At first glance, Blaze Bayley is not a stunner. He met with me dressed in a tracksuit, leather jacket, bandana and winter hat. Basically looking like a loser! However, this man has sung in stadiums with Iron Maiden.

Tonight, 11th March 2010, he will perform in front of around hundred people at the MJC in Vaulx en Velin. This is one hell of a reality check and it comes as no surprise that the poor guy suffered depression. Blaze Bayley has been badly hurt by life. Having fallen into alcoholism after being evicted from Iron Maiden, he was saved by his ex-wife who managed to pull him back together. This same wife was then taken from him by a disease the very next day.

Next to Blaze Bayley is the shy Renaud Hantson,
It rapidly became a pleasure and a nightmare to interview him. After having attained a vague understanding of the question, he begins de digress and his gaze drifts away as he becomes completely absorbed into the idea he is trying to explain. It’s as though he is struggling will the great mass of ideas in his mind to finally reach a conclusion.

His trail of mind is not always easy to follow, yet he always lands on his feet in the end.

As a result, the interview lasted over 45 minutes including the first question, which despite being quite easy, takes him 10 minutes to answer!

« One of the rules that we have to get us through is that we don’t stop. Even in rehearsals, no matter what, we do not stop. This is because we feel that if you are used to stopping in rehearsals, then in a live performance the temptation is to fuck the song up.» The biography on your official website insists on the fact that Blaze Bayley is not your solo project but rather a band in itself. As everyone knows you already, could you introduce to us the other musicians in your band? Blaze Bayley (vocals) : My drummer is Larry Patterson and originally he comes from New Zealand. He is quite an interesting character because although he has always played drums since he was very young, he has also written lots of books and he is a historian. He has written books about World War II and his speciality is U-Boats. When we came up with the idea of writing a book, it was him who decided that he would write it because of his previous experience.

His personality is a driving force behind the music. If you listen to the Promise and Terror album, even when a song is at a mid to low tempo or a ballad, you can feel him pushing the song. He is always trying to find the maximum tempo that the song can be played at and still have a groove and a heart. It is him who has given a boost to that area of the band since he joined. In the line of qualities of drummer, he is also a very courageous person. As I was putting my own band together, I needed somebody who wasn’t scared of going forward no matter what. One of the rules that we have to get us through is that we don’t stop. Even in rehearsals, no matter what, we do not stop. This is because we feel that if you are used to stopping in rehearsals, then in a live performance the temptation is to fuck the song up. Larry is that sort of person. In one of his very first shows, both of Nico’s (guitar) amps went down and it took about ten minutes to fix it But Larry played through the whole thing and we were able to do a session with the crowd so in the end it was great. It was at that exact time that I thought to myself that we had the right guy for the band. He brings a lot to the music of the band with his presence.

Then I have Jay Walsh, who I have known for many years. When I had the Blaze band, his band Fourwaykill supported me. I always admired his guitar skills because he reminded me of Dimebag with a bit of Tommi Iommi. When I was looking for a guitarist I asked him although he was committed to other projects at the time and after a while he became fully involved in this band, which I am very pleased about.

David Bermudez is bass player and the first person I found. When I was looking for players, I looked at MySpace, and instead of being practical, I chose to pick the people I thought were best suited to my project and my ideas. I found David on MySpace in the band Under Threat, a death metal band from Colombia, and there was even a video on the site which showed how great his playing was. So I phoned him, explained my ideas and asked if he was interested. He told me about some of his musical ideas also and how he could bring some of his death metal influences into the band. It was a very positive start to the project.

David then passed on the details of his brother Nico, who is a fantastic guitarist who plays seven string most of the time. All of the writing from The Man Who Would Not Die was played by a seven string guitar, and it creates a particular feel to it. We have a seven string guitar, a six string guitar and a five string bass: this is what brings a particular sound to our music and brings it to that level of intensity.

