strong turnout every time. We’re fortunate enough to be doing the new release on that stage on November 11th.

If you could play any show with any lineup, who would be on the ticket? Cannibal Corpse will always be the bucket list band for me to play with. If nothing else comes true and that does, I can die happy. If I were to round-out a bill it would probably be Cannibal Corpse, Lamb of God, Scour, and Us.

If you could go back in time and give yourselves advice, what would it be?

What is some advice that you would give to someone who is just getting into playing in a band and some advice that you would give to your younger self? Attitude over skill, any day of the week. I would rather play with the most level-headed and business-oriented people over the most technical but arrogant type. On top of that would be value your craft. You spent countless hours practicing and creating this music, don’t just give it all up for free because there are promoters who are ready and willing to profit off of you and leave nothing to the act.

Of your songs which one means the most to you and why?

The title track of the new record, Vitriol, means the most to me. I was in a really bad place at the time, and Brandon (bass guitar) had told me to write out my thoughts and those lyrics were what came out of it. When it was written, I had in mind someone else doing vocals at the time but things got so busy for him we ended up moving forward without and I filled those shoes. It was the first track we busted out at rehearsal where I finally figured out my own voice and also the first track recorded on the record. Whether I’m sick, tired, have no voice, whatever it may be……..I’ll scream that chorus at the top of my lungs because I genuinely feel where I was at that time EVERY SINGLE TIME it comes up.

Which songs are your favorite to play and which get requested the most?

Blood Borne and Born of Rot are two old-school ones that have become staples in our set. Of the new material we’ve played live, The Butcher and Legion of Doom have gone over super well. I would say Legion of Doom (which premieres Oct 9th) has had the biggest pop of any song.

What is the creative process for the band, and what inspires you to write your music?

Most songs are based on a singular riff that a lot of the time I’ve hummed into my phone. They sound cheesy and terrible but have been my format for over a decade. Brandon is the master of piecing these things together, and Logan rounds everything out and builds on the ideas.

What kinds of messages do you like to get across in your music?

With the exception of a couple new songs, we don’t write with the intention of sending a message. A lot of our material ranges from serial killers to pop culture. Hot Lead Vengeance was written about school shootings which have become far more frequent in recent years. Slaughtercast was the follow-up to this, making awareness that these 24-hour news cycles elevate these criminals into anti-hero status giving fame they not only shouldn’t have but also increasing the likelihood of others following suit. It’s a terrible plague on our society.

Do you ever have disagreements in your band, and how do you get past them?

I’ve had many disagreements over the years with past members because I’m very stubborn and certainly not the easiest person to work with, but with regard to this lineup we’ve had the last few years we’ve never encountered anything of the sort. Everything we do is done by the majority, and if we just can’t find a middle ground on something (which really isn’t often) we find a compromise.

Life is all about balance and there’s always a way to ‘make it work’ if people are willing to communicate and work through it.

What are your plans for the future, and do you have anything that you want to spotlight that is coming up?

Vitriol is coming out on all platforms on October 20th through GoreHouse Productions. We’ve got a few dates lined up,

Nov 10 - Dickens Pub - Calgary, AB

Nov 11 - Starlite Room - Edmonton, AB

Nov 17 - Cheers Pub - Lloydminster, AB

We’ll also be looking into both Europe and Japan for 2024 so keep your eyes peeled!

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Album Pre-Order - https://orcd.co/vitriol