Recent interviews
Metal Covenant met guitarist/vocalist Mille Petrozza of German thrash metal veterans Kreator to talk about the new record Krushers Of The World.
It’s about three and a half years between Hate Über Alles and Krushers Of The World, and when I say that time span of three and a half years, what comes to your mind?
Three and a half years, not much. (Laughs) Here’s the thing, it’s an interesting question because of the fact that when we were doing Hate Über Alles, the album was already a year old because the pandemic kept it back. So for us it’s four and a half years since the last album. I mean, we had all the demos ready, we had all the pre-production ready, and then all of a sudden the lockdown became longer, for about another year. So we kept the album back a little bit, and the production of the album back, and we did a couple of tweaks before we did Hate Über Alles. So, three and a half years is four and a half years, really. (Laughs) But we’ve done a lot of tours in between. We did a lot of stuff anyway. We’re always busy. And I think that three and a half years is a nice time for a new album. It’s cool. Like it’s not too far apart, but it’s not like five years. You know, it’s good.
And you’ve gone back to Fascination Street Studios in Örebro, Sweden, once again to record. Tell me about going there.
Love that place. It’s fucking great there. We’re so focused there. This is the third album in that town. And it’s a nice town. There’s not much happening, and that’s a good thing.
For how long time do you generally stay in a facility like that one when you’re making a record?
We started with, like, pre-production. I went to Jens Bogren’s place twice. And we did, like, pre-production in his place for, I think, two times five days or something. And then I went back again. I think we started in May, and we ended in the beginning of July or something, so it was eight to ten weeks, if I’m not mistaken. And he was, of course, doing more recordings and mixing for even longer. So overall it’s probably three months.
Try to describe your lyrics overall on this album.
Most of those lyrics have a little poetry in them. That’s why we put Seven Serpents as the first song. It’s a little bit metaphoric. The lyrics talk about the seven serpents that are just coming in the form of seven deadly sins maybe, or human arrogance, and hybris, and hate, and all of that stuff that’s always surrounding us, no matter if it comes from war, terror, envy, whatever, you know. Like the human drama that’s always present. But the essential line in that song is amor fati. Amor fati comes from the Stoic philosophy, which means embrace your fate or love your fate. So every song on that album is like an empowerment. It’s supposed to give people strength. Especially the song Krushers Of The World, where I talk about how hard it can be being alive in this day and age. I’m not saying that the world is a horrible place, but in my opinion, since we recorded the last album, things have changed for the worse. And we’re surrounded by so much unnecessary drama that I think the world needs encouragement and empowerment to make our lifetime a little more joyful. And I think metal is always good for that.
It’s become more difficult to live now than when I was younger, I think.
It comes with age because we’ve seen so much. I think we thought, and that was a mistake, that everything builds up. In the ‘80s we had the fear of the atomic bomb dropping, and once we got into the ‘90s and the 2000s, we thought, “Oh, that’s in the past. War, that’s in the past. We evolve as a human race.”. And now we’re going back to 50 years before that, and we’re going back to the primitive age, so to speak. So it’s not going forward, but it’s going in circles. And that’s something that I realized, that life is not like you think it is. It can take turns.
You once told me when we talked almost ten years ago that you were so fed up with politicians.
Oh, I am still. It’s a shit show, if you think about it. I can’t take it seriously anymore. And I’ve known this all along. I’ve known this back in the day already. When we talked about it ten years ago, the same thing, but now it’s a grotesque version of ten years ago. Now it’s all emotions. It’s no common sense. There’s no more middle ground. There’s no more getting into conversations. It’s more like, “Oh, you’re not on my side. You’re probably against me.”. I’m totally zoned out, without not caring. I think in this day and age we should just embrace life and make a positive example of how it could be, rather than complaining about the situation. I think that it’s not in our hands. But it’s not that I capitulate like, “Okay, you can’t do much anyway, and it all sucks anyway, so we can just go down with it.”. No, but just make the world a better place by celebrating music, celebrating life. I think that’s what’s important in this day and age, rather than trying to be the rebellious punk rock kid or the fresh metal kid that is complaining. I think that that doesn’t make sense anymore.
What I think about politicians is that they didn’t use to do that in this capacity as they do now. It’s like it’s always the other one’s fault, and that’s ridiculous.
It’s horrible. Social media has changed everything. As much as I love social media, you can manipulate people a lot easier than back in the day. So it’s like your shitty attitude became the mainstream, you know.
So back to the album. Leave politics aside for a while and be happy about the new album instead. There are so many details on the front cover. Tell me what you were looking for with the idea of that cover.
I sent Zbigniew (M. Bielak) the demos, I sent him some lyrics, and he wanted to keep, like, some Easter eggs on the record. The bottom of the artwork is a reference to our EP called Out Of The Dark… Into The Light. He really loves that artwork, and he wanted to reimagine it. When I told him the title, he wanted to kind of put in his version of manipulation. Like you see these people putting some stuff into the brain of the protagonist. You know, the Kreator demon. How I understand the cover art, it’s like putting in evil thoughts, or manipulate. Maybe the social media? Maybe the… whatever. You know, whatever your ideas are, you just manipulate people and control them. Maybe that’s what he thought when he came up with the artwork. I’ve just looked at it, and I think it totally fits the music.
Was it difficult for you to name this album?
There were a couple of options. Krushers Of The World might not be the most original title, but it’s something that you can remember. To me it sums it up. It’s very positive. It’s very powerful. And I also like the title song, so it was just a no-brainer, really.
And now to the actual music. We haven’t talked about the music yet. In your opinion, in what way are you able to now dig deeper into Kreator’s music with so many albums out?
I think the trick is to not treat the album as album number 16, but to treat the album as album number 1. The first album ever. Open mind. Just come up with an album that you wanna hear from a metal band in the year 2026 and, “Go! Do this. Don’t think about what you’ve done in the past.”. Well, you should, because you cannot reuse your old riffs, and you cannot reuse your old lyrics, like that kind of limitation in itself. But it’s only because you wanna come up with something new, and fresh, and current. It’s a little bit of a challenge to, like you said, dig into the music, and dig into the poetry, and dig into the lyrical world, but at the end of the day, I’m always surprised that I managed to come up with something again. Seriously. It’s not a struggle, but sometimes it’s a little annoying, especially if I’m looking for the lyrics. The lyrics are always, like, the most important and the most difficult parts, because I wanna say something that matters and touches people’s hearts. If I’m not touched, and I kind of have the rhythm and the music, and I can’t find the words, it kind of fucks with my head. So at the end of the day, when I have the album ready, I’m always like, “Thank you. Thank you, universe, or whoever is responsible for this.”. I’m always, like, very relieved like that after an album.
But even though you say it’s treated like the first album, and I believe you think this as well, that this is an extension of the Kreator era you started with Violent Revolution…
Yes, yes, yes.
…and through, like, Enemy Of God, Phantom Antichrist, and all those albums. So was it like a no-brainer for you to still go with that kind of music, and not experiment too much like you did in the ‘90s?
I think there’s some moments on the record that could have been recorded in the ‘90s already. There’s this song that we released as a video, Tränenpalast. I think that’s a heavier version of something that could have been on Endorama. It’s our version of goth metal. Well, it’s not, it’s very thrashy. But it’s also a tribute to the movie Suspiria, and the whole Dario Argento and Goblin universe. So within our realm, we can still experiment a lot. I mean, especially like a song like Loyal To The Grave, which is the last song of the record. I think that’s very unusual in the sense of that our drummer said like, “Are you sure you wanna put that on the album?”, and I was like, “Yes, I want to. I think it’s gonna be great at the end of the day.”. I knew that Seven Serpents would be the first song and Loyal To The Grave would be the last song. I knew it, you know.
