Tattoo Talk: Soulprison Vocalist Henry Keller on His Favourite Ink and Artists

Unrelenting. Intense. Ruthless. Harsh. Glorious. These adjectives may come to mind when experiencing Soulprison’s latest single, “Mental Wasteland.” The song comes with a fantastic performance video as you witness the band’s booming, robust energy in full throttle. It comes from the Southern Germany-based group’s debut EP, Vision of the Void, which was released on December 2nd. To spread the hype for the record, Soulprison joined Guilt Trip for a jaunt through Europe this past spring.

Made up of five highly talented instrumentalists, the band specializes in a crossover of metal and hardcore. Their sound has the grooves and lyrical approach of hardcore and the velocity and heaviness of heavy metal. They are still a relatively new act, having just formed in 2020, which was shortly followed by a two-track demo. There is a purpose to Soulprison’s music, a lyrical message intended on addressing mental health issues and raising social awareness for them.

For our latest Tattoo Talk interview, we speak with Soulprison vocalist Henry Keller, discussing getting inked and his brilliant body of art.

What was the first tattoo you ever got?

Henry Keller: “My first one were lyrics of a Stick To Your Guns song on my upper back.”

How many tattoos do you have on your body?

“I think about 50 or something.”

Do you have an art background or professional training in tattooing?

“I’m currently doing my apprenticeship at a tattoo shop in Konstanz, Germany, called Team Fullgas.”

When did you know you wanted to get tattooed/get into tattooing?

“I knew quite early that I wanted a lot of tattoos when I’m older, so I started getting tattooed as soon as I was 18. I first tried drawing tattoo designs in 2018 I think and now I am doing my apprenticeship, so I will start tattooing soon.”

What style of tattoo do you feel closest to? What drew you to it?

“I love traditional tattooing, but also fineline stuff. I just really like the aesthetic and the patchwork style.”

What’s the most challenging thing about tattooing/getting tattooed?

“The most challenging part of getting tattooed is definitely the pain. Unfortunately I struggle a lot while getting tattooed.”

Is there a tattoo you’ve received or given recently that is a personal favourite?

“I really love my butterfly tattoo I got from Rodolfo Gimenes in Lisbon, Portugal.”

Artwork for the album ‘Vision of the Void’ by Soulprison

Any shops or artists you want to give a shout out?

“Made to Last Tattoo in Charlotte, North Carolina; Rodolfo Gimenes in Lisbon, Portugal; Bold as Love Tattoo in Stuttgart, Germany; Nico Trautwein in Karlsruhe, Germany and of course Team Fullgas in Konstanz, Germany.”

Have you seen any fans with a band tattoo, anything crazy memorable?

“This one guy from Austria, got a tattoo inspired by our song ‘Tombstone,’ which is on our demo. It was really crazy for us to see, because it was shortly after we put the demo out and we’re really not that popular. But it was really cool to see that our songs really mean something to some people!”

Have you had anything covered up? If yes, what was it and why?

“I have a big blast over on my arm, done by Felix Kienzle, the old tattoo was a realistic tattoo of a deer, but it was really faded and grey, that’s why I decided to cover it.”