Warfield has been showing a powerful presence in the thrash metal scene for years now. In the past, we got to know the excellent songs from the Call to War EP and the Wrecking Command album. Could you please talk about the most important events of the past decade and introduce yourselves briefly: who are these three guys and what do they want to show us?
Jojo: Wow, quite an extensive question to start with – first of all, thanks for the cool words! Since we started Warfield in 2012, we’ve been constantly evolving. From changing line ups and rehearsal rooms to our first experiences recording music and touring. Highlights were certainly the release of our two albums as well as great gigs with Exodus, The Exploited, Insanity Alert, our shows in the Czech Republic and our most recent adventure on the 70,000 Tons of Metal Cruise and in Bahrain. We still can’t quite believe that! Who are we? We are three guys from a small village in South-West Germany who are passionate about old-school thrash and want to spread as much energy as possible – be it by listening to the record or playing live shows!
If I’m not mistaken, your parents are also huge metal fans, so you were raised on metal! 🙂 Was it good for you that your life started this way, experiencing the joy of metal already at a young age? When did you decide to become a musician? What kind of dreams did you have back then?
Dome: That’s totally right! Our parents all love rock and metal. Matze’s and Jojo’s father saw UFO live back in the early days, which brings me to my father and – what a surprise – Iron Maiden, haha! Like many people, my father is a big Maiden supporter, he also saw them live at the legendary Rock Pop in Concert in Dortmund 1983. So I had the pleasure of being infected with the Maiden Madness quite early on. I started playing drums at the age of nine, partly after seeing Clive Burr’s drumming in various Maiden videos. My father is a big Thrash Metal fan as well. When at some point classic metal was no longer enough, there was also enough of the harder and faster stuff. We watched DVDs of the great thrash legends after nearly every rehearsal. So discovering all the metal stuff already at a young age definitely was an advantage, especially attending live concerts in our early teenage years. Seeing a band live is always a different experience. I think our high-energized live shows also stem from the fact that we saw the right bands live back then. We were immediately impressed by the performances of certain bands and absorbed everything we could. Our biggest dream back then was probably to stand on stage by ourselves and perform our own songs – and that people would celebrate them, haha!
When you guys formed the band, was it already clear for you from the beginning that thrash metal was the genre for you? I assume you were aware that it’s hard to create something entirely new after legends like Exodus, Slayer, Kreator, Destruction, etc. How did you approach songwriting in the early days? After writing your first song, how many people did you proudly share it with?
Jojo: You’re right, the bands you mentioned have shaped an entire genre and are absolute legends for a reason. Nevertheless, it has always been our goal to create something of our own, to find our own style and to express our own thoughts. Old-school thrash is the genre that sparks the most energy in us, that makes us feel powerful when we’re down and that pushes us. That’s why our songs sound the way they do – because it’s the best way to release our energy! I don’t even know if we showed our very first song to anyone. I remember it was called “Nightmare” and I still have the melody in my head. But we probably quickly thought that we could do better and wrote more songs.
Last year, you got a fantastic opportunity by signing with Napalm Records. I assume you were thrilled about it! How did you manage to get signed? Which show caught their attention? Had you been looking for such an opportunity for a long time? What stood out for you the most, when you first became part of the Napalm Records “family”?
Dome: Yes, of course we were more than excited when we heard that Napalm Records was interested in supporting us and releasing our new record! After the new album came out of the mix, we contacted various labels which we thought we could fit in. Shortly after our request, the guys from Napalm Records got in touch with us. They were completely convinced from our new stuff. So we arranged one or two online meetings and quickly realized that it also worked extremely well on a personal level. They are really nice and cool guys! And with bands like Exodus, Warbringer or Evil Invaders we are in best thrash company, so we’re really glad that this worked out.
Your debut album was released in 2018, and after seven years, we finally have the follow-up, With the Old Breed in our hands. Why did it take so long? When were the songs written, how fresh are they?
Jojo: Yes exactly, seven long years! During which, however, we have by no means lain idle. We played gigs almost constantly throughout this time and gradually grew with the band. I also took over the bass live in 2018, which was a big step for me. Alongside our private lives and professional degrees, we then wrote new songs – this process actually started quite early on. When the pandemic hit, we actually had all the songs ready. The last one was “Tie The Rope”. We did pre-recordings for the first time to get in the mood for the studio, and at the same time we were looking for a suitable producer. In spring of 2023, we then went to SU2 Studio, where we recorded drums and later vocals with the fantastic Phil Hillen. In between, due to time constraints, we went to Karsten Aurig at DarkOne Studio for guitars and bass – also an extremely fine guy! – before Phil took over the mixing and mastering again at the end. We were more than happy with the result and quickly started looking for a label. Then we were very lucky to end up with Napalm, who of course also have their own release plans. That’s why it ended up being April 4th 2024, but we think it was worth the wait. Hopefully the listeners will see it that way too!
In your opinion, in which way does Warfield’s second album differ the most from its predecessor? Do you see it as a major step up?
Jojo: We went into the new album with the clear aim of taking a step up, both in terms of sound and songwriting. That was the match plan from the start. We love “Wrecking Command”, which sounds exactly like a first album should sound with its rawness. But I think “With The Old Breed” shows more depth in terms of composition and content, the songs are more mature, more thoughtful and the lyrics also deal more deeply with psychological thought processes in extreme situations such as war or social self-destruction. This in combination with the fat sound, which despite its modernity does not lose the roughness and aggression of the debut album, distinguishes the new record from the old one.
