Avatar frontman Johannes Eckerström thinks that metal is getting too serious, and needs a shot in the arm. Talking to Metal Hammer, Eckerström was asked about comments he made last year that heavy metal needed saving, to which Eckerström quipped, "I mean, we don't need to save Megadeth!"
"The masters will continue to be the masters, but what's going on now is too intellectual," Eckerström continued to say of the current heavy metal scene. "It's castrated. It's too brainy, with not enough dancing. There aren't enough speeding tickets gathered to this music. Where are the Judas Priests and Motörheads that don't sound like sloppy seconds?"
True, it would be awesome if there were more legitimate bands that brought the same authenticity and heat to the music like Priest and Motörhead, but of course, that touches on the bigger concern: quantity over quality. There's a lot of bands available on DSPs right now, and they all have a problem breaking through in under the current industry model.
Quality, however, is something Avatar doesn't have to be concerned with; they're already a lock to bring the goods, and they're not shying away from anything on their forthcoming release, Dance Devil Dance, due out on February 17. You can check out the video for current single, "The Dirt I'm Buried In" just below.
Talking about the album title, Eckerström told Metal Hammer, "The 'Devil' part celebrates all the archetypes, symbols and spirituality of darker things that pulled us into metal to begin with. 'Dance' is the important half: it became important for us to treat heavy metal like dance music. There are no techno beats, but we wanted to focus on what heavy metal should be: a subgenre of rock'n'roll that’s supposed to get people to move."
Dance Devil Dance is available for pre-order/pre-save right here. Avatar will hit the road this April with Veil Of Maya and Orbit Culture for an extensive US tour. Get those dates below.
4/28 – Omaha, NE – The Admiral [Tickets]
4/29 – Denver, CO – Ogden [Tickets]
4/30 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Depot [Tickets]
5/1 – Garden City, ID – Revolution Concert House [Tickets]
5/3 – San Diego, CA – Observatory [Tickets]
5/4 – Los Angeles, CA – Belasco [Tickets]
5/5 – San Francisco, CA – The Fillmore [Tickets]
5/6 – Las Vegas, NV – House of Blues [Tickets]
5/7 – Phoenix, AZ – The Van Buren [Tickets]
5/9 – Austin, TX – Emo’s [Tickets]
5/10 – Dallas, TX – The Echo Lounge & Music Hall [Tickets]
5/12 – Minneapolis, MN – Skyway Theater [Tickets]
5/13 – Green Bay, WI – Epic Events Center [Tickets]
5/14 – Moline, IL – The Rust Belt [Tickets]
5/15 – Chicago, IL – House of Blues [Tickets]
5/16 – Royal Oak, MI – Royal Oak Theatre [Tickets]
5/18 – Daytona Beach, FL – Welcome to Rockville [Tickets]
5/19 – St. Petersburg, FL – Jannus Live [Tickets]
5/20 – Atlanta, GA – Buckhead Theater [Tickets]
5/21 – Lexington, KY – Manchester Music Hall [Tickets]
5/23 – New York, NY – Webster Hall [Tickets]
5/24 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club [Tickets]
5/25 – Silver Spring, MD – The Fillmore [Tickets]
5/26 – Philadelphia, PA – TLA [Tickets]
5/27 – Columbus, OH – Sonic Temple [Tickets]
5/28 – Pittsburgh, PA – Roxian Theater [Tickets]
