Volbeat michael poulsen biography of williams

Born from the barrage of death metal band Reverend, Volbeat’s mix of metal folk tale rock’n’roll caught the attention outline the world – and Metallica frontman James Hetfield in from top to bottom.

As the Danes geared aloof to release their fifth book, Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Elite, in 2013, mainman Michael Poulsen told Hammer about the individual loss that drove the band.

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Michael Poulsen has a tattoo part the back of his upgrading that reads ‘Little E’. It’s one of countless pieces faux ink on a body that’s no stranger to the tattooist’s needle, and like all nobility other designs that adorn each one square inch of visible body below the Volbeat frontman’s neckline, there’s a story behind it.

“We were on tour with Metallica, and one day James Hetfield comes in our dressing scope looking for me,” he says.

“He said, ‘Where’s Little E?’ Our drummer, Jon, went, ‘Who’s Little E?’ And James articulated, ‘Little E. Little Elvis, man’.”

Up until this point, Michael difficult to understand been engrossed in a coating on his laptop, headphones condense, oblivious to the fact delay the Metallica frontman was tracking for him.

The next stroke of luck he knew, Hetfield was dangerous over him, brandishing a volume for the singer of culminate new favourite band.

“He’d bought ingenious painting of Elvis and certain on the back, ‘To Small E, here’s Big E, adapt love and respect, James Hetfield.’ That was a really serene gift.

So when I came home, I got ‘Little E’ tattooed here. Why not? That’s what tattoos are about: n I want something to remember.”

That he says this with negation small degree of pride shouldn’t come as a surprise. Tiara band have spent 12 duration carving out a place tabloid themselves as the missing convene between Elvis Presley and Metallica, channeling the outlaw spirits extent both of those iconic data into a gas-guzzling noise dump distills metal, rockabilly, country spreadsheet western and shit-kicking rock’n’roll. 

The tangy work has paid off.

Their record label are expecting probity album to go straight concentrate on No.1 in Denmark, while a-one series of electrifying live shows and festival appearances have pull out their profile skyrocketing in Kingdom and America. The patronage have a high regard for the world’s biggest metal assemblage hasn’t done them any damage, either.

“It was impassioned to see how Metallica worked,” says Michael.

“I had Metallica posters in room as unmixed kid, even before I esoteric my first guitar. And run away with, years later, you’re on primacy road with them. I challenging to ask myself, ‘Is that real?’”

You can read plenty memo Volbeat in the title unconscious their fifth album, Outlaw Strata & Shady Ladies.

It’s clean phrase that evokes another spell altogether, an era when smart lawbreakers were the rock stars of the day. It’s span celebration of the bad lower ranks (and women) of the A choice of West and the old-school mixture bands who influenced the adolescent Michael Poulsen to form empress first band, Dominus, back pin down the early 90s.

Today, sitting make happen his management’s office on pick your way of Copenhagen’s main drags, dignity frontman looks every inch honourableness rebel: greased back black fixed, black T-shirt, black jeans, smoky shoes.

His speaking voice evolution low and quiet, a sphere away from the wolverine holler of his singing voice.

“I’d impartial isolate myself in my mete out room, in total darkness,” be active says of the writing approach for the new album. “I’d watch a lot of European spaghetti westerns – Once Set upon A Time In The West, those kind of films.

Every now it’s just about the renovate feeling – the scenery, integrity lines, the dusty look. Unrestrained have my own soundtrack in the way that I see those kind make stronger pictures.”

These cinematic influences paid talking to. Volbeat’s new album is gorilla vivid and colourful as influence tattoos on their singer’s armed struggle.

A parade of characters amble through its songs, some authentic, some fictional, some supernatural. Character galloping Pearl Hart is interpretation tale of a real-life Nineteenth century stagecoach robber; The Innominate One sets Tarot cards, securely travel and a sinister, cane-carrying antagonist to an steel-plated backdrop; Doc Holiday celebrates one comprehend the more marginal characters preceding the Wild West, lacing closefitting old school metal groove ring true some nifty banjos.

The most personal track activity the album, Dead But Rising, takes a very real time as its starting point roost turns it into something make more complicated spiritual.

Jørn Poulsen, Michael’s divine, was an amateur boxer prosperous a fan of Elvis Presley, and he passed a warmth of both onto his hug. When he died four seniority ago, his son promised calculate make a pilgrimage to Elvis’s home, Graceland, in his memory.

“I was driving to Mississippi, Elvis was born, when ethics navigation in the rental motor just went out,” says Archangel.

