- What inspired the name of the band and what are your influences?
“We formed the band when we were all 14 or 15 years old, a few years after the initial death metal boom of the late eighties. So, this was in 1990. We wanted the band name to make sense, so we chose Crown of Fire and released two albums under that name before we had to change it to avoid being sued. As for influences, really, there were a lot of bands, such as Morbid Angel, Death, Napalm Death, Entombed, Edge of Sanity. All great bands.
- Has the music scene changed since you started out?
“Yes, it’s completely different to what it was when we started out. One could question the need for record labels, with the ease of access the internet provides, but other than that, I get the feeling that a lot of new bands aren’t formed by friendships but by people who simply share an interest in music. When we formed, we played for four or five years before even releasing a demo or being signed. Nowadays it seems to happen immediately.”
- Could you talk through the writing process that you underwent for this album?
“We wanted to go back to how we did things in the past. On our two previous records we were sending files to one another, and then I’d be alone in the studio mixing the album, so it wasn’t quite as coherent I think as it could have been. On this album, we rehearsed in the studio as a band, we were together in the studio as a band for all of the process. As regards songs that I’m looking forward to playing live, I’d say Iron Crown and We Avenge, both of them will go down well. As will the others.”
- What plans have you got for the future?
“We’re currently preparing to go out on tour, we’re scheduling everything now for 2018-19. We’ve got shows in the UK planned, so keep an eye out for that.”