Don Decker of Anal Blast passes away
“Don Decker, legendary lead singer and songwriter of ANAL BLAST and longtime Midwest promoter, died today (Sunday, October 11) at 2:17 a.m. According to his friends, the passing was “peaceful.” He was 41 years old.
The cause of death has not been made public, but Decker reportedly received a liver transplant last year.
Decker will be remembered for his uncompromising adoration of heavy metal, his promotion business in Minnesota, which almost single-handedly jumpstarted the Minnesota metal scene, and his violently obscene lyrics for the group ANAL BLAST — which he said was “the most stupid band in the world.” [via Blabbermouth]”
Although by most accounts Don was as big of an asshole as they come (both literally and figuratively), it’s impossible to hate the guy. No one can deny the overwhelmingly positive impact he has had on underground metal in Minnesota as well as throughout the country. Over the years I have attended countless metal shows that Decker had a hand in putting together, and it is clear that without his work behind the scenes many of these bands would’ve never even considered making the trek. Local bands could always count on Don to give them his ear, and whether or not he enjoyed their music, he always made sure that quality metal bands were given a stage and a fare compensation for their time. Selfless, passionate, hard-working people like Decker are exactly what the scene needs to thrive, but so few of them walk among us today. With Decker’s passing who will step up to assume the role he has played? I guess only time can tell..
Decker, tonight I raise my glass to you and your metal-loving soul!
As an outsider looking in, all I can relate to this moment is my one and only experience seeing Anal Blast play… and I thought they kinda sucked. Maybe that was just relative to the other bands on the bill though – either way I know there’s a place in music for what Decker & co. did, but I think I’d need to hear a lot more about his contributions before slapping the local-legend label on him.
when i referred to him as a local-legend (via email), i was definitely speaking more to the job he’s done as a promoter over the years than anything he’s done with his band (read some comments from the blabbermouth article if you’re realllly interested in why metalheads appreciate the guy). within the metal community, you won’t find anyone behind the scenes who’s toured MN and is not familiar with decker.
that said, i didn’t really enjoy that anal blast performance with mayhem this year either (and not just because his health problems left decker immobile). he’s as vile as ever, and it’s not my thing.. but that doesn’t change without him there would be metal bands that i doubt i would’ve seen today (amon amarth, cannibal corpse, enslaved, to name only a few..).
side note: cattle decapitation dedicated their set to him on Sunday night, only a few hours after he died..
I am very grieved to hear don has passed on, I know he’s partying somewhere and I can’t wait to party with him again. He was a great guy, truly loved metal, always had the best stage in milwaukee-nightfall stage and partied hard. The metal scene has been made a better place because of him and his struggle to promote true underground metal. Love ya Don–SkullCrusher/Angela
Just read through the comments – kinda mixed reactions to the guy’s life… Even the people who like him seem to call him an asshole… but an asshole who treated bands fair.
Don’t mean to sound like I’m taking a pot-shot at a guy I never knew, just reflecting on the comments in the thread.
Not for the first time have I learned of and deeply mourned the awfully sad, premature passing of an authentic metal legend. And Don Decker was every bit of that—from the top of his head to the tips of his toes. And yes, I’m an unabashed fan of his music, too.
I loved Don for his tons of talent, his outstanding integrity, and commitment and contributions to heavy metal. I always owe him the top-notch entertainment he gave via his performances, and his gruesomely cool band Anal Blast. That his passing was reportedly “peaceful” comes as a relief to my ears. RIP Don…You’ll be missed more than you know.
My heart bleeds for those who were lucky enough to appreciate magnitude of the loss that came with this man’s death. When I lost my husband of 17 yrs, Decker put together an honorable memorial show for his friend, ex employee, and partner in chaos. I lost a friend as well, who will be deeply missed for his brutal, dark, and unequaled sense of humor. I’ll miss him greeting bullets with “Bullets, I’m taking your womsn” as he threw me over his shoulder (held by my ankels) and asked me some obscene question that left me laughing so hard I couldnt even struggle. “Starfish” he called me. Thanx decker. I’m crying over starfish. Anyhow im trying to reach fam and band. my cell is 612-636-1897. I hope to get info on funeral and pay my last to this legend. Decker, I will always love you like family!!!
