Chaos Doctrine have spent more than a decade refusing to stay inside the limits of a single metal subgenre. Their music has moved through industrialised thrash, death metal, sludge, hard techno and reinterpretations of songs from far outside their usual territory, but the band have kept a recognisable sense of aggression throughout.
That freedom now feeds into Unholy Empire, a forthcoming release built around original material, remixes, live recordings, covers and the band’s first thematic trilogy. At its centre are “Nicaea”, “Inquisition” and “Constantine”, three tracks examining power, corruption and the structures that grew from the Roman Empire into the Roman Catholic Church.
Vocalist Dr D spoke to AFRICA.ROCKS about the band’s refusal to be defined by genre, the violence behind “Bayonet”, their approach to covers and the final stages of Unholy Empire.
“We set our own creative boundaries, and we can move them again tomorrow if we want to.”
Chaos Doctrine began in Johannesburg in 2011 and have built a catalogue that moves through industrial metal, thrash, death metal, remixes and reinterpretations. Looking back, which decisions had the greatest effect on the band you are today?
Everyone in Chaos Doctrine has a high level of creativity, and we apply it in different ways. Writing a new track is one thing. Taking that track from thrash metal into industrialised thrash is another. Remixing the same song into hard techno-infused death metal is something else again. Our writing process is never completely consistent. Sometimes we begin with a riff, sometimes one of us writes an entire song, and sometimes it begins with industrial noise arranged into a loose structure. It may be because three of us are Geminis and prone to boredom [he laughs], but we are always looking for the next thrill. Whatever the reason, it has certainly led us to build a diverse body of work over the years.
What holds everything together is our distinct sound. Whether we are playing thrash metal above 200 BPM, hard industrial music or blues-infused sludge, it still sounds like Chaos Doctrine. It is always dark and heavy. That comes from years of writing together, deliberately experimenting and balancing art with engineering. The most important decision behind all of this was never allowing our subgenre to define us. We set our own creative boundaries, and we can move them again tomorrow if we want to.
“Bayonet” returns to the industrialised thrash metal at the centre of Chaos Doctrine’s sound. What drew you to the First World War setting, and how did you compress that subject into a track lasting just over two minutes?
“Bayonet” does more than return us to industrialised thrash metal. It turns it up to 11. Perhaps I should add some context for people who do not know us well. We never stopped being an extreme metal band. As I mentioned earlier, we enjoy experimenting with different forms of metal and adjacent genres. The reason “Bayonet” is described as a return is that our previous three singles moved quite far away from our primary genre. Early in 2025, we released “The Rite Pt II” and “The Rite: Devil Divas and Harps Remix”, both of which were far more sludgy and blues-based than we usually venture. Those were followed by “Trial: Hamelin Remix”, which moved closer to symphonic death and black metal.
Returning to your question, I am always carrying a long list of ideas that I want to try in songs. One of those ideas was to write something shorter than two minutes. I sat down one evening and programmed drums for a track that ran for around one minute and 55 seconds. I sent that to Alec, who came up with the ridiculously good riffs for “Bayonet”. The samples at the beginning and end pushed it beyond the two-minute mark, which also gives us a chance to breathe when we play it live, [he laughs]. The subject came from the sound of the track itself. Even though it is very short, it is relentless, exceptionally violent and filthy. In modern history, what could be more unyielding than trench warfare?
“We currently have another three or four covers in different stages of recording.”
Your version of “Leper Messiah” follows a long history of covers from across different styles. What makes a song suitable for the Chaos Doctrine treatment, and how do you decide which parts should remain faithful to the original?
As I said earlier, we love doing different things and expressing ourselves in different ways. Our interest in covers grows naturally from that. They give us another way to apply ourselves creatively and produce something fresh. We have covered music ranging from Slayer and Sepultura to Pink Floyd and Depeche Mode, and from Black Sabbath and Motörhead to Midnight Oil and now Metallica. We currently have another three or four covers in different stages of recording, with many others still calling our name.
The degree to which a track receives the Chaos Doctrine treatment depends on what we hear when we first listen to it as a band. It depends on the original song and whether we feel it needs minor adjustments or a complete violent assault. Sometimes we stay close to the source. Our version of “South of Heaven” and our Pink Floyd medley, for example, contain no industrial elements. With other tracks, we experiment much more. “Leper Messiah” and “Ace of Spades” are good examples.
With our Black Sabbath medleys, we could not decide which direction to take, so we did both. Chapter I is a straightforward old-school interpretation, while Chapter II is fully industrialised. We later recorded Chapter III, which features several of our rock and metal vocalist friends from across South Africa.
Unholy Empire will include your first thematic trilogy, alongside remixes, live recordings and covers. What connects these different parts of the album, and what can you reveal about the story behind the trilogy?
When we first started planning Unholy Empire, it was going to be an EP containing the trilogy and perhaps another song or two to establish the theme. As we continued working on it, we decided to add more material and make it a more substantial release, especially after putting out The Chaos Chronicles Volumes II and III last year, a double album containing more than 20 tracks.
Growing up, we all enjoyed hearing different versions of songs, B-sides and similar material, so that is what we decided to create. At the centre of Unholy Empire is our first trilogy, a three-part examination of absolute power and universal corruption. Across “Nicaea”, “Inquisition” and “Constantine”, we trace the transformation of the Roman Empire into the Roman Catholic Church and the structures that shaped its authority. Each track covers a different stage in that transition, moving from foundation to enforcement and finally to the consolidation of power. It is a dark and immersive narrative running through our most ambitious work so far. Importantly, Unholy Empire has a theme, but it is not a concept album. Every song does not follow that theme strictly.
The opening track, “Hidden Hand”, explores the idea of watchers and the Illuminati, while the remixes of “Building the Ultimate Tank” deal with an Orwellian dystopian society. What brings the release together in the end is our sound.
Chaos Doctrine handle much of the recording, production and visual work within the band. How does that level of control affect the final result, and what remains to be completed before Unholy Empire is ready for release?
Chaos Doctrine have been entirely self-produced since 2020 through our own space, Gemini AD Studios. We also handle the vast majority of our visual work ourselves, although we occasionally collaborate with strong local artists. Defrosted Art created the artwork for “Martyr”, while Ras Steyn worked on “One of My Bad Days”. This gives us complete control over the creative process and the finished product.
Quality control is built into the way we make decisions. Our rule is that every member must like something before it is released, which means four perfectionists must agree on the final result. That means we only put out work that we believe represents our best. Unholy Empire is now in the final stages of completion. The music is around 99 per cent complete, and the artwork is at a similar stage. We expect to finish everything within the next few months, so people should watch for release details.
Chaos Doctrine’s complete back catalogue is available on YouTube and other major platforms, with further updates shared through the band’s Instagram and Facebook pages.