Loyal To The Grave is one of my favorite songs. But still, I’ve only heard the album four times yesterday and the day before yesterday. So give me two or three weeks and I’ll go back to it. But right now it’s definitely one of my favorites.
Same here, same here. I’m the same way. When we talk now, I’m reflecting on the record, you know. So with this interview, and by talking to people that have listened to the album, I kind of reflect on it in a different way, because before that only the band and the producer have heard the record. So when you say that now, I’m confident that we did the right thing. Because there’s always so many opinions, and it’s like, “What’s normal? What’s typical for Kreator?”. There shouldn’t be any rules like that. So I’m happy that we just did whatever we felt like doing. I think once you start limiting your creativity because you wanna play by the rules, you lost. You know, you lost your spark, in my opinion. And you know, especially when you go on social media, a lot of people go like, “This is not thrash metal. This is not like they used to be. Is this the same band that recorded Pleasure To Kill?”. (Sighs) You wouldn’t sit here and talk to me if we would share that mindset, you know. So, I’m happy that you appreciate that song.
About the song Tränenpalast. How come you chose to have the German name of that palace and not in English, like Palace Of Tears?
You know, we talked directly to Claudio Simonetti and the people that were doing the Suspiria movie and the soundtrack, because we made, like, a tribute. Like the melody is in the song, so we asked for permission. Because it’s a movie soundtrack, the company where Goblin put the rights owns the rights, and so the rights are at the company, at the movie’s distributors. The song was obviously called Suspiria before, and the only thing that they asked us for was to not use that title, so people don’t mistake that song with the movie soundtrack. So we came up with this Tränenpalast, which is a part of the new version of Suspiria that came out in 2018. It takes place in Berlin. Tränenpalast is the Palace Of Tears, which is like an old socialist building, and it’s around the corner from where I live, and we thought that was kind of like a nice tribute to that newer version. As confusing as it is already, we took the German name for Palace Of Tears, yes. (Laughs)
Britta Görtz from Hiraes lends her vocals to that song. Did you handpick her yourself, or did someone else recommend her?
That was a coincidence. There was the quote, “What do you ask?”, and it’s a quote from the new version of the movie. I think Mutter Suspiria (Mater Suspiriorum) asked the dancer, “What do you ask?”, and she’s like, “To die.”. And I was like, “What if we use a female voice for the ‘To die’?”. So, Jens has worked on Hiraes’ albums, and he knew Britta, and he asked Britta to do the ‘To die’, only. That was the first version. She was also working with another German band, Heaven Shall Burn, just lately, and I was a fan of Cripper, her old band, and I knew that she had this great voice. So we asked her, “You know what? This is too good to just have the ‘To die’. Why don’t you do like a duet in the verse with me?”. The song is about the witches’ coven and it’s a female energy so, “Let’s have the best vocalist around that fits the band.”, and I think it came out really cool.
About the guitar playing on the album. I would say that Kreator has three guitarists. It’s you, it’s Sami, but Fred is also a guitar player. So when you lay down guitars on the album, rhythms, solos, how much does each player lay down?
Fred is a musical genius, so is Sami, and I also think that Ventor is also very, very good. Fred helped a lot with the arrangements for the solos, for the little melodies. He and Sami, they were very important, very essential for the overall sound. And I totally get what you’re saying. He’s a very good guitar player, and he could be a guitar player in Kreator also. (Laughs) But if he would play guitar in Kreator, we wouldn’t have the best bass player for Kreator, because he adds to the sound, you know. The bass, for our sound, was never such an essential instrument, but now it is.
Did he lay down all the bass on the album?
Yes, yes.
But in the past, how much bass have you laid down?
I’ve played a lot. (Laughs)
I don’t wanna put down the other bassists, but how much is a lot?
There’s a lot of albums where you can hear me playing bass. Pleasure To Kill; I think 90 percent. But there’s also other albums where you can hear bass by either me or other people. It is what it is. But it’s nothing unusual. I used to do all the guitars, but I have Sami now, and Jens kind of recognized the quality of him and me playing rhythms. Because he has a little bit of a different tone, he has a little bit of a different expression of my riffs, so it kind of benefits the music and it gives a little bit more to it. So Jens was able to feature this.
Tell me a little bit about the videos for the album.
Seven Serpents, we did in the summer. I like the video. We experimented with AI, and I think it came out okay. But also, for the video for Tränenpalast, we reduced the AI again, and I also like that. We try to get the best of both worlds, and let’s see what happens in the next one.
Have you already made another video?
Yeah, we have two more videos. Satanic Anarchy and Krushers Of The World. They’re still in the making. (Editor’s note: As of November 2025.) We have recorded all the band performances for them now, but the special effects, AI or not AI, are still up for discussion as we speak.
And soon, with all the AI, you can just use pictures of yourself, and you won’t even have to record yourself.
(Laughs) Yeah, that’s why we wanna reduce it. There was some backlash on the first video where people were complaining about too much AI. And I kind of get it, you know. But I think the way it’s done is really good. But you could also reduce it to a little bit less, or use it more. Maybe in a couple of years from now we’ll know how to use it properly. But it will never be, like, us not playing, you know. The human factor is too essential. But people are so threatened by AI. I think you need somebody behind, you need the creative energy, and a creative person behind the AI, otherwise it’s useless. So it’s not that easy to say it’s the new evil, but it’s also not that easy to say it’s the new savior. So it’s somewhere in between, you know. It’s what we make out of it, I think.
You did some experimenting with Kreator in the ‘90s, and you have lent your voice to a bunch of guest appearances, but how come you haven’t explored more different types of music than thrash metal and some heavy metal? Why didn’t you go explore some other stuff as well?
Oh, I did, but it’s not so well known. I did some. A friend of mine has a band called Messer, you’ve probably never heard of them, but they’re a great, great band, and I lent him my voice also. But you’re absolutely right, it’s always been some sort of metal. And it was not always for the right reasons. Some people just wanted the name-dropping. And I’m totally aware of that, and that’s why I’m not doing so much anymore. I couldn’t say no for a while, you know. But now I can. Hopefully, there will be some interesting project coming up. And I’m more than happy if something comes up that’s musically challenging. I would be right in, you know. But I mean, I worked with Volbeat, you know. That was not so metal. It was metal-ish, but not like metal metal.
They are one of a kind, I would say.
For me, that was challenging, because it’s not like the typical thrash. Volbeat plays their own, like you said, one-of-a-kind music. So I loved that collaboration. I think that’s one of my favorites.
If you would try to sing with a little bit less aggression…
I could. Nobody asked me to do it though. Every time I do guest appearances, there’s like one bit where they go, “Now scream.”, and I’m like, “Do I have to?”. I like it, don’t get me wrong, but I would be more challenged if I was maybe doing a ballad, or doing some acoustic stuff, you know. I love that stuff, and I love so many different forms of music. Maybe it’s time for my solo album, my acoustic solo album. We’ll see what happens. (Laughs)
But still, you’ve had kind of your solo band for 40 years already.
True, true. But I mean, challenging myself in a way of doing something out of the ordinary, and getting out of my comfort zone, would be doing a completely acoustic album.
