Interview with Vicious Rumors guitarist Geoff Thorpe

I recently had the chance to speak with Geoff Thorpe, guitarist for the melodic power metal band Vicious Rumors, about their new disc Razorback Killers. I found this CD to be refreshing; all of its tracks are solid, melodic, metal tunes that are a quite enjoyable listen. Solid musicianship abounds, as does the capability of writing fantastic, hook-driven, approachable music. Here’s how the conversation went.

Now that your brand new CD, Razorback Killers, is complete how do you feel about it? Are you satisfied with the outcome?
Geoff: I’m very excited about it! We all worked very hard on it and gave it everything we had! I think it’s one of our best albums! The songs, the production, all of it. We wanted to have the classic elements of VR with the power of today and I think we did just that.

What was the writing process like for this CD? Did you guys all write together? How long did it take?
Geoff: I wrote most of the music and brought the songs in and we finished them together. I also wrote all the lyrics and produced the album over the course of 4 months. We finished 3 songs, shopped for a deal, got signed to SPV and finished the album. We rolled the dice and it all worked out!

Did you have all of the songs completely written before going into the studio?
Geoff: Not all of it! There was some last minute studio work that took place too. We had the music all ready, but Brian was so new to it, we worked a few things out in the studio and he sang his ass off and did a great job!

Give us some insight into the record and the meaning behind its title.
Geoff: The vibe on the album is power and excitement! We wanted to make a CD that would kick ass from top to bottom. It’s pure and simple a huge VR sonic wall of power! The Razorback Killers title came from our last tour. We played “Razorback Blade” live and our fans just loved it. So we went with that title. Being we are the Razorback Killers and Earth is our target! Time to Rock!

The artwork is quite amazing. How is it tied to the album’s title?
Geoff: Thank you. Stripe at Artworx did a great job! The ball has always been our sign of strength and it’s armed with plenty of razors! So with earth being our target… That’s the cover.

Do you have a favorite song on the record?
Geoff: I do… “All I Want Is You”.

When you compare the early days of the metal scene to the scene today what do you feel has changed for the better? What do you feel has become worse?
Geoff: For the better, because the artist has more control with internet and recording. For the worse, also because the internet is killing album sales.

In a hundred years from now what will the music history books say about your band?
Geoff: Those guys in VR always kicked ass and never gave up.

You have been in the business for a long time now. Did you ever imagine you would be releasing records so many years later?
Geoff: Well I did! This has been my plan from early on! I wanted to be in a band with a huge history and many albums out! So I’m very lucky to live my dream.

Any closing words?
Geoff: Thank you! To all our fans old and new! It’s an honor for me to make these albums, go on tour and play music! Life is short so live it well! See ya on tour!