Can you tell us about the origin of the band name, a history of the band and a little bit about the various members?
The origin of the band name.
An iron asparagus was a spear used by some sedentary tribes. The iron tip, reminiscent of the head of an asparagus, was carved to cause more damage in close combat than a traditional spear. It was used to repel terrible invaders, such as the Orcs of the Northeast.
History of the band:
At first, Iron was a way for me to spit my riffs while drinking beer. With several litres of hops, songs formed. Good enough for me to offer them some serious work. My relatives started humming them. The time came to get some of them out of my head, to make space for others.
Band Members:
First, it was important for me to have a strong drummer. I didn’t know Julien Blais before the Iron. A musician friend of mine told me that he was the best in the genre here in Quebec. Julien was more of a punk drummer. A very talented punk. He doesn’t use the double bass drum. With just one foot, when he goes into crazy mode, you’d think he was. Recently, a journalist who listened to Mr. Molotov, wrote to us that we shouldn’t have used the double bass at the end of the song. We took that as a compliment.
After making sure I had a good structure, I called my buddy Joe Maheux for the solos. He is the leader of Opusculus, an instrumental band, very strong in musicality.
Mikey Heppner from Priestess also came to the studio to do his stuff.
In addition to the rhythm guitars, I did the bass on the record. So, I’m still looking for my Cliff Burton.
Are you all from the same area? How did you get together as a band?
We are all around Montreal, yes.
Who are your favourite artists/bands and how have they influenced your own sound?
There’s a lot (from Black Sabbath to Pantera and everything in between), but to get into the mood, just before recording with the guys, I went back to Chaos AD (Sepultura) and NOLA (Down). Two albums I listened to a lot back in the day. The solid attitude of these albums gets me in shape.
Did you always have the ambition to be a musician and in a band or did you originally have other plans?
The ambition to be a professional musician was buried in everyday life. But the love we’ve been getting for the last month or two, since we shared a demo, has reignited the flame. I want to turn my hundreds of riffs into songs, no matter what.
What songs or albums are on your current playlist?
I’m preparing playlists to accompany each of our songs when they are released. In the Mr. Molotov playlist, what I have now:
– Electric funeral (Black Sabbath)
– School (Nirvana)
– Pistol grip pump (RATM)
– Breaking the law (Judas Priest)
– Bullet (Misfits)
– Burner (Motörhead)
– Propaganda (Sepultura)
– Expendable youth (Slayer)
– Leper Messiah (Metallica)
Do you sing in the shower?
Yes. Hits that I distort with crazy lyrics. These days, the first line of Soul Asylum’s hit Runaway train, “Call you up in the middle of the night”, becomes ” Fuck you up in the middle of the night” and it works pretty well.
Do you have any plans for the band for this year and into next year?
Spitting out these songs live is the ultimate plan for the next year. Do you know a good booking agent? Recording more songs would be great too.
Do you currently have any new songs/albums ready to be released?
Here’s the plan:
November 11th: release of single 1 // Mr. Molotov
December 9th: release of single 2 // Diamond in the dirt
January 20th, 2023: release of the EP (4 songs):
To whom it may concern… Fuck you!
If you could play at any venue in the world where would you choose?
We are getting an incredible response from Brazil and Mexico. So, we’re really looking forward to meeting the metalheads in these countries. Otherwise, if I had to choose a stadium, I’d go for Wembley.
Do you have a favourite album? If so, what is it?
A cruel question. A top 5 maybe? In the world of Metal, I would choose these, for the impact they had on the young Savage (and because I still listen to them). In no order:
– Ride the lightning // Metallica
– South of heaven // Slayer
– Vulgar display of power // Pantera
– Master of reality and Vol. IV // Sabbath
– Painkiller // Judas Priest
– Peace sells // Megadeth
– Piece of Mind // Maiden
– Chaos A.D. // Sepultura
Well, that’s closer to a Top 10, but I can’t name one without naming the other… They are, in my opinion, the definition of heavy metal. These are the albums I would give to a young person who wants to enter the amazing world of metal, it’s up to them to explore further afterwards.
Do you have any guilty pleasure songs/albums?
None. If I like a song, I listen to it without any embarrassment. Whether it’s with shitty 80’s keyboards, or with a snare that everyone hates, or with a mandolin as lead guitar, or with a fucking sweet chorus sung by a nun’s choir, if I like it, it plays. Pop, Classical, Rap, Country, Death, it’s the song and the thrill it gives us that counts.
If you were putting together the greatest show on earth, who would be playing?
Oh wow! I can travel in time and mix eras? We do a Monster of Rock with Metallica (with Cliff, and I smoke a joint with him backstage), Slayer in the Season era, Sepultura in the Chaos A.D. era, and we end the fucking show with ACDC, we are screaming their chorus and we’re well drunk. On vocals we have Bon Scott, but we also have the songs that followed his era. And to start this rock mass, we have Iron Asparagus, the new metal phenomenon. This Monster of Rock will visit 15 major cities in the summer of 2023.
Can you remember the first album you bought with your own money? What was it and do you still have it?
I can’t remember no. But I remember very well the first cassette I received as a gift. The Black Album. In the fall of 1991, I was a young man who had not yet grown his hair. On the way to school, our bus driver (may he rest in peace and thank him for the musical shock) would play this thing. I had to fight all my shyness demons to ask him what it was. Metallica. It wasn’t until the following summer that I received the album, on cassette, as I said. A gift from my older sister. I was living in a small village in Gaspésie, in eastern Canada. We were 40 minutes from Gaspé, the only town where there was a record store. My sister didn’t live with us anymore, so I didn’t see her often. She came over for lunch and had the Black album for me. The next day, the tape broke (after only 50 plays) during Sad but true. I phoned my sister in a panic. She was only going to come back in a week. She was going to take the cassette back to record store to try to get another one, and she was going to bring it back to me. The whole process took three weeks. A torture of waiting.
As your fans will be reading this, is there any message you would like to send out to them?
We wish only one thing, to go and meet you. It’s exciting to experience the birth of the group together. Thank you for being with us.
Finally, let us know all your social media sites so your fans, old and new, can find and follow/like you!
@iron.asparagus • Photos et vidéos Instagram
IRON ASPARAGUS (@IronAsparagus) / Twitter
We, at The Metal Asylum, would like to thank you for your time. Is there is anything further that you would like to add?
We, Iron Asparagus, would like to thank you. This is our first interview. Without passionate people like you, we wouldn’t be able to make it.
This interview is purely the property of The Metal Asylum