Interview with Mark Osequeda of Death Angel by Darien Lomali

8/26/06 Slims SF. Sit down interview backstage 9pm.

It was a pleasure sitting down with Mark of Death Angel. I've been a fan and have seen these guys play since way back in the late eighties when they were just kids. They blew up quickly in the Bay Area thrash scene and made a name for themselves, both here at home and worldwide. One thing I have noticed about Death Angel is not only are they musicians, but they are true fans of music themselves. It's not unusual to see the boys hanging out at a local show just chilling having a cocktail and hanging with the crowd. They're an accessible and really down to earth bunch of guys. So if you see these guys at a show, go over and say what's up.

Seeing these guys live is essential if you're a metal head. Not only do they put on a killer live show with energy and charisma, but you feel the family vibe and the closeness between the band members. Going to a Death Angel show you are guaranteed a good time, which Mark and the boys will make sure you get. They are getting ready to embark on the "Thrash Domination Tour" in Tokyo, Japan supporting, Venom, Sodom, Dragonlord and Onslaught.

Death Angel just recently played a sold out show at Slims in SF, the first show they have played in the Bay Area in about two years. I took the opportunity to sit down with Mark to talk about the band and his insights into music and the changing of the times.

Darien: So what's up man? What have you been up to?
Mark: We just got back from Europe. We did a festival in Italy about two and a half weeks ago called the Evolution festival. It was great. It was in a little small place called Maderno, south of Milan. It was amazing. Prior to that we did Graspop in Belgium.
Darien: I've always wanted to know what your nationality is.
Mark: My father is from El Salvador and my mother is Spanish and Filipino.
Darien: So where were you born and raised?
Mark: I was born in SF at St. Mary's Hospital. I went to Concord High for one year, then Clayton Valley for the last three.
Darien: There was about 14 years between "Act III" and the "Art of Dying." Were most of the songs new ideas, or were there some that had been in the works from past years?
Mark: None were old ideas. We wrote AOD in like four months and just pounded them out. That was it. Not a lot of people would think that because there are a lot of different types of styles on there, but the ironic thing is the songs that people thought would be left over from back in the day was the song we wrote last on the album, which was "Thrown to the Wolves," the last song we wrote for the album.
Darien: Death Angel is considered one of the founding fathers of Bay Area thrash, along with Exodus, Testament and Metallica. You guys have influenced a lot of bands and musicians over the years. When you guys were young and just starting out, where did you get your inspirations?
Mark: We get our inspirations for the "Art of Dying" from things that have happened to us directly in our lives.
Darien: What kinds of things specifically?
Mark: I mean like some songs are written about people passing away, sometimes about unity. The song "Thicker than Blood" for me had a double meaning behind it. I wrote it about pretty much about my love for playing with these guys on stage and how many bands I've been in. The chemistry on stage is undeniable. So in a sense, it was me taking a double meaning that blood is thicker than water. You leave it ambiguous enough so that people can translate their own meaning to it as well. Even when we started way back in the day we just wanted to write about things being metal. We wrote about songs about going in the pit. We would be in the pit for shows and we loved it.
Darien: What are some of the newer groups out now that stand out for you?
Mark: You know, (that's) interesting. I'd say a lot of the newer things that I'm digging. I love the fucking Bronx and Danko Jones. They're Canadian and fucking rock. They have three albums out and are great guys who are straight ahead rock and I'm digging them. I listen to everything from Billy Holiday to Black Sabbath to Brian Ferry to Slayer and everything in between.
Darien: What is your view on the internet downloading of music today?
Mark: For new bands it's one of the best marketing tools there is, and for an established bands it's great. Now they're getting all the kinks out as far as illegal downloading, but that has always been the case, like with tape trading. The way I see it is if your gonna get your name out there any way you can..kick ass, but here's the one thing. From the era of tape trading, I'm so fond of that era. The memories of waiting to get your tape in the mail kind of thing. Death Angel played the Ritz in NY with Slayer in like 1985 and we didn't even have an album out yet. The promoters flew us out there and we had a demo. We went out and the people were singing lyrics to our songs from tape trading! I mean we were sending it through the mail. It was amazing, that whole movement and you felt like you were a part of something special. So that part I miss. The thing about computers now is everyone is used to instant gratification. I don't feel it makes people appreciate music as much as they did back in the day. It has its pros and its cons for me.
Darien: What is your personal philosophy in life, spirituality, religion, or anything that keeps you centered and balanced?
Mark: My girl, my family and breathing.
Darien: How can the music scene improve? What's missing?
Mark: It can improve by people being more open-minded in general. They're coming along now, but there's always room for improvement. People need to be fans again, simple as that. Quit trying to look so fucking cool and just be a fan. Quit trying to be a tough guy. You know the guys when the light go down at a show scream out like a little girl. When the toughest guy in the room is screaming like a little girl, that's when music kicks ass again.

Contributing to this interview, Troy Cavallo
You can get more information on Death Angel at the following websites: www.deathangel.com
www.myspace.com/deathangel
You can contact me at www.myspace.com/darien666