 |
Scales of iron,
|
U.K. power metal band DragonForce has earned as many detractors as it has fans. With their over-the-top technical abilities on guitar, fantasy-themed lyrics and a synth-laden and generally upbeat, positive thrash sound, the band have been labelled geniuses and metal innovators by some while slagged as senseless wankers or, ahem, mere pussies by the dyed-in-the-wool extreme metal fans. Be that as it may, DragonForce—now on their fourth album, Ultra Beatdown—are currently among the fastest rising bands in metal, spurred in part by the inclusion of their song “Through the Fire and Flames” at the final and highest level of the popular Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock video game. The Mirror spoke to guitarist Herman Li, over the phone from a tour stop. Mirror: What would you say is the impact your appearance in Guitar Hero has had on the band’s success? Herman Li: Well, I think it has put us in front of an audience that we wouldn’t have had otherwise. What I really like about Guitar Hero is that it puts the music across before all of the rubbish like image and lifestyle, and a lot of kids now are starting to play the guitar. M: Have you played “Through the Fire and Flames” on Guitar Hero? HL: I have made it to the end but compared to playing the actual song, it’s not that hard. You would have to practise guitar for at least five years before you could really master that song, where if you were to work hard on Guitar Hero, you could probably get it after two weeks. M: Do you think we are living in the age of the guitar hero, again? HL: I really think people want to hear guitar players again. When I was learning guitar, there really weren’t any guitar heroes around, but I just kept on listening to people like Steve Vai or Joe Satriani, and I think because of that, I’ve been given an advantage now. M: What is your response to people who think your work is just musical masturbation? HL: Well, I’ve been hearing that ever since I first picked up the guitar, so I don’t think that people calling us rubbish will ever change what I’m doing. M: Do you think the guitar solos overshadow the songwriting in the band? HL: We really care about every single detail on the album but I guess people do concentrate too much on the guitar solos. The funny thing is, though, the guitar solos are the last thing to be done on a record and probably take up the least amount of the time spent making a record. M: Along with the complexity, there does seem to be a fair amount of melody behind your songs. HL: I listen to stuff like Bryan Adams and a lot of pop music as well. I think learning to pull off the technical aspects of music is important but you have to be able to work on your songwriting as well. Songwriting and a sense of melody are really things that can take years to develop. A lot of people are now realizing that metal can be much more than just “blaaarrrggghhhh,” and that really is the challenge for us. WITH TURISAS AND POWERGLOVE AT |
