 Here we are with Joey Vera, Tom Busch, Armored St. Fame, yeah, they're Montreal promoting their tour with Kreensreich. That's right, metal guys. You've been doing this a long time. You've known Kreensreich for a long time. How did this come to come about this tour? How did it come about? Who calls who? Hey man, you just want to go on the road. It kind of works like that. I mean we are their agent called our agent and they said they were going out on the road and they were interested in taking us and we said love those guys. Let's do it. Pretty simple. Boom. Yeah and you had the punching the sky out. Were we able to tour for that or this is this is kind of where we're at? We did the WASP tour which we were supposed to do a second leg and that was coming up here to Canada playing Montreal but unfortunately Blackie had some physical elements he had to deal with. It was more pressing so we had to cancel that which were a bottom because the first leg was awesome. Take great but luckily Kreensreich was there and we just slid right on in. And you know when I think of Armored Saint I really think you know Joy you did stuff with Merciful Fate and Fate's Warning. Was there any talk of calling this Armored Fate at one point? That's pretty good. But I mean when they say Armored Saint it's a brotherhood. That's what comes to mind when I hear Armored Saint and you guys no matter what the challenges have been over the decades now you always rise to the top and then look you're again touring North America. So can you maybe elaborate on the relationship between everybody since the days? Well we've known each other a long time. We grew up together in the same neighborhood same part of Los Angeles and we first met each other in grade school. John, myself, and Gonzo are in the same age so we were all I think we met in the third grade something around there. By the time we got to middle school we had become tight friends and began hanging out on a regular basis and then that's when all the shenanigans started got into a lot of trouble together and eventually started getting into music together so we have a very long the three of us have a very long history and then Phil obviously is Gonzo's brother was a year older than us, one and a half years something like that so he kind of came along in that relationship as well early on. So that's when you refer to that I mean that's the lineage of you know we we are like a family we've known each other a very long time so that's that's why we're still able to continue and I think that's a bond that we have it's pretty strong and I think we're really proud of all that that bond and everything. Legacy. Yeah it is really yeah. Five decades of friendship which is a long time. Most bands can't even I don't even think the Stones can say that because they've had I think in college or something. Or maybe their friendship ended 30 years ago. That's possible but they're still going to and it's unbelievable a phenomenon. Yeah at their age if you foresee yourself during that of that age. Well I don't think too far in advance actually at this point we did all just turn 60 the three of us because we're the same age actually feels older which is crazy and he looks amazing you know just a couple years younger so it's yeah I don't really personally I don't really think beyond today like today's gonna be a great show sold out tonight it's gonna be an awesome the venue is beautiful we love Montreal and you know we came here with Metallica Moss 1985 had killer shows here it's a great city and you know to to think about singing Rain of Fire in 10 years is a little daunting for me so let's just try to get through tonight. Speaking of that I mean I asked all singers this and Udo says he doesn't understand but I'm not gonna bring your voice to Udo at all but I mean how do you keep that voice in shape I mean. Well just try to stay healthy as much as possible I mean that's the key ingredient for me you know but you're on the road you know we're touring and the 10 people on a bus with Queen Shrike VIPs you guys you guys could be contaminating me right now but you know you just try to stay as healthy as you can and really a lot of prep a lot of prep work and then the voice is strong you get out here try to stay healthy and and just go kick ass it's a muscle so it's like anything else actually the more you use it the stronger it becomes and yeah just try to have fun and knock away been singing pretty well actually and you know Jim and I have been doing this for a while now over a decade and Jim likes to talk about 1985 I'd rather talk what's happening in 2025 but some of the questions Jimmy had was you know we interviewed Brian Slago a couple of days ago to try to promote this tour as well he was talking about the accident you had Joey and how that might have paid with Tommy Lee and how that might have paid for the first album and can you explain a little bit about that or well it was money to went towards the first album well but the it was earlier than that it was in the spring of 82 so we hadn't even we hadn't done anything yet we hadn't done any recording yet so it was very early in the band's career and I was in the car accident with Tommy Lee who we were I was friends with them I was in a group with him before armored saint and everything so once armored saint started playing we did a gig and Tommy came to the gig and I went out partying with him and woke up in the hospital the next day so anyway through that I got insurance money from the accident from the owner of the car and so with some of that money six months later or so I can't remember when but we did a gig at the troubadour and Slego was there seeing us for the very first time and so he came up to us afterwards and said I'm putting out this second compilation metal massacre two and I have a track one is open merciful fate was supposed to be on it but for some reason didn't wasn't able to provide the track for them in time so he says coincidence that's crazy circle there but so if you guys can get a recording