I must ask about the setlist on the coming tour. How does it feel for you to have to replace the ‘80s classics with newer, but maybe better songs?
Challenging. Because there’s a reason why there are some ‘80s classics, and there’s definitely a demand from a lot of the fans that wanna hear those songs. I would be bummed out if I go to a Judas Priest show, and they wouldn’t play certain songs. But then again, sometimes I catch myself watching that band, and I listen to Breaking The Law for the 150th time, but I still enjoy it. But would I be annoyed if they wouldn’t play it? Probably not. Are fans annoyed if we don’t play Enemy Of God or even Extreme Aggressions? Ah, it’s… (Breathes out like it’s impossible to give a correct answer to his own question.)
You leave out Extreme Aggressions sometimes.
Yeah, we do.
But you can’t play them all. If you play Tormentor, Endless Pain, Pleasure To Kill, Flag Of Hate, Extreme Aggressions, Terrible Certainty, When The Sun Burns Red, and a few more, then you have half of the setlist already there.
Yes, yes. Last summer we did, like, a festival run, and we had, like, three club shows in between where we told people, “Okay. We’re gonna do an old-school setlist.”. And that’s what we did. Like played all the songs that nobody has heard for a long time. And we made people happy, you know. And now that’s in the past. We’re moving on.
Endless Pain was out even before you were 18 years old, which means that you probably wrote the songs when you were 16 and 17 years old, and what’s it like to work with something that you created when you were so young?
It’s like this grassroots kind of thing, if you think about it. I mean, all the songs on Endless Pain had all the elements already. The structure is more rock ‘n’ roll. It’s like the typical chords, like going from E to A to D. A song like Flag Of Hate, or Tormentor even, it’s like typical structure of a rock ‘n’ roll song. Nowadays we’re more, like, different. I don’t know what’s better. It’s hard to say. You do what you feel. You know, you just play the music that comes naturally out of you. You don’t wanna intellectualize the music. You wanna keep it from the heart and from the gut.
Have you ever been thinking about giving Ventor lead vocals in a song anytime again?
Yeah, if he wanted to do it, he could. But he doesn’t want to. Last summer he did the song that we always do, Riot Of Violence, and he loved that song. He doesn’t have to think when doing that one, but if he would have to come up with a new song like that one, his drumming would suffer. And he knows it. He knows where his strength is. The reason why we shared vocals on the first couple of albums is because nobody wanted to be the main singer.
By Tobbe – Published January 15th, 2026
Några dagar innan jul träffade Metal Covenant trummisen Martin Lopez och sångaren Joel Ekelöf, originalmedlemmarna i Soen, för att prata om bandets nya platta Reliance.
Bandnamnet. Jag tänker Soon, Sown, Sowen, Sooen. Är något av de här fyra rätt uttalat egentligen?
Martin: Ja, alla är rätt. Alltså, vi själva säger Sowen.
Joel: Varför gör vi det? Svengelska, kanske. Zuun säger de ju i Holland.
Martin: Danskarna säger Sön. Det är lite som man vill.
Så ni hade ingen tanke på någon gång när ni startade bandet att det var ett lite trassligt bandnamn?
Martin: Nej, för det är de fyra lättaste bokstäverna i alfabetet. Hur kan det bli svårt? (Skrattar) Men det blev det.
Då går vi över till själva musiken istället för ert bandnamn. Vad skulle ni kunna säga att ni har siktat på rent musikaliskt nu på er nya platta Reliance?
Martin: Alltså, siktet är alltid på att göra den bästa möjliga musiken som vi själva vill lyssna på. Det är det man satsar på. Det är det enda sättet, tycker jag, att kunna vara domare och inse om det är bra eller inte. Det finns jättemånga sådana där låtskrivare som skriver musik som de inte gillar, men då förstår jag inte hur man tycker att det är bra. Man kan ju inte bli berörd av det. Så för oss är det alltid att bara göra den bästa möjliga låten som vi vill lyssna på. Det är nog det vi har gjort i alla år.
Joel: Jag tror inte man kan ha någon sådan här plan. Jag tror folk ser igenom det. Det märks direkt. Att göra någon slags plan, liksom någon slags grej, att ”Nu ska vi gå i den här riktningen. Nu ska vi göra det här. Nu ska det bli så här.”, det funkar inte.
Har du tänkt på något lite annorlunda sätt i låtmelodier och hur du framför din sång nu den här gången, eller ligger du kvar inom vad bandet gjort och bara fortsätter, precis som du pratade om just nu om musiken också?
Joel: Det som gäller är det som är bäst för musiken. Det som är mest effektivt, tycker jag. När det gäller melodierna så måste de vara starka och tydliga, och framhäva låten och musiken, och inte nödvändigtvis bara framhäva sångaren liksom. Det sätter jag en stolthet i som sångare, att inte liksom överprestera eller överarbeta melodierna. Låten är det viktiga. Jag har väldigt svårt för sångare som sjunger över, som liksom går för långt. Jag tycker inte om att lyssna på sådant själv.
Men är det inte lite så inom hårdrock att fansen generellt sett lyssnar mer på både musik och sång, än till exempel inom popmusik där det känns som att många fans lyssnar mest på sången och att musiken där är ganska sekundär?
Martin: Jämfört med radiopop så har nog folk som lyssnar på hårdrock en högre musikalisk intelligens helt enkelt, och tar det mer på allvar. Du kan sätta på en Iron Maiden-låt och jag kan luftspela varenda instrument och sjunga varenda sångslinga. Det är så det är. Om du sätter på någon radiolåt som jag kanske kan så vet jag inte vad de gör bakom. Det är helt ointressant. Men jag tror också att det är så för att det mesta är maskiner, så du kan inte se eller känna den musikens själ.
Joel: Därför tror jag att hårdrockssångare, metalsångare och proggsångare har större respekt för musiken och instrumenten än vad kanske popsångare har i viss utsträckning.
Martin: Och det är därför det alltid är band också inom hårdrock istället för soloartister. Alla musiker är viktiga.
Ni sa ju att ni skriver musiken som ni gillar själva, men nu när ni har gjort sex fullängdare redan, finns det ändå en dragning mot att göra något lite annorlunda som kanske kan gå lite utanför bandets ramar?
Martin: Vår musik är så pass öppen att vi kan för det mesta hitta ett sätt att ta in saker som vi inte har gjort förr, eller som vi vill experimentera med, eller som vi tycker är fräscha, så skivorna blir ju lite annorlunda varje gång. Också, som person, man blir ju påverkad av tiden och av musik man hör och så vill man kunna ta in det i vår musik, och där är vi väldigt ”Vi kör!”.
Joel: Ibland kan man ju ha den där känslan att ”Fan, det här kan väl inte funka för soundet.”. Men det är som att vad man än tar in så hamnar det i någon sorts Balthazar-maskin liksom och blir Soen. Vilket är jävligt skönt. Det är som att det finns ett grundat Soen-uttryck i musiken som gör att det liksom ändå blir Soen. Kanske på ett annat sätt idag än vad det var för 10 år sedan. Då var det lite mer ängsligt och man vågade inte riktigt vidga sig på samma sätt.