Nico comes from Bogota, like his brother. He is quite a calm and profound character. His ideas are always very worked out and this adds a lot to the band. He is my main song writing partner. The small changes between the guitar sections are so detailed. This is because we believe that the song must stand by itself. Around this fact, we try to build a wall of intensity. The first time you listen to Promise and Terror, first of all you might pay attention to the vocals and the drums. But when you get into it more and you get an understanding of what the guitars are doing, this brings you to a whole other level.

When we first started the band, the first thing I realised was that the name was wrong. I have been Blaze since I left Iron Maiden and yet I meet fans who ask me what I am doing now because they have not heard of the band Blaze. This is why I realised that this was not working for us and I am not recognised any longer. I believe that Sanctuary Management gave me some bad advice and I wish that I had started with the name Blaze Bayley. When you google Blaze, you get hundreds of porn and rap websites but you canít find me! (laughs) So I said to the guys in the band that since I have a heritage because of my music in the past, we should call it Blaze Bayley. This does not mean that I am the only person deciding where the music goes because we all do. This is something I learnt from Steve Harris from Iron Maiden. He said that it doesn’t matter where you get the idea, simply that the idea is great.

Another thing is that we don’t have a record deal in the accepted sense. I created my own record company and all of the members of the band are equal under that company. Of course, Blaze Bayley is the number one in that record company and we share all of the decisions. However, I am the leader of the band because of my experience. We push everything forward together, we share food, we each drive the van and the only exception is that I always have a hotel room to myself. The reason for this is only to moderate my speaking when the tour is heavily booked. But of course the other benefit is that I can walk around naked without intimidating people (laughs).

« My realisation was that I was a singer working in hotel as a cleaner and I am not a cleaner working as a singer on the weekend.»

The title of your latest album is strange. Why did you choose to link the terms «Promise» and «Terror»? Do you think that promises always lead to betrayal and therefore terror?

It is from the realm of dreams, deep within the self conscious mind and personality that knows yet does not speak. Itís about the way the subconscious works to give you a message within a dream. In that subconscious mind, lies the essence of what you really want to be, although you are perhaps scared of being it. It’s like if you see a beautiful woman and you are already in a relationship, yet your subconscious mind is telling you that she is your life partner. My realisation was that I was a singer working in hotel as a cleaner and I am not a cleaner working as a singer on the weekend. I knew that I wanted to be in a band, writing and singing my own songs. That is the promise. The future that you could have and anything that makes you think of the subconscious even though it seems that you cannot achieve it because it seems too hard. When you have that moment, that is the promise and your potential as a human being is enormous. However, to follow that path, you must sacrifice the certainty of what you are. It is the realisation that you can become a full human being, that your soul can be rich and that you can spend all of your days in happiness. The terror is leaving behind every certainty in your life. As they say, there is nothing without sacrifice and if it is worth having, then it is worth working for.

The lyrics and the artwork of the album are linked to this idea so that it is the first thing that you see. Our central character, our spirit, is sitting on a rock which symbolises certainty in unhappiness. So he has to leave and this is when you get to Time To Dare in the album, which represents the moment when our spirit decides to find his path. On the back of the CD, you see that the storm has passed and that the rock is empty. Without knowing where he is gone, you know that he has dared to find the life that will truly fulfil him. This song is the turning point before the second half of the album which is a story of raw emotion and truth.

Overall, according to your lyrics and songs («Madness and Sorrow», «Surrounded By Sadness», «Letting Go Of The World»), this album is extremely dark. The title «Comfortable in Darkness» is evocative. Is this title a conclusion to your overall reflection on existence? Is this a way of saying «I have gotten used to my unhappiness»?

It is my own story of loss and grief because of the hardship and the tragedy of the last two years, as explained in the sleeve notes of the CD. I have been very lucky to have such amazing friends around me during the hard periods of my life. It is not a concept, it is a story. The reason that the songs go together is because they follow a path. To get the message of the songs, you have to go the journey in the same order of the songs. It starts with salvation by love and this is because from the darkest times in my life, it was my wife who found me and she saved me. She supported me, got me off the drink and got my career started. That is the truth that those songs are about. It is salvation, followed by grief and finally the realisation of where you are. In the end, everything seems dark and worthless. But if you can find a way of living in darkness, by living in the moment and having no expectations of the future, then perhaps you can survive. So although the songs are about darkness, they are positive because they are about survival.

