Interview: Diamond Head

When it comes to influential heavy metal bands, there are few that are more influential than Diamond Head. Over the past four decades, from the heyday of the NWOBHM to the present day the band have been an influence on so many metal bands, especially Metallica and with the upcoming release of their brand new self titled album, we caught up with guitarist and founder member Brian Tatler to hear all about this new album, their upcoming live plans and all about the history of the legendary Diamond Head.

Your new self titled album is out soon. Can you tell us a bit about it?
Its an eleven track album to be released on Dissonance Productions later this month and its our first collection of new songs since 2007. The brief for the writing sessions was ‘its should sound like Diamond Head’ sounds obvious but its easy to experiment and take in modern influences until you have lost what is and was great about Diamond Head. All the songs started life as one of my riffs and we would build it up from there. I have always written that was and most of the bands I like have songs based around guitar cool riffs.

Is there a particular theme as to what the songs on the album are about?
Rasmus: The album has mixed topics, but in general the theme of the album is of an apocalyptic and sociological nature. The lyrics speak of the self-destructive nature of mankind and the consequences of our actions and that we are on the tipping point of no return. The lyrics also talk about the systems of control and that are governing the people.

Did the band work together to write the album?
Yes. This album was very much a joint creation. Ras said that to make this album we should do it like Diamond Head used to. We should write it together in a room like in the old days. You cannot substitute the creative flow that happens when you start to spark ideas off each other.

Is there much difference musically between this album and your previous album what’s In Your Head?
The main two differences are our fantastic new singer Rasmus and doing a lot of the writing together in the rehearsal room as opposed to at home with demos. This album feels a lot more like our early albums but with a more modern sound. Some people have said “it sounds like it should have been the album you made after Borrowed Time”. If we have somehow taped into that golden period of writing for the band then we have achieved our goal. With the last two albums we had to write around Nick to a certain degree but on this new album Ras said “I can sing on anything” so I was able to fire all manner of difficult or complicated riffs at him and somehow he came up with great vocals to fit on top. I always admired the way Ozzy Osbourne was able to come up with great counter melodies to Tony Iommi’s huge riffs and it was something I tried to do in the early days of Diamond Head up until around 1984 anyway.

There has been a nine year gap between that album and the new one. What was the delay?
Our last singer Nick emigrated to Brisbane in 2008 so since then it has been impossible to get together to write and record new material. We kept on touring but Nick would only come over for the tour and then fly back straight afterwards because he has a day job and a wife and kids to support. Eventually we decided we had to get a new singer. We began looking in January 2014. We played a bunch of live dates with Rasmus in November 2014 and once Ras had joined I thought we should try and write some new songs together. Ras is Danish but lives in London so it’s just a train ride up to the Midlands. Since 2007 I kept writing new material for an album project but it didn’t happen and I am glad we did not try do another album over the internet. This album feels much better than our last one because so much of it was done in the rehearsal room with whole band. We did nine- eight hour rehearsals over 5 months and put all the songs together ready to record.

How did you hook up with your new singer Rasmus Bom Anderson?
I found him through a friend of our bass player Eddie Moohan. We sent him a backing track to the Diamond Head song ‘To Heaven From Hell’ and asked him to sing on it. Ras sent it back to Karl and I and we both thought he was great. Ras made it sound easy, he was not struggling to reach notes at all. Next we had a rehearsal with him (which I recorded) and after about 30 minutes I was sure he could do the Diamond Head songs justice live. We have had many long rehearsals and 16 gigs with Ras and I have not heard him struggle or lose his voice once. Ras has a fantastic vocal range.

How is the new lineup working out?
Its great thanks, we all get on well in this band and it can be a lot of fun on tour. Ras has added a new energy to the Diamond Head and together we have created a really good new album. I have been working with Karl and Eddie since 1991 and Abbz has now been in Diamond Head for 10 years now so it’s just Ras who is the new guy and we started working with him two years ago this month.

What are your touring plans once the album is released?
We have various shows throughout the year to promote the album. We are working on getting the final tour plans together and hope to hit the US towards the end of the year, but we will be touring the UK, Ireland with festivals like Bloodstocks as well as some international gigs in Malta, Germany, Sweden and Spain among others.

You are headlining a stage on Friday at the Bloodstock festival. Will you be appearing at any other festivals in the summer?
We will be playing the following festivals Bloodstock (UK), Sweden Rock (SE),Muskel Rock (SE) Skulls of Metal (ES), Get Mad Festival (ES), Hard Rock Hell Ibiza (ES), Der Detze Rockt (DE) Storm Crusher (DE).

What is your favourite song to play live and what gets the best reaction from the crowd?
‘Am I Evil?’ Always gets the best reaction live and it’s fun to play because the audience goes crazy. I can get off on their energy and feed it back. I also really enjoy ‘Come Alive’ because it grooves like a motherfucker but it’s not a big Diamond Head number so we don’t always play it. Looking forward to playing ‘All The Reasons You Live’ onstage.

The band have been active on and off for forty years. What is the secret to your longevity?
Its quite simple, I love music and I love playing the guitar. I am very lucky to still be able to do this professionally after 40 years. Many people give up their dream when success does not happen quickly, I never did. I am very protective of Diamond Head as a band and a name, it’s enabled me to experience lots of things all over the world that most people never get to do. Of course being an influential band to Metallica has helped immensely. I have not had to work 9 to 5 for many years now and I am able to concentrate on music.

