Thomas Hand Chaste

Well, I was born into a musical family. My father was a clarinet and sax player. After World War II, he played with an English swing band in Europe, then in Italy, at the radio and cabaret show with great Italian artists such as Totò, Macario and Nino Taranto. I began to play drums at the tender age of 14 years. I’m a self-taught musician. As my birth certificate says, I was born in 1957, so the music of my childhood was rock, but I appreciate any style: classical, jazz, folk, electronics or experimental. The important element is the real feeling of the music…

Over the years, I played with many people, in garage, punk and new wave bands as well as in some orchestral works. In 1980, I already knew Paul Chain and Claud Galley. They needed a drummer for an experimental trio, the Paul Chain trio, and some of those compositions can be heard on “Violet Art of Improvisation” DLP. Then, that week, we tried to play together and when we finished the sessions, they showed me a photo of Death SS and asked me if I wanted to play with this band. I was to accept immediately. either yes or no, based on the photos of Death SS! Incredible! These people are very trustworthy. And crazy! After a few days, I was the drummer of Death SS…

The minds of Death SS? We were led by Steve Sylvester and Paul Chain. They had curiosity about occultism. But I didn’t know that until I joined them. In the very beginning, Death SS equated with Death – the Death – being Paul Chain and SS – the Vampire – being Steve Sylvester. But I’m a practical man. My demons are in this realm of life. I think the demons we carry are inside us, in all humanity, but that is another story…
The other components of the band were Claudio Galeazzi, aka Claud Galley, Daniele Ugolini, aka Danny Hughes and Tommaso Castaldi, aka Tommy Chaste. Before my arrival, there had been approximately four or five drummers and three or four bass players, but the name of the band had always been the same. I changed my hereditary name to Thomas Hand Chaste, although in the first compilation and in some other recordings, I appear as Tommy Chaste.
As a band, it was difficult to manage, with two strong personalities, Paul Chain and Steve Sylvester, who were always in conflict. Sometimes, the test of the band ended with large problems. Sometimes they happened also with strange facts. But I don’t believe in legends, the things that are in the mind…
In those days, the band had recorded nothing and I convinced them to go into a studio in Riccione called Real Sound where we recorded “Terror” and “Murder Angel“. After a short period, we recorded other songs with Steve, which also appeared on “In The Story of…” LP.
Live acts were nearly impossible. First of all, the scenografia was rich and elaborate. Secondly, when the managers of the clubs discovered who we were, they said no. It was always the same in that period. But to the best of my knowledge, we were offered an engagement in Perugia. It was an unforgettable concert, although as usual, this was not a typical concert. It was nearly a ritual. People came with more than a view to listening to our music. They were concerned with how we were dressed and what we were creating. It was theatre. In any case, it was always very difficult to perform, by the way we presented ourselves, with all those crosses, skulls and bones. They were not viewed kindly by would-be right-minded people and still less so from the church. To see a performance by Death SS, well, in those days, it did not appeal to these people, because it made them have to think. We were challenging, ahead of our time…

Soon afterwards, when letters began to arrive from fans, they had been visibly opened! But by whom? To this day, I don’t know…
Our first compilation appearance on the “Gathered” LP and some journalistic articles contributed to surrounding the band with a veil of mystery. The future looked promising. Then, one evening, Paul Chain announced to us that Steve was no longer in the band. At that moment, it seemed to be another typical argument between them. But as time passed, I understood that all was changed. This fracture between Paul Chain and Steve Sylvester, unfortunately, was unavoidable. There were too many arguments between them. This time, it was too great…
I must say that I was not in agreement with this split. But to this point, Paul Chain made decisions that he wanted and the band continued without Steve and the name, Death SS, remained as it was. Thereafter, there were other decisions, with which there did not seem to be agreement amongst us. These developments were that the songs would be sung in phonetic language and the name would be changed to Paul Chain Violet Theatre. But those subtle changes came later on…
In the meantime, Paul Chain had become the firm leader of Death SS and with Steve Sylvester gone, we remained without a singer although only for a short time. Paul Chain and Claud Galley knew Gilas, who, in turn, knew Sanctis Ghoram, aka Piero Gori. He was some years older than me, and I was already some years older than the others, but he was a good singer who had had experience with an Italian progressive band from the early ’70s. With him in, Death SS became Paul Chain, Claud Galley, Sanctis Ghoram and Thomas Hand Chaste.
With him, we composed “Chains of Death”, “Inquisitor”, “Black and Violet” and many others songs that then became a part of the Paul Chain Violet Theatre repertoire. To tell the truth, in that period, we made beautiful songs, and of them, my personal favourite is “Inquisitor“, in which I proposed a medieval rhythm that greatly appeals to me. With Witchfield, one of my current musical plans, we have reinterpreted “Inquisitor” with a haunting improvisation by Clive Jones of Black Widow fame. But more of that later…

Another song from this legacy is “Schizophrenic”, which was constructed by Claud Galley and I, then ended skilfully Paul Chain. In the same period, in 1983, we recorded “The Story of Death SS and Gilas“ composition. Gilas was a strange personage. In concerts with the Paul Chain trio, he often sang with us and improvised his performance. On a couple of occasions, he also came to the concerts of Death SS, yet it was more discontinuous, and he did not resist the pressure for long. Some time later, he was, unfortunately, taken into a psychiatric clinic and when he returned he was no more himself…
There were other ominous clouds in the sky above us. When the situation began to change for Death SS, Paul Chain decided to abandon the name. He will explain this decision with reasons belonging to the old philosophy of the Death SS. Yet, this time, there were no disagreements, no arguments, nobody leaving the band. Even so, regardless of years of hopes, dreams and hard work, all of this, came to nothing. To fuck all. Death SS was abandoned…
In 1984, the band no longer existed. A new chapter had begun under Paul Chain Violet Theatre. Initially though, it was going to be called Paul Chain Group. But after much insistence from both Claud Galley and I, it was transformed into Violet Theatre., which seemed more fitting to us The music, however, did not change. The songs had already been composed in the last period of Death SS. They remained with us, as they were.
For some months, we played in various places with much success. But once again, Paul Chain changed the concept. At the first opportunity to publish songs, he excluded Claud Galley, Sanctis Ghoram and Thomas Hand Chaste, even though we were the Violet Theatre as well as being three quarters of the old Death SS! Instead of us, he worked with Paul Dark and Eric Lumen. Together, they published the “Detaching from Satan” MLP. Is it possible that we were this embodiment of Satan? I don’t know! This was too much to bear…
Given his regard for me, I continued for approximately another year with Violet Theatre then decided to stop playing with Paul Chain. After 1985, I appeared on “In the Darkness“ LP, “Picture Disc“ MLP, “Violet Art of Improvisation“ DLP, “Life and Death“ LP, “Whited Sepulchres“ LP, “Yellow Acid“ 7“, “Mirror“ CD and “Relative Tape on CD“ Box Collection. Those songs had been composed previously.
Saying that, I still played some concerts with the band, the last of which was on the occasion that launched “The Story of Death SS” LP. It had been billed as the last concert of the band after a hiatus of three years…
That was 5th June 1987 and the legend says, although the legend is, in fact, true, that Steve then recorded the copyright of the name Death SS! He had left a cloth, written in blood, with the following text: “Death SS means in death of Steve Sylvester, but Steve Sylvester is still alive…” That night, the Death SS of Steve Sylvester was born. Steve has been very professional, doing a good the job with his band and deserves the success he has achieved. However, I think, if we had retained the original line-up, then that band would have been larger still…