Although we had no plan of doing this because it is too personal, all of the lyrics are from true experiences. As I was looking for ideas for lyrics, I realised that nothing was working with Nico’s music. I tried some of the words from my private diary and they worked perfectly. In this band, we are very strict about following our instincts and we knew this was the right thing. Once these five songs started to fit together, we could make a complete story. It is something that I am very happy with because it has come out so well, and with personal matters, this is not always the case. These songs just came together and we actually discussed them the least as a result.

This is why the album is in two parts although it was not intentional. The first part is what you would expect from Blaze Bayley and then part two is something different. I think that it comes from some of the issues when I was doing the Blood and Belief album. I was very honest with that album and that gave me more courage to be more honest with this album. Lots of fans were appreciative of the honesty and this made me happy to feel that I was not the only fucked up weirdo feeling these things (laughs). Essentially, as a human being there is nothing special about me because we all have the same emotions and respond to them in the same way. I am not different yet the fact that I choose to write about it, makes me connect with the fans more. Luckily I was able to grow confidence from this experience since nobody ridiculed me because of what I chose to do. Since I finished the album, I have done about two hundred interviews and almost every one of them has claimed that this album is my best work. I was wrong in thinking that because it was so different the reaction might be the opposite.

« For example, the song «Blackmailer» is about the manager at SPV. They owed me a lot of money and they refused to pay unless I gave them the license for the rest of the world because they only had Europe. »

b]You went through some hard times during the Blood & Belief period (depression, alcohol, memory loss…). This was to such an extent that you always stopped everything. Would you say that «The Man That Would Not Die» is a bit of a «Do or Die» album?[/b]

When I was doing the Blood and Belief album, I thought it was going to be my last ever album. The record deal was going terribly, I was having very bad problems with my ex-wife and I had no money. So I thought to myself that if this was to be the last album I would ever make, then I would make it entirely honest. When my wife saved me and encouraged me to continue, it felt like coming back from the dead. Everyone at SPV expected me to disappear and the manager that I had was always telling me that I was dead because no one would be interested in me anymore. So when we made The Man That Would Not Die it was very exciting working with new people like Nico and David. We all agree that this is a way of life that we have chosen and it is more than a job or a career. Working on that album was really interesting and it gave me that sense that I needed to continue. I felt that if there had been a noose around my neck, then I would not have let it kill me. This reminded me of that fact that in the olden days, if the rope of the noose snapped when you were hung, then you would be reprieved. This is how I felt about my situation and I wanted my revenge. We often talked about The Count of Monti Cristo and The Man with the Iron Mask, so revenge was definitely a theme in the album.

For example, the song «Blackmailer» is about the manager at SPV. They owed me a lot of money and they refused to pay unless I gave them the license for the rest of the world because they only had Europe. I was going to get other licensing deals with the rest of the world, but they blackmailed me by saying that if I didnít hand over the deal, then they would not give me the money they owed. I was faced with losing everything so I gave it to keep the band together. They then lied to me again with the contract money because I had to pay for the tour myself and I never received any of the money that they promised me.

Would you say that «The Man That Would Not Die» and «Promise & Terror» are albums that illustrate the light at the end of the tunnel?

You could draw that conclusion but I would bring you back to Comfortable in Darkness. In order to be Comfortable in Darkness, there is no light at the end of the tunnel. Although this sounds desperate, my philosophy on life has changed a great deal. When I was younger, I was very ambitious and I was always looking forward but when I looked back I was not moving forward at all. Today, right now, here in France with the support of some amazing people and the greatest fans, without whom we would not be here, I realise that this is what is important. Life is about enjoying the day, the situation and everything around it because there may not be a tomorrow.

One day with my wife we were holding hands, we went to see Iron Maiden and the next day she was in a coma. Three months after that, she passed away. She was not even ill and so you never know if there will be a tomorrow. So there is no light at the end of the tunnel, yet you have to live every day knowing that if it were your last, it was a good day.

