Interview with Heathen Guitarist Kragen Lum

May 25, 2020

Interview with Heathen Guitarist Kragen Lum

By Mick Michaels

COSMICK VIEW: Hello, Kragen! Welcome to The Cosmick View. Thank you for taking some time out of your day to chat with me, it's greatly appreciated.

CV: How would you describe the current state of the music business and then compare that description to what the business was like five…10...15…30 years ago?
Kragen Lum: Well, obviously streaming has become a big part of how people consume music. We still have CDs, vinyl and even cassettes but there are far fewer copies sold than before streaming. Metal is actually one of the only genres of music where physical albums still sell. Bands these days also spend less time making music and more time touring in order to make a living. We’re basically travelling t-shirt salesmen that play music these days. Haha! That’s just the nature of the current music industry at the moment.

CV: What do you see as the biggest change in the music industry since Heathen first formed in the mid 80s?
KL: The biggest change in the music industry has to be recording. That applies to all music styles. Bands used to have HUGE recording budgets for albums and would go into big studios and spend months writing and recording. Now that home recording is not only available, but also affordable, albums can be made at a high quality for way less money. The downside to this is that with home recording and the internet there are way more bands out there and it’s much harder for the great bands to get exposure and stand out in a crowded market.

CV: Kragen, is being a "rockstar" still a relevant term in today's music industry…does it even exist? Is it something worth aspiring to for an artist to become in your opinion?
KL: I think it’s still relevant but only for the really big artists. I would consider Metallica to be “rock stars” but there aren’t many bands operating at that level anymore. I think people will still always aspire to get there but it’s more important to find a way to make a living as a musician if that’s what you want to be.

CV: Heavy Metal around the world is populated with legion and legions of fans of all ages. What makes Metal music is so alluring? Is it an attitude or a way of living moreso then just a musical taste choice? How do you see it?
KL: I think Metal is about rebellion and a counterculture attitude in a lot of ways. After all of these years I am still a fan. I still don’t “fit in” in society so to speak. The only thing that I’m seeing these days is that there are too many “rules” in Metal these days. The idea that you have to have a guitar solo in the middle of the song or it’s not “true” Metal, for example… Why do a guitar solo if you have nothing to say or it doesn’t benefit the song? Bands, especially in the Bay Area Thrash scene, used to have an attitude of, “fuck you, we’ll do what we want.” They had fast songs, heavy songs, ballads, instrumentals… There was no fear and there were no rules. I don’t see that same attitude now but I wish it would come back. Music would be better for it for sure. Fuck the rules!

CV: Has Metal splintered into too many sub-genres in your opinion or is this more of a testament to the music's power to touch individual lives worldwide? Do you view Heavy Metal as one big happy family or are there some levels of separation that exists because of the genre multiple facets?
KL: I think the sub-genres are fine. At the end of the day it’s all Metal to me and I will listen to whatever I think sounds good. There are some elitists who only want to listen to certain sub-genres and/or put down certain styles but that’s sort of normal in music. Everyone has an opinion and it’s OK to express it. But everyone should be open minded and not close themselves off to something because of a sub-genre label. Some bands just don’t fit neatly into a category but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t worth listening to.

CV: Do you find that with the numerous classifications within the Heavy Metal genre, that both bands and fan often find it difficult to accurately define or describe their particular sound and style...especially considering the diverse range of individual interpretations of music?
KL: I think that labeling some bands just doesn’t work. There are a lot of bands that were lumped into a sub-genre when they came out and fans of that sub-genre didn’t like or appreciate them. Putting a sub-genre label on a band makes it easier for a record company to market the band but what if a band doesn’t fit into that box very neatly? Cynic for example was universally hated by Death Metal fans when they came out. Years later they found a willing audience because they weren’t labeled as Death Metal anymore. My own band Prototype didn’t fit into the category of Progressive Metal and couldn’t find an audience there because we were also Thrash Metal. The descriptions can sometimes be helpful from a marketing perspective but they can also be limiting…or even inaccurate, to the fans.

CV: Heathen is currently in the process of recording new music with a single coming out soon. Can you tell us a bit about what fans can expect and how does the music differ from what the band has previously released?
KL: The new Heathen album is actually done and has been since January. The album is called Empire of the Blind and will be released by Nuclear Blast in the coming months. It’s a little different from the other Heathen albums but they have all had their own sound. We tried to really capture a vibe with this new album. Overall, the songs are in the vein of Victims of Deception and The Evolution of Chaos but with the shorter song arrangements of Breaking the Silence. We tried to push all of the characteristics that make the Heathen sound to the next level. The fast songs are faster, heavy songs are heavier, melodic stuff is more melodic, etc. The trademark guitar work, harmonies and vocals are all there. We can’t wait to get it out there for people to finally hear!

CV: Kragen, does working in such a specific genre songwriting environment
ever present more challenges to the craft? Are there more considerations in mind to maintaining the fans’ attention as opposed to just writing as you feel?
KL: I think that it could absolutely limit us if we let it. But we don’t let the genre label or “rules” define what Heathen can or can’t do. We simply do what we’ve always done and write the best songs that we can with no limitations.

CV: What’s Heathen’s process of taking a song from concept to completion? Is it an organic process or are things mapped out to get various musical puzzle pieces to fit together?
KL: This time, things were a little different from how they have been in the past. In the old days, even on Evolution, we would get in a room together and work out the song arrangements based on riffs that we would bring in. It was usually someone having an idea for the direction of the song and then working out the details in a room together. For this album we didn’t really have the luxury of getting together like that as we’re spread all over the country these days. This time, I basically worked on demoing everything at home and presented more or less finished and ready to record songs.

CV: What's next for Heathen? What can fans expect to see coming in a post COVID world?
KL: We want to get the new album out as soon as possible and then hopefully reschedule as many of the cancelled tour dates as possible for when the pandemic is over. COVID-19 has certainly screwed up all of the plans that we had for the album release and touring this year. Thankfully, the album is done and was unaffected. We’re really proud of it and can’t wait to share it with our incredibly patient fans.

CV: Thank you again Kragen for spending some time talking and sharing with our readers. It was a pleasure. I wish you all the best and continued success.
KL: Thanks for the great interview! All the best to you and The Cosmick View!

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My name is Mick Michaels...I'm an artist, music fan, songwriter, producer, dreamer and guitarist for the traditional Heavy Metal band Corners of Sanctuary. Writing has always been a creative outlet for me; what I couldn't say in speech, I was able to do with the written word. Writing has given me a voice and a way for me to create on a multitude of platforms including music and song, articles, independent screenplays, books and now, artist interviews. The Cosmick View is an opportunity to raise the bar and showcase artists in a positive and inspirational light. For me, it's another out-of-this-world adventure.