Heaven's Metal Rob Rock Interview
Geoff Tate. Rob Halford. Bruce Dickinson. Rob Rock. Though not necessarily in that order, these four vocalists are often considered the best in the history of heavy metal. Singers come and go, but when you hear one of these legendary voices, you take notice as the thought screams through your mind, "THIS is what heavy metal should sound like!" That has always been true with Rob Rock. Over his 20 year career, Rob has proven to be a true professional when it comes to singing heavy metal. Whether it be with Joshua, Angelica or Impellitteri, to name a few of the bands he has sung with, or on one of the albums that Rob has appeared as a guest vocalist, the consistent quality with which Rob delivers his vocals remains unmatched in the metal world. Unsurprisingly, this continues with Rob's new album, Holy Hell, which is yet another melodic metal masterpiece. Read on as Rob discusses the success of his new album and reflects back on his career:
Chris Beck: You recently finished a tour in Europe playing with Masterplan, Circle II Circle and Pure, Inc. How did this tour compare with others you've done in the past? Any interesting road stories to share?
Rob Rock: This tour was longer than the others and had more bands involved so going in I was skeptical about how we would all get along. Amazingly, we all got along pretty good and there were no major "people problems" to deal with. Everyone was very professional and I really enjoyed myself and my time on stage. The funniest moment on the tour came at about 3 a.m. when the bus driver finally gave in to our requests to empty the "waste tank" on the bus. It was very full for several days and the odor was getting extremely nauseating on the bus and we all started complaining about it. It was horrible! So the driver pulled over into some kind of truck stop to empty the tank, but we didn't know that's what he was up to. We all piled out of the double decker bus to stretch our legs...and he unexpectedly let it rip! He opened the drain right there on the blacktop! He emptied the bus's urinal tank and the toxic cloud that arose from the asphalt driveway was so intense and so gross we all ran down the street yelling and screaming at the top of our lungs...laughing and dying and crying because the smell was so bad, so strong and so thick--no one could stand it! It was such an incredible wall of stench that it was burning nose hairs from 100 yards away! 16 guys on a bus...what do you expect?
Do you have any USA tour plans to support your new album? I know many fans have been waiting a long time for you to tour the States, as in the past you've primarily only played shows in Florida.
I am waiting to see the USA release confirm, which AFM is negotiating at this moment. I am hoping for a good tour support and marketing plan from them for the States and hopefully we can get out on the road and do some shows here.
If you end up doing a USA tour, would you prefer to be the headlining or opening band? What bands would you like to tour with? Also, who would your touring band consist of? Would it be the same as in Europe?
Everyone wants to headline but I'd rather play to more people in front of a bigger band if it's possible. You can't expect to headline until you get a couple of tours under your belt in a certain area. I'd tour with anyone who is selling tickets and drawing crowds, especially if the band package went well together. The touring band depends on who's available at the time of the tour
dates.
What is the meaning of the album title Holy Hell?
The title is meant to be strong and draw attention, and to stand out amongst the other 75-100 new metal and hard rock releases that come out each month. The song is about the struggle between the Holy Spirit and the carnal flesh. The album deals with the age old struggles of good and evil, Heaven and Hell, holy and unholy, end times and life struggles. As Christians, God's Spirit fills us but we are still in our fleshly bodies and have to deal with our natural desire to do things our way and not God's way. Satan attacks and deceives Christians and wants to destroy their walk and witness and this battle is what I'm talking about - being Holy is Hell because here on earth we are still in our sinful bodies and all of this world is on Satan's track and we are not. We are fighting the good fight!
What are the early reviews of Holy Hell? Are you happy with the distribution deals you have for the album in Europe, Japan and the USA?
The reviews are extremely excellent and positive. Number one album of the month in Metal Heart and top four in all of the other major European magazines. These monthly charts are rated from averages from reviews of 10 or 12 interviewers and they review over 30 albums each month so...it's amazing that even when the reviewer isn't exactly a "melodic metal reviewer", they know good songs when they hear them. The distribution in Asia is with JVC/Victor and AFM does all of Europe so...yes, I am happy that the distribution is much larger now for my new album. The verdict is still out on the USA distribution but I am hopeful we can get rolling here stateside as soon as the doors open.
On Holy Hell, if I'm not mistaken, the song "When Darkness Reigns" is a re-recording of "Fly Away" from the Driver EP. You also re-recorded the song "Warrior", which was also originally on the Driver EP and appeared again on the Impellitteri Answer to the Master album. "Warrior" is a great song, and I like how you went back to the original Driver version, but I'm curious why you chose to release this song a third time?
The song has always been a staple of my live show and I wanted to release it on a "Rob Rock" album. It was released twice, first on Answer to the Master with Chris Impellitteri guitars, and now on Holy Hell with Roy Z guitars. Both versions are completely different guitar wise so I thought it'd be really interesting to get both versions released properly. The Driver EP was never officially released on a real label, it was a demo that was released to labels and bootlegged in Europe, making it a collector's item. I think the Driver version needed to be heard and released properly and I think that it's a hit song and still strong so...why not?
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Comments
Great interview with a great singer. I love Rock's brand of metal and am elated to read anything about the man and his music. Keep up the reviewing of old school style music.
From San Antonio,TX., We haven't heard any good christain Metal band in awhile. Since the Days of Paradox. But we are blessed to know you are still rockin for the LORD.
God Bless you Bro...Tony ..STEEL ANGEL
