Armored Saint Interview With John Bush + Joey Vera

On Friday (May 22), Armored Saint released Emotion Factory Reset, their ninth studio album since 1984’s March of the Saint. To celebrate the new record, frontman John Bush and bassist Joey Vera — founding members of the band — joined Loudwire Nights to dive into their latest collection of new music.

Listen to the full conversation in the player near the end of this article.

“We never would have imagined in a million years we’d be talking about this band and new music 44 years later,” Vera admitted to Loudwire Nights host Chuck Armstrong.

“There’s no way, so it’s pretty astonishing that we’re doing this and that we’re able to do this. And a lot of it has to do with, part of it is our persistence, but it also is the support of our fans. They really have gone with us through this whole journey and they want to hear new music from us and they appreciate the new music. That’s pretty rare for a band of our age.”

Another part of that longevity is the fact that Armored Saint have felt supported by their record label, Metal Blade. Vera explained how lucky they are that the label lets them work on their music in their own way and on their own time.

“We’re really grateful that we’re talking about Armored Saint new music 44 years in.”

As Bush heard that, he took listeners into what was running through his head in the earliest days of the band.

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“Let’s try to sell out that next club show or actually just make sure there’s some people there,” he said, laughing.

“I think one thing about us is that we always wanted to have longevity. The was something that was important to us even back then … Our career has been one where it hasn’t always been the most fruitful, financially successful career, but I think there’s a lot of quality in the music that we’ve made and the performances. You can’t really determine what your fate is going to be on a success level, monetarily and stuff, but you can control the important things like quality of what you do.”

What Else Did Armored Saint’s John Bush + Joey Vera Discuss on Loudwire Nights?

• How they keep pushing themselves, 44 years into their career: “I think it’s really important for us to not only make this quality music that we talk about, but also kind of just keep expanding on the sound of the band, make sure that we keep growing and try things and challenge ourselves and challenge our fanbase. The important thing is that we’re staying true to our own sound. For the longest time, I would say we didn’t always fit in. We still don’t actually, which is not always easy because you’re not kind of getting to ride the wave of something that was a trend or a scene. We were part of the L.A. scene in the ’80s, but we really weren’t part of that sound, even though some of those bands are great bands and we played with them…we still didn’t really completely fit in. And it was frustrating for awhile, but once we kind of said, ‘Let’s just do our thing and try to stay focused on our own unique sound,’ I think it’s been the right thing for us.”
• Why they never want to re-create an album they’ve already made: “I think that’s the important thing, is always being open-minded. [We don’t] try to go back to something that we did in the past and redo something because it just doesn’t work. I mean, Metallica can’t make Master of Puppets. It’s not going to happen. It’s a great record on its own. It’s 40 years later for them; do something that you might look back and give a little nod to, but you want to keep growing.”
• What it feels like releasing their ninth album: “We’re always excited. It’s a weird thing. When you make a record, or I guess maybe any kind of art or film or something, you have to kind of let go of it. And that’s the hardest part, because you’re so close to this thing.”

Listen to the Full Interview in the Podcast Player Below or the Video at the Top of the Page

Joey Vera and John Bush joined Loudwire Nights on Friday, May 22; the show replays online here, and you can tune in live every weeknight at 7PM ET or on the Loudwire app; you can also see if the show is available on your local radio station and listen to interviews on-demand.