Originally from Cologne, Germany Angela Gossow is one of the worldís most recognizable extreme female vocalists in heavy metal history. Front-women for Swedish based metal outfit Arch Enemy for the past eight years, Angela has gone from strength to strength. Last year Arch Enemy released their most successful album to date ëRise of the tyrantí and soon after the band returned to Australia playing sold-out shows as part of the Black Crusade tour which also featured Machine Head and Trivium. Heavily influenced and following in the footsteps of legendary metal vocalists such as Morbid Angels Dave Vincent and Deathís Chuck Schneider, Angela Gossow gives 110% with every live performance and eats, lives and breathes METAL! Recently Arch Enemy was approached to be a part of a compilation put together by Century Media ëCelebrating 20 years of Extremeí. The compilation features many of Century Mediaís current artists covering other artists tracks including Angela and the boys bashing out a fantastic cover of Dream Evilís ëThe Book of Heavy Metalí! Whilst Michael Amott and Daniel Erlandsson Are currently on tour with Carcass you would think that Angela would be enjoying a well deserved break, but the hard driven front-women, is busy working on a number of different projects including the running of the United Enemies fan club and working with Vegan rock fashion label Imortal. Earlier this week Arch Enemy were confirmed to play at next yearís Dubai Desert Rock festival and announced plans to release a new live DVD and Cd from the bands recent Japanese tour. I recently had the pleasure to once again speak with the ever so beautiful and talented Angela Gossow, we discussed the bands plans to release a brand new live Cd and DVD, we also spoke about Angelaís love for Carcass and the current reunion, and we also spoke about what the future has in store for Arch Enemy among many other things. So kick back as the ëRevolution Beginsí with Arch Enemyís Angela Gossow! Metal Fanatix: Hi Angela, as always it’s a true pleasure to speak with you, what’s been going on? Angela Gossow: Things are great! We have just finished an excellent DVD ‘Tyrants of the Rising Sun – Live In Japan 2008’ and we are excited about releasing it this fall 2008! Metal Fanatix: Awesome! What can you tell us about it? Angela Gossow: The main feature is the Tokyo, Japan headline show we played this spring. The footage turned out amazing and Andy Sneap did a killer job mixing the live audio. The icing on the cake is Niklas Sundin beautiful, dark and brutal artwork for it. We will release the show as a live CD and on vinyl as well. How old school is that? Metal Fanatix: That’s great! I look forward to seeing the DVD! The last time we spoke I had asked you if you could put a band together, who would be in it and what would it be called, your answer was Carcass! No doubt you are thrilled that the band are up and running again after such a long absence? Angela Gossow: Yes. I am thrilled because they still kick everybody’s ass out there. They are not old, slow and boring but still as exciting as they were in 1992, and by now probably even better players! Carcass 2008 is a tight and brutal force, spearheading the grindcore blitzkrieg all over the world right now. I am very happy for them and also for the kids to actually get to see them live! Metal Fanatix: Since the band reformed, you have had the opportunity to join them onstage, as a fan of Carcass’ work, tell us what was going through your mind during those few minutes onstage? Angela Gossow: Nothing except those bloody complicated lyrics, [laughs]. I joined them once on stage at Wacken. It was totally spontaneous, unrehearsed and free style. Metal Fanatix: As it stands I guess, the main question all Arch Enemy fans are asking is, what the future now holds for the band. Once the Carcass reunion is over will there be a new Arch Enemy album and tour? Angela Gossow: It’s nice to be off the road for a bit. Right now we are putting a little run in Europe/Germany together for December 2008. We will be playing the Doro Jubilee Festival 13 of December 08 in Düsseldorf and do some headline shows afterwards. We feel we have done a bit too much touring the last couple of years and it’s time to take it a bit easy. Less is more. So if we play, people better come, [laughs]. Never know if we will come back and when! We will actually tour a lot less than we used to do! Next project on is to re-record the best tracks from the first 3 Arch Enemy albums – kinda like Testament did with ‘First Strike Still Deadly’. We want to introduce our younger fans to those three ‘Johan era’ albums and be able to play them live with a lot more response in the future. We also started to jam and write for a new Arch Enemy record which we plan to record at the end of 2009. So we have a bit of time for that one!
