After last year's devastating thrash metal assault you have returned to finish us off. Is this the mightier of the two latest blows according to you?

Oh… yeah for sure. We definitely do that…trying to finish people off. I think we've done that for sure.

The sound is once again perfect, as raw as a thrash metal album calls for and as modern as possible. Can you give me some more details about the recordings as well as who was in charge of the final mastering?

Well you know I produced this one myself and then Andy Sneap did the mix. You see we recorded the whole album in a very old-school fashion, you know. We did it really quickly. You see we recorded the whole album in three weeks.

So, are you satisfied with the final outcome?

Oh yeah, for sure.

Unfortunately, I see that your line-up is chanced by its three fifths. After an unexpectedly good comeback last year, followed by hymns from the press, it's hard to believe that "Tempo's" five couldn't brew a potion of communication. What has really happened?

Well what really happened you know…I'll start with Zetro, you know Steve Souza, he was just miserable doing this, he was completely unhappy, but you know the worst part about it is that he tried his hardest to make everyone unhappy around us. You know, his greed and his demands and everything was just unbearable and then 36 hours before leaving for a sold out show in Mexico City he decided he wouldn't go. Noone believed he'd be around for this album, because that was the end of it for us. So we recruited Rob Dukes on vocals, who actually was my guitar check man on the U.S Megadeth tour you know, where I met him. And then you know in the process, while I was writing for the album, Tom had a complete mental breakdown; you know much like what happened to him in 1989. He started suffering from really bad panic attack and anxiety attack, up to the point that he couldn't play at all, he completely believed he was going to die. So you see that we had to find another drummer and the first name that came to mind was Paul Bostaph and everybody knows who Paul is. He lives here in the area, I've known him for a long time and he's one of the best drummers on the planet. So we called him up and he came in and we agreed right away. And then, the day before we are gone to the studio, Rick decided that he was going to quit, you know children needed him at home and things, but you know there's a lot more to it than that. Rick never got over his drug problem, he wasn't involved in the writing and he hardly ever showed up for the rehearsals and he quit and the only guy I thought of for the job was Lee and I called him up immediately.

You told me about Steve being greed. Why he decided to come back in the first place, you know last year?

He thought he would become an instant rock star, that he would sign in and make all this money and that he'll be able to call all the shots and I knew that we had a lot of hard work ahead of us. Taking time away from his family, I can understand that's a problem, but you know he tried turning it all around, being about money. He really didn't help us lately.

Steve's vocal delivery on Tempo of the Damned was really impressive and distinct. How hard was it for you to find a replacement and under which criteria have you chosen Rob?

Well you know one thing I will say is that Steve did a great job on "Tempo of the Damned". He really did it, but it requires a lot more. After that we just wanted someone that he'd have the power and aggression to deliver on the older songs, but to also take the newer song in a new level and we also wanted someone who was dedicated you know, to be here in the first place and that guy is Rob.

I see but…although Exodus' sound is up to date and polished, you still remain a classic thrash metal act with a classic thrash metal approach and way of writing. On the other hand Rob's singing technique is closer to the so-called Neo-thrash or modern Euro-thrash. Weren't you afraid that his recruitment behind the mic could trigger the discontent of the die-hard exodus fans, or generally the old school thrash fans?

No I wasn't really afraid because you know all of our hardcore fans they know that I'm not gonna f..k things up. They know that I'm gonna find someone appropriate for all this stuff and everybody said that were completely blown away by Rob.

Well I've read a review that said Rob doesn't really fit with Exodus, that's why I ask. What's your opinion?

Everybody is entitled of an opinion you know. Well you see when we were finishing the album I called some people of our hardcore fans and some friends of mine and they all said that this is the guy that we should have replaced Balloff in the first place.

Do you believe or hope that this is a stable line-up for more years to come?

Well if it isn't I'm gonna kill myself (laughs)

So Paul's gonna stay behind the drum kit for a little longer…

Well yeah, everybody is permanent member of this band.

Well that's really good to hear. Let me return to the album. As I foretold the main difference between Shovel and Tempo is the vocal delivery, but the songwriting and the structure of the songs remains the same. I have the feeling though that in "Shovel.." you tried to focus more on technicality over anything else. Am I correct? Are there any other differences between those two?

