{"id":16585,"date":"2016-10-14T01:00:05","date_gmt":"2016-10-14T05:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southeastofheaven.com\/?p=16585"},"modified":"2016-10-14T16:36:25","modified_gmt":"2016-10-14T20:36:25","slug":"blowin-wind-with-savage-masters-stacey-savage-you-see-some-bands-up-there-in-age-putting-on-better-shows-than-people-even-younger-than-me-i-dont-think-there","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.southeastofheaven.com\/?p=16585","title":{"rendered":"Blowin\u2019 Wind with Savage Master\u2019s Stacey Savage: \u201cYou see some bands up there in age putting on better shows than people even younger than me. I don\u2019t think there\u2019s a point where you really need to give up. If you\u2019re still doing it well, keep doing it.\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

I just a few short years, Louisville, KY metal band Savage Master has gone from fledgeling newcomers to top of the heap contenders in the NWOTHM movement. Savage Master has grown by leaps and bounds and shows no sign of slowing down. The band has gone from playing the seedy bars of Louisville to being a mainstage act at the legendary Keep it True festival in Germany.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Savage Master embarked on their first US headlining tour this year and lead vocalist Stacey Savage took some time out to talk with me before their amazing Atlanta show. We talked about Savage Master\u2019s appearance at Keep it True, what she does to get in the zone before a show, and the hazards of being a member of Savage Master. It was so great to talk with Stacey again and I hope you all will enjoy this fun interview.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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Stacey, thank you so much for taking the time out to do this interview today!<\/strong><\/p>\n

No problem. It\u2019s good to talk to you again.<\/p>\n

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Now that Savage Master has been in the game a bit, I know you\u2019ve been doing a lot of interviews.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yeah. The biggest time for interviews was before our European tour. I think I did about 25 interviews. For me that was a lot.<\/p>\n

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Now that you\u2019re doing more interviews, do you find yourself getting more comfortable doing them?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A little bit but I think it\u2019ll always be one of those things where your mind goes everywhere and you don\u2019t know what to expect [laughs].<\/p>\n

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What question do you get asked so much that if you get asked it again you\u2019ll rip their head off and drink from their skull?<\/strong><\/p>\n

[laughs] Oh, I don\u2019t know. It\u2019s kind of good to get asked some of these questions because it gives me time to think of a better answer to give them each time. I get asked a lot about being a female in metal. My first response is usually more reactionary but then the more I think about it the more I can give a more elaborate answer that\u2019s more of what I really think and not just me being annoyed at the question.<\/p>\n

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So just to touch on that topic a bit, does it really annoy you when you get asked that?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yeah, sometimes it does. Sometimes I\u2019m glad to be able to talk about it but other times I don\u2019t feel like I should be speaking on the behalf of women. It\u2019s interesting to think about. You can think about it as much as you want but there\u2019s no real answer. My perspective is from being a female but I don\u2019t have anything to contrast that to because it\u2019s not like, I was a male and now I know the difference [laughs]. I have nothing to compare it to so it\u2019s kind of hard to answer those questions sometimes.<\/p>\n

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The last time we talked, Savage Master was about to release With Whips and Chains. Now that the album has been out for bit and you\u2019ve had some time to sit with it, is there anything you\u2019d do differently?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019m actually pretty happy with it to be honest. For me personally, this is my first band so it\u2019s only the 2nd album I\u2019ve ever played any part on. I never expected the first band I would ever be in to get this kind of reaction and it\u2019s something that I can get behind and really feel by putting my own emotions into it.<\/p>\n

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I know that a lot of bands pretty much start working on a new album once an album has been released. Is that the case with Savage Master?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Adam (Neal; guitarist) is the main songwriter. He writes a little on the road sometimes but we\u2019re going to be putting out a 12\u201d single EP. He\u2019s been working on a couple of songs for that and he\u2019s let me listen in and I haven\u2019t yet but I need to start writing lyrics. He\u2019s about halfway done with the four songs. Once we get home we\u2019ll have to start hitting it hard and he\u2019ll have to finish those songs and I\u2019ll do the lyrics so we can knock them out in the studio.<\/p>\n

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Has Savage Master ever thought of doing a covers album or something? This seems to be a popular thing for bands to do these days.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nah, we\u2019re pretty much set on doing original material. There might be a cover on this new EP. Usually when we do covers it\u2019s because we\u2019re doing one live or if we\u2019re doing something for a covers\/tribute album and use it for a b-side. The b-side of our Black Hooves single was a cover of the Riot songs \u201cSwords and Tequila.\u201d As of now, that\u2019s how we handle the covers.<\/p>\n

