Year: 2009

There is old school death metal and there is MASTER. The Chicago, Illinois outfit first emerged in 1983—a time when death metal still went by the generic term, metal. MASTER served as an influence for many of the death metal bands of today. These bands gained recognition as the fathers of death metal, and even though they cited MASTER as an influence, MASTER rarely received this honor by the press and fans alike. Even the mighty DEATH, who eventually coined the term “Death Metal,” sought MASTER for early inspiration.

Part of the reason MASTER never gained the proper accolades was their inability to get mass exposure. The group didn’t find a label to release a full-length and gain national attention until signing to Nuclear Blast in 1990. Nuclear Blast released the group’s first full-length. This first self-titled offering helped establish the band as a steadfast act on Nuclear Blast’s early roster.

MASTER founder-vocalist-bassist, Paul Speckmann took MASTER to the Czech Republic in 1999. He has remained a Czech citizen ever since. Although MASTER has largely remained in the underground, the group has pushed on, never bowing to the latest scene trend. Before taking the stage in Austin, Texas with another veteran death metal band, GOREAPHOBIA, Paul Speckmann spoke to Metal Centre on the band’s colorful history, as well as current events in the MASTER camp.