Thrash has had a plethora of faces over the years now with the release of the masterful Unnatural Selection from Havok, you can proudly hang them on the mantle of greats. While out in the middle of nowhere, Mike Leon, the power packed bass player from Havok, checked in with Metal Exiles to give you hungry metal fans the need to know on their new master stroke.
An interview with Mike Leon of Havok.
By Jeffrey Easton
Metal Exiles: First off, you’re out on the road with Soulfly. How does it feel to be out with one of the masters of the thrash sound?
Mike Leon: It is great as the Soulfly crew and Max are amazing people. They have been so welcoming to us and they are fans of what we are doing. It is great to be looked highly upon by one of the pioneers of what we are doing.
Metal Exiles: What are you picking up from this tour?
Mike: It is instilling something in me that I am a fan of and that camaraderie within the crew. The Soulfly touring group has such a tight knit of people and family members and they make everything super smooth and positive. This is something I will take away from this tour.
Metal Exiles: You joined before the recording of this record. What motivated you to want to join Havok?
Mike: The first time I saw them I was blown away by the energy and the music, there was something there that was so quick and different. Havok is a machine and it is an honor to be a part of it.
Metal Exiles: How did you get involved with them?
Mike: I met them a few years ago at one of their shows in which I was impressed by what they did so we ended up talking after the show about touring ect and we ended up touring together later that year (When he was a member of The Absence). I ended up working for them for a while and when the bass slot came up I was in and it feels right.
Metal Exiles: I grew up in the major thrash era with all of the bands like Metallica, Anthrax, Megadeth ect all in their prime so I know what thrash should be and Havok is that perfect idea. Where do you think thrash is now as compared to its beginnings in the 80s?
Mike: The lines aren’t as defined as they were back in the 80’s, I think they are a lot more blurred now. Obviously the core of Havok is thrash but we are delivering heavy catchy riffs to the masses and that is what is giving us our success.
Metal Exiles: Unnatural Selection is biting with some edgy bass lines. That being said the sound is amazing and you had Terry Date at the helm of this record. What did Terry bring out of you guys that might not have surfaced without him?
Mike: We did a lot of the footwork on the record ourselves and we presented Terry with an album that was pretty close to being finished. It was amazing as it was just to have Terry there because we all have favorite albums that were produced by Terry but it was incredible just to have someone of his caliber there on our record. He has this signature sound that he brings with him that no one can touch.
Metal Exiles: How much work did it take to get the album sounding the way it did before you got it to him?
Mike: It was hours of work. I flew in when the guys were rolling with the tracking and after that we knocked it out.
Metal Exiles: Since you were the new guy in the band, how much input did you have with the album and did you have freedom with your bass lines?
Mike: I came into the record with a lot of it written out already but I did get to put my ideas into a few songs and it came great with a lot of challenging stuff to play.
Metal Exiles: Why is it challenging to play?
Mike: I came from a band where the attention was paid to the guitars as the driving force in the band so as the bass player I sat in the back and chilled with the drummer and played the root of the song. So with playing in Havok there is a lot of lead bass with room to breathe, there is so much involvement with the bass in the music I play now. I got to experiment with slapping which I have never been able to do so it was great to be able to integrate into the music.
Metal Exiles: The album is extremely political like with I Am The State, Give Me Liberty and Worse Than War. What are your personal beliefs?
Mike: We all feel the same way about all of the shady shit going on. There is so much going on behind the scenes that nobody gets to see. They have the power and the influence but it is still up to us to make our voice heard and we can do that with our music.
Metal Exiles: Back to the album, again your parts sound great. What did you use on the album?
Mike: I am endorsed by ESP Basses and they treat me very well. I played Peavy Amps and a Tech 21 SamsAmp which is integral to my bass tone.
Metal Exiles: What is the ESP model that you are using?
Mike: Right now I am using the Tommy Stinson sig model bass and it is possibly the best bass I have used. I got it out of the box and I never even set it up and after so many shows it still screams. On the album I used the Frank Bello model, the vintage series with EMG pickups. Those are the two best basses on ESP’s roster and I have them.
