Rockezine.com interview with Anterior on Jul 30, 2007

with Luke on Jul 30, 2007


		First of all congratulations with your new release, I really liked it. But I never heard of you guys. So can you give me a short introduction of all the members? Thank you very much, glad you enjoy it! My names Luke, I play guitar and am vocalist. Leon is our lead guitarist and then there’s Ross our drummer. At the moment, we have parted ways with our bass player so currently we are trying out a few guys, looking for someone to fit the bill. At the moment we’re all 21, and hail from South Wales in the UK.
		Can you give some kind of timeline from Anterior? Anterior has been going for roughly 4 years. Before that we were knocking around in small bands for some time, but never took the band further than a hobby. The last 3 years have been quite hectic. Everyone was really trying to make the band something, improve their playing abilities and impress people at gigs. In July last year we recorded a new 4 track demo, then signed with Metal Blade Records in October.
		How did you hook up with the Metalblade guys? I think I can safely say that the Internet has being one of the major factors in our meeting with Metal Blade. We signed a management deal with Desert Rock USA just after recording a demo in the late summer last year, they heard us via our myspace page. They approached Metal Blade on our behalf, along with quite a few other labels. A week later we had two offers off different labels land on our doorstep. I think the internet has been absolutely invaluable to us over the last few years, it makes things so easy. When you’re an un-signed band, arranging a deal with an American record label isn’t usually easy, especially when you live in the UK.
		Which band or what person was/ is your biggest inspiration? I think the original inspiration for actually wanting to play music came from listening to bands like Metallica. That’s true for the whole band. I remember listening to all the huge riffs they’ve got and thinking, fuck, I want to play guitar. Another major inspiration for me was Rage Against The Machine. As a band I think we are incredibly drawn to the Swedish Gothenburg sound. However, we didn’t want to sound like those bands, we don’t want to be a replica, we want to make our own music.
		What’s your goal with Anterior? I think the goal is quite simple. Make as much good music as possible and play as many gigs as we can. Its what we fucking love doing, I wouldn’t want to do anything else. I think a lot of people grow up wishing to be huge rock stars, playing sold out stadium shows, driving fast cars! However, I think that if I can make a living doing what I love then I’ll be the happiest guy in the world. Anything above that to me is a bonus.
		Are you lifting on the success of bands like Unearth, The Black Dahlia Murder, Lamb Of God etc.? And what’s the main difference between Anterior and those bands? I think we definitely bring something different to the table. We don’t necessarily sound like those guys so, were always going to be different. We put a lot more lead guitar work into our songs along with more melody. I’m a big fan of pretty much all the bands on Metal Blade, but we’ve got to do our own thing. I love having a big contrast between harsh aggressive vocals and a sweet quiet lead break. As for lifting on the success of the guys you mentioned, that’s a difficult task at the moment, this is our debut album, and we’re a new face on the scene, so time will tell on that one.
		Why should people buy This Age Of Silence? I think, if you enjoy no nonsense metal, with your fair share of guitar solo, you gonna enjoy it. I think you’ll be missing out if you don’t!
		What’s the worst part of your new album? Hmmmm, interesting question, don’t think I’ve had that one before. Honestly I don’t think there’s anything I dislike at all with the record. There’s a few things we could have added given more time, but that’s just part and parcel of deadlines and budgets.
		The future plans are… As much touring and press as possible for the immediate future. Oh yeah, and the small matter of getting a permanent bass player haha.
		Is there anything you want to say to the rest of the world? Horns up and spit it here… Thank you very much for your time. When you’re walking around your local music store don’t forget to look up Anterior, buy a copy! Fuck it, buy 2! Thanks again, hope to see you soon!
(Jeroen Habets)