Matthew Greywolf chooses his favourites.
**The first record I bought was… **
IRON MAIDEN, PIECE OF MIND [EMI, 1983]
“I bought it as a gatefold LP, not in the year it was released, because I was still a kid then, but in the late 80s. I still keep this, like a treasure, at home. At the time, I was extremely impressed by the band picture in the gatefold – they are sitting at a table and they have this brain on the table. I was totally impressed by that.”
The album I wish I’d made is…
BLACK SABBATH, PARANOID [VERTIGO, 1970]
“I would consider myself holy if I’d made this! I always think of the first five or six [Black Sabbath records] as one album, so I could pick any of them. They’re the essence of heavy metal, whatever may come – you could even reduce that to the riffing in the song Black Sabbath. It’s the most evil, the most sinister piece of music ever written, period.”
The album I break the speed limit to is…
BAD RELIGION, NO CONTROL [EPITAPH 1989]
“It’s one of my favourite albums of the last 20 years. Every time I don’t know what to listen to when driving a car, it’s No Control.”
A kid asks me what metal is, I hand them a copy of…
JUDAS PRIEST, PAINKILLER [COLUMBIA, 1990]
“The artwork is heavy metal, the music is heavy metal to the max. It’s a timeless piece of heavy metal to me.”
The album I want played at my funeral is…
PARADISE LOST, GOTHIC [PEACEVILLE, 1991]
“Something doomy! Gothic has been a very important album in my life; it was the first album that showed me how atmospheric metal music can be, maybe apart from Black Sabbath. The first time I listened to Gothic, it was like Black Sabbath turned even darker.”
No one will believe I own a copy of…
PORTISHEAD, DUMMY [GO! BEAT, 1994]
“I think no one would expect a musician from Powerwolf to have an album by Portishead. It’s not that embarrassing a choice for an album that no one would expect me to have, but a totally different kind of music. It’s absolutely timeless and classy.”
The album I want to be remembered for is…
POWERWOLF, LUPUS DEI [METAL BLADE, 2007]
“Not because it’s the most perfect Powerwolf album, but because it’s the album that was the most exciting one to write, for me. That was the album where we explored our way of writing songs and our way of sounding, and I remember the time we wrote it as one of the most exciting times in my life as a musician. That’s why this album means a bit more to me than all of the other Powerwolf albums.”
The album that reminds me of high school is…
THERAPY?, TROUBLEGUM [A&M, 1994]
“I recently stumbled across it again, and was immediately reminded of my high school times. It was good party music – but decent music, not stupid music. It’s a very intelligent album.”
The album that should not be is…
RUNNING WILD, SHADOWMAKER [STEAMHAMMER, 2012]
“Running Wild did some albums during the past few years that were really painful for me listening to them, being a fan of the old albums. Even the art work was really silly – really, really silly. My deep disappointment with the music was as much as the artwork. Being a fan of what they did in their good times, I’m really disappointed because I am a fan.”
The album that broke my heart is…
DEAD CAN DANCE, WITHIN THE REALM OF A DYING SUN [4AD, 1987]
“I got this album the day a relationship broke up, and musically it was totally fitting. At the time, I got a lot of comfort from the music. That’s why this album still means a lot to me in whatever situation.”
Powerwolf’s new album, Blessed And Possessed, is out in July via Napalm.