Tim Brown – Guitars for Striker

1. Striker’s bio on the website describes yourselves as “classic mix of heavy metal, hard rock, and 80’s hair metal”. Tell us some of those bands that influenced this sound?

TIM: Big fans of the heavy metal classics, like Priest, Metallica, Ozzy, Megadeth, Maiden and a whole slew of others. We also listen to tons of crazy music, not just metal, so there's some strange influences in there people might not pick up on.

2. How is the tour going with Primal Fear?

TIM: This tour is amazing! First and foremost, being able to watch Primal Fear every day is fucking sweet. They are killer musicians and bring it every day. Playing with veterans like that is a blessing, we can learn so much from them. Everyone coming out to the shows is mind blowing, so far all the shows are packed and everyone is so supportive of us.

3. How did you get to work with producer Michael Wagener for the 2nd album, “Armed to the Teeth”?

TIM: I think people and bands often just assume that these big producers and things like that are unobtainable. Really, they are looking for projects just like everyone else is. We simply emailed Wagener, and the rest is history. Same with working with Fredrik Nordstrom, we simply sent him an email, and we worked out a good block of time for the project. These big name producers love music, its literally their job to make music. They are always looking for something new, and for the most part if they have the time they will take you.

4. I see you also had the rare opportunity to open up for Metallica. How did the come about?

TIM: We won a radio contest a few years ago, and the winner got to be direct support for two sold out shows for Metallica. They were filming their movie "Through the Never", and these shows were the warm ups. Never thought we'd be reading concert reviews in the morning newspaper with Lars Ulrich but here we are! We are in the special features if you look for us!

5. Because of opening for Metallica, has Striker benefitted from the experience in some way?

TIM: Playing with any veteran band is a huge learning experience, from how they perform to how they run their business, even to just how they act backstage. Metallica were all extremely nice and went out of their way to take care of us. You can't be hugely successful in this industry unless you are genuinely a nice person, and actually all the bigger bands we've played with have been really kind and friendly

6. You released a video for the song ‘Too Late’. May I suggest ‘United’ next?

TIM: There's so many good songs to choose from for the album its hard to pick! We've been asking people what their favorite songs are off the new album, and we've heard totally different things from everyone. I think it's a good thing, and we have variety in the album and it means that every song is pretty strong. On a lot of albums everyone can agree on a few stinkers, or at least the songs that aren't as great as the rest, but every song on "Stand In The Fire" has been called someone's favorite.

7. From your point of view, do you think there is a resurgence of the traditional hard rock and heavy metal you play, in North America?

TIM: I think everything kind of comes in waves. Everyone is inspired by their peers and what's out there at the time. There's a lot of great newer bands out there with a more traditional sound and the return to a more melodic approach is something I think heavy metal needs to stay current. When metal was in its heyday in the 80s it was at its most melodic. Hopefully the genre can grow again to that level.

8. Who of your contemporaries would you recommend fans of Striker to check out?

TIM: Well if you like Striker, you'll probably like Skullfist, Enforcer, Stallion, and Cauldron, plus countless others I'm forgetting. There's lots of cool younger bands out there these days and I hope the scene can survive and thrive. The scene is sort of disbursed all over the world though, so it would be cool if we all moved somewhere to turbo charge it, kind of like the Bay Area thrash movement back in the day. Edmonton is great guys! We will show you where all the liquor stores are!

9. How active are you in social media keeping in touch with fans?

TIM: We try our best! Being on tour makes social media easier, since you are out there generating content everyday. The other side of the coin is that WiFi is a rare resource and staying connected can be tough. We do all our social media though, and make sure we respond to every single message that comes our way. Social media is really the only way to stay in touch with everyone we meet on tour, and its important to stay friends with the people you meet.

10. One or two favorites stories from the road?

TIM: All the good stories are classified!, LOL... Although after our last tour in Europe we went to Munich for 3 days and drank 6 liters of beer for dinner everyday at the Hofbrauhaus. It was pretty epic! Can't wait to do it again!

Official website: http://www.striker-metal.com/band