In a backstage interview at Wacken Open Air this weekend, Arch Enemy vocalist Alissa White-Gluz was interviewed about a variety of topics. First, she addressed the difficulties of being a multinational band during the pandemic and how that affected recording.
“We were able to at least get some ideas sent back and forth. Luckily I have a home studio I built, Jeff [Loomis, guitar] has a home studio he built, Daniel’s [Erlandsson, drums] got a studio setup so we’re quite self-sufficient when it comes to that kind of songwriting but we really like to feed off each other’s energy and be together to make the songs actually happen. Luckily, Michael [Amott, guitar] and I were able to get together for quite a few weeks to work in tandem together on the songs before entering the studio and we did that in Germany.”
White-Gluz was then asked if she or Arch Enemy feel pressure to live up to expectations, especially given their status as a major European death metal band. Apparently, they don’t:
“It’s actually not something we really think about as a band. I think this is probably true for most bands but we really compare ourselves to who we were yesterday. We really compare ourselves to who we were yesterday. Every show we do, we want it to be better than the last one, every song we write we want it to be better than the last one. But that’s where it ends. We’re very focused on what we do, so for us, we’re always just focusing on making the best music possible and hoping that the fans enjoy it as much as we do. So far, that is what’s been going on so we’re just continuing forward full momentum.”
The interviewer also asked the Arch Enemy vocalist if she’s had time to reflect on how far she’s come since her days fronting The Agonist.
“To be honest, it happens every once in a while that I’m in the middle of doing a set and I turn around and I’m like ‘Oh shit, that’s Daniel on drums, oh shit that’s Michael on stage, there’s Jeff, there’s Sharlee [D’Angelo, bass].’ Sometimes it happens—I look around and I’m like ‘Oh my god, I’m on stage with these legends.’ It’s amazing.
“Every once in a while, it still hits me. I look behind and I see the Arch Enemy banner and I’m just extremely honored and happy to be contributing to this music.”
On the less-musical front, White-Gluz was also asked about maintaining a vegan straightedge lifestyle on the road (answer transcribed by Blabbermouth).
“It’s super easy, actually, because I still party; I just don’t intoxicate myself when I do it. But if other people wanna do that, that’s their choice — it’s up to them. Smoking, I’d like them to stay away ’cause I don’t wanna breathe that in. But otherwise, it’s really, really easy, actually. It’s not even something that I think about. And actually, we have… In our tour bus, in our band and crew, I’m not the only sober one and I’m not the only vegan either, so I’m surrounded by a lot of different kinds of people and we all get along beautifully.”
Deceivers is out August 12 on Nuclear Blast.