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Did you ever hear from Riot as to what they thought of your cover?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Actually, no, we have not [laughs]. That\u2019s a good question. Covers can sometimes be the most nerve wracking thing because you want to do justice to the original. You want to honor it and not do a bad job on somebody else\u2019s work.<\/p>\n

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The last time you guys were here you were dealing with a sudden lineup change. Is the line up right now where you feel it needs to be?<\/strong><\/p>\n

As of now, yeah [laughs]. It\u2019s kind of like, we have to play it by ear. We can hope that everybody wants to stick around and that it works out but sometimes people just have other priorities or for other reasons things just don\u2019t work out.<\/p>\n

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The anonymity of the band, wearing the masks, does help to kind of keep a sense of consistency to the band. I mean, as long as they\u2019re all playing well you can\u2019t really tell.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yeah, the masks do help [laughs].<\/p>\n

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Savage Master was over in Europe doing some pretty amazing shows including the Keep it True festival which must\u2019ve been like going to summer school or something. What did you take away from that experience if anything?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It was pretty crazy. I\u2019m still processing it months later. It was really overwhelming but it was awesome. It was definitely the biggest show we ever played and probably the biggest show we\u2019ll play for a long time. We got to see a lot great bands like classic band like Rock Goddess, Tokyo Blade. It was just amazing to see all those bands. Instead of teaching me anything new, it really gave me more encouragement to keep doing what we\u2019re doing. It also gave me the chance to be a fan and watch some of the best bands. It made me want to strive to be better and to keep working to do something great. You see some bands up there in age putting on better shows than people even younger than me. It\u2019s all about the passion. I don\u2019t think there\u2019s a point where you really need to give up. If you\u2019re still doing it well, keep doing it. I think it keeps some people alive.<\/p>\n

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I love the visual\/theatrical concept behind Savage Master but what I love even more is that the music is the definite focal point of it all.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thanks. Yeah, that goes back to one of those common questions about our image and referring to bands who may have a good image but the music doesn\u2019t hold up. I just don\u2019t think there\u2019s any reason to be in it unless it\u2019s for the music but if you can also pull off an image, why not? Music is the most important part, though.<\/p>\n

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Stacey, let\u2019s dream big for a second. Let\u2019s say Savage Master was headlining an arena. What would the stage production look like for a Savage Master show?<\/strong><\/p>\n

[laughs] Wow. I don\u2019t know really. Going back to the Keep it True festival would probably be what it would look like. I don\u2019t know. It would be a blast though [laughs].<\/p>\n

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You posted on your Facebook page recently that people have been literally asking you for \u201cdiscounts\u201d on merch. Is this really a thing?<\/strong><\/p>\n

[laughs] I don\u2019t know what happened. We played a couple of shows that were kind of right behind the Black Sabbath tour where we were playing like one or two nights after Black Sabbath had just played. I\u2019m hoping that people just spent all their money there and that it\u2019s not a trend. There was one night where every person except a person in another band asked for a discount. I was really unprepared for that. We don\u2019t sell our stuff expensively at all. We sell our CDs for 10 bucks and shirts for 15. We try to do old school pricing as much as we can and we try to make it affordable so people can have it. Every once in awhile someone might come up and say, \u201cI only have 7 bucks\u201d and we\u2019ll give them a CD and that doesn\u2019t bother me. A couple of times in a row, someone will ask me for a deal and then they\u2019ll pull out a huge wad of money to pay for it and then I\u2019m like \u201cwhat the fuck?\u201d [laughs] Personally, I could never do that. If I didn\u2019t have enough money I wouldn\u2019t even walk up to the booth.<\/p>\n

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Lately, everyone from Jay Jay French to Kerry King are saying things like, \u201cThere\u2019s no more guitar gods\u201d or \u201cNobody\u2019s going to carry the flag for us when we\u2019re gone. As I sit here talking with someone who\u2019s in a band that proves this statement ridiculous, what\u2019s your opinion on this?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t you write an article about that too long ago?<\/p>\n

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I sure did.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yeah, I really appreciate you writing that letter to the elders. I think part of it is that sometimes a lot of the older bands don\u2019t that much to say about who they tour with. Some bands do try and check out younger bands. Bands like Manilla Road are out there checking out the bands, talking to other bands, watching their shows and there\u2019s other bands who just want to sit in their vehicle all night until it\u2019s their turn to play. I\u2019m not judging anybody but I do think that there is a disconnect. Again, I like that you addressed it and I\u2019d like to see some sort of positive outcome from it. All of the elders of metal came from a time when record companies gave a shit about metal which is in stark contrast to now. The whole music industry has changed and it\u2019s very different. You can go on YouTube now and listen to an entire album for free so it changes the whole game. I think it\u2019s harder for the elders to know about these new bands because there are no major record companies pushing them like back in the day.<\/p>\n

