During the latest episode of the Mars Attacks Podcast we interview Mark Hunter of Chimaira and Dave Reffett. Mark discusses the band’s new album The Age Of Hell, some of the band’s line up changes, releasing the new album for free in the UK, and what it’s like to have Chimaira associated to shows like Mythbusters, The Farmclub and Deathklok. He also fields a bunch of listener submitted questions.

There isn’t enough I can do to thank Dave Reffett for his help, he has assisted us in obtaining quite a few guests. As a result it is my pleasure to include him in the episode. He discusses his album The Call Of The Flames, what it was like to feature people like George Lynch, Chris Poland, Glen Drover and Mike Mangini, among others that appear on the album, his gear, and briefly touches on future projects he’ll be working on. He didn’t want to mention a whole lot about the latter, but I’m sure it will be cool none the less.

Pictures courtesy of Chimaira and Dave Reffett.

The episode contains tracks off of Chimaira’s Age of Hell, and Dave Reffett’s The Call Of The Flames

The podcast can be streamed or downloaded from here:

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During this episode we have interview with Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens, and James Luna, lead singer of Holy Grail, and former lead singer of White Wizzard. Holy Grail have just released a great new album called Crisis In Utopia. During Luna’s portion of the interview we discuss the making of said album, his influences, playing Waken, and his time in White Wizzard, where he goes into detail to discuss the issues he and former member of the band (James LaRue, and Tyler Meahl both in Holy Grail) had with Jon Leon. Now before anyone jumps to conclusions I did try and contact Jon to get his side of things so that people can determine for themselves what really happened. One of the things that I love about doing interviews for my podcast is that listeners can directly from an artist. It isn’t like playing telephone where things are sensationalized just to put another notch in someone’s proverbial gun. Had I of been able to interview Jon people would have been able to (again) choose for themselves whether what all of these former members are saying is true, or not. Maybe Jon has a good reason that isn’t coming across? Or maybe things are cut and dry, exactly like all of the former members are saying, and is why the label, and Jon himself has decided to not come on the show.

Ripper’s interview was conducted late last year, it is one of a handful of interviews that were conducted for MarkStrigleRadio.com and has yet to be released as a podcast. During this episode we discuss Hail!, his solo album Play My Game, Yngwie Malmsteen, Beyond Fear, Charred Walls Of The Damned, and the abrupt end to his tenure in Iced Earth. Tim is very forth coming, and honest when talking about John Schaffer, and what was promised to him when joining IE, and how it differs to how Judas Priest and Yngwie Malmsteen approached him.

I recommend both interviews to anyone that has been following the dysfunctional history of Iced Earth or White Wizzard, or are fans of either one of these two great lead singers.

During the episode you’ll hear the following tracks:

Holy Grail – Nocturne in D Minor
White Wizzard Shooting Star
Holy Grail – My Last Attack
Holy Grail – Requiem
Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens – Death Race
Beyond Fear – Save Me
Judas Priest – Blood Suckers

Overall we touch on the following topics:

Hail!, David Ellefson, NAMM, Samson Wireless, Andreas Kisser, Jimmy Degrasso, Mike Portnoy, Paul Bostaph, Ray Mayorga, Soulfly, Stone Sour, Spinal Tap, Sepultura, Alice Cooper, Testament, Simon Wright, Motorhead, Pantera, Judas Priest, Accept, Wendy Dio, Bob Kulick, Chris Caffery, John Comprix, Steve Stevens, Jeff Loomis, Michael Wilton, George Lynch, John 5, Scott Ian, Vinnie Paul, Rudy Sarzo, Billy Sheehan, Bobby Jarzombek, Road Runner Records, Road Runner United, Jeff Waters, Cory Taylor, The Grammys, Beyond Fear, SPV Records, Iced Earth, Yngwie Malmsteen, John Schaffer, Matt Barlow, Judas Priest, Ian Hill, K.K. Downing, Rob Halford, Charred Walls Of The Damned, Richard Christy, Play My Game, Heaven & Hell, Hannah Montana, Pink,Amon Amarth, Exodus, Mahevilant Creation, Deep Purple, Klaus Meine, Scorpions, Manowar, Merciful Fate, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Motorhead, Slayer, Witchfinder General, Racer X, Testament, Lamb Of God, Jeff Loomis, Nevermore, Danny Lohner, Nine Inch Nails, Metal Blade Records, Angkor Wat, Waken Festival, Matt Hyde, Steve Evetts, Nuclear Blast, Side One Dummy, Prosthetic Records, Exodus, Kiss, Erik Kluibert, Jon Leon, Sleaze Roxx, Metal Sucks, Metal Sludge

