Buckcherry Release Their 11th Album ‘Roar Like Thunder’
Following the worldwide acclaim for their 2023 release, Vol. 10, Buckcherry today release their eleventh album, Roar Like Thunder. As with Vol. 10, and its predecessor Hellbound, Roar Like Thunder was recorded in Nashville at Sienna Studios and produced by Marti Frederiksen. All ten tracks were written by vocalist Josh Todd, guitarist Stevie D, and Frederiksen. Buckcherry’s follow-up to their tenth album Vol. 10 (which made its mark across ten Official Charts listings, including a #4 spot in the UK Rock and Metal Album chart and #6 in the UK Independent Album chart), Roar Like Thunder, saw the band return to Sienna Recording Studios in Nashville with long-time writing collaborator and renowned producer Marti Frederiksen [Aerosmith, Mötley Crüe, Ozzy Osbourne] to record the album along with Marti’s son Evan Frederiksen.
The two-time GRAMMY-nominated band have created an album that’s bursting at the seams with lightning-hot rock’n’roll. From the horn-swelling swagger of I Go Boom and the honey-dripping riffs of Blackout, to the AC/DC stomp of Come On and the frantic runaway train rhythm of the title track, Roar Like Thunder sees a band that bring live rock ‘n’ roll to the stage more days a year than the sun is seen in Britain and set that energy off like a bottle rocket in the studio. The album was mastered by Anthony Focx [Metallica, Aerosmith]. Stevie D talks to Hi Fi Way about the album and the possibility of a tour early next year.
Congratulations on the new album. It’s brilliant. You’ve got to be really stoked with how album number eleven turned out?
Yeah, there’s a lot of hard work in the end of 2024, and we’ve been sitting on it for a few months. You never know how it’s gonna be received, and so far we’ve dropped a single here, a single there. The critics have all got their hands on it, and it’s all been positive. So I’m delighted.
Absolutely. it seems like Buckcherry has just found the right groove, you know with a new album every two year and hitting a lot of good form.
Well, yeah, I’m really grateful that after all this time, people always ask you, what’s your idea of success? And to me, not everyone gets to be the Foo Fighters or AC/DC. But some of us get to just keep touring and releasing new music. I’m really grateful that we still get to do this after twenty years. Gosh, twenty five years. So yeah, I’m so happy that we’re releasing another album.
Do you think the band dynamic as it sits right now is part of the reason why you’re really nailing these albums? Vol. 10 was fantastic as well.
Yeah, I don’t know. I just think this is just our path, and we’re going with the flow. I think the past happened for a reason, and the future, or the present, is happening for a reason. So I’m just going with what’s in front of me. It’s hard to quantify or analyse anything that’s gone on before and make sense of it, because there’s no playbook. There’s no rule book on how to do it one way and find success, or even what failure is to me. So, I’m just doing the best I can, writing the best songs, giving you the best riffs I can.
Four albums in six years, that’s pretty good going for any band in the current climate?
Yeah, I mean, we love what we do. Time and the universe have blessed us with the means to do it, and that’s got a lot to do with Round Hill Records and Josh Cruz. And then we have a great team around us, Larry Mazur and your good friend Marti Frederiksen. These are all guys that are part of our family and who keep pushing us to keep doing what we’re doing.
How significant is Mart’s influence, particularly in the songwriting process?
We’ve talked about it before, he’s like the sixth member, and he’s got a catalogue of experience that is top shelf. I don’t think we could have produced this kind of music or reached this level without him. He’s been so clutch in the writing, producing, arranging, and even his son now in the engineering. So yeah, he’s a very integral part of what we do.
Josh said that he wanted a straight-up rock record, no covers, no ballads. Was the vision that clear when you started to approach this album?
