VOLBEAT's MICHAEL POULSEN Collaborates With STETSON On Limited-Edition Cap

Michael Poulsen, frontman for the multi-platinum Danish band VOLBEAT, has been a longtime Stetson fan — and now he's put his own stamp on the U.S.-born brand's signature aesthetic. The resulting limited-edition collaboration is available in Stetson stores and selected retailers in Europe and online at www.stetson.eu beginning July 22, 2024.

The cap features an exclusive graphic of the Stetson logo that's inspired by the desert landscapes of the American West and features earthy brown, green and yellow tones that echo the VOLBEAT album artwork.

Regarding his collaboration with Stetson, Poulsen said in a video (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I did have a favorite hat as a child, a cowboy hat that my parents bought me from some store where you buy all the kid stuff. But, of course, it was not a Stetson, so my father kind of just wrote 'Stetson' in it. I do not have it anymore — I wish — but that was one of my favorite hats.

"When I had the offer to make my own Stetson hat, I was very excited about that," he continued. "When I had the time, I was just sitting and drawing, working on the patch. I wanted to make a logo that looked maybe like a crooked tree from a desert or something that has a connection to the music that I'm doing. And then it was about adding some positive energy with the sun behind it. I knew exactly the colors that I wanted on the hat. It has those dark colors — brown, yellow, greenish. Not only does it represent the colors that I really liked, I wanted it to represent me, but probably also represent both VOLBEAT and [my death metal side project] ASINHELL."

Earlier in the month, Poulsen, who just completed a European tour with ASINHELL, confirmed that "all the songs have been written" for VOLBEAT's ninth studio album. The follow-up to 2021's "Servant Of The Mind" is tentatively due in 2025.

Last October, Poulsen underwent a throat surgery. A month earlier, he told "Paltrocast" host Darren Paltrowitz about the procedure: "It's an operation I've been through before. This one is just a little bit bigger and it's gonna take some time to get back in vocal shape. So, VOLBEAT is not playing [in 2024]. I'll use a lot of time to get my voice back after the operation. But at the same time, I will actually be writing a new VOLBEAT album. So hopefully later [in 2024], I can put down the vocals for the next VOLBEAT album. But in the meantime, I will go out and play shows with ASINHELL."

Asked if this means that he might have to change his singing approach to where he will start doing the vocal warmdowns after each show, Michael said: "I do warm up before a show, but there's no way I'm gonna use my voice after a show. I'm very optimistic about the whole thing. As I said, I tried before and I got good people around me. I've got a great coach in Melissa Cross who has been helping out a lot of singers. She will help me out again to get my voice back in shape after the operation. So I like to stay positive, and I'm pretty sure everything's going to be all right."

Back in January 2021, Poulsen told Denmark's BT.dk that he underwent an operation during the coronavirus pandemic to remove a large polyp. He added: "I have managed to retrain my voice so much that there has been time to record a new album," referencing "Servant Of The Mind", which came out in December 2021.

VOLBEAT parted ways with longtime guitarist Rob Caggiano in June 2023 and replaced him for the band's latest tour with Flemming C. Lund of the Danish extreme metal outfit THE ARCANE ORDER.

VOLBEAT played its first concert with Lund on June 10, 2023 at the Rockfest festival in Hyvinkää, Finland.

Just five days earlier, VOLBEAT announced that it had officially parted ways with Caggiano. No reason was given for the split, but the remaining bandmembers said that they wished their "brother Rob all the best with everything he does in the future." They went on to thank Rob "for ten amazing years."

Caggiano played on VOLBEAT's last four studio albums: 2013's "Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies", 2016's "Seal the Deal & Let's Boogie", 2019's "Rewind, Replay, Rebound" and "Servant Of The Mind".

ASINHELL's debut album, "Impii Hora" (Latin for "Ungodly Hour"),arrived last September via Metal Blade. Poulsen is joined in the project by ex-MORGOTH singer Marc Grewe (also of INSIDIOUS DISEASE) and RAUNCHY drummer Morten Toft Hansen.