While I have made little secret of it in my exchanges with fellow metal mavens, I now feel obligated to pledge my unwavering dedication to Dream Death in front of all who glance upon these pages. Mere words cannot encapsulate the impact Dream Death's legacy has had on me as both a musician and a devoted partisan of heavy music. When Hellhammer cobbled together Triumph Of Death from loose, frayed fragments of Cirith Ungol, Aragorn, Discharge, Angel Witch, Black Sabbath and Venom 's “Buried Alive”, Thomas Gabriel Fischer surely could not have known that the hellacious, universally-maligned din that Hellhammer spewed forth would have catalyzed a phenomenon that has yet to be stilled today. Of the countless hordes of bands who have borrowed liberally from the G Warrior school of atavistic, primordial sludgeflinging, from the unabashedly blatant ( Winter, Necro Schizma, Cathedral ) to the decidedly less conspicuous (Massacre, Therion), none have imposed themselves on my life with as much obnoxious insistence as Dream Death. The fact that Dream Death 's three MONOLITHIC demos are landmarks in downtrodden, mastodonic horror-doom are beyond all disputation, and I will go so far as to assert, with unmitigated conviction, that they REMAIN the finest demos in extreme metal history, save for those two untouchable Hellhammer monuments. Needless to say, I regard “Journey To Mystery” as THE absolute apex of New Renaissance's catalogue, and the very zenith of post- Frost despondency. This is my ode to a magical band.

- Conducted by Nin Chan

Diabolical Conquest (Nin Chan): Greetings, Mike! It is quite an honor for me to be conversing with a luminary in HEAVY music. Needless to say you've been one of the most prolific stickmen in the DC/VA/MD underground, holding court with the likes of Ronnie Kalimon, Steve Branagan, Joe Hasselvander and the like. While I am a devout admirer of all your work with Penance, Internal Void and more recently, Pentagram, I've always been fondest of your work with Dream Death , which, in my opinion, strikes an exquisite balance between tumbling, barely-contained intensity and remarkable dynamism- the despondency/despair of the Dream Death material is brought forth PERFECTLY by your lead-footed, heavy-handed caveman bashing, and you really could switched between more primal, coffinshaking rhythms with rampaging, snare-intensive sprints with seamless ease. I really, really, really worship the Dream Death stuff, and I am aware of several folks who are several times more fanatical than I. Does it feel bizarre for you to fathom that Dream Death has become so much more than a footnote in the annals of heavy music, that it has proven a formidable legacy to doom metal mavens the world over?

Dream Death (Mike Smail): Well thanks for all the kind words and especially with putting me in such cool company! Glad that we had such a cool impact on you. THAT's what Dream Death was all about. A cool reaction to the riffs/ music-no matter where it sounded like it was inspired from (Goodbread!-I'll expound more in question 6 as I see!)- It was about mood and emotion and such. I look on it now and I spose it's a bit self centered actually- we wanted to give that same feeling to the people that were digging us, that we got when we were listening to Sabbath, Slayer, Priest etc. and you'd hear those riffs and it just made you say YYYYEEAAAA!!!!!!!!! Like it was "Hey man, check out this riff......" There is not much better than that feeling you get when you hear a riff like that for the first time and it's completely mind blowing to you. It almost kinda changes you....some perfect examples for me...ie.the first time you heard Trouble ( Psalm 9 ), Kill ‘Em All, “Victim of Changes”, Sodden Jackal Obsessed and the like. As far as being a legacy, not so sure about that- but I appreciate the compliment. If we were so huge, I'd actually have some money right now and be ruling the world etc....ha! (and by the way, don't you usually have to die first to actually become a legacy?!) I'm just glad that whoever does like it, does.

