So, here we are again, folks. Another day, another former member of a legendary death metal band throwing shade like they’re auditioning for a role in a drama series. This time, the spotlight falls on Jack Owen, the guitar maestro who once navigated the treacherous waters of Deicide. In a recent chat with The Growl Podcast, Jack decided to peel back the curtain on his time with the one and only Glen Benton, and let’s just say it wasn’t exactly a bromance for the ages. Grab your popcorn; this is going to be deliciously awkward. 😈
“It was tough, pretty tough,” Owen confessed, sounding like a guy who just survived a three-day bender with a chaotic roommate. “Cause he never cracked my bubble and I never wanted to get into his bubble. [Laughs] We’re just completely different people, man.” You have to love the mental image of Jack encased in a pristine, introvert-safe bubble, while Glen is likely outside, trying to poke it with a stick just to see if it pops. “I am a total introvert. I just wanna do my work and get done and just keep going. Next album. [Laughs] I don’t know if he likes drama or likes to create it — I don’t know — but you can tell that we’re different people, and it just was not gonna work.” Translation: Jack wants to write riffs and nap; Glen wants to summon demons and argue about bass tones. It’s the classic “Odd Couple” of death metal, except instead of Felix and Oscar, it’s “Glen the Demonic Overlord” and “Jack the Quiet Cat Rescuer.” 🐱
The awkwardness didn’t stop there. Jack doubled down, basically playing a round of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire: Band Edition.” He got along with Steve Asheim? Check. He vibed with Kevin Quirion? Check. He’d probably get along with a roadie, a groupie, or even a sentient drum machine. But when it comes to the anti-pope of death metal himself? Nope. “I get along with everybody, pretty much, except Glen Benton. [Laughs]” It’s refreshing to see that level of honesty. Usually, musicians do the PR dance, saying, “We just grew apart, man.” Jack essentially said, “I get along with everyone except the guy who looks like he’s constantly smelling a really bad fart.”
And let’s not forget the time Glen, in an interview, claimed he didn’t even know who Jack was. The ultimate troll move. Jack’s response? “I think I’m just so simple that you think there’s more to me. But I have a cat rescue and I’m either playing music or writing music or listening to music or watching college football or hockey. That’s pretty much it.” Honestly? Iconic. While Glen is out there being the personification of a low-frequency nightmare, Jack is at home, saving cats and watching hockey. It’s the duality of man. One is trying to bring about the apocalypse; the other is worried about whether Fluffy has enough kibble. 🏒
When the host, Chad “C.R.” Petit, pointed out that some people are just “drama driven,” Jack couldn’t agree more. He painted a picture of the Florida metal scene that sounds less like a musical community and more like a high school cafeteria where everyone is wearing Corpse Paint. “The Florida metal scene was like that,” he said. “It was all drama. Band feuds and just all kinds of crap. ‘He said what about me?’ It’s, like, dude, you’re two guys. Who cares?”
Imagine a world where Jack’s dream comes true. A Florida death metal tour featuring Morbid Angel, Deicide, Obituary, and Cannibal Corpse. It sounds like a logistical nightmare of ego proportions. “Couldn’t we have a show…? No, we can’t do that. Why? Everybody’s friendly with each other. Oh, no, we’re not.” It’s like trying to get Thanos, Loki, and Ultron to share a timeshare. It’s not happening unless there’s a massive cage match involved. Jack is still pushing for it though, comparing it to the “Big Four” of thrash. Spoiler alert: The “Big Four” of Florida death metal would likely end in a police investigation and a lawsuit over stolen tour bus tires. 🚌💥
Let’s rewind to 2022, when Jack was talking about his final album with Deicide, *In The Minds of Evil*. He had nothing but praise for Kevin Quirion, calling him “awesome” and “motivated.” He even admitted they co-wrote a bunch of tracks. “Kevin’s awesome. He is a guy that would do anything for you.” Meanwhile, in the background, you can practically hear Glen Benton growling into a void about royalties. Jack and Kevin were the reasonable ones, the guys who just wanted to write “thrashy” riffs without having to sign a pact in blood. 👹
But the real tea—the piping hot drama—came when Jack explained exactly how he left Deicide. It wasn’t a slow fade; it was a bang. “I walked into practice and Steve had re-recorded it and changed notes here and there for three or four songs that I had. It was stupid at the time. But he’s, like, ‘Hey, I changed the notes so I get writing credit.'” Wait, what? That’s not just band dynamics; that’s straight-up highway robbery in the rehearsal room.
Jack’s reaction was pure gold: “‘That’s not how the songs go, though.’ And Glen’s, like, ‘It is now.’ [Laughs] So I literally walked out and ghosted them. [Laughs] Later on, it was like, ‘Hey, dude, you’re out.'”
Let that sink in. Jack Owen, a founding member of Cannibal Corpse and a veteran of the genre, got the equivalent of a “You can’t quit, you’re fired!” But he did it on his terms. He just… left. He ghosted Deicide before ghosting was cool. He saw the writing on the wall—or rather, he saw the notes on the tablature—and decided his sanity was worth more than the gig. And honestly? Good for him. Why stay in a band where the vocalist pretends you don’t exist and the drummer rewrites your solos to steal credit?
For the record, Steve Asheim later confirmed the debacle in a 2017 interview with Metal Wani, basically saying, “Yeah, we rewrote the songs, Jack didn’t like it, and he left.” It’s the polite corporate speak for “We totally changed the locks while he was at lunch.”
Since escaping the asylum, Jack has found refuge in Six Feet Under, playing alongside his old Cannibal Corpse buddy Chris Barnes. Their latest album, *Killing For Revenge*, dropped in May 2024, and apparently, there’s more coming. But the real entertainment isn’t the music; it’s the interviews where Jack politely tears apart his former employer with the calm demeanor of a man who has truly found peace (and probably better wifi).
So, here’s to Jack Owen: the Introvert Survivor, the Cat Saver, the Hockey Watcher, and the only guy in Deicide who apparently just wanted to play the songs as written. As for Glen Benton? He’s probably still in his bubble, wondering who Jack Owen is. 🤷♂️
Chord F. Discord, the Beethoven of Buffoonery, is a self-taught expert in music who once claimed he could “play the kazoo in four languages.”
Born in Crescendo, Indiana, Chord’s first brush with fame came when he accidentally entered a yodeling contest thinking it was a pie-eating competition—and won both categories.
Chord F. Discord: proving that laughter, much like a poorly tuned ukulele, is truly universal.
