Baroness just completed a tour with Lamb of God, and are now turning their focus to releasing new music. Heavy Consequence caught up with John Baizley (lead vocals, guitars) and Gina Gleason (lead guitar, backing vocals) at the recent Louder Than Life festival in Louisville, Kentucky, where they told us to expect an announcement regarding a new album very shortly.
It’s been more than three years since Baroness released their last LP, Gold & Grey, which marked an end to the band’s chromatically themed album titles. When we jokingly suggested that the band turn to more rudimentary album titles like “Baroness Rocks” or “Come Get Us,” Baizley laughed and suggested one of his own: “What’s Cracking?”
In all seriousness, Baizley told us in the video above that fans will soon find out if the new album will start a new theme or be a singular title, saying, “As you may know, we keep the themes and that kind of stuff somewhat under wraps. I will say that the answer to that question will come relatively soon.”
He added, “We finally have a timeline on the new [album], which is great. The pandemic was not the easiest time for a band like Baroness to write music, being that our music is definitely the direct chemistry of the musicians playing, more so now than it ever has been.”
Elsewhere in the interview, we asked Gleason about her pre-Baroness days fronting an all-female Metallica cover band called Misstallica, in which she assumed the James Hetfield role. “I think the big takeaway is that I kind of learned to play guitar and sing at the same time,” said Gleason, “so that was a valuable skill joining Baroness — ’cause some of those [Metallica guitar] parts are all over the place.” Baizley then chimed in, “They’re so hard!”
For more from Baizley and Gleason, including their experience touring with Lamb of God, how Baizley’s visual artwork informs his music, and other topics, watch the full interview in the video above. And stay tuned to Heavy Consequence as Baroness announce details of their next album.
Trouble viewing the interview in the video player above? Watch on YouTube.