Diabolical Conquest: It's a little odd for me to compare photos of you as an impetuous, middle-finger-thrusting youth and the far more benign-looking, short-haired bloke of recent years, haha! I realize that Dream Death has been resurrected for a gig with Celtic Frost (more on that in a later question), and I suppose the question I want to ask is this- Victor Griffin, to use a salient example, has in recent years very much distanced himself from what he regards as the ill-advised tomfoolery of his earlier years with Pentagram . The recent reformation of Dream Death , however short-lived it may prove, shows that you have less reservations regarding the more reckless/savage sounds of your youth. Am I correct in this assessment? Do you think that the “mellowing out” that invariably seems to take its toll on extreme metal musicians will imprint itself on this reunion? Will you approach old Dream Death staples in a new fashion, the way, say, Destruction and Metallica have done? How has your understanding and perspective on music shifted between then and now? There are so many, after all that assert that reformations are fundamentally futile.

Dream Death: Well, it was-then it wasn't-then it was-blah,blah,blah.....in the end we're NOT opening the show for a variety of reasons now, but we do have a scheduled gig at our home away from home...The 31st St. Pub here in Pittsburgh. Not totally sure about all of Victor's "tomfoolery" with Pentagram as I didn't know him then, but I do know that I distanced myself from Bobby as well! For obvious reasons now.

I'm proud of whatever I've done and with whoever I've ever played with. I'm so ready to play some of my old stuff again and I AM SAVAGE!!!!!! Barbarism is man's natural state! (Robert E. Howard). Some of which, I actually have to relearn a bit since it's been so long since I've played some of it. I like it though, keeps your chops sharp! As far as the whole mellowing out deal- I certainly hope not!!! I know what you mean, though. It's like the 20 year class reunion and Fred and the boys are gonna try and blow some dust off etc. and that's exactly what it sounds like...a dry fart!

We're looking at this through skeptical eyes as well. A lot of stems from Brian's concern as to whether or not to even do this. Trying to recapture that youthful vigor is sometimes impossible etc. You know if we don't think that we sound good, we'd just play in my basement like when Goodbread and I were 12 and just jamming. Actually, those were some of the best audiences that I've ever played for...just me and him and the 20,000 seat venue that we would both be pretending to play to in our heads...haha! I still have some old cassettes of me and him jamming to no one, but you'd never tell just from listening to it. If we are going to play out, it's because we're 100% behind it. This isn't just some nostalgia thing like I think some reunions or reformations are. I know that I'm approaching this with total seriousness from a musician standpoint, as I don't want to embarrass myself either! I've already been down that road, man!

We're approaching the songs like the songs as they are (or were!). I'm also really looking forward to ripping out some new stuff that really kicks ass!!! Actually, I'm still that same "middle finger thrusting" youth in the sense that throughout my career I've always had that middle finger out. I never tried to let myself get boxed in within any 1 type of label which ALWAYS causes friction. I have a total amalgamation of music in the fact that I have stuff that's thrash, but then I have some other stuff that's Doom, then slow, then Motorhead-ish, as well as stuff with other bands ie VOID, CATHEDRAL, PENTAGRAM etc too...whatever! Which in my mind leads to the whole thing where people tell me that, "Hey man I really love your stuff with DD, but I'm not too keen on the Penance stuff." or even stuff like "early" Penance as compared to later Penance and then back again to DD, but not the record, just the demos and etc. fuck man, give me a break! Hence the middle finger that I have a wide range of a catalog that you CAN pick and choose between. You can't A/B something unless you have an A and a B!

No offence, but I am and always have been making music for me because it comes from me and I'm really not concerned about pleasing anyone BUT me. As it stands, I LOVE the fact that anyone likes even just 1 thing that I've done, but it's not my job to keep making that same one thing all the time, just to keep whoever happy (which is impossible anyhow!). In my mind, it should be a good thing that you get- what I'd like to think is- good music all the way around with a variety to choose from. Honestly I've been doing this, (not for the money obviously!) because this is part of who I am. With ALL my original stuff, I've always been 100% behind it and totally digging what I was doing at the time as I was doing it. That's just being part of being an artist. You always think what the newest stuff that you're working on is totally kick ass or you wouldn't be doing it, right? It's only in retrospect that one can look back at your work and be able to critique it with less of a bias. You know, I like some of my stuff better than others too, but it's all part of the process of creating. This is after all, art. It's just on a different medium other than canvas.

