Artillery

I love to get the inside story from all manner of bands, but it must be said that some opportunities stand out in the excitement stakes, and the chance to talk to legendary Danish thrash metallers Artillery was certainly one of them! Michael Stutzer was proud to tell us exactly why 2009’s “When Death Comes” sounds so vital, and also had words to share on the subject of the international metal scene, the internet, and the importance of keeping your feet on the ground.

Hierophant Nox: Hail Artillery! How are you doing? This year we had the pleasure of listening to your newest album, “When Death Comes”. How have the responses to the album been from the press and your fans? Are you pleased yourselves with the way it turned out?  

Michael Stutzer: The response of the new album has been great both from the press and the head bangers, and have giving us a lot of new fans. We are very satisfied with “When Death Comes”, both with the songs and the production. I think it shows that we really love to play this music!  

 

HN: The band found its new lease of life back in 2008 – what inspired you to give the band another shot? Did you feel the pressure of your past when reforming and creating this new album, or did it feel like a fresh new beginning? 

MS: In fact we started to rehearse already in November 2007 when Morten, Carsten, Peter and me met at my place and decided to give it a try with a new singer, who was willing to tour etc. And after 2 rehearsals with Søren we felt like a whole new band!  

 

HN: Søren Adamsen joined you on the live circuit when you reformed, and performs on “When Death Comes”. How does he fit in with the long-term members of the band, and with Peter and Carsten? Is there a positive creative atmosphere in the band now?  

MS: He fits in very well, both as a singer and as a friend and he really loves singing in Artillery! So yes there is very fine felling in the band now, and I´m sure you can hear it on the record.  

 

HN: When it came to writing “When Death Comes”, what were your main inspirations? What ideas does the album explore?  

MS: We tried to carry the same spirit from “By Inheritance”, into the songs and to catch the band felling we some how had lost when we recorded “Back”, as back was more a project than a real band! And on WDC we really tried to follow our hearts, and I think you can hear that!    

 

HN: How does song-writing work in Artillery? Does one person have the main responsibility for coming up with ideas, or do you work them out together in rehearsal? 

MS: Morten comes with most of the riffs, but we always finished the songs in the rehearsal room together.  It’s very rare that we disagree about the songs, so it is very easy for us to make mew songs!   

 

HN: How did the writing and production of the new album go? Did it run smoothly or were there problems along the way? 

MS: It was really easy to work together in the writing process and in the studio, and also producer Søren Andersen was really easy to work with! The only difficulties we had was to choose which songs who would be the bonus tracks and which ones we wouldn’t use as bonus tracks!  

 

HN: Were you pleased with the job that Søren Andersen did at Medley Studios? Did it take many mixes to get the sound you wanted?  

MS: Not really, we mixed a lot during the recordings so it was only around 2 mixes of each numbers we did. All in the band was very pleased to work with Søren Andersen.

He did a great job and also contribute with some good ideas and we sure want to work with him again! 

 

HN: Many critics have commented on the fact that “When Death Comes” sounds very fresh and vital, which you’ve explained reflects the enjoyment of the band – was there a particular style you aimed to capture with this record? In what ways has your sound evolved since “B.A.C.K”? 

MS: I think there are 2 reasons for that.

1. We really love to play this music!

2. We still feel we have some goals to achieve, so it’s important to show the fans that we still can produce honest music!     

 

HN: “When Death Comes” has some beautiful, classic-looking cover art; who was responsible for the design? Were you pleased the first time you saw it?  

MS: It’s never easy to find the real cover and we had to turn the first one down, but this cover was made by a Polish guy called Graal and was true old school, so I think it turn out good at the end! 

   

HN: Thrash metal has seen a huge resurgence in recent years; what do you think of all the young bands who are recreating the sounds of the past? Does this new interest help Artillery?  

MS: I think it’s great, because I’m sure that a lot of the new fans who now have open their ears for Artillery, have also listened to bands like Evile for example. In Denmark we have been playing together with new very young bands like Essence and Impalers who knew all Artillery’s songs, and they are young enough to be our sons! 

 

HN: What advice would you give to a young metal band who were just starting out? What are the most important things to keep in mind when trying to become successful?  

MS: The most important thing is to be original and have strong melodies, no matter how fast and heavy you want to play you only survive with strong melodies and originality.  And of course believe in your self, but still have your feet solid on the ground!       

 

HN: How has the music industry changed since Artillery’s earliest days? Has the increased reach of technology been a blessing or a curse? Are veteran artists given more respect, or is it harder to make progress?

MS: I think there is a big different in promoting a band today, because of the internet it is more easy to reach more people in a very short time. On the other hand it is sad that so few are buying the records instead of downloading them! So there is both good and bad things in the music industries today! 

 

HN: You’ve collaborated with Metal Mind Productions since “One Foot in the Grave…”; how did you come into contact with this label? Have you been pleased with their activities so far? 

MS: They have shown a great interest in the band and they had done a lot of PR.  They contacted us back in 2007 just before the release of the box set “Through the Years”, to get some bonus track and rare photos etc!  

 

HN: You have a number of appearances scheduled this Summer, at some big festivals. Are you looking forward to getting back on the stage? How will you choose a set-list for these shows?  

MS: We always try to get our set list fresh and try to change songs from time to time.

We will try to keep a good balance between new and old songs. Up till now we have played about 32 different songs from all our albums! 

 

HN: Beyond your Summer festivals, do you have any further plans, or will you be taking a well-deserved break?  

MS: We will play some gigs in Germany, Holland and Belgium. A tour in Italy.

Festivals in Germany (Rock Hard, Walpurgis metal days etc.) Some dates in Denmark and some of the eastern Europe countries! We also played at the Danish metal awards 2009 (WDC is nominated for the best Danish metal release 2009) Hopefully we will also play in England and the US this time!  And then it’s time for a new album! 

 

HN: Thank you very much for taking the time to talk with us – if you have any further messages for the world, please go ahead: 

MS: Thanks to you and to all the English head bangers out there!

See you

Michael 

 

 

Many thanks to Agnieszka and all at Metal Mind - Ellen

Pictures used with permission.