INTERVIEW WITH CONQUEST OF STEEL

Yorkshire heavy metal band Conquest of Steel have gained themselves a solid reputation for their full on live shows and no nonsense old school approach to the genre. Ready to embark on a full jaunt of the UK and Europe to promote their upcoming sophomore album "Hammer and Fist", Guitarist D. D. Danger speaks to Yorkshire Legions of Steel about the band, the tour and the Yorkshire metal scene.

When and how did the band start?

Conquest of Steel formed in 1998 when we realised that the world badly needed a band who were true to the ideals of Heavy Metal and who were able to follow in the footsteps of the originators of Heavy Metal. There was at the time and there still are too many bands who are ruining the spirit of Heavy Metal by watering it down to gain commercial acceptance. This is something we will never do, and we are striving to keep the flame of Heavy Metal alive well into the new millennium.

With there being so many styles of metal today, such as power metal, battle metal etc. How would you guys describe yourself as a band?

We are True Heavy Metal. We are not a Power Metal band or a Battle Metal Band. We exist to carry on the legacy left by Classic Heavy Metal bands like Maiden, Wasp, Priest, Sabbath, Dio etc etc and to bring Heavy Metal to a new generation.

So what are you major influences?

As above really, but we are also influenced by the Heavy Metal scene in general, particularly the underground scene. Whether the bands be Heavy Metal, Doom Metal, Death Metal or any other genre of ‘proper’ metal. We are influenced by all these kind of bands who keep it ‘true’, who get on the road and play Heavy Metal to as many people as possible.

How do you guys feel about being “Hailed as Britain’s finest heavy metal warriors”? do you feel peoples expectations on the band are too high because of this accolade or do you feel you do live up to your reputation?

That’s a fine accolade! We don’t care about what peoples expectations are of us, we just do we what we do, write Heavy Metal songs and play Heavy Metal to as many True Metal fans as we possibly can. We are hailed as being a great live band, and in this sense we certainly do live up to peoples expectations as this is were our strengths lie: in putting on a great live Heavy Metal Show.

Having seen you guys play a couple of times in Wakefield, at the snooty fox, you draw a very good crowd. Do you feel there is a market for more bands that play your style of metal?

Yeah, definitely. There is always gonna be a market for Metal bands who are exciting to watch and who put on a great live show. Unfortunately a lot of bands are lifeless on stage and don’t go that extra mile to give the fans a true live experience. If more bands did this, then I believe the market for bands like us would increase.

Also it must be good to get such a good reaction from the crowd. The show is impressive and so are the fans in Wakefield. Do you get the same response at other gigs?

We generally get great responses from wherever we play. Of course some places are better than others, but people seem to like what we do and enjoy the show. Wakefield is definitely one of our favourite places to play. As you say, the fans are fantastic – everyone is down the front and having a great time, headbanging and thrashing around. This is what we like to see at a gig, and that’s what makes playing at the Snooty fox such a pleasure. Be sure to check us out on the 30th March!!

Here’s your chance to plug your latest tour so where and when are you playing? (For those who have not been on the Myspace page)

We are supporting the release of our 2nd album entitled ‘Hammer and Fist’ with a UK and European Tour. The dates are as follows:

We have just added a load more dates to the website (www.conquestofsteel.co.uk) and myspace (ww.myspace.com/conquestofsteel) and will continue to gig throughout the UK and Europe for the rest of the year in support of ‘Hammer and Fist’.

28th March : Big D’s, Todmorden: Support Gentleman’s Pistols
30th March : Snooty Fox, Wakefield: Support SSS and Scion: Album Launch Party!
31st March : Rios, Bradford: All Dayer – Rios last ever gig: On stage 4pm
31st March : Bristol Pear, Birmingham: Support Seregon, Dark Forest, Vincent Drive
1st April: Camden Underworld, London: Extreme Subverse all ages show Doors 2pm
2nd April: Negasonic, Aalst (B)
3rd April: Cassiopeia, Berlin (D)
4th April: Stubnitz (Ship), Rostock (D)
5th April: Mukkes, Leeuwarden (NL): Support Calibern
6th April: Cerberus, Hengelo (NL)
7th April: Jeffrey’s, Sas Van Ghent (NL)
8th April: The Cave, Amsterdam (NL): Support Calibern
9th April: The Frontline, Gent (B): Support Witchsmeller Pursuiviant Calibern, Dusk

As you may know the Legions of Steel is a website for proper metal fans from the Yorkshire area, how do you feel about the local metal scene and the bands which are coming out of Yorkshire?

The local Metal scene is pretty strong at the moment, with lots of young bands playing lots of gigs far and wide. Of course there is always room for improvement and growth within the scene, but unfortunately with venues closing, particularly in Bradford (Empress, Market Tavern, Rios), this is definitely hampering the development of the scene. However as long as there are bands who are willing to play and fans willing to turn out to gigs then the scene will go from strength to strength.

Which bands do you like best from Yorkshire?

Ooh, tricky one. There are lots of great Yorkshire bands, like bigger acts like Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride (both of who’s best days are unfortunately long behind them) and Bal Sagoth. There are also loads of great smaller and upcoming Yorkshire bands such as The Prophecy, Bloodstream, Gore, Pitiful Reign, Scion, Nailed etc etc.

You have just had an E.P. released too keep the fans happy until the album came out, what made you decide upon an E.P.?

Originally the EP was gonna be released as a 7” single through Germany’s Killer Metal Records. Unfortunately the time scales didn’t quite work out and we decided that we needed to have the tracks released before the 2nd album, so we took the decision to put he songs out as an EP with the addition of a taster track from ‘Hammer and Fist’ (May your Blade never Dull). Of course it would have been much better to have released it on vinyl, but we have plans to put out another piece of vinyl before the end of the year – keep your eyes pealed!

And now on the subject of the next album, will fans get more of the same and also when will it be released?

Yes, definitely more of the same. The same style of True Heavy Metal as on our previous releases but with much improved production values that manage to retain that ‘old school’ feel. The songs are also a big step on for us, and show a development in the writing style of the band – but you can definitely tell that this is a Conquest of Steel album! This is true Heavy Metal from beginning to end!

Thanks for your time and is there anything else you would like to add?

Cheers for the Interview – good luck with the website and hope to see some of you guys when we are out on the road. Keep it Metal!!!!

Visit Conquest of Steel online at www.conquestofsteel.co.uk