OVERKILL's BOBBY 'BLITZ' ELLSWORTH Says He 'Will Know' When It's Time To Retire

In a new interview with Metal Remains, OVERKILL frontman Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth was asked when he thinks it's the right time for musicians to call it quits with dignity. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "My meter is to be able to present myself at a high level. If I can't do that, I won't do that. But that's pride too. But I think pride is necessary in this.

"I'm not a firm believer in the fact that I'm driven by ego, but you have to have a certain amount of ego in the makeup to be able to do this and to be able to wanna succeed at it," he continued. "So I think somewhere between pride and ego is retirement for me, when they both wane or they both become less. I think I have both in balance in my life that I only use them when I'm standing on that stage."

Blitz went on to say that he will "know" when it's time to retire. "So it's not a disappointing kind of a thought to me," he said. "It's just the next phase — it's just whatever the next phase is."

When one of the interviewers pointed out to Ellsworth that musicians sometimes have the desire to carry on even when their bodies no longer respond the way they used to decades earlier, Blitz said: "I tend to agree with you. But there's adaptability along the way too. The Bobby Blitz, D.D. Verni of the OVERKILL of 1990 for sure is much different than the OVERKILL in 2023. We still have the same principles but we have adapted to that change of approximately 33 years. I can't walk on those monitors like I did and tiptoe on them and jump into the audience upside down like I used to without expecting to break my back. [Laughs] But, that being said, I still can release records with Dave Linsk, Derek Tailer, Jason Bittner and D.D. Verni that have the power of [OVERKILL's latest album] 'Scorched'. So if that's the adaptability to what the current day is, it's still about what we are, not what we were. So I think that gives retirement a little pushback away from the present-day conversation."

As previously reported, OVERKILL will embark on the "Scorching The Earth" U.S. tour with EXHORDER and HEATHEN this summer. The 16-date trek will kick off on July 13 in San Francisco and make stops in Dallas, Ft. Lauderdale and Silver Springs, among other cities, before ending in Huntington, New York on July 30.

OVERKILL's twentieth studio album, "Scorched", was released on April 14 via Nuclear Blast Records. The LP offered a new recording environment for OVERKILL as all members were able to record on their own. The mixing of the record was handled by Colin Richardson and his assistant engineer Chris Clancy. Johnny Rodd helped with producing vocals, and finally, Maor Appelbaum took over mastering and adding finishing touches. The band returned to artist Travis Smith to create the album cover art.