Interview by Ali Blackdiamond
Stu Marshall is a multi-talented guitarist/producer/composer from Australia. His band EMPIRES OF EDEN play melodic and power metal and their current album release includes a whole plethora of metal artists including Udo Dirkschneider, Rob Rock, Zak Stevens, Michael Vescera and many more.
Stu was contacted by Richard Ofsoski, The Metal For Cancer founder and organiser, about taking part in the fundraising Dragon Slayer All Star Project last year Stu was asked about this in a recent interview by Blackdiamond for Metal Shock Finland. Check out what Stu had to say in the third Metal For Cancer interview in this series, below:
Hi Stu and welcome to Metal Shock Finland, how are you doing today?
Hey Ali, I am great. Thanks for taking the time to chat with me.
So to begin with, how did you become involved in the Metal For Cancer Dragon Slayer All Star Project and can you tell me about your role?
The mastermind behind that idea is Richard Ofsoski who I have known for many years from Aussie metal circuit. Rich contacted me about the idea of being involved and my response was an immediate “yes of course”. He collected an incredible range of superstars for the charity song and from what I hear it’s doing quite well.
How much work did it take for you to complete your guitar part?
Solos for me are really quite easy as I record alot of sessions at home. The work comes into play when you know who you’re playing with on the track! I think there are some amazing players on this song, so I spent some time working out the part but for me music is never really work. I think I cut the track in a few hours from when I got the sample.
Can you tell me your thoughts on the completed song “Let’s Unite In Rock” and what it means to you?
It’s a great, catchy and powerful track. Rich really composed a great song and it’s a fantastic effort by everyone who gave their time. It sounds like an old story but the more we can give towards good causes the better.
Are there any more plans to work with the Metal For Cancer project?
I’m on 24 hour call for Rich, anything he needs. It’s essentially his baby so any future plans are best directed his way.
What message would you like to give to people about helping out to raise money for the Australian Cancer Research Foundation?
Throw a small donation. While everyone knows the horror of cancer this also promotes the heavy rock community in doing something positive, it’s hard these days as times are tough and people are more concerned about paying a mortgage which we all feel.
Let’s talk about your band Empires Of Eden, you released a new album “Channelling The Infinite” several months ago, featuring various great metal artists including Udo Dirkschneider, Rob Rock, Steve Grimmett and Ronny Munroe. Can you tell us more about it and what is happening at the moment?
The album “Channelling the Infinite” was released in July of this year and really was a dream come true. For those that have not heard of it, it’s essentially an album of epic power metal featuring a huge cast of great singers.
To write songs and produce a lot of the vocals was something I have been working for over many years. This album is the 3rd for Empires of Eden, so each step has been a progression. First and foremost I am a fan of all of these singers as there is 11 vocalists all with their feature track. I have a short attention span so producing and album like this is just a great experience. Working with UDO, what can you say?, an amazing experience to create music for a legend like that and I’m an old school Accept fan from way back.
You also keep busy with your Frontier Studio and have recently mastered the new album by Australian metal band Taberah, how much time do you spend doing this work as well as fitting in the band?
I am producing all year round and the business has grown a lot this past year. For 2012 we have produced five releases, the most recent production is what I am doing now with the band Mystery on their debut cd. The guys are really young and have a huge amount of energy.
What are your plans for next year?
I’m working on something very special right now, sadly it’s all hush but I am hoping for an official announcement soon. It’s really the biggest thing I have been involved in so far, so yes.. It’s not easy to keep quiet. More to be revealed.
What final words would you like to leave here for the Metal Shock Finland readers?
Please checkout www.empiresofeden.com for hand signed cd’s with fast global delivery. All the latest news is there and on facebook we run regular competitions for free stuff.
Thanks a lot for your time Stu!
Thanks for taking the time to chat Ali and I hope to hit Finland as soon as I can.
Listen to the song “Let’s Unite In Rock” below:
Check out the following links for the METAL FOR CANCER project and EMPIRES OF EDEN below:
- http://www.metalforcancer.com
- http://www.facebook.com/pages/Metal-For-Cancer/230467360301423
- http://www.empiresofeden.com/
- https://www.facebook.com/empiresofeden
Also Blackdiamond conducted two previous interviews for the METAL FOR CANCER project. The first one with Henrik Flyman from EVIL MASQUERADE can be found at this location and the second with METAL FOR CANCER founder and organiser Richard Ofsoski can be found at this location.
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