What have been some of thehighlights of Diamond Heads career?
One of my happiest memories is when we played at the 1982 Reading Festival. We had finished the Borrowed Time album, it had entered the UK charts at no 24, we were getting great press and it seemed like all the hard work of the last six years was starting to come to fruition. We seemed to be on an upward trend. The sky was the limit. Little did I know that we were never going to get any bigger than that. I also really loved the 2005 tour of Europe supporting Megadeth. It was 22 dates sold out and the crowd reactions to Diamond Head were overwhelming. It had been a long time since I had done a tour like that and it was a lot of fun, Dave Mustaine was very helpful to us.

When you first started the band, punk was just kicking off. Did you ever feel any animosity with that type of music?
No, I really liked Punk Rock. I would tune in to the John Peel radio show and soak up all the new young band that he was playing. I first heard bands like The Ramones, The Jam, The Damned, Chelsea, The Vibrators and The Adverts there. It became a major cultural phenomenon in the UK and swept aside some of the more pompous and overblown bands that were ruling the music industry. It gave me a kick in the arse, I embraced the Do-It Yourself attitude. Suddenly band were making their own record on indie labels and promoting their own gigs at little pubs and clubs all across the UK.

Who were some of your influences when you were growing up?
Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, AC/DC, Rush, UFO, Thin Lizzy, Judas Priest, Genesis, Free.

What as the musical climate like in the UK, when the band started?
The only music paper that featured rock was ‘Sounds’ so most of my info came from that. My Older brother Dave started taking me to see bands when I was twelve. I formed Diamond Head in my bedroom with my best friend Duncan Scott on drums/biscuit tins. I probably wanted to emulate my heroes like everyone else but it seemed almost impossible to imagine how I was going to become like Led Zeppelin, gods who walked this earth! Then when Punk Rock exploded in 1977 I thought ‘I can do that’ ‘get onstage now and don’t worry about a little fact like i will never be as good as Ritchie Blackmore’.

How did you feel when Metallica and the U.S. Thrash metal scene started citing you as an influence?
I was and still am very flattered by all that, they have given Diamond Head a lot of credibility and helped us to survive this long. I guess Diamond Head and the NWOBHM movement were an important stepping stone between the big 70s rock bands like ZEP, Sabbath and Purple and all the new metal bands like Metallica/Megadeth, Slayer etc.

When did you last see Lars and the rest of Metallica?
Lars came to see Diamond Head at the DNA lounge, San Francisco 15th October 2013. It was great to see him and it was very kind of him to make the effort especially as it’s his home town and people were hassling him for selfies and autographs all night. The last time I saw Metallica was in 2012 when they headlined Download and performed all of ‘The Black Album in reverse order! Brilliant.

You played with the Big Four of Thrash at the Sonisphere festival in 2011. How did that gig go?
I was up at 6.15am, away for 8.00am, setting off for Oxford to meet everyone at Vansforbands. As we loaded our hired van I notice that I had forgotten to bring Eddie’s bass amp, aaaahhhgg! Panic, mucho phone calls followed, I had to ask my faithful bro Dave to turn round, go and pick up the missing article and meet us later at Sonisphere. Apart from that it’s a very good mood in the van as we are all exited at the prospect of playing such a huge and prestigious festival. Arrive at Knebworth 12.30pm, we go to get our Willy Wonka Golden Passes from accreditation, and are told “They have lost Diamond Head’s guest list, can we do another one”. Bloody hell, we had to remember and write out twenty names that were on our original list. Drive to the main stage where Metallica’s crew are sound checking, wait for that and for power to our backline. With no sign of Dave, Eddie spots Willy G, a really nice guy from Megadeths crew that we had got to know on the 2005 Megadeth tour, could we borrow? No problem, and quicker than you can say ‘countdown to extinction’ the amp was on stage humming, ready for Eddie. Eventually power is sorted and we have a line check, but… oh no… disaster.. my JFX multi effects unit dies with thirty minutes till show time, I could not get it working so took it out of the loop, not done a gig without this unit for about 15 years, sods law!
No time to drive about a mile to the dressing room so we all get changed in the van (probably the only band playing Sonisphere who got changed in the van) With our usual group hug during the intro and with a little trepidation we walked out onto the vast stage to what I can only describe as an overwhelming roar from the crowd who then began to chant ‘Diamond Head’ ‘Diamond Head’ it took us all by surprise. As our intro music stops dead its always important for Karl to hear it clearly as he counts us in as it ends, this was totally masked by the chanting of the crowd and in the end he just gave up and started the count oblivious to when it would end. Off we go with Its Electric, the crowd were fantastic from the start and made us feel very welcome. I shall never forget the sight of thousands of mouths opening at the same time to sing the chorus of Am I Evil? back at me, a truly special moment.
Afterwards it’s time to pack the gear down, load the van and drive to the dressing room, arriving about 4.30pmonly to be told we have to vacate it by 5.00pm for another band to use.
One of the biggest and best days of my life.

Tony Iommi and Dave Mustaine have both guested on Diamond Head albums in the past. Is there anyone you would like to get to guest on a future Diamond Head album?
I would like Lars or James to play on a track that would be awesome. And maybe a guitar solo from Michael Schenker.

How do you feel about the state of heavy metal in 2016?
It’s bigger than ever, there is no stopping it. A number of time in the past it looked incredibly out of step with the music industry but Rock and Metal fans are extremely loyal and it just keep on growing. I cannot ever see it stopping now. I just saw some great bands on the 70,000 tons of metal cruise like Cradle of Filth and Children of Bodem I also like Gojira and Ghost BC. Long may it reign!
Brian Tatler 2016.

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