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If you could send the elders of metal who feel this way a message, what would you say?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Well, I personally don\u2019t like to tell anyone how to live their life or what to do. My goals it that when I\u2019m older, if I\u2019m ever in a position where we\u2019re successful enough to make money and be bigger, to keep my ear to the ground and help other bands because that\u2019s what it\u2019s all about. If you\u2019re not helping other bands, it\u2019s kind of like you\u2019re not helping the whole scene grow and I want to help it grow. There\u2019s all kinds of music out there that\u2019s yet to be written and bands yet to be found out about. That\u2019s one of my biggest goals and hopefully others will feel the same.<\/p>\n

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Savage Master recently has been put into this genre of NWOTHM (New Wave of Traditional Heavy Metal). That must be kind of cool to be considered as contenders in this somewhat rogue movement of metal.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yeah, it\u2019s really cool. Honestly, we only had a vague awareness of that when we first started. We\u2019re from Louisville, KY. You can imagine there\u2019s not much of a metal scene there [laughs]. There\u2019s a lot of fans but not a lot of bands. We just want to play music that you chant and sing along with. We love music that makes you feel something. A lot of older people come up to us after shows saying, \u201cYou all made me feel like I was 20 again.\u201d That\u2019s what we want. For me, I just want to write and play music that I thought was badass when I was a kid. I want impress my child self and to hear that from others is just great.<\/p>\n

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Ok, What is your favorite tour junk food?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Gummy worms [laughs]. My little brother actually would get the cookies and cream bar and put a piece of each together and eat it. It\u2019s fucking delicious [laughs]. It\u2019s really good. That\u2019s definitely one of my favorite snacks.<\/p>\n

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What song do you say, \u201cI wish I wrote that one\u201d every time you hear it?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019d probably have to say \u201cStargazer\u201d by Rainbow. That\u2019s the kind of thing that when you hear it, it\u2019s just unreal. It\u2019s like God\u2019s wrote that song or something. It\u2019s hard to imagine that something that good will ever happen again.<\/p>\n

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Do you have any kind of pre-show ritual to get yourself pumped before going on stage?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t really have a specific ritual. I guess you could say that getting changed into our stage gear by default is our ritual just because we have to do that before every show but it does do something to us. We don\u2019t do a lot of dress rehearsals but when we get a new member, we will do one just to make sure that that person knows, \u201cHey, that fucking mask on your head\u2026 it\u2019s no joke. You\u2019re gonna die in this thing\u201d [laughs].<\/p>\n

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That\u2019s why you\u2019ve had so many lineup changes. Nobody wants to wear that fucking mask.<\/strong><\/p>\n

[laughs] Sometimes I really wonder about that, especially with the drummers because drumming is already so much work. The mask is terrible. The mask is a death trap and I\u2019m lucky I don\u2019t have to wear one [laughs]. We try to wash them in between shows but sometimes they don\u2019t get washed and you\u2019ll pull it out and it\u2019s been with all the chains and everything else and it\u2019s got corrosion and these webs of mold on them. You just look at them and say, \u201cOh well. It\u2019s time. We just have to wipe them off, put them on, get on stage, and try not to die. You cannot have a mold allergy if you want to be in Savage Master [laughs].<\/p>\n

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If Hollywood was to make a movie about your life, what famous actress would play you?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I think just to make it the most entertaining movie I would have to pick Liza Minnelli. She\u2019s just like the best. She would put on a great show. She just never misses a beat and she has so much energy.<\/p>\n

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Who are some of your favorite current bands that you feel are doing some great metal out there?<\/strong><\/p>\n

We played with a band called Serpent that was really good when we were on the west coast. They were just old school heavy metal. They kicked ass. I also have mention Substratum. We played with them in Seattle. For how kick ass they are, they are pretty unknown but damn they are so good. Their frontwoman, Amy Carlson, is just one of the most badass chicks you\u2019ll ever meet.<\/p>\n

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If you could have dinner with any musician alive or dead, who would it be and what would you have?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dio for sure. What would I have? Honestly, whatever he\u2019s having [laughs]. I like to try all kinds of new things whether I love it or hate it. Maybe we\u2019d just have steak and seafood [laughs].<\/p>\n

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What\u2019s left for Savage Master in 2016?<\/strong><\/p>\n

We\u2019re going to be home after this tour and we\u2019ll work on that 12\u201d. We may try to do another tour either late winter or early spring of next year. We just want to recharge a little bit as well.<\/p>\n

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Stacey, thanks so much for interview number 2! This was a blast as always.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thank you, Don. Thanks for having me. You make this fun.<\/p>\n

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For more on Savage Master, check out: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/savagemaster666<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

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