Interview Interrogation:- Henri Sattler of God Dethroned (The Netherlands)

Without a shadow of a doubt, God Dethroned are veterans of the Dutch Metal scene despite having split-up twice (1993, 2012) and whilst some might have cast them off as just 'hanging around', it goes without question that the quartet have arisen once again with newfound vigour, a sense of passion and pride, but above all the feeling that they have left business unfinished.

Starting off back in the old days with Satanism as the core topic of their lyrics, God Dethroned mid-career switched to a more death-orientated stance which transgressed into their modern self as a band who sings about war, specifically the First World War; as shown on their 2009 album 'Passiondale (Passchendaele)'.

26 long years down the line and God Dethroned are set to deliver their 10th opus titled 'The World Ablaze', ending the WW1 album trilogy. In promotion of the album God Dethroned have released three blazingly brutal music videos:-

1. 'On The Wrong Side Of The Wire' = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsJ0jPAJPcg
2. 'The World Ablaze'                      = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vBogAvuq3Y
3. 'Annihilation Crusade'                  = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COJ58_Z8p-s

Fending off the aggression of this Dutch horde, GMA came into calling truce with frontman Henri Sattler who laid out the band's battle plans for the campaign ahead, speaking of their local division, politics and their latest weapon 'The World Ablaze'... prepare for mortar fire.

"This line-up feels really good. I'd like it to stay this way for as long as possible"

Guys firstly how does it feel to have God Dethroned back together? What gave you the impetus to come back together?

     "It feels great! We have played many great shows and festivals after our 3 year break. In order to continue this very rewarding lifestyle, we needed to come up with a new album and so we did.
It was at a friend's funeral that I realised how much I missed the music scene. I was there with many fellow musicians and at the end of the day I knew I had to continue my life as a musician."


'The World Ablaze' is your 10th album and marks 26 years since GD was born, will you be carrying on the war-theme after this album?

     "I'm not sure yet what themes I will follow for future albums. It's too soon. First we'll have to see how well this one does and we'll promote the crap out of it by playing as much as we can. Then in time I will figure out what to do next."


Regarding your new album, could you perhaps give us a short break-down of  what each song is about?

     "Some songs deal with very specific events in WWI and some songs basically describe a certain situation on the battlefield. Here's some examples:-

• 'Escape Across the Ice' is about the Russian revolution that happened during WWI. The abdication of Tsar Nicholas and the rise of the communists, supported by the red army. However, there was also a white army. They were loyal to the Tsar and they fought for their own independence within Russia.
  

 

• 'Messina Ridge' is about the biggest man made explosion before the Trinity bomb explosion in Nevada. The allied forces couldn't pass a hill in the Ypres region and so they decided to dig a tunnel and stuff the hill with explosives. When they detonated it they killed 15000 troops instantly and the shock-wave of the blast could be felt in London...

 

• 'The 11th Hour' is about the end of the war. 11 am on the 11th of November (11:00 11/11). All very symbolic. The armistice was already signed at 5 am, so there were no attacks necessary any more on the final morning, but some commanders felt it would look good in the statistics if they would gain some extra ground. So they sent their troops into battle that final morning. And purely to look good they sent 20,000 troops into death that day...
  

Will this present line-up remain together? Will there be guest musicians also?

     "Yes I believe so. We had the new guys in the band as session musicians for 2 years until we decided to keep them as steady band-members. For the first time in a long time we had the luxury of trying them out for a while before having to make the decision to keep them or not. In the past we were forced to make decisions on short notice because of our busy tour schedule and it didn't always work out so well. This line-up feels really good. I'd like it to stay this way for as long as possible. We never really worked with guest musicians and I don't see that happening for the foreseeable either."

With Brexit are you as a band worried about touring the UK?

     "I heard that you guys will be negotiating for 2 years, so there's no immediate changes there. Hope you guys will manage to get a good deal out of this. It would be the best for everybody. And then we'll see what happens."


Since 2009 your lyrics changed from 'satanic' morbidity to war-themed, would you agree your new lyrics teach listeners about WW1, etc?

     "I would say that my lyrics have been satirical versions of bible stories and a lot of fictional stuff that didn't have anything to do with religion. I ran into the WWI theme when I was on visit in Ypres, where our guitar player Isaac Delahaye used to live.

     We would hang out on a regular basis and go to bars and stuff. It was there that I saw "the last post" ceremony, the war cemeteries, the war museum, memorial sites and above all, the English folk that were there to visit the graves of their long lost relatives. It impressed me so much that I decided to write some songs about it.

     With 'Passiondale' our first WWI concept album was born. It turned out to be so special that we decided to do another one ('Under The Sign Of The Iron Cross'). Now the trilogy is finished with "The World Ablaze". I don't know if I actually teach people about it. I may make they aware of it. I don't have to do more than that."


Will there be any festival appearances / tours taking place this year in support of your new album?

     "First we play 5 album release shows in May (called Serpent Fest) and then we play some festivals like With Full Force and Party-San. After the summer we will probably go on a European tour. Shows in Japan and the USA are also in the works."


What is the Drenthe metal scene like? What sights / attractions should metalheads see in your home village of Beilen?

     "I live in the most boring part of the country. There's absolutely nothing to do, so in order to make my life a little bit more interesting I started to play guitar, founded a band and started playing all over the world. It was my grand escape, so to say. The metal scene however is quite good. I suppose it's because of the reasons I just described."

"The World Ablaze" is out 5th May 2017 via Metal Blade Records

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