I Am The Weapon is the brand new album from thrash metal mainstays FLOTSAM AND JETSAM and it sees their razor sharp thrash given an even bigger boost with a modern metal sheen bolstering the sound of the record. We caught up with FLOTSAM AND JETSAM guitarist Michael Gilbert to get the lowdown on I Am The Weapon as well as taking a look at memorable recent live shows, highlights of playing the UK and looking back at their classic debut album Doomsday For The Deceiver.
To kick things off, Michael delved into the creation of I Am The Weapon and the process of the record. “A lot went on in this record, we had our last record, Blood In The Water and we’re trying to keep up with the album! That’s always the terrifying part of releasing a record, because no one wants to release a record that’s inferior to the one prior, so we all worked really hard at it. Steve and I both write most of the riffs for the record and just submit them to Ken and AK, and they do all the vocals on it. That’s kind of the writing process.”
Michael continues with enthusiasm and told how excited he is about this record. “What’s cool about it is, Steve and I, we riff non stop all the time. We can just write and write and write so constantly, and this time we created a record that it doesn’t have any filler songs which I’m super proud and that’s the key to I Am The Weapon.”
I Am The Weapon sees FLOTSAM AND JETSAM sounding reenergised and it is not just confined to their music, as there is a renewed energy going into the band as well as Michael tells us. “We’re watching all these other bands that came out the same time we did. We were really at the beginning of the whole thrash metal movement, and I think we helped pioneer it a little bit, which is cool to have that on your resume, but a lot of those bands are going away right now, and we’re all super grateful to still have the longevity that we have had, and still relevant after all these years, and still able to make music. Everybody’s really happy about where we are right now.”
Talk then turns to the song A New Kind Of Hero as Michael tells us about the fun video for the track and how it is a change for the band. “We always do performance videos when we release a single, and we thought it would be cool to have a storyline, especially with that one because the story is so prevalent in the world right now, we do need a superhero. We need somebody to come in and save the world right now, for sure, and I’m confident AK could save the world!”
With this talk of superheroes, Michael then reveals his favourites. “This is not a popular one, but it’s Homelander from The Boys, he’s such a dick but a classic superhero! If we’re talking about Batman or Superman or something like that, it’s got to be Superman, he’s king of the superheroes.”
FLOTSAM AND JETSAM also have their own memorable metal superhero in the bands mascot Flotzilla, who has adorned album covers and merch since the start. Michael then gives his opinion on fellow metal mascots. “There’s some great ones like ANTHRAX with the Not! guy, but top of the food chain is Eddie, you don’t even need to see the name of the band. You just need to see that dude and you know it’s IRON MAIDEN, that’s iconic!”
When it comes to live shows, Michael tells us about compiling the FLOTSAM AND JETSAM setlist and the challenges the band face on doing this. “We are getting ready to make a change, because we’ve been playing the classic stuff for so many years, and we want the band to move forward. I think our new materials is competitive with our old stuff, so we’re going to start putting the newer songs in, we’ve been playing Primal, and just keeping a few of the big classics, like Hammerhead and No Place For Disgrace”
FLOTSAM AND JETSAM have also always had a great relationship with the UK and Michael hopes they can come back and play live here again soon as well as revealing some of the greatest memories of paling here over the years. “The very first big concert I ever played was at the Hammersmith Odeon, it’s always been an iconic place for me and a great memory. We did that with MEGADETH the first time over and we played Bloodstock and that was huge fun. Perfect weather and it was just a great concert. We played The Underworld too with TESTAMENT and covered those guys with flour so I’m surprised Chuck Billy still talks to me!”
We finish things off by going way back to the start and the classic FLOTSAM AND JETSAM debut album Doomsday For The Deceiver, which is the only album to feature original bassist Jason Newsted before he joined METALLICA and is still a good friend of FLOTSAM AND JETSAM today. The album memorably received a 6 out of 5 K! rating in Kerrang! and Michael remembers that time with great fondness. “People still talk about having the six K!s, and that was a huge boost for our first record. I was just coming out of high school at the time and going into Hollywood to do a record. I felt like I was becoming a rock star. It was a pretty surreal thing, like, I am on top of the world! I’m very grateful that you guys consider that a classic record and it’s still relevant today, which I’m ecstatic about!”
I Am The Weapon is out now via AFM Records.
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