OVERKILL Frontman Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth - "The Electric Age Is A More Straightforward Approach Than The Ironbound Record Was"

April 1, 2012, 12 years ago

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OVERKILL frontman Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth is featured in a new interview with Radio Metal, conducted on February 24th. An excerpt is available below:

Q: Since The Electric Age is the first album written after the 25th Anniversary, were you in a special state of mind while writing it?

Bobby: "I don’t think so, I mean it’s business as usual. We have a process, we obviously enjoy it, we don’t try to overthink it. I think that is really the key to success. There’s something right now that we have with the band that’s a very positive chemistry. I think a lot of that is due to Ron Lipnicki. He’s been the last member to join but he’s been here for 7 years and he brought the level of energy to a higher level. He’s the new guy and he brings a higher energy. Everyone has to match that energy or otherwise you’re left behind. And I think that’s where we’re getting our success from. Overthinking would be wrong. D.D. and I were sitting around and having a coffee and I said 'What do you think about the new record?' and I think he took a sip and said: 'We're not gonna re-invent the fuckin’ weel, are we?' Well I don’t think so! (laughs) So it’s a very simple process for us. Get the job done, don’t repeat yourself, keep the energy level high."

Q: Ironbound had some epic, kind of progressive parts, this new record feels more direct and straight to the point. Was this album written in reaction of the previous one?

Bobby: "Well it’s not really a reaction, since I think the record was accepted very well. Regarding Ironbound, it took me one year to figure out what that record was all about. You can’t be objective on it when it’s new. It takes a while for me to even feel what we’ve created. I was excited around it. I think it showed many of the different elements of what Overkill’s about. But I think that the most important element again is energy. I think that it’s an aggressive energy, and I don’t mean that in a negative perspective – aggressive energy can be very positive – whereas The Electric Age does have a positive hype-feel. We forgot our most aggressive representations, much like records that have had that feeling in the past, but with a very contemporary presentation. So I think it’s rooted in what we’ve done, but presented with regards to what we are. Sure there’s a lot of notable differences between them, but a song like 'Electric Rattlesnake' contains pretty much every element that Ironbound had, it’s fast and it breaks down to half-speed, then it breaks down to a quarter-speed after that, with slower, more progressive-type, dreamlike vocals, great guitar parts put through them… But I do agree with you that by large The Electric Age is a more straight-forward approach than the Ironbound record was."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

As previously reported, Overkill has released their newest single from The Electric Age, ‘Wish You Were Dead’. The lyric video for the track can be seen below:

The band recently released a third behind the scenes video clip surrounding their new album. In this episode, lead vocalist Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth answers questions about the recording process, themes behind their new record and how they keep the process new and fresh.

Check it out below along with the first and second video:

Overkill recently released the first single, 'Electric Rattlesnake. The single is now available via iTunes. Check out 'Electric Rattlesnake', streaming below:


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