Buckcherry Going ‘Hellbound’ In Australia

Silverback Touring is going hard bringing you the ultimate Rock Package by delivering two of the hottest live bands on the planet BUCKCHERRY and FOZZY starting tomorrow in Brisbane. BUCKCHERRY recently dropped their incredible new and possibly best yet, album Hellbound featuring singles 54321, Hellbound and So Hott. Returning to Australia armed with a new album Hellbound BUCKCHERRY staunchly uphold the commandments of rock music with an arsenal of anthems primed to explode on impact live on stage and teeming with riotous energy, sexy swagger, and primal chops intact. It’s something that the boys have done since day one, but it’s more necessary now than ever. With an array of classic such Lit Up, Crazy Bitch, Sorry, Say Fck It and All Night Long, BUCKCHERRY are ready to once again party down under. Hi Fi Way speaks to Stevie D about the tour and the year they have had.

Great to be talking to you, it sounds hectic for you being back in the studio before heading to Australia?
It’s been a whirlwind here. We’re making an album and it’s going great. I just get side tracked with a ton of things throughout the day.

A new album? That is exciting, how is that going and is that continuing in the same vein as Hellbound?
The process is going swimmingly right now. Everything is coming together easily, and everyone is executing, pistons are firing and that’s actually putting us a little ahead of schedule, which is great. The album sound is heavier than Hellbound, we had written over twenty songs through the last year and a half, Josh and I. Then we also went to Nashville to write a bunch with Marti Frederiksen, who did our last album. It started to become clear to us that what we wanted to have was this bigger sound from the last album or from the last several albums. We were listening to a lot of Bob Rock Productions and I was writing a lot of heavier riffs, but all still rock and roll, nothing heavy like Josh Todd and the Conflict, but just more like rock that Bob Rock was producing in the late eighties, early nineties. The overall sound on this album may ring familiar to that.

Has that creative energy carried over from making Hellbound which was a good album experience for the band?
Yeah, we had a wonderful experience on that. A lot of those songs were I’d say lock stock Buckcherry, and this one we’re stretching out a little bit more into our influences. There’s a ton of lock stock Buckcherry on this album, but there’s also just bigger guitar tones, bigger drum sounds and that kind of thing.

How important is that partnership with Marti Frederiksen? Is he almost like a unofficial member of Buckcherry in a lot of ways?
Yeah! He’s a sixth member and we rely on him a lot. He’s just a very musical producer and he’s worked with a lot of people that we respect. We also worked with him early on in our fifteen days. The relationship with him is invaluable. I don’t want to make another record without him.

It must be great to be back in the same room together making music together compared to the Covid style of working?
Even back during the lockdown, we started to work via Zoom calls, but then we had to be in the same room. What we did last time is we tested, we started playing with masks going in the same room, and then we eventually just said let’s test. If we don’t have it, we can be in the same room unmasked. You know what I mean? We could be our own little pod, and this process has been the same, so pretty effortless. Marti’s son is also producing and engineering Evan Frederiksen, and he’s doing great. We are getting more done with two producers and the band, it’s going great.

Is the timeline for release possibly later next year?
I think by summer the album should be out. We’re excited!

What a way to finish off the year with an Australian tour and topping off a big year for Buckcherry?
We’ve had a big year! Alice Cooper, Kid Rock, Kiss and then our own headlining tours. Then top it off with our favourite, you know, Australia! They love the Rock over there. They like the Buckcherry brand of rock. We love you guys, so we’re really looking forward to it.

Looking at how well Hellbound did you must be stoked that the interest in Buckcherry is as strong as ever?
It’s no secret that rock is in a different place than it used to be years ago. We recreated this band in 2005 and it’s still going strong all these years later. I couldn’t be more grateful for this to be happening.

Fozzy is an awesome addition to the tour as well.
Yeah, he’s a lovely, lovely human being and same with the rest of the guys. We love those guys. They’re a lot of fun.

On this tour are you focusing more on Hellbound?
There is quite a bit of Hellbound on it, but we always play the hits, Lit Up, Crazy Bitch, Sorry, Ridin’, all the obvious songs. It’s all about the fans, what they’ve requested we usually play.

How was the Kiss Kruise? I’ve always been fascinated. We see all the photos from afar here in Australia, but that must be an awesome tour experience?
They’re legends in every sense of the word. I have a new found respect for Gene. I’ve always, always been a fan and we’ve toured with them before, but I just saw sides of Gene that I’d never seen before on this cruise. It just reinforced me being a fan. So playing with them is always a treat.

Do you feel like this year has probably been some of the best shows that Buckcherry has ever played?
Every year seems to have its shining moments. This one for sure is up there. I think every year we get gifts, like playing with Kiss or Alice Cooper, before it’s been playing with Motley Crew or getting a platinum album. During Covid we were certified for another million records, so we’re stoked.

After the Australian tour do you get to stop and take a break or is it about to the maintaining the momentum going in to next year?
Yes! We’re taking a break, a much-needed break. During this break we’ve been making a record, so we’ve been working. December, January, February, we’ll have off, we’re going to have a few surprises coming in March and we’ll announce those real soon.

Are you able to switch off from music and go fishing or something else?
Josh is a big fishing guy. He likes fishing and tennis. I’m into photography, but I’ll be producing a, a few other bands during the hiatus. Billy is a luthier and has a company called Rock and Roll Relics, we’re all pretty busy. Our good friend is going to be playing with Ray Wiley Hubbard, we’ll be watching him from afar. So, you know, it’s all good. We we’re going to enjoy our lives while we have this break.

Interview By Rob Lyon

Catch Buckcherry with Fozzy on the following dates, tickets from Silverback Touring…