Old-school, death metal band
Hail of Bullets are gearing up for a string of European dates kicking off in London this weekend. Music-News.com caught up with drummer/producer Ed Warby, pictured centre, to discover what the Dutch band have in store.
Music News: Last October you released your second, full-length album, On Divine Winds. What’s it all about?
Ed Warby: It’s a concept album about the war in the Pacific, starting with the attack on Pearl Harbor then going back in time to what led up to this act of aggression and finally ending with Japan’s surrender.
MN: How has it been received?
EW: Very well. We got rave reviews across the board and we even entered the German album charts briefly, which is unheard of for our style of music these days. I was afraid we might not be able to match the first album critically, but judging from the reviews we did not only that but actually surpassed it, which is, of course, what you hope for after working on an album for a long time.
MN: War is a continuing theme in your songs. Where does the fixation come from?
EW: That is mostly our singer Martin’s doing. He reads a lot about the subject and is a walking war encyclopaedia. When we started working on material for the first time, he got a strong war vibe from the songs and decided to dedicate the first album to the eastern front. And this combination worked so well, we kept on with it.
MN: What message are you trying to get out?
EW: No message. For all the heavy subjects, we’re a non-political band and if there’s a message at all it’s that war is hell – no matter what side you’re on.
MN: You ran a karaoke competition asking fans to ‘cover’ your track Operation Z – the top prize being to sing it with you at a forthcoming show. What were your judging criteria?
EW: We tried to stick with the ones that did it ‘pure’: just a camera and a microphone, doing it live. We judged on a few criteria: of course the vocal delivery but also the fun factor, enthusiasm, things like that. The guy who won was vocally the best, but we handed out some more prizes because well, once you have the balls to enter in a competition like this, you’ve already won as far as I’m concerned.
MN: You’re playing the Underworld in Camden on Saturday. What can we expect from the show?
EW: An energetic, driven, death metal war machine in killer shape, playing a mix of tracks from both albums as well as the EP. We’re very much a no-nonsense band. We’re here to have fun and treat the audience to an hour and a half of death metal the way it used to be done.
MN: There are so many genres and subgenres now. If someone was sampling death metal for the first time, which bands, apart from your own, should they listen to?
EW: I’m going with old-school death metal here, the stuff that was being made in the late 80s/early 90s. These bands/albums are all essential listening if you want to know what real death metal is about: Entombed – Left Hand Path, Obituary – Cause of Death, Death – Scream Bloody Gore, Bolt Thrower – War Master, and Autopsy – Severed Survival. There are tons more, obviously, but start with these and you’ll be hooked – just like the guy on that Autopsy cover!
MN: Where should a new Hail of Bullets fan begin with you? The latest record or back to the start?
EW: Ideally, I’d say start with the four-track promo, if you can get your hands on it. Then check out the first album, Of Frost And War, continue with the Warsaw Rising EP, which features two new songs as well as several live tracks from one of our first big shows, and finally experience the full-scale war of On Divine Winds. That way you’ll get the full scope of what we’re about.
Then again we haven’t changed styles drastically in between albums, so you’ll be fine with either one of our full-lengths. If you just want to sample a few songs, I’d say Ordered Eastward, General Winter and Nachthexen off the debut are a good place to start, with some Berlin thrown in for the doom side of our sound. Operation Z and Tokyo Napalm Holocaust from the second album should also tell you if we’re your cup of tea or not.
MN: You’re playing lots of European dates throughout the year. When will you be back in the UK, and will it be a full tour?
EW: No idea, we don’t actually do full tours anywhere, instead we prefer doing short, blitzkrieg-style visits to different countries. It’s more effective and just as important. It keeps us fresh so we can enjoy each show to the fullest without it becoming routine or, worse, a ‘job’. We’d love to do some more UK shows, but it all depends on the right offer…
On Divine Winds is out now on Metal Blade Records
Hail of Bullets play the Underworld in London on Saturday 26 March 2011 