The limited-edition vinyl includes a cover of Nuclear Assault’s F# (Wake Up). What was the basis of choosing this song? What’s your opinion on Nuclear Assault and their work?
Dome: We all love Nuclear Assault! Their music contains everything you need for good thrash metal. You can kind of feel the energy through the speakers, not to mention the live performances. Their stage presence also had a huge impact on us. In terms of the cover song, there’s a lot of social criticism in “Wake Up” that aligns well with our song themes. The song also encourages not to be afraid of taking risks and seizing opportunities, which perfectly fits to our current band situation: We want to achieve a strong impact with the new album, open doors and wake up as many moshers as possible – that’s why we shout it out in the cover song!
How many cover songs have you recorded in total? Do you think there’s a chance that one day, someone will cover your songs, too?
Jojo: So far we’ve only officially recorded the Nuclear Assault cover and Razor’s “Cross Me Fool”, which is on the debut album as a vinyl bonus track. On an earlier demo there was a live version of “Breaking The Law” by Priest. However, as we always played a lot of covers in the early days of the band and simply love this music, covers are very important to us and have been a feature of our live shows since our existence. We love to throw in a lively cover every now and then, especially when it’s a rare song that you don’t get to hear that often. They range from Kreator and Misfits to Slayer and Amyl and the Sniffers! If we ever get to the point where other bands cover us, I’ll open a beer and probably shed a tear because I feel extremely honored, haha!
Has the band’s vision concerning the future changed since signing with Napalm Records? Have your childhood dreams come closer to reality?
Dome: I would say yes. Just the fact that you can release your second album via a well-known metal label, where your childhood idols like Exodus or Destruction are signed, is an incredible feeling and something we could’nt have imagined when we started the band. Our biggest hope is that we can do a nightliner tour to spread the new album across all lands. That really would be a dream come true for all of us three! And this dream definitely is more realistic now.
Not long ago, you played at the 70000 Tons of Metal festival. What kind of experiences did you gain from it? How would you describe the atmosphere and the sound of the concerts?
Dome: The opportunity to play on the cruise came up very suddenly and we’re more than grateful to have been part of it! Personally, it was like a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The organization was very good, but it’s very tightly scheduled. As a newcomer band, we were lucky with our time slots and didn’t have to play at 5 o clock in the morning. This gave us the chance to attract many new people to us and we managed to create big circle and moshpits, even on the smallest venue. The audience is mixed and sometimes you are not sure what to think about. However, a lot of people were there mainly for the music and bands and not just to party on a boat. The feedback on our shows was great as well! Maybe with one or two more days on the ship – or less stress – we could have enjoyed it even more, but everything about the event was truly extraordinary. The sound was mind-blowing and much louder than at normal concerts. Of course it was, after all there are no neighbors to complain about it, haha!
How many shows will Warfield play this year? With this increased promotion, do you expect larger audiences?
Jojo: We hope to go on tour with the new album soon, this is being planned at the moment. Until then, we’ll be playing several club and festival shows – of course we’ll try to take as much as possible with us. The cooperation with Napalm and District 19 as our booking agency has already enabled us to play some awesome gigs and we hope that we can continue to play many great stages to present our thrash to as many people as possible!
Do you think it’s harder for contemporary thrash metal bands to break through compared to the past? I mean, it was easier to bring something new back then, but bands had far fewer opportunities. Which situation do you think is better? By the way… – who is your all-time favorite band?
Dome: That’s an interesting question! If I could choose, I would go with founding a band back in the 80s because you would have been part of a brand new, smashing genre that everyone was raving about. As you mentioned, the opportunities were limited, but it must have been an incredible time to witness all these bands coming together and taking over the world with a new movement known as Thrash Metal.
As with everything, you always need a bit of luck and to meet the right people at the right time who see potential in your work and want to support you. In this respect, there is a lot of investment in the underground scene today, but taking the next step is still quite challenging. Especially with support acts, I think promoters (and even the main bands that choose their own support acts!) too often rely on bands that are already successful, or on festival lineups where the same bands play every two years in rotation. I believe there is still room for improvement in giving many talented newcomer bands the spotlight they deserve. My favorite band is Iron Maiden; you probably would never have guessed that, right? Haha! I haven’t seen a bad live performance – and I’ve seen many of them over the years. Their energy is still unmatched – even at their age – and the shows are always impressive. Speaking of support acts, why isn’t a band like Enforcer opening for bands like Iron Maiden?
Do you think the next Warfield album will come out faster than this one? What are your plans in that regard?
Jojo: It definitely shouldn’t take another seven years — no doubt about that, haha! Our focus now is to promote and share With The Old Breed as much as possible. At the same time, we’re eager to start writing new songs soon to set the stage for the follow-up. Of course, it’s always tricky to predict exactly how long that will take, but one thing’s for sure: we’re aiming to make it happen much faster than last time!
Thank you for your answers. One thing is for sure: Germany’s thrash metal scene has a promising future!
Dome: Wow – that’s so great to hear! Thank you so much for having us, we really enjoyed answering your questions! THRASH TILL DEATH!
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