I think my perspective has changed in the fact that I've learned (hopefully) from all the mistakes that I've made over the years and can see things from a bit more of a real standpoint (in a good way though) instead of that high in the sky point of view. You can only see more and more of that in retrospect, which takes more and more time to = that perspective which =s wisdom. Where as with reformations, I suppose that I generally agree, but when it does happen and it's good-it's great. After all, when you see something or hear something real that's right in front of you that's good, that's exactly what it is - reformation or not. I guess time will tell. Ask me a year after the new album and I'll tell you then!

Diabolical Conquest: More than virtually any band I can think of (save for perhaps Pentagram, Death SS and Mercyful Fate ), Dream Death really, really, captured that element of HORROR that is so crucial to all great doom metal. Clearly, you lot were very much into your Cthulhu Mythos (Robert E Howard and Lovecraft), and even managed to make Little Red Riding Hood nefarious and menacing, haha (“Under The Blood Red Moon”). While Tom G Warrior mined more obscure, occult references, patching together loose, cryptic threads of black science into oddball narratives, Dream Death 's lyrics were always accessible and profoundly chilling. I remember the first time my sister heard Dream Death , she was BEGGING me to take the awful din off the stereo, it had a visceral effect that repulsed and horrified her, haha (at least I believe that was it, she might just have hated Brian's vocals, hahahah!). Whereas Celtic Frost 's tales of the paranormal seemed remote and fantastical, Dream Death 's phantasmagoria was always immediate, urgent, gutwrenching, tales of anguish, haplessness, utter DOOM. Though you didn't label yourselves as such in the beginning, I truly feel as though Dream Death was DOOM personified and perfected. What compelled you to make such bleak and oppressive music? Has your perspective on life altered drastically since then? What say you to folks who suggest that without this element of torment and nihilistic resignation, doom metal ceases to be doom?

Dream Death: ABSOLUTELY! Just check Ebay...I'm selling tons of my REH stuff as well as my vinyl!!!!! That's about the only difference to me between the whole DD/Penance thing. The DD had a lot more of the horror aspect, whereas Penance didn't. But that's more on question 6 again I believe. I was heavily into reading as well as music and reading those guys was the equivalent of Sabbath, Trouble, etc..... in the literary world. Robert E. Howard dominated my readings.........such a graphic writer with loads of descriptive color. If it were a painting, it would be like when those artists just start throwing paint straight onto the canvas. Like a colorful murder scene! Ha! Overall, I don't think that he ever got the credit he deserved. Ok, from a "college" point of view, it's a bit one dimensional, you know, not loaded with sub plots, underlying themes, parallel meanings etc- and that's true, but that one dimension is oh, so HEAVY! Like a fucking sledgehammer crushing your skull!!!!!!! What a yarn my man could weave!

I remember somehow getting Mark Shelton's ( Manilla Road ) phone number ( I think from Hoss!) and I'd call him up in Kansas and we'd talk about REH. It was totally cool as he was a fan of his work as well and I loved Manilla Road so I'd be killing 2 birds with one stone. Getting to talk about REH to another fanatic and I'm talking to Mark Shelton who I was also a big fan of too.

I think that's another important point about, not only DD but Penance as well, is that the lyrics have always been a strong point. And that's what in my opinion takes things over the top. Which is why I could and did listen to some bands and like them even though I hated the singer (ie Mercyful Fate- KILLER band silly vocals or where I hated the lyrics i.e. Venom- all the Satanic bullshit or both (refer back to Fate). Lyrics that match the mood of the song. Again a lot of the DD stuff featured a bit more of the horror aspect more so than Penance. DD used a lot of our love for classic horror movies (such as the old Hammer flicks for one) as well as horror in a psychotic state etc....situations like what it would feel like to be buried alive, or losing your mind to dementia- things of that nature. Both feature horror as a common theme but the 2 are different still in the same way. Just as the same difference between a Dracula Hammer flick and Alien, both are still horror right? Our lyrics, regardless of topic, have always been more from a 1st person point of view and that very nature itself helps relate to the listener- much the same as reading an enveloping book. No matter how good the movie is, it usually pales in comparison to the book.

