HEAVY Music Interviews

HEAVY Magazine

All the latest music interviews from the team at HEAVY Magazine. HEAVY interviews the worlds leading rock, punk, metal and beyond musicians in the heavy universe of music. We will upload the latest interviews regularly so before to follow our social accounts and our podcast account on www.speaker.com/user/heavy Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

  1. 16h ago

    Manifesting Your Desires With PLINI

    Sydney six-string maestro Plini has just unleashed his monumental third studio album, An Unnameable Desire, and it is a certified masterpiece. For a musician who already operates in the absolute stratosphere of technical guitar playing, this new record pushes his sonic boundaries into completely uncharted territory. It is heavier, prettier, more complex, and utterly brilliant. If you thought his previous masterpieces like Handmade Cities or Impulse Voices were the pinnacle of modern guitar music, prepare to have your mind completely blown. An Unnameable Desire is a cinematic rollercoaster that perfectly balances jaw-dropping polyrhythms with celestial jazz-fusion soundscapes. Plini has reunited with his powerhouse rhythm section—bassist Simon Grove and drummer Chris Allison—to create something truly magical. The album also features mind-melting guest spots from Polish guitar icon Jakub Zytecki and experimental harpist Emily Hopkins. It is an ambitious, beautiful sonic journey that demands your full attention from the very first note. But the masterclass doesn’t stop in the studio. Plini is about to take this new material on the road for the massive An Unnameable Desire Australia and New Zealand Tour this August. This isn’t just your standard run-of-the-mill club shows. Plini is promising his biggest, most immersive live production to date, complete with an incredible international and local lineup. Joining him on this epic trek are UK math-rock heavyweights Delta Sleep, Melbourne progressive newcomers Nightdive, and the phenomenal solo project Cenobia. It is a dream bill for anyone who loves their riffs complex and their melodies massive. The tour kicks off on August 6 at Brisbane's Princess Theatre, before tearing through Sydney's Liberty Hall, Melbourne's Northcote Theatre, Adelaide's Lion Arts Factory, and Magnet House in Perth. Today, we are diving deep into the creative madness behind the new record, the pressure of evolving his sound, and what fans can expect from this monster live show. Grab a cold one, settle in, and check out our full chat with the man himself, Plini! "I will be playing a lot of the new album and a lot of the older stuff that people seem to love," he revealed. "It's going to be really fun. We just did it in Europe for about four or five weeks, and the new stuff was especially fun to play." We ask Plini how different it is playing to audiences overseas compared to those in Australia. "It depends on the place," he measured. "I think in general, everywhere they get into it as much, but their way of showing it can be different. The music I make… some of it is energetic, but it's not always so there will be a lot of people just standing and watching, and they could be having an amazing time, but it's not necessarily the same feedback as seeing a circle pit (laughs) or people moshing." In the full interview, Plini talks more about the tour and what we can expect, overseas crowds and how they relate to his music, connecting with fans on different levels, his new album and what to expect, plus more. Tickets https://www.plini.co/anztour Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

    Manifesting Your Desires With PLINI
  2. 1d ago

    Returning To Your Roots With HORST TESSMANN From STORMHAMMER

    Interview by Angela Croudace German power metal veterans StormHammer are embracing a heavier, more aggressive direction on their upcoming album Wrath of the Hammer, due for release on July 17, while still staying true to their melodic foundations. Bassist Horst Tessmann revealed the album marks a deliberate shift back towards the sound of Welcome to the End after the more melodic approach of Seven Seals. Following years of lineup changes and delays, he said the band is finally where they want to be creatively. "The title track represents the new album and the style of the band quite well," Horst explained, describing it as the perfect introduction to StormHammer's evolved sound. Rather than drawing from any single influence, Horst credited guitarists Phil and Christos for naturally blending classic heavy metal, thrash, progressive and punk elements into the songwriting. He also praised producer Alexander Krull, whose experience as a vocalist helped push singer Manuel into delivering more emotionally charged performances. Although Australian fans may have to wait for a live appearance due to touring costs, Horst said StormHammer hopes strong support for Wrath of the Hammer could eventually make it happen, but the band are already looking ahead, with work on their next album underway and a planned release targeted for autumn 2027. Check out the full interview for more. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

