Interview Andrew Hudson & Tim Joyce (face to face)

Hi guys, thank you for answering a few questions for the French webzine Aux Portes Du Metal.

Andrew : Thank you.

Tim : Yeah, it’s cool.

Well, as a starter, could you introduce the band to the French potential fans who don’t know you yet?

Andrew : We’re a thrash metal band from Australia. Our second album just came out with Metal Blade and we’re touring Europe with Annihilator. The band was formed in Melbourne when I was still in high school… in 2006, I think, but we didn’t start recording until 2011. For a very long time, we were just jamming and learning how to play our instruments, playing shitty gigs in crappy bars (laughs)…

So, this is your very first European tour, right? How has it been going so far?

Andrew : Yes, we had never left Australia before! And the tour is not bad at all!

Tim : It’s pretty hectic!

Andrew : The English audience were OK yesterday… I know you don’t like them but they were actually pretty good (he smiles)…

We like English people!!

Tim : Oh, you do ?! (laughs)

Andrew : Alright! They say French audience is crazy so I’m pretty excited about that. It’s sold out tonight, it should be a good show.

How did you get to participate in this tour?

Andrew : I emailed Jeff Waters and asked him nicely. Good manners will get you everywhere! (laughs) They put an ad last year saying they would tour Europe and need a support band, so we asked and they let us come… and now we’re here!

You’ve recorded a couple of EPs and two albums so far. How has the band, its sound and style have evolved since the beginning?

Tim : “Origin”, our previous album, had much more melody and catchy choruses, the new one is more brutal, aggressive, definitely faster…

Andrew : We wanted an angrier album this time…That was the progression we wanted for our second record.

This album was first released with another cover (red with a big green virus) on another label, right?

Tim : It was independently released… We just released that in Australia, on our own.

Andrew : Yeah, it was a pressing that we did just for our Australian audience… and around the time we were doing that, Metal Blade approached us with a record deal…

Tim : And they didn’t like that cover (laughs)!! They said “we’ll make you a new one”!

Andrew : So we put a hold on our online sales and waited six months for Metal Blade to release “Proliferation”.

The first time I heard a couple of songs from you, I was impressed by their tightness, the perfect execution and the massive sound. I could also hear influences such as Slayer, Kreator and Exodus… Are these your favourite thrash bands?

Andrew : Absolutely! We’re not doing anything new here… All the bands we’ve listened to heavily influenced us. We don’t want to copy them but we just want to play the music we love. We love Kreator, we love Slayer… you know, fast angry music. Also, do you know Guillotine?

No, I don’t.

Andrew : They released an album called “Blood Money”. It’s one of the best thrash albums ever made.

Tim : It’s fantastic!

Andrew : Check it out, it’s brilliant. They’re so much better than we are!! (laughs)

Well, everybody knows about the Big 4. What is your personal Big 4?

Andrew : Well, there’s definitely gonna be Slayer in it!

Tim : Yes, Slayer, for sure. I’d say Megadeth, Kreator…

Andrew : You need one more…

Tim : Yes…

Andrew : I’ve got four !! Slayer, Kreator, Testament and Overkill!

Overkill, interesting choice…

Andrew : Yeah, I’ve never seen a more entertaining band in my entire life! They’re so good live. They’re just relentless… Bobby Blitz is the man! Tim, you need one more band.

Tim : Ok, I’d say Revocation!

Do you remember the vey first record that made you say “Alright, that’s what I want to do!”?

Andrew : Yes, I do… but it’s a bit embarrassing… (he smiles)

Why? What is it?

Andrew : It was in 1997, “Reload” by Metallica ! I was seven years old!

Alright, it could have been much worse than this. It’s certainly not the best Metallica album, but there’s a couple of great songs on it, such as “Fuel”!

Andrew : Yes, I love that song. What a great start for an album!

Tim : For me, it was Metallica too but “Kill’Em All”.

Back to your new record: you’ve released a pretty funny video for “Systematic Reduction”! I was wondering, was the budget really 55 Australian dollars?

Andrew : Ha ha ha! Yeah, it was!! It’s like 10€. I’m glad you liked the video because that’s a very Australian video.

Tim : It’s a bit of a trend to make a stupid video in Melbourne.

It’s surprising you chose a song that actually lasted less than 2 minutes for a video…

Andrew : Yes, the song is 90 seconds long. The thing with joke videos is that if they get too long, the joke gets old… So we chose a song that seemed appropriate for that. So I think it was funny but not so long that it became boring. And it cost 55 dollars to buy everyone lunch (laughs)!

What would you say to someone who doesn’t know Harlott to convince him or her to listen to the band?

Andrew : It is high energy angry thrash metal music with a modern sound and a teutonic vibe that will absolutely get your fists pumping and your head banging… And if you like to have a little bit of a laugh, come and see us play live!

Pretty usual question I suppose but, in France, we do know a lot of American and European thrash metal bands but not so many Australian ones. What about the thrash scene in Melbourne? Any recommendations for us?

Tim : Well, the thrash metal scene is active in a small way, it’s limited…

Andrew : Australia is too big of a country and the population is too small for an underground music to carry much weight… but there are thrash bands such as Desecrator, they toured Europe with Hirax lately… In Malice’s Wake…

Tim : Yeah, they just got signed to Punishment 18 Records.

Andrew : Mortal Sin, they broke up… Hobbs’ Angel Of Death…

Tim : They’re still kicking around!

Andrew : There are bands… but we don’t get overseas much…

What’s next for Harlott right after this tour?

Andrew : A bit of a break (laughs)!

Tim : Yeah, and we’ll have to get back to work.

Andrew : Yes, I think we land in Melbourne on a Tuesday night and I have to go to work on Wednesday morning! Well, after that, we’ll write another album, I think.

Thank you, have a great show and a great tour! Hope to hear/see more of you in the near future.

Andrew : Thank you very much for your support.

Tim : Thanks, man.