I guess you'd have to totally define what DOOM exactly is. Just the same as it's all opinion and/or perspective. Cause what might scare me, might not scare you. The closest way that I would describe it as such is...............all the usual things that people say like massively heavy riffs (which once again are open for debate) but I'm talking Lord of This World, Pray For The Dead riffs...HUGE mega monolithic RIFFS of that stature- ALONG with lyrics to match.

And what exactly is Doom? Well, without looking it up in the dictionary, I'd have to say it's the state of not only being fucked, but KNOWING that your fucked and there's ABSOLUTELY nothing that you or anyone can do about it . Not even like the glass being half full or half empty............there is no glass and you don't even know what a table is! Kinda like the old black man blues but trumped up to the nth degree. The end throes of depression. Which is why I'd have to say that Penance was more on that side of things than DD was because Penance dropped a lot of the classic horror/movie vibes and was more from my own struggles with questions that were bludgeoning my pessimistic mind.

Once Brian had left, I had taken over the lyrics for the most part-for a while anyway- and I was too busy with things of that nature and what was messing with me. I would have to say that it was a bit of catharsis. That's also why I would agree with you (and where I think Goodbread is silly) that the 3rd DD demo is probably our pinnacle. Just listen to the wail of the Unseen, the still mystical horror (The Fog) vibe of Wayfarer's along with both crushing riffs and self titled dreary lyrics of Born To Suffer...along with the production, even though homemade, it was still analog and as such is recorded slightly just over the threshold which makes it even a bit more distorted adding to the heaviness. Everything rolled into one. And let's face it, yes Goodbread was at his vocal best at that point. That's really the only other main difference between the 2 as well- was his voice. People who prefer his voice, and they normally do, get separated between the 2 right then and there. That was made even more funny to me when so many people never even realized that it was him on Living Truth demo and everything else with the whole name change thing etc...and would say well, it ain't Dream Death. Proof positive just listen to “In Spite of You”. Sounds very much like DD to me. Matter of fact, the whole damn thing does, and basically is! That's why its been just one big long progression to me, with the names changing, but still the same ride.

I'd like to say that I'm a bit more positive now, but sometimes old habits die hard. I've gotten married again to a great girl and have made my peace with God, I believe. I've accepted Jesus Christ as my savior and try and walk in a path that leads me closer and closer to that ending. Although that's the thing with being a Christian. It isn't just like this light switch that you all of a sudden turn on and be like "Ok, now I'm a Christian, and I can't have fun now" for whatever reason because a lot of people get stuck in their bias view of what an actual Christian is and what they think and/or see one is.

I kind of liken it to war veterans. It's the ones that you don't hear from that are real and you never really hear any of those "war stories" from- instead of the ones who "claim" to be and tell and retell their same stories over and over again at the drop of a hat to anyone who will listen. Actually I think that being a Christian is one of, if not the hardest things to try and be. And that's the thing, it's not about being some perfect person as it is about trying to live up to certain ideals and principals etc. Do you think it's easy not to tell the dickhead that just stepped in front of you in line to properly "Fuck off" or just kick the shit out of him (because he deserves it and it would make you feel so much better right now) instead of taking a humble approach and like the veteran, NOT say or do anything to add to what you realize is just stupidity?

For a long time I let the easy scapegoats (like all the atrocities committed in the "name" of the Lord, Jim Baker's, money etc.), just everyday hypocrites that you know or meet on the street everyday- push me further from God in my states of wondering, questioning (all of which is quite normal) instead of closer to him. It's like the old adage, "Seek and ye shall find"- You'll find or see what you want to see. So if you start out with a distorted mindset- you're already sunk. I was so caught up in the mode of pointing out how wrong so many things are that you have no room for any of the good things.

