Mick: So we've got the new album War Hearts coming in October, it's your fifth album in seven years, how do you have so many ideas locked and ready to go?
Jade: Yes, so we are a very creative band. We were born to be composers more than musicians, so we love music, writing songs, arranging them, spending time in the studio together creating our art!
Federico: Yeah, I suppose what she’ saying is that when everybody starts a band, it's always like, okay, I want to be a guitar player, I want to play around as much as possible. However, Jade and I just happen to be very oriented towards creation, you know. So creating songs and lyrics and stuff is our favourite part of the process, then playing live is of course a consequence of that. So that's the reason why we are so prolific.
If it was up to us, we would release one album every six months, but of course, labels have got their time to follow.
Mick: Yeah, awesome, so how do writing sessions for albums usually go? Do you have ideas waiting to go and have the other members join in or are all the parts already written and it's just a case of recording it?
Jade: No, usually the core of the songs are created by me and Federico. We start from the vocal melody and then we develop the arrangement around it, but everyone joins after for the arrangements of their instrument.
Federico: Yeah, pretty much as Jade said, we write down the vocal melody, which is the first thing, and then the main riff. So we lay down the whole rhythm parts together with our drummer and meanwhile, we decide the tuning of the song. As you know, we want her to sing at ease and to stay in the right range. Then just at the end the two guitar players and our bass player are coming to add their parts. Which are mostly solos and of course the bass lines, yeah.
Mick: Right, cool, so when it comes to the tracklist and forming how the album will be put together and structured. What is the thought process? Is there a methodology to what order the tracks lie in, or is it just this is the order that the songs are recorded in that makes the most sense?
Federico: Oh yes, absolutely, the second. We are never like, writing one song, then some months later we write another song, or maybe we're struggling with having a couple of songs missing from the tracklist. We are always writing all songs as a whole.
So the entire album is always seen as a movie, so to speak. With an intro, a main part, a climax, an ending, of course. So all songs naturally fall into their place in the tracklist in a way. Most of the time, the first track of the album is also the first track we have written for the album.
Usually, because it's the main one it gives the idea, so to speak, for the concept of the rest, of the album
Mick: Yeah, no, that makes total sense. So everything feels like a natural progression from one song to the next, which is something I noticed when listening to this album because the album pulsates all the way through until you get to that interlude just before Ice Dragon. Then Ice Dragon has a completely different vibe from the rest of the album. It's like it just came out of a fantasy world. Does that come from you just having an existing interest in mythology and fantasy or do you have to go seeking that inspiration?
Jade: No, no, no, we have got a lot of inspiration coming from various places, especially Tolkien. You know, I have been a big fan since I was a little kid. My favourite book is The Silmarillion. I have read everything I found from Tolkien through the years. And recently, I’ve enjoyed alot of Martin’s work with the sagas like Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon. So, yes, you know, this kind of fantasy vibe is something that I’m really into.
Mick: Yeah, so there's no mystery as to where those lyrics came from. It's just you guys completely nerding out.
Jade: Yes. Absolutely.
Mick: Which song do you feel is going to be your favourite of the new songs to attempt to perform live?
Federico: For me, it would be Ice Dragon, of course. It would be just extremely funny to play live.
But when you play live, you want to choose songs that could work best live on stage. Most importantly, you always have to pick songs that will fit the set time. Sometimes you get limited time on stage unless you're playing a very long headlining show. Sometimes you have to sacrifice some songs for the sake of the set.
Jade: My favourite would be Edge of Reality because, musically-wise, it reminds me a lot of the Shield Maidens. Which is one of the songs from our first album, The Fallen King, that the fans love the most. We usually play it live. So I think this new song Edge of Reality could be somehow a sequel, in my opinion, for the vibes, not for the themes or anything. More for the vocal range, for the rhythm. So I'm looking forward to that one. I don't know the future, I cannot tell anything, but that's the song I would love to play from this album the most.
Mick: You just said it's going to be challenging because of time constraints. You're supporting Kamelot coming up soon. You're going to be very limited on time as an opening act. So at the moment, is it challenging to try and think of a representative setlist that accurately promotes this record while still giving the fans what they want?
Jade: Yes, yes, yes. That's the point. I think that we found a good compromise anyway. And if you attend the show, you can tell us what you think. We have five albums, we are promoting the new one and we love those songs very much, starting from the two singles that already are out. Of course, we have the classics that we love to play and the fans love to hear.