    Returning To Your Roots With HORST TESSMANN From STORMHAMMER
  3. 2d ago

    Prepare For Annihilation With DAVE HALEY From PSYCROPTIC

    Let’s be honest: when you talk about Aussie heavy music, you cannot look past the absolute legends in Psycroptic. For over twenty-five years, these boys from Hobart have been wave-makers. They show the rest of the world that Australia doesn’t just do metal; we master it. Led by the unstoppable Haley brothers - Dave laying down machine-gun drum beats and Joe ripping absolute shred-fests on guitar - Psycroptic have built a reputation on sheer, relentless hard work. Now, they are gearing up to unleash their ninth studio weapon, The Pulse of Annihilation, landing July 17, 2026. And it gets better. They have officially signed with the absolute giants at Metal Blade Records, proving that true Australian grit always cuts through on the global stage. The album is heavy, it is experimental, and it is exactly what the scene needs. This isn’t a band resting on its laurels. They are pushing boundaries, raising bars, and fixing to hit the road this August with Rivers of Nihil for what will easily be the tour of the year. Get your pre-orders sorted, lock in your tickets, and support local metal. HEAVY sat down with drummer Dave Haley to get the lowdown, asking how he is feeling with the album release imminent. "It's pretty good," he smiled. "We're all very excited in the band. We feel like we're in a creative hotspot at the moment, and we're definitely not tired of the band or over it. It feels like… at least over the last couple of years, it's been a new lease on the band's life. We're nervous but happy." We ask Dave to dive deeper into the musical side of The Pulse of Annihilation and what Psycroptic were going for this time around. "We never really know how an album's going to turn out until it's finished, to be honest," he measured. "It sounds pretty cliché, but we just let the songs write themselves. So by the end of the process, when we sat and listened to it, I noticed it was a bit more of a mid-tempo, mid-paced album than previous albums. Maybe a lot more catchy on the first listen as well. With anything Psycroptic, we just try to build on what we've done before or try to move into some new territories for us. There are definitely some fun songs to play. It's hard to appreciate the songs until you've had a bit of a minute and sat back from the recording process." In the full interview, we explore the musical side of The Pulse of Annihilation in more detail, including the singles released and how they reflect the album overall. We talked about entering a new sonic chapter with the band, highlighting the growing chemistry between the dual vocalists Jason Peppiatt and Jason Keyser, who are on their second album together now. Dave told us about the album cover art and what it represents, and also spoke about signing with Metal Blade Records and what it means for Psycroptic moving forward. Their upcoming home town shows were discussed, as was the August tour with Rivers Of Nihil, plus more. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

    Prepare For Annihilation With DAVE HALEY From PSYCROPTIC
  4. 4d ago

    SCREAMFEEDER: Still Keeping At It After A Million Years

    Interview by Ali Williams SCREAMFEEDER, the beloved Brisbane Indie Rock Trio, formed back in 1991, and in 2026 have proven to be one of this country's influential groups in the industry. They’re best known for turning down major-label offers throughout the 90’s as a way of maintaining their independence and ultimately having control over where and how their music was created and displayed. Their decision to do this inspired an entire generation of Australian alternative musicians by showing them that they had options and to seriously consider exercising them. Tim Steward has been doing this long enough to know when a band is repeating itself, when a room feels right, and when a stranger in her twenties accidentally delivers the funniest career review imaginable. Speaking with HEAVY’s Ali Williams ahead of Screamfeeder’s run of July shows, Steward was relaxed, generous and wonderfully unfazed by the fact that his band has now lived through more musical eras than most streaming services have patience for.  Screamfeeder are not a band having a comeback, exactly. Comebacks are for acts that disappeared properly. Screamfeeder never really did. They just wandered through the strange machinery of time, vinyl reissues, loyal punters, new songs, old bruises, and the occasional “last ever show” that, naturally, turned out to be no such thing. “We’ve been around for a million years,” Steward laughed, which is not strictly true but emotionally accurate enough to pass in court. The band are currently working on new material, though Tim is the first to admit it is moving at the sort of pace that suggests creativity has its own union and refuses to be rushed on a Monday. After eight albums, the challenge is not whether Screamfeeder can still write songs. That part is handled. The problem is making sure they do not fall back into old habits simply because those habits know where the kettle is. Check out the full interview for more. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