in time you can have the first opening track so we were like well okay well so I just still had some of this money left from the thing and we met with Bill Motoyer the engineer who worked with Brian a lot and I think like a week later we were in the studio recording what would become our first EP but at the time we just went in the studio and cut five songs first trunk the song we used was lesson well-learned and that's what ended up on metal massacre two so from that you know that that was our first release that and that's how that whole accident played into it and then later we released later like six months later in 83 we released a maxi single which was three songs from that recording and then Brian was saying why three songs is like as everybody was doing three songs at that yeah now they're probably doing it again yeah yeah yeah it's yeah we were we were ahead of the curve and has that first album been paid off finally or you're still paying for that first album is so much you know from March of the Saints I'm sorry well you know what that's funny yeah I say that because just recently Chris was a lot of bands are doing this because after 35 years you can can masters can can resort back to the bands or whatever so they we kind of actually Joey the lawyer he negotiated with the P with the with the money guy who's now it's it was a BMG BMG yes BMG now because all the labels consolidated and worked out a deal where they basically wrote off the debt for all three records because we were in debt for all three records about half a million dollars and they were nice enough to say okay we're done with that and so we now metal blade re-releases these records license him and and now we can make money on it which is cool yeah we packaged it and the whole nine yards yeah yeah yeah good and you know over the time like I said you've always had of these other projects but you've always come back to Armored Saint you know what was the feeling of you know being the brotherhood and then like John leaving to join anthrax and then maybe doing some other things was there any animosity about that or back then or it was all understood because you guys have been like you said known each other since you're in the eyes no I don't I not I'm not from not from me personally there was never anything like that you know I mean life just unfolded as it as it did and you know we're I always had his back when he decided to go join anthrax and it wasn't an easy transition for everyone in the group I have to admit but for me it was I don't know it was just it it was a good time for it to happen and especially in retrospect so for me no yeah and you know you're looking at Q prime right or I think they were in their management at one point with you guys well Q prime was actually with us twice ironically enough they were with us in the beginning as a matter of fact on what we born with Saint Simon to Q prime was actually before Metallica did so that's how old we were with Q prime it was funny and one of the things the jokes we always say is Cliff Bernstein with the first time we met him and we came to Joey's hap parents house where we were living where he was living we met him and first one of the first things he said is you're with chrysalis you signed a deal and we're like yes and he's like I hate chrysalis and we're like great okay but and then later we went back it was kind of an offshoot it was like the umbrella of Q prime but it was it was it was two other people who worked at the label Linda Walker and at the time she was actually Lars's girlfriend and then this guy named Tony Dachacho who actually worked there for years and they they worked with us during the symbol run but you know unfortunately I think everything that happened with symbols like everything that went into it with Dave dying with you know him being sick writing these songs it being a really amazing just special album and then this tour that followed that just didn't really kind of live up to it and you know a lot of frustration and just really not going through all that I think there was just a collective exasperated feeling well from everybody and so that's why the timing was almost like he said kind of almost perfect in a weird way obviously was not easy for me either but yeah you know it to be with Q prime twice and still not have success is a little bit like you know but it happens you know that's kind of armored saints story sometimes we say that with a slight sense of humor not always but you know it's like what do you do what you do all this stuff never really had any kind of ill effect on on the impact of the music we made and the band that we are and the shows we perform and we just keep trudging on and it doesn't even matter like you know I'm not saying it's always been easy but we just kind of say it's it's our it's our ball will take it and run when you know yeah and you would what happened after you hurt March of the Saints of production did you go back to Q prime and say oh we understand now what you mean they're about chrysalis well I mean I said Brian was saying that the production didn't even come close to what you guys sound really we didn't and we were always a very raw live kind of garage band and then that was just too polished you know that's what the label thought they should do Michael James Jackson we weren't happy either because we were like this is not what we sound like but yeah you know I still love March you know I think it's there's I look back and it just feels fine I don't you know I don't look oh wow we should try to remix that it was then yeah yeah so what's the demographic you're seeing at these shows all guys losing their hair like myself or younger crowd showing up a little bit of both you know it's been it's been refreshing actually to see a lot of young people which is great you know I mean of course there's the fans that have come with us come up with us since day one so they look a little older you know like us as we all do we're all fighting for the seats in the balcony yeah