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19 novembre 2011 – Cette entrevue improvisée, en anglais, été réalisée dans le cadre du Metal Gathering 2011, après le spectacle.

Thorium : We’re with Bruce Chickinson of The Iron Maidens for Thorium Photography. Is it your first time here in Montreal?

Bruce : Yes, my first time in Canada!

Thorium : How do you like the city here? Did you have the time to visit?

Bruce : You know, I loved what I’ve seen and I’m so sad I did not have the time to visit. It just didn’t work out with the scheduling and the travel, a late flight that got in three hours late and I had to wait another hour for my bag, and I’m leaving tonight, so sadly, I did not get to see and experience Montreal. Which means I have to come back.

Thorium : So it’s the worst circumstances that brought you here tonight, but it can be a good thing, since it means we’re gonna have you back.

Bruce : That’s good, I’d love it.

Thorium : And when you come back, will you bring the rest of the Iron Maidens with you?

Bruce : I would love to, and they would love it, so I think we’ll have to find a way to make that happens.

Thorium : And is it your first show outside of the States?

Bruce : No. The band has been together for ten years, and I’ve only been with them for the last two and a half years, and they’ve gone all over the world. Even during the time I was in the band, we’ve gone to Japan, Peru, Venezuela, Brazil …

Thorium : So the Iron Maidens are a really big thing?

Bruce : You know, certainly in the world of tribute bands, they are. And, it’s really cool to be in a band that has that much opportunity to tour and travel, and it’s a tribute band, that’s the crazy thing! You know, it’s so hard for original bands, and in some ways tribute bands have it way easier than most of the original bands do, getting tours.

Thorium : Tribute bands have the songs, they’re already written.

Bruce : They have the built-in audience, right.

Thorium : Some of them are good, some are bad … It may be a luck thing if you get the gigs or not sometimes.

Bruce : Sure, absolutely.

Thorium : How did you get the gig with the Iron Maidens?

Bruce : I think I must’ve found out about them on the internet, I was in another cover band, I lived on the east coast in Baltimore, Maryland, and of course, they’re based in California in Los Angeles. I thought, “Well, next time I’m visiting California – because my parents live there – I should go and check out a show!” because I love Iron Maiden, so I was like, “Wow, I can’t believe these girls are doing this!” I was a little bit envious, and I looked on their website, and saw that they were looking for a singer. So, I sent in an email, and they replied, they said that we’d set up an audition. I was like “Woah! Oh my god! I get to go to an audition!” but thought it would never work because I live all the way across the country, but it would be fun to jam with them. So, I went to the audition, and, what do you know? They offered me the job, and so it was time for me to move back to California.

Thorium : After the amazing show that you gave us tonight, I have to ask you. Do you have any vocal training?

Bruce : I do. I haven’t really been singing all that long for my age, I started in 2004, I started taking lessons, actually when I joined my first band. Yeah, have you heard of a band called Kicks?

Thorium : No, not at all.

Bruce : They were pretty big in the eighties, and, actually, they still tour. They’re very popular I think in Asia and the United States. They’re kind of an eighties hair metal rock band, the singer Steve Whiteman gives lessons, and I took lessons from him. He’s a phenomenal singer, and very good teacher.

Thorium : Where did you get your passion for Heavy Metal? It’s not the kind of thing we see often.

Bruce : I know, and I really don’t know why that is! I don’t know why there are not more girls that have been into metal. I dunno, I think I was just born with some affinity for it. I loved it since I was a little kid, and fortunately there are other women out there who feel the same way, like my bandmates, for one. It’s weird, I don’t understand it.

Thorium : Do you have any advice to give to women that are into it, but are shy or afraid to go out to shows?

Bruce : You mean, afraid to go to shows as fans or on stage?

Thorium : Well, you know, there’s a certain idea that metal is, well, a guy thing.

Bruce : It is! But you know, it is changing. Nowadays you do see more women out, and we see more women in our audiences and they’re not just girlfriends of the guys, there’s plenty of them that are into the music for themselves. Y’know, I don’t know, I mean, just go for it! Get into it! Enjoy it! There’s no reason to be afraid, timid or scared. I mean, yeah, it can get a little crazy in a moshpit, but you don’t have to be in the moshpit. If you’re into it, there are absolutely no reason you shouldn’t go to shows. Do it!

Thorium : We saw that you had a lot of fun up there on stage tonight with the guys. Is music a great part of your life?

Bruce : It is. You know, I feel so lucky that I get to do this and I get to ride this rollercoaster and this fun adventure. I’m gonna do it as long as I can, I feel really blessed for this opportunity.

Thorium : All female bands, especially in metal, they’re not very common. What kind of reception do you get?

Bruce : Well, I think when the band started ten years ago, people were way more skeptical, and would come out and half of them wanted to see the band fail, thinking it would be funny, and other people were just curious. For the time I’ve been in the band, reception has been really good. People are really into it, sure you get people that are attracted to the idea that it’s gonna be these women playing metal, and I think those people are actually surprised that these girls, my bandmades, they can really play, and play well. I’d have to say the reception has been really good!

Thorium : We saw from your vocals tonight that there is impressive talent in the band. If the rest of it follows suit, I do hope we see them in Montreal!

Bruce : I hope so too! It would be a great fit.

Thorium : We hear a lot from bands that Montreal is a great rock and metal city, that the crowds here go mad and, you know, that we’re plain crazy. What do you think about that, you that have been here one night and played one show?

Bruce : Well, I can’t disagree with that! I know Montreal is a huge city for fans of Iron Maiden. I’ve only been here one day and one night, so I don’t have a lot of experience to draw from, but I can believe it! The crowd out there, I’ve seen people form mosh pits at our shows, but I’ve never seen anyone crowd surf. And tonight, there was a girl crowd surfing! And the mosh pit went on, and on, and on! I must say that Montreal has some pretty crazy metalheads!

Thorium : Funny thing, the crowd was not dense enough for her to crowd surf, so we were just six guys carrying her around the pit.

Bruce (laughs): I didn’t actually notice that! Hey, it looked impressive from the stage!

Thorium : We had a lot of fun doing it also down in the pit. We also had a lot of fun seeing you up stage.

Bruce : Well, thank you!

Thorium : And that’s all that I had time to plan for our interview tonight. Thank you for your time and answering my questions for Thorium Photography. We hope to see you soon with the rest of the Iron Maidens!

Bruce : My pleasure! And I hope so too!

Auteur: Phil Mandeville

Photographe: Guillaume Lefeuvre

Pour en savoir plus: The Iron Maidens