FIREWIND Guitarist Gus G On Changing Singers Again - "I Can’t Think Of Any Other Band That Would Be Able To Get Away With Shit Like This"

January 22, 2013, 11 years ago

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FIREWIND guitarist Gus G. is featured in a new interview with Blastzone Online discussing the recent departure of vocalist Apollo Papathanasio. An excerpt is available below:

Q: Why has there been so many lineup changes in Firewind?

GG: "Being in a band is not easy. You need to compromise a lot in order to be in a serious touring band. It’s not a glamorous lifestyle (despite what many think) and it requires lots of sacrifices. We’re not a band that started out like 5 buddies from the same town. I had to build a band with members from different places around the world. Along the way, people want different things and change. So, I think that’s the primary reason why we’ve had so many members in Firewind."

Q: Tell me about your new lead singer Kelly Sundown Carpenter?

GG: "Kelly is an amazing singer and will be singing for us on our upcoming US tour with TURISAS, as Apollo decided to quit recently. We jammed with Kelly recently and he did a great job on our songs. Looking forward to playing some gigs with him and we’ll see what happens."

Q: How have the Firewind fans reacted to Carpenter?

GG: "I expected it to be a lot worse. Apparently there are lots of fans out there who are looking forward to the change for various reasons. There’s some that took it really bad which was expected, but to be honest even with Apollo in the band, we had to recruit replacement singers for our tours. In 2007 Apollo missed the whole second leg of the Allegiance Tour and that was a whole around-the-world run! Also in 2011 he missed our European headline tour which was also important cause it was Firewind’s first tour since 2009 when I joined Ozzy. So, changing singers is not a new thing for us! But it’s amazing cause I can’t think of any other band that would be able to get away with shit like this. I think we do, because our fans come to the shows to listen to the songs, they connect with the music first and foremost and that’s a very strong thing. And that means a lot to the rest of us in the band."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

Kelly Sundown Carpenter

The band issued the following statement regarding Apollo's departure:

“We are in the unfortunate position to announce that Apollo has decided to step down permanently from the vocal duties in Firewind. For the past few years it was evident that Apollo could not keep up with Firewind's ever growing and demanding touring and promotional schedule. Several times we've had to recruit replacements in order to continue touring the world and keep playing for our fans. We're lucky enough to have worked with some of the best metal singers out there!

Although we're sad to announce Apollo's departure and we sure will miss him, at the same time we feel that the show must go on! Firewind is a band that has gone thru lots of ups and downs the past 10 years, but is still going strong! With that said, we're happy to announce that Kelly Sundown Carpenter will be singing for us on the upcoming North American tour with TURISAS! This guy's a phenomenal singer and we can't wait to get out there and rock!

We're looking forward to our return in America. See you all soon!”

More on Firewind, including their tour schedule, at this location.



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