ANVIL's LIPS: 'Being Able To Put Music Out For A Lifetime Is Success'

In a new interview with the uInterview channel, ANVIL frontman Steve "Lips" Kudlow spoke about what keeps him and his bandmates motivated to continue making new music more than 40 years after the group's formation. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "The motive is not to make millions and millions of dollars; the motive is to make lots of music — lots of music. That's the guy who wins — the guy who writes and records the most albums. That's the guy who wins. It's not the guy who sells the most, because the guy who sells the most could be a one-hit wonder and his whole career was two years long. I've done 45 years. I'm gonna have 20 albums out. I've done real good. That's success. And people can try to add it up in any way you can, having record deals and being able to put music out for a lifetime is success, any way you slice it. No matter how much money you've made or didn't make, it's actually irrelevant. The fact that you've actually written and recorded and released 20 albums, there's a quantity; there's a quantification. That's substantial. That's a body of work. That's a legacy. It's probably gonna be here a lot longer than I am, that's for sure."

A remastered edition of ANVIL's acclaimed documentary, "Anvil! The Story Of Anvil", received its premiere in conjunction with Beyond Fest on September 22 in Los Angeles at the Saban Theater, where ANVIL also performed, along with appearances from surprise musical guests, including ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian. This was followed by a question-and-answer session with Kudlow and ANVIL drummer Robb Reiner, producer Rebecca Yeldham and director Sacha Gervasi, moderated by Steve-O from "Jackass".

The remastered "Anvil! The Story Of Anvil" will be released in theaters this fall and on digital later this year via Utopia alongside Portobello Electric. The new version of the film will arrive in time for its 13th anniversary and will feature remastered picture and sound, as well as a new exclusive epilogue interview with Gervasim Kudlow and Reiner moderated by former MTV host Matt Pinfield.

"Anvil! The Story of Anvil" was named one of 2009's best documentaries by a slew of film critics associations across the continent, including critics in Chicago, San Francisco, Toronto, and Las Vegas, as well as the International Documentary Association, the Online Film Critics Society, and the National Society of Film Critics. It also made the year-end Top 10 lists in publications such as the New York Times, Washington Post, Newsweek, and Village Voice.

"Anvil! The Story of Anvil" was the directorial debut of screenwriter Gervasi and was produced by Yeldham ("The Kite Runner" and "The Motorcycle Diaries"). The film follows Kudlow and Reiner and their band, ANVIL, which released one of the heaviest albums in metal history, 1982's "Metal on Metal". The album influenced an entire musical generation of rock bands, including METALLICA, SLAYER, and ANTHRAX, who all went on to sell millions of records. ANVIL, on the other hand, took a different path — straight to obscurity. The film was both entertaining and touching as it followed their last-ditch quest for the fame and fortune that has been so elusive to them.

ANVIL's latest album, "Impact Is Imminent", arrived in May via AFM Records.