yeah me too but but you know a lot of them are bringing their kids and their kids are bringing their kids so that's been now you're dating I mean I'm telling you I we said we already said we're you know entered our 60s now so I swear there's there's kids coming up that are like you know they're like 10 12 you know to the all ages show which aren't very many but but the all ages show that some of these kids are that young and they're with their parents parents it's crazy so what can we expect for the set list tonight I was supposed to make it would you like to make it make it do it now our tormentors waiting for that as we speak okay it's a mix of stuff you know we want we're still thinking that punching this guy is a new record for us so we're we want to play a few songs off of that of course there's the classics that we kind of have to play but then we have some slots in our set that we move around every night it's really mostly for us so we don't get bored but also so that fans don't exactly know what to expect from us you know they can see the set list FM and know exactly what the set is if you don't change it but since we so we take there's a few slots during our set every day that we move in and out some deeper cuts that are fun for us to play and fun for fans to hear the fans as well yeah so it's it's it's a big mix of old and new okay and now is there a new album in the works yeah we started writing yeah we started writing we have about five to six songs done you know it's sounding cool sounding like it's just more growth we can go a little slow but probably should have a little urgency just because you know our ambition is to get a record out next year and that will still be five years after the last one which seems to be so we have to actually we have to work hard to get it done by next year but yeah it's gonna be cool it's there's always progression and growth with arm and sing you know we ever we we know what the foundation of the sound of the band is but we always are trying to expand on that and push ourselves and not do something that's just I was talking to somebody about it yesterday and it's like you know I don't I don't want to sometimes I said this before so I'll say it again you know heavy metal is crazy as it is in the imagery and you know the counterculture that sometimes it is to me sometimes it can almost like be borderline conservative because people say well that's what they want so I'm gonna give them what they want it's like well that's safe to me that's like don't don't do that try to put a little edge in there and little twist just so fans aren't going like you know they get what they because then it sounds like ten records that sound like themselves and the bottom line is give it or love it or not there's no way that you could say arm or sing records sound the same they just do not they don't so what would just sound different compared to punching this well I mean I don't want to put too much of an emphasis on it because it should be a natural organic development it shouldn't be like because once you start making this intended sound then that's a problem and you're getting methodical about it and and then a pilot backfire I just think we kind of feel like the sky's a limit and we could do anything we want and so like with that mentality you know Joey's you know he's the maestro and everyone contributes IT is what he kind of puts it together like a puzzle and it just kind of takes its own shape when he's not negotiating record contract I mean this guy wears many hats and he's incredible at doing that so my hair is all done you know a poor guy put through a lot of stress hopefully he'll have some nice you know it's all good and you know like speaking of the music you know for us it's always a stamp or a snapshot as to where we are at that moment when that music record was recorded or made or written and each like maybe it's a good thing we have a five-year period in between because if we made it every single year it would then it would start to blend into one another and they might all sound the same but each record we make is I think also I agree with John that there's you know not vastly different but they're different from each other no two records really have the same vibe or sound something about them is their own island and so that is that's kind of like a subconscious goal for us is to have every record be like that talk about the single because that's different even more so so we recorded a single in January and it's coming out this June June 12th on Metal Blade and it's a digital only single and it also has a video that we shot for it and it's really cool we did a cover of a four tops song we're huge R&B fans and we just thought again slightly outside of our comfort zone but things that I think we can handle and as a group we have the ability I think to straddle that line of heavy and funky and groovy at the same time so and John killed it with the vocals track came out so good so we're stoked but about that coming out and I think it just shows another side of us that's maybe not so serious and we had a lot of fun making the video it came out really really cool was looking sharp and I want to believe it as a secret yeah I'm already getting an image in my head I've worked for Little Caesar right I mean I wish it would rain and chain of fools yeah they did good versions of the song it's kind of fit it's always to yeah yeah so yeah it's really happy about that like five years before the record how do the lyrics work I mean because when you might have written five years ago and when it's released or what you do you write the lyrics just before going in the studio or relevant but not always relevant I think the key is to try my style is and it's really kind of developer over the years is to try to like kind of keep things were slightly open-ended where it can kind of grow with the time and you know it's not look I mean there's been some great recordings and and there's through the years from various artists that are of that time