MELIAH RAGE
ANTHONY NICHOLS
Vocalist Mike Munro left the band after 1996's Death Valley Dream but he returned for the 2009 release Masquerade. The band's current lineup features Marc Lopes back on vocals, Anthony Nichols and Jim Koury on guitars, Darren Lourie on bass, and Stu Dowie on drums. I have spoken with Anthony Nichols, guitarist and founder of the legendary metal band Meliah Rage.
Where did the name Meliah Rage came from?
Well Jim Koury used to play in a cover band before Meliah Rage that was called Meliah Kraze. We took the Meliah part and added Rage to make it sound a little meaner! Also at the time when there were record stores, our records were in the very important "M section".....Manowar, Metallica, Megadeth, Malice, Motorhead, Mercyful Fate, Metal Church etc!
After only a few gigs you got signed to the major label Epic, How was it to work with them? did they support you enough?
I mean if you're a baseball player you dream of making a major league team, well as a young metal band playing non radio friendly metal getting signed to a major label like Epic was mind blowing at the time. We figured with luck maybe we'd get signed Metal Blade or something. It was great working with them because of the power majors have. We automatically got on a great tour with Metal Church and got MTV play on Headbangers ball (to all the young ones out there MTV was the only place to see videos back then). They certainly supported us but at the same time we saw the change coming quickly with Grunge on the horizon.
Did your two albums (Kill to Survive & Solitary Solitude) on Epic sell well?
We never got official numbers but we heard rumors of 50,000 in the US and the same in Europe for each release. Sounds like a lot now but back then it was ok I guess.
You toured with Metal Church, a band you quite often is compared to. How was it to go on a tour with them?
The first tour with them in 1989 was awesome. Metal Church was releasing their first record after "The Dark" and a tour with Metallica so they were stepping to next level. We did 3 1/2 months in the states with them and also did a US tour with them in 2007. It's a good match because I think both bands are a cross between thrash and straight ahead metal.
Meliah Rage 2014. From left to right: Darren Lourie, Anthony Nichols, Marc Lopes, Jim Koury & Stuart Dowie
How is it to be on a smaller label compared to a major?
That depends on which smaller label...some of the ones we've worked with have failed us but our present label Metal On Metal Records has been great. They are very detailed and professional. Couldn't be happier with them!
I like the consistency behind Meliah Rage's music, you never went down that Metallica-road by slowing down or incorporated other styles in your music. What do you think about that and do you agree?
Well that's up to each band and I see both sides of the debate. I know personally that the only one I write for is me and if other people like it that's great. That being said i've written and recorded music that wasn't quite metal enough to release as a Meliah Rage record so I've kept it seperate. As far as the big boys I have no issues with The Black Album, St. Anger or Death Magnetic. All three are metal-ish in their own way but I think James should have done a solo record instead of the two Load records. He obviously had some Lynyrd Skynyrd vibes going at the time.
You reunited with original vocalist Mike Munro for your Masquerade album, why didn't he continue with the band?
First was has three young kids and he let us know in advance he didn't have a whole lot of time to commit to the fute. Also that record never got a proper release and he was dissapointed as we all were with that..... Going back to your small label question!
It's almost three years since your last album Dead to the world, how was it received by the media and fans?
Most of the reviews were positive and it made bravewords.com top ten records of the year......no complaints!
You're working on a new album called "Warriors"? Can you tell us anything about it? When will it be released?
The record is called "Warrior" and it has release date in late April. The record has a looser feel to it than previous records. We left some of the dings and dents to give a different vibe than "Dead To The World" which is tight as a drum.
It is also your first album to feature vocalist Marc Lopes, how did you get in contact with him?
We met Marc thru a mutual friend and had record a demo with producer Rich Spillberg and liked what we heard. So here we are!
What bands had the biggest influence Meliah Rage's sound?
Well the band being born in the late 80's Metallica was obviously a huge influence. Megadeth, Judas Priest, Accept, Riot were also influences.
What's the highlight of your career?
Sitting in a hotel room in Boston signing a record contract with Epic! In 2007 we played a sold out show in NYC with Overkill, Metal Church and Joey Belladona that was a blast.
What's your plans for the near future?
That's a tough question at this point. I broke my wrist this past December and have a long way to go before I can play guitar again. I'm going to occupational therapy three times a week and have a second surgery scheduled for June so i'm trying but only time will tell what the future holds!
Have you got any funny story to tell, if anything weird has happened while touring or so?
OH....there's plenty of stories, but the good ones can't be told!
Any last words for our readers?
Well to the long time supporters of the band...thank you! And to the younger crowd that might not know of us, maybe check some youtube videos. You might like what you hear!
By/Ruthless
(08-04-2014)
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