Sonic Destruction With KELLY SHAEFER From TILL THE DIRT

Interview by Kris PetersContrary to what their name initially suggests, Pop Evil are about as far removed from pop as The Wiggles should be the ARIAS.Since debuting with Lipstick In The Mirror in 2008, Pop Evil have released a succession of albums more on the hard rock scale, with War Of Angels, Up and their self titled albums all spawning a litany of hit singles, in the process stamping their name amongst the greatest rock bands of the last two decades.The band return with their latest album Skeletons on March 17, an album which vocalist Leigh Kakaty has said "is about us as a band stripping everything down to the bones. It’s more uptempo, it’s got bigger riffs, and we’re trying to capture the energy of our live show."HEAVY sat down with Kakaty earlier this week to discuss the album."We're excited, man," he beamed. "It always feels like forever for you to get the album finally out there once it's done, so it's exciting times. It's our 7th album, so it's a very big deal. I can't wait to get it out and get out there playing it."While always maintaining a strong rock presence in their music, it seems that, especially of late, the band has gotten progressively heavier with each release."It's the evolution of where this band is going," he replied. "And I think when you look at your growth - and this is our 7th album - I feel like it's our best Pop Evil album, and I'll tell you why. It's basically cliche, you talk to the singer and he will tell you it's the best album (laughs), but I really feel like the albums leading up to this have allowed this to be that. We were really driven about shaping our sound and making sure we have a consistency there that is different from the previous albums. Let's go back two albums, we had a producer Kato who is one of our close friends and mentor. He ended up passing away tragically in a motorcycle accident and it really shook us. I mean, when you lose your mentor you lose your rock. A producer's everything, man. He helps you with your sound. He basically takes the band and helps us tie the loose ends together and make everything go around. We spent an album trying to search for producers and find that right person, and we found him with Drew Fulk. Drew had written Waking Lions with us and he's done a couple of songs previously but it always felt like we needed more time with him. Finally we had an opportunity with this album and he obviously saw our vision and what we were doing and once he got on board this album all started to come together." In the full interview, Leigh talks more about Skeletons musically, stripping down to the bones and capturing the energy of a live show in the studio, bringing out the best in the band and himself, working with Heart Support, their upcoming run of shows and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

15 Maalis 202316min

Interview by Kris PetersAfter a long hibernation during which time the future of the band was uncertain, Northern Irish rock outfit The Answer are back, and, as the saying goes, are back with a vengeance.But this time that phrase isn't just bandied about as an expression. It is a welcome fact.After stepping back from all things to do with The Answer last decade, the members were finally coaxed back into music after being contacted by Golden Robert Records founder Mark Alexander-Erber who is a massive fan of the band and talked them into making their seventh studio album.When the band convened at Middlefarm Studios last year it was the first time they had been together in a studio since 2015. It was a milestone that could have gone either way but thankfully for the music world at large it fell the way of creativity and thus the seeds of Sundowners were sewn.Guitarist Paul Mahon joined HEAVY on the eve of Sundowners' March 17 release to fill in the blanks. We start by mentioning that after a seven year lay off the impending release of Sundowners must almost feel like the band's debut album all over again."It does a bit," he nodded. "It definitely reminds us of back in 2005 with our first record Rise. I think having that much of a break everyone was re-energised and really excited to get going again and we couldn't have had any more fun in the studio doing it."Sundowners is a beast of a rock album, harking back to the glory days of the genre, but we press Mahon on the musical make-up of the music and what The Answer was going for on the album."We made six albums before that and then having that break we kind of had a chance to be very objective and remove ourselves from the band completely for a while," he said. "When we stopped I wasn't sure if we were gonna come back and make another record so I was kind of in the mindset that I was no longer in The Answer and it gave me a fresh perspective on what we've done before and what I really liked about it and what I wanted to do for the chance again. There's some back to basics rock and roll which got us excited in the first place. We used that as the template to get going again. We wrote it in a much different way than usual, because we started with not seeing each other for a few years so it was quite different to get going again. I think we had maybe two or three sessions writing and demoing together before COVID hit us and then that put a spanner in the works. I wasn't sure when we were gonna finish it or when we could get in the studio and we would just write once a week on zoom where we would exchange ideas then go off and work on them individually. In the Summer of 2020 we got together and demoed the stuff we'd been working on and then we didn't see each other for another year and did the same thing and then went in the studio. I think it made the songs more focussed; a bit simpler in some aspects where we might have overcomplicated things before."In the full interview, Paul talks more about the time away from the band, what changed to make them try again, releasing Sundowners on Saint Patricks Day, how it felt coming together in the studio after so long, their first gig back at last years Planet Rockstock, their upcoming shows and what to expect and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

