Interviews

Following the release of Borknagar’s 10th album in 2016, Winter Thrice, many of the pieces that drove the band’s progressive Viking/folk/black metal for a good portion of the past two decades started falling by the wayside. These included guitarist Jens Ryland, whose association with the band went back as far as 1997, and lead vocalist Andreas “Vintersorg” Hedlund, who understandably bowed out after suffering a near-tragic injury.

It takes great strength and determination to move on after a loss. But how do you continue when someone so integral to a band has died? Hellyeah is still trying to figure this out. Legendary metal drummer and founding member of Hellyeah, Vinnie Paul (Pantera, Damageplan), passed away from heart disease in 2018 during production of the band’s new release, Welcome Home. Paul finished tracking drums for the album prior to his death, so what listeners hear are his final recordings.

Exhorder originally burst onto the scene back in the mid 80s with two classic demos that eventually begat the band’s much heralded and respected debut album, 1990’s Slaughter in the Vatican. It’s an album that not only expanded the dimensions of thrash metal, but also heralded in what would come to be called groove metal, influencing a little band you may have heard of called Pantera to take the sound and run with it on a little album you may have heard of called Cowboys from Hell.

It’s been close to a decade since the world has received a new record from Florida based rockers Cold. Making their mark in the heyday of big nu metal such as Staind, Linkin Park, and Evanescence, Cold was always the dark horse, pumping out heavy anthems of tragedy and adversity, anchored by frontman Scooter Ward.

Umeå, Sweden’s Cult of Luna is one of the few bands that has been able to emerge from the post-metal morass with an identity intact. Having roots that go back to 1998 have been helpful in the band being one of the scant few to be mentioned as overarching influences and genre leaders not followers (the others being Neurosis and Isis), as has creating awesome music with individuated and defining characteristics.

Metalcore mainstays Killswitch Engage was born in 1999 out of the ashes of two prominent Massachusetts metalcore bands—bassist Mike D’Antonio from Overcast (which also included future Shadows Fall vocalist Brian Fair) and guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz (who switched to drums) and guitarist Joel Stroetzel from Aftershock, as well as vocalist Jesse Leach from Nothing Stays Gold.

As one of the great voices in rock, Wayne Hussey is an English musician with quite a résumé in the gothic world. From being a part of cult icons The Sisters of Mercy to fronting his own band The Mission, Hussey has one of the most interesting lives out there. So interesting, in fact, that he has recently begun chronicling his life in books, with the first titled Salad Daze having just been released.

You can’t say “legendary thrash metal band” without mentioning Destruction. We spoke to Destruction vocalist and bassist Schmier to discuss Born to Perish, writing and recording with new members, the band’s history, and his views of the German Big Four.

Today, there are two iterations of the Cro-Mags touring out there on the road, but that’s definitely not the case if you speak to band founder, bassist, and songwriter Harley Flanagan. For him, there’s only one Cro-Mags, and it’s the band with him set firmly in the creative driver’s seat.

We caught up with the always astute, eloquent, and hilarious guitarist Matt Fox to discuss coming back from the grave, releasing a record no one wants or cares about, and why zombies are lame.