Exclusive Interview: Against Evil talk “End Of The Line”!

Last week saw Against Evil, a Traditional Heavy Metal quartet from the city of Visakhapatnam in India unveil their highly anticipated third album “End Of The Line“.  Formed in 2014 and combining elements of  traditional heavy metal, power metal and speed metal with modern production value, the band are on a crusade to take on the World, joining the likes of The Raven Age in a new era for the genre…

Did you feel under any pressure going into recording “End Of The Line” after two critically acclaimed records in 2015’s “Fatal Assault” and 2018’s “All Hail the King”?

“Not at all. We always make music for ourselves and not for our audience or fans so there’s never any pressure”

You returned to Simone Mularoni at Domination Studio (Damned Spring Fragrantia, Aguzzi, Across The Swarm) to mixed and master “End Of The Line” as he did with your last record “All Hail The King“. How did you come to choose to work with him and what was that process like?

“We found out about Simo and Domination Studio back in 2015 when we were looking for studios to mix and master our first single and EP. He has mixed every song and album of ours since then. He is extremely talented and awesome to work with. He knows exactly how to get the sound in our head onto the record. He also keeps pushing us for better performances which has definitely helped us become better musicians”

How did the guest appearance of Billy Sheehan (Talas, Steve Vai, David Lee Roth, Mr. Big, Niacin and The Winery Dogs) on “Out for Blood” come about? What is the story behind it?

“We got a chance to get in touch with Billy through our friend. We asked him if he would be interested in playing bass on one of the songs. “Out for Blood” was the obvious choice because it has an 80’s metal/hard rock sound to it which Billy is really famous for. We sent him a demo which he loved and agreed to play immediately”

How important has your relationship with German/Swiss-based record label Doc Gator Records been in spreading the word of Against Evil in Europe?

“Our collaboration with Doc Gator Records has been the stepping stone for our entry into the European metal scene. We have always had European fans but Doc Gator Records helped take that to the next level”

In the summer 2019 you did a crowd funded tour of Europe with club shows and festivals, sharing stages with likes of Queensryche, Riot V and Hardline. What are your fondest memories of that and are you looking forward to coming back?

“The entire 45 days of that tour is an experience that we will never forget. We got the chance to play some really epic festival and club shows and most importantly, got the chance to meet our friends and fans that made the tour happen. We can’t wait to go back, meet everyone and play the new songs live. We have already started planning for a tour later this year but it all depends on the corona virus situation”

One of our favourite cuts on the record is “Metal or Nothin’”, a tribute to those who helped raise the funds for that European tour. It’s a bit of a cliché but it’s really good fun. Which songs from the record are you looking forward to playing live the most and why?

“Traditional heavy metal is always a cliché! It’s that epicness, familiar sound and themes which makes it so awesome! We are looking forward to playing the entire album live”