13 Maalis 202319min

Interview by Kris PetersOne can question the existence of tribute bands on the musical landscape, but there is no denying the impact they have had on music in general over the last five years in particular.They provide an affordable option for fans to hear the music of their favourite bands - and often at places and venues that the actual band cannot or will not visit.Once the whole stigma of a band playing someone else's music can be cast aside the equation becomes much simpler, but love them or hate them, tribute bands are a growing outlet for live events.And one of the best currently doing the rounds is Chop Suey, the worlds biggest System Of A Down Tribute, also known as the UK All Star Tribute To System Of A Down.Featuring the undeniable talents of Martin Jackson (vocals, Confyde), Sam Totman (bass, Dragonforce), Tommy Hunt (guitar, Anti-Nowhere League) and Andre Joyzi (drums, Breed 77), Chop Suey certainly has the pedigree for success, but, more importantly, they have the attitude and drive to elevate the band from one of a large number of tribute acts to one of the best.After completing a successful run of shows last year, Chop Suey have ramped things up in 2023, already announcing two large scale tours with another set to be announced n the coming weeks. The shows will see Chop Suey play everywhere from larger cities and venues to more out of the way areas, with the focus on not only sharing their love of the music from System Of A Down, but doing so in a way that allows more of their own personalities and abilities shine through than most tribute acts allow.HEAVY caught up with all four band members to find out the ins and outs of being in a tribute band, starting with what to expect from a Chop Suey performance."Just a real high energy show," Jackson promised. "A proper party basically. Just full bore, making sure everyone's having a good time, interacting with the crowd, doing all the cool stuff like opening up the wall of death and getting people to bounce and sing along. It's meant to be one great big party and a real ebb and flow of all the different music that System Of A Down does."The majority of tribute bands go to great lengths to emulate the band they are representing, dressing to play the part and studying various band members movements and mannerisms, but according to Chop Suey they operate in almost opposite fashion."I think it's mostly our own show to be honest" Joyzi measured. "I remember seeing System Of A Down when I was young and they were young - around 2004 - and it was an incredible show. The energy they had matched the songs and it was just a full energy show. It was amazing. Sadly, I don't think System Of A Down deliver the same energy any more for whatever reason but it seems that the energy side of it seems to have been neglected by the real band itself. We're younger (laughs), and we like the music and we like playing live. We have fun and people can see that and feel that on stage. Obviously, I work with Dragonforce as does Sam, and from that we have bigger ideas for production for a proper, entertaining show. That's why when Sam came in he helped a lot. It's nothing to do with a real System Of A Down show. We really do our own thing. We play the songs our own way. Martin is an incredible singer and he stays loyal as much as possible to System Of A Down but what we do, is do it our own way, which is a bit more metal to be honest."In the full interview we talk more about the live show, putting their own spin on things and how it works, breaking the stigma attached to tribute bands, choosing the set list, both upcoming tours and the yet to be announced one, their vision for Chop Suey, what the members get out of playing in a tribute band they might not in their original outfits, the formation of Chop Suey and why, future plans and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

13 Maalis 202334min

Kris PetersWith so much music in the modern age basically a re-imaging of genres gone by, it is refreshing to hear a band unafraid to think outside of the acceptable parameters and instead use their own creativity and experimentation as their musical vehicle.High octane Sydney outfit Pyramid Mission do that and more.Much more.By using elements of rock, metal and punk but underscoring that with samples, visuals and infectious hooks Pyramid Mission have ultimately crafted a sound uniquely their own, forged in their own image and beliefs without the unwanted distractions of adhering to set formulas or demands.In doing so they have created an artform that truly expresses their unique viewpoints on music, life and the universe as a whole.On the surface Pyramid Mission are simply a musical project that utilises sounds and samples to varying degrees, but if you take the time to join them in their personal journey down a myriad of rabbit holes then you face the very real possibility of opening your palate to a greater world within a world.Gio Lambos (composer/vocals), Yiani Baratsas (production) and Quentin Romot-Smith (production/drums) sat down with HEAVY earlier this week to talk about their new single Hex and life outside the bubble.Even the genesis of Hex has an intriguing nature to it's birth, as Lambos explains."That was nuts," he smiled. "It was just one of those moments where I was having this dream where I was lost in a train station. So, I'm in the dream and walking around the station and I meet this woman who's got this witch-like presence to her, and she's an interesting character. She's kind of guiding me to where I have to go, saying 'get on this train and go there', but at the same time she's also trying to keep me stuck in the train station. I got this crazy, conflicted energy from her, where it's like woah, she's trying to help me get places but also trying to keep me here forever. I woke up in somewhere in the middle of things. You know how dreams are always kind of hazy. And I was in this state where I was half excited, half terrified, but totally inspired. I wrote all of the lyrics for Hex in a few hours right after that. I guess the idea behind it is... I'm really into ancient mythology and a myth character you see a lot is the idea of these super natural feminine seductress figures. You've got sirens from ancient Greece - that's probably one of the most common ones - they sing these beautiful songs that lead sailors to their doom, and these characters, that's how they are always presented. They are these alluring, but dangerous women that are drawing men to their doom. After I woke up from this dream I had this feeling that it was a nuance kind of thing, you know. I was seeing that these interperations of these characters are just projections of the fear of the unknown that we have. Like I said, I was writing the lyrics straight away and it was... ultimately, it was reimagining them as instead of these scary characters, it's a call for myself and others who listen to the song to see the beauty and potential for growth when you experience that kind of stuff. And it's a call to understand that these witch like characters have a deeper nature. They're spiritual guides, yeah they draw us into the darkness, but that's only so they can guide us through it and we've just gotta be brave enough to see that value that's beyond our fear."In the full interview, the boys run through the musical nature of Hex, the trippy film clip that comes with it, the single artwork and how it ties into things, their upcoming debut album and what to expect, the early days of the band and the unusual nature of how they came to be, their mixing of sounds and where it comes from, pushing the musical envelope, their dynamic stage show, future gigs and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

