Interview: H on The New Acid Reign Album
Interviewer: Carl Black
UK Thrash legends Acid Reign drop their latest album, The Age of Entitlement, on the world via Dissonance Productions on 27th September. Its the bands first new album in 29 years and a lot has changed since they were last on the scene.
Carl sat down with 'H' from the band to talk about the new album and how the worlds moved on since they were last releasing new material.
The Razor's Edge: First off, H, Welcome to The Razor's Edge!
H: Thanks you good to be here.
The Razor's Edge: You rebooted Acid Reign a few years ago now. What’s the reception been like over that time to Acid Reign 2.0?
H: It’s been brilliant EVERYWHERE Right from the word go total acceptance, I was a bit concerned that we would get the “H and some other guys” accusation. Because I was honest and never called it a reformation, made it clear we HAD tried to do that but it didn’t work, the reboot was accepted instantly, then we dropped Plan Of The Damned and the rest is history!
The Razor's Edge: You've played a lot of shows since the reboot. How do the live shows compare to back in the day?
H: Everyone is older and three words have made all the difference. Health and safety. So whilst it may not be as insane as back in the 80’s/90’s it’s still pretty crazy and the younger at heart and younger audience members still go for it big time. You will not see more stage diving or wilder pits anywhere. AR crowds are nuts.
The Razor's Edge: Do you approach a show differently now compared to then?
H: Vocal warm ups, lots of stretching to make sure we are all in good shape to hit the stage. Never prepared at all before, just go out and do it.
The Razor's Edge: Do you find the music business in general has changed since you were first involved?
H: [lots of laughs] BEYOND ALL RECOGNITION. This thing called the internet happened and a lot changed, not sure if you heard about this? We’re ALL t-shirt sellers now, just traveling clothing sellers who happen to play music as well.
The Razor's Edge: Moving onto the new album, what was the writing process like? How does Acid Reign 2.0 pull an albums worth of material together?
H: Mainly Paul begins with a demo of a tune, then we all come together and work on it. However a few tunes were written during summer 2017 in the writing room where we were ensconced to finish up the writing. All songs are demoed with vocals so we have a finished version. Keep working on them right up to recording.
The Razor's Edge: What songs were the easiest to write and record and which were the hardest?
H: I can only speak for me, there’s five answers to that question. From my point of view the answer is they were all nice and simple and straight forward. Lyrics, harmonies, melodies etc all came pretty easy.
The Razor's Edge: What have you done differently regarding your vocal delivery from your earlier releases?
H: I am 29 years older than when I sang before, so the difference is night and day. I know my voice much better now, I am a much better singer as I know my voice so much better. What have I done differently? Everything!
The Razor's Edge: Is it easier or harder to write lyrics as you get older?
H: Neither it’s just the same. The main difference is now I tend to write more about how I feel than how I think.
The Razor's Edge: 'The Age of Entitlement' is a great title, where did it come from and what does that statement really mean to you?
H: Thanks! I can't remember where it came from, I just liked the way it was a play on the age of enlightenment. Prime example is posting tour dates and the entitlement starts “why aren’t you playing near ME?”. Oh it’s all about you isn’t it?! Fans follow bands not the other way around haha! We get messages to the page from people wanting to know where we will playing next year, “are you playing Manchester I live there”. They somehow think that they are entitled to information that is not in the public domain, it happens all the time.
So the point being is that EVERYONE can be guilty of entitled behaviour. The title is not meant to be a bunch of old men moaning about kids and mobiles far from it!! The point is that people have never been so entitled and think that their opinion/welfare/wants - take precedence over others for no reason at all. However a Facebook Group of millennial's has decided that is what we are and what we are saying. Quite entitled of them if you think about it.
The Razor's Edge: From the reboot you said that you had a 5 year plan which would take you up to getting the band signed. Now that your signed, do you have another 5 year plan and can you share were you hope the band will be in that time?
H: Did I? What a dick! [laughs]. Well the plan is complete, after the release it is all about how the album does. So up to now I have been able to navigate the bands return without a hitch but from here on out it is all about how the album performs. We have to react to that and go where the figures tell us we should go.
The Razor's Edge: You've got dates booked throughout the rest of 2019... are there any surprises in the upcoming live shows?
H: Well if I say anything they wouldn’t be surprises would they? There’s always something going on at our shows.
The Razor's Edge: Thanks for taking time out to talk to us, we'll see you on the road
H: Cheers guys!
You can catch Acid Reign at Uprising in Leicester this weekend and then on tour in December. Their new album 'The Age of Entitlement' is due for release on September 27th via Dissonance Productions.
Have you checked out our other Uprising Festival coverage?
- The Road to Uprising: The Preview
- The Road to Uprising: Interview with Alunah
- Uprising IV: The Review
- Uprising IV: Photo Highlights
For all the latest news, reviews, interviews across the heavy metal spectrum follow THE RAZORS'S EDGE on facebook, twitter and instagram.
