Ironsword
Ironsword is one of the
greatest classic sounding heavy metal bands, full of quality and with a
true old fashioned and eerie sound! You can’t be a fan of this metal genre
and not respect this power trio from Portugal! Ironsword are well respected
and lots of people around the world expected anxiously their latest musical
endeavour entitled “Return Of The warrior”. Tann is one of the people in
metal I enjoy talking the most, because of his sharp mind and his interesting
answers. You can check this out yourselves in the following interview…
1.HELLO TANN, "RETURN OF THE WARRIOR" IS FAR
BETTER THAN YOUR DEBUT. I CAN SAY THAT IT IS MORE MATURE. HOWEVER, I THINK
YOU ARE THE MOST PROPER PERSON TO TELL US WHICH ARE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN
THESE 2 ALBUMS YOU HAVE RELEASED TILL NOW?
To tell you the truth we never realised that...I
mean, when we announced that we were recording the new album, a lot of
people doubted that we were capable of making a better album than our debut,
that was considered a cult classic landmark release. We never intended
to make a better album, we just wanted to create new stuff. But yeah, I
guess mature is the right word. We’ve managed to record an album more mature,
bold and varied keeping the epic elements, the melody and the aggression
mingled. Our goal was to re-invent our own style and keep playing music
from the heart and soul in the most honest and sincere way. A lot of small
things helped as well to make “Return of the Warrior” a better album than
our debut, in my opinion. We had a bigger studio budget that made us possible
to work in the studio for 6 months more or less. We had plenty of time
to improve the harmonies, vocal lines etc. Also, I have 2 talented brothers
playing with me, Rick Thor and Maalm. The sound engineer on the studio
was a very important piece as well.
So I guess we’ve become better musicians and
songwriters. The production is way better and quite raw and I do like the
sound of every instrument. The vocals and guitar solos sound much better
etc.
Some people prefer our debut while others
prefer our new one. Fortunately, so far no one disliked our new album.
Maybe for some people “Return of the Warrior” is an album that grows in
you at each listening but I guess it’s obvious that we are trying to personalise
our own sound without denying our main musical inspirations and influences.
2.I READ IN YOUR BIOGRAPHY THAT WHEN YOU'VE STARTED
WORKING ON THIS ALBUM, THE OTHER 2 MEMBERS OF THE BAND LEFT YOU. WHY DID
THIS HAPPEN? HOW HAS THESE DEPARTURES AFFECTED THE SCHEDULE OF THE BAND
REGARDING THE RELEASE OF THE NEW ALBUM? DID YOU EVER THINK OF QUITTING
AFTER THE DEPARTURE OF THESE 2 MEMBERS?
After the release of our debut I knew it sooner
or later that the other members would leave the band, simply because they
had no time to dedicate to IRONSWORD due to their personal and professional
lives. It was in a time when we were composing the new material and getting
some invitations to play live. It was a friendly departure but that simply
ended of slowing down the band. Of course it affected a lot and my only
concern
was that if it took me 4 years to get a full line up I would waste another
4 years trying to find new members, but fortunately I was wrong. Rick Thor
on bass and Maalm on drums joined the band in the right time but we had
to delay the recordings and the release of “Return of the Warrior” album.
Every single day I think about quitting everything,
but it is this love to create and play Metal music that keeps me going
on even in the most difficult times. I’ve always loved a good fight!
3.NOW YOU HAVE 2 NEW MEMBERS IN THE GROUP. HOW,
WITH WHAT CRITERIA DID YOU CHOOSE THEM TO COOPERATE WITH YOU? DID THEY
HAVE ANY PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE WITH OTHER GROUPS? HOW DID THEY HELP THE BAND
TO IMPROVE?
Well, Rick Thor has been a good friend of
mine for more than 10 years, he’s really a Metal freak (he’s a big fan
of NWOBHM, OMEN, MANILLA ROAD etc), always involved in underground scene
through zines, labels, bands etc. His latest band was AXE MURDERERS and
they were playing basic 80’s Thrash Metal like old KREATOR, DESTRUCTION
etc I really liked their sound, so when I knew they were about to kind
of split up I invited him and Johnny Storm which was their drummer to join
IRONSWORD. We just did one rehearsal and so the new line up of IRONSWORD
was born. Unfortunately Johnny Storm was with IRONSWORD for only 3 or 4
months. Some weeks later, Maalm joined the band. I knew him by his work
in several bands, he has a peculiar style of playing drums, so we had an
audition and when we started playing together I simply knew he was the
right choice and I can tell you when we start playing together, as a power
trio there’s a magic feeling we cannot explain. The criteria of choosing
were simple, I just wanted good musicians I could trust. Both are excellent
musicians, very cool individuals and companions, my brothers in arms, and
I simply don’t think of anyone else playing in IRONSWORD than them. This
is the dream line up as I call it. We just developed naturally and everyone
is conscious of his own important role in the band. Besides, our goals
are equal. To play quality Metal!!!!
