Jim Rowland of Über Röck recently conducted an interview with vocalist Sy Keeler of British thrashers ONSLAUGHT. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
Über Röck: The new album, "VI", has had a pretty amazing reaction so far. I'd imagine you're rather pleased.
Keeler: Yeah, of course we're pleased. All the reviews are saying, "Best thrash album of the year." Well, I bloody well hope so. We've had comments like, "Listening to 'VI' was like hearing'Master Of Puppets' for the first time," or "The best thrash album since 'Reign In Blood'" was another one. That's a compliment, so you never get tired of hearing compliments like that. They've all been pretty amazing.
Über Röck: It's a really powerful album — the production is superb. Tell us about who produced it.
Keeler: Thomas "Plec" Johansson is the man behind the production. He wasn't our first choice; we were gonna go with Jacob Hansen again, who did "Sounds Of Violence", but he wasn't available. He basically blew us out, because he was offered a bigger band. I don't even think it was a metal band, actually. He was going to make more money out of it, so he said, "Sorry, I can't fit you in." So we were disappointed about that, but our record company came up with Thomas Johansson. We listened to some of his work and it was, like, "Yes, this guy is very, very good." So we just took the plunge and went for it, and we have a fantastic production on the album — it's huge! The space he has managed to create and everything is crystal clear. It's a brutal mix, yet there's so much space.
Über Röck: Talking about how good the album's sound is, the drums sound awesome on it. You have a new drummer for this album. Tell us about him.
Keeler: Oh, yes! Well, Steve Grice left on the eve of a European tour on the back of "Sounds Of Violence", so he left around March of 2011. Jeff, our bass player, said, "I know a drummer who would probably do it" — Mic Hourihan from the death metal band DESECRATION. So he asked Mic if he could help us out on the European tour. So he said, "Yes," and ultimately he had eight days to learn an hour-and-fifteen-minute set, and not necessarily straightforward songs either. So he worked, and worked, and worked, and on the first show it was, like, "Wow, this guy's got something special here — we've got a great guy on board here." Every night, as he got to know the songs, he was just expanding on what he was doing, and I would turn round to him with a big beaming smile on my face — "Awesome!" After four shows, we were sat in a café, and I'd already had a chat to Nige [Rockett, guitar] about it, saying we should offer this guy something, see if he would be interested in joining us. So we were sat in a café in Sweden after a show and I said, "Mic, would you be up for joining the band full time? We're really impressed with what you've done." He had a big lump in his throat, and we thought he was going to cry, or say no! He was blown away, so Mic joined on that European tour, and we haven't looked back. He's such an explosive drummer, it's amazing. When I heard the finished product of the new album, it was, "Oh my God!" I was gobsmacked. So we have an awesome drummer on board, I'm pleased to say. He's reliable, consistent, his timekeeping is second to none and every night I still find myself turning round and smiling at him, because he's done something else!
Just in time for Halloween, a scarily impressive alliance of metal and hard rock luminaries has formed to create one of the most depraved abominations of musical crossbreeding in history — an all-metal tribute to the King Of Pop, Michael Jackson, available on CD October 22! Never before have such quintessential pop hits as "Beat It", "Thriller", "Billy Jean" and "Man In The Mirror" been so completely transformed, substituting softly stylized synths with crunchy, distorted guitars, replacing the pitter patter of programmed beats with pulverizing double bass acoustic drums, and topping it off with some of the finest, most powerful vocals in metal. When completed, these reinventions pay due respect to the expertly crafted melodies and songs that made Michael Jackson one of the most beloved figures in all of music, and offer legions of metalheads a reason to simultaneously grab their crotches and throw the horns in celebration!
Spearheaded by producer/musician Bob Kulick, who also helped in the arrangement of these cover versions, the project was in his words a "labor of love" for all involved. Exclaims Kulick: "We made these awesome songs kick ass while still being faithful to the original versions. Add killer players like Doug Aldrich, Billy Sheehan, Bruce Kulick, Rudy Sarzo, Tony Franklin,Craig Goldy, Bumblefoot, Phil Campbell and you've got some real MAGIC!" Rudy Sarzo, a stalwart of the metal scene as a member of both QUIET RIOT and QUEENSRŸCHE, reflects: "Michael Jackson's music is synonymous with iconic rockers such as Eddie Van Halen, Steve Stevens and Slash. So it's only fitting that the rock community pays tribute to this legendary artist with Metal Mike!" And FISHBONE's Angelo Moore expresses great enthusiasm for his contribution, saying: "I never thought I would hear myself doing a cover of 'The Way You Make Me Feel', but it's an honor and a dream come true. We put a different twist on it to give it a whole new light, or maybe I should say a whole new dark!"
In addition to the legends Kulick enlisted, several of today's modern metal figures also contributed, including Elias Soriano of NONPOINT, who comments, "It was my pleasure to do this tribute to MJ. My admiration for the talent and history he has given to music overall will be hard to replace. My only wish is that I did him justice with my performance." Jason Myers ofICARUS WITCH, one of the current flag bearers in the traditional metal scene, declares: "When we were approached by Cleopatra to contribute to the Michael Jackson tribute we were honored (due to the legendary talent already on board), but a bit skeptical about how our fans would react...Choosing an unorthodox hit took a bit of pressure off and allowed us to put more of ourselves into the track."
Finally, bassist Tony Franklin, who has worked with everyone from LED ZEPPELIN's Jimmy Page to PINK FLOYD's David Gilmour to WHITESNAKE, confirms the surprise and astonishment many felt during the creation of the album, "The first thing I noticed was how easily these out and out pop songs translated to the metal genre. That is the sign of, one, a great song and, two, a great production and arrangement." He goes on to note that it wasn't just the songs that were transformed when Metal met Pop on these recordings; the performers themselves were transformed. He states, "It was very cool to see how the guest artists interpreted these songs as it brought out a different side of them - a side we wouldn't usually hear."
"Thriller – A Metal Tribute To Michael Jackson" features appearances by the following musicians:
* Chuck Billy (TESTAMENT)
* Danny Worsnop (ASKING ALEXANDRIA)
* Billy Sheehan (MR. BIG)
* Angelo Moore (FISHBONE)
* Doug Aldrich (WHITESNAKE, DIO)
* Rudy Sarzo (QUIET RIOT, OZZY OSBOURNE, DIO)
* Lajon Witherspoon (SEVENDUST)
* Bruce Kulick (KISS)
* Tony Franklin (THE FIRM)
* Priya Panda (DIEMONDS)
* Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal (GUNS N' ROSES)
* Corey Glover (LIVING COLOUR)
* Phil Campbell (MOTÖRHEAD)
* Elias Soriano (NONPOINT)
* Doug Pinnick (KING'S X)
* Chris Jericho (FOZZY)
* Paul Di'Anno (IRON MAIDEN)
* Craig Goldy (DIO)
* Lonnie Jordan (WAR)
