INTERVIEW: David Silver – Savage Messiah

SAVAGE MESSIAH have spent the last few years consistently touring, conquering many destinations including Japan and Europe. On October 27th the band will drop their eagerly awaited follow up to 2014’s largely successful effort The Fateful Dark entitled Hands Of Fate due for release via Century Media Records. We caught up with frontman and guitarist David Silver to lift the lid on what the fan’s can expect from the new album and what they have in store for the future.

Hey Dave, thanks for taking some time out to talk to us. Firstly, how do you feel SAVAGE MESSIAH have progressed since the release of The Fateful Dark?

Dave: We have progressed quite a lot really. Since the release of that album we have toured with SOULFLY, AMON AMARTH, ARMORED SAINT, CRADLE OF FILTH, we opened the main stage of Bloodstock, we also played Loud Park in Japan! We got a new manager, we left Earache Records and have just signed a deal with Century Media…it’s been crazy when you think about it!

Wow…Keeping busy! Just touching on that what led to the decision for the transition to Century Media?

Dave: Basically when The Fateful Dark cycle had ended we were taking stock of where we were and we felt that our relationship with Earache had ran its course and had gone as far as it could go. We had a heart to heart and they graciously respected our wishes and we basically took the plunge severing the deal ourselves leaving us without a record label. We made a record and took it to various labels and much to our surprise we had four offers, Century Media included so it was fantastic. We’re kind of lucky as it’s our third record deal and with every record we have joined a bigger label. We’re totally cool with Earache, nothing personal against those guys, it’s a great label.

So SAVAGE MESSIAH have a new album quickly approaching, what can the fans expect?

Dave: They can expect big songs, big choruses, loads of guitar solos and kinda just a more refined version of what we have done before. It’s still modern but it’s still classic at the same time.

Cool! I’ve noticed you appear to have dialled down the thrash influence you have used in previous albums and you’ve taken a more traditional heavy metal approach. Was this a conscious decision or more of a product of your writing?

Dave: Absolutely a conscious decision, ultimately we knew the thrash influence was apparent throughout our back catalogue but we felt that the thrashier songs seemed to be more of the ‘filler’ songs on the albums. It was a direction that Scott Atkins…our producer was pushing us to steer away from for years really. He would tell us “You guys sound great when you play those metal songs with big choruses and big riffs. There are so many thrash bands that do it so much better than you guys so just stop it!” [Laughs]. We thought the same too so we focused in on the areas we thought we were strongest rather than feeling the need to add some thrash elements into it.

SAVAGE MESSIAH have always had that kind of song in your arsenal like Hellblazer, Cross Of Babylon, Six Feet Under The Gun so you may as well utilise it!

Dave: Yeah, absolutely. It’s been there on all the records so the new album is not really a departure but it feels more identifiable and unique.

What inspired your lyrics on the new album? Do you use current events or is it just a particular thought process you are going through at the time?

Dave: A little bit. I really wanted to write some more personal stuff, things which are a bit easier to relate to. Not so much the conspiracy theories which we may have touched on in the past even though that stuff is fun! We wanted to add a little bit more depth, it’s quite ambiguous in a sense, not quite like, boy meets girl but more day to day experiences that everyone goes through and the way you react to situations, the way they make you feel to help other people connect to it.

SAVAGE MESSIAH have released the title track for the album, how has that been received so far?

Dave: It’s been received very well! We chose that song because it’s quite representative of the album as a whole but also we knew we had to come out with something a bit, bombastic in a way. We haven’t released any new material in a long time so we thought it was good to get the existing fans warmed up and then the next single we think will hopefully turn some heads.

Yeah, I think it was a good decision for a single to be honest as it’s instantly identifiable with your previous work. As I delved further into the album I could see you were going for the big choruses and heavy hitting riffs and potentially stepping away from the ‘shredding’ so it was quite a cool surprise. 

Dave: Ah thanks man, I’m glad you got that!

Can we expect any further releases before the album drops, do you have any more videos in the works?

Dave: Yeah we have a new video due early October which is the second single and its a much bigger deal, we are premiering it on VEVO and it’s going to be on the radio so I’m really excited about it!

…are the plans to keep tight lipped on the release or can you give me a hint of what song you are releasing?

Dave: The song will be Wing And A Prayer. It’s probably one of my favourite tracks on the record. Our guitar player Sam had the melody on his phone! [Laughs]. We liked it so we built on it and wrote it directly in the studio. We’ve been playing it live and it’s been going down really well so far.

