Infected Brain

Interview with Gertjan Vis (guitars) and Ron Heikens (bass guitar) of Black Knight.
Hello friends !
We will discover the universe of BLACK KNIGHT but especially their new album.

What’s the story for ROAD TO VICTORY ?

Hello Hugues, thank you for this chance to present Black Knight to the readers of Infected Brain Webzine!
Actually, the title track “Road to Victory” was the last song we composed for this album. Having our material ready for recording we also entered the stage to decide on the album’s title. Sure, we had a few options to choose from. In the end it was a close call between “Road to Victory” and “Thousand Faces”. But while working on our studio recordings, the cover artwork, the choice of location for the video clip we were about to shoot, the lyrics David wrote and the individual ideas that we all developed along the way all added up. “Road to Victory” covered it all.
“Road To Victory” represents the cooperation within the band to achieve the best of ourselves. It is our present, the road that we walk today in our real lives.

Who composes ?...How does it work in the band ?

The compositions are the results of the synergy between the band members. The ideas that were created by either of us were adopted and then adapted by the group like a natural thing. Some parts of the songs were developed by individual band members from home. But mostly the songs were put together and arranged in the rehearsal room. We love ‘80s metal. So clearly an old school vibe is captured into Black Knight's music.

Who writes the texts ?..What are they talking about ?..How does inspiration come ?

Most of the lyrics on “Road to Victory” are written by our singer David Marcelis. The exceptions are “Primal Power” and “Legend” that were done by David’s predecessor Pieter Bas Borger and “The One to Blame” that was largely written in the ’80s by Jenny van den Goor but slightly adapted by David to fit the re-arrangements of the 2020 version of the song.
Contextually, the texts contain a variety of history, psychology, personal development and some science fiction. “Crossing the Rubicon” is about Julius Caesar fording the river Rubicon into Italy and is about making choices and living with what you chose. The title track “Road to victory” is a very nowadays issue in a historical background. The bottomline is that together we stand strong and can make anything possible. The song “Thousand Faces” is based on the movie “Darkman” from 1990 and is about the inner struggles of the main character in the movie. There’s a lot of interesting stuff in the lyrics and they are printed in the booklet of the CD.

What's your best live memory ? And why ?

That is a difficult question considering that I’ve been on stage with bands for four decades! At the many gigs we have played with Black Knight, the enthusiasm and the energy we receive from the audience is what always thrills me. It makes me proud and in that sense every gig yields great live memories.

For me, the most memorable time is the tour in Bulgaria during the late ‘90s. I can write a book about that trip, haha! There were posters all over town, hundreds of fans who literally sang along with all the lyrics,… Our days started at 18.00 and never ended,… It was a crazy ride, with amazing people. It was awesome.

In studio, what was the atmosphere for your new album ?...etc.…

The recording process started at Martin Haak’s Captain Hook Studio. Mart and his drum technician Hans van Kleef were very professional but relaxed. Their motto is: ‘no pressure and take your time’. I believe that was the key to this record. When we finished at Captain Hook Studio I took the tracks to my home studio, ‘The Flying Fish Studios’, where we recorded more guitars and all the vocals.

When we entered the studio, I felt honored, excited and concentrated. Both studios enabled us to get the best out of our recordings. Captain Hook Studios where we recorded drums and bass is a wonderful venue with brilliant technicians to get the job done. Martin and Hans made the recordings very comfortable for us and their guidance was of a professional and friendly kind. At The Flying Fish Studios the real guitar freaks and vocalists could get their thrill. We owe a lot to both Mart and Hans as well as to Gertjan.

How does it work for the design of the CD ? and why this title ?

“Road to Victory” is all about the decicions you make, the willpower to defend your freedom and accomplish your dreams in a safe world. From history and from today we can learn that this does not come for free, unfortunately. To quote the chorus of the title track of the album: “United we will be on the Road To Victory”.
The artwork was done by Mai Visualart and coordinated by our guitarist Ruben Raadschelders. In the design of the artwork we tried to reflect the stories told in our songs. We used elements from history and self-reflection in a landscape or our own making. Search for the elements while listening to our album!

How was the shooting of the clip ROAD TO VICTORY ? and why this choice ?

The first part of the shooting of the clip was done on the beautiful Dutch island of Texel. The location was selected by our drummer Rudo Plooy. He loves Texel and knows about every little brick you can find on the island. The second part of the shooting took place at P60, a professional venue in Amstelveen city. Both locations seamlessly matched our story to tell.
We asked Sebastiaan Spijker of ‘Ik Wil Ook Een Videoclip’ (https://www.ikwilookeenvideoclip.nl/) to team up with us and help us to get “Road to Victory” on video. He is a proven master in metal video productions. Overall, it was a two day’s shooting which brings back great memories. Hard work and good fun!

What are your projects ?

Well, that might seem obvious. COVID-19 impacted everybody in the world. Apart from internet promo activities and some 1.5 meter opportunities it is hard to maintain a live presence as a band. What can you do… But actually, there is a lot to do! I don’t want to waste my precious time on this planet. So, I make metal! While we cannot play concerts, we are fully engaged writing new material and gosh… we are going strong. At the same time, tour dates are being booked for 2021. We can’t wait to hit the stage and to meet our fans again! Beware the Black Knight!

At present, we are busy with 6 new songs which are being fine-tuned in the rehearsal room. Within half a year we are planning to start recording the next Black Knight album. There will be no 13 years between albums this time!

What's your motto ?

Black Knight keeps it simple and old school. We want to play great gigs, shows and festivals and spread our metal music around the globe. In short, “Keep the Metal Faith!”.

Website to remember

Check out our home page (http://www.blackknight.nl) and follow us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/BlackKnightNL/) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/black_knight_band/).
Watch the “Road to Victory” official music video (https://youtu.be/xnDc70jqrrw), and watch our COVID-19 Lockdown Online Album Release (https://youtu.be/UWq9keGXd9o).

What would you like to say to the readers ?

These are challenging times. Although COVID-19 puts our lives upside down we believe we will meet soon somehow, somewhere. We know that metal never dies!
Thank you, Hugues! It was great to have this opportunity for us @ Infected Brain Webzine.

We will be back on a stage near you as soon as possible, so beware!! Thank you Hugues!!!
Stay safe you all. Keep the Metal Faith!