Dark Angel drummer Gene Hoglan has offered a candid look into the expectations and creative process behind Extinction Level Event, the highly anticipated new album from the California thrash metal pioneers. Due later in 2025 on Reversed Records, this marks the band’s first new LP in 34 years since 1991’s Time Does Not Heal.
In a recent interview with Altars Of Metal, Hoglan discussed his hopes for the album’s reception. “Well, our expectations — I always have pretty high expectations. What I suppose I expect is just for people to listen to the record, just check it out,” he stated (as transcribed by Blabbermouth). He emphasized his personal satisfaction with the material: “I love it. I think it’s awesome, man. I’m stoked to be a part of it. I’m stoked to be a part of the writing of it. I’m stoked for this to be a Dark Angel album.”
Hoglan, often referred to as the “Atomic Clock,” expressed confidence in the album’s appeal to fans. “This is written for me, for us, for Dark Angel, but we’re all pretty avid metal fans and we all pretty much know what’s a kick-a*s metal approach, and I think we definitely have that with this record,” he affirmed.
He encouraged listeners to give the entire 48-minute album a chance. “I have zero trepidation whatsoever. And I never do. I never [think], ‘Oh, I wonder if people are gonna like our music or like stuff I do.’ I never have that. So here it is, right in your face. I’m excited for everybody to hear it, and I’m excited for anybody’s opinion on it.”
“I have a feeling people are gonna be going, like, ‘God, Lord almighty. This album’s killer.’ That’s the way I feel about it. So there you go.”
A significant aspect of Extinction Level Event is the posthumous contribution from late Dark Angel guitarist Jim Durkin, who passed away in March 2023. Hoglan confirmed Durkin’s songwriting presence on the album. “The title track, ‘Extinction Level Event‘, that is absolutely Jim’s song from top to bottom. I wrote the lyrics in the vocals for it, but musically that’s Jim.” He added that Durkin has a couple of songs featured on the record, some co-written with guitarist Eric Meyer.
Hoglan recounted how Durkin presented the title track as an instrumental in 2014, shortly after the band’s reunion. “Jim took me aside one time…and he was, like, ‘I have a song that I wrote, and I wrote it for Dark Angel. I wrote it for anything, if we were ever to record anything ever again… And here it is.’ And it happened to be this song, ‘Extinction Level Event.'” Hoglan was “blown away,” finding it quintessential Dark Angel and Jim Durkin.
Despite having older unreleased material from 1991-92 (intended for an album called Atrocity Exhibition), Hoglan preferred to focus on new compositions. “What you just brought to the table here is really exciting to me. And what I know that I can bring to the table,” he told Durkin at the time. The writing process for the new album continued, with Hoglan constantly working on material. He noted the influence of Jim Durkin on his own guitar playing from an early age, and also credited Laura Christine, the band’s new guitarist (who Durkin himself selected as his replacement), for her contributions.
Hoglan also addressed the musical evolution of Dark Angel. “In Dark Angel’s evolution, we’ve never had two albums sound the same,” he explained, citing the distinctiveness of Darkness Descends compared to We Have Arrived, and so forth. He posed the question that guided their writing: “What if Dark Angel never took a hiatus? What if we just kept writing songs, writing albums, putting out records? Where would we be at right now?” He’s confident that while the new album may not sound identical to previous works, it “definitely sounds like Dark Angel.” He added, “We’re channeling a lot of the old Dark Angel energy and stuff like that. So there’s a lot of that. And I think people are gonna hear it and they’re gonna go, ‘Yeah, I definitely hear that it’s Dark Angel. No doubt of that.'”
Regarding feedback on the first two singles, “Circular Firing Squad” and the “Extinction Level Event” title track, Hoglan maintains a unique perspective. He admitted he generally avoids online feedback, preferring to receive reports from friends and management. “All I know is my friends text me and they go, ‘We love the new songs.’… My management, the manager or whoever, or anybody else in the band, if they pay attention to what the world says, then they do. But I hear things from those who pay attention to that sort of thing, and I only hear the good.” He emphasized his personal philosophy: “I’ve never done one thing ever in my career that has paid attention to what the outside world thinks.”
The Extinction Level Event title track was recorded and mixed at The Armoury Studios in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It was executive produced by Hoglan, produced and engineered by Rob Shallcross, and mixed by Mike Fraser. Durkin‘s contribution to the song came before his passing on March 8, 2023, at the age of 58.
