DECEASED

In Arlington, Virginia in 1984, death found its musical champion when DECEASED was formed by singer/drummer King Fowley and guitarist Doug Souther. In 2024, DECEASED still walks the Earth. King is still there as frontman and guiding light, although he gave up the drum stool some time ago. Souther is long gone and the band has gone through many changes, some of them tragic. DECEASED were the very first band signed by Relapse Records and they’ve released a very impressive slate  of albums over the years that established their unique style of melodic death metal making use of classic metal characteristics.

The new album by DECEASED is “Children of the Morgue”, released by Hell’s Headbangers, and it might just be the deepest and most intense record they’ve ever done. King wanted a record that really dived deep into the concept of death and how people deal with it. Not another dull litany of people being chopped up, eaten by zombies or blown apart by atom bombs. This is the real thing.

It’s no secret that King is one of the most talkative guys in metal, with plenty to say and no fear of offending people. He has a very precise idea of what he wants in music and is not afraid to express it. That’s what I found out in the following interview, where King is at his chatty best.

WORMWOOD CHRONICLES: Greetings, King! Thanks for talking to us. “Children of the Morgue” is such an epic album. Is this something that has been brooding in your mind for a long time or did it come together relatively quickly?

KING FOWLEY: Cheers, thanks for the support. It's been growing for a few years. there have been hints and a few songs about death in full on the last few records (“Dying In Analog', “Endless Well'”) but i wanted to do a full concept of the act of dying. from the person dying to the family/friends/loved ones around them. Speaking of how life brings death and where do we go when we die? Can the loved ones move on or does it bring grimness and sadness to them moving forward? Just all of it... no zombies and werewolves this time. real fucking death! A very heavy subject and one that really did take a bunch out of me mentally to think and create about. Music-wise,it all fell into place and really fits what the topics and lyrics were going for. So very proud of the record as are the other guys! 

WC:  To me, the album and music has a kind of dream-like feel. Were you inspired by actual dreams...or nightmares...for this concept? 

KF: Not really. It was more so real life. Losing my dad when i was 5 and he was 27, my mother passing suddenly, my son's mother passing away in her mid 30s. and seeing friends/family pass away as we age. Death is part of life. It really is nightmarish on its own. We really are here to live and then die. It's that cut and dry.

WC: “Death” is usually the focus of death metal, but on a very superficial level. People getting slaughtered, skulls, the gory details. It seems to me that “Children of the Morgue” goes much deeper and has a more psychological angle. Is that right or do I have the wrong idea?

KF:  You absolutely have it right. I agree. So much death metal to me is mostly just tuned down gurgly vocals with nothing to really get into your blood and under your skin and affect you. This is my lyrical angle. We've done the end of the world, grave robbing, horror movie songs. but as I've aged and matured I have wanted to take it deeper and with more intense topics. This really is all in on death and all that comes with it. It has sat with me very deeply through the making of the record.

WC: DECEASED is known for doing things on their own schedule. When you went into the studio for “Children of the Morgue”, was everything worked out to the last detail? Or did some aspects only reveal themselves at the last minute? 

KF: We always try to be prepared in full and try to cover all bases. but no matter how prepared you are, in the studio creative juices are still flowing and once you hear something on tape and in your face it can open up new avenues to put even more detail within the music. This part of 'writing' is adventurous too. Not to do it to do it, but to really get the most out of every part in any and every song. 

WC: Was there anything new in how the new album was recorded or was it done according to time tested methods? 

KF: Well, we always want to improve. whether it’s dropping drums to tape or guitar tones and of course the mix. Some things have stood up tried and true again and again and other things we've walked away thinking “this could be better”. We go into recordings with that in our minds. With me producing, i just wanted to get the drums laid out and the performance spot on and build the record from there. Amos our new drummer wanted to record with a click track, which we have not dome in the past, so we did for him. I liked some things about that and some things i did not. Moving forward, it's now understood a bit more what are the pros to it and try to limit or erase the cons about it. Recording is always a learning lesson. All crafts can always be better each time you are in the moment.  

WC:You’re known to be quite the horror movie aficionado...were there any films in particular that inspired “Children of the Morgue”? It seems to have more of a “Gothic” vibe than a “slasher” or “gore” feel to it. 

