Why Venom’s New Album Took Eight Years: The Real Story Behind “Into Oblivion” – Exclusive interview with Rage & Dante of Venom

Welcome to episode #146 of the Rock Interview Series. Recorded on April 27th, 2026. My guests for this feature are members of the mighty metal trio Venom — guitarist Rage and drummer Dante. Venom formed in 1979 in Newcastle, England, led by founding bassist‑vocalist Cronos. Over time, the current lineup took shape when Rage joined in 2007 and Dante followed in 2009. In this interview, we discuss the new Venom record “Into Oblivion”, the band’s first release since 2018. We also cover many other topics, including their touring plans, their history, their future direction, and address the question fans have been asking for years: why did the new record take so long to record and release?

Dante and Rage explained that the long 8-year gap between “Storm the Gates” “and “Into Oblivion” wasn’t caused by a lack of motivation or ideas. Instead, it was the result of a series of setbacks that hit the band one after another, beginning with the global shutdown that completely halted their writing process. Venom’s chemistry has always depended on being in the same room, throwing ideas around, jamming, and building songs organically. When the world closed, so did their workflow. As Dante explained, “COVID put a stopper on things… we just couldn’t do that. We couldn’t see each other.” For nearly a year, the band worked separately from home studios, trying to keep momentum alive until they could finally reunite and “get back to the old magic again.”

Just as they regained their footing, a second and far more devastating problem surfaced. During playback one night, they heard a strange crackling noise across the entire album. What they hoped was a single‑track issue turned out to be a full recording failure caused by the hi‑hat track. “It wasn’t just this song, it was the entire album,” Dante recalled. The only solution was to start over. He had to re‑record every drum part from scratch — a crushing moment at the time, but one that ultimately strengthened the record. “It did make for a better album,” he admitted, because it gave them the chance to refine songs that needed more work and push the material further than before.

Beyond the technical setbacks, the band also felt a creative shift happening. After three strong albums together, they didn’t want to simply repeat themselves. Rage described the period as a necessary reset, a moment to rethink their direction and evolve rather than coast. “We needed a little bit of a reset… to define where we’re going to go forward into the future,” he said. With a growing wave of younger fans discovering Venom through the current lineup, the band felt motivated to raise the bar, become more musical and more technical, and write songs that carried the emotional punch and foot‑tapping energy that first drew them to heavy metal.

Even with all the challenges, the band kept their sense of humor about the long wait. When asked if fans would have to endure another eight‑year gap, Dante joked, “Another 10. We’re idle bastards. That’s the problem.” But the truth is the opposite — the delay wasn’t laziness, it was persistence. They rebuilt the album twice, navigated a global shutdown, and refused to release anything that didn’t meet their own standards. Once the final recording phase began, it moved quickly, and the band now stands fully behind the finished work. Dante states “We’re really, really pleased with what we’ve done… really proud of it.”

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