Ah awesome, I can imagine why as it has a huge chorus. I’ve had Wing And A Prayer and Fearless stuck in my head for about a week now! [Laughs].

Dave: [Laughs] That’s awesome man, Fearless is another one. We haven’t played it live yet but it’s got like a Scorpions kinda vibe to it!

SAVAGE MESSIAH have recently been announced as support to CRADLE OF FILTH on their upcoming UK tour, are you guys looking forward to it? Are there any particular concerns on the divide in styles between yourselves?

Dave: You know what, on paper you’re absolutely right! But we played a one off show with them in Portsmouth a few months ago and it went so well! The great thing about the UK and CRADLE OF FILTH is that in the metal world they’re considered as more of a mainstream metal band which maybe an attendee of Download or Bloodstock would be into so it really add’s value to the tour. They get two completely different styles of music which in a way are kind of complimentary. I’m really looking forward to it. They’re great guys and we hung out with them after the show.

Can the fans expect much new material on the tour or if you are going to be limited will you stick to your dependable live staples?

Dave: We’re going to play as many new songs as we can. We will be coming back to the UK in April next year on a headline tour so if we are limited on set time we will definitely be playing a mix of new and old material but for this tour we will definitely be focusing on the newer material.

Ah yeah definitely, whilst the new album is fresh in everyone’s heads!

Dave: Totally!

Do you have any ideas of supports for the tour at all or are you still deliberating?

Dave: We’re not quite sure yet! We don’t know whether to go for a real strong co-headline style vibe or just do it ourselves yet. We’ve got plenty of time to plan it and I’m really looking forward to it. We haven’t really had a serious headline run in the UK. It’s definitely about time!

[Laughs] Absolutely. I saw you guys support EVILE back in 2011? and I saw SAVAGE MESSIAH quite a few years ago at Hammerfest so I’ll look forward to seeing the details unfold!

Dave: Yeah that’s right! We were like the resident band at Hammerfest for like 4 years in a row! [Laughs].

Do you have any more plans for the remainder of the year or for 2018?

Dave: We’re going to Europe. We will be playing the Ruhrpott Metal Meeting. With Century Media being based it Germany it opens an entirely new window for us to focus on that market which is something we’ve never done and would really like to do! We’re going back to Japan and we’re going to be headlining so it’s kind of daunting but cool! In May we are heading to America, we’ve had quite big gaps between albums over the years but now we have our business in order we have plans to do another record next year.

Oh wow, not messing around!

Dave: We’ve got to build some momentum you know?

For sure! A lot of people have told me that the Japanese crowd’s always bring such a huge amount of energy to the shows so I’m sure you’ll have a blast!

Dave: Yeah! Our first time there was the biggest show we’ve ever played! It was like 25,000 people which was mind blowing. We opened the main stage at their main metal festival called Loud Park which is basically like a Japanese Download. It was a bit mad as we were effectively flung to the other side of the planet for a day and a half, a totally different time zone, do the show and then next morning we were back in England thinking….”did that just happen?” [Laughs]

Are there any particular places you’d like SAVAGE MESSIAH to play on tour that you are yet to experience?

Dave: I’d really like to go to Australia and South America which would be really cool. Fingers crossed we can get there on this album cycle. I’d also like to do a more extensive North American tour as America is always attractive. In the UK we love playing anywhere really! In the north east we have played with WINTERSUN and AMON AMARTH and it’s such a shame that when these tours come up that no one ever really goes… We found that we had a great reaction and the fans in the north east were super passionate. We played with TRIVIUM in Middlesbrough and I’d love to play somewhere like that again.

Fingers crossed you guys make it up north. Glasgow or Newcastle maybe?

Dave: Glasgow is definitely on the cards but hopefully… especially for us its quite a convenient drive! [Laughs]

What are the goals for the future of SAVAGE MESSIAH?

Dave: Really just keep growing as a band and see what happens. We’ve been very very lucky really. The band seems to keep being able to do bigger and more exciting things so just keep on keeping on really. It sounds corny but we just want to continue making music really. That’s why we started a band! I’ve been doing it for 10 years now because we love doing it. We just want to make people happy and make ourselves happy in the process.

Thanks for your time Dave, we really appreciate it. Best of luck with the release of the album, I’m excited to see what everyone has to say about it. Good luck for the future!

Dave: Cool thanks man, great to speak to you!

Hands Of Fate is due for release on October 27th via Century Media Records.

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