Interviews
In a new interview with "R.A. Nation", ANTHRAX singer Joey Belladonna touched upon the fact that the none of the "Big Four" bands of 1980s thrash metal — METALLICA, ANTHRAX, SLAYER and MEGADETH — sound alike despite the fact that they had a lot of the same influences.
He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Speaking of the 'Big Four', the whole lineup and that stuff, it was really nice to have differential type of bands and different sounds and vocals and just the whole aura of it all; I love that part."
"I don't think we were worried about having hits in the first place. It was a time when pop bands made singles and rock bands made albums.
So long as we kept coming with albums that people seemed to like, we weren't worried about having a Top 40 hit; if they came along, it was like a bonus. Now, the only time we got concerned was towards the end of Ritchie's [Blackmore, guitar] tenure with the band, as he was losing interest...
Former ACCEPT frontman David Reece says that he was high on the list of candidates when JUDAS PRIEST was looking for a new vocalist to fill the massive shoes of Rob Halford in the early 1990s.
"I was in Tennessee, and I hadn't fully retired yet, 'cause I had obligations before I decided to retire," Reece recalled in a new interview with "Waste Some Time With Jason Green" (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).
Jimmy Kay and Alan Dixon from Canada's The Metal Voice recently interviewed longtime Krokus frontman Marc (The Voice) Storace. Strorace spoke about his new solo album coming out in December and his upcoming documentary, and gave an update on the status of Krokus.
In regards to the musical direction of his solo album, Storace reveals: "It's energetic, heavy, melodic hard rock.
When a fan comes to see the band, they expect certain songs — always. And when a band says, 'Here's some new stuff from our new album,' that just means they're not playing stuff that the public wants to hear. And we decided a long time ago, 'We wanna play exactly what they wanna hear.'
That's one of the reasons why we were so successful — we played exactly what they wanted to hear.
The Metal Voice recently spoke to Udo Dirkschneider (original voice of iconic band Accept) about his upcoming U.D.O. album, Game Over.
When asked if there will be a future album from Dirkschneider & The Old Gang featuring former Accept members Peter Baltes (bass), and Stefan Kaufmann (guitar), Udo reveals: "We did the EP and people were saying is an album coming too?
By the end of the 1980s, heavy metal – and, in particular, thrash metal – had become something of a musical arms race. “It was all about impressing the other bands with your heaviness, with your speed, with your technical prowess,”
Metallica frontman James Hetfield recalls to Guitar World. “Everyone wanted to come up with the heaviest riff on earth or the fastest song possible.”
Former Iron Maiden frontman, Blaze Bayley, has offered a tantalizing glimpse into the band’s recording process in the 1990s, explaining that they made a conscious decision to drop one of the key elements of their distinctive sound ahead of his vocal debut on 1995’s The X Factor.
Speaking about his recent shows which have seen him playing a ‘Maiden Years’ set, Blaze said; “The anniversary set was kind of my favourites and the ones I really enjoy doing;
Founding JUDAS PRIEST guitarist K.K. Downing, who has just released the debut album from his new band KK'S PRIEST, spoke to the College Radio News Network about the group's plans for the coming months.
He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "[I'm] already well on the way with the next record, which is tremendously exciting.
In a brand new interview with The Rock Experience With Mike Brunn, Jay Jay French was once again asked if thinks TWISTED SISTER will ever play live again, nearly five years after the band completed its farewell tour.
The guitarist responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I said never [before], 'cause I meant never last time, but then we got together again, so now you sound like an idiot.