4."RETURN OF THE WARRIOR" IS A KIND OF CONCEPT
STORY BASED ON NOVELS OF ROBERT E. HOWARD. MY FAVORITE HEROIC FANTASY WRITER.
SO CAN YOU TELL US IN A FEW WORDS WHAT IS THE THEMATOLOGY OF EACH SONG
INCLUDED IN THIS ALBUM? DO YOU PLAN TO DO ANY CONCEPT ALBUM BASED ON ONE
SPECIFIC BOOK OF HOWARD OR OTHER HEROIC FANTASY AUTHOR?
I don’t really know if I’ll ever write something
based on one specific Book of Howard. Maybe in the future who knows? I
really don’t think about that. I have lyrics written about so many different
topics from Norse, Celtic an Classic mythology, Arturian legends, Portuguese
history etc. It’s hard to predict what I shall write in the future. Now
about the thematology of the album, instead of doing our own interpretation
of some of Howard’s famous novels, we just did a general approach to some
of the races, kingdoms, places and events of the chronicles of Nemedia,
being faithful to Howard’s philosophy, with a strong sense of freedom,
pride and rebellion that could easily reflect and be applicable to our
daily lives.
5.I HAVE RECENTLY SEEN THE KEEP IT TRUE DVD VOL.
2 WHERE I SAW YOU PLAYING AND AS I READ IN YOUR BIOGRAPHY THIS WAS YOUR
FIRST LIVE SHOW. HOW DID YOU FEEL? WERE YOU ANXIOUS, BECAUSE YOU'VE STARTED
YOUR LIVE SHOWS WITH A BIG EVENT LIKE A FESTIVAL AND NOT IN SMALL
PLACES AS IT HAPPENS IN MOST OF THE CASES? WHICH OF THE BANDS THAT YOU'VE
MET THERE YOU LIKED THE MOST AND WHICH LEFT YOU INDIFERENT?
Well, it was an amazing experience to play
in front of so many headbangers from all over the world in such a big event
and share the stage with Metal legends such as MANILLA ROAD, ATTACKER,
ELIXIR, CLOVEN HOOF, BLITZKRIEG etc We were very anxious because it was
our first show ever in almost 10 years of existence and I think our show
turned out pretty well. I can tell you that our bass player was a bit nervous
simply because the stage was huge!!! Every one involved in the organisation
was very professional and kind to us, we were treated very nicely. Hmm
left me indifferent?! I guess no one, I mean all those people I met, including
fans, people from bands, people from the organisation, sound technicians,
people from labels and magazines were awesome, no one left me disappointed.
Every one was so cool and I just regret I didn’t have too much time to
hang out with all of them. The guys from ELIXIR and ATTACKER were awesome,
also to meet the guys from HOLY MARTYR and BATTLE RAM...I mean, too many
to mention. Of course it was brilliant to see again my brothers of BATTLE
ROAR and MANILLA ROAD.
6.SINCE WE TALK ABOUT LIVE SHOWS... YOU'VE PLAYED
RECENTLY IN GREECE SUPPORTING LORD WEIRD SLOUGH FEG. WHAT DO YOU THINK
OF THE GREEK FANS? WILL YOU VISIT US AGAIN GIVEN THE CHANCE OF COURSE?
WHERE DID YOU ENJOY PLAYING MORE IN GREECE OR GERMANY AND WHY?
I think both shows we did in Greece went better
because it was during the weekend. The sound on stage was not perfect,
but damn both in Athens and Agrinio we were very well welcomed and it was
headbanging from start to finish. Also, we did less mistakes on stage compared
to Germany. The Greek fans are very loud which is perfect!!! Of course
we would love to play again in Greece and visit you all again. Hope to
play next time in more places such as Thessaloniki etc. I believe Athens
is my second homeplace, and I do have a lot of brothers there. We also
enjoyed playing in Germany, German fans rule as well.
