Masters Of Disguise have risen from the ashes of the last existing Savage Grave line-up, standing for the virtues of US speed and power metal like back in the old days. With the aim of delivering nothing less than a worthy successor to Savage Grace ‘s “Master Of Disguise” album from 1985, they put together ten songs with the feeling and the intensity of US metal in its prime.
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Hello and Welcome To Acier Doux Webzine Tunisia, Since your band is underground in the initial meaning of the word , an introduction to you music would be necessary ?
Alexx : Hello everybody. The style we play with Masters Of Disguise is called oldschool US speed Metal in the veins of Savage Grace. As Kalli and Mario have been memebers of the 2010 Savage Grace lineup it was consequential to continue this style when Chris Logue disappeared after writing a few songs with the boys.
Even if the style of Master of Disguise more technical and speedy , it isn’t so different from Viron and Seduction … Perhaps not so fats and morbid, but something remains in common. Which influences would you quote and what are the biggest differences in your opinion ?
Alexx :Seduction were influenced by classical melodic power metal bands like Stratovarius or maybe Helloween. Viron were influenced by German, English, but also US metal styles. Every member of the band brought in his preferences. The thing they all had in common was just the singer…lol.
The biggest difference of course is, that Seduction had Keyboards. Viron and Masters Of Disguise don´t. Masters Of Disguise is faster but straighter than Viron, as Viron for me always was a litte bit “bulky”. Better I can´t explain.
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Who were you thinking about when you choose the band name or its from the Speed Metal Band Savage Grace album moniker ? In other words, who do you wish to Master of Disguise ?
Alexx : The band name is actually a reminiscence to the Savage Grace album Master Of Disguise. And with the word “Master” in it it is a very powerful bandname. Everybody should now what style we play and how well it is played when he looks and the bandname.
You seem to be satisfied with the last realse ”The Fine Art of Aging Gracefully” EP, but the outcome is greatand the production is cool. What will be more with your next recordings ?
Alexx : We are right now in the studio to record our third full length album. The songs will be slightly different to the last two albums as we tried to copy the Savage Grace style in our own way. At this time we did just what we wanted to do. We have written a song in a Manowar style for example which is very cool. But of course we have several very fast and soaring songs too, I promise.
Did you play gigs? How does Master of Disguise sound in real conditions, I mean during live, or rehearsals, compared to the recordings? Is it rawer, cruder or faster ?
Alexx : We played several gigs in the last years. Actually it´s rawer, not faster. Ok, sometimes faster, but without purpose, haha.
Which records are the most played on your turn-table these days ? In which color do you see the future of the band? I let you conclude a putrid manner ?
Alexx : In the last 3 months die new Bonfire album was the most spinned album in my player. What a surprise, haha. But I also listened to the album Nosferatu from Bloodbound, Headless Cross from Black Sabbath and Black Hand Inn from Running Wild many times.
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Well before we forget that you are the singer of the legend Heavy Metal Band Bonfire , can you tell me about your career with it ?
Alexx : Well, that is an interesting story. At the end of July 2016 I got a call from Hans Ziller. Bonfire were looking for a spare singer for 3 months as the former singer David Reece had left the band inbetween the running tour. They announced Michael Bormann to be the new singer after these 3 months. For me and my bandmates of Masters Of Disguise, Roxxcalibur, Purple Rising and Beyond The Rainbow it seemed to be a good opportunity to gain some promotion when I would tour with Bonfire. So everybody told me to do this job. Of course I wanted to do it. After maybe the half of planned shows Hans asked me if I want to be the steady singer of Bonfire as he recognized that I sometimes remind him to Claus Lessmann. Furthermore we had lots of fun together and the chemistry was right. Of course I agreed. I always dreamed of playing in a band with a professional background. So here I am…
What about Purple Rising , Roxxcalibur ?
Alexx : Unfortunately I was not able to commit any shows for Purple Rising for 2017 as Bonfire is a busy band and tours pretty much. So it was unavoidable that the band would need a new singer. I suggested my bandmates to ask a singer I treasure for his skills and he was the right choice. So he is now the new Purple Rising singer and I have left the band. Roxxcalibur is “put on ice” as not just me but also Neudi is very busy with Manilla Road and the new resurrected band Trance. We don´t want to break the band. We are ready to play whenever we all have time and somebody is willing to book us…
When did you discover Metal ? When did you discover Heavy Metal ? What was your first Metal album ? What did you like in this kind of Metal then, and why was it without any doubt better than other genres of music ?
Alexx : I discovered metal when I was 17. That was in 1992, no good time to fall in love for metal..haha. I can´t exactly remember my first metal album, but I know that I first listened to Helloween, Running Wild, WASP, Manowar, Rainbow Accept and Judas Priest. Iron Maiden and Metallica came later, then bands like Savatage, Iced Earth and many more. The first Manowar album I ever listened to was Kings Of Metal. I´ve been so impressed by these incredible vocals and the music itself. This album was the real kickoff for my “Metal career”. Some people feel it, some people don´t. I felt it from the bottom of my heart. But I also listen to other genres sometimes. I like some musicals for example.
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Where you involved in webzines in the 00’s ? What were the names? Tell us more! Webzines were quite a change compared to paper zines, even though I remember the web of the first years was much more relaxed, the underground metal appeal wasn’t very different from paper zines… What has fucked the whole affair in your opinion? Was it about the amount of peoples ?
Alexx : I´ve never been involved in any web or fanzines. I don´t read so much.
Do you still read paper zines, or unfortunately the web has won in your world? Perhaps you read only
old paper zines from the 90’s and spend loads of cash on ebay to lay your hands on a few items of embalming love ?
old paper zines from the 90’s and spend loads of cash on ebay to lay your hands on a few items of embalming love ?
Alexx : The dark side has taken control over me, I became an net junkie…sometimes I buy a print magazine but not frequently.
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Considering you had signed a contract with Limb Music . do you think this contract is still valid ? Are you working on Nes album, under the same label ?
Alexx : See above. The new Masters Of Disguise album will be released in summer or fall 2017 on Limb Music. So stay tuned…
Thanks for the answers…
Alexx : Thanks for the interview !
Interviewer : Med Manef Slama
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