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Did a Q&A Interview for Metal Army America with Drummer extraordinaire Richard Christy. You can read the interview here:

During this episode we interview Rane and Jason from Kings of Modesty, as well as Cory Proctor from Free Reign and the Dallas Cowboys. These interviews were conducted roughly a month ago, and originally were going to air on Mars Attacks Radio. But around that time, we made a conscious decision to listen to the feedback we were receiving, and switch the format so that the radio show is more of a music oriented show, and the podcast (which was launched around that time) became an outlet for the interviews that are conducted for the show. Sans the odd live show, like last week, we will adhere to this format for the foreseeable future. In any event thanks to all of you that listen on a weekly basis to the radio show, and to those of you that have been making the podcast very successful!

That said, let’s get back on track here, Kings of Modesty discuss the making of their full length album, the recording of their previous EP with Emppu Vuorinen from Nightwish, what it was like to tour with Tarja Turunen and Michael Schenker, as well as their desire to bring Kings of Modesty to North America among other things. On the Free Reign side of things, Cory discusses the differences with playing on stage as opposed to on the field, the process behind recording the band’s first full length album and their EP Tragedy, what it was like to take part in the Golden Gods ceremony a few weeks back, and how difficult it is at times to balance life, football, and music.

Other items discussed:

Samuel Hjelt, Raino Simoinen, Henrik Tuura, Mikael Hjelt, Jason Flinck, Faces of Modesty, Kings Of Modesty, Nightwish, Emppu Vuorinen, Hell or Highwater, Jere Putkisaari, Tarja Turunen, Michael Schenker, Graham Bonnet, Joe Lynn Turner, Queensryche, Iron Maiden, John Petrucci, Nicko McBrain, Scott Rockenfield, Chipster PR, MSG, Impelliteri, Rainbow, Dream Theater, Amazon, iTunes, CD.com, Free Reign, Dallas Cowboys, Cory Proctor, Super Bowl Shuffle, Mark Colombo, Leonard Davis, Justin Chapman, Alex Gerst, Indian Trails Recording Studios, Vinnie Paul, Dave Lombardo, Joey Jordinson, Taylor Hawkins, Killswitch Engage, Megadeth, Mercedes Lander, Kittie, Steel Panther, Carrot Top, Mandalay Bay, Luxor, Gretch, Pearl, Sabian Cymbals, Granada Theater, Orange County Chopper, Dave Mustaine, Lemmy, Pantera, Creed, P.O.D., Golden Gods, Tony Romo, Tragedy, Taylor Hawkins, Bullet For My Valintine, Nub Graphix, Heavier Than Metal.com, Goldengodsawards.com, Journey, House Of Blues, Byron Davis, Doc Coyle, God Forbid, Bill Meis, Chip Ruggieri, Jen Farhood

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Do to a last minute scheduling conflict we had to switch up gears and resurrect an interview I did back in 93 with current Machine Head drummer Dave McClain. At the time he was part of Sacred Reich.

The interview took place shortly after the recording of Sacred Reich‘s Independent album. Items discussed during this interview are the album Independent, how he joined Sacred, his early influences, touring, and the advent of grunge. Since Dave is knows as one of metals premiere drummers, it is interesting to also hear him mention how he’s never recognized, and doesn’t know why people would want his autograph.

Items discussed are as follows:

Flotsam and Jetsam, Sepultura, Meat Puppets, Gin Blossoms, Murder Card, Prong, Phil Rind, A Question?, Peter Criss, Neil Peart, Terry Bozzio, Igor Cavalera, Pantera, Vinnie Paul, New Titans On The Block, Napalm Death, Sick Of It All, Metallica, Fear Factory, Biohazard, Rush, Ice T, Public Enemy, Edie Brickell, The Sundays, Dave Jerden, Hollywood Records, Alice In Chains, Jane’s Addiction, Megadeth, Guns N Roses.