I finally decided to read The Bible for myself and make up my own mind about it. I believe that true religion is in that 1st person point of view as well. It's a singular, personal relationship between you and God as well as the bible being that singularly tailored to you. I've read the same Proverb and over the course of time have taken away several different meanings, but each one at that time was completely relevant to my life. Does that make it wrong? I don't think so. That doesn't mean that you can take and twist things to suit you(which a lot of people do) in a bad or warped way though etc.......But this gets back again to logic as well. If you've never read to bible for yourself, how do you know -one way or the other- what you actually think.

People are so quick to have a heated opinion on this subject and have never even read it or tried to approach it in a proper frame of mind. I am and have been my entire life a Christian and I believe it's a life long practice that you continually try and fine tune, not some kind of class-envy like status. Kinda like my '71 GTO. Keep suping it up...better and better every day. It's a life long path that has its ups and downs, kinda like the band, but it's always still trying to move forward and in a good direction.

I'd like to say that I could write some even better "DOOM" stuff now having been through everything as well as being a better musician, songwriter, performer, etc.............at this point of my life. I'm finally getting more and more comfortable about merging all of those aspects into one super GTO of DOOM! Like honing your sword, the more you sharpen it, the sharper it gets...............and if I'm coming to a show (in a Slingblade voice) "I mean to kill ye!"

Diabolical Conquest: I think it goes without saying that, as much as Hellhammer, Celtic Frost and Saint Vitus were, Dream Death were always ahead of their time. What is rather ironic about it all, of course, is the fact that you belonged to a fraternity of bands that flew in the face of the faster-than-thou pyrotechnics of the burgeoning speed/thrash scenes by peddling a sound that was more primal and feral, but to me, Dream Death unquestionably has aged infinitely better than the likes of At War, Wehrmacht, Savage Steel, Gargoyle, Holocross and the like, who must have seemed cutting-edge back then. Why do you think doom, after all these years (save for some very interesting permutations such as Confessor, Unorthodox, Revelation ) has managed to remain relatively obstinate over the years (as in, a band like Dream Death in 2006 would not be out of place at all), yet has proven to be so timeless? For example, standing Bathory and Tormentor up to something like Mayhem one could obviously draw up a timeline/chronology, but Journey Into Mystery sounds contemporary when slotted in with bands like Thee Plague Of Gentlemen, Usurper, Lair Of The Minotaur, Gallhammer, Unearthly Trance and the like. Doom bands of today are able to recycle and refurbish the same root ideas of doom's forefathers without being called “retro” or schlocky, why do you think this is?

Dream Death: Maybe that's true which would go along with all the confusion. I think that we're several things at once which adds to the uniqueness and well as being able to find something to like on the plus side of things and then not enough of just one or two of those things that people don't want to grasp a hold of, on the negative side of things. Maybe we're just too much of a whole bunch of nothing! HA! I think great pieces of art usually are ahead of their time. Look at Van Gogh. He died a pauper and lived below poverty his whole life and such, he totally struggled. He's right now rolling over in his grave at what he's worth today! Couldn't even buy a piece of bread then, but now could buy the whole fucking country!

I must agree with your statement. A lot of what I used to really love, doesn't hold the same attraction to me now as it once did. I think a good portion of that comes back around to originality. You can only ride the crest of whatever wave you want to for a limited time. Sooner than later that fad dies away and even though you were good at that fad you fade just the same. Good music endures the test of time and always remains relevant. I also think that it gets back around to that more personal point of view and why good lyrics are so important. Some topics are timeless which have staying power where as it would be hard (even though it might be a good song) to get a teenager now to feel cool doing "The Twist" or something. Feelings of dejection, sorrow, hope, etc are things that we all can in one way or another relate to and come across in our lives.

