Hail of Bullets interview with Ed Warby

MORBIDZINE: Hails to the Death Metal maniacs of the Netherlands! Your debut album Of Frost and War really surprised me—in a good way! It seems like fans are loving it too. Has it lived up to your expectations?

ED WARBY: More than satisfied! The reviews are extremely positive, sales are good, the fans love it, so we couldn't be happier!

MORBIDZINE: Do you feel like the album achieved everything you envisioned when you began working on it?

ED WARBY: Well, there are always things that you want to change, and if we had more time I would have done certain things differently, but overall it's a good debut I think. For the next album we'll take a little more time for the mix and mastering, and we'll probably record more at home so we have more control.

MORBIDZINE: Before we continue with the album talk, can you tell us what the atmosphere was like at Summer Breeze on August 13?

ED WARBY: To be honest, it was a bit miserable. We played on Wednesday, and it took us 10 hours to get there because of a massive traffic jam. We got there 30 minutes before we had to start change-over, everything was muddy, so it was very chaotic. The atmosphere in the tent was awesome though, and we played a great gig and the place was packed from front to back with crazy metalheads!

MORBIDZINE: Your sound blends 80s Extreme Metal, early 90s Death Metal, and Old School Scandinavian elements. How would you describe your music, and have you been compared to any other bands since the release of Of Frost and War?

ED WARBY: I would describe it exactly like you did. We all love late 80's/early 90's death metal as well as classic thrash, and I adore Scandinavian death metal. Because of Martin and the slow, doomy parts some people have compared us to Asphyx, which is fine but I don't really hear much of it. And of course we get compared to the mighty Bolt Thrower because of the general sound and war theme, but I consider that an honor.

MORBIDZINE: Both your EP and album were mixed by Dan Swanö, a huge name in the scene. What has his contribution been? Could we call him “the man responsible for the Scandinavian elements”?

ED WARBY: The "chainsaw deluxe" guitar sound is all Dan Swanö's doing, so that's definitely his signature. He got involved right at the beginning when we asked him to mix our promo. He really loves this style of death metal, and he was very enthusiastic about mixing us.

MORBIDZINE: What was the impact of signing with Metal Blade Records?

ED WARBY: The main effect is that we have a record label behind us that believes in what we do and that gives us the right promotion and distribution. We had a lot of different offers to choose from, but we all agreed that Metal Blade was the best choice. And so far they've been great, both in Europe and in the US.

MORBIDZINE: What inspires your lyrics? Who usually brings in the ideas?

ED WARBY: Martin writes all the lyrics, and he gets his ideas from books, documentaries, movies, etc. Obviously the main influence is war, in particular the Eastern front during WW II. It's a great subject for death metal since it's brutal, just like the music.

MORBIDZINE: The album really captures the cold, brutal face of war. Will Martin continue with similar war-themed lyrics in the future, perhaps touching on the First World War or modern conflicts?

ED WARBY: Yes, we'll definitely stick with the war theme. There's so many things you can write about, and Martin already has lots of new ideas. We'll see how the new songs turn out before we decide which war/battle it's going to be. I don't know if it'll be another concept album or just separate war-themed lyrics.

MORBIDZINE: What does “7.30 AM” mean in the title The Crucial Offensive (19-11-1942, 7.30 AM)?

ED WARBY: This is the date and time when the Red Army struck against the Germans and changed the outcome of the war. So 7.30 AM stands for 7.30 in the morning.

MORBIDZINE: Even though the lyrics are centered around WWII, they focus on different events. What’s the core concept of the album?

ED WARBY: The main theme is the Eastern front and the battle of Stalingrad, so the focus is on Russia. The lyrics deal with several important points in chronological order, from the German successes in Ordered Eastwards to the ultimate defeat in Berlin.

MORBIDZINE: We know your key influences like Autopsy, Pestilence, Asphyx, Celtic Frost, and Bolt Thrower. Can you name a few more bands that have inspired you recently? What have you been listening to, and what are your favorite albums from 2007 or 2008?

ED WARBY: The main inspiration for Hail Of Bullets comes from Entombed, (early) Death, Autopsy, Bolt Thrower, Massacre, Celtic Frost, etc. I listen to a lot of death metal, but I prefer the old school stuff. I also love doom metal, which is what I listen to most recently. My favorite album from 2007 was Candlemass – King Of The Grey Islands, for 2008 so far it's Testament – The Formation Of Damnation, but Grand Magus – Iron Will is a good contender too.

MORBIDZINE: Going back to the early days, how did you choose the band name “Hail of Bullets”? Is there a message behind it?