Starr
RIP-bro may your horns turn into wings and may your spirit soar…say NUMNA! to Earl.
he seemed like a real prick .but it seems people liked the guy.i never even listened to his band.it reminds me of some angry mentors.now that he partied all his life he can finally rest.take care my man.
A man is measured in life by the deeds that he does. No one could look at Don Decker and say “there was a good and positive individual that really did something for his fellow man or the human race”.
What they can say is “Here was a fat bastard that let women piss on his head, ate a turd onstage, drank until he pissed himself on a regular basis, and pretty was was an evil and vile bastard”. There were a lot of people that wanted this man dead and anyone in their right mind who really knew him for what he was, would not feel any remorse over his loss.
When I was coming of age in the metal scene of the 1990s there in my mind was two camps to be part of hear in the twin cities. (Earl Roots or Don Deckers). I would definitely label myself in the “awsomer” of two evils, as part of the Root troupe. Earl Did more for the MN metal scene than any other individual including the Don. My loyalty to Earl as my metal guru and mentor as as youth was stronger than steal, and “more metal than swinging a metal sward at something” -E.R. The one time that I shopped at Dons store because I heard that he had a extremely hard to find Incantation LP, I felt far more guilt than when I cheated on my high school sweetheart. Earl was one of the nicest friendliest people I have ever met and opened my eyes and ears to a whole world of music that I probably never would have herd. Don like many have already pointed out was a fucking asshole. No doubt about it. In fact almost any time I ever heard his name mentioned in conversation, regardless of the context, my response would be something along the lines of “God I hate that fucking asshole, what a fucking piece of shit of a human being”. All these years later I no longer have a hatred in my heart for the Don. I know he has been suffering physically for years and mentally in anguish for he bulk of his short lived existence. As big of an asshole as he could be to others he treated himself worse than anyone else. I will give him his dues for bringing some great bands to the twin cities and for supporting local artist, but it is hard for me to feel anything now for him but pity. I hope he is as piece now.
I don’t think Decker was an asshole. At least he was never one to me and I never saw him being one to anyone else. He was someone who said what he thought and a lot of people always have trouble with that.
He wasn’t the nicest guy in the world though. That title would have to go to Earl. In many ways, Decker was the anti-Earl.
I remember once in about 1999 being in Nightfall with a couple of friends. I remember we looked at each other and we all realized we were pressed up against the far wall of the shop, as far away from Decker as possible. Why? Because his breath smelled like shit. And I don’t mean that figuratively. I mean it literally smelled like feces. Rotten feces. We excused ourselves and left. To this day I don’t know what was going on there but I have a fairly good idea.
Or there was the time he decided to show me some polaroids. It was him and a girl. As soon as I saw them I thought “Oh, shit.” Because when Decker would pull something out like that, you knew something bad was coming.
Pretty soon the photos were of cocktail straws in a cock, which I presume to have belonged to Decker. Then, there was a picture of a woman’s finger in the cock. That was the last thing I remember, I think I turned away or something.
Then there was the time Scary Gary smashed up Nightfall with a baseball bat.
Then there was the bizarre incident of the City Pages cover collage artist who decided to stab to death a guy who hung out at Decker’s shop, a guy I vaguely knew. The artist and another person ambushed the guy at the cash stop where he worked. They stabbed him to death with an x-acto knife. I remember Decker telling me this with some degree of relish.
I have a number of other stories about Decker but I’m going to leave it at that.
I suspect the man was probably, to be honest, a complete waste of skin. He was a complete and utter nihilist but for some reason he gave his absolute all– really dedicated his life to– the metal community in this shit town that is soon to become an icy wasteland once again.
In other words he spent his life on something that doesn’t matter a fuck, and that nobody who matters a fuck cares about in the least.
Don Decker said goodbye to planet cunt blood. He did so decades ago. With regards to that, I agree with him absolutely.
Unlike Earl, who died fighting and who was full of life and warmth, Decker’s death was a slow suicide. Unlike Earl, I don’t miss him at all. Soon I’m going to be joining both of them to rot in the dirt and it doesn’t matter at all.