Blazing Rust: Raging Traditional Heavy Metal from Russia

Blazing Rust: Raging Traditional Heavy Metal from Russia

Blazing Rust unleashes traditional heavy metal artistry in it’s finest and most glorious hour.  Based out of St. Petersberg in Russia, Blazing Rust is ready to rage all across the world, especially if their latest album Line Of Danger is indicative of greater triumphs ahead.  Line Of Danger is now available from Pure Underground Records, and it’s a collection of combustible anthems well worth seeking out!  Highwire Daze recently caught up with vocalist Igor Arbuzov to find out a whole lot more about this exhilarating Russian metal collective and their thrilling Line Of Danger magnum opus.  Read on…

Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Blazing Rust, and how long the band has been together.
Hi Ken! Thanks for having us in your zine! My name is Igor Arbuzov, I am the lead singer from BLAZING RUST. The band was formed late 2014, and I joined in February, 2015.

Where is the band based out of and what is the local heavy metal scene like there? Are there any local metal bands you could recommend?
We reside in St. Petersburg, Russia, and the metal scene here is mostly oriented towards extreme genres. There are no real big names here, but I’ll try to give you a hint on a few. Check INTERNAL DAMAGE if you like grindcore, check PORTFIRE and IRON DRIVER if you’re into raw motorheadish things. SWEAT and REDS’COOL are also pretty decent hard rock outfits. I should mention a band we’re sharing members with. It’s called PYRE. The guys are playing death metal in a very old school way, and it sounds awesome! Our drummer Dmitry Dovzhenko is a singer / bass player there, and his twin-brother Roman plays guitar in both bands.

How did you wind up signing with Pure Steel Records?
When we had our debut record (Armed To Exist) ready, we started a huge email campaign offering it to various record companies. Not much response we had, but a few deals were on our table. Pure Steel seemed to be the best option for us, and as you can see, we’re still collaborating.

Is there any overall story or concept behind the Line Of Danger title?
Not much concept here. You know, the easiest way to name an album is to choose one of the most catchy song titles. This song is about the feeling of fading freedom that one particular person experiences. All in all, the theme of freedom pops up in our lyrics quite often.

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Select two songs from Line Of Danger and what inspired the lyrics.
The track Race With Reality is quite autobiographical for us. Looking at what is happening (and what is not happening) in the political and social life of our country, willy-nilly, we want to flee from this reality. And we run away, we hide in our music, which is not only a refuge, or a place for internal emigration, but it’s also an opportunity to communicate with like-minded people from all over the world. Some, however, do not have such a shelter, and alcohol, drugs remain… Well, you know.

The track called Murder is, on the opposite, a very unserious one. It tells a story of a delusional drunkard committing a heavy crime, who subsequently realizes what he’s done. The lyrics are quite silly here, but they fit the music well, as it’s an old fashioned rock’n’roll that may remind of THIN LIZZY, UFO, or even early CRUE.

Who did the cover art for Line Of Danger and how much input did you have on it?
Augusto Peixoto, an artist from Portugal, is responsible for the front cover, and we’re quite impressed with what he has done. He had absolute creative freedom, and the result is a catchy heavy metal cover that really stands out from tons of others. That was the main goal and it’s achieved.

What has it been like to release a new album right in the middle of a pandemic and so much social injustice in the world? Have you had any shows or tours cancelled because of the pandemic?
Luckily, we didn’t have any touring obligations when the pandemic hit the world. We were getting our album ready for the release. The only concern was: if everyone dies, then there’ll be no one to check the album out. But seriously, we couldn’t even gather for a photo shoot, because everyone was on lockdown. The situation was very disturbing here this spring. But it looks like the virus is calming down these days.

What could one expect from a live Blazing Rust show?
Pure energy and sincerity.

What was it like opening for Iron Savior and did you get to meet or hang out with them at all?
We didn’t have that much time to hang out with the guys. We only said “hi” to each other. They had a session drummer that day and were not too relaxed, but they were still cool to us. They’re weekend warriors, like we are, and, as far as I remember, their regular drummer couldn’t make it because of the main job. Music is not a business anymore, even for those bands that are quite famous and have their story.

If Blazing Rust could open for any band either now or from the past, who would it be and why?
It’s always cool to open for a band that is not playing in a very-very similar genre to your band. It allows you to broaden your audience and gain some new fans. I mean it would be very natural for us to open for some NWOTHM bands like AMBUSH or ENFORCER, but I’d better think of some heavy doom bands like SORCERER, CANDLEMASS or even TROUBLE. That would be a great bill, and the listeners won’t be bored with the same music,

When you look back at your first album Armed To Exist, what do you think of it now in retrospect?
I love it. I think it was really great for a debut. Some nice songs there like Shimmering Dawn, Hellbringer or Witch… But when you’re making the next album, you’re always trying to top the previous one. And somehow it ends up losing some value for you. However, Bravewords has recently included it in its 20 Essential NWOTHM Albums list. It adds some weight to it, I think.

What’s up next for Blazing Rust?
We’re getting our concert setlist ready and hope to get some gigs at least in Russia this year. New stuff is being demoed as well. Some covers will be also recorded for a few compilation albums. That’s what is on the map as for now.

Any final words of wisdom?
Never give up your dreams and may the spirit of Metal stay with you forever! Music saves lives!

LINE-UP:
Igor Arbuzov – vocals
Roman Dovzhenko – guitars
Serg Ivanov – guitars
Dmitry Pronin – bass
Dmitry Dovzhenko – drums

(Interview by Ken Morton)

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