Martin: Och det är lite märkligt, för det kan kännas tvärtom för de som lyssnar på oss. Det finns en tro, tror jag, att vi vågade mer förr för att vi hade tolv riff på en låt och att låten var sju minuter lång. Men då hade vi fler regler än vad vi har nu. Nu tror jag att vi, med åldern och allting, har något sorts förtroende där man känner att ”Det här är vilka vi är och om det här känns bra så släpper vi det.”.
Vilken musik från tidigare i era liv har influerat er så pass mycket att det gör att ni kan sitta och prata med mig om en sjunde Soen-skiva?
Joel: Jag tänker att det finns vissa gemensamma saker som har dykt upp genom åren. Till exempel, vi har väl kommit på att båda vi två var jättefans av Alice Cooper när vi var barn. Alltså, när man var barn så var det viktigt. Det sätter säkert sina spår.
Martin: Och fortfarande idag kan vi verkligen lyssna på Alice Cooper. Sedan är det så här: lyssnar man på Alice Cooper och lyssnar man på oss så är det ju annorlunda, men det finns en viss emotionell tyngd i Alice Cooper, tro det eller ej, som har format oss och som fortfarande rör oss och som vi hör mycket av i vår musik.
Joel: Båda våra farsor lyssnade på progg. Martin hade mycket Pink Floyd och jag hade mycket Genesis hemma. Det bara fanns där liksom hela tiden, så det kom ju liksom automatiskt.
När vi pratar Alice Cooper, vilken del av Alice Cooper pratar vi om? Hans 70-tal eller hans poppigare 80-tal?
Joel: För mig var det 80-talet. Det var ju när Trash-plattan kom. Det var det väl för båda oss.
Martin: Jag tror Desmond Child-perioden.
Joel: Jag kanske var 11 när jag började köpa mina egna plattor för veckopengen. Så då började jag ju med att köpa Billion Dollar Babies och sådana grejer. Men då fattade jag ju ingenting, för det lät ju inte alls likadant. Fast jag gillade ändå låtarna, så jag började lyssna på det. Men det var ju jättekonstigt att det inte lät lika producerat.
Har ni något som ni pratar om där ni känner att ni vill göra saker som bara ni gör och inget annat band gör?
Martin: Nej. Man kan säga att vi har nått en identitet där om du lyssnar 30 sekunder på Soen nu så vet du att det är vi. Men vi har aldrig försökt att återuppfinna hjulet. Vi gillar musiken som vi spelar och den gillar vi för att vi gillar hårdrock och vi gillar progg och vi gillar alla de här banden, och det är bara ett försök att göra en mix av den musiken vi älskar.
Joel: Det där känns ju också forcerat, och det är ju också en sådan där grej, att om man liksom ska börja tänka att man ska vara unik och göra saker för att vara unik, det funkar inte heller alltså. Men däremot så var det ju säkert en viktig del när vi började spela, att vi gjorde något som var lite annorlunda. Vi körde hårda metal-riff och ren sång, som egentligen inte alls var metal liksom. Och så blev det väl någonting bra där, och så har vi kunnat bygga från det, och där finns det ett Soen-sound som förhoppningsvis utmärker oss och som gör att det sticker ut lite grann. Om man bara älskar Iron Maiden och så ska man göra hårdrock, då kommer det antagligen att låta ungefär som Iron Maiden, och då kanske man får anstränga sig lite. Men jag tror att vi har ganska många andra influenser.
Martin: Jag tror att vår styrka sitter i det att vi lyssnar på så brett så att vi har väldigt många frukter att ta till fruktsalladen.
Joel: Jag har varit ute på en massa olika grejer och Martin har varit ute på uruguayansk folkmusik och mellanöstern. Man är ute där och dansar runt, men sedan hamnar man liksom tillbaka till hårdrock. Det var där det började. Så det går alltid runt i en cirkel, för mig i alla fall, och till slut är det tillbaka till det som är närmast, hårdrocken.
Martin: Hundra procent. Det finns en stark identitet med att man först och främst är en hårdrockare, och det är den musiken man vill spela. Och sedan vill man som musiker kunna ta in allt som man tycker är intressant i världen. Men jag vill gå upp på scen och jag vill kunna headbanga. Jag vill kunna spela hårt. Och det är nummer ett alltså.
Jag ser Martins King Diamond-keps och Ride The Lightning-tröja, så även sådana band, som faktiskt inte låter som ert band, kan alltså influera er till att skriva en låt.
Martin: Självklart. Det här är vad jag alltid har lyssnat på. Det kanske är lite av ett, missförstånd vill jag inte säga. men nu säger jag det ändå, att folk tror att vi är ett proggband som bara sitter och lyssnar på gamla Genesis-vinyler. Men alltså, 95 procent av vår musik är hårdrock och sedan har vi fem procent av progginfluenser och från musik utifrån som vi också älskar och som vi vill ska vara en del av vår musik. Mina fem favoritband är ju Slayer, Metallica, Alice Cooper, Kiss, Pink Floyd. Allt annat kommer nog lite längre ner på listan.
Vad har du för fem favoritband förutom Alice Cooper, Joel? Om nu Alice Cooper är ett favoritband längre, vill säga. Det kanske inte är Topp 5 längre.
Joel: Alice Cooper kommer alltid vara det. Det kommer alltid finnas där. Sedan är ju Alice In Chains husgudar för mig. Det har de alltid varit. Och så Metallica förstås. Bara för att det är helt oundvikligt. Det bara är så bra liksom. Sedan är det de stora sångarna för mig förstås, alltså Dio och sedan får man ju slänga in Freddie Mercury där också bara för att han är så jävla bra. Ja, de är väl de stora för mig, som man kommer tillbaka till liksom.
Det är inte lätt att nämna sina favoritband. Jag tyckte ni gjorde det väldigt bra. Jag får svårare att säga fem favoritband för jag skulle bara snöa vidare.
Joel: Då får man nog gå till de banden där man har haft en sådan här stark romans med. För mig är det så i alla fall.
Martin: Det är svårt. Man får inte sitta och tänka för då, du vet, Sepultura, Pantera. Alltså, de banden kommer fram. Sedan är det det som är det vackra med musiken, att du kanske inte kan höra något av de banden i vår musik, men de är ändå där. Och det är ju det som gör att musik blir intressant, att man tar in det och spyr ut det på ett helt annat sätt.
Varför blev Reliance titeln på plattan?
Joel: Det kändes som en bra sammanfattning av plattan. Det blir lite överanalyserande kanske, men Reliance är att ha självförtroendet att våga lita på någon annan eller våga vara beroende av någonting annat än en själv. Lite som en antites till att man bara ska vara stark på egen hand och klara sig på egen hand. Vi har en del sådana teman i låtarna genomgående på skivan, att man gör saker starkare med andra människor om man vågar vara beroende och lita på andra människor och vågar ha tilltro till andra människor.
Martin: Det finns en stark våg på sistone med sådana där självutnämnda alfahannar där det tas upp att ”Du ska gå till gymmet, du ska vara stark, du ska bara ta hand om dig själv, du ska fixa pengar, att ha en kvinna eller ett barn i livet kommer bara att stoppa dig, när du blir stark och har pengar kommer alla tjejer komma till dig.”. (Suckar) Det är så långt ifrån verkligheten. Om vi inte har polare, relationer, folk vi kan dela saker med, så blir livet väldigt, väldigt ensamt och sorgligt. Jag tror att titeln har lite att göra med att det är viktigt att ha varandra. Och även inom bandet liksom, med varje låt vi gör, varje turné, varje gig. Vi har varit tillsammans i väldigt många år och det har varit bra tider och dåliga tider. Att kunna ha varandra är otroligt viktigt.