9 Maalis 202314min

Interview by Kris PetersAmyl & The Sniffers are fast becoming a festival band - for better or for worse.Whether it is their shock appeal, intense and unpredicatable stage show, or general apathy towards authority, one thing you can always guarantee from the infectious rock/punk outfit is that they will inevitably deliver the goods.After performing at most of the countries major home grown festivals it is only fitting that Amyl & The Sniffers join the line-up for a major international showcase. Not only have they earnt the right to represent on the big stage, they have also demanded recognition through sheer volume of performances and quality of material.This April Amyl & The Sniffers trek around Australia on The World Is A Vampire Tour, headlined by the Smashing Pumpkins and Jane's Addiction. They are seemingly an odd choice to support two heavyweights of a more rock inspired line-up, but going by past efforts will undoubtedly steal the show at some stage of the tour.HEAVY caught up with guitarist Dec Martens to discover more."It should be good," he enthused. "I'm really looking forward to it. I'm looking forward to playing some of those places out of the city."We bring up the fact that Amyl & The Sniffers have little in common with the two headliners, but in his typical laconic fashion Martens shrugs off the fact that their music might be a little on the heavier side for some of the fans there to see the two internationals."I think it should be good," he shrugged. "We're at least in our home territory, so there will be - even though we're different - we'll probably be a little bit familiar to people compared to when we did the Hella Mega Tour through Europe last year with Green Day, Fallout Boy and Weezer and I think a lot of that European crowd didn't know what to expect from us so we kind of just alienated the whole lot. Because we're at least a bit more accessible here in Australia hopefully we won't make the whole crowd feel weird (laughs)."In the full interview, Dec talks more about the run of shows, the strong Australian representation with RedHook, Battlesnake and local supports, the wrestling side show, potentially jumping in the ring, recent happenings in Amyl & The Sniffers, new music, losing out to The Wiggles at the ARIA's, getting their revenge, what to expect from their shows and a special challenge throwndown by HEAVY and accepted!Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

9 Maalis 20239min

Interview by Kris PetersEmerging Sydney hybrid outfit Tiger recently released their second single of the year, Incredible.Combining core elements of rock and roll and dance music, Tiger have created a sound uniquely their own and one which refuses to be bound by conventional restraints.For a young band the boys are highly ambitious, with, among other things, a personal mission for the immediate future to release one song each month of this calendar year.HEAVY caught up with frontman Silvas to find out more."It's hard hitting, it's fast and energetic. It's probably one of our best numbers live," he enthused of the new track.We press him on the musical direction of Incredible and what they were going for with the song."I guess it's the same with a lot of Tiger's songs," he measured. "Our aim is to blend rock and roll music with dance music. And when I say dance music, that just means EDM, disco, new wave and combining it with the hard hittingness you hear in heavy metal and punk rock and hybriding it together."In the full interview, Silvas talks more about Incredible, their plan to release one song per month, mixing releases up to showcase different musical personalities of Tiger, putting together an EP, their blending of genres and how it came about, combining them on stage, touring plans and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

