15 years of Queens of Steel: Dee Dee Altar

-We Queens of Steel have been annoying people for 15 years now. During these years a lot of albums have been released. What albums do you specially remember or are your favourites of these last 15 years? Those you have pretty much worn.

All the best for your 15th anniversary! This question could probably chain me to the keyboard for one entire day, haha! The first album that comes to my mind is Antichrist’s “Forbidden World”, I think I listened to it as many times as the classics I grew up with, that LP is a riff celebration. Next to it comes Ghost’s “Opus Eponymous”, the “Stand by Him” chorus left me sleepless for one night. Another record that rocked me like a hurricane is Occvlta’s “We Command The Wolves”, hey “Black Wind Desecration Horde” is an underground classic, alright! I actually feel the need to build up a top 5 list, therefore I would like to add Black Viper’s magnificient “Hellions of Fire” and In Solitude’s “The World.The Flesh.The Devil”… oh and one bonus: Enforcer – Death By Fire! I should mention also every Midnight album, the new one is superb… Also Beastmilk’s “Climax” and Hexvessel’s “When We Are Death” got heavy rotation in my room, as well as all the Nekromantheon and Deathhammer stuff… Uffff there’s a shitload of others but I don’t wanna bore you to desssss.

-Even some new bands have born. Which ones are your favourites?

Hexenbrett, they did a fantastic demo and the new album is killer too! I also recommend “Chivalry of Death” by Boia, killer death metal with early evil Morbid Angel vibes. I love Angel Sword, their first album should be among the ones mentioned above in the 1st question. Recently I also enjoyed Devil Master, Karloff and Norway’s Incinerator a lot. There are many many more and I’m sure I will curse the gods as soon as I’ll remember others after this interview has been sent over to you.

-And the split up you regret the most?

Definitely In Solitude, things were getting very interesting with “Sister” L

-All of us tend to attend gigs, festivals… During 15 years we’ve spent a lot of time in airports, trains, cars (and getting shitfaced). What is the show or festival you recall with special affection?

I think Live Evil 2011. We had the honour to play there and most of the bands left me breathless. There was a great atmosphere, the underground was boiling and brewing at the time. Ghost in Rome 2013 was also awesome, maybe just 100 people attending if my memory serves me well. Oh and I extremely enjoyed The Morlocks live in my hometown Messina in 2019, pure rock ‘n’ roll worship with zero fucking around. Obnoxious Youth in London last January was also sick! I went also to some bigger festivals, I remember Gods of Metal 2008 in Bologna had an impressive bill but I tend to prefer small gigs actually.

-They are a lot of years if you think about it. Which would be your most memorable moment(s)? A milestone or achievement, on a personal and/or musical level.

They are indeed. Getting our music on vinyl for the first time in 2009 was for sure a milestone for me. For Bunker 66 and for me as a Darkthrone lunatic it was awesome getting our music spread by Fenriz during these years, since the Myspace “Band of the Week” days onto his other “incarnations”. We had also the pleasure to be invited in Oslo at the “Bunker Festival” in 2012, quite a fitting name! We had a great time there and quoting song titles while having a couple of beers with the Darkthrone gentlemen is a memory we’ll always cherish. That being said, we are a small band, therefore basically everytime we play in countries we’ve never been before and seeing people enjoy our music is an achievement for us, both on a personal and musical level.       

-Everything evolves (involutes sometimes) with time, so does the Metal «community». What do you believe has been the biggest change the Metal scene has experience or is experiencing during this time? For the better or for the worse.

I guess it’s the approach to music via smartphones and streaming but hopefully there will always be a bunch of people who live the music less hastily and in a more in-depth and relaxed way.   

-Looking to the future, what would be the best possible scenario for you if you think about the next 15 years?

It will be hard. No more Judas Priest or Iron Maiden hitting the stages, already today people quote Lamb of God as an influence, it’s fucking horror. That being said, I guess the best possible scenario is that all the brilliant minds of these last years will hold on tight and naturally keep on doing what