Singer John Bush turned down Metallica in the early 80s when they sought him as their singer, and was with Anthrax from 1992 to 2005. These days he fronts, walks and talks Armored Saint, whose latest album is Emotion Factory Reset.
The press release/biography for Emotion Factory Reset says it’s a “resurrection of sorts, a tearing down and a rebuilding”. That’s quite a dramatic statement.
That comment came from the biography writer Katherine Turman [laughs]. But I’m very proud that Armored Saint is a band that keeps on expanding. We’re inspired by those great bands from the seventies that wrote such great songs – UFO, Queen, Judas Priest – but we’re always willing to try something different.
Maybe we should have expected that, given that a year ago the band covered One Chain (Don’t Make No Prison), a 1974 hit for Motown vocal group The Four Tops.
Yeah. I’ve always loved old-school soul and R&B. I wish I was some Black dude from 1972, but I’m not. I’m a small white guy, but a lot of that music has shaped the way that I sing.
What do you think the casual fan’s perception of Armored Saint might be? Do some still consider you to be a thrash metal band from the eighties?
Some might even think we’re a hair band. We also get called power metal. Throughout our whole career, the biggest problem has been where do we fit in.
Longevity and success bring artistic freedom. What can Armored Saint do now, on album number nine, that would have been out of the question on the debut March Of The Saint, released forty-three years ago?
That album had some cool songs, but by the time of [1985 follow-up] Delirious Nomad we knew we had to diversify. The record label [Chrysalis] didn’t understand, and they dropped us after a third album. It wasn’t until Symbol Of Salvation that we caught our groove.
And then I left the band [laughs]. But it was 1991 and the beginning of grunge. When we reunited [in 1999] we just got back into that mindset of doing our own thing. The records we’ve made since then have been really solid.
The new album has a song called Hit A Moonshot. Is that a baseball reference?
Slightly. It’s a mildly sarcastic response to the people that are way too full of bravado. Y’know: “Look at all these moonshots that I keep hitting.” I don’t like to write in a way that’s too obvious.
The song Buckeye is an emotional tribute to your daughter.
Yeah. It’s my most personal statement on the record, obviously. I think of it as a very cool and emotional song – I hope so.
Armored Saint play at this summer’s Stonedead Festival. It’s a one-stage, multi-band event modelled on the simplicity of the old Monsters Of Rock.
We were never big enough to play Monsters Of Rock, and at this point we can’t get onto Download, so this will be our Donington moment. Bring it on.
Any plans for a UK tour?
Last September we played some British shows with W.A.S.P., so realistically it probably won’t happen till 2027.
Emotion Factory Reset is available via Metal Blade.