Havok have stuck their middle finger right at the conformed masses with their instant thrash classic Unnatural Selection, kneel before their power.
Official Havok Site
BUY Unnatural Selection
An interview with Mike Leon of Havok.
By Jeffrey Easton
Metal Exiles: First off, you’re out on the road with Soulfly. How does it feel to be out with one of the masters of the thrash sound?
Mike Leon: It is great as the Soulfly crew and Max are amazing people. They have been so welcoming to us and they are fans of what we are doing. It is great to be looked highly upon by one of the pioneers of what we are doing.
Metal Exiles: What are you picking up from this tour?
Mike: It is instilling something in me that I am a fan of and that camaraderie within the crew. The Soulfly touring group has such a tight knit of people and family members and they make everything super smooth and positive. This is something I will take away from this tour.
Metal Exiles: You joined before the recording of this record. What motivated you to want to join Havok?
Mike: The first time I saw them I was blown away by the energy and the music, there was something there that was so quick and different. Havok is a machine and it is an honor to be a part of it.
Metal Exiles: How did you get involved with them?
Mike: I met them a few years ago at one of their shows in which I was impressed by what they did so we ended up talking after the show about touring ect and we ended up touring together later that year (When he was a member of The Absence). I ended up working for them for a while and when the bass slot came up I was in and it feels right.
Metal Exiles: I grew up in the major thrash era with all of the bands like Metallica, Anthrax, Megadeth ect all in their prime so I know what thrash should be and Havok is that perfect idea. Where do you think thrash is now as compared to its beginnings in the 80s?
Mike: The lines aren’t as defined as they were back in the 80’s, I think they are a lot more blurred now. Obviously the core of Havok is thrash but we are delivering heavy catchy riffs to the masses and that is what is giving us our success.
Metal Exiles: Unnatural Selection is biting with some edgy bass lines. That being said the sound is amazing and you had Terry Date at the helm of this record. What did Terry bring out of you guys that might not have surfaced without him?
Mike: We did a lot of the footwork on the record ourselves and we presented Terry with an album that was pretty close to being finished. It was amazing as it was just to have Terry there because we all have favorite albums that were produced by Terry but it was incredible just to have someone of his caliber there on our record. He has this signature sound that he brings with him that no one can touch.
Metal Exiles: How much work did it take to get the album sounding the way it did before you got it to him?
Mike: It was hours of work. I flew in when the guys were rolling with the tracking and after that we knocked it out.
Metal Exiles: Since you were the new guy in the band, how much input did you have with the album and did you have freedom with your bass lines?
Mike: I came into the record with a lot of it written out already but I did get to put my ideas into a few songs and it came great with a lot of challenging stuff to play.
Metal Exiles: Why is it challenging to play?
Mike: I came from a band where the attention was paid to the guitars as the driving force in the band so as the bass player I sat in the back and chilled with the drummer and played the root of the song. So with playing in Havok there is a lot of lead bass with room to breathe, there is so much involvement with the bass in the music I play now. I got to experiment with slapping which I have never been able to do so it was great to be able to integrate into the music.
Metal Exiles: The album is extremely political like with I Am The State, Give Me Liberty and Worse Than War. What are your personal beliefs?
Mike: We all feel the same way about all of the shady shit going on. There is so much going on behind the scenes that nobody gets to see. They have the power and the influence but it is still up to us to make our voice heard and we can do that with our music.
Metal Exiles: Back to the album, again your parts sound great. What did you use on the album?
Mike: I am endorsed by ESP Basses and they treat me very well. I played Peavy Amps and a Tech 21 SamsAmp which is integral to my bass tone.
Metal Exiles: What is the ESP model that you are using?
Mike: Right now I am using the Tommy Stinson sig model bass and it is possibly the best bass I have used. I got it out of the box and I never even set it up and after so many shows it still screams. On the album I used the Frank Bello model, the vintage series with EMG pickups. Those are the two best basses on ESP’s roster and I have them.
Havok have stuck their middle finger right at the conformed masses with their instant thrash classic Unnatural Selection, kneel before their power.
Official Havok Site
BUY Unnatural Selection
