To celebrate the two-year anniversary of their eviscerating tenth studio album, Terrasite, Cattle Decapitation released From This Flesh: A Cattle Decapitation Story. The two-hour documentary follows the band’s process of making and recording Terrasite, with injections of humour, nostalgia and raw insight. From This Flesh gets very close to fulfilling the fantasy of joining Cattle Decapitation in their most creative moments as artists and vulnerable moments as humans.
Vocalist Travis Ryan said: “Our buddy Nick VanVidler (NJV Media, Body Prison) went to make a studio documentary about Terrasite, and what came out was more of an extremely introspective look into the band as a whole with a specificity on how we write and record albums.
“It’s insightful, intense, funny, sad, unfiltered, immersive, and if you’re a longtime true fan of the band, you gotta see this thing.”
Australian videographer Nicholas VanVidler, who produced the band‘s 2021-released Finish Them music video, captured the entire Terrasite recording process and spent the past two years piecing it together.
From This Flesh calmly documents the immense effort, time and persistence that goes into creating a record and collaborating as a band in the face of multiple challenges: from living in different countries to a global pandemic. Since Cattle Decapitation articulate the apocalypse humanity is facing better than anyone else, such challenges seem almost appropriate as a backdrop to their creative process.
The toughest reflections come when the band talk about Gabe Serbian, a very good friend and founder of Cattle Decapitation, who they discovered had passed when they were en route to Denver to record Terrasite.
Drummer Dave McGraw said: “We had an opportunity to play a show in Austin in memory of him. I wouldn’t say it was an obstacle, but quite the opposite. It was a really cool thing that we got to do, and normally we would have never played a show while we were in the studio, but obviously this was different, and it added to the experience of recording this album.”
VanVidler captured all of the subtleties of Cattle Decapitation’s studio time, ensuring it became not a polished documentary but rather an untinted window for fans to peer through with a beer in hand. Whether it was Ryan trying to record vocals whilst squatting, McGraw interrupting the documentary soundtrack when knocking his drum bag on a wall on his journey to the van, or engineer/producer Dave Otero trying to make sure his “bald head” was in the centre of the camera, the down-to-earth charm of the whole Cattle Decapitation team shone through.
From This Flesh: A Cattle Decapitation Story (Official Terrasite Studio Documentary) features:
- Travis Ryan – vocals
- Josh Elmore – guitar
- Belisario Dimuzio – guitar
- Dave McGraw – drums
- Olivier Pinard – bass
- Dave Otero – engineer and producer
Next month, Cattle Decapitation will return to Europe on a three-week run of headlining shows and festival appearances. Tickets are on sale now HERE.
Confirmed dates:
6/04/2025 Sweden Rock – Sölvesborg, SE
6/06/2025 Mystic Festival – Gdańsk, PL
6/07/2025 Chronical Moshers – Reichenbach, DE
6/08/2025 Randal – Bratislava, SK w/ Skeletal Remains
6/09/2025 Barba Negra – Budapest, HU w/ Skeletal Remains, Incantation
6/11/2025 Stattbahnhof – Schweinfurt, DE w/ Incantation
6/12/2025 Dynamo – Eindhoven, NL w/ Skeletal Remains, Severe Torture
6/13/2025 Into The Grave – Leeuwarden, NL
6/14/2025 Chalk – Brighton, GB w/ Skeletal Remains
6/15/2025 Download Festival – Donington, GB
6/17/2025 Kulttempel – Oberhausen, DE w/ Severe Torture
6/18/2025 Copenhell – Copenhagen, DK
6/19/2025 Nummirock – Nummijärvi, FI
6/21/2025 Graspop – Dessel, BE
6/22/2025 Hellfest – Clisson, FR
6/23/2025 Substage – Karlsruhe, DE w/ Fit For An Autopsy coheadlining
6/24/2025 Legend Club – Milan, IT
6/26/2025 Basinfire Spalene – Porici, CZ
6/27/2025 Impericon Festival – Leipzig, DE
6/28/2025 Abyss Festival – Hauteville, CH
6/29/2025 Rock Imperium – Cartagena, ES