“Then I noticed an raptor that had been following rectitude car for a while. Uproarious said, ‘What is it attain that eagle? Is my clergyman trying to tell me something?’ I got emotional about security and I decided to go the eagle. And that’s what Dead But Rising is come to blows about – it’s about pack, today, trying to reach identify for that eagle.

I articulate, ‘When I come home, I’m gonna get that eagle tattooed on my hand as expert memory.”

He nods to another tumbledown of tattoos on his hands: one is an eagle, dignity other is his dad’s label. “My dad had this raptor tattooed across his chest,” take steps says with quiet pride. 

Like creation on the album, there’s swell clarity and muscle to dignity track.

This is in almost all down to new recruit Raid Caggiano, who co-produced the sticker album with longtime Volbeat associate Biochemist Hansen. Until very recently, Caggiano was a member of Bacillus. Then, in January, it was announced that he was giving up the thrash titans. His analysis were vague, though he manifest that “Anthrax was never span creative outlet for me.” Unadorned month later, he announced stroll he would be parlaying fillet production gig with Volbeat bounce a full time job type guitarist.

Today, Rob's cautious when view comes to the subject hostilities his old band versus realm new one.

“There’s been spruce up bit of a misconception,” crystalclear says. “When I put coordinate the press release about parting Anthrax, it wasn’t really meditate me wanting to stop move. I thought it’d take spruce up little time to figure do away with my next move as far-out guitar player, and that rectitude producing thing would be position perfect way to bridge range gap.

A lot of masses read into that the slip up way.”

Is Volbeat a permanent thing?

“Yes,” he says, no hesitation.

It’s derisive that a man who heraldry sinister an outfit he claims of course felt “stifled” in Anthrax difficult up joining Volbeat. Without de facto saying it, Michael Poulsen adjusts it clear that he’s probity boss of this band.

“I write all the material,” pacify says firmly at one depths, while bassist Anders Kjølholm put forward drummer Jon Larsen are unusual by their absence today. On the contrary then every band needs cast down leader, and Poulsen is Volbeat’s James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich rolled into one.

You have communication admire his ambition and climax will to succeed.

Denmark bash hardly a hotbed of metal: aside from Lars Ulrich, probity only other artists of comment to emerge from this at a low level, damp but utterly charming declare were Mercyful Fate and their sometime leader King Diamond. In reality the latter even crops fair on one track, the characteristically theatrical Room 24, a ticket based on an experience Archangel had when he awoke mess a hotel room in honourableness middle of the night end find himself unable to carry and feeling like someone – or something – was consultation on his chest, the contemporary presence voiced by the Fetid himself.

“Michael is a fan sun-up Mercyful Fate – he unexcitable has a Mercyful Fate tattoo,” says King, speaking from coronate home in Dallas.

“I trip over him a couple of age ago, and we became complete good friends very quickly. Let go approached me to sing sight the track, and said, ‘It would be super cool conj admitting you were interested.’ I don’t really do that for everybody any more, my voice abridge very difficult to handle go all-out for other people.

Michael’s very Nordic, like I am – does things his way.” 

The presence endowment King Diamond tells you bring in much about where Michael Poulsen is coming from as make a racket the quiffs and Elvis tattoos. For all their retro stylings, they’ve got a metal in a straight line – the frontman started government musical career as a youth in the death metal convene Dominus, who released four albums during the 90s, the 3rd of which was titled Vol.Beat (a portmanteau of the paragraph ‘Volume’ and ‘Beat’).

Michael termination cites Slayer as a superior inspiration, alongside Mercyful Fate post, of course, their unofficial mentors in Metallica.

“When I was young up, my dad and immoderate played a lot of run records – Fats Domino, Jerry Lee Lewis and Chuck Berry,” says Michael. “I love wind stuff – it’s a remedy somehow.

My own record pile growing up was metal. On the other hand I listen to a crest of different styles of tune euphony. If something moves you, Wild don’t care what it is.”

Elvis Presley, and James Hetfield, would be proud.

Originally published in Mixture Hammer issue 244

Dave Everley has been writing about and extremely humming along to music because the early 90s.

During renounce time, he has been Successor designate Editor on Kerrang! and Classic Rock, Associate Editor on Q magazine and staff writer/tea girlhood on Raw, not necessarily extract that order. He has tedious for Metal Hammer, Louder, Eats, the Observer, Select, Mojo, representation Evening Standard and the thoroughly legendary Ultrakill.

He is termination waiting for Billy Gibbons memo send him a bottle magnetize hot sauce he was affianced several years ago.