Kommer ni någonsin frångå att ha en skivtitel med bara ett ord?
Joel: Nä, nu måste vi fortsätta med det. Nu har det blivit en tradition och då måste man hålla kvar det. Så att nu får vi göra så, tills vi inte gör det. (Skrattar)
Ni två, som är de enda originalmedlemmarna kvar i bandet, har ni ett speciellt band mellan er som de andra tre nuvarande medlemmarna inte riktigt har, eftersom de ändå inte var med när ni sparkade igång det här?
Martin: Vi är alla väldigt tajta i bandet. Sedan, Joel och jag jobbar extra mycket tillsammans hela tiden för att vi har tagit på oss kaptensbindeln i laget. Men det är ju allas dröm som ska förverkligas här.
Joel: Vi sitter ju i båten här nu och då gäller det liksom att på något sätt faktiskt ta hand om varandra för att överleva. Jamen, det är väl ganska klassiskt att många band splittras för att man får för stora egon på egen hand liksom. Jag tror inte ens att vi behöver snacka om det, men jag tror att vi håller varandras egon i schack liksom och ser till att det är bandet som är det viktigaste och att man liksom inte sätter sig själv ovanför bandet på något sätt. Och det är så man lyckas skapa någonting som är lite större.
Martin: Jag tror det enda sättet att ha ett band i så många år och fortfarande vara inspirerad och köra det är att vilja att de du spelar med ska förverkliga sina drömmar också. De ska också synas när de behöver synas och han ska kunna göra ett grymt gitarrsolo och att en gitarrtidning ska ha med honom. Alltså, gemenskapen och glädjen att stödja varandra i det här.
Berätta för mig allt ni kan och orkar om skivomslaget.
Martin: Det är första gången som omslaget valde skivan istället för att skivan valde omslaget. Vi såg det och kände ”Där har vi det. Så här låter skivan, det här är ljudet, det här är färgen, det här är stämningen.”.
Joel: Kan du fortfarande uttala namnet på konstnären? Du brukar ju göra det så fint.
Martin: Le Nevraglie Costanti. Men det var så det blev till. Vi såg det. Stämningen av skivan var där. Den är vacker, men den är mörk.
Joel: Vi är ju fortfarande ett sådant här albumband liksom, så omslagen har ju alltid varit viktiga. Det ska vara liksom något vackert. Det ska sitta ihop. Det ska kännas rätt. Vi lägger upp låtarna i A- och B-sida. (Skrattar) Ja, som det gamla gardet.
Martin: Och det ska vara mystik. Det ska vara mer än bara ett stort monster. Så som musiken är. Den ska ha mer än bara headbangers liksom.
Jag tycker att det är väldigt få hårdrocksartister som inte bryr sig om sina omslag. De flesta tycker fortfarande att det är viktigt även fast det är bara en liten ruta på en telefon ibland.
Joel: Det är väl inget som spelar någon större roll för folk runtomkring. Det är nog mest för vår egen skull faktiskt. Det är viktigt.
Martin: Man måste ju kunna sätta upp det hemma utan att frugan flyttar. (Skrattar)
Får du problem med Slayer då?
Martin: Nä, det går bra det också.
Kan ni berätta lite om texterna på albumet?
Joel: Martin och jag skriver tillsammans. Ja, vad kan man säga om texterna? Det är ärliga texter. Det handlar bara om oss i olika kontexter, som samhälle, existens, relationer till nära. Det är inte så mycket berättelser. Det är inte så mycket sagor och så där. Det har blivit mer direkt med åren också. Det är inte så inlindat i poesi längre, utan det är ganska rakt på.
Martin: Jag tror att miljön har gjort att vi känner att vi vill säga saker. Gnälla lite. Det känns som att med sociala medier och allting nu så har världen blivit kapad av extremister både till höger och vänster, och vi som någonstans är vanliga arbetare med familjer som vill ha ett bra liv och önskar ett bra liv till grannen hamnar i skymundan. Så textmässigt pratar vi mycket om den kampen som den vanliga människan måste gå igenom nu för att bli hörd. För vi skriker inte. Vi vanliga människor står inte och skriker på internet som högern och vänstern gör, och då hamnar vi i skymundan och vår röst dör ut. Och det är extremt jävla farligt. Extremt jävla farligt. Vi logiska människor vill inte gå i konfrontation varje fucking 10 minuter. Men det vill de. Så att vi ger upp någonstans, och när vi ger upp så tar de över. Så får man en mikrofon så ska man kanske säga det lilla man kan bidra med. Sedan är det jobbigt, för man blir direkt stoppad i en påse, att ”Det här bandet, de är sådana.”. Men vi är inte sådana. Vi går inte till en fest och börjar prata politik. (Skrattar) Men såklart, vi bor i det här samhället, vi har också familjer och vi bryr oss om det som är runt hörnet. Och det spelar ingen roll om du svänger vänster eller höger, det ser mörkt ut.
Jag känner att ni är betydligt större internationellt sett än i Sverige. Finns det någon förklaring till det som ni begriper er på?
Joel: Alltså, vi väntade i åtta år innan vi spelade i Sverige. Det kanske var lite väl länge. Samtidigt har det varit så att vi aldrig har haft någon ambition att just bli stora i Sverige. Men man vill ju det. Man ville ju alltid att det skulle hända i Sverige, men man vill inte stå och liksom be om att få spela i Sverige, utan då får de fråga först, så kommer vi. Och det var ingen som frågade.
Martin: Alla band som jag har spelat med, svenska band som har blivit skitstora här, det tog jättemånga år att kunna bli någonting här. Jag vet inte om det är någonting med att eftersom man är härifrån så blir det så här osexigt.
Joel: Ja, det kanske är en grej, kanske extra mycket inom hårdrock och metal, att man inte vill gå och se på den här lokala-band-grejen. Man vill se saker som är större än livet självt på något sätt.
Martin: Vi åkte till Norge, Finland och Danmark, och har haft jättemycket fans där sedan tidigt. Men inte här. Vi fick inga inbjudningar till festivaler och sådant. Så det tog tid. Och varför vet vi inte. Det är svårt att säga.
Känner ni ändå nu att ni börjar få betalt för alla år ni har lagt ner på det här? Eller fortsätter ni hela tiden upp ett hack i popularitet, och i hur ni känner själva, så att ni inte hinner stanna upp och tänka på att ni kommit någonstans?
Martin: Vi är väldigt dåliga på att fira. Alltså, vi har alltid haft inställningen att det är lite i taget som gäller. Det ska jobbas hårt på att vi är på väg någonstans. Och det har gått väldigt långsamt. Men det är vi faktiskt nöjda med. Vi har kunnat bygga en väldigt bra grund, musikaliskt, och som personer att verkligen kunna ta det här som ett jobb, och veta att vi ska vara iväg så här mycket per år, och att det är så det funkar. Och vi känner väldigt mycket glädje över att vi får göra det här. Vi har inte gått med något management. Vi har aldrig gett någon annan kontroll över vårt band eller vår musik. Det har alltid varit vi. Sådant gör att det blir lite svårare kanske. Men, ja, det betalar sig.
Vad händer under 2026 för bandet?