Good music is good music. Some people have said that in reality there has only been something like 5 or 7 songs or something along those lines. You can only reinvent the wheel so many times so that after a while, it becomes more about your interpretation of it. Newer or different ideas on a known thing still are able to sound fresh even though you may have heard it or something like it before, when it's interpreted correctly. That's why I feel the Blues is so hard to play. It's not about being able to play the same 2/4 bar along with the usual turnaround, but how you voice it and make it your own. That's why with blues it's usually either great or horrible with not much in between. And, at the end of the day, we all know that pretty much everything that we've mentioned or listened to all goes back to the blues. Period.

Diabolical Conquest: Obviously, the influence of Celtic Frost has always loomed large in Dream Death 's musical output (at least according to my ears). Is this your first outing with Frost , and has Mr Fischer offered any input regarding the Dream Death stuff?

Dream Death: Back to question 1. Sorry but that gig has fallen through. And, as of yet- I've never met Sir Tom.

Diabolical Conquest: Brian notes in the liner notes to the Back From The Dead compilation that the third demo is, in his view, an ominous portent of Dream Death 's creative demise, and suggests that at that point, you had become “followers” of a burgeoning doom scene as opposed to innovators. I really have to beg to disagree here, because I fucking LOVE that demo, as well as the songs' later incarnations on Penance 's MAGNIFICENT debut platter, The Road Revisited. In my estimation, The Road Revisited is choice, unhallowed SLUDGE, absolutely as depraved and despotic as the early Dream Death stuff, except maybe a tad more thoughtful and ponderous. What is your take on all this? Why did you feel it was necessary to change monickers from Dream Death to Penance (since, in my view, horror was still a prevalent theme and the approach of the band was largely similar)?

Dream Death: This is where you and I are on the same page, but Goodbread and I are definitely not! I'm with you in the fact about that demo as well as with The Road Revisited was closer to what we/and that record actually sounded like or should have as opposed to what came out at the time. Once again it flies in his face that there's that big middle finger about not caring what we sounded like...it was where we were at and that's not about speeds or anything. In my mind you can't have it both ways. That stuff is SO heavy both in its lyrical content as well as riffs and mood. THAT was what it was all about- mood, not speed. How can our slower "sludge" sound be such a great thing flying in the face of thrash etc...and not then?

Maybe it wasn't about us as much as it was about who or what "scene" was surrounding us at the time. This is where he fails to see that I think in retrospect he's viewing us through who were lumped into with at the time. He is always on about being such a big Candlemass fan and how much of an impact EDM had on him, but I certainly don't think that we sounded like Candlemass (who, at that time were at the forefront waving the banner of "Doom" at the time) So, once again getting lumped in to that huge, ever shape shifting cauldron I think he confuses his admiration for them and being placed along side of them as to what we really sounded like. In my opinion we sounded more like Trouble if anything and I would be the very first to admit that as well as being very proud of it.

Let's also not forget that he, himself was losing his direction too-and not the band so much. I think he blurs the line here as well. He's the one who became disillusioned etc.... which ultimately led to his quitting the band in the first place. He had quit playing, writing everything all together for at least 2 years or more. During the whole time Terry and I were the ones who never quit playing or writing etc...hence the birth of Penance, a lot of which he had nothing to do with. We had remained friends throughout which is why he sang on the Living Truth demo (because we still hadn't found a singer to replace him yet), played bass on Bridges To Burn(bass player-less at the time) etc..........so I guess for him it seems more natural to feel as things are split, because for him they were with various on and off contributions- but I definitely disagree with him on the subject. The major differences are as you have already pointed out and of which, I agree.

Well, the main reason for the name change was because we thought it was time. We had actually talked about changing the name for DD's 2nd lp which never came about. We were never dead set on that name in the first place. It was a song first and then became our name for lack of a better one. The label didn't want us to switch it since we had already built around the name. So when the label folded as well as Brian leaving, it seemed the perfect time to switch if we were going to. Terry and I decided on the name Penance and that was that. It seems to me that the name (with the word Death in it) lumped us into more of the death metal scene instead of the "doom" scene. Was never too keen on that either. Oh well, just think- if we would have kept the name, then some people would be saying the same things about "later" DD as they did with Penance etc. Once again, are you catching the finger?