Yeah, a straight-up rock record is spot on, no covers and no ballads. We knew that, because ballads, even though they were a big part of our success on 15 and our songwriting language growing up, don’t have much of a place in the marketplace now. So we went into this with one goal in mind: to make a great rock record with good songs on it. We didn’t have a sonic preference for where we wanted to go. On Vol. 10, it was a goal of mine to have the production very similar to an ’80s sound, big guitars, big drums, layers of bells and whistles. This one ended up being guitars straight into amps, just room reverb, and pretty dry drums. So you’re just getting raw rock and roll.
Does the process get any easier, especially with experience and getting better at what you do?
I mean, it’s a little easier, but I would say the process goes a little quicker. We understand each other’s musical and writing language, so there aren’t a lot of verbal cues happening. I just know what Marti wants to hear by the way he’s leaning or singing, same with Josh. There always is a point where we hit a roadblock trying to find the right part or a segue into the next section. But overall, I think we can write and record albums much quicker because of the experience we’ve had with each other.
How do you see the comparison between Roar Like Thunder and Vol. 10?
Well, in basic terms, Roar Like Thunder is just a more stripped-down rock and roll record. It’s gritty, with less distortion, just cleaner guitars so they poke out more in the mix. I don’t mean to disparage Vol. 10. To me, that’s one of my favorite records ever. It sounds big, the riffs are snarling. But yeah, they’re apples and oranges, really.
In terms of your vision, did the end result match what you thought it was going to sound like?
Yeah, it does. I didn’t have a lot of preconceived ideas. Once the demos sound really close to the end result, sometimes we’ll use the guitars and just transfer them to the new session because we like the guitars. I never know, like this one, when we were done with the recording process, I was sitting there thinking, “Is this it? Am I proud of all the hard work we’ve done? Is this one going to pop?” I wasn’t sure. I did the best I could, and then when we released our first single, Roar Like Thunder, it debuted bigger than any of our first singles in the last five years. So, I felt good but wasn’t sure, and it ended up panning out that we did good.
When you chart so strongly, that must be really encouraging?
Yeah, it’s encouraging. But I’ve been taught not to follow that too closely. We haven’t gone to conventional radio here in the States for over five years now because of the state of music. We go straight to the people via the internet. If you watch a chart in England and Germany, we went number one because Roar Like Thunder is going to radio there. But it’s just not a good idea to watch the charts. Put your best foot forward and don’t be attached to the results.
What was your reaction when you played the album back for the first time? I know you said, “Is this it?” But once you got your final version back, were you pretty chuffed with what had been created?
With the first playback, I’m really listening for sonic qualities. Is the guitar loud enough? Is the vocal moving me? It’s hard not to have A&R ears on. The first time I listen to it as just a fan, because I’m still a fan of this band, I put it on in the car and take a long drive and it hits me. Then I know, yeah, this is the best we could have done at the time.
Do you look forward to the tour cycle and getting back out on the road?
Yeah, we’ve already started the tour cycle. We went across Canada and played three new songs: Roar Like Thunder, Set It Free, and Come On. We’ve already got videos for them, so those are out, and the reaction has been fantastic. Touring now is bittersweet because we all have families. Touring means work, and work means taking care of your family, but it also means you’re gone. I love what I do, I’ve always loved what I do. But the game has changed a little bit in recent years with raising a family.
Having only recently toured here in Australia, but are there plans to come back and do a more extensive tour this time around in support of the album?
Right now we have the summer tour doing headliners. In August, we’re with Scorpions. In December, we’re with Mötley Crüe and Def Leppard and then in January, we’re targeting Australia again, either January or February. I can’t tell you who the bill is, but you’re going to love it. It’s a rock and roll bill with a somewhat legendary singer, but I can’t tell you who it is just yet. I’m hoping we get back to Japan since we haven’t been there in quite some time. Australia is a second home for us. We love it there. Our fan reaction, they get Buckcherry. You guys love it, and we love you for it. We’ll be there within the next ten months. Promise.
Interview By Rob Lyon
Roar Like Thunder is out now through Earache Records
