The Great Southern Brainfart recently conducted an interview with Styx vocalist Lawrence Gowan and he talked about if he likes metal at all and if he’s had any interactions with metal musicians who have professed love for Styx like Anthrax’s Joey Belladonna and Exodus’ Tom Hunting. 

“That’s funny that you ask that”, said Gowan about having interactions with any metal bands.  “Kerry (King) from Slayer has been to Styx shows before so he gave us tickets to their show.  We went backstage after the show and it was great to see all these diehard metal heads.  I think the Slayer fans backstage were shocked to see Kerry in about 150lbs of chains and all the tattoos come out and go, ‘Oh man.  That last Styx show was great.  I’m really looking forward to seeing you again soon!’  [laughs]  It was a knockout [laughs],” remarked Gowan.

About being a metal fan at all, Gowan said, “[laughs] Actually, my son (Dylan Gowan) plays in a black metal, symphonic metal band (Vesperia) and they won the Wacken Metal Battle in 2015.  Through him, I got really into it and Dimmu Borgir became my favorite band.  I listen to a lot of them and I also got into Children of Bodom and Opeth.  Opeth really goes on both sides of the fence.  They’re progressive rock and they’re also metal and I love them.  I can go from listening to that stuff and listen to some early Yes.  No matter what extremes you go to in rock, and I consider metal to be a great extreme to go to, it doesn’t diminish your affinity for where it all came from.”

Styx’s 16th studio album, The Mission, has landed on various Billboard’s charts thanks to a solid release that has connected with their longtime fans as well as new fans who are discovering them for the first time.

Billboard chart positions:

#6 - Top Rock Albums
#11 - Physical Albums
#11 - Vinyl Albums
#13 - Current Albums
#14 - Billboard Top Albums
#16 - Retail
#17 - Mass Merch/Non-Traditional
#29 - Digital Albums
#45 - Billboard 200 (includes catalog and streaming)

Tracklisting:

“Overture”
“Gone Gone Gone”
“Hundred Million Miles From Home”
“Trouble At The Big Show”
“Locomotive”
“Radio Silence”
“The Greater Good”
“Time May Bend”
“Ten Thousand Ways To Be Wrong”
“Red Storm”
“All Systems Stable”
“Khedive”
“The Outpost”
“Mission To Mars”

“Gone Gone Gone” video:

Classical music and classic rock collide as AXS TV presents Styx frontman Tommy Shaw in the premiere of the 2016 concert special, Sing For The Day! Tommy Shaw And Contemporary Youth Orchestra, airing Sunday, July 9th, at 10 PM, ET. The broadcast follows the season premiere of the popular AXS TV original series Rock And Roll Road Trip With Sammy Hagar at 9 PM, ET/6 PM, PT, which features Shaw and Styx with Sammy Hagar backstage at the Venetian Theater in Las Vegas.

“Ten years after Styx and CYO performed for the first time together, I’ve joined forces with them again, this time for a solo acoustic symphony show!,” said Shaw about the special.

Sing For The Day! was filmed live at the Waetjen Auditorium in Cleveland, OH, in May of 2016, commemorating the 10th anniversary of Styx’ landmark collaboration with the Contemporary Youth Orchestra with an unforgettable night of music. Wielding a mandolin and an acoustic and electric guitar, Shaw sails through a career-spanning set of Styx hits, solo favorites, and more, backed by the impressive 115-piece teenage orchestra and choir.

Highlights include soaring renditions of the Styx staples “Too Much Time On My Hands”, “Renegade”, “Sing For The Day” and “Blue Collar Man”, as well as Shaw’s acclaimed solo hits “Diamond” and “The Great Divide”, Damn Yankees classics “High Enough” and “Come Again”, and many more, delivering an incredible one-of-a-kind experience that music lovers of all ages won’t want to miss.