Chatting with Federico of Frozen Crown

So, it’s not less work

Thus, the technical stuff. Once again, why do you have three guitarists? You told me you might use the third guitarist mainly due to the demand for the live shows. Is there any other advantage of having a third guitar player? Less studio work for the other two or does it not matter?

“No, no, absolutely not studio work. Not less studio work for the other two because I am still recording all the rhythm guitars. And I mean, pretty much all the lead guitars as well. In the studio, it’s pretty normal that one guitar player records most of the rhythm guitars. That’s happening with Metallica, that’s happening with a lot of bands. And then the lead guitar player just goes there and lays down a guitar solo and that’s it. We make no exception. If a lot of people are recording rhythms, that’s going to create a mess.”

I mean, for what concerns recording and editing and all that kind of stuff.

“So, no, it is absolutely not less work in the studio. We just added parts where our new guitar player could lay down solos other than us together with us. So, no, that doesn’t mean less work.”

I thought the work is shared through three guitar players instead of two.

“No, absolutely not. Also, because, you know, if I was recording parts there with also the other two guitar players, I would not necessarily be involved in that, you know, recording, pressing play, record, go on, edit. So, it’s not less work. It would be more work, actually.”

Alessia has been a fan of the band for years

Interesting fact. You seem to have a really good hand to find young and very skilled and talented musicians, given your two guitar players and your drummer. They all three been very young and very skilled when they joined.

First show with Alessia, Stadthalle Tuttlingen, 16.9.2023

“You mean, how can I find them? I don’t know, you know, it just happened, you know. It’s been life events that essentially brought up this kind of situations, you know. Mostly, for what concerns Niso, our drummer, we just found him randomly. For what concerns our guitar player, Fabiola, we met her because she was playing in the same area, you know. And I can say, we just saw her playing with other bands, we knew she was amazing. And that’s it. And for what concerns our new guitar player, Alessia has been a fan of the band for years. And she was sending us her videos and stuff and playing our songs and stuff like that. I mean, it was just natural for us to include her in our band. And we didn’t even make auditions for our third guitar player. She was already there, you know.”

Okay. But that’s the best case ever. Thus, win-win situation for both of you. Imagine yourself would be a fan of a great band. You sent them some videos of you playing guitar and they tell you, ‘do you want to be our third guitar player?’

“Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. Crazy.”

Japanese Success

During your US tour, you had also been just support band. How long did you play there?

“In US, you mean? No, we played at the festival. Prog Power Festival. I think it’s something like a legend. It’s been amazing for several reasons because, you know, we never been to US. It was our first time. And we could really see people have been waiting for us and were eager to actually know about us or the people who didn’t knew us already. But mostly, I think most of the people in the crowd were knowing us and waiting for us because they were so cheerful and so supportive, you know. Yeah, that was really great. Absolutely. So, it was a good experience.”

And what about your Japanese tours? You seem to be quite popular in Japan. Do you know why?

“Yes, we have been there. You mean why? We’ve been there twice on tour. Well, actually, the reason is that I have been there multiple times with another band I have, which, of course, started pretty big in Japan. And then when I made Frozen Crown, they were like my solo project for Japanese people, you know, so to speak. I mean, I already had got my fans there. So, when I made Frozen Crown, they were just happy I made another band. So, we had got like an easy way to Japan, so to speak.”

So that means you like Japan in general?

“We like Japan in general so much, absolutely.”

if alcohol stopped existing in this world, I wouldn’t care at all

Do you also like Japanese food? Would you say it’s your favourite food?

“I would indeed say Japanese is my favourite food. No, probably still Italian. But I absolutely love that, yeah. Okay, it’s my top three.”

Which Italian food do you prefer most?

“Well, many kinds of pasta, of course. But not necessarily the most popular ones like carbonara and stuff. I mean, all kinds of pasta, all kinds of soups. I just love pretty much the fact that ingredients are really fresh and simple, you know. So just the pasta, I mean, with tomato it isn’t even a complicated dish. Pasta Pomodoro is a great food.”

Do you also have a favourite beverage apart from maybe Italian wine or coffee and espresso, of course?

“Yeah. No, I like espresso in general, but I’m not that much of a fan of a specific brand or something, no. And I don’t usually drink wine, so I’m not a fan of that either, yeah.”

So, you’re more a beer drinker or you simply avoid alcohol?

“No, I’m not. I mean, I don’t avoid alcohol. If there’s some, maybe I can have it. But I’m not, I mean, if alcohol stopped existing in this world, I wouldn’t care at all. I would just have water. I don’t care about alcohol.”

Role models and… KISS

That’s a good point. Do you yourself have some idols or role models or inspirations as musicians or real life persons as politicians or actors or just ordinary people who would say these are my role models?

“I would say, of course, Alexi Laiho from Children of Bodom, which is, of course, not anymore with us, unfortunately. I would also say Paul Stanley from KISS. I’ve always been a huge KISS fan, but as a kid, loving his songs.”