9 Maalis 202314min

Interview by Kris PetersMegadeth are one of the few bands in the world - of any genre - that need no introduction.For four decades they have been at the forefront of the metal landscape, with their most recent album The Sick, The Dying and The Dead their highest selling to date. Whereas most bands plateau somewhat or more often decline in the back end of their career Megadeth are doing the exact opposite.Which makes frontman Dave Mustaine one happy camper.Now, after nearly eight years, Megadeth are poised to return to Australia as part of Knotfest from March 24 to 26, with two side shows also scheduled for Adelaide and Melbourne.Which makes Mustaine even happier.HEAVY sat down for an awesome chat with the great man earlier this morning for a frank and open discussion about anything and everything.One of the topics of conversation was what has changed with Megadeth since their last venture Down Under in 2015."Well, ALOT," he laughed. "We've had some lineup changes and every time we do that the person that came in was better. When we parted ways with the drummer before Dirk (Verbeuren) - it was the person before Chris Adler, which was Shawn Drover - we tried to get the Rust In Peace line-up back together but it didn't work because Nick (Menza) went off one way and we went off the other. We contacted Adler and asked if he would play on the record and maybe contact Nick again and have him tour with us because he couldn't really do the record. That didn't work out either, so we had Chris do the record and stay, and while we were doing that Chris and his band parted ways and we didn't know if Chris was going to stay with us or stay with them. Of course, we wanted him to stay with Lamb Of God and I'm sad that he left and there's any kind of distance between the family. I do think that Art (Cruz) is an amazing drummer and then after that Chris Adler recommended Dirk, and Dirk is - in my mind - the best drummer we've had since Gar Samuelson. He's a big fan of Gar, and that is the power that drives Megadeth. Jazz metal, not rock metal. Nick was a super talented and powerful drummer and he fortunately was able to do a lot of those jazz hooks too, so we almost had that magic that we did when Gar was there. But we definitely had something which Gar did not, which was the power that Nick Menza possessed. Same thing can go down the line with the bass playing. (Dave) Ellefson was in the band, then was out. James (LoMenzo) came in, he was out. Ellefson came back because the Drover brothers kept pressuring me to do this, get Ellefson back. He came in and we had that weird shit that happened. I had Steve Di Giorgio come in and record the record and James is back and I love that he's back. The singing is fabulous on stage. He actually can sing really well, so he helps encourage me to sing. And then Kiko (Loureiro, guitars) as you know... I parted ways with Chris Broderick - I mean where do you go from having Marty Friedman and Chris Poland and it's time to make a guitar player change again? So Kiko, I saw a video on line of Kiko actually being put head to head against Chris Broderick, someone made a video of that, and I watched it and I went fuck I gotta get in touch with this guy. The funny thing is that when I contacted him he said that he had been talking to Ellefson, so when I talked to Ellefson the next time I said what the fucks wrong with you, man? Why didn't you tell me you know this guy(laughs)? So that was a great addition to the band. Kiko and James play really well together and Kiko and Dirk have an amazing ability to play those crazy riffs together. Of course, we can always be better, so we all go into the jam room every day and try and work on little bits and pieces of a song and our record producer is out with us on the road as our music director keeping our chops up."In the full interview, Dave talks about being part of Knotfest, the two sideshows and how they will differ from the festival shows, forty years in the music industry, listening to your body when it comes to performing, the increasing difficulty in coming up with a set list to keep fans happy, the early days of Megadeth and the musical climate that gave birth to the band, becoming more understanding of your environment with experience, musical trends and how they have affected Megadeth, what he hopes to leave as the band's musical legacy, the top three Commandments of Metal and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

8 Maalis 202329min

Interview by Kris PetersFollowing two previous albums - their self titled in 2012 and The Answer in 2018 - New York City rock outfit Killcode found themselves in the unenviable position of being one of the many bands in the massive potential category but still lacking that knockout blow to elevate them further.That opportunity came knocking when Killcode released their third album Life, Death Rock N' Roll in January of this year, cementing their growing reputation and, if anything, enhancing it even further.Written before and during COVID, Life, Death, Rock N' Roll is an album made up of songs about life's ups and downs and is bursting at the seams with hard rock classics coupled with deeply personal numbers that show the more human side of the band.Frontman Tom Morrissey joined HEAVY recently to talk about the new album and the rise of Killcode."With this album we weren't really going for anything specifically, as we never really do" he explained. "We just write naturally and whatever comes naturally we go with. We definitely explored more sonically on this album. It's a little more mature. We used some different instrumentation - some piano - but overall in general I think the songwriting is a touch more mature, but it's still straight ahead rock and roll. High energy. You have your rockers, your ballads, some introspective songs, some personal songs and some drinking songs (laughs)." In the full interview, Tom talks more about the sonic direction of the album, how Killcode has grown musically with each release, the early reception to the album, coming up with inspiration during COVID, doing live-stream concerts and other promotional tools during that period, their cover of You Can't Stop Rock & Roll by Twisted Sister and why they chose that song, the formation of Killcode, their early vision and how it has changed since, touring plans and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

8 Maalis 20239min