KF: Not really. This one is much more real life stuff. though i did watch many documentaries on things like assisted suicide such as “How to Die in Oregon”, and Frontline TV specials on things like morticians having to deal with young children’s deaths and helping families keep strength during those times, and terminally ill patients dealing with knowing they are going to die. Heavy subjects for sure!

WC:  Many consider “Fearless Undead Machines” to be a highlight for DECEASED and “Children of the Morgue” does seem to be in the same mode. Was it a direct inspiration? 

KF: I wouldn’t say so. I enjoy “Fearless” and while this too is a concept record, I think it stands on its own 110%. For me every album and idea is still in our psyches and I can hear inspirations of any and all of our past as well as little hints of things we've been wanting to bring in more. 

WC: The band has been going for close to 40 years now. Do the same things motivate you now as they did at the beginning or has that changed with time? 

KF: Yes! It's still a love to create music and perform music. I love music so much. it's the drug of choice. It has always been there for me as a canvas to paint my ideas and work with others who are all thriving in creating the best music we possibly can. The bones are older and there's more things in our lives (wives, houses, jobs, children, etc). but if you have that passion, there will always be time to create and perform the music we love. 

WC: Do you ever miss drumming? Any desire to get behind the kit and bash away? 

KF: I still write all the drum parts on all of it. so that part of me is still there. On a live front, I don't miss singing from the kit. 20 years of that calmed that need. I love being out front and in the faces of people at the gigs. As a drummer in a live front, not being the singer too could still be fun but as of now, I have no plans to do that with any project/band. 

WC: What’s your assessment of the current death metal scene? It certainly seems more popular now than, say, 10 years ago? Any younger bands that catch your eye? 

KF: It's still out there. Truthfully, other than bands we've gone out on road with as support (DEMISER, MORTAL WOUND, DESOLUS) I don't know lots of newer deathlike bands. I keep an ear to the ground and hear some now and then but most don't stand out to me. Maybe i'm just set in my ways of my IRON MAIDEN/ VOI VOD/ SABBATH and 80s metal ways when it comes to listening time or maybe it really is just rehash of rehash of rehash these days. Anyone doing it for the right reasons, more power to you. Just any and everyone, put the music writing first, not last. 

WC: Many say live is where DECEASED comes alive (pun intended)? What does touring look like for “Children of the Morgue”?

KF:  I love playing live. lots of energy and all the songs go faster due to the energy factor. You got to give them the visual to go with the audio. It's important to me to deliver on stage as a band. As for live gigs ,for the record we got a few fests Labor Day weekend , a fest in Hawaii and then we are setting up 3 or 4 runs in 2025 to play the new record and celebrate the 40th anniversary of the band. We plan to get to as many places as we can the world over. It's early stages but we will be all in on live gigs in 2025.

WC:What would you say is the strangest venue the band has ever played? 

KF: We did a show at an old porno theatre in Maine. in an Uhaul truck like box. It was like someone wrecked a Uhaul truck through a movie theatre wall, left it there, and opened the back and had bands play out of the truck insides while the folks stood in the old theatre walkways. 

WC: If you could have dinner with any 3 people from history, who would they be?

KF:  Steve Harris from IRON MAIDEN, George Carlin, and Tony Iommi.

WC: In the long history of DECEASED, what would you say your biggest “Spinal Tap” moment was, where things went wrong? 

KF: Gotta be the drug days. Mark Adams in Philly 1991. Big solo coming up on a live show for “Nuclear Exorcist”. He was hung over on PCP and he played something way off the mark and was stuck in it. Me, Mike, and Les were looking at him and it just seemed like we were all caught in a time lapse. It went on for like a million years trying to zig zag out of it. We all talk about it from time to time and it's a reminder about how shit drugs were and where never to go when playing live. 

WC: Do you have any other projects outside of DECEASED you’re working on currently? 

KF: I don't. My other band OCTOBER 31 has called it a day due to guitarist Brian Williams having severe Parkinson’s Disease. Out of respect to him we shut it down. I am very happy that 110% of time and effort is with DECEASED now. So much we want to do and will do. 

WC: Any last words or messages? 

KF: Many thanks for the support and interview. Anyone reading,  wishing you well in your lifetime. Stay wild, heavy, and loud. Keep music genuine! Death to greed and UP THE TOMBSTONES! 

DECEASED