Songs played during the show:

Independent – Sacred Reich
Crashing Around You – Machine Head
Heal – Sacred Reich
Halo – Machine Head
Free – Sacred Reich
The Blood, The Sweat, The Tears – Machine Head
Crawling – Sacred Reich
Imperium – Machine Head

Songs Played Behind my banter:

Aesthetics Of Hate – Machine Head
Just Like That – Sacred Reich
From This Day – Machine Head
Days Turn Blue To Gray – Machine Head

During this episode I had the pleasure of interviewing Ripper Owens, former lead singer of Judas Priest and Iced Earth, the current lead singer for Yngwie Malmsteen, Beyond Fear, Charred Walls Of The Damned, the super group Hail! and his own solo band. During his interview we discussed the following:

Hail!, David Ellefson, NAMM, Samson Wireless, Andreas Kisser, Jimmy Degrasso, Mike Portnoy, Paul Bostaph, Ray Mayorga, Soulfly, Stone Sour, Spinal Tap, Sepultura, Alice Cooper, Testament, Simon Wright, Motorhead, Pantera, Judas Priest, Accept, Wendy Dio, Bob Kulick, Chris Caffery, John Comprix, Steve Stevens, Jeff Loomis, Michael Wilton, George Lynch, John 5, Scott Ian, Vinnie Paul, Rudy Sarzo, Billy Sheehan, Bobby Jarzombek, Road Runner Records, Road Runner United, Jeff Waters, Cory Taylor, The Grammys, Beyond Fear, SPV Records, Iced Earth, Yngwie Malmsteen, John Schaffer, Matt Barlow, Judas Priest, Ian Hill, K.K. Downing, Rob Halford, Charred Walls Of The Damned, Richard Christie, Play My Game, Heaven & Hell, Hannah Montana, Pink.

The following songs are featured during this episode:

Believe – Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens
Death Race – Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens
Save Me – Beyond Fear
Yngwie Malmsteen – Live To Fight (Another Day)
Ten Thousand Strong – Iced Earth
Feed On Me – Judas Priest
Pick Your Self Up – Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens

During this episode I was lucky enough to interview Doc Coyle from New Jersey’s God Forbid. We discussed the following items during the interview:

his stint with Lamb of God, God Forbid’s future plans, the official incorporation of Matt Wiklund in to the band’s ranks, playing with Corey Taylor, Vinnie Paul and Phil Dremmel at The Ride For Dime, meeting Adam Jones of Tool, Mike Mushok of Staind, touring with Slipknot & Metallica, his gear, influences, his upcoming instruction DVD from Rock House, and online lessons through Jam Play.

Other items touched upon:

Mark Morten, Buz McGrath, Unearth, Sonishere, Chris Adler, Marty Friedman, Mesa Boogie Mark 4, EMG Pickups, Set To Fail, In My Words, ESP Guitars, LTD Guitars, Seymour Duncan Pickups, EMG 81, EMG 85, EMG 60, Dimebag Darrel, Jason Christopher, Tony MacAlpine, Van Halen, Ozzy Osbourne, Yngwie Malmsteen, Kobetasonik Festival, Metalway Festival, Fear Factory, Muse, Stockholm Syndrome, Kanye West, Alice In Chains, Throwdown, Pearl Jam, Incubus, Glass Jaw, Jimmy Eat World.

Songs played during this episode:

God Forbid – War Of Attrition
God Forbid – Stockholm Syndrome
Lamb of God – Fake Messiah

This episode features an in-depth interview with Erik Kluibert regarding his playing concepts, his gear, and the jump from Overloaded to White Wizzard.  Other items covered include the writing and recording process of the new album, and their upcoming tour with Korpiklani, Tyr and Swashbuckle.

The episode also features the following songs:

Quite Riot with Randy Rhodes – Look In Any Window

Pantera with Kerry King – God Damn Electric

Overloaded – President’s Day

White Wizzard – Megalondon

Badlands – The River

Behind my banter you will hear tracks from White Wizzard, Overloaded, Misfits, Slash’s Snake Pit

Other topics covered include:

Quiet Riot The Randy Rhodes Years, Dimebag Darrell, Kerry King, Rex, Vinnie Paul, Anthrax, Stomp 442, We’ve Come For You All, ECW, Slash’s Snake Pit, Jake E. Lee, Ray Gillen, Killswitch Engage, Lamb Of God, Randy Rhodes, Metallica, Kirk Hammett, Jimmy Page, Led Zepplin, Kill Em All, Regeneration, Iron Maiden, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Deep Purple, Ritchie Blackmore, Yngwie Malsteen, Jason Becker, Marty Freidman, Steel Panther, Motor City Pick Ups, Les Paul Studio, Tyr, Korpiklani, Wyatt “Screamin Demon” Anderson, Earache Records, Slipknot, Ace Frehley, Viper Room, Steel Panther, Dusk, Jon Leon, Chad Bryan, Slash