Hi there. Congratulations to your great new album. Please describe the reactions to the CD so far.
We've had great reactions from the fans. Some critics in America haven't liked the vocals - but they aren't used to many albums that have melodic vocals throughout. Overall the press reaction has been really good - but I mostly care about the metal fans who listen to us.
 What are the milestones of your career up to now?
Getting this album finished and getting to play in Germany twice have definitely been the highlights. We'd really like to get back to Europe as soon as we can.
Let's talk about your new CD. What are the differences between "The End Of Tomorrow" and its predecessor in your opinion?
The production quality is obviously much clearer and more powerful, and we got a great artwork from Ed Repka. I think those are the major differences. Stylistically, it is similar - we still mix traditional heavy metal with some thrash and power metal elements. I think the performance is better just because we have grown a lot as players over the years and we had more money to spend on this one so we didn't rush things. On the last album we had a 17 year old drummer and we were only able to spend 3 days on the vocals, so that makes a big difference.
My favourite is "Freedom Fighter". Can you tell us something about this song and it's history?
The music was composed by my brother Eli and also our bassist Howie - it was the first time Howie contributed to writing on a song and I think he did a good job. It was a good, rockin song, and I thought up the chorus and verse lyrics based on the 2004 presidential election in the USA. i saw the two candidates using the idea od patriotism and war to promote themselves and I thought that was very sleazy and hypocritical and I wanted to say something critical about it. So the verses are about those two candidates respectively and exposing them for the hypocrits and frauds they were.
And what about the title track?
"The End Of Tomorrow" means a different thing to me every time I reread the lyrics. But I think it is about what the word would be like if there was no shiny world of tomorrow that held hope and promise and all the bad things associated with technology come to pass. It just brings up questions - is technology moving forward too fast? Will we destroy ourselves? Are we meant to? What happens when there is only one person left in the world to contemplate the end of humanity? Are they still human?
Which one is YOUR favorite song from the album and why?
I don't really have a favorite, I like certain parts of the songs more than others. Maybe "Damn Nation" has my most favorite parts, I really like the guitar solos in that song.
You chose "Nightcrawler" as a cover version (and did quite a good job). Please explain!
"Nightcrawler' is a song we used to play live a lot years ago and "Painkiller" is one of our favorite Judas Priest albums so we wanted to cover something from that album - but I don't really know why we chose that song. Everyone has a different favorite from that album so it was hard to choose just one!
 How would you describe your music?
I'd say we play a mix of traditional, NWOBHM style metal with some thrash influences and some influence from late 90's European powermetal. We have a lot of dueling guitar leads and we try to keep the vocals both melodic, powerful, and distinct.
Your new CD represents a good technical skill. What are your influences in playing?
Guitar-wise we are heavily influences by Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Euro Poermetal like Stratovarious, Running Wild, etc...Vocally I draw from Maiden and Priest, but also Accept, Alice Cooper, Metallica, Metal Church, Kreator - I really like distinct vocalists that you can recognize right away. The rhythm section is influenced by a lot of thrash and death metal, so that keeps it energetic and heavy.
One of the band pictures on your homepage suggests that you like to have a drink or two...
Well we've had members of the band that have had substance abuse issues in the past, so I don't want to glorify or condone that. But at the same time, we are major beer afficionados to be sure, and we are always looking for the finest beers to try - especially European beers. So we do our share of partying and drinking, you just have to be careful about that stuff, I suppose.
Please name some lately released CDs that you like to listen to at home.
Well I am looking forward to hearing the new cd from the reunited Meliah Rage. I picked up the new Ronny Monroe album which was very good. Also the new Heaven and Hell record is quite good.
What makes the difference between Ravage and other American Metal bands?
Certainly the amount of melody we inject into the songs, I'd say. We have almost completely melodic vocals and we try to keep the vocals powerful and not whiny and emo. There are a lot of American bands that just growl over the music and then put in sappy emo vocals for melody and I can't stand that. Keep it powerful or don't do it at all!
How important is it for you to play live on stage?
When the audience is engaged in the song in a live setting, that is the most fun you can have as a musician. So it is very important to make a connection with the audience. That is what being an entertainer is all about.
 Please describe your audience!
In America it is very difficult, we are still trying to build an audience - but those who come out to the shows are crazy, dedicated and great. In Europe they seem to be even better though, and more numerous ha ha.
Please tell us something about further Live activities.
Well we try to work as much as we can so we have a little money to do tours etc, but our lives beyond music are pretty simple. None of us have any kids etc. So it's all metal all the time!
Is there a question left that you would like to answer? And what is the answer?
Why am I into metal? Metal is life!
We are looking forward seeing you in Germany. Best whishes to you all. Any finishing words?
Check out our new album if you haven't yet - see if you like it and let us know either way. RAVAGE IN PEACE!!!
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