and you automatically think of that year that time which is great but for the most part I think sometimes it's I always say that sometimes some of the songs they actually take shape with the time and actually sometimes the meetings can change so for me it's it's kind of funny because I find certain songs that I wrote I had a certain mindset and then all seven five years ten years 20 years later it means something else and I'm like wow that's really cool yeah and I didn't say that they came all the way around and something else yeah yeah you know I think it's just trying to be creative with with lyrics and writing open open to interpretation open to interpretation trying to use different words it's not easy you know I have a lot of songs so trying to use different words different meanings different angles you know I'm not the most well-read guy in the world but a little bit but enough to say let's try to use different words I mean if I use a word and I go I didn't use that and I you know and it's done I've done it but and I reuse it but most of the time I try to find different word to have the same meaning it's a good school it's a little challenge but actually knock on wood lyrics haven't been too much of a problem that's actually still writer's block is not an issue with with lyrics or music and what about the documentary is that hasn't been released is it coming out there's a talk of a documentary we'll talk to the mister mister well well no I purposely tried to stay out of that because I think I don't need to have director of movie making to my play I don't need to I don't need that but a movie was made by a friend of ours we've known a long time has been a fan of us for a very long time Russell Charrington he's from the UK and he completed his vision his movie he's still looking for a home for it as in terms of distribution so I haven't heard we haven't heard anything about where that's going to be but apparently it's getting very close obviously the the place for it is in streaming services which is where most people watch things anyway so it did do it was part of a circuit of the film festivals last year so some things out of that have resulted in him getting closer to finding a home for it so I don't know hopefully we know something in the next couple of months and then you know with Charrington with Crease like he said you know them forever talking about the great vocalist and Todd and doing a great job of the Jeffs of course a fantastic vocalist so what's it like being with them and you know watching them do you watch their sets every night or a lot of the time yeah a lot of the time yeah I mean they're great they're just super talented guys yep you know Eddie and Michael oh geez or you know they just treat us extremely nice Eddie's made like breakfast food for us like two to three different times and the dinner he's always saying I got food for you guys are like what he's like in the bus making food for it's amazing buddy it's so it's so nice so nice so they treat us awesome we do it we did a tour before I think Joey toured with them with it's warning so yep there's a lot of history there and you know just just great band it's a great show like if you're a metal fan even a modern metal fan and you know all these two bands why would you not want to go see two bands that really you know developed in the 80s and are still here and I mean Queens right had a way more successful career than we did um I'm the empire mind-crimer to very very successful album so um and they're playing the warning which is a killer yeah so it's great you know people should be there and if they're not I don't know why and again you know we were looking forward to seeing you with wasp unfortunate that didn't happen we had our tickets and we got our reimbursement but you know this is since it's been announced it's been highlighted in the calendar I'm sure for many metal fans you can tell about the people a lot of people just waiting outside this bus so yeah again we got more dates coming you're doing dates on your own as well that's right yeah so let's talk a bit about that here's your chance and let's get some pr in there and then let's get everybody out to see you guys do you remember the the headline shows come up we are doing headline shows coming up yeah and we have a longer set so we get to play whatever an hour 15 so we go even deeper some of those sets I know we have Leesburg coming up is that a first headline yeah I think that's a fourth show that was our headlining show right and we're doing some stuff in Texas right with dangerous toys which we're doing a couple shows with us and we're playing la show yep the very end the last show we we're doing about eight weeks it was like whoa this is yeah this is long remember we just turned 60 yeah I told Erica we're going on seven weeks she goes it's eight it's eight I travel for my business as well and my work life and you know you watch the news and you think everybody's against each other but when you travel you're seeing that people are just like they've always been 80 90 percent of people are just friendly nice people and arguing and politics and all that really kind of don't play in anything if you don't listen to news you'd think everything was going hunky dory so are you seeing that on your travels well hopefully we'll see come november yeah we have our own set of issues there I am a little concerned actually but um you know we'll see we'll figure it out I hope well great talking to you guys again looking forward to the show tonight it's been highlighted on my calendar and many others and I can't wait to see it thank you very much it'll be my first experience seeing you guys oh wow we's right I've seen a few guys but like I said I was looking for that wasp wow I'm glad to came you guys we better be good tonight we better be a great and we will be well there you go with the metal voice Joey Vera thank you on bush the armored saint and you've got to get out and see these guys I'm sure it's going to be a great show with green