BURNING WITCHES Keep The Old-School Metal Flame Burning On 'Inquisition'

By David E. Gehlke

Multi-national traditional/power metal collective BURNING WITCHES sound like they're enjoying the ride upon the release of their sixth studio effort, "Inquisition". Formed in 2015 in Switzerland and now featuring a Dutch singer (Laura Guldemond) and an American lead guitarist (Courtney Cox),the band has spent its first decade establishing a following the hard way, via regular touring and European festival slots, many of which have put them face-to-face with their metal heroes. Such occurrences have given the band some perspective, mixed with gratitude — they, like the rest of us, realize that time is of the essence with the venerable old guard in metal.

Even following the recent news of the postponement of their August-September U.S. tour, BURNING WITCHES guitarist and founding member Romana Kalkuhl and bassist Jeanine Grob were in high spirits and kind enough to gab with BLABBERMOUTH.NET about their future touring plans in the U.S., the death of Ozzy Osbourne and "Inquisition", an album that finds the quintet digging even deeper into their roots.

Blabbermouth: Before we get into the new album, you recently announced that you had to postpone your upcoming U.S. tour. Can you shed some light on why you had to push the dates into next year?

Romana: "We feel sad about the tour. Our fans were looking forward to the tour; we were looking forward to it, but there is nothing we can do. We have to wait for the [U.S.] embassy. The people who work for us tried to do everything possible so we could do the tour next year in March and April. Yeah, we feel sorry for that. We really tried to do our best to make the tour happen next year."

Blabbermouth: That has to be hard since you were over here last year with KK's PRIEST and you did a headlining tour.

Romana: "We were so happy to be in the U.S. We love the fans and all the people. We also did the 'Monsters Of Rock' cruise. We had all the Visas arranged to do these dates starting in August, but now we have to postpone the tour."

Blabbermouth: What kind of legwork are you going through these days to tour in the States?

Jeanine: "All the paperwork is not easy. You need to be early with it — also, the costs. For us, it's costly, but we don't want to lose the fans. We want to go there. We'll do our best with money."

Blabbermouth: Moving over to "Inquisition". You shifted toward traditional and classic metal on "The Dark Tower" and have stayed on that path with "Inquisition".

Romana: "We had the 'Inquisition' theme already, which is deep and dark. Every album I've written up until now, I don't think about it too much. Sometimes, I'm outside walking, and the ideas come, and I record them really simply with my iPhone. I always start with the riffs, and when I have them, we love to go into the rehearsal room, like really old school. Our drummer, Lala [Frischknecht], tries out the riffs, which is always the first step. The cool thing is that we have Courtney, who is new to the team. For me, or for us, she's an outstanding guitar player. It was important that she could bring some ideas. It was the first time I accepted some ideas from another person. [Laughs] She brought in some really cool stuff. I was listening to them first, and when I knew it would fit, we made them into a new song."

Blabbermouth: This is Courtney's first album with BURNING WITCHES. What did she bring to the table?

Romana: "She also loves all the same bands as we do, like IRON MAIDEN, JUDAS PRIEST and KING DIAMOND. We love the guitars for those bands. She really fits. When she sent the ideas, it was like, 'Wow! Amazing!'"

Blabbermouth: Having a player of such caliber as Courtney must be a big addition for the band. Does she have the green light to play whatever she'd like?

Romana: "Yes. When we go into the studio, we're always prepared. When we're in the studio, we change a lot of things. We have [producer] Damir [Eskić, who is also Romana's husband and plays in DESTRUCTION] and [producer] V.O. [Pulver], they are always there from the beginning, so they're always telling us what they hear and feel. We're open to their ideas — it's important that not only one person decides what is good and what is not."

Blabbermouth: What do you do when you disagree with Damir on something?

Romana: "We don't really have this. It's not really easy to be in a band since not everyone is the same. You see each other on tour every day, and it's a lot of work beyond just playing. It's not about just going on stage and playing this stuff. When he has ideas, I take them. Why not? We write really well together."

Blabbermouth: How do you think Laura's progressed in her role as frontwoman? How much input did she have on the new album?

Romana: "It's important that a singer can write what they feel on stage. It's like when they are standing there on the stage, they need to feel the lyrics. For me, it's really important. She can take all the ideas we bring, but she has the most input on the lyrics."

Blabbermouth: You mentioned you had the "Inquisition" lyrical theme when you started thinking about the album. What made you dive into this topic?

Jeanine: "We are all interested in history, and the Inquisition is a real story. It's great that we can incorporate it into our songs. It fits with the witches. I think the musical direction comes from touring with other bands. When you tour with different bands, it helps bring out our influences, like KING DIAMOND, IRON MAIDEN and JUDAS PRIEST. I think it has an impact on the new album."

Blabbermouth: What was it like touring with a band such as KK's PRIEST?

Romana: "It was amazing. We started this band without thinking too much about it, and not thinking about getting famous, and now we're touring with these amazing bands. We cannot believe it. It's also great to see, especially with KK's PRIEST, that they treated us like family. Everyone helped each other. We really felt welcome and at home. We appreciate that a lot. We are also like this. We are like a family, and when we are touring, we help each other. There is no jealousy or something like that. When you meet and start like that and tour with them, and you get treated like that, it's really nice. It's a good feeling. Also, it's a nice memory, and you think back and you remember you went with them on tour."

Jeanine: "You only live once, so you have to enjoy every moment while on tour. A few days ago, I was thinking about traveling with the band. Honestly, without the band, I would never have had the opportunity to see so many different countries and experience other cultures. There are many people who cannot travel as easily as we can. We have to appreciate it even more and enjoy it even more."

Blabbermouth: Do you want to go into the current vibe of the band?

Romana: "It's really good, especially when we are at home. We see each other about every second day. [Laughs] We talk together; we go shopping. We also do that when we are on the road. We do everyday things together. It's not like only one of us is sitting alone in their hotel room. We tend to get bored quickly when we're not doing something. After five minutes, we're like, 'What are you doing?' Then we meet again."

Jeanine: "When Romana started the band, it was important for her that we have a good feeling together, that we get along with each other. If we're only going onstage, then going 'fuck off' after, people will notice. You can see that in our shows. We headbang together; we love being around each other. That's a very important thing."

Blabbermouth: You did a cover of Ozzy's "Shot In The Dark". Are the two of you fans of that particular era of his band? Are either of you Jake E. Lee fans?

Romana: "Of course. Jake's playing is really good. But, I'm not really good at members. [Laughs] It's true. I'm really more into the music. I say, 'Ah. I'm listening to Ozzy.' Or, 'I'm listening to SLAYER.' I'm not really focusing on one person."

Jeanine: "Same here."

Blabbermouth: What was your reaction when Ozzy passed away?

Romana: "It's really sad. When we saw it, it was hard. But he brought a lot of positive things to music. Also, his last show was respectful. He was really sick in the end, but he still got onstage and did the end show. This was, wow, amazing."