““Faster and angrier” was the original plan” – Interview with Angel Sword

Finnish heavy metal -band Angel Sword, hailing from Helsinki, is set to release their third full-lenght album “World Fighter” on June 14th and next single from the album will be out mid-May. Chaoszine had a chat with vocalist-guitarist Jerry Razors and guitarist Lightning Mike about the new record and conquering the world.

Greetings, Angel Sword! How has your spring been so far? 

Jerry: Greetings! We spent the beginning of the year finishing the recordings and the mixing, and the masters were finally ready at the end of February, after which the album was sent to the label. After a short break from everything we’ve been rehearsing the new songs for live shows, handled promotional things and merchandise etc. 

Your third full-length album “World Fighter” is set to be released on June 14th. What can we expect from the new album? 

Jerry: “Faster and angrier” was the original plan a few years ago when the name of the album was decided, but I’d say the end result is distinctively Angel Sword, i.e. hard-hitting riffs, catchy melodies and big choruses. The songs could perhaps be described as some kind of a combination of the first two albums, which is not surprising since some of the song ideas are from that time. The production is a bit different this time, however, as I wanted a clearer (or “shimmering” as someone eloquently put it) sound this time, but still having it sound like it was made decades ago. If “Rebels Beyond the Pale” had a soundscape from ‘79-’81, and “Neon City” was more like ‘82-’84, then “World Fighter” is around ‘85-’87. 

How did the writing and recording processes for the album go? 

Jerry: As with previous releases, the songs that ended up on this album are a mix of old song ideas and new compositions. Usually one of us (me or Mike) makes a demo version of a song, and then we finetune it at the rehearsal place. This time much more time was spent in ironing out the details of each song than with previous albums, which made the recording process long and sometimes painful. We recorded the drums last year in a few days, but the rest of the instruments and the vocals were recorded over the course of many months, with the mixing taking place at the same time. This time the whole band is doing backing vocals, so Eviltaker (bass) and Alexander Depraved (drums) also got their share of vocal recording experience. 

Which do you write first, the lyrics or the music? 

Jerry: Sometimes the lyrics or parts of lyrics come together with the riffs, but on this album the music was mostly done first and the lyrics and vocal melodies at the end. 

Does the album have a theme, or are the songs separate “stories”? 

Jerry: If “Neon City” was a continuation to “Rebels”, then “World Fighter” is a continuation to “Neon City”. Some years have passed in this fictional alternate universe, and things have taken a turn for the worse… the neon signs have crumbled and been replaced with the light of flares, and the dystopian-yet-hopeful world pictured on Neon City is on the verge of collapse and being drawn into a war of all against all. A couple of the songs are their own separate stories, but most of them are part of a larger concept. And some of them are a lyrical continuation to lyrics on “Neon City”. 

The first single, “Vigilantes”, has already been released. What kind of feedback have you received on it so far? 

Jerry: Positive comments from the fans, and it made its way to a few playlists too, including Fenriz’s radio show. The next single will come out on May 15th and will be an even shorter and faster hammerstrike to the skull. 

Tell us about the album’s cover art. Whose work is it, and how do you usually come up with the covers for your albums? 

Jerry: The cover art and design was done by a Columbian artist who goes by the name of Subhuman Illustrations  (https://www.instagram.com/subhuman_being_/?hl=en). She’s made a lot of art and merchandise for underground bands. I usually have a pretty clear vision of what I want the cover to depict, and then the artist makes their own interpretation of it. The ideas often come at the same time as the general theme of the album. 

What does your show schedule look like? Any gigs coming up soon? 

Mike: We have a couple of shows booked in Finland for the summer and planning to book a few more. Hopefully next year we’ll return to Germany and elsewhere in Europe. If you are booker, don’t hesitate to contact us at angelswordmetal@gmail.com. 

Does Angel Sword have any future plans you can share yet? 

Mike: It would be awesome to play overseas; can’t conquer the world without conquering the U.S. first! 

Jerry: No plans for it but my dream would be to play in Tokyo. 

Thank you for the interview! Would you like to add something for Chaoszine’s readers? 

Jerry: We promise the brave the strong will be saved! 

Mike: Finland has a lot of NWOTHM (New Wave Of Traditional Heavy Metal) bands, so check them out and go to the gigs! And listen to “World Fighter” when it comes out!