Here she is! She's just recovering from her Uk Tour, back from another tour with the masters Uriah Heep, she's been playing in the most famous clubs in L.A. with artists like Motorhead, Danzing and lots more. She's nice and available, a real rocker enjoying the benefits of a deserved success. Here is with us Emily from Fireball Ministry ready to tell us her experience in this inconceivable and difficult music show business.

Hi Emily you are the guitarist and one of the two original members of Fireball Ministry aren't you? Can you tell us something about the birth and creation of the band?
James and I first started the band in '98. We thought we should start writing songs together and the first one we wrote was "The Man" from our first record. We thought we had something cool so we named the band Fireball Ministry and it took off from there. We didn't actually play a live show until after our first record, "Ou Est La Rock?" was recorded for Bong Load Records.

Why some time ago did you take the decision to move from New York to Los Angeles? Something wrong in the Big Apple?
At that time, there wasn't much of a rock scene happening in New York City. It has since gotten better. But it's also very difficult to find rehearsal space and play shows in the city, just the logistics of getting your equipment to the show is a nightmare. Since the homebase of the music industry is Los Angeles, we thought it would be the right place for us.

The fist label you worked with was Bong Load Records but the last album was recorded with Nuclear Blast. How did you get the deal with the last ones? Which are the main differences you found in working for these two different labels?
Our first record was put out on Bong Load which was a much smaller operation than Nuclear Blast. Indie labels are indie labels so the problems are still the same, but getting the deal with Nuclear Blast has allowed us to make a video and tour more.

On your debut album appeared a collaboration with Megadeth, which is your relation with the band? Which other band would you like to play with and why?
Nick Menza, the former drummer of Megadeth did a couple of drum tracks on our first record. The Bong Load guys were friends with him so that's how it happened. It was pretty cool to watch him in action, he's a maniac. And I'm a major Megadeth fan so it was a pretty awesome experience.

Which are the main differences between your last album and the previous one?
The main difference is that now we're more of a band rather than a sort of "project" and we have more solid ideas of what we as a band sound like. It was actually much easier to go in and record because there were less variables.

Is that true you recorded this last one in just two weeks? How was it possible?
It really doesn't take long to record. We don't have the time or money to sit around writing songs in the studio, so everything is ready to go before we get in there, with the exception sometimes of lyrics. John O is extremely fast and it usually takes him about 2 days to get sounds and do an album's worth of drums. We all try to track as efficiently as possible because there're always little things that you want to tweak at the end.

Your music is basically hard rock, do you agree? Which peculiarities of your band you would like to highlight?
I agree that we're hard rock. I like the fact that we can actually play live because a lot of times you go see bands who obviously used a little too much Protools in the studio and sound like shit when they play out. And we have a singer who can actually sing.

Do you think your music is different from the common trend of today? We are seeing a blast of little successful bands…but just temporary successful, what do you think about the rock scene nowadays?
I don't even know. I quit thinking about it because there are so many facets and so many bands. Obviously the music industry as a whole is completely in the shitter. There's no money for anything and it's creating a draught because good bands aren't given a chance to develop at all and are tossed aside before they really get going. We just play the music that we like and hopefully things will work out for us.

And which are the main differences between The States and Europe in your own opinion?
There are pros and cons to both. The United States is very big so it takes a long time to really get a following going. You can't hit everywhere in 2 weeks like you can in smaller countries. Europe seems to still like metal in the classic sense which is great and I'm not sure if there's so much of that right now in the U.S.A..

Would you like to tell us something about your recent tour in Germany supporting Uriah Heep?
Uriah Heep is so amazing, such a great band with great players. I didn't know much about them before we did the tour but they are a class act all the way.

What about Europe? Do you think you will come back to tour here?
We just did a U.K. tour with CKY which was totally awesome. We'll be doing festivals at the end of June/early July in Germany. We would love to come to Italy.

Which are the band you liked most playing with? You've been around with several important bands as Motorhead and Danzig. Which has been the best live show ever? And why?
I personally enjoy playing with Danzig because I am a big fan, but the audience is usually pretty tough. We played with Motorhead at the HOB in Los Angeles and it was a really great show. We had a lot of good shows on the CKY tour as well. The kids were really animated so there was a lot of energy on both sides. A couple of shows we had at the Troubadour here in LA are among my favourites.

Amongst the women crowding the musical scene, who are your favourites?
Elyse Steinman from Raging Slab is rad and I think the guitar player from the Donnas, Donna R (Allison Robertson), is really good. There are a lot of good bands with girl members like Acid King, Gorilla, and Misdemeanor that under the radar. I think Yael from My Ruin is a great drummer. I'm not so into a lot of the lady singers that are getting popular. A few of the bands they are calling "metal" aren't very heavy to me.

How do you feel to be a rock girl in a world dominated from strong, naughty, tricky men?
It feels pretty good! Sometimes I get attitude, not usually from guys in bands but from tour managers, crew, club owners, promoters, etc.

Can tell us something about your method to create?
In the beginning there was just James and myself and we would just come up with riffs and demo songs ourselves. Now one of us will come up with a riff and we'll all work it out at practice. James writes the vocal lines and the majority of the lyrics. I like to write lyrics but they don't always fit with what he had in mind to sing. He's the one who has to say them so he has to feel comfortable with them.

I read once an interview in which you said you really appreciated The Darkness. They have had a huge blast last year with lots of live shows and awards too. What do you think now about them?
I still like them. I still think their album was one of the best of last year. Their next record is going to determine whether they'll stay around or disappear into obscurity. I know they've demanded a lot of money for some festivals in the UK recently and I can't blame them for trying to cash in with the industry being so bad right now. It's a bummer that all the hipsters have now caught on but you can't choose your fans.

Your fav five top album of ever…
Megadeth "Peace Sells…But Who's Buying?", "Killing Is My Business"…And Business is Good", Black Sabbath "Black Sabbath", Danzig "Danzig I", Metallica "Master of Puppets", Lynyrd Skynyrd "Second Helping". Here are some others that almost made the cut: Nuclear Assault "Survive", The Haunted "The Haunted Made Me Do It", Slayer "South Of Heaven".

Best drink?
I like Miller Lite beer

Some band you would like to suggest us and some other we could do without?
Suggest: Drunk Horse, Grand Magus, Grand Funk Railroad, Mercyful Fate, Diamondhead, Puny Human, the Obsessed, Fu Manchu, Dixie Witch, Honky
Avoid: Atreyu, Avenged Sevenfold, Simple Plan

Is there any question you would like to be asked but nobody did yet?
Well, for sure it's fun to talk about bands and albums I like so I'm glad you asked those questions. Sometimes interviewers ask really general and generic questions and you feel like you're saying the same thing over and over in every interview- which is, of course, boring for the reader as well.

Ok we've almost finished. I thank for this interview…Would you like to say something to the rock explosion readers?
Stay heavy and we'll see you as soon as humanly possible!

Intervista realizzata da Laura Delnevo
Supervisione di Margherita Realmonte