7.NOW I WANT YOU TO THINK OF THOSE 2 LIVE SHOWS
YOU'VE PLAYED AND TELL ME WHERE YOU'VE PLAYED BETTER, ACCORDING TO YOU,
AND WHY? HAVE YOU NOTICED ANY MISTAKES THAT YOU DID ON SCENE AND YOU'D
LIKE TO CORRECT ON YOUR NEXT SHOWS?
I think the show that went better was in Agrinio,
I guess we made less mistakes there if I remember. Also the people in Agrinio
were just wild and loud! Now, about the mistakes. You see sometimes we
don’t really notice small mistakes. When you’re on stage sometimes you
are thinking about everything except what you’re playing and so you get
carried away. For me playing live is just like a rehearsal so normally
small mistakes do happen no matter how hard you practise, it’s just normal
for me. Of course I would like to correct that, but it just happens you
know...sometimes I cannot avoid it. We sometimes only detect small mistakes
when we listen recordings from a video or audio tape and I must tell you
if a band doesn’t have a good sound on stage the small mistakes happen
easily, but that is no excuse. To sum up, the small mistakes are of almost
no importance to us, we care more about having fun on stage and being as
brutal as possible.
8.SOME TIME HAS PASSED SINCE YOU HAVE RELEASED
YOUR NEW ALBUM AND I WANT TO KNOW WHICH WERE THE REACTIONS OF THE
ZINES AND FANS TILL NOW? WHICH WAS THE MEANEST REVIEW YOU RECEIVED?
I’m not sure if we ever got a bad or mean
review about our new CD. Surprisingly, everyone seems to enjoy a lot our
new CD, both reactions of the fans and media surpassed all our expectations
and some media even considered “Return of the Warrior” top 10 best albums
of 2004 in the Power Metal or underground Metal scene. That is flattering
and encouraging to make a better album in the close future!
9.DO YOU BELIEVE THAT YOUNGER AND NEW METALHEADS
ARE INTERESTED IN THE MUSIC OF IRONSWORD OR DO YOU THINK THAT THEY CONSIDER
YOU A LITTLE BIT OLD FASHIONED? DO YOU THINK THAT IRONSWORD CAN HELP THEM
LEARN ABOUT LEGENDS OF THE 80S LIKE MANILLA ROAD AND OTHER GROUPS?
I really don’t know. We do have both old school
fans and new young fans that are into underground Epic Metal and Traditional
true Metal in general. Perhaps IRONSWORD does not appeal to those into
the current symphonic Power Metal trend or whatever it’s called, you know,
but we never considered ourselves old fashioned, it’s just a matter of
musical taste that doesn’t really bother us as long as people respect our
work and what we represent. Yes, I do believe IRONSWORD can help young
fans to learn more about 80’s Metal and our musical influences but also
when we say during interviews that we are inspired by bands such as MANILLA
ROAD or OMEN we do get a lot of interest from old school fans that are
not familiar with our sound.
10.LATELY LOTS OF EPIC MOVIES HAVE BEEN SHOT IN
HOLLYWOOD. HAVE YOU SEEN ANY OF THEM AND WHICH DID YOU ENJOY THE MOST AND
WHY? HAVE YOU ALSO SEEN ALEXANDER AND WHICH IS YOUR OPINION ABOUT IT? DO
YOU THINK THAT THE MOVIE SHOWS HIM AS A BAD CHARACTER AS SOME GREEKS CLAIM?
I haven’t seen “Alexander” yet, so I cannot
comment. The problem with Epic movies like “Troy” and “Gladiator” for example
is that they have this “Hollywood” feeling I dislike, apart from several
historical gaps. However they have amazing special effects, photography
and battle scenes etc. The trilogy “Lord of the Rings” is a great movie
and in my opinion very faithful to the original Tolkien books. I found
“King Arthur” (because of the less romantic version of the movie) quite
interesting above average. I like movies like “Braveheart”, “Excalibur”,
some of the epic movies made in the fifties and sixties etc, also other
movies like “The Exorcist”, “Dune”, “The Thing”, “Blade Runner”, “Quest
for Fire”, “Clash of the Titans”. My favourite movie is “Conan the Barbarian”.
11.IS THERE ANY MEDIEVAL OR ANCIENT HERO FROM
PORTUGAL THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE ON SCREEN OR WRITE A SONG ABOUT? IF
YES WHO WOULD HE BE AND WHY?