Angela Gossow: Time off frightens me. I need to be productive all year round. I was busy up to now with the DVD and also with business stuff concerning Arch Enemy. I already started to plan touring for Arch Enemy. I run the United Enemies fan club and am finally realizing my idea about vegan rock fashion with a company called Imortal. I am doing guest vocals here and there as well and I participated in an art installation in Stockholm. I also do some vocal coaching. Metal Fanatix: It’s great to see you are keeping yourself active with many projects, have you spent any time coming up with new musical ideas or lyrics for possible future Arch Enemy tracks? Angela Gossow: [Laughs] No. I write those when the music is demo-ed! For now I concentrate on my numerous other projects. Metal Fanatix: Angela, I wanted to speak to you about the latest Century Media compilation ‘Covering 20 years of Extreme’. You have done a cover of Dream Evil’s ‘The Book of Heavy Metal’, for the compilation, which I think is a killer metal anthem. Tell us why you chose to do that song from the Century Media back catalogue? Angela Gossow: It’s a fun track. We didn’t take that whole project so seriously at the time. Our brainstorm was like: Hmm, record a cover track for our label… We are here in the studio with Fredrik Nordstrom recording ‘Rise Of The Tyrant’. Ok, let’s take a Dream Evil track. Simple, quick, and effective! Plus, we all kind of secretly like Dream Evil and their very funny lyrics. It is maybe our way to say: Yes. We take our music seriously – but there is also a lot of humor in everything we do. Metal Fanatix: Dream Evil and another great Century Media artist Mercenary are featured on the album both covering Arch Enemy tracks, have you heard them yet and what were your impressions on the bands take on your songs? Angela Gossow: It is fun to hear those bands take on an Arch Enemy song – but I still think the original versions are better, [laughs]. Especially the solos, although I love the Mercenary power metal vocal on the ‘Burning Angel’ refrain a lot! Metal Fanatix: Last time I spoke to Michael we discussed the covers that Arch Enemy have done in the past from Iron Maiden’s ‘Aces High’ to Kiss’ ‘The Oath’. Is there any song which you would love to cover but just haven’t had the opportunity to do? Angela Gossow: I love covering songs, but the guys prefer to concentrate on writing their own songs – which is more exciting for a band. I don’t know. The best cover songs are those, where it wasn’t an extreme metal song before and you ‘brutalize’ it. Maybe an Abba track? [Laughs] Metal Fanatix: Oh I would love to hear you do something like ‘Does Your Mother Know’ that would be insane! Angela there is no doubt that you share a love for Australia and we love you just as much. In our last interview we talked about the prosperity of relocating to Sydney, its believed to be a buyer’s market here right now, has Clem [Arch Enemy sound guy] been keeping you up to date with the real estate and are we any closer to seeing you become an Australian resident? Angela Gossow: [Laughs] Our FOH Clem is a bit afraid to move to Oz as well, due to the serious water draught you are experiencing for so long now. Plus, Australia is far away from everything and that’s not good for an active band like us. I might move when I am on my pension and nothing to worry about anymore. Metal Fanatix: [Laughs] You were here last year as part of the Black Crusade tour with Trivium and the mighty Machine Head, which I loved! I thought you guys were amazing, but unfortunately, you had the shortest set of all three bands! With every Australian tour, do you find yourself discovering more new and exciting things? Angela Gossow: It depends on how the tour is laid out. If you do a show per day and fly early every morning – you don’t get to see much more than airports and venues! That was the case on the Black Crusade tour, which is a shame. We spent a day off in Brisbane and found an excellent little restaurant with beautiful Australian wines. I can’t remember much else from that night [laughs]. Metal Fanatix: [Laughs], from Australia you went on to tour the U.K. with Trivium, Dragonforce and Machine Head, I would imagine touring with those bands would have be a great deal of fun!
Metal Fanatix: Angela, I want to once again speak to you about life on the road…. Have you ever had any problems with customs? Angela Gossow: No. Knock, knock, knock on wood and keeping all fingers crossed! Metal Fanatix: Looking back on your previous bands Asmodina and Mistress, can you remember the hardest time you had as an opening act? Angela Gossow: We played shows where nobody was there – including proper gear and sound. But we didn’t take it so seriously either. We grabbed a beer and had a rehearsal on stage, [laughs]. Metal Fanatix: How about that very first Arch Enemy tour, what fond/horrific memories come to mind when you look back at that? Angela Gossow: I was exciting for the entire three weeks. I was also very afraid to get sick as I didn’t know if I could still perform. No horrific memories. But I was tired a lot – I couldn’t get used to sleeping on a tour bus. Metal Fanatix: Tell us, what is your most embarrassing onstage moment? Angela Gossow: I don’t have any. When funny stuff happens, I laugh! When shit happens, I laugh as well! Metal Fanatix: Over the years you have played with some of the world’s greatest metal bands. Is there one band you would love to hit the road with, but the opportunity just has never risen? Angela Gossow: Judas Priest. Before they quit it altogether! Metal Fanatix: Angela, we have hit the part of the interview where our readers get to find out more about the real you…. What was the very first concert you attended and how much of an impact did that have on you musically? Angela Gossow: I think it was Revenant and Disharmonic Orchestra. I am still looking for the ‘Prophecies of a Dying World’ CD from Revenant as I left mine with my ex-boyfriend. Stupid! Anyway, it was extremely exciting and led me straight into my second and third concerts with Carcass and Morbid Angel. I saw all the good stuff in the early nineties. Unreal! Metal Fanatix: Awesome! What is the one metal song you wish you had written? Angela Gossow: Painkiller - Judas Priest. Metal Fanatix: Mate, what have your parents thought about the music you played? Angela Gossow: Nothing good… But who cares?! Metal Fanatix: You were born in Cologne, Germany… Tell us about those early years. Growing up, did you always have a passion for music and to get into the industry or were your goals extremely different?
