ASSASSIN – Interview with Michael Hoffmann

I think that ASSASSIN is a legendary thrash metal band. The works of the band made me great impression!!! Their comeback is great surprise for me, and the newest album of ASSASSIN I listened with blushes on my face, hahaha Anyway I think that I haven't to stimulate veterans of thrash metal to read this interview because they have read it long ago, hahaha so I stimulate “young blood” for get to know with the German Legend!!!

Do you feel one of legends of German thrash metal? Probably you started with the band from 1983 year. Together with such bands like DESTRUCTION, DARKNESS, DEATHROW, HOLY MOSES, KREATOR, LIVING DEATH, NECRONOMICON, SODOM, TANKARD and more legendary groups you created powerful German thrash metal scene!!!

Hi! Well, I don´t think, that we are a legend. With a legend, you never know, if it´s real or not. ASSASSIN is definitely back to stay and you will feel that it´s real at least when you come to our shows in Poland on 19th of April in Lodz and 20th of April in Wroclaw. Hope to see you there.

I will see, but I dont promise because a job, a studies and a family take off me a lot of time Many young metal maniacs do not know you, so on the beginning we go back to the past, hahaha But first you let us know what is the current line-up of ASSASSIN: Robert Gonnella – vocals, Dinko Vekic – guitars, Jürgen “Scholli” Scholz – guitars, Michael “Micha” Hoffman – guitars, Ufo Walter – bass and Frank Nellen – drums???

Not quite right. Dinko had to leave to his country Croatia because of private reasons and we are testing some bassplayers to substitute Ufo Walter, because he is working for different bands and so he is not able to play every show. You might already see the new one at the Poland shows.

Your first demos are “Holy Terror demo I – 1985, “Saga of Nemesis demo II – 1986. What bands did you inspire at that time? Every young band tried to base their creation on some models

Sure, we listened to Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, Exodus and also some Punk and Hardcore like Discharge, D.R.I., G.B.H., The Exploitet and so on. and these two styles were the main influence and I think they still are.

How do you look on the demos today?

I mean, we still play some of the demotracks on our shows. The song Assassin for example is still a killer.

Could you make comparisons of metalfans from old times with metalfans from present day? Surely it is visible e.g. in concerts. Are they the same mad? And maybe present metalfans are different because they undergo an evolution? hahaha

We metalheads are in a process of evolution everyday, mixed with the will to stay true. I mean, even the musicbusiness knows, that the real metalheads can´t be fooled and don´t follow any fashion.

Your the first album (“The Upcoming Terror” from 1987 year) was really total! How did you feel (as yung creators of thrash metal) after released the album?

I didnt expect it to be so successful. The critics wern´t too good at that time – they might have had no clue about Thrashmetal back in the days. We only realised, that people like it, when we played it on tour. I mean, people were going crazy. We couldn´t believe our eyes.

The year 1988 brings the next album – “Intserstellar Expirience”. This was the next great material! It was already clearly visible that you tread the same path – sharply, aggressively and forward!!! How did the public accept the album at that time?

It was about the same phenomena. Critics found it too chaotic but the thrashers went crazy once again.

But two songs were somewhat different. The songs were differing from the whole. I mean the instrumental “Pipeline”, which also was play by ANTHRAX. I would like to get to know history of this song

Markus (Lulle) and me were skateboarders for years. Pipeline is one of the best songs to grap your board and enter the nearest halfpipe. This song represents skateboarding like no other to us so we covered it a long time before Anthrax did it. I think Anthrax never were really skating. Might be that Schott Ian already stood on a board but I never seen him doing any tricks, hehehe.

The second song was the title-song “Interstellar Expierience”. There you applied fluently passage among sharp thrash metal playing and futuristic ambient on the keyboard. I remember this was novelty for those times (use keys in thrash metal). The track created really cosmic and very dark climate. Where did you take the idea for such solution from?

We were always listening to some ´60 stuff like Pink Floyd, Can and so on. We had this idea to name a song Interstellar Expierience and we wanted to put these psychadelic elements into it. When we recorded the album, our producer, Harris Johns, liked the idea to put keyboards on it, so we took some acids, smoked some fat ass joints and we travelled around

Going further in 1988 year you recorded III Demo. What was this material? Did you lack ideas for full-lenght album?

We wanted to record some of the songs to make a promotional cd. You know, we were looking for another recordcompany at that time because we weren´t too happy about Steamhammer/SPV. We knew, that we sold a lot of records, but we didn´t receive the correct royalties for it. Some other companies were interested in signing Assassin and they wanted to listen to the new material.

In between time you played quite a lot the concerts with the bands, which of the names for me and for older metal funs tell all. You let me mention these bands: CELTIC FROST, CROMSON GLORY, DEATHROW, MESSIAH, DARKNESS, TANKARD, RUNNING WILD, SABBATH, PROTECTOR, DEATH ANGEL, RUMBLE MILITIA, SODOM, DIMPLE MINDS, SAXON and more Which one of these shows do you remember more (taking into account good and bad sides)?

I remember them all. For example the Crimson Glory show. Somebody of our crew saw the manager of Crimson Glory when he was putting down the sound of Assassin during our show. Man, we played in our hometown Duesseldorf and when some guys heard of it, they threw all stuff they could find against the first silvermask that appeared on stage. Crimson Glory will NEVER forget that show I bet

Unfortunately the year 1989 was very unlucky for ASSASSIN. Is the truth that you hung the activity of the bands after robbery of your instruments? The cost of new equipment was too high for you. But was it single reason for your split-up?