ED WARBY: We wanted a name that was brutal and violent, and we considered dozens of names before we settled on Hail Of Bullets. I think it's a great name, the logo is very recognizable, and it describes quite vividly what we sound like. It's also slightly war-related, but not too much, which is cool if we ever decide to turn to other lyrical themes.

MORBIDZINE: Since the band consists of well-known musicians, how did listeners react when they first discovered Hail of Bullets?

ED WARBY: I think people were pleasantly surprised that we actually sounded just like they hoped we would, haha! Our MySpace grew really fast, even before the promo was released, and we got nothing but positive comments.

MORBIDZINE: How do you compare the early 90s death metal scene to today’s more technical and modern version? What’s your view on bands that focus on technical, complex riffing?

ED WARBY: In the old days it was more about feeling, groove, sound and attitude, instead of being extremely fast. Most of today's so-called "brutal" death metal bores me to tears, I prefer bands with a simpler approach. Thank god there are still bands that play good old fashioned death metal, such as Facebreaker, Fleshcrawl, Lay Down Rotten, Vomitory, Death Breath, General Surgery, Bloodbath, etc.

MORBIDZINE: What’s your opinion on the reunions of bands like Asphyx, Pestilence, Possessed, Bulldozer, Onslaught, and the resurgence of Old School metal in general? What do you think the future holds for the old-school scene?

ED WARBY: I'm also in a "reunion" band with Gorefest, but I think it only makes sense if you really have something to offer and are doing it for the right reasons. Asphyx are obviously enjoying themselves, and will be doing a new album soon. Pestilence however have no business getting back together, that one's probably the most ridiculous "reunion" in recent memory and I'd be surprised if it doesn't fall flat on its face. But it's obvious that people are still interested in old school metal, so that's definitely a good thing!

MORBIDZINE: You’ve been active in the music scene for nearly three decades—Aggressor, Valkyrie, Elegy, Orphanage, Gorefest, Ayreon, and now Hail of Bullets. Looking back, how do you see your musical journey?

ED WARBY: I guess I did ok. I started playing drums when I was 11 or so, and joined my first band at 13. When I joined Gorefest in 1992 I had just left Elegy, so I played on 2 albums released that year, which was cool. The Ayreon stuff is always great to do, and I'm really happy to be part of the Gorefest reunion and of Hail Of Bullets. And I'm far from done... at the moment I'm working on a doom project called The 11th Hour, and for that I'll be playing all the instruments myself as well as handling the clean vocals. Rogga from Paganizer/Ribspreader/Demiurg will be doing the brutal grunts. Oh yeah, I'm also in his band Demiurg of course ;-)

MORBIDZINE: What has Gorefest meant for your career?

ED WARBY: It's hugely important, the most important band in my career. Without Gorefest I probably wouldn't have achieved as much as I did, and I'm really proud of everything we did together. Next year we start working on a new album, hopefully we can top Rise To Ruin (which in my opinion is the ultimate Gorefest album, I'm extremely happy with that one)

MORBIDZINE: Let’s talk about something beyond music. What do you think about the recent conflict between Russia and Georgia?

ED WARBY: It scares me when something like this happens, especially when the US get involved and start talking "war talk". Russia scares me, but the US scare me even more. Rammstein got it right when they said we all live in Amerika, because the world really has become a very different and unsafe place because of their foreign politics. Everything that happens there is felt throughout the world.

MORBIDZINE: Can you share some of your all-time favorite movies? Are you a fan of horror films?

ED WARBY: My favorite movies are mainly from the 60's/70's. Stuff like Taxi Driver, Apocalypse Now, The Godfather, The Wild Bunch, A Clockwork Orange, etc. I love violent films, and I have a huge horror collection. My favorite horror films are The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (the original of course), Dawn Of The Dead (also the original), The Beyond, Suspiria, Evil Dead, Re-Animator, Hellraiser, Cannibal Holocaust and many more.

MORBIDZINE: What are the band’s future plans? Any new recordings coming up?

ED WARBY: At the moment we're in the process of proving ourselves as a live band, mainly playing festivals. We'll continue doing so until the end of the year. Then it's time for me to start writing with Gorefest, and I guess in September or so we'll start recording a new Hail Of Bullets album.

MORBIDZINE: Thanks so much for the interview, Ed! We’ll be looking forward to your next release. Hope to see you in Turkey soon. Any final words to your fans?

ED WARBY: I hope we can play Turkey in the future, the Turkish metalheads really blew me away with their passion and dedication to metal!