GUS G.: Why FIREWIND Did Not Become Bigger

Greek guitar virtuoso Gus G., well known in rock and metal circles for his work as Ozzy Osbourne's guitarist and as leader of his own band FIREWIND, was recently interviewed by "The Classic Metal Show". You can now listen to the chat below.

Asked if he thinks his decision to join Ozzy's band in 2009 resulted in a loss of momentum for FIREWIND, Gus said: "You're right in the sense that FIREWIND did take a backseat, obviously, when I joined Ozzy's band. I mean, I would have never changed that decision for anything in the world; I think it was the right thing to do and that opened up so many doors that probably would have never, ever happened with just sticking with FIREWIND. And that's my own baby, you know? And, of course, it helped me in a lot of ways — I mean, not only money-wise. With Ozzy, like I said, I got a lot more opportunities."

He continued: "I think the problem with FIREWIND was that it wasn't really only the fact that we took a backseat because I was so busy with Ozzy; it was also the fact that we had, actually, problems with the lineups — we couldn't really keep a singer. And when we had that momentum, our singer quit, back in 2013. And maybe we made a couple of records that didn't really resonate with our fanbase much. I think partly it's our own fault, why this band did not become any bigger when it should have. So I would definitely not put that on me joining Ozzy or anything. If nothing else, I think it gave the band a bigger boost in the sense that it made the brand more recognizable on an international level. So I think that was a lot of our own mistakes, which we're kind of trying to catch up on. I think we made the right record, if you like, with [2017's] 'Immortals' — it was the right comeback record — so it seems that there's some momentum going on again. I definitely do not plan on having a five-year break between the next album."

Gus went on to say that the status that being in Ozzy's band gives any musician is something "that follows you for the rest of your career, really. That's the thing — Ozzy gives you this big platform, and it really is up to you what you're gonna do with that," he said. "You can choose to stay home and do nothing about it or you can keep working and just, really, keep being out there. And I think if you wanna stay out there and keep busy and wanna be creative, then, like I said, a gig like that really opens up doors that you could have never imagined. So I'm really grateful, and I really think it was the right thing to do, of course."

"Immortals" marked the first time FIREWIND used an outside co-producer, having worked with Dennis Ward (UNISONIC, PINK CREAM 69),who not only engineered, mixed and mastered the album, but also co-wrote it together with Gus G. The disc was also FIREWIND's first release with singer Henning Basse (METALIUM, SONS OF SEASONS),who previously toured with the band on various continents in 2007 and was most recently the singer in Gus's solo touring group.

Gus's latest solo album, "Fearless", was released on April 20 via AFM Records. The follow-up to 2015's "Brand New Revolution" was Gus's first release since exiting Osbourne's band in 2017.