Diabolical Conquest: Do you feel as though Dream Death was necessarily a band that would have to expire sooner or later, that the stylistic approach you adopted could not have been milked for much longer? Do you feel like Penance invariably had to evolve and develop into something more tuneful/less bleak? Has the PsycheDOOMelic reissue of the Dream Death demos rekindled fervor for the more extreme sounds of your youth, prompting you to revisit them via a reunion of the band?

Dream Death: Not at all. I still stand firm that both are one in the same. I've always been interested in getting that old stuff out, but it took me this long via networking (Penance) in order to do that. If anyone really knows me they'd be the first to agree that I hardly ever say no. Testament to that would be all the bands that I've either been in and/or played for at one time or another. I do definitely miss playing some of the more thrashy stuff we have and look forward to cranking it up again. I got a bit of a fix with that when I was moonlighting with local Punk legends SILVER TONGUED DEVIL. I'd really have to warm up so I wouldn't cramp up because the first song was usually 1......2.......fuck you and quite fast. I miss playing with those guys as well.( nudge,nudge, wink, wink Robbie!) Everyone knows at this point...have drums will travel! It's essentially what I'm doing or trying to do with my life. I would love to be able to say to someone when they ask me what I do for a living is respond with "musician" or "drummer" and be serious. Even eking out a measly 20k living just by playing/freelancing or at least just covering my bills and I would die a much happier man. Guess I am Conan, always wandering and roaming-freelancing with my sword out for hire, but in the end..........you know I'm gonna be King by my own hand! My fervor is just to be able to play at this point. I'd kinda would like to be the Simon Phillips of the metal world. Record Sin After Sin, then some MSG etc.......Put the word out! I'm good and cheap!

Diabolical Conquest: I understand that you recently auctioned a sizeable amount of rare metal records on E-bay. Clearly, you have spent a remarkable amount of time plunging into the gut of the beast and unearthing heavy gems from all quarters of the globe. Do you still consider yourself a dedicated collector, and do you think it's important for all musicians to maintain and nurture an enthusiasm for new music? What are some of your favorite relatively unsung/unhailed recordings?

Dream Death: Not really anymore. As long as I have what I want (usually on cd) I'm not too bothered about the mediums anymore. I've been getting rid of my vinyl cause I really do need money right now! I'm definately a starving artist at this point. As I'm freelancing my life as well. Not only with the music thing, but also my Multimedia Webdesign/ graphic design stuff too.  

I think if you're not listening to any kind of music then something is going on. I still love checking out new music. Well I love Sheryl Crow and I've been listening to a lot of Beck lately. I love how rhythmic he is and catchy as hell. I'm waiting for the new Trouble, but other than that not too much new has been grabbing my attention. Just been grabbing a lot of old "new" stuff to me.

Diabolical Conquest: I find it very interesting that the likes of Dream Death, Slaughter, Poison (Germany), Death Strike, Messiah, Onslaught, Hellhammer, X-Ecutioner (pre-Obituary), Repulsion, Autopsy, Cianide, Graf Spree, Parabellum, Amebix et al are receiving more acclaim with young fanatics such as myself than ever before. All of these bands, obviously, sculpted sounds that were more primitive, more seizing and more immediate than most anything that was being produced at the time. Do you think there's an underlying reason for the resurgent popularity of bands such as yours, for the underground's growing fixation with nasty, savage, stripped-down sounds?

