Interview with Robert Gonnella of Assassin & Raging Rob

Questions by Sandi Mujanovic & answers by Robert Gonnella
(2024/02/29)


Question 1:
At what age did you start getting interested in doing vocals for metal bands, did you start out in Assassin or you had prior band experiences as well?

Rob: I started with about 15 years old to do vocals. I played with good friends first and then I met Dinko who asked me to join his band which was at the end Assassin.


Question 2:
The Upcoming Terror was a fantastic album you did vocals on,how did the band land a deal with Steamhammer, were you part of the demo tape you sent to them or not?

Rob: Yes if course I was part. Our Demo tapes 'Holy Terror' & 'The saga of Nemesis ' were well known at the time and I send them to SPV/Steamhammer myself and Assassin had our first record deal.


Question 3:
Were bands like Violent Force, Kreator, Sodom and such from the old German scene friends of yours, played some gigs together? Can you please reminisce on those times for us?

Rob: All of us Thrash bands emerged in the 80s and we were all connected and friends at the time. We often met and hung out together in Essen or they visited Düsseldorf. With Deathrow, Violent Force and Darkness we had more shows together back then and we are still good friends today. Places like the Mephisto in Gelsenkirchen or the Papidoux in Düsseldorf we hung out and had good parties. For the release of Interstellar Experience in 1988 I organised a big party at my mom's house where everybody came including Kreator & Destruction. It was an awesome time.


Question 4:
Was Checker Patrol a joke band or serious and how did you become friends with Øystein Aarseth, was Per Yngve Ohlin hanging out with you guys back then as well, do you miss those guys sometimes?

Rob: Checker Patrol was just for fun and was the output from a fun session with the Norwegian guests in the old Assassin rehearsal room. Back in the days I had a postal contact with Metallion (Slayer Mag) and he told me that he wanna come visit me and bring some friends. So one day him, Necrobutcher and Euronymous came to my mom's house in Düsseldorf and stayed some time with me and my family. We had a great time, made BBQ and met up with all my friends. We took the tram without tickets so we always had to watch out for the tram checkers not to get caught. That's how the name checker patrol came into being. We made fun sessions in the rehearsal room and met up with Darkness, Sodom and others. It was an unforgettable time and of course I miss Metallion, Necrobutcher and of course Euronymous (may he R.I.P).


Question 5:
Why didn’t you continue with Assassin after the second album Interstellar Experience ? The band didn’t fit to you anymore or some other reason? Later you reunited?

Rob: In 1989 after Dinko left Assassin the band had few songs which everybody kinda didn't like too much. Then thieves broke into the rehearsal room and stole most of our equipment. Soon Micha joined Sodom and Assassin broke up. In the 90s Assassin had several attempts to reunite and then in the early 2000s Assassin reunited.


Question 6:
Is thrash your favourite metal style or you also got interested in black and death metal when that scene started to rise?

Rob: I am an old school 80s Thrasher through and through, so I love thrash from the 80s best. Of course I also like black and death metal. Especially the old fathers of Black & Death metal like Venom, Death, Morbid Angel, etc


Question 7:
Who are your top 5 favourite hard rock bands from the 70s? You prefer those times or the 80s?

Rob: From Hard Rock / Heavy Metal I mostly prefer the 80s music. From the 70s my top 5 would Black Sabbath, AC/DC with Bon Scott, old Kiss, early Motorhead, Led Zeppelin ! I also like Jimmy Hendrix, Pink Floyd and other stuff.


Question 8:
What do you think of the current metal scene, any new talents you can recommend?

Rob: To be honest I am not that much updated what is currently happening in the metal scene. I am an old school 80s Thrasher and I am an expert in that. Though I just heard the band Sphinx who are younger lads who play actually great old school 80s Thrash style who I would recommend very much. Traitor is also a good band to recommend!


Question 9:
Can you tell us a bit about your new band Raging Rob, how did you guys meet and form, what style is it, for you like to experiment?

Rob: My 'new' band Raging Rob was formed in 2014 and is already 10 years old. It's a real band and is definitely not a kinda experiment. The band is comprised with 80s old school Thrashers from the the Düsseldorf Death Thrashers (DDT). We know each other back from 80s where most of us had rehearsal rooms next to the old Assassin and Deathrow. Me and our drummer Frank Nellen are old 80s ex Assassin members. Dirk Preylowski (ex-Apostasy & ex-Warrant), Rudi Görg & Maik Jansen (both ex-Human Bastards) were all active and are good friends since back then. Since Frank has health problems and can not play a full fledged show (but still plays some songs) then last fall Patrick Nau joined us after having played 11 years in the old school 80s Thrash band Contradiction.
It's a pleasure and honor to play with them old school 80s Thrash and it's most important that we are authentic old school Thrash musicians with a high quality.
We play songs from our album 'Always the true Assassin' and many 80s Assassin songs.


Question 10:
Can you tell us about your future plans in the music world?

Rob: Raging Rob is currently playing live sets all over the world. Next is China in May and we are planning to work on a new album which will be comprised with music, riffs, lyrics, etc all originated from the 80s.
80s old school Thrash metal is what we do and that is what you get.

Big Thrashing greetings to all headbangers who reads this interview.
Please check out our soon upcoming website: www.raging-rob.com

Thrash 'til Death
Rob