What is your relationship like with Iron Maiden fans at the moment? Are there any that remained faithful to you because they discovered a voice that they preferred through Maiden on X-Factor?

I meet a lot of fans from the Iron Maiden days who say that they have never checked out my solo stuff. Today it seems that people are more open to listen to it. Nowadays, hardcore Iron Maiden fans tend to listen to my albums and think of it as another great band to listen to. Obviously, the band is influenced by Iron Maiden but we do not want to copy them. Of course, my vocals are similar to Iron Maiden because of my time spent in the band. Now we seem to get more Iron Maiden fans but it is a real mix of people. The young ones who have discovered us from the catalogues and the older fans, who maybe preferred Bruce, are also coming to the shows. It is an unusual thing yet so far everybody from my era in Iron Maiden has enjoyed what we do in Blaze Bayley band.

« One day with my wife we were holding hands, we went to see Iron Maiden and the next day she was in a coma. Three months after that, she passed away. She was not even ill and so you never know if there will be a tomorrow. So there is no light at the end of the tunnel, yet you have to live every day knowing that if it were your last, it was a good day. »
Three weeks ago, you were interviewed by Bruce Dickinson for the Bruce Dickinson Rock Show. Can you tell us about this experience?

It is always hilarious when Bruce and I get together. I have known Bruce longer than anyone because he came to see me when I was in Wolfsbain. We met in New York and there was a lot of talk in Kerrang saying that we were twins (laughs). So we decided to get our picture taken together and then he bought me a beer.

We have never had any animosity towards each other and it is always fun to see Bruce. He really supported my last album on his radio show. I am only in contact with the other guys in Iron Maiden. It is fun because there are so many similarities between our lives: we have both been the singers of Iron Maiden and we have both left Iron Maiden (laughs).

Is he a good journalist ?

Yeah he is great.

Better journalist than singer?

No not quite… (laughs).

Are you sick of people asking you about your relationship with Maiden ?

You would have to put that in perspective because I was always a big Iron Maiden fan. I used to listen to some of their classic songs when I was cleaning the floors in the hotel where I worked. As a fan, I knew that if you were in Iron Maiden, and you were an ex-member, then everyone would know you. True Iron Maiden fans are excessively interested in the history of the band. I realised this before I even joined the band and even though I never wanted to leave, things did not work out. I knew that after being in Iron Maiden, people would always think of me as an ex-member. I loved my time in the band so much that I feel as though it is a badge of honour.

” The music business has grown in the culture of, you do the music and I will handle the money. This means that management will do anything keep the band happy and questioning what is happening with all the money. They give the band drink, drugs and girls to keep them distracted. When you see that your band has a number one in the charts, you start to ask yourself where the money is and that is when they try to distract you some more. “ Was Iron Maiden the band that made you realise you wanted to be a singer?

No that was Ronnie James Dio. I saw him and I thought, «I want to do that».

Your real name is Bailey Cook, however, recently you changed your passport to «Blaze Bayley», could you tell us about this anecdote?

In English, the name Bailey is more commonly a second name so people would often get it confused. When I was in Wolfsbain and we gave ourselves stupid glam names, I just kept Blaze because no one would question me anymore.

In order to embellish your musical project, you took business classes. At the start, I thought that management, business and communication did not interest you at all and that you are an artist above all. Do you think that, nowadays, musicians are unable to make it on their own?

I don’t think that it is good enough to be just a musician. The music business has grown in the culture of, you do the music and I will handle the money. This means that management will do anything keep the band happy and questioning what is happening with all the money. They give the band drink, drugs and girls to keep them distracted. When you see that your band has a number one in the charts, you start to ask yourself where the money is and that is when they try to distract you some more. For this reasons, it is bands who have some degree of business knowledge, like Mick Jagger for example, who are better at maintaining their success. I have the confidence as a singer and as a song writer; therefore, I understood that in order to be free and independent, I needed to learn the business.

Interview made by Metal’O Phil on the 11th of march 2010

This post is also available in: French