Well, actually there is an ancient hero from
Portugal, from the Iron Age period called Viriato, that we do plan to write
about in the future. There are only books, comic books and there was a
TV series about him, if I remember well but he is only popular and known
in Portugal, so I guess there is no interest at all in Hollywood to put
this on screen. Viriato, was the most important, clever and brave chieftain
from pre-Celtic and Iberian tribes called Lusitanos, to offer resistance
in our homeland against the invasions of the Roman Legions which lasted
for many years. Greek historians tell about his famous war tactics and
his plan to invade Rome, but in the middle of Spain he was betrayed and
killed by 3 of his companions in exchange of Roman gold.
12.IN THE SUMMER THAT PASSED PORTUGAL AND GREECE
PLAYED ON THE FINALS OF THE EUROPEAN CUP WITH US WINNING THE GAME. HOW
DID YOU FEEL THEN? WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT YOUR NATIONAL TEAM, WILL YOU
BE ON THE FINALS OF THE WORLD CUP?
First of all I must congratulate the champions!
Yeah, I remember that well...damn, our team lost the 2 games. But to be
honest I’m glad we lost to Greece and not to some other team. So, no hard
feelings if you know what I mean. Everyone here in Portugal was just crazy,
with flags, T-shirts, chanting in the streets etc. Never seen such
big hysteria in my life. There was a good vibe then and we never though
we could reach thus far. So the final was with the 2 best teams, and we
lost both games simply because we have not learned our lesson well from
previous games, besides our team was way too anxious and nervous to score,
so we lost in a good but difficult match. I hope our team can reach the
finals of the world cup, let’s see, our team plays very good soccer, so...but
sometimes that is not enough.
13.WHY DO YOU THINK PEOPLE LOVE TO READ OR LISTEN
TO STORIES ABOUT HEROES? MAYBE BECAUSE TRUE HEROES HAVE NEVER EXISTED IN
THE REAL WORLD?
I believe people love to read fantasy stories
with heroes because it helps them release their minds and travel to a different
reality. It is simply a way, even for brief moments, to escape from our
daily lives and modern civilised world. Besides, there are a lot of people
that feel quite identified with the past and still try to follow its principles.
I consider the fireman heroes for example. Of course there is a stereotype
kind of hero everyone wished to be, sometimes you can’t separate legend
from history and historians managed throughout the years to exaggerate.
I think the heroes from fantasy books created by the authors are just a
way to encourage you in the battles and deeds of our normal life.
14.IF YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO COOPERATE WITH FAMOUS
MUSICIANS WHO WOULD YOU CHOOSE AND WHY?
Well, there are a couple of famous musicians
in the Metal scene which would be interesting to work with. I would really
like to have someday DORO doing some backing vocals or a duet. Mark Shelton
from MANILLA ROAD as well...
15.IN WHICH HISTORICAL PERIOD WOULD YOU LIKE TO
BE IF TIME TRAVEL WAS POSSIBLE...
Maybe to pre-historic times, which I consider
to be one of the most fascinating periods in History and yet not clear
to mankind, so many mysteries and doubts etc that would be my first choice.
Of course if I had the chance I would love to travel to the past to witness
the greatness of the Roman Empire, the Spartans, The Vikings, The Celts,
the Aztecs etc even to the future. I’m curious to know what will be in
2000 years....
16.OK I THINK THAT HERE IS THE MOMENT THAT WE
HAVE TO SAY GOODBYE TILL YOUR NEXT RELEASE OF COURSE! PLEASE CLOSE
THIS INTERVIEW IN ANYWAY YOU WANT AND MAKE A WISH FOR THE NEW YEAR THAT
WILL SOON START...
Well, I was enjoying very much answering this
interview, what a pity we have to stop here. Anyway, I have to thank you
for all your support, I do hope to return to Greece as soon as possible
and meet again all my brothers, may it be to play live or in vacations.
Those who still don’t know us, well I advise you to order our new CD “Return
of the Warrior” if you’re into 80’s underground Epic Metal! You will not
regret! I wish you all a very good Metal year for 2005! Hail Metal!IRONSWORD
/ P.O.BOX 4 / 2780 – OEIRAS / PORTUGAL
www.ironsword.net
[email protected]
Nick "William_Kidd"
Parastatidis
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