MetalRules.com recently caught up with ANNIHILATOR guitarist/founder Jeff Waters to discuss the band's album, Metal, which finally received a North American release on January 15th, 2008. The following is an excerpt from the interview:

Q: It would be fair to say that Annihilator’s profile is on the up again which is a really positive thing. Your persistence and patience is starting to pay dividends.

Waters: "Yeah I hope so. I remember back when….way back in the forties… No. I remember back, I guess the nineties, early nineties and we were lucky enough to do a tour with JUDAS PRIEST and this small, unknown opener went on before us called PANTERA. It was something else because I got to hang out with KK Downing a lot. It was just one big party back then but the one thing that will always stand out for me from that big haze of crazy partying and having fun was as long as you’re around long enough and you believe in what you do and enjoy and love what you do, someday it all come back to you when you least expect it or when you’re not looking. You know what I mean? I just do this because I love it and I’m not expecting anything out of it. I’m just grateful that I got the opportunity to keep putting these records out and have people buy them and do these tours. And yeah, it’s nice to see something good happen for my band for a change. It’s always an up and down life when you’re doing this but when good things happen, it’s like 'Yeah!' You almost feel like you deserve it even if it’s not the right way to say it.

Q: Were there times where you felt like laying the band to rest and calling it a day?

Waters: "Probably about three or four times. Usually it was over a divorce or money. As far as keeping things rolling, it’s pretty expensive for a Canadian band to tour overseas and from about '97 to the year 2000 I was fighting not to give up on this thing. It would have been very easy to take a good high paying job doing something else in music but I just can’t give it up. I’ve realized that I just like going to metal concerts and I like playing metal music. I like traveling and playing in a band and playing metal. In the end I’ll be either penniless or rich or in the middle and it won’t matter to me. It’s all about the music."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

Watch for BW&BK;'s interview with Waters in issue #109, out soon.