Joel: Det rullar ju framåt hela tiden. Vi är ju så. Vi jobbar på. Så det är ju redan liksom nya låtar på gång. Vi kommer ju turnera hela 2026, garanterat. Vi tar små steg. Vi tar alltså logiska steg framåt istället för att göra så här sjuka grejer. Det är liksom mer så här ”Det här är vårt liv, det är det vi gör, och vi ska göra det länge till.”. (Skrattar) Det är målsättningen. Och så får man ta en dag i taget typ.
Martin: Det är väldigt viktigt för oss att vi måste vilja göra det här. Det ska vara roligt. Såklart, en flygplats är aldrig rolig, men vi ska komma hem varje gång från en turné och känna att det var värt det. Det är verkligen så. Så det är mycket jobb med att vi planerar varje steg vi ska ta.
Joel: Varje konsert ska alltid vara hundra procent. Alltid. Det spelar ingen roll om man spelar i Mexico City på en jättescen, eller om man spelar på ett litet ställe någonstans i Sydfrankrike. Alltså, vi ska alltid vara hundra procent. Det gör man nog för sin egen stolthet, sin egen integritet och att vara sann mot sig själv på något sätt.
Hur orkar ni med att vara på en turnébuss under en hel turné med liksom ”Samma sak i morgon.”? Får man hålla sig för sig själv ibland? Vad är lösningen?
Joel: Men det blir en livsstil. Det blir ens liv och man hittar ju en massa sätt att hantera det på liksom.
Martin: Man hittar sin rutin. Vi kan varandras rutiner.
Joel: Man ger varandra utrymme väldigt mycket. Och som sagt, man håller sitt ego i schack. Man börjar liksom inte balla ur på det sättet.
Martin: Det ska vara jämnt i laget. Vi har alla hållit på med det här i 25 år. Det här är ett jobb. Världens bästa jobb. Men det är ett jobb, och då ska vi kunna bygga en struktur som gör att vi kan göra jobbet så bra som möjligt och ha det så bra som möjligt.
Joel: Det är ändå något vi påminner varandra om. Vi försöker göra det dagligen, att ”Vi är ändå här. Det här är jävligt belönande.”. Alltså, det här är någonting som väldigt få får chansen att göra. Man försöker komma ihåg det och försöker liksom peppa varandra på det sättet.
Martin: Det finns en grundtanke. Det spelar ingen roll hur jobbigt det kan vara. Ibland så ”Vad gör du? Hur matar du dina ungar?”. – ”Jamen, jag åker med mina kompisar och spelar musik runtom i världen.”. Kan inte bli bättre än det. Eller det var det man drömde om när man var liten. Så det är okej. (Skrattar)
Av Tobbe – Publicerad 12:e januari 2026
Mark Tremonti and Myles Kennedy from rockers Alter Bridge talk about the band’s new self-titled studio effort.
How come the eighth album of Alter Bridge is a self-titled one?
Myles: I remember we talked about it. Mark was like, “What if we just call it Alter Bridge?”. There was no rhyme or reason to it. And maybe because of the fact that we just crossed the 20-year mark it felt appropriate. It was like, “Okay”. I think we’ve maybe earned the right to finally hit the reset button.
Mark: It could be a statement also. We have the artwork that’s very streamlined, very simple and straightforward. The self-titled thing maybe lets people know that you got to focus on the music more than anything, and not the name or the image.
Now when you mentioned the artwork of the album, let’s go to that one. Why is the front cover so, you know, simple?
Mark: My brother (Dan) turned in the artwork, and immediately we all loved it. I think it’s just very modern, clean, no-nonsense, classy. I could see it tattooed on an arm. Like I said, it lets you focus on that this album is about the music. It’s not about the dragons painted on the front of the album. But I do like albums with dragons on them.
When you start working on a new album, what do you wanna feel, like deep inside your body, heart, soul and guts?
Myles: You wanna feel real emotions of some sort. You don’t wanna paint by numbers and just kind of phone it in. That’s the beauty of creating. We’re hardwired in a way where you kind of know, “Okay. Well, this seems compelling. If it’s working on me, maybe it’ll work on the band guys. And if it works on the band guys, then maybe it’ll work on the producer. And then maybe it’ll work on the fans.”. A lot of it is a guessing game. You’re trusting your instincts and you’re trusting kind of like chemicals in your body. You know, like goosebumps or tears. That’s what you’re looking for.
Mark: You have to enjoy it yourself, ‘cause if you don’t enjoy it, nobody else is gonna enjoy it, you know. I think if you try to write for others, or write for a genre, or write for a radio format, or write for whatever, it’s not gonna be real, it’s not gonna be earnest. I think you have to write for whatever you think is the best song in the world, ‘cause the way you feel a lot of other people are gonna feel.
And the same guy is producing once again. (Michael “Elvis” Baskette) Is that position on your records ever gonna change?
Mark: He’s the best rock ‘n’ roll producer alive. I think the records are sounding even better than they ever have before. He just bought a new console that just sounds incredible. I mean, I don’t know why we’d ever change. He’s just an amazing producer. If you do the blindfold taste test and you listen to his record compared to some other current producers, to me it just sounds… Yeah, it’s the sound I enjoy.
Myles: I feel like he’s getting it more dialed in as he goes too, which is nice. I feel like he’s continuing to grow, which is incredible for somebody who’s been doing it as long as he has. Actually last night for some reason, I was just bored, and I never listen to our music, I just don’t, I just move on, I was like, “I probably should get my head in this space because we’re starting press for this run.”. So I just started listening to various things really since The Last Hero, and just kind of listening to a few tracks, and it’s fascinating how each record has a sound, but also just how it’s changed sonically. And I do feel like this record, with all the instruments I like, where everything’s kind of in their place, has a certain depth to it. And I don’t feel like it’s overproduced. I feel like it’s a nice middle ground in that respect.
And as the process goes on from songwriting initially and into recording and mixing, in what way does your vision of a finalized album change over those moments?
Mark: Well, I think our biggest challenge is we have so many records at this point, and collectively with our other bands, that it gets harder and harder to create something that you haven’t already done. I mean, there’s only so many notes and so many chord progressions and arrangements. So it’s always that challenge, to come up with something like, “Oh, that sounds like something we’ve never done before.”. And keep on trying to do that. Of course there’ll be familiar parts because it’s the same band, but we do our best to make each record have its own personality, and I think this record definitely did that.
The opening riff on the album, I can hear it kind of hits Alter Bridge, and maybe there’s a little bit of a Tremonti style in there too.
Mark: Is that Silent Divide? That’s a Myles riff. To me, that’s a very Judas Priesty kind of riff.
I was dead sure Mark was playing that riff.
Myles: I think what is very fun for us with this band is that there are people who are like, “Oh, I really like that particular melody.”, and I’m like, “Well, that’s a Mark melody.”. And the same happens with riffs, “Well, that’s a Myles riff.”. You know, because we both can kind of shapeshift because we’ve been playing together for so long. But yeah, with that riff, it’s definitely old school. I wasn’t sure if it was too old school. And Mark’s the first person, and when I sent the initial rough demo, he really grabbed it.
Mark: That was my favorite. Myles turned in a big bunch of songs, and of all the stuff he turned in, that was what I remembered and went towards first. And when we got back together to talk about what songs we were gonna work on, I don’t think Myles even wanted to work on that.
Myles: No. I wasn’t happy with the demo, because I recorded it too slow.
Mark: And I think I was talking with Elvis. Myles wasn’t even in the room. I was like, “What? No, no. That’s the best, most catchy riff.”. Now look at it. It’s the first single.