Dream Death: I think metal in general has always and will always appeal to, more often than not, a male audience. You're full of rage and intensity. Those are usually the times when you're first getting burned by a friend or dumped for the first time and that immediacy really hits home all the more then. You're trying to establish an identity of your own and looking for something to kinda wear outwardly as a statement as to who you are etc. or the way you feel/think...........developing all that bullshit...............I know that I felt cool as hell wearing my leather jacket with Motorhead's logo and slogan "Born to Lose, Live to Win" painted on the sleeve. Here's we go again with the REH reference. I'm outnumbered, but my back's to the wall. Rush in and die dogs, because I was a man before I was King and by this axe- I RULE! It's that die hard mentality. Dedication man, payin' your dues.

I know personally for me that music became my outlet or vice depending on how you look at it. Instead of chicks or drugs or just going along with the crowd at school, music became my substitute. People let you down, women certainly do, but great music never did and always delivered that same desired effect(kinda like a drug-lets face it escapism comes in all forms). In a lot of ways, music was my girlfriend as well as one of my best friends. I holed myself up with music and books and memorized/learned/emulated/ that stuff. People do it with all sorts of stuff like food,sports,sex, drinking or whatever...for me it was always music first. It became a part of me, not just something that I liked.

That's why I took it so personally for things like when people were calling me a fag for wearing a Twisted Sister shirt and then 2-3 years later, they're running around singing "we're not gonna take it" with a big neon pink TS shirt on! Or like the wanna-be cool, dickhead who comes up to you and say's "Hey, you ever hear of this cool band called Metallica (showing me his new Monsters of Rock shirt and pronouncing it like (Metal-licka!) meanwhile I'm still wallowing/wading in shit because I shat so much when I heard Kill Em All when it came out - I still hadn't gotten it all off of me even then! (Like the shit that will not wipe! HA!) Ya just want to kill 'em. When you find music to match those feelings it's kinda magic. There's nothing better than the feeling of when you're totally in a mood and you pull out that lp that sounds so great and matches that mood at that time that it becomes like a sound track to your life if it were a movie.(or is that just me?)

Diabolical Conquest: A final parting question then- Dream Death shirts were advertised on Myspace, but they have been nigh near impossible to get a hold of (my repeated e-mails have not been responded to, haha!). I would therefore like to use this as a platform to ask how I might get a hold of one. Also, a little autobiographical nugget for you- Dream Death's Journey Into Mystery is the CD I've forked the most out for ($50 USD on e-bay before reissues started sprouting about)..I hope you sleep easier at night knowing I broke the bank to purchase that lugubrious masterpiece! Thanks a lot, Mike, feel free to use this space to inform us about your latest musical projects.

Dream Death: I'll see what I can do to slick you up man! I might be slow (hence the Doom man!), but I never forget my debts. Once again, thanks for the cool remarks, but it is/wasn't/hasn't been about the money. I just think it's cool and appreciate that you took some steps to gather the piece.

Well, one of our old bass players (Oz-Ron Leard) and I have been playing out locally in a band called DOS. Trying to make some money playing at local bars, weddings, river parties, etc.........nothing really original, but at least it's still music instead of working "For the Man!". It's cool laying down some Alice Cooper, followed up by Johnny Cash and then some Beatles..........stuff that's cool music but would actually go over in just about any bar....etc.( instead of bludgeoning some unbeknownst redneck with DD on 11!-which I might add, I have been privy to have been a part of too!) Talk about a smorgasbord of music. I like to call it The Free Jukebox Tour. I used to have a certain disdain for bar bands which has changed now. I never really used to play in them cause I was always so busy with originals. But now it's about first picking "good" songs and then playing them well. Originals were always easier because you're the one making it all up (and after all, you invariably sound like....you!), but trying to learn a song and play it correctly is definitely harder.

Tryin' to reach that certain feel that the song has as well as cop the playing that's going on. On top of all that, do you know how hard it is to try and capture people's attention and then hold it over the course of 4 hours from such a random eclectic smattering of people who just happen to be in that bar!? It's like that scene in the Blues Brothers...you know, the one with the chicken wire. That's been pretty fun but stressful as well when you get ripped off...that hits home all the more since it's your actual paycheck and what you're trying to do for a living not just something on the side.