email SECRET HEROES HQ

Welcome backstage!

This is the backstage area with lots of hot inside stuff to come. Read an interview update on how things are going at SECRET HEROES HQ. Subscribe to our official newsletter to stay informed. Use the email link down left to make suggestions or ask questions.

Vote for your favorite SECRET HEROES song! Eternal Nights Highway Runner Maybe Tomorrow Broken Promises Same Player Shoots Again Steal Your Heart Away Get Laid (If You're Feelin' Like it) 20th Century Survivor Straight On Backdoor Hooker Show me the results

SECRET HEROES Interview

In general, how do you feel about the great press and response received so far on 'Loose, High & Free'?

Ryan: The reactions have been really great so far. In some reviews, we got compared to bands like Whitesnake, Kiss, Scorpions and Thin Lizzy. It’s a great honour for us to be mentioned alongside bands that have written important chapters in the history book of heavy metal rock. We even got mentioned as a more serious version of The Darkness, which we think is a quite funny comparison. But it shows that people are starting to appreciate metal again that is heavily influenced by the eighties. Personally, I think The Darkness are a great band, and “Permission To Land” is a monster of an album. They take the piss out of themselves, but after all, they know how to write good songs and play their stuff well. But back to “Loose, High & Free”, It’s really encouraging to hear that there are a lot of people out there who like what we do. It shows that we’re on the right track.

“Loose, High & Free” has been branded “album like a road movie”. Is it a concept album? Please explain…

Ryan: Most lyrics on the album have been written while being on the road, stopping here and there, seeing things, meeting people and listening to their stories. Just like in a road movie. Most of the songs on “Loose, High & Free” have their own story in them. “Maybe Tomorrow” for example is about a guy who leaves home for a career in the music biz, but it all gets too much for him. In the end, rock’n’roll lifestyle takes its toll and he gets killed. It’s based on a true story. Or take “Same Player Shoots Again”, a story about a gambling addict who looses everything. When he finds out that he got cheated by other players he pays them back his way, guess how . . . with a gun. He ends up behind bars, though. . .

You have a special going with the release of 'Loose High & Free'. The first 1000 copies get a special 12 page booklet, extra songs and a numbered CD. How did this idea form and how's the response been so far for this special?

Ryan: The response has been great, so we have decided to make it a „silver edition” with the band logo in special silver color on the cover. We thought it would be good to offer a little extra that makes sure it’s worth buying, so even people who got used to downloading and copying think about it. You won’t be able to copy a CD with silver color and an individual number on the label. With these features, the album is likely to be a collector’s item soon.

What is your favorite song off of this release and why?

Ryan: It depends on my moods, really. But I like “Highway Runner” a lot, cause it carries the idea of freedom and independence.

How did you guys meet?

Ryan: We grew up in the neighborhood and played in different bands. Every now and then we bumped into each other in bars or clubs and had a few drinks together. We talked about bands we like and found out that we are all fans of Van Halen, Aerosmith, Guns’n’Roses, Kiss and Judas Priest. One day we suggested that we should have a band together. It worked!

After meeting, how long did it take for you to form your sound and musical direction?

Ryan: We had been rehearsing about three months when we were asked to play at an important outdoor event in our area. So the pressure was on us to come up with an hour’s worth of material for the gig. Half of the songs on “Loose, High & Free” were originally written for that first show we did together.

Describe the music of Secret Heroes and what do you wish the listener hear when they play your disc?

Ryan: I hope they hear guitar riffs that make them think, “yeah, that’s something different after 20 years of Hetfield-Hammet staccato axe work and hundreds of thousands of bands copying that style”. Don’t get me wrong, I think Metallica are a great band. We just feel it’s just time for some different views again on how a heavy metal rock guitar should be used. And I hope, listeners acknowledge when a band tries something different, not only the guitar work, the big choruses in our songs as well.

What do you think of the way heavy metal has developed since the 80’s?

Ryan: There’s a lot of different directions metal has taken which I think is very interesting. As I said, Metallica seem to have had a great influence on 99 per cent of the newer guitarists around which make a lot of them sound alike. As you can imagine I’m not really into the extreme side of metal. I really don’t see the point in a band just making as much noise as it is capable of with no real structure in the songs and a singer barking into a microphone to it. Although I understand that is meant to shock people and wake them up, which first of all is a good thing Personally, I focus on trying to write good songs cause I think it is important to catch the listener’s emotions rather than just the aggression. Any song with a great guitar riff and a good chorus that makes people go wild is fine by me.

Which bands affect your musical works?

Ryan: We can’t deny that we’re all fans of bands like Van Halen, Judas Priest, Kiss or AC/DC but I think new bands like System Of A Down or Evanescence are great as well. It doesn’t nessecarily mean that they effect our musical work. Music is always an expression of many different influences, feelings and experience as well. That’s how bands have been creating their own styles since day one. We know that a lot of people say that we sound like an eighties rock band, but everyone comes up with a different band they compare us with. We really try not to copy anyone, and the reactions show that our music is seen as a mixture of influences, which makes it our own style.

One of the hardest things to do is find a name for a band. How did you come up with 'Secret Heroes' as the name for your band? Were there any other names considered?

Ryan: Everyone who stands up for what he believes in is a secret hero in his own right. We believe in freedom, true justice, and the right to rock and to party. That’s why we chose Secret Heroes. We didn’t consider another name cause we thought it’s the name that says a lot about the band and what it’s all about.

How long did it take before you guys scored a record deal?

Ryan: Rockparade Records liked our material a lot the first time they listened it, while the AOR people at the big record companies were just confused. They just think heavy metal rock has to be Metallica style and nothing else. They should stick to their HipHop and R’n’B stuff. We are happy with an independent label that believes in us and gives us the worldwide support we need, so to answer your question, no it only took a few months.

As you have indicated on your website, you suffered the loss of drummer Volker Meyer last year. How has this effected the band as a whole?

Ryan: Volker was one of the best drummers I ever heard, but in the end, he was a victim of his own lifestyle. It feels great to rock’n’roll all day and party every night, but sometimes you have to slow down to survive. We had to finish the album without him which was a sad thing because that was what he always wanted, to play drums on an album. But we will keep his spirit alive.

How do you want to see your band after five years?

Ryan: We hope we will be able to climb a few more steps to success. To be able to make records and tour different countries of the world is a big privilege that we would like to enjoy a few more years.

Do you have any messages for your fans?

Fight for what you believe in and never let people put you down!

Last words…

Ryan: If you want a fistful of heavy metal rock’n’roll straight into your face, get “Loose, High & Free”. If you’ve got some bucks, buy it as long as stocks last, it is individually numbered. If you’ve run out of cash, steal it. But the most important thing is: Make sure you turn up the amps and enjoy it! See you somewhere on the road!

If you are a music journalist and you would like to write a review for a magazine, website or newspaper or you are a radio dj and you would like to play songs from "Loose, High & Free" on the air, click the media button to register for the SECRET HEROES media site. There is press material for you to download.