Full Blown Chaos have released one of the best metal albums of the year with “Heavy Lies The Crown”. We caught up with front man Ray Mazzola to find out a bit more about the album and their plans for the year. 

Thanks for taking time out to talk to us, how's it going?

Ray Mazzola (Vocals): Everything is going well! I’m recovering from a long weekend off with the band and friends. My birthday was Saturday (September 1st) so it was an all out rager! Currently we are gearing up to leave for tour with Obituary! 

"Heavy Lies The Crown" is a really diverse album and is something the Metal world has needed for a long time, when you were writing and recording the album did you purposely try and incorporate different elements and styles into your music?

Ray: We always do. It is such a vital part in our writing process. We want it to be the heaviest it can be while keeping the integrity of the song structure intact. We focus on incorporating our influences into our music and mixing it with our ferocious style to create this sonic attack. We want people to walk away like they just got their asses kicked! 

I believe that the title of the album was inspired by something a fan said to you at a festival, could you tell us a bit more about that? And is there anything else on the album that has been inspired by people or events outside the band?

Ray: The album title has a lot of meaning to us. Not only does it depict my experience with the fan but it symbolizes the band in a hole. So many other bands are really quick to take the easy road to achieve fame. There is no discipline in that at all. We take the road less travelled and gain a lot of experience doing so. This entire record is about certain people in our lives and situations we have been through this past year. It shows the downfalls of relationships and the unwinding of loyalty by those we hold closest. It also goes into how, no matter what obstacles emerge in our way, the band as individuals or in a whole will not be defeated by anything. We are a strong unit. We are a force to be reckoned with. Its all laid out in the lyrics. 

Now, Full Blown Chaos has such a diverse sound, who would you say has played a major part in influencing the band? On the new record you can hear elements of thrash, hardcore and even small amounts of death metal.

Ray: There are many influences that play a part in shaping our sound and the musicians we have become. The main ones are Pantera, Testament, Sepultura, Crowbar, old Metallica, Madball, Agnostic Front, Biohazard, Machine Head, etc. These bands are in our blood. We honour them with integrating their styles into our own form of Metal. 

This album is your first for Ferret Music, will this release see Full Blown Chaos become a household name now that you have a strong label backing?

Ray: That's the plan! We will be able to reach more listeners and get our music pushed into the right hands on a much wider spectrum of people. We work our asses off and we know Ferret will do the same if not more! They are at the top of their game and so are we! 

You are setting off on a European tour very soon, what can people expect from that?

Ray: It is going to be insane! We are hitting Europe and the U.K. with our great friends in First Blood and Since The Flood and I couldn’t be more excited! We are bringing a new level of heaviness to heavy metal and hardcore so it is going to hit like bomb going off. The shows will be full of great people with on soul purpose... TO ROCK THEIR FACES OFF! I can't wait. We have so many plans we cannot contain ourselves! 

Can we expect a UK tour from you anytime soon? (Other than the 3 dates on your European tour)

Ray: We are working on that for possibly sometime in the spring of next year. We definitely want to hit all areas of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. We have never been to some of these places so we are eager to get out there and spread our music more and more. We are a "Metal Virus"! 

Being from the East-Coast, are there any metal bands you can recommend that we should be looking out for in the near future?

Ray: There are a few bands that stick out in my head actually. “Come For Me My Maker” from New York, "Unholy" from Syracuse, NY and "Recon" from upstate New York. [They are] great bands with alot of drive and musical diversity. They stand alone amongst all the copy cats out there nowadays trying to sound like Job For A Cowboy or a bad Pantera rip-off. 

What can we expect from you guys in the rest of 2007?

Ray: We will be touring for the rest of the year nonstop! We have 3 tours lined up back to back that stretch from September 7th to December 23rd. Gotta be back in time for Christmas! [The] Obituary tour leading into our European Headline tour, to a great friend’s tour with Despised Icon and The Acacia Strain. Nothing but good times ahead!

Many Thanks to Ray for taking the time to talk with HardRockHouse. To find out more about Full Blown Chaos then you can visit the following websites:

www.myspace.com/fullblownchaos

www.ferretstyle.com/artist.php?aid=47

You can also read the HRH review of Full Blown Chaos' Heavy Lies The Crown album via this link