MADBALL guitarist Mitts is featured in a new interview with MetalAssault.com. An excerpt is available below:

Q: You're touring behind the new album, Empire. How are the songs coming along in the shows?

Mitts: "I think they are starting to catch on! Any time you put new songs into the set, it takes people a little bit to get into the thing as they are used to the older songs. The new songs have been getting good responses which I'm starting to notice from kids every night. They are singing words, knowing where the mosh part is, knowing where the sing along is, so I'm happy with the progress."

Q: With this album you actually took three years to release it, compared to the previous one which took two years. So are you happy with how it came out in the end, overall?

Mitts: "Yeah, we are very happy with how it came out. I think the extra time might have given out a little more time musically because we usually like to do a record every two years. I think Empire musically was the record for us to kind of go back to the more standard Madball formula. When we did Infiltrate The System which was the album before this, it was more like the record where we pushed to see how far we can go in terms of metal influence. We're always going to play hardcore but that was the record in which we looked to mix a little bit more metal, a little bit more of a modern sound to the band. So I think we saw that and now with Empire, we went for more of a straight, older style hardcore and the regular groove which we always try to put into Madball, something which separates Madball from a lot of bands. I think we play heavy hardcore but we also put some bounce into it with some groove."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

Madball was recently confirmed for the 2011 edition of the With Full Force festival, which will take place July 1st-3rd at Flugplatz Roitzschjora in Löbnitz, Germany (near Leipzig).

Confirmed acts now include: CARNIFEX, THE CASUALTIES, DEEZ NUTS, DIE APOKALYPTISCHEN REITER, DIE KASSIERER, ELÄKELÄISET, EVILE, 50 LIONS, ILL NINO, KRAWALLBRÜDER, MISERY INDEX, NEGATOR, PARKWAY DRIVE, PETER PAN SPEEDROCK, STREET DOGS, TERROR, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER.

Visit Withfullforce.de for more information