Mick Burgess at Metal Express Radio recently caught up with Black Star Riders guitarist Damon Johnson to discuss the band's UK tour, line-up changes, and the follow-up to their third album, Heavy Fire. An excerpt is available below.

MER: Since you toured earlier in the year drummer, Jimmy DeGrasso has departed.  What happened there?

Johnson: "Jimmy`s phone rings all the time. I think he was just looking to occupy his calendar a little bit more. We love Jimmy and he`s played such a vital role in the band and we want great things for him. We`ll always stay in touch with Jimmy. There`s no animosity at all, it`s all very amicable."

MER: You`re now joined by Chad Szeliga from Breaking Benjamin and Black Label Society.  Where did you first come across Chad?

Johnson: "We are very fortunate to be able to play with such an uber talented player as Chad. He`s very familiar with the background of Black Star Riders and where we`ve come from. He brings a lot of performance element to our stage. The reaction from the fans has been really great. We first came across Chad back in 2011 when Thin Lizzy supported Judas Priest and Black Label Society in The States. I`d just joined Lizzy and it was my first tour of The States with them and Chad was drumming with Black Label Society at that time. We saw Chad play every night and we hung out together and he was a great guy to be around. He`s very mellow but a monster behind the drum kit. You’ll enjoy watching him play."

MER: Have you had any thoughts to the follow up to Heavy Fire?

Johnson: "Me and Ricky (Warwick / vocals) have already started writing for the next album and we hope to get into the studio next summer. We`re right at the beginning of the process. It`s a pleasure to have a collaborator in the band with the level of ability as Ricky. The two of us are constantly collecting ideas from lyrics, concepts, chord progressions and riffs. It`s one of my favourite times where we are individually preparing stuff to bring to the other guy when we have that very first session. We`ll probably do that in a couple of weeks when we are in the UK. We have a couple of days off so we`ll go into a hotel room and see what ideas each of has got and hopefully we`ll get a few things really going."

Read the complete interview here.

Black Star Riders will be joining metal legends Judas Priest and Saxon for a spring North American tour, Firepower 2018. The tour will kick off on March 13th in Wilkes Barre, PA and will wrap on May 1st in San Antonio, TX.

Says BSR vocalist Rick Warwick: “Delighted and honored to be touring the USA with our friends and legends Judas Priest and Saxon. Black Star Riders cannot wait to bring some “Heavy Fire” to your town in 2018!"

Black Star Riders is made up of Warwick (Thin Lizzy), guitarist Scott Gorham (Thin Lizzy), guitarist Damon Johnson (Brother Cane, Alice Cooper, Thin Lizzy), bassist Robert Crane (Ratt) and drummer Chad Szeliga (Breaking Benjamin, Black Label Society). The band is currently on tour in support of their third studio album, Heavy Fire, which was released earlier this year with Nuclear Blast Entertainment.

Confirmed tour dates:

March
13 - Wilkes Barre, PA - Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza
15 - Youngstown, OH - Covelli Centre
17 - Uniondale, NY - Nassau Coliseum
18 - Washington, DC - The Anthem
20 - Newark, NJ - Prudential Center
22 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Arena
25 - Ottawa, ON - The Arena at TD Place
27 - London, ON - Budweiser Gardens
28 - Oshawa, ON - Tribute Communities Centre
30 - Orillia, ON - Casino Rama
31 - Detroit, MI - Detroit Masonic Temple

April
3 - Milwaukee, WI - Riverside Theater
5 - Green Bay, WI - Resch Center
8 - Bloomington, IL - Grossinger Motors Arena
10 - Casper, WY - Casper Events Center
11 - Loveland, CO - Budweiser Events Center
15 - Kent, WA - ShoWare Center
17 - Portland, OR - Veterans Memorial Coliseum
19 - San Francisco - The Warfield
22 - Los Angeles, CA - Microsoft Theater
24 - Phoenix, AZ - Comerica Theatre
26 - Tulsa, OK - BOK Center
28 - Dallas, TX - The Bomb Factory
29 - Sugarland, TX - Smart Financial Centre

May
1 - San Antonio, TX - Freeman Coliseum

(Photo - Richard Stow)