The legacy of black metal pioneers Venom has splintered into three distinct directions, but former frontman and current Venom Inc. leader Tony “Demolition Man” Dolan insists this is a good thing for the fans.
Currently, the Venom system consists of the official band led by sole original member Conrad “Cronos” Lant; Venom Inc., led by Dolan; and a newly reunited duo of co-founders Jeff “Mantas” Dunn and Anthony “Abaddon” Bray, who are celebrating the 45th anniversary of the classic album Welcome To Hell.
In a recent interview with Chile’s “Rock A La Vena,” Dolan addressed this unique situation, dismissing the idea that the existence of multiple lineups is a problem. Instead, he views it as an opportunity for fans to get more of the music they love without the personal drama that plagued the group for decades.
Dolan offered a candid assessment of the band’s tumultuous history, noting that the separation has allowed everyone to find their own path.
“When you think about it now, after everything everybody’s been through, I think they always were hating each other, loving each other, then they’d steal money from each other. And it was always a mess. It was always a mess on a personal level,” Dolan said (as transcribed by Blabbermouth). “But I think what came out of it was that Abaddon left and Mantas left and Cronos continued, and I think he’s continued rather successfully. And if you think that he’s put several albums out with this lineup that’s been the longest[-running] lineup Venom‘s had. And [he has] two good players [in the current Venom lineup], two nice guys, and they do the shows that they wanna do.”
Dolan, who fronted Venom from 1989 to 1992 during the Prime Evil era, also reflected on why Cronos may have held a grudge against him for years. While he initially saw himself as just helping friends, he now realizes how it looked from the outside.
“I guess he didn’t wanna do it with me because he didn’t want to legitimize me being in the band when he wasn’t in the band. And I totally got that. I could understand that much later,” Dolan admitted. “I was a bit naive at the time. I didn’t think about it, ’cause they were just my friends. So I thought, ‘Oh, well, Conrad‘s not doing it.’ Then, yeah, when they asked me, I said, ‘Yeah, sure,’ ’cause they’re my friends. But I didn’t realize the impact it had on him in particular. And because Prime Evil was such an acclaimed album and was a quite a big album for the band, I guess that made it even worse. And he had to try hard to make sure that that wasn’t accepted. And I can understand that. That was his band. I had my band, and I kind of looked like I’d usurped him and took his band, but I hadn’t. That’s not how I looked at it, but it’s how he saw it.”
He added: “I never felt I was stepping in another man’s shoes. I wear my own shoes. I don’t need to wear somebody else’s. And I did it my way, the way I wanted to do it. And I like that.”
Dolan also clarified the circumstances surrounding Mantas leaving Venom Inc. following a series of health scares. While the split was communicated to him indirectly via social media, Dolan holds no ill will, citing the guitarist’s double heart attack as a valid reason to step back from the rigors of the road.
“I said to him very early on that if we do this, we do it until we can’t do it anymore. We don’t give up again. And after two heart attacks, he wasn’t feeling it, and he didn’t like touring. It was too uncomfortable for him, which I totally understood,” Dolan explained. “And he was having a lot of pains, and [he was] worried, again, of course. He [nearly] died, so it does play with your mind. He didn’t wanna die running through an airport. I mean, who wants to do that? Nobody. So I totally understood that. But I can’t stop doing what I do because someone else doesn’t wanna do it anymore. That’s my choice. That was his choice. I let him have his choice, and I continue doing my choice.”
Looking ahead, Dolan outlined a packed schedule for all three factions. Cronos is reportedly working on a new album with BMG, while Venom Inc. is preparing their own studio release along with two live albums—one of which is a special tribute to their Latin American fanbase. Meanwhile, Mantas and Abaddon are hitting the festival circuit to honor the band’s origins.
“For me, I think it’s all very positive,” Dolan concluded. “I think the negative stuff with the court cases — Conrad suing Abaddon, Abaddon trying to sue Conrad and all of that — is just more mess than Venom [needs], and I don’t want any part of that. It’s, like, do what you wanna do. If you wanna play music, and you wanna play for fans, and you wanna sell them product and sell them merchandise or whatever you wanna do, go and do it. Go and do it. The fans are there. If they want to buy it, they’ll buy it. But I think that when you’re trying to manipulate fans who just wanna hear music and don’t wanna know the politics. They don’t wanna see people screaming and shouting at each other all the time or hear dirty washing. They just wanna be there for the music. So I have no time for that bulls**t. It is bulls**t, and I’m not buying in to it.”