No, we just tried to focus on aggression. We wanted this one to be much more aggressive and heavier than "Tempo…" and on "Tempo…", with all the great songs on it, there're three songs that were like leftover from my previous band Wardance, which are "Killed with a Fist" and "Throwing Down", and "Throwing Down" certainly doesn't belong on an Exodus album you know, my only regret on "Tempo…" was including that song. And you know "Impaler" was great for the old-school fans, but it's 20 years old you know…

That doesn't matter at all…

Well, I mean it's great for the old-school fans, but I just wanted 10 brand new songs, no leftover tracks or old tracks that were co-written by previous members and stuff like that, this is brand new and completely fresh.

Ok and what other differences do you trace between "Tempo" and "Shovel"

This album's faster, heavier and it's more complete.

I believe you are responsible for the songwriting?

Oh yeah…

When did you start the writing process?

Oh you know I had a few riffs here and there, but I really got started working in January (2005) and I worked like, 6-8 hours a day, 5 days a week, up until we went in the studio, I believe it was June and we just like kept working. I never quit working, even when Tom was going through these problems and everything else, I just kept going forward.

Did the line-up changes affect your writing in any way; I mean did you have to change your way of writing or something like that?

No, not at all. You see, lyrically I wrote things in the exact same way that I would have written them as Zetro's still been here and you know I directed Rob to sing in almost the same way I would have Zetro doing it. These are two different voices, but there's nothing different, that's an Exodus album and you know as far as recording I played like almost every rhythm guitar on "Tempo…" except for maybe about 20 seconds, so you know the recording process is pretty much the same.

There's also a very aggressive cover art and title album and it makes me wanna ask about the general idea behind those tow and the lyrics. What's your main source of inspiration when it comes to lyrics?

Oh…on this album it varies, you know songs like "Deathamphetamine" is like the most personal song I've ever written, because it describes my previous life as a drug addict and so it's a song about violence and aggression and brutality.

I don't really want tire you with cliché questions about your past and all, but since this is the first time I have the chance to talk to you after your comeback I'd like to ask you about the reasons that made you decide to start over, after 12 years of silence.

Well you know it's 12 years since our studio album, but we reunited in '97 with Paul and did a live album and the only thing that got in our way was personal issues we were going through and everybody's drug use was what got in our way and the only thing that stopped from doing an album sooner and it took my sobriety till I finally get to the point where there's a possibility.

Weren't you afraid that things might turn out to be more different and harder than you expected, taking under consideration all these new musical movements and trends? I mean weren't you afraid of the possibility of a rejection?

No, not at all. Our New York fans would accept us and I thing it was really the right time for us.

Why do you believe Exodus' reputation remains untouched all these years, through the ranks of the thrash metal fans?

Because we never sold out. We've always given everybody the heaviest stuff, never putting mellow ballads in our songs, we've always gone for it and now here we are all these years later heavier than ever.

What your opinion about modern thrash metal scene?

Oh, I love it. There are so many great bands like The Haunted, Carnal Forge and stuff like that and then all the great Black and Death metal bands and I think it's really excited.

So, if I asked you which one do you prefer, the present or past one, what would you answer?

I believe in living in the present, I'm all about right now.

It seems like you've arranged some tourdates. Can you give us the schedule in brief? It's a pitty though that Greece isn't part of your plans.

Well, unfortunately we're not making to Greece on this European tour, which you know kinda pisses me off because Greece is one of my favorite places to play, but you know we will be there probably sometime hopefully in the Spring. Apart from that we are starting in the United States and then we're coming over to Europe doing a few shows on our own and some co-headlining shows with Hypocrisy.

Have you arrange a special edition for your new album?

Well I know that version for Japan has two bonus tracks. We did a cover on the Sex Pistol's "Problems" and also the one remaining track from "Tempo…" which was originally called "Crime in the Century" we redid the vocals and changed the lyrics and it will be on that as well under the title Purge the World.

What's next from exodus and when should you expect it?

Well, when you see this new line-up live you'll f…….g die, it's like nothing you've ever seen before ever and we just gonna keep touring and we are already talking about what we wanna do on our next album.

Ok, I believe that's all, I've run out of questions. Thank you very much and I wish you all the best.

Thank you very much, bye.