That was the main reason. No money, no equipment, no band. We were so depressed that everything was fucked up.

Do you know who this equipment stoated?

No. Maybe some day

What was happen with members of ASSASSIN between 1989 and 2002 years?

Robert was taking care of the Iffc, which is an international soccerleague founded in BeiJing/China by him. Dinko played in a cool psychadelic band called Void Forum which changed their name to Vibravoid after he left. Scholly played in a Gothic-Metal Band, but I don´t remember the name of it. Frank played in various formations. My life after Assassin begun with my joining in a band called Sodom, that you might know, hehe. We made Better of dead and The saw is the law and I left Sodom in January 1992. After that I travelled to Brasil where I worked as a soundengineer and producer for a lot of different bands and events. When I came back to germany Assassin came back to life.

It was the romantic story, hahaha Just in 2002 thanks to Robert, Dinko and “Scholli” restored ASSASSIN. Obviously all we are interested in why do you play again?

We tried this reunion various times but to make a band it takes more than just the will to play. I was living in Brasil, Robert in China, so it was not easy to do rehearsals and so on. One day everything was just perfect and we came together.

But really in 2005 year you released your the newest album “The Club”. I have to admit that the album rejoiced me many, hahaha The material still is sharp and very dynamic, although is more grown and varied, from time to time it goes out beyond frame of thrash metal, so and the sound of vocal is different, it is more subdued What did you inspire for creation “The Club” (both from musical side and unmusical side)?

The Club contains material from ´89 to 2005. It was more like a best of 16 years album. Everybody in the band had some songs or ideas collected in the past years, that we mixed together. That means we have no special influence on this album.

Probably you used there three the guitars, except the bass obviously???

No, we already recorded with 2 guitars only. Dinko has left before we entered into the studio.

The content of the cover of “The Club” is completely different than the previous covers from the albums. “The Club” hasn't the futuristic-horror drawings but there is simply some your photo from some club with men in background (?)

Yeah, this club is one place where we hang up frequently. The guys in the back are some members of the Bushwhackers + our crew and some friends. We met at The Club and took the picture. It´s just like: Argh! Assassin is back in town!

I saw there long-haired man but in other time I would think that is photo from hip-hop band, hahaha Do you know that in the USA is some hip-hop band called ASSASSIN?

Oh, you mixed up something. The Hip Hop thing which is called Assassin, is from France. There is a Thrashband with the same name from the Bay Area/USA which has split up and not to forget these corean band also called Assassin. I don´t care about this. We are the first and we can prove it.

Personally I saw the website of hip-hop band from USA called Assassin. But doesnt matter What are some shouts in the beginning of “Notes With Us”?

This is supposed to be the end of Bushwhackers. These are fans of Fortuna Duesseldorf our favourite city soccer team. You know, Bushwhackers is a song all about soccer, speccially the 3rd half, if you know what I mean.

In “The Club” are quite a lot different insertions, e.g. Chinese motives

Robert, our singer is living in China, so he wrote some lyrics in chinese Jin tian shen huo and also one, The price of power, which is a story about the first chinese emperor.

I think that the name of your band is very controversial in today's times – “Assassin”. The subject of terrorism in your band appeared from the beginning, e.g. “Holy Terror”, “The Upcoming Terror” or recently “Psycho Terror”

Yeah! You are totally right. We thought a lot about playing Holy Terror in these days and we ended up NOT playing it. Psycho Terror has nothing to do with politics. It is song about the dayly Psycho Terror that everybody knows.

Well, generally your texts oscillate round political-social subjects with admixture science-fiction. Which ones of them do you like most?

I am interested in politics but I am not a political person. I like it, when Robert goes inside hiself and drops these personal lyrics, like Psycho Terror, Real Friends, Go Insane and Price of Power.

How did present heavy-metal funs accept you? You have comparison with old times

The most critics of The Club were very good. Only some of the oldschoolers didn´t like it because they expect the next Upcoming Terror.

Surely majority of people heard about “Love Parade”, hahaha But I'm interested in “Death Parade” with your part. How was there?

Well, instead of loving each other everybody keeps banging. What else could be happening Oh yeah! Beer, a lot of Beer.

Do you follow the present German metal scene? Could you recommend something?

I can recommend something out of germany: Ever heard of National Napalm Syndicate? This is a great thrashact from Finnland. Also Andralls from Brasil is kicking ass. Try them.

I dont know them but I will look for What is A.G D.? (But I don't mean the song)

It´s too secret to tell.

You will play quite a lot shows. We will can see you in Poland among other things!!! In Lodz – 19.04.2006 as well as 20.04.2006 in Wroclaw on “Hall Of Metal Festival 2006”, where you will play with e.g. SODOM, HOLY MOSES and Polish TURBO. This will be your first expedition to Poland? What do you expect?

This will be my 2nd trip to Poland. When I played in Sodomin 1990/91, we had a show in Katowice. Nice place and a lot of nice people.

I understand that at present you give a concert and promote “The Club”, but have you got some ideas for next album?

Yes, we are working on the next longplayer, but I can´t tell you much about it. I think it will be sounding more like one piece, compared to The Club.

Well, it is finish Grand merci for allowing interview! What does ASSASSIN have to saying to the end?

Thank you for support. Come to our shows and never stop banging.