Myles: I’m glad you fought for that.
Mark: The only thing I don’t do in Alter Bridge is the speed metal stuff. You know, that’s kind of kept for the Tremonti band. But the funny thing is Myles can get away with it before I can get away with it because people know. You know, “Stay away from your speed metal, Mark.”. But if Myles does it for some reason, it’s more accepted ‘cause he’s not considered a speed metal guy.
Myles: Do I do any speed metal?
Mark: There’s been a couple of riffs. I forget where it was. On the last record there was a metal riff. Maybe it was in Pawns & Kings or something.
Myles: It might have been (Sings the lyric line “Fight for your life” and hums the riff in the song This Is War.). It was probably that one.
Mark: Yeah. So he can do it, but I can’t do it, right? I like syncopated rhythm sections, I like the horse gallops, I like the speed metal style of playing. Not necessarily with Myles, but with Brian and Scott, that’s not necessarily what they grew up with.
And the two of you share some vocal chores on this album in a couple of songs. Was that something you were looking for in the beginning, or was that something that just happened?
Mark: Well, for the last few records, it’s kind of been like, “Hey, there’s this place where I could take a vocal.”. It’s always fun to do. I think we started doing that on… Was it Fortress or was it…?
Myles: I think it was Fortress. Was it Waters Rising?
Mark: That was the first, and then we did Forever Falling on Walk The Sky, and then Stay on the last record Pawns & Kings, and on this record, I did the verse of one song and a chorus of another song. But yeah, I love singing, you know. People ask me if I’m nervous to sing here and there, and, “Oh, you sing with Myles Kennedy. Aren’t you actually nervous to sing?”, and I’m like, “No, I don’t get nervous to sing at all. I enjoy it.”. I’m more judged for my guitar playing, less judged for my singing, so when I sing, nobody’s gonna throw daggers. Which is the opposite with us.
Myles: When I’m playing guitar solos it’s the same thing, because people… In fact, it’s funny, ‘cause people still half the time don’t even know I play some of the solos on the record. Somewhere it’s like I’m listed as rhythm guitar, but we’ve been integrating dual leads for, gosh, since Blackbird, really. But when you’re not the focus, then it takes the pressure off, and you can just kind of relax and have fun with it.
So when you do sing for Alter Bridge, Mark, who is your vocal coach? Do you have someone telling you stuff?
Mark: No, I have no coaches. I’ve learned everything myself. I’ve never had a guitar teacher or a vocal teacher. When you go online to research people… Like when I did the Frank Sinatra thing, I googled ‘Frank Sinatra vocal’. People are analyzing his vocals. And none of those folks sounded anything like Frank Sinatra, so I’m like, “You know, let’s scrap this. I got to just use my ear.”. If you’re passionate about something, and you dig in deep enough, you’re gonna find all the little nuances that make a person a person, and you just got to try to assimilate that to what you do.
And Myles, in what way does a producer, Elvis in this case, or the band, interfere with your vocal style? Or do you have free hands to do whatever you want?
Myles: Yeah, I’ve got free hands. Elvis is great. Elvis and I have a system now. Like we’ve been making records together for so long, and we’ve figured out what works best to maintain my voice in the studio, where we don’t burn it out. Yeah, I really trust him now. Not that I didn’t before, but when it comes to recording he knows my voice more than anybody on the planet. So it’s like we’ll do a pass, and then we let it rest for a second, and then we’ll do another pass of a part. It’s just very streamlined at this point.
Do you record your vocals and the music quickly, or do you take your time and go on for months and months?
Myles: No, it’s pretty quick. Like sometimes some of the vocals are cut in 90 minutes, and I’m done. But that’s partly because Elvis understands. I’ve worked with people in the past who are like, “Okay. Sing the whole song. And sing it again. And sing it again. Sing it again.”. Then you burn out your voice, and he’s like, “Okay. Let’s give it a rest.”.
Mark: When I’m doing vocals with him, “Pick the lowest part you’re gonna sing. Do that first. Wait until the very end to hit the highest part because that’s where you’re gonna burn your voice out.”. And yeah, Myles got to sing on the Sheffield Lab mic this time too.
Myles: Oh, what a microphone. Elvis was telling me about this mic he bought. He bought that from Paul Reed Smith. He’s like, “Oh, you’ve got to hear this mic.”. I’m like, “Yeah, yeah, yeah.”. I’ve heard it all before. I’ve sung through some great mics. And the interesting thing about that mic is that it sounds so good. You can hear every detail. So you get the vocals done quicker ‘cause you’re on pitch better. You can just hear all the details.
What type of lyrics do you deal with on this album? It’s tough times around the world.
Myles: Yeah, it’s tough times. They’re pretty intense on this record. You know, they’re just kind of dealing with certain dynamics, dealing with a certain amount of negativity, and how to navigate that and listen to your better angels and take the high road and don’t fall prey to, you know, your bad side. You know, the stuff I do with Slash is definitely more story-oriented, but this is stuff that I have definitely lived and worked through.
Are lyrics still as important to you guys as they once were when people used to buy physical copies, have it in their hands, and really read the lyrics through the song?
Mark: I think lyrics are very, very important. I mean, that’s what fans connect with. One thing I know about you, Myles, and one thing I’ve learned is if you don’t overthink your lyrics and you just spit them out the way you feel them right out initially, they end up being better than if you sat and tried to make some deep poem that you’re gonna spend three months on for one song. Like I said before, it’s more earnest when you’re just real with it and you put it out there quickly. I had this exercise I used to do back in the day where I challenged myself to finish writing an entire verse in five minutes, and then record the demo, and then when the record comes out, 90 percent of those lyrics are those lyrics that just came out.
Myles: I tend to rarely do that. I still like to really fine-tune things. I have so many different edit things until it feels… There’s a certain poetry to it, like it’s almost like I can’t not do it, and if I don’t do it, I obsess about it, and then I’ll read it right before I go in the studio saying, “Oh, something’s just not right here, so I need to change this.”, and I’ll be like, “Elvis. Hold up. Let me rewrite this verse.”. (Laughs)
Mark: Well, that’s like a first pass. Instead of staring at a blank piece of paper, do that exercise, and at least you have something. And then it has to sing well. Something might look great on paper and poetic on paper, and then you sing it, like, “Ah, that doesn’t sing good.”.
Myles: So true. That’s happened so many times. You read it and go, “This looks truly great.”, and then you sing it, and like, “This does not sing right.”.
Mark: Like “This is like Ernest Hemingway wrote it, but…”
Myles: Tiny Tim is singing.
Mark: Yeah. (Laughs) “… like Weird Al Yankovic is singing it.”.
As experienced musicians, what worries you the most about making a new record in 2025? Out in 2026, but.
Mark: Well, going forward it’s gonna be this AI thing. I think everybody needs to enjoy it as much as they can because in the history of the human race, this will be the last time you’ll know art is real, you know. It’s anything from music to literature to movie scripts to paintings to visual art. AI is gonna come on in. There’s gonna be a lot of true artists that keep doing it true, but they’re gonna be overwhelmed by the just overwhelming amount of fake art that’s gonna come out.
Myles: And I think the other thing that’s gonna be interesting is when you put a record out, they can even do it with this record because it’s certainly capable at this point, people will be like, “Oh, is that something that they actually created, or did they just have AI do that and then they performed it?”. Is it gonna take away the mystique where people are always second-guessing whether it’s actually legit? Both of us are extremely passionate about writing. I think writing is what drives us more than anything. We love the creative process, so the idea that someone would think for a second that you might not have actually chased it down yourself is kind of heartbreaking.