Mick: So if someone is completely new to Frozen Crown, what would be your one song that says, this is the representative body of your work?
Jade: OK, so in my opinion so far, I don't know what to choose between War Hearts or Steel and Gold. Frozen Crown is in a certain way now. We are the best we’ve ever been. We have our new guitar player, Alessia Lanzone. She’s been a great addition to the lineup and also to the live shows. So I think we are in the best shape ever. And we have been able to put this in the songs of the new album and especially in the singles we have chosen, we wanted to show the band at its best. So I think the best song that represents Frozen Crown from the beginning till now is one of those two. Definitely, because they are very Frozen Crown, but they are a picture of what we are now in the best shape ever.
Mick: I guess you have that new dynamic because of the lineup shake-up and you have those new elements. Do you have a particular favourite thing they've added to the band?
Jade: Yes, of course. The dedication, the attention to detail in everything they do and the love they’ve put in from the day they entered the band.
Federico: I agree. Yes, absolutely. Absolutely.
Jade: Mostly on a human level. Good vibes and positivity. It's a kind of magic that happened when we met. There is a chemistry between all of us.
Mick: Yeah. I guess that's the important thing. If it doesn't feel right, then it's not going to work, is it? So I'm glad that's all kind of fit in perfectly for you. So for you two, do you recall the first song, album or even gig which made you love heavy metal and feel like this is the world I want to be a part of?
Federico: For me, it was when we recorded the first Frozen Crown album. Before that, I've always been a heavy metal fan. I mean, my favourite bands range from Borknagar to In Flames to Satyricon. So I've always been a metalhead, even listening to heavier stuff than the ones I play with Frozen Crown. However, I never worked in a metal band in my life until very late in my age. Frozen Crown was the first one. So when we recorded the first Frozen Crown album, I was like, why didn't I start playing this music earlier? I mean, this was exactly what I always wanted to do. So that was the moment for me.
Jade: I don't have a precise moment. I have always been, you know, a metalhead, a singer. When Frozen Crown was formed, something changed because my dreams were coming true. So gig after gig, album after album, all the satisfactions we had, I cannot find a precise moment. I've always wanted to live like this and it's getting better every year.
Mick: Your music is very fast and furious. I imagine playing those songs can feel tiring. I guess I want to know, how do you get ready for the stage and how do you decompress after you finish a set?
Federico: Well, you know, to be honest, most of the work is by the drummer, Niso Tomasini and he is also very young, so he can do that. No problem. What concerns us, it's like, you know, the adrenaline. Standing on stage, with all those people screaming your name and going crazy. It's just enough to not feel any kind of fatigue, pressure, or pain. The set comes and goes so quickly, it’s like a dream. I'm not saying it's easy because it's not, but it's like you're always leading with an unconscious mindset. You have got the lights, the people, everything. Then the live show already ended in, what feel like, a matter of seconds.
Jade: Yes. You have the adrenaline. I always look forward to going to the merchandise booth, to chat with the fans after the show. It's the best moment because you are still full of adrenaline that you gained during the performance.
Mick: So if there's one thing you haven't done yet as a band or in your music career, what is one thing you would like to accomplish in your music career going forward?
Federico: I would say that living out of music, most importantly, living out of metal music for me already seemed like an unreachable goal. However, right now the band is self-sufficient. (19:08) And I mean, that was already possible to do. So I'm OK. I mean, I don't have any other kind of goals I would like to reach. I'm already happy because, you know, I wake up every morning doing exactly what I want to do. Be it writing songs or drawing album covers, editing videos. And that's the best thing ever. I'm not going to be more demanding with luck and life.
Jade: If I could ask, I would love to tour the stadiums with fireworks and everything.
I want it to be big. That's my dream. I want to accomplish.
Mick: Finally, what is the hardest thing professionally or personally you've had to overcome and how did you overcome it?
Federico: Probably the hardest thing to accomplish in music may be different if you are Italian. To play in Italy is pretty much an impossible thing already. However, to play metal music in Italy is even worse because Italian metal fans are so against new people. Be it bands made by young people or bands made by women. If you are playing metal in Italy with a woman in a band and young people in the band, you're playing hard mode.
We have got three women in the band, so it feels like playing heavy metal on God mode. So to me, surviving and doing that, starting as an Italian metal band, it's already the hardest thing.
Jade: No, you know, luckily I have nothing to say aside from the hardest part is not getting enough sleep! But you know, I’ll will sleep when I'm dead!
I feel lucky for this because so far as everything has gone very well.
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