 I was an Ace guy…

“I would say I was a fan of the songs, you know, of course, when I was a kid and of the make-up and of that kind of image of the band. But then later I informed myself about, you know, Paul, about his contribution to the band as a manager, you know, as a mastermind, so to speak, as a composer. And I could relate with him so much and because I’m also the band manager as well, you know, I take decisions, I take care of album covers of the videos of the image. And I always appreciated the fact that he could step aside to make the other members shine. You know, if you think about it, he wasn’t the shiniest member of the band. I mean, when Ace Frehley was in the band, everybody was a fan of Ace Frehley. He left Peter Criss to sing “Beth”, for example, or he left Gene Simmons to sing “God of Thunder”. God of Thunder was the decision of Bob Ezrin, because Bob Ezrin listened to the song and told him, Paul, you’re not going to sing it, it’s Gene going to sing it and we slow it down.”

Did you ever hear the Paul Stanley version of God of Thunder?

“Yes, absolutely. Completely different song. But I mean, I mean, of course, he wasn’t back then, he wasn’t that much convinced to let Gene sing on that. But I think what he did with Beth for, you know, with Peter Criss was absolutely a proof of being mature. You know, a proof of being actually, you know, a real leader, because a real leader actually steps aside and, you know, lets others shine. You know, for the sake of the band, not for his own sake.”

I’ve once seen a video excerpt of you being in the audience during a festival where you played, and KISS played too. And I was amazed when KISS played “Black Diamond” and you were with full heart singing Black Diamond.

“Yes, I was, you know, I had been waiting for that song to sing live, that song so much. And I mean, that video was just a part because I had been singing every single part of the show. I really loved it.”

I really loved it. I really thought, oh, yes, that’s my man. He must be a big KISS fan.

If you sing these songs with full heart. What’s your favourite Kiss song?

“Well, you know, Black Diamond is no joke my favourite because. Well, of course, we are attached sentimentally to. I mean, okay, if I have to reply with my brain, I would say “Creatures of the Night”, because I absolutely love the album and I love that song so much, so much. But I’m also a big fan of the Killer album, for example, which was an EP if we want to be precise. “Nowhere to Run”, for example. But also, how can I say, I love pretty much everything, even the most obscure songs. And “I’m a Legend Tonight. But still, Black Diamond was the first song. I mean, it wasn’t the first song. The first song by Kiss I listened to was “Love Gun”. And as a young kid, I never listened to an electric guitar before. I just listened to that song and I went crazy. I was like, oh, what is that? To me, it was it was just the heaviest thing ever. You know that riff and that drum. But it was crazy.”

Yeah. If you think that Paul Stanley once said it’s written, it was written in 20 minutes, crazy. But now let’s continue with Frozen Crown. I think we could talk about KISS for the next five hours.

“Yeah, I know, I know, I know.”

Guitars

You and Sheena [Fabiola] are playing with Jackson guitars now. But when Sheena joined, she played Ibanez.

“Yeah, she played Ibanez, yes.”

Does she still play Ibanez or do you both only play Jacksons now?

“Well, to be honest, she has got that Ibanez guitar that she never used. In fact, if I’m not wrong, she just sold that. She sold that to a fan, actually. She’s never been into that guitar, and she always used it for the video because we wanted a black guitar. That’s it. And instead, for what concerns me, you know, I mean, my other guitars are Fender Telecaster, I mean, this, you know, Fender Strat. And my Charvel guitar, which is essentially a Fender, you know, Super Fender. And so I’ve always been into Fender and Jackson kind of guitars, you know. Also, I’ve got my Randy Rhoads there. So, I would play Fender and Jackson guitars even if I wasn’t endorsed by them, to be honest. I mean, they gave us those guitars for free, actually. The ones we are using lately.”

That also explains why Alessia, when she was introduced by the band and there was the official photo, she was holding a Jackson guitar. But she plays a Suhr guitar live.

“Yeah, Suhr. I mean, she has got many guitars, but that’s her favourite one, you know.”

Is that a custom made one or is it one of those produced by Rasmus and then finished by Suhr? Do you know that?

“I don’t know that, but I’m sure it’s not custom. OK. Yeah, it’s not custom though.”

Six, six, seven and four strings

I’ve noticed that Alessia and Sheena are playing with six strings. You are playing with seven strings. Why that difference?

“Because, you know, I always recorded with six strings, mostly. But for the heaviest songs and lowest tuning songs, I’ve always used a baritone guitar, actually. But of course, in the live environment, I’ve never been a fan of changing guitars, you know. So, with a seven-string guitar, I can play all the lowest parts and stuff. With the fact that, you know, you may think that the most logic thing would be that everybody plays seven strings. But I think if I play the same riff one octave lower, it’s going to be richer. And that’s exactly what we did on the album. And that’s what we are doing live now.”

That’s cool because it already answered my next question. Because I would have asked for the tuning. It makes sense. It’s very clear. But your bass player, Francesco, is only using four strings. Wouldn’t it make sense for him to change to five strings then?

