By Carl Begai

With IRON SAVIOR hovering on the low-key side of the German power metal scene, it’s hard to believe that BW&BK; has been following the band since 1997. Since their high profile inception thanks to the former presence of guitarist/vocalist Kai Hansen (GAMMA RAY/ex-HELLOWEEN) and drummer Thomen Stauch (ex-BLIND GUARDIAN), frontman/founder/songwriter Piet Sielck has taken more than his fair share of lumps in keeping his ship in the air, albeit at a low altitude. He makes no bones about the fact that Iron Savior’s continued existence in 2011 is something of a miracle.

“I’m also surprised we’re still here; you’re a veteran now,” laughs Sielck. “It’s always a pity with Iron Savior, because I believe we’re so underrated as a band. It’s out of my hands, though, so all I can do against that is create good music.”

Folks in Sielck’s corner will agree he’s done so with The Landing, but it wasn’t an easy birth. It was certainly unexpected given that the band dropped off the radar following the painfully overlooked release of their previous record, Megatropolis, in 2007.

“Two years of that gap are related to SAVAGE CIRCUS and the work I did with that, but unfortunately 2009 and 2010 were more related to my record label Dockyard 1 going under” Sielck reveals. “Its demise happened in 2009 and I was the only one left; the others just took off and left me alone with all the crap. I had to play garbage man for the last two years, basically, getting rid of the mountain of crap they left behind. It was very expensive for me, and it didn’t make me feel very good, so I wasn’t very inspired when it came to making new music. I’d go down to the studio every so often and play a little bit, but nothing came out of those sessions.”
“The will to do this came back when I finally managed to solve the major issues with Dockyard 1. I sold the remains to AFM Records and (distributor) Soulfood Music in October 2010, and that was the point where I finally saw some light at the end of the tunnel. From that point on I definitely felt better, so I went in and cleaned out the studio, made it comfortable again. It was a good thing because it also cleared my mind. I was able to sit down and write music again. At the beginning I wrote the first complete song for The Landing, which was ‘Heavy Metal Never Dies’, and if you take a look at the lyrics and relate them to what I just told you about Dockyard you can say it was musical therapy for me (laughs).”

As Iron Savior albums go – seven in all – The Landing ranks as one of the strongest since the 1997 speed-happy self-titled debut. More metal-oriented than Megatropolis, the vibe and energy level is very reminiscent of Condition Red from 2002. Sielck agrees.

“It’s funny that you mention Condition Red because it was written under similar circumstances. I had a personal crisis to deal with before I started that album, but when it was over I went into writing Condition Red with a great attitude. It was the same thing when I wrote ‘Heavy Metal Never Dies’ for The Landing; it kicked my ass so bad that I was on fire (laughs). It felt like I could go on writing songs forever, to the point I was actually kind of sad when the writing sessions were over.”

Sielck managed to make The Landing a compact and immediate record, coughing up a listenable 45 minutes of music rather than blowing his wad on over an hour of sonic masturbation.

“I didn’t actually do that on purpose,” he admits, “but after writing ‘No Guts, No Glory’ I decided that was it, I’d said everything I had to say. I couldn’t really think of what I could add to it, and if I’d done that I think I would have been repeating myself. This is a collection of, for my taste, great songs. They blend well together, and I think they leave you feeling entertained. That’s the reaction I’ve been getting from people, and it’s a very nice feeling. Iron Savior has always been a bit underrated. We’re not Gamma Ray, so I’m surprised that we still have such a strong fanbase. I’ve received a lot of great comments from the fans on Facebook and YouTube and it cheers me up a lot, I must say.”

He also reveals that, despite the title and cover art of the new album, it isn’t a complete return to the band’s original science fiction concept revolving around sentient space ships and lost civilizations. Something of a disappointment for any Trekkies/Lucasfilm addicts still lurking in the wings.

“It’s not a concept album. There are only two songs that are related to the original Iron Savior story, and the other songs are just… not science fiction related. I really like the artwork, and I think the title is also related to my personal situation. Calling it The Landing was appropriate because Iron Savior has been away for four years, but somehow we’re back again (laughs).”

A full scale comeback that is, in the end, ultimately due to the collapse of Dockyard 1. He explains:

“I was working with Soulfood on this Dockyard problem for over two years, so I got a lot of insight on how Soulfood and AFM Records are working, and I got to know the people. I wasn’t actually looking for a deal. After they bought all the Dockyard stuff and it was sorted, they asked me if I’d be interested in working with them on Iron Savior, and it sounded super cool to me. They have quite a good reputation, they’re practically around the corner from me, and because I know how they work it was a clear 100% match for me. I didn’t have to think about it at all. It’s nice that I don’t have to worry about the marketing, because AFM has been around for 15 years, which means they must be doing something right. I just sit back and look for album reviews on the internet (laughs).”

With renewed interest in Iron Savior it’s doubtful that Savage Circus will be offering up new material any time soon. Launched in 2004, the project was viewed as a superficial endeavour by many due to the similarities to Iron Savior and Blind Guardian. Nobody seems to miss Savage Circus, Sielck included.

“Right now I don’t have any specific plans for Savage Circus; it’s on ice. The album was okay, but it also wasn’t that encouraging to be honest. I started up Iron Savior again and I want to do this 100%, so we’ll see what happens with Savage Circus. Iron Savior is what I feel that I want to do; Savage Circus was something that was, in a way, artificial. It’s not really the kind of music that I want to do. I can do it, I enjoy doing it, and it was challenging for me to write all the songs for it, but I feel closer to the more straightforward metal sound of Iron Savior.”
“I think one of the reasons The Landing is a bit different from the Megatropolis album, which was more rock-like, is because I pushed Iron Savior more to the rock side of things in order to put some distance between Iron Savior and Savage Circus. That wasn’t the case this time at all. I just wrote what I wanted. Sure, some of the new songs could have been Savage Circus, but I didn’t care. I had no expectations with this album at all, I was pretty much done with the music industry and being an artist. But, the songs and the album are here because I do in fact want to do this, I want to be here.”