Atheist is an amazing band, but a lot of people have never even heard of it. In the early 1990’s, it was a pioneer of technical metal. Even though a lot of people may not know it, Atheist dissolved in 1994 and the members only regrouped a few years ago.

Some time ago, metal-rules were able to do an interview with Kelly Shaefer, who is a co-founder and vocalist for the band. Shaefer has been with the band from the start, and he still is the frontman for Atheist. Today we’ll go over the main points made in the interview.

The Downfall of Atheist

A lot of people wondered why Atheist folded. How exactly did this implosion happen? It began when the band’s original bassist passed away. The band were unable to find anyone who could fill Roger’s place. The closest person they found was Tony Choy, but he also left shortly after.

Another reason was ‘Neurotica’, which was Kelly Shaefer’s side project at the time. He was trying to work with both bands, but at some point, he had to choose between them. Due to the problems plaguing Atheist, he chose the other band.

Another issue that drove Shaefer away was that he did not get along with Rand Burkey who was the guitarist for the band. Previously, Steve Flynn had been patching things up between the two men, but he also left and started attending college full time. Things became really bad for the band, and after a tour in Europe, Shaefer decided that enough was enough. That’s when the band really disintegrated into a group of five men doing a task together.

Reception of Atheist works

Back when Atheist started with their technical metal gig, most people didn’t really get it. The fans of their music were few and far between. Technical music was only a niche genre of music and lots of people weren’t into it.

Now, there seems to be more than a little respect for the band. Their work from a decade ago is being touted as pioneering work in technical music, and there have been countless imitators of Atheist. Even though their records never had mind-blowing sales, things have picked up now.

When asked about the sales issue, Shaefer attributed it to the record company that the band was working with. Atheist could have gotten a deal with Roadrunner, which might have made the band really big, but the members thought that Roadrunner would focus less o it since that company was already working with several high profile metal bands. So they decided to sign up with another record company.

The respect that never was

One of the things that really hurt the band was that they were considered jokers. Technical music was something very niche, and most people only thought of it in stupid terms. In fact, Guitar Player only mentioned Atheist once, and that time the magazine made fun of them.

But some time later, other bands started pushing back boundaries and experimenting more and more. Morbid Angel was among the first of those, and there were hundreds that followed. Now, a decade after they released the music, people are finally starting to get it and give it the respect it deserves. Now Atheist is back together, although in a slightly different form, and we can’t help but wait for their next album.