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Interview with Juan Garcia of
Agent Steel
By Metal Mark : October 2007
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Juan Garcia is the guitarist for LA based Agent
Steel. Agent Steel did a few albums on Combat records back in the
mid-late 1980’s before breaking up. The band reformed in the late
1990’s and started recording shortly after that. Their new album
“Alienigma” is their third album since reforming.
It’s been four years since your last album.
What’s been going on with you and with the band during that time?
Well, let see since Order of the Illuminati was released in 2003;
we’ve done an European tour, we performed at the Dynamo Open Air with
Slayer in The Netherlands. We released a DVD in Europe entitled “Live
@ Dynamo Open Air”. We signed a new record deal with Mascot Records
and wrote a new album Alienigma which was just released and we just
finished touring Europe last month.
What has been the response to your new album
“Alienigma” so far?
For the most part, very positive. You have to understand on this new
album we pushed ourselves in a heavier direction; we did not play it
safe and we did not write in the same style as the last album. The new
record is by far our heaviest work to date. I am not saying this is
our new direction or anything. We just wanted to make an album for
ourselves, and not the critics. It was fun working with Bill Metoyer
and we are proud of our new album.
What are some of the songs off the new album
about?
The majority of the theme of the new Alienigma album is based around
Zecharia Sitchin’s work of the Earth Chronicles series of books that
deal with Ancient Gods, The Creation, Pyramids, and Sumerian texts
that talk about a 12th Planet with an elliptical orbit around our
Universe, really interesting stuff. We also have songs about world
pandemic devastation, and a little bit of politics as well with the
track “Hail to the Chief”.
How did your European tour last month go? About
how many people were you getting per show?
It varied a bit, on the average 200 plus people a night. Some show the
attendances were more. The show in Slovenia was incredible and it was
sold out, Athens was a madhouse; we need to return there because our
set time was a bit limited and we feel we owe Athens another Agent
Steel performance, but this was not our fault, there was some politics
involved from other people involved on the tour. We also had a couple
other sold out shows. The show with Destruction was great, and we also
performed with Candlemass (those guys are fuckin great), the support
on the tour came from a Belgium band called After All which are great
guys and a very solid band.
Do you have your North American tour plans set
up yet?
Not at the moment; we are working on a Los Angeles Date for December,
and also a festival in Puerto Rico with Candlemass for 2008. We are
also confirmed for Bang Your Head Festival in Germany with Saxon for
June 2008. We are working on a proper U.S. tour so we will see what
develops. |
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How does this version of the band
compare with the version from the 1980’s?
Good question. I personally feel that musically we are the
tightest we’ve ever been. I don’t have to look at anybody
on stage; everyone has the songs down tight, and this is a
great thing. We are machine-like on stage, it’s an awesome
feeling to go out every night and give it 100 percent
knowing that everyone is on the same page. We are here to
deliver the metal goods!!!
There has always been a theme of the
supernatural and mainly aliens in your lyrics and on your
album covers. Why is that?
Because we are freaks! I’m kidding of course. We like to
be original and Agent Steel always has had identity; we
are like the X-files of Heavy Metal Music; at least
lyrically and overall themes and concepts. We feel we need
to carry the torch of the supernatural alien theme; I
suppose we were abducted by aliens and reprogrammed and
they want us to talk about it in our music.
Why did the band originally break up
back around 87-88?
Long story short; because personal differences and part of
the problem was bad management decisions. I mean we were
so close to signing with a major record company for a lot
of money and then the band broke up, but life goes on.
Why was it about a decade until the
band reformed?
I went on and recorded a few albums with Evildead for SPV
Records, I wanted no part of Agent Steel after the harsh
brake up, but time does sometimes heal, and when Bernie
contacted me and Chuck Profus to reform the band and
perform at Wacken Open Air; we were open to the idea and
the rest is history; we’ve recorded 3 studios albums since
then.
It seems like the metal scene has
heated up this decade. Do you agree and what do you think
about the near future metal holds for your band and for
your peers?
Hard to say, we do this for the love of Heavy Metal Music,
we are not trying to get rich of it that’s for sure. It’s
great to see a new generation of metalheads discovering
80’s thrash music again, for me it’s an awesome feeling,
because I remember when I first discovered bands like Iron
Maiden and Saxon when they were underground bands just
making it.
Do you wish that you had done
anything differently in your music career?
You can’t turn the clock back and go back in time so I
really don’t think about things like that, we must push
forward and proceed with our lives. |
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If someone had never heard Agent
Steel and could only afford to buy one of your CDs then
which one would you recommend to them?
Another good question, well since we don’t have a best
of album, that is a tough question because I like all
our albums equally, I would of course suggest the new
album Alienigma, but any of the five will be just as
good.
What younger metal bands are you
impressed by?
Damcyan, Fueled By Fire, Bonded By Blood, Children Of
Bodom, Volbeat, and lots of respect goes out to Trivium.
What impact do you think Agent
Steel have had on the metal scene? Do you hear of
today’s bands and think that they were influenced by
your music?
For sure I hear it a bit in some bands, bands come up to
us all the |
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time and say they are influenced by Agent Steel, it’s a
honor of course.
Is there anything else that you
would like to say about your band or your music?
Just want to thank you for your interest in Agent Steel
and your support for Heavy Metal Music. For updates on
the band visit us at
www.agentsteelonline.com and
www.myspace.com/agentsteel
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