    SCREAMFEEDER: Still Keeping At It After A Million Years
  5. 5d ago

    Victim Or Villain: A Sonic Journey With AMANDA LYBERG From EVA UNDER FIRE

    Detroit rock quintet Eva Under Fire are about to unleash their most ambitious, vulnerable, and absolutely crushing record to date with Villainous, dropping on July 10, 2026, via Better Noise Music. If you thought their 2022 debut Love, Drugs & Misery pushed boundaries, then strap yourselves in, because this new 13-track monster completely redraws the map. It is a gritty, cinematic concept album built from the ashes of self-destruction and forged into a massive, heavy anthem of reclaiming power. Led by frontwoman Amanda Lyberg - who masterfully balances her dual life as a licensed therapist and a powerhouse rock vocalist - the band dives straight into the darkest corners of human emotion. They have traded compliance for complete defiance. Nowhere is this more obvious than on the blistering title track, featuring a monumental vocal pairing with Maria Brink of In This Moment. It is laced with late-'90s industrial crunch combined with a fierce, modern punch that proves standing up for your truth sometimes means looking like the bad guy to everyone you left behind. From the explosive opening salvos of Awakening to the unapologetic, venomous delivery of Murder Scene, Villainous is an unflinching look at grief, identity, and hard-won self-acceptance. This isn't just standard radio rock; it's a statement of absolute confidence from a band that has already amassed over 100 million streams and dominated the Billboard charts. HEAVY caught up with the phenomenal Amanda Lyberg to dissect the creative chaos behind the record. "It's an exciting time," she enthused. "It feels like a long time coming. We spent two years writing this album, which feels like forever when you're so focused on playing live shows. It feels really great to finally be at a point where we're releasing it and getting back into the swing of things and seeing all our hard work come to fruition." We ask Amanda to tell us what Eva Under Fire were going for musically with Villainous. "Album one felt great, but it felt like there were a lot of people telling us what we were supposed to be doing," she sighed. "So this time around, it was way more important for us to say no, we're gonna throw out the rule book and do what we wanna do. We wanna say what we wanna say. We wanna say it how we wanna say it. And I was very excited that my guys were all happy, it was going to be more of an Amanda kind of lyrics on this album. I feel like it was more poetic; I feel like it was darker and grittier and had a lot of honest themes. It felt more like a self-discovery journey and a lot more authentic than the first record. We really felt like we were stepping into our own writing this album." In the full interview, we explored the singles released and how they represent the album, the more personal nature of the lyrics and how Villainous differs from their debut album Love, Drugs And Misery. Amanda talks about her vocation as a professional therapist and how the music world combined with that side of her personality in the creative process. Amanda also spoke about the ambiguity in the album title, as well as the charity that Eva Under Fire donated portions of their takings to for the title track. We talked about the band's transition from being a garage band to now playing stadiums and how that has impacted dynamics along the way, their current massive tour and the chances of it coming to Australia and more. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

    Victim Or Villain: A Sonic Journey With AMANDA LYBERG From EVA UNDER FIRE
  6. 6d ago

    Spreading Chaos Through The Orthodox With ADAM EASTERLING

    Australia, get ready to have your faces completely melted because some spectacular savagery is heading down under this winter. Floridian metalcore titans Wage War are returning to our shores for their first-ever nationwide headline tour, and if you think they’re coming alone to play nice, you are dead wrong. They are bringing one of the most vicious live acts on the planet today to help them tear down venues across the country: Nashville’s very own heavy-hitters, Orthodox. Led by the chaotic energy of frontman Adam Easterling, Orthodox are a unique but undeniable powerhouse that absolutely refuses to compromise. These guys have made nu-metal feel genuinely new and dangerous again. They take the absolute best elements of Converge’s start-and-stop metallic hardcore, throw it in a blender with the unhinged fury of early Slipknot and Korn, and channel it through their own signature, modern style. It is a molten alloy of sonic violence that hits you like a freight train, reminiscent of Knocked Loose or Harm’s Way but with an entirely different breed of aggression. Having just dropped their massive fifth studio album, A Door Left Open, Orthodox are returning to Australia with a massive point to prove. Aussie fans got a small taste of their visceral live show last year when they supported Stray From The Path on their final run down under, but this time around, the gloves are completely off. This isn't just music; it's a therapeutic, audio beatdown. This epic winter tour is shaping up to be an absolute ripper. Melbourne demand has already forced a massive venue upgrade to the iconic Forum, while Brisbane's Tivoli and Sydney's Metro Theatre are selling out faster than a bad decision at 2:00 AM. Alongside local legends Heavensgate, Orthodox are primed to deliver a masterclass in pure, unadulterated hardcore violence. If your neck isn't broken by the end of their set, you simply weren't doing it right. Get your tickets now via Destroy All Lines before you’re left with major FOMO. Tickets HERE Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

    Spreading Chaos Through The Orthodox With ADAM EASTERLING

About

All the latest music interviews from the team at HEAVY Magazine. HEAVY interviews the worlds leading rock, punk, metal and beyond musicians in the heavy universe of music. We will upload the latest interviews regularly so before to follow our social accounts and our podcast account on www.speaker.com/user/heavy Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.