Mark: And I feel a little hypocritical, ‘cause of my first video for the last Tremonti album, I found this great visual artist. This is right when AI was starting to do the visual art. By the time we released it, the AI thing was all over the place, and people see the video, like, “What is this AI bullshit?”. I was like, “Well, I just saw this visual artist and Tim (Tournier, manager) went and hired him.”. So at the very beginnings of all that, I put out a video that was very AI based. But that being said, it was probably the baddest ass video I’ve ever had. It’s incredible. But as far as the music stuff goes, that’s where it’s gonna get super scary.
At this point in your career where you’ve made, like, 30 albums combined, or whatever the number is, is there something you think about especially in order not to make music too much to something you just make for the sake of making music?
Mark: I think, no matter what, I would hate to write… Like if you’re on a contract, and we had to put out a record every two years, and you’re forced to put out an album. I don’t wanna ever have to do anything in the world. Whatever we do day in and day out, you should do it because you wanna do it, other than going to the dentist and the doctor’s office. As far as professionally, we’ve earned the right to be able to do what we want. We did this Alter Bridge record because we wanted to do it. The next one won’t be because we had to do it, or had to write a certain way, or had to write a radio single. I tell my manager all the time, like, “I do not wanna think about radio singles at all, ever.”. It’s just put out whatever the best song is. I don’t care if it’s three minutes or seven minutes. It’s got to be the best representation of the band, so. That’s easy said for guys like us, but for a new band that has to kind of find their way and open their doors, they might have to follow the rules a little bit more than we do.
But you were that band a long time ago.
Mark: We were. We were that band. Yeah, it was all about radio back then, so.
Is it tricky sometimes to balance and combine Alter Bridge with the other stuff you make, like Creed, Slash, Myles’ solo stuff, and Tremonti?
Mark: I think the most labor-intensive thing is having to relearn the whole process of putting on the live show, and relearning the songs, and putting together the setlists, and going back and forth between bands. That’s always the, you know, month-long transition of work. But as far as the writing and being creative, I think it’s fun jumping from band to band. It keeps it exciting.
Myles: Yeah, it does keep it exciting because you can do the AB thing, which is a certain subgenre, and then I can step into the world of Slash and The Conspirators, and it’s more blues-based, and it’s from the hip, and then with the solo thing, it’s kind of a mixture of whatever, you know. But it allows you to stretch out in each of those territories. And then when you’re done touring and doing the album cycle, you’re like, “Okay. The palette’s clean. I’m ready to get back to AB.”. And that’s a luxury that we’ve worked hard to develop. It’s a lot of work. But going back to your question about fearing repeating yourself. (Editor’s note: Which is not what the question was about, really. But because that’s a very common question that artists get, it’s understandable that Myles heads in that direction.) When you’ve made as many records as we have, yeah, sure, there is a concern. It’s gonna happen. There’s only 12 notes. You have your musical DNA and what you like, and so you’re gonna spit that out one way or the other, and people are gonna go, “Oh, it sounds like this, it sounds like that.”. But at the same time, I guess that’s part of your brand and it’s part of what you’re known for. Like if AC/DC would put out a record that sounded like Sleep Token, you’d be like, “What’s happening here?”. (Laughs)
When you’re out with Alter Bridge, Slash, and Creed, you’re playing much bigger stages than what you do when you’re playing with Tremonti and Myles’ solo band. Obviously, something else than fame is still a driving force today, right?
Mark: Yeah. I honestly think that a small, dirty club is just as exciting as a stadium. It’s just a different vibe. I think it’s good for us to be able to dive back and forth between all the different venue sizes and fan bases. It’s so much fun getting on stage and performing. If you do the same thing over and over and over again, it turns into Groundhog Day. So it’s good to appreciate different things.
What do those VIP meet and greet experiences on tour mean to you guys?
Mark: Well, I double down. I do guitar clinics first. So I usually start my day at 12.30, I believe, and then that rolls until about 2 o’clock, and then we’ll get on stage and soundcheck and a bunch of people come in and watch our soundcheck. It’s always different. Sometimes we do a Q&A, or whatnot. You know, people come in and they’re always the first to be let into the venue so they can get up right on the rail. I don’t know what it’s gonna be this time.
Myles: I enjoy that. It’s always amazing. Like you do the meet and greet part, and then you do the picture part, and people are like, “Thank you so much for doing this.”. Because you forget. I sometimes just forget about all of it, like I forget from a fan’s perspective, like talking and sharing what a song means, and all that. So I like hearing that. It’s a good reminder for me why we do what we do. I’m the kind of guy who gets up there, and I’m like, “I hope we didn’t inconvenience everybody by playing tonight.”. (Laughs) And then when you hear what the songs mean to people, like, “Oh, these people really like these songs. I guess we have a purpose.”. So it’s very important for me to hear that, ‘cause I forget real easy.
And in just one hour or two hours, Mark, what can you teach people through a guitar clinic?
Mark: Well, it’s different every single day. I always tell people, “If you’ve been to six of these guitar clinics, I’m sure it’s gonna be different today than it’s been before.”. I go over a little bit of my warm-up routine, and I’ll show some lead ideas, and then I’ll get into being creative on the guitars. I tell everybody, “You can be the best guitar player in the universe and still not do what you love.”. I always use my one friend Bill Peck as an example. He’s an incredible lead guitar player, but he works at a bank. Great job, but he wants to be on stage playing guitar, right? So I’m like, “You could be the best guitar player in the world, but if you don’t write songs, you’re not gonna have longevity in this business.”. There’s no rules on how to write music, so I show them some ideas on how to get started with the way I write music.
You said you started around noon. Do you have time to do press on those tours as well?
Mark: Usually we don’t do too much press on the show days.
Myles: I’m notorious for not doing press, ‘cause it just totally messes with my voice. I don’t talk much. Like if we ran into each other while we’re touring, I’m like a ghost. I’m a man of few words.
Mark: We did the fundraiser the other day in Orlando, and I’m having to sing the Sinatra set, and we’re at an event where there’s music over all the loudspeakers, and people are talking to me, and I’m like, “Sorry. I can’t talk loud.”. Doing that for three hours before you start is… So, when people meet Myles, and they think he’s standoffish or quiet, it’s because you can’t. You can’t just use your talking. It’s terrible for your voice.
Myles: It’s terrible. It really messes with your pitch later on. Tony Harnell from TNT and I were talking about this, and he’s like, “Ah, the lonely life of a singer.”, ‘cause, you know, you just disappear and don’t talk much.
It’s been over two decades now. No lineup changes. I know that people ask you this all the time, but what’s the secret? The real, true secret.
Mark: Don’t get in a band with somebody that’s too opinionated or too close-minded.
Myles: I think the other thing that’s helped us is what we talked about earlier. I think having these various projects makes it so you can get things off your chest. Things you need to explore. If you’re in a situation where it’s like, “Oh man, I really wanna play polka music. Sorry guys, I’m quitting the band to go play polka music.”, then with us, “Well, go make your polka record. But come back, and we’ll keep making music.”.
Mark: “Hey, that polka record had a great chorus that you could have saved for Alter Bridge.” (Laughs)
By Tobbe – Published January 7th, 2026