Feature: Secretion Interview

When it comes to old-school Christian death metal, a few bands probably pop into your mind right away – Crimson Thorn, Mortification, Living Sacrifice, maybe even Metanoia. But how about Secretion? Criminally underrated, the core members Shawn Hensley (guitars and vocals) and Dave “Dax” Hoffman (drums) have been churning out some heinously heavy death metal since their formation all the way back in 1993. Secretion’s pedigree goes back a long way; from their ridiculously rotten-sounding Drained demo in 1995 to their classic full-length Reborn and their latest EP Message of Blood, the band have lost none of their brutality over the years. If anything, they’ve only gotten heavier. Fans of old Cannibal Corpse, Obituary, Crimson Thorn, and even modern acts like Fetid will definitely want to take note. 

Lately, I had the opportunity to chat with these guys about their music, their lives, their faith, their trials and what lies ahead in the future for the band, something that was quite an honour for me to do as a fan. Read on and get inspired. 

Jason: For those who don’t know you guys, how did Secretion as a band come about? What inspired you to start playing death metal?

Dave: We were always into metal and good friends. Everyone we knew were learning to play an instrument at the time. The idea of starting a band just came natural, it was the next logical step as friends hanging out all the time. Once I heard Obituary’s “Chopped in Half,” I knew I wanted to do death metal. 

Shawn: After seeing Sepultura and Napalm Death live as my first concert, I knew I wanted to write and play music. 

Jason: Awesome – that song is still on another level. I saw that you’re both big Obituary fans in your latest band pic inside the Message of Blood EP, but what would you say your main musical influences are? Are there any Christian metal bands that have influenced your music?

Shawn: Ozzy and Black Sabbath, Chris Barnes when he was in Cannibal Corpse, and Chuck Schuldiner from Death are the main influences. Our style was pretty much forged before we knew there were other Christian bands out there. 

Dave: Yeah, there are Christian bands we love to listen to like Crimson Thorn and Feast Eternal, but they have not really had much influence on me as my style is different. I like to play simple rhythms and have more of an influence from Nirvana, Obituary, and old Death. 

Jason: It’s been sometime since the release of Reborn in 2002! What caused you both to start making music again?

Dave: We worked together in 2010 and started making music again during lunch at the shop. I ended up getting a different job and everything stopped again. We were just messing around thinking we could do some recording for fun. I stopped the band to focus on my family in 2002, but my kids grew up and things lined up to start back at it again. The real reason is we went to a Death tribute show in Florida and we met people there that knew about us and we just felt we had to do it again. 

Jason: Do you have any plans as a band to play live? I know as a two-piece band this is probably pretty difficult, though I’m pretty sure I’ve seen a YouTube video of just the two of you doing a live gig somewhere.

Shawn:  We have done many shows just the two of us. I’m sure we could do more if given the opportunity as a two-piece. Right now we are just focused on writing and recording, but I’m sure a show, even if it is just a live stream will happen when the time is right. 

Dave: I love playing when it is just Shawn and I because we can read each other and know where we are going. We have always performed well together because we are such good friends.

Jason: Word is Secretion might be working on releasing some new material! What can you tell us about that? I imagine there’s definitely more than a few of us out there, including myself, that are really looking forward to some new tunes!

Dave: We have several songs in the works. Things did not go as planned with Message of Blood and we took a huge step back to evaluate and figure things out. We are now doing everything ourselves and had to learn how to record, mix and master. This led to many classes and experimenting and improvements. We ended up remixing and remastering Message of Blood with our new knowledge. We are very happy with the final product we rereleased in May. We also built a studio in my basement and re-recorded some drums for the new material, while Shawn has made huge improvements to his guitar, bass, and vocal recording. Some songs are very close to being release ready, Lord willing, end of October you’ll have something for your headphones. One thing we learned is to not rush anything and release it until it is ready. 

Jason: Recently, I came across your Drained demo from 1994 on YouTube. Ultra-guttural stuff! I know that when this one was released, you guys weren’t a Christian band yet, but do you have any plans on revisiting your early material (including Decay) and re-releasing it or redoing it?

