The Answer releases new album 'Solas' on October 28!

The 28th of October is a new highlight for The Answer. The band from Northern Ireland will then release their newest album “Solas”. This summer The Answer played at Alcatraz Metal Fest and Frontview Magazine met up with singer Cormac Neeson and bass player Michael Waters for an interview.

FVM: Hi guys, thank you for this interview, I know you have to leave for your next festival gig, so I won’t take a lot of your time!

Michael: Oh, that all right! No problem!

FVM: Great performance her at Alcatraz, what did you think about the Belgian audience?

Michael: Thanks! We were a little bit surprised to come to this festival because we are not a full on heavy metal band. So we were a little bit worried if we would be appreciated or not, but we had a great time. The audience had a great time. We also had a signing session, it was busy and we got a lot of positive feedback about our set.

Cormac: We were wondering if we should play all our heaviest and hardest music of we just do what we do and we did.

FVM: If you do what you like then it will be great.

Michael: Yeah it comes across!

Cormac: At the signing session a lot of people were saying they’ve seen us for the first time as well. Which is cool, you know, that’s what we want and like.

FVM: it’s always nice to get to know other bands at a festival, even if it’s a more classic (hard) rock band at a metal festival. (smiles)

FVM: So, it’s the 10th anniversary of your debut album ‘The Rise’. Congratulations!

Michael & Cormac: Thank You!

FVM: So how do you look back at those ten years that have passed?

Michael: very fondly, I mean, our first tour we did that record took us around the world three times. We went to places we never would have gone to. We met good friends along the way. So yeah, it brings back a lot of good memories playing the older stuff. We’re really enjoying it.

FVM: Did those years change you as a band or personally?

Michael: Off course it does. When you do this for a living it definitely changes you, mostly for the better. (laughs)

Cormac: It’s kind of weird, I can say it’s like, you know, a lot of time when you’re in a band it feels like you are not really living in the real world, you know. But off course over ten years you can’t escape the real world. Micky and myself, we both had kids in recent times. Everybody just went through various high’s and low’s in their lives, I would say out as well as in the band. You kind of look back at the recording of the first record as it feels like a few months ago. But whenever you start to weigh up everything that has happened in our lives it’s kind of like “Wow”. It seems like a lifetime since we made ‘Rise’.

Michael: We were really young, very early twenties when we made that record. So it feels like a lifetime ago now.

FVM: What would be on your wish list for the next ten years?

Michael: Probably the same as ten years ago! (both laughing) No we can’t complain, we are lucky we got a great bunch of guys in the band and we have a great time out here. We just like to get a little bigger I guess, play in some bigger places and do our own show. But we are working on that! We have a new album coming out “Solas”, in October. We put a lot of effort into this record and it’s a bit of a change for us, sonically. We have infused some of our Celtic roots in there from our living in North Ireland, that stuff comes very natural to us. We’ve never done it before so, I mean it echoes straight from the heart this stuff, so we’re hoping it comes across that way.

Cormac: It’s really kind of interesting, this crossroad that we are at. This summer we’ve been celebrating music that we made ten years ago but like every night we finish the show with two brand new songs like we did today. So you kind of like be a little humble to past but you’re very much like after tonight our focus would just shift to the new material. You know it’s like Micky says it’s different and fresh and original. So like the next ten years, who knows what doors could open up. I think that if the next record sounded like ‘Rise’ it would be a bit of a dead end, but I think this record is very much kind of “it’s throwing the road back out the window”...

Michael: It’s more creative on our behalf!

Cormac: You know we’re looking forward on the next ten years!

FVM: I’m looking forward to hear the new album! So it will be out in October?

Michael: October 28th!

FVM: I’ve heard you saying you will be back in Belgium?

Michael: Yes, in November, we will be co-headlining with The Dead Daisies. Amazing musicians in that band, so I think it’s gonna be fun and cheer for everyone.

FVM: Do you already know we it will be in Belgium?

Michael: Yeah, we do, in Biebob!

‘Solas’ will be released on October 28th via Napalm Records. If you want to hear the album live, get yourself to Biebob in Vosselaar on the 26th of November and enjoy The Answer (together with The Dead Daisies), because these guys are worth it!