Appetite For Disruption recently spoke with Iced Earth guitarist / founder Jon Schaffer and picked his brain on the concept of creating a band, building its catalogue, brand and audience all the way from a garage to an arena. The interview below was conducted by Dr. Guenther Dobrauz-Saldapenna.

Schaffer on leading Iced Earth:

"I'm a man of my convictions and my father raised me to be that way. And it's not a popularity contest, believe it or not. It's about my art and staying true to my art and whatever the consquences of that are. And that's the driving force within me; the desire to write songs that touch people and to propel the vision forward. And that's what I've always been chasing since the very beginning, what's been going on in my head. I feel very fortunate that in the current line-up of the band that we have all of this personal chemistry, as well as everybody's got their chops and is really amazing at their individual instrument. A lot of guys are into it 'cause they're after the money and after that, but it's really just always been about songcraft and making cool records that are gonna hopefully stand the test of time and will be there for people to enjoy long after I'm gone. And so making tough decisions along the way to preserve the integrity of the brand that I've built, that's fine with me."

Century Media Records is proud to announce a very special release:

Iced Earth mastermind Jon Schaffer has teamed up with his old pals in Purgatory, the band that he originally founded  in 1985, then later became Iced Earth, to record five tracks that were written between 1985 and 1987, now to be released as the Purgatory EP on December 21st as limited Digipak CD, limited LP (with 180 gram vinyl, 4-page inlay and etching) and digitally.

Produced and mixed by Jon Schaffer and Jim Morris and mastered by Zeuss, this very fine release showcases the foundation of the invincible metal monster known as Iced Earth. All five tracks featured on the EP offer real US metal and perfectly capture the spirit of the mid 1980’s with a powerful production, rounded up by liner notes or comments of Jon Schaffer, Gene Adam, Greg Seymour and Bill Owen and a fitting cover artwork by David Newman Stump and Roy Young, known from their excellent work on Iced Earth’s latest album, Incorruptible.

The greatest surprise might be Gene Adam, Iced Earth’s original singer who sang on the band’s self-titled debut album from 1990, who delivers his best vocal performance ever. The song "Dracula" can be checked out below.

Jon Schaffer’s Purgatory is for all Iced Earth maniacs out there, for all fans of real US metal in the vein of Omen, Liege Lord or Savage Grace, and for all metal fans in general – young and old.

Purgatory is dedicated to Richard Bateman, the band’s original bass player, who passed away right before the EP went into production. Rest in peace, Richard.

The Purgatory EP can be pre-ordered here.

The vinyl version is available in the following colours:

- Black vinyl: Unlimited
- Transparent-blue vinyl: limited to 100 copies, exclusively available at CM Distro Europe
- Transparent-orange vinyl: limited to 200 copies, available at CM Distro Europa * 
- Clear vinyl: limited to 200 copies, exclusively available at Nuclear Blast
- Lilac vinyl: limited to 300 copies, exclusively available in the USA

* a limited amount of 50 copies will be signed by the band and sold through band channels

Purgatory tracklist:

"In Your Dreams"
"Dracula"
"In Jason’s Mind"
"Jack"
"Burning Oasis"

Jon Schaffer’s Purgatory is:

Jon Schaffer – Rhythm & Lead Guitars, Vocals
Gene Adam – Lead Vocals 
Bill Owen - Lead Guitar

Guest appearances by:

Jim Morris – Lead Guitar 
Ruben Drake – Bass Guitar
Mark Prator – Drums