GODSMACK's SULLY ERNA: 'We Always Take The Approach Of Just Writing The Best Music We Can Write'

HardDrive Radio's Lou Brutus conducted an interview with GODSMACK frontman Sully Erna backstage at this year's Rock Fest in Cadott, Wisconsin. You can now watch the chat below. A couple of excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On whether GODSMACK was nervous before releasing the "Bulletproof" single about how it was going to be received by the fans:

Sully: "Honestly, I know there's been some comments out there with 'Bulletproof', thinking that GODSMACK is starting to write for radio now, because it had a more melodic feel to it — some people might have even called it more commercial than they've heard us write in the past. But it's because we're growing as musicians, we're growing as individuals, and we are gonna continue to develop the music and have the music mature, and hopefully people will come along for that ride. But with that being said, we still always take the approach of just writing the best music we can write; we never write specifically for the radio or specifically for a commercial lane or whatever. But we did want to experiment, we wanted to take it to a different level and have a nice blend of different textures and colors on the record, and I think we really did a good job in accomplishing that. And this has been probably my favorite record that we've ever written and recorded since maybe the first one. So what it does is what it does. And we're happy [the single] went No. 1. That tells us that the fans are growing with us, and maybe we're even accumulating some new fans that we haven't had. So that's always a win-win for us."

On whether GODSMACK takes into consideration any of the criticism while making new music:

Sully: "We've learned that no matter what we do, you cannot please everyone. I mean, when we put out what we feel is a really heavy record, they're just, like, 'Oh, they're not as heavy as SLIPKNOT.' Or they wanna hear something with more melody. And then you put out something with more melody, and they're, like,' Oh, they're not hard enough.' And it's, like, 'Oh my God!' So we stopped that thought process a long time ago. What we do is we write — again — the best music that we feel we can write at that moment in time in our lives, and this is where we are right now. We've grown a lot, we've matured a lot, I've done a lot of solo work, and I wanted to kind of take that into more of the GODSMACK lane. But if you go back and you listen to 'Voodoo' or 'Keep Away' or some of these older songs as well — and 'Serenity' — there's a lot of big melodies in some of the older stuff. I guess it's just people looking for a reason to get attention or to be seen or have some kind of visibility by being the rebel in the pack. But we're really, really excited about this record, and we have a long way to go with it and a lot of work to do and a lot of surprises coming with new singles and new videos and this new tour coming up worldwide."

On how he and his bandmates prepare for a long tour:

Sully: "For me, I started recently getting back into my routine. Because I've always tried to keep myself in fairly good shape over the years. And being a drummer my whole life, obviously, there's a lot of athleticism in that. And so, for me, I constantly run, I box — I've been boxing for over 15 years — and I try to do everything I can to make sure that my cardio is to speed. I'm not so concerned about physically looking buff or ripped and that kind of thing. For me, it's more about endurance, because, as you know, when GODSMACK hits the stage, it's like a full-contact sport; we go out there and we put it all out. And it's a very energetic, alive kind of show. And me having to put out that kind of energy and sing is double the work for me, cardio-wise, so that's one thing that I always try to maintain. And everybody else has their routines on what they do to prepare for this, but as a band, collectively, again, we wanted to first of all and foremost put out the best record we could, and then we wanted to make sure that we put together a show that was gonna be very attractive to even fans that haven't seen the band yet. And we wanna be able to continue that theme as well, knowing that GODSMACK, over the years, has always been known for putting on a really strong live show."

GODSMACK's latest album, "When Legends Rise", is the band's first release through BMG after splitting with its longtime home, Republic/Universal.

GODSMACK and SHINEDOWN recently unveiled a second North American leg to their upcoming co-headlining tour, adding a string of fall dates to the two bands' itineraries after initially hitting the road together in July. The new dates begin on September 21 in Greenville, South Carolina, ending for now on October 11 in Portland, Oregon. ASKING ALEXANDRIA will take over in the opening slot for LIKE A STORM and RED SUN RISING, who are splitting the summer concerts.