Metal Fanatix: Before joining Arch Enemy, what were your impressions of the band? Angela Gossow: I was a huge Carcass fan, so I naturally was interested in the member’s activities after they split up. I actually liked the BlackStar album as well. What Michael Amott did with Arch Enemy was the closest to the Carcass sound though and I really dug ‘Black Earth’. I like a few songs from ‘Stigmata’ as well, but it seemed a bit unfocused musically and Johan Liiva’s vocal performance wasn’t very good on this album. ‘Burning Bridges’ is an excellent record again. Killer song writing and good vocals! I saw them live for the first time in 1999. Arch Enemy hardly toured and I think this was their first European tour, opening up for In Flames. They were the first band on the bill. I knew their songs, loved them, but their live performance was odd. Michael and Chris didn’t move at all, they were glued to their stacks and pedal boards. Johan Liiva looked lost on stage and couldn’t really communicate with the crowd. They were all extremely nice though; I met them after the show to do an interview with them for an online music magazine I wrote for at the time. I gave ‘em one of my band’s (Mistress) demo tapes and a live performance video. We were always fishing for support slots and I was hoping next time Arch Enemy would come around we could maybe open up for them. That’s how they remembered me when they were looking for a new vocalist. Metal Fanatix: And the rest is history…. How different is the private Angela Gossow from the METAL women portrayed by the media? Angela Gossow: I guess I am who I am. I am dressing the same, I am always on the passionate side, I am not as angry but still very driven. I like to fight battles and win them. I am a Scorpio. Full fledged. Metal Fanatix: Angela, there is no doubt that Arch Enemy fans are fantastic, some going to extremes, getting the logo and signatures tattooed. What are your thoughts on fans getting the bands logo, signatures tattooed? Angela Gossow: Tattoos are a very personal choice and I would say – if you like Arch Enemy so much, go for it. But maybe tell me before I sign your arm so at least I am going to put some serious effort in it. I have seen some of my really sloppy signatures tattooed, [laughs]. Terrible! The lasted album cover motif ‘Rise Of The Tyrant’ – I have seen a lot of killer version on it as huge tattoos! The same goes for the logo symbol. Metal Fanatix: Mate, I have always loved your vocal abilities with Arch Enemy; the power in your voice is amazing, but I wonder, will we ever get to hear the softer side to your vocal abilities? Can you see yourself doing something a little lighter in the future? Angela Gossow: I am light. I mean, I don’t grunt anymore. I did that in my previous bands. With Arch Enemy I utilize aggressive vocals but I incorporate the melody and the rhythm of the riffs in it. What I do you can maybe call ‘aggressive, distorted singing’! I don’t think I am a grunter or growler really, I am in between. When it comes to bringing in my sweet female voice – well, I do that when I sing nursery rhymes and children’s songs with my niece Lavinia Gossow. Although, she loves when I bring in the rougher tunes and tries to growl as well. So ‘Father Jacob’ doesn’t really sound like a lullaby when we intonate it together, [laughs] Metal Fanatix: [Laughs] Now that is something I want to hear [laughs]. I know you have said in the past that you sing softer/cleaner styles in private, which most people would do. But are there any possibilities that the next album would feature a lighter more “Commercial / Radio Friendly” track?
Metal Fanatix: You have a great voice and you have been singing for a long time, as time goes on some vocalist find it harder where others think it’s a breeze! Is singing this style of metal challenging these days? Angela Gossow: I don’t think it is no more challenging than any style of vocals. If you want to have a personal style, you have to work with your voice and have some natural talent. A lot of vocalists are excellent in copying others but never manage to really find their own style. In terms of extreme vocals many sound like a barking dog. They have no rhythm, no pitch change, and no articulate pronunciation. I guess it is easy to damage your voice with this style and then you lose variation too. Your voice gets a hoarse quality – some find that actually beneficial – but it definitely narrows your vocal range. Metal Fanatix: Angela, lastly a question I ask of everyone I speak with these days… What is the one band you never want to hear again and why? Angela Gossow: Dragonforce… Nintendo metal without balls! Metal Fanatix: [Laughs] Never heard them compared that way [laughs]. As always it is fantastic to speak with you, I do hope that we see you back in Australia very very soon. Do you have any last words for our readers? Angela Gossow: Save some water for us, otherwise we have to shower in beer or champagne next time we come over [laughs]. We love Australia and we hope to come back and bring plenty of rain and thunder with us! Stay metal! Angela. To keep up with all the latest news & much more on Angela Gossow & any of the bands she works with check out the following websites: http://www.archenemy.net - Official Arch Enemy Site http://www.myspace.com/archenemy/ - Arch Enemy MySpace Site http://www.angelagossow.com/ - Official Angela Gossow Site http://www.myspace.com/angelagossow/ - Angela Gossow MySpace Site © Cameron Edney September 2008, July 2009 Not to be re-printed in any form without written permission. |