“I know, this would make sense normally. But he’s just so used to the first string. And we just found our own way. We are happy like that, you know. And then it’s also all a matter of how the producer mixes you in the studio. So, at the end of the day, you’re not really needing something if you don’t have to emulate anyone else. I mean, we just have our sound. With the seven strings, sometimes I’m almost the bass player of the band. Probably. While he is playing in the middle. But that’s something we love, actually.”

it’s all a matter of harmony

By the way, how did you find Francesco, your bass player, because he’s the exception. He’s a little bit older than the other three.

“Yes. But Francesco simply has been friends with our singer Jade for so many years. They have been, you know, kids together. And later, I mean, in the last, I don’t know, six, seven years, I met him and knew him as well. And I have to say, he’s amazing on stage and a great musician. Not only bass player, but also guitar player. But I would say that his best quality is to be an awesome person. So, that’s really what dragged me to call him in the band, you know. Because it’s all a matter of harmony. You know, being good together.”

Yeah. So, it seems you are more friends than colleagues.

“We are friends in general, we are like a family right now. I mean, we hang out all the time. We’re not just doing band duties together. We are just having fun together all the time. Spending time together, having dinner, lunch. Yeah, we’re just a literal family.”

That’s much better than being colleagues only, who must arrive in four or six different limousines because you can’t drive together.

Niso comes from a very classical style of music

Your drummer, Niso, has a quite small drumkit, given that the sound, he can create on stage really is great. And he’s playing so fast. Is there anything pimped up in his sound in this case? Or is he just doing extraordinarily good in this case? He also uses only one bass drum, and he sounds like he has two.

“He is using a double pedal, so he’s faster.”

So, he is using a double pedal, not a double bass. But he’s using a double bass pedal. Double bass and double pedal, you have four bass drums. And that’s how he sounds for my ears.

“No, I mean, he has got a double bass pedal. But he only has two pedals, not four or so. I mean, he comes from jazz, from prog rock. So, Niso comes from a very classical style of music. And he wants to bring that into metal. Because that’s his own personality. That explains very much his skills and his techniques.”

At the Prog Festival, he was using a double bass drum though…

“But I think that was the double bass drum kit of the festival. “

Did he really use both on this occasion? Or did he stay with one only? Do you know that?

“No, he just played as usual. So, he said, he’d just use one.”

The singing dentist

How did you, when you founded the band, meet Jade?

“Online. Simply online.

So, you didn’t know her before?

“No, I knew… I mean, far away, she had been singing around. But never on a personal level, no.”

And herself, she’s a dentist. Yes. Is she still practicing?

Yes, she’s a dentist. And she’s, of course, her own boss. So, she can decide pretty much when to go to work, when not, you know. So, , she can manage her own time as she wants.”

That’s good. So, she has other employees who keep the dentist surgery running meanwhile?

“Well, actually, she’s an orthodontic specialist. Jade works on some specific cases of alignment. And so, she works in different clinics, private clinics.”

Ah, I see. That explains quite a lot in this case, because she seems to have a lot of freedom. But it also means that you might be the metal band with the best teeth ever.

“Ah, no. Well, no, actually. Because, you know, treating your own friends is never easy.”

Yes, sure. But when you have teeth problems, do you call her?

“Yes, she can check your teeth.”

 

Veneto Metal Country

How far away are you living from each other at the band in this case, by the way?

“Oh, actually, our drummer Niso lives two hour and a half away. But all the rest of the band lives really close. I mean, our guitar player, Alessia, lives five minutes from here. The other guitar player is 15 minutes from here, the bass player half an hour. We are really in the same area.”

Which area is it? Because when I first was introduced to you, somebody told me you were from Alto Adige, but then I learned that Jade is living in Venice.

“Yeah, everybody is from Veneto and Friuli.”

Completely different direction…

 

It’s been really interesting

To be honest, that was more or less my last question. My last question would have been to ask you about Black Diamond and KISS. But we already talked about KISS. And we are close to the scheduled time  anyway.

“Yeah, perfect. Perfect timing.”

It’s really a pity when you are on tour, I can’t come to one of the shows because they are all too far away from me. So, I really hope for a headliner tour next year.

“Let’s hope for that, yeah. And another tour. So, I really have to say thank you very much for taking the time.”

Thank you, it’s been a pleasure. I hope it will be not too stressful before you can go on tour and enjoy the life of a live musician instead of answering boring interviews.

“No, it’s not boring, really. It’s been really interesting. So then see you next time.”

Thank you, see you next time. Me in the pit and you on stage.

„Yeah, cheers.“

Time well spent

That was a blast of an interview. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did doing it. When I went through my key points and remarks, I wasn’t sure if we would have time enough for all of them but luckily it all went very fluent in a nice atmosphere. I hope, you can forgive us that we drifted away from Frozen Crown to KISS for quite some minutes, that’s what happen when die-hard fans meet…

Meanwhile the tour starts, and Frozen Crown are on the road again! Keep an eye on them, they are more than worth it. Give their new album War Hearts more than just a listen and have a look at their web shop if you can’t make to one of their shows.

 

Experience FROZEN CROWN on tour in 2024:
KAMELOT’s Awaken The World Tour 2024
FROZEN CROWN as special guest with Ad Infinitum and Blackbriar

Album review War Hearts

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Pics taken during the interview and at Nachtleben Frankfurt