KREATOR Bassist FRÉDÉRIC LECLERCQ On Recording His First Album With The Band: It Was 'Very Exciting'

In a recent interview with Czech Republic's Backstage TV, KREATOR bassist Frédéric Leclercq, who joined the band in 2019, spoke about the veteran German thrash metallers' fifteenth studio album, "Hate Über Alles", which was released in June 2022. He said: "As far as I'm concerned, that's my first album with the band, so obviously therefore it's the best one. No, no, no. But obviously it is very exciting. I've had my own career, but it's nice to join and get to know everybody and try to put yourself in the music while respecting the legacy of the band."

He added: "I can look at the album and listen to it still as a fan because, obviously, I spent a lot of time being a fan of the band, so I still have that vision of the band. And I think it's a great album — as a fan."

Before joining KREATOR, Leclercq rose to fame with U.K.-based extreme power metallers DRAGONFORCE for whom he handled bass duties from 2005 until August 2019.

Frédéric's final collaboration with DRAGONFORCE was the band's eighth full-length album, "Extreme Power Metal", which came out in September 2019.

KREATOR played its first show with Leclercq in October 2019 in Santiago, Chile.

The follow-up to 2017's "Gods Of Violence", "Hate Über Alles" was recorded at Hansa Tonstudio in Berlin, Germany. Helming the sessions was Arthur Rizk, who has previously worked with CAVALERA CONSPIRACY, CODE ORANGE, POWER TRIP and SOULFLY, among others.

The "Hate Über Alles" cover artwork was created by Eliran Kantor, who has previously worked with HATEBREED, SOULFLY, TESTAMENT, ICED EARTH and SODOM, among others.

In March 2020, KREATOR surprise-released a new single, "666 - World Divided". The song was produced by Andy Sneap and Markus Ganter and was recorded at Hansa Tonstudios.

Last year, KREATOR frontman Mille Petrozza told Australia's Metal Roos about Leclercq's addition to KREATOR: "Frédéric is a total pro. He's really, really focused. He's probably the best musician in the band, with Sami [Yli-Sirniö, guitar]. Those two are real classically trained musicians. He knows everything about harmonies. He's an excellent guitar player [as well]. So it was a huge help on all levels to have him in the camp and have him be a part of the band. It was one of the best decisions I've ever made, bringing him into the band, because he's also a very nice guy to be around and he's been a friend of the band for many years now. It's a lot of positive energy that he brings into the band, a lot of joy for music. He has a great sense of humor, which is essential."

Asked if Leclercq contributed to the songwriting process for "Hate Über Alles", Mille said: "Most songs were written, but we worked on the song 'Dying Planet' together. And also, of course, he helped me arrange some of the songs. He's a part of the team. And he also produced the demos, really. When we were in the studio doing the band rehearsals, he did the demo recordings, and they sounded great already."

Mille went on to reiterate the importance of maintaining interpersonal harmony when choosing new members for a band.

"You really have to pick the right person," he said. "A band is like a marriage with four people. And if you pick the wrong person, it can ruin the vibe in the band and it can ruin everything, really. And so I'm really happy that we found Fred. Like I said, he's been a friend and I knew that he was looking for a new challenge. There was no such thing as auditioning new bass players. I just called Fred and asked him if he wants to join, and that was it."

Photo credit: Christoph Voy