Mille Petrozza shares “I could record an album today, but I want to wait until the right moment comes”

Kreator frontman Mille Petrozza recently spoke with Portugal’s Look Mag about the band’s composition sessions for the follow-up to 2022’s “Hate Über Alles” album. 

I’m writing music constantly. I know that ‘Hate Über Alles’ came out in 2022, but it was lying there for over a year. So, to us, the album came out almost in ’21 because the music was done and we didn’t release it because there was still lockdown and we wanted to wait until the whole pandemic is over. So, I have written since ’21 or ’22, when we recorded it, I’ve already written, like, 10 songs or something, or 10 ideas for songs. And I could record an album today, but I want to wait until the right moment comes, where I have a lyrical concept and everything feels right. To me, it’s not important to release something just for the sake of it. I think it needs to just feel right… I’d rather be quiet than saying something where I don’t have anything to say.

The new record has at least a possible release date.

Yeah, we have a rough idea. We have scheduled the record for 2026, maybe — but if everything goes right. We’re probably gonna take the year ’25 off for just for songwriting and recording. And let’s see where it takes us. But if everything goes by plan, then there will be a new Kreator record in the beginning of ’26.

Now we know what is the secret behind their success.

There is no formula or secret. I think it’s basically believing in what we do and trying to be us rather than trying to be something that we’re not. And endurance is another factor, a little bit of luck, of course, and being at the right place at the right time. We have started very early, as teenagers in the ’80s, and I think that kind of helps, being one of the first bands that play extreme metal in Europe. It’s just the way it goes. I guess when you’re around for that long, it’s just natural that the people are getting older and younger kids are discovering the music that we play. And therefore I feel very privileged to be able to see that. Not many bands endure that long, and I know that not many bands are staying together for more than 10 years or even 20 or five years sometimes. We were prepared to do this when we were kids, and I dedicated my life to this, and I’m happy that there’s so much interest and there’s still so many people, like almost two or almost three generations of an audience that still enjoy extreme metal from Germany. It’s a cool thing. I think it’s really cool.

Kreator’s fifteenth studio album, titled “Hate Über Alles,” was released in June 2022. The follow-up to 2017’s “Gods of Violence” was recorded at the Hansa Tonstudio in Berlin, Germany. Arthur Rizk oversaw the sessions, having previously worked with Cavalera Conspiracy, Code Orange, Power Trip, and Soulfly, among others. Eliran Kantor, who has previously collaborated with Hatebreed, Soulfly, Testament, Iced Earth, and Sodom, designed the cover artwork for “Hate Über Alles”. “Hate Über Alles” was Kreator’s debut album featuring bassist Frédéric Leclercq, who joined the band in 2019.