Episode 19: Gene Hoglan (Death, Dark Angel, Testament)

Throughout his spectacular career, Gene Hoglan has been involved with some of the biggest names to ever play heavy metal.   From his earnest beginnings as a lighting tech with Slayer, that led him to be featured doing backing vocals on “Evil Knows No Boundaries” from Show No Mercy, to being bestowed the nickname “The Atomic Clock” during his time in Strapping Young Lad alongside Devin Townsend, and then being tabbed to play in Testament alongside Alex Skolnick and long-time partner in crime Steve DiGiorgio, Hoglan’s discography reads like a who’s who of the heavy metal community.

But this fall, Gene will be focused on two projects that are near and dear to his heart, as they both pay tribute to members of groups he’s been involved with that have passed on. Dark Angel are set to release their first album of new material since 1991 next week when Extinction Level Event premieres on September 5th through Reversed Records.  An album that was over a decade in the works at least, it features material Hoglan worked on with now departed lead guitarist Jim Durkin, who passed away in 2023.  The new album, and subsequent first North American tour for the group in three decades, are dedicated to Durkin and the group hopes to honor his memory with both. 

After leaving Dark Angel in 1992, Hoglan received an interesting offer from an old friend.  Through a mutual acquaintance, he was told Death frontman Chuck Schuldiner was looking for a new drummer.  Having toured with Death with Dark Angel, and knowing Chuck from his days in the early ‘80s trading tapes with him, Hoglan was intrigued by the opportunity and ultimately joined as things fell apart with Dark Angel.  He would end up being a part of two of the most iconic extreme metal albums ever released, as Death would produce 1993’s Individual Thought Patterns and 1995’s godly Symbolic during his tenure with the group.  Schuldiner would famously pass away in 2001 from complications from a brain tumor, leaving a legacy as the Godfather of Death Metal for his pioneering writing and playing, evidenced by Death’s flawless back catalog.   

Upon the re-release of Individual Thought Patterns in 2012, former members of Death took part in a benefit show to raise money for cancer research to coincide with the reissue.  Named Death to All, the group played here and there over the years until recently deciding to embark on tours to honor Chuck's legacy. After a run last year to celebrate Scream Bloody Gore and The Sound of Perseverance, Death to All will be hitting spots across North America in November to celebrate anniversaries of Spiritual Healing and Symbolic.

Ahead of both of these tours and Dark Angel’s release of Extinction Level Event, I got to speak with Gene about these projects, as well as:

• finally being able to release a new Dark Angel record after a decade of work, how he and Jim Durkin worked on the new record together, and how the new album and tour honor his legacy as a founding member of the band.
• trading tapes with Chuck, how he ended up playing drums for Death on Individual Thought Patterns and Symbolic, and the creative processes for creating two death metal masterpieces
• his working relationship in the studio with Schuldiner, how Death to All came to be to celebrate Chuck’s memory, Chuck’s legacy, and a list of musicians who have played alongside the group during it’s performances throughout the years.
• how he ended up in Opeth’s video for The Grand Conjuration