UNEARTHED: Former ICED EARTH Members Speak Out

UNEARTHED, the new band formed by former ICED EARTH members Gene Adam (vocals),Dave Abell (guitar),and Mark Prator (drums),along with Bill Owen (guitar) of the pre-ICED EARTH band PURGATORY and NASTY SAVAGE/ex-AGENT STEEL bassist Richard Bateman, recently did an interview with the Chilean "heavy & power metal webzine" Powermetal.cl. The following are some of the highlights of that discussion:

Powermetal.cl: How did you come up with the idea of getting back together?

Dave Abell: "In March of 2003 Bill Owen and myself reacquainted after many years. We started to discuss the possibility of jamming again. Then we thought about how cool it would be to pull together some old cronies and release some new music. We decided to give our old buddy, Gene Adam, a call. Of course he was totally into it!! His dedication to this project has been nothing less than 100%."

Gene Adam: "Yeah, when I got the call, it was like ..Hell yeah. I had been waiting for this opportunity for a long time."

Powermetal.cl: How long (or short) have you been working on this project?

Dave Abell: "Really, our whole lives. Officially, March 2003 was the start. Our music is a blend of freshly written music along with ideas from the past. We all have been playing for a long time and many riffs and ideas have been written and stored away. Just because your not in a band situation does not necessarily mean that one stops writing and creating."

Powermetal.cl: The band name UNEARTHED, is that a reference to ICED EARTH?

Dave Abell: "The connotation of both these names are completely different!!! The only similarity is the word 'earth'. The list is long of fellow 'earth' bands. I won't get into that. As far as the name being a reference to ICED EARTH, that was not the intention, even though to some people, it would seem that way."

Powermetal.cl: What is it like working with Jon Schaffer and what it the difference of playing without him?

Dave Abell: "I don't think I'll comment on the first half of your question. As far as the second half of your question, now it is time to showcase my talent and ability, along with the whole band. The music will speak for itself. I couldn't be in a better situation."

Gene Adam: "There is no working with Jon, you work for him and UNEARTHED is the complete opposite. We are 4 brothers working together, doing what we love to do — writing and playing music."

Powermetal.cl: Do you feel that you had more to offer to people in ICED EARTH after you left?

Gene Adam: "I was never given the opportunity to showcase my writing ability. Once we became ICED EARTH, Jon wrote everything. That’s why I'm thrilled with this new band. It's an opportunity for all of our songwriting abilities to flourish."

Read UNEARTHED's entire interview with PowerMetal.cl at this location.

UNEARTHED's two-song demo can still be downloaded exclusively from PowerMetal.cl:

01. Unearthed (mp3)
02. Fire In the Sky (mp3)