Chad Bowar: How would you describe the sound of Only The Dead See The End Of The War?
Marwan Riyadh: A wide range of influences and war sounds. It’s more up to the people to decide what it sounds like.
Were these four songs ones you already had in your repertoire, did you recently write them?
Most of them we had written before, but we made also some major changes to them over the past year we spent in the US.
How did you hook up with Alex Skolnick to produce?
He found us through Vice. After he watched the movie Heavy Metal In Baghdad he got interested in getting in touch. We got to meet him in Istanbul, Turkey while he was on tour with his band Testament
What did you take away from the experience of working with him?
We were lucky enough to work with number of great people and musicians through this whole journey, but Alex is one of the most dedicated musicians we’ve met and has a wide range of musical knowledge. It was a great treat to be able to work with him. A lot of the technical stuff in music that we didn’t know about we got to learn through him.
What is the theme of your video “Garden Of Stones,” and how was the video shoot?
The video shoot was a lot of work. We had to do maybe 70 or more takes in 10 hours or something like that. As the drummer I had body aches for 2 days after, but it was a good reward to see how well the video turned out despite such a short time and tight budget. The song talks about death and destruction and that was also the theme of the clip.
Do you have plans to record a full-length CD?
Hopefully by the end of the year if everything goes alright.
How did your first couple of US live shows last month go?
Good. Great, supportive fans always make the shows better.
What are your upcoming tour/live show plans?
Nothing yet, but hopefully by the start of summer something will come up.
You've been in the US about a year. What has been the hardest adjustment for you?
There are a lot of hard adjusments. I don’t even know where to start, but I can say that about most of the countries we have lived in. We try our best to blend in, even though it takes a lot of effort to do that.
You were able to meet James Hetfield from Metallica. How was that experience?
Great. Metallica have always been one of the most important bands in rock history and we were always fans of theirs. James Hetfield is one of the best frontmen in metal.
After the movie Heavy Metal In Baghdad, have you corresponded with or heard from other metal musicians around the world?
Every day there is number of email from people all over the world. It’s always overwhelming for us to know that these people are there to support us and the band.
After that exposure, you are more well-known than the average metal band releasing a debut EP. Does that increase the pressure on you?
There is always a good amount of pressure for every band just starting out, but I guess one thing we are known for is that we don’t have a problem working under any type of pressure. Sometimes that’s a needed element.
How did you get started in music?
Like a lot of people, first by listening to it, then one day Faisal and I decided to start a band. We have not looked back ever since.
When did you discover heavy metal?
Back in the late '90s.
Who are some fellow drummers you admire?
Paul Bostaph, the former drummer of Forbbiden and Slayer and current drummer for Testament. I’ve been a fan of his from 1998 up until now. He's my number one drummer of all time and I was lucky enough to meet him couple of times; back in Istanbul with Testament and here in the states as well.
What are some of your all-time favorite CDs?
I’ve always had a weird combination of CDs, but metal-wise I would say Slayer - Diabolus in Musica, Opeth - Blackwater Park, Sepultura - Against, Savatage - The Wake of Magellan, Dio - Holy Diver, etc.