Shawn: When we first got saved, we kept things the same for a while, but I got convicted singing those lyrics. We didn’t even know Christian death metal was a thing, but we sat down and changed the titles and lyrics of all our songs. We released all of them with new titles except one on the Reborn album. As I Kill became As I Pray and such. As for that one song that never made it, perhaps one day. 

Dave: As for the artwork, we just love it and our friend Jim, who played guitar with us for a while, made it, so it has a personal nostalgia for us and it makes a great shirt for Death Metal. 

Jason: On the Reborn album, you have a song called “Freed From Torment” that totally reminds me of a spin on “Relentless Beating” off of Cannibal Corpse’s Vile album – love it! The liner notes mention that it’s a song about “The story of Pat” and to ask you about it. So… what’s the story?

Shawn: Pat bought my first guitar for me and said it was a friendship thing. He was a good friend to both of us and had a really hard life. 

Dave: He lived with me for a while and we got pretty close and I tried to help him deal with his issues. We were both big Nirvana fans and we also both liked Obituary and Morbid Angel. 

Shawn: He got into satanism and started distancing himself from us. He came around less and less. 

Dave: He moved out of my house and I wanted to help, but it was just too much and he didn’t want to have much to do with me as he drifted deeper into satanism. 

Shawn: Last time I saw him I asked where his pentagram was that he always wore and he said, “Sometimes you just have to put this stuff away”. Then he moved to Hawaii to live with his uncle. 

Dave: Soon after, my dad came up to me one night and told me Pat hung himself in the woods of Hawaii. We were all shocked. I couldn’t help thinking of something so tragic in a place some people call paradise. He was tormented his whole life and he saw his only freedom from that torment was death. We know of a better freedom in Christ and we pray that he found that in his last moments. I wish I could say he was the only person I knew to take their life, but this one hurt us both deeply and we wanted to honor his memory as a friend. 

Jason: Lord, have mercy. That’s a horribly tragic tale. Thank God that your faith has strengthened you through such times and beyond them. When it comes to that, how would you say your Christian beliefs influence your lives and your music?

Dave: It is way more than influence, it is who we are in everything we do. It just shines through. The lyrics got changed because we both felt convicted. I didn’t have to sing them, but I knew they had to change. There has been a maturing process for sure, but the goal has been the same. He saved us and we live a life of gratitude for Him.  Music is so personal, that you can’t hide who you are and remain genuine. We always have just been two friends making music that we would listen to and who we are is deeply intertwined. 

Shawn: I agree completely. I am a changed person, and I might not always get it right, but many times for me he has corrected me through writing music. 

Jason: Have you ever had any pushback or negative reactions from the secular metal scene?

Shawn: No. The scene has always been more like a brotherhood if you are a metalhead. We have passed out Bibles at secular shows and had a one small incident where someone didn’t want it, but otherwise not really. However, we have been judged on forums from Christians either metal or church groups.

Dave: My church has been supportive and prayed with me for the band, but I have seen a few negative messages come through from church people that don’t understand.

Jason: I think that’s something that will always be part and parcel of being a Christian and a headbanger, unfortunately. But for the rest of us, how can people further support your band and ministry? 

Shawn: Prayer is always a way to support. Just listen to the music and tell your friends. Buying merch from our website is also very helpful. 

Jason: And lastly, any words of advice or wisdom you’d like to impart to the greater Christian metal family out there?

Dave: Just be yourself musically. Write music you would listen to. Love each other and support each other, in your band and all the other bands. There should be no competition; we need to lift each other up in prayer, conversation, and support. 

Shawn: Allow God to use you as his living canvas with your gifts of music. Always be in prayer, that he keeps you strong from the attacks of the enemy. 

Dave: I completely agree with Shawn, if your faith isn’t strong, stop, refocus, get close to Him, then think about continuing. You can do all things through Christ, but not much without him.

You can check out Secretion’s official website here, and buy some pretty sick shirts and patches from them here!

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