SACRED WARRIOR: Live In Germany

SACRED WARRIOR Live in Germany

by Chris Gatto

Photos by Trissy Parra

Heavy metal is on the rise again in the US again, but in many places in the world, like Europe, it never went out of fashion, as evidenced by some of the large metal festivals held there annually. Our own Sacred Warrior recently played Keep It True festival, a longtime traditional heavy metal festival held annually in Germany alongside mainstream bands such as Satan’s Host. Listen in as I debrief Sacred Warrior vocalist and world class singer (or is that zinger?) Rey Parra.

What’s up, Rey? How did the Keep It True gig come about? Do you guys know the promoter?

Hello, my brother, hello. So the Keep It True promoter actually reached out to Bruce and asked him if we would be interested in coming out and doing the show, so the answer is no- we really don’t know the promoter.

Does the festival have a history of bringing in Christian bands to play?

I don’t believe the festival brings in many Christian bands, if any. I spoke to several people that go there a lot and said that we were the first Christian band that they had seen there, but that’s not to say that there haven’t been ones previously.

Have you guys played Germany before?

We played in Germany before, and this was- gosh- about 30 years ago, and the promoter who brought us in was named Reinholdt and his partner in crime was Markus Haemmer. We did several shows there. We played in Vinton Ludwigereg castle and a couple others. That was such a great time because that time we went, we had a few extra days and we actually did like 3 castle tours and those are really, really, really incredible. Just the history and the architecture were amazing.

I met Herbie Langhans (Firewind, ex-Seventh Avenue, ex-Sinbreed) a couple weeks ago and he said he played his first show opening up for Sacred Warrior in his native Germany. Do you remember that show?

Herbie from Firewind? I don’t recall that band or that show, but I can tell you it was probably amazing.

How were you guys received in Germany? Did you meet anyone you knew? Any haters?

So the real cool thing was that we were received very, very well. I think initially when we first came out (on stage), there were people outside and wandering around, and then when they heard the first song, I think people were blown away, but they probably didn’t realize that we are a Christian band. We were a new American band to the festival and they loved it. They just loved it. It was neat to see how even when we were speaking about the Lord through our lyrics- and I did not water it down at all- it was very well received, man. There was a lot of prayer that went into that show, not only by us, but by a lot of our friends and fans and a lot of people on facebook, pastors, and stuff like that. After the set, we were walking around, and many, many people were saying that we were such a great band and that we were the best band of the festival, and I was the best singer there and stuff like that, but I don’t take any credit for any of that. A lot of great bands there, but one in particular that we became good friends with are the guys from Wings of Steel. They are a young band, but they are great- very talented, and really awesome dudes too.

It was great that your wife Trissy live streamed the show. I loved watching it, and by the comments, it looked like a lot of people back home enjoyed it, too.

How’d you guys feel going into it- nervous, excited, both? Would you do it again?

You know we don’t really get nervous anymore, even when we played with Queensryche we were not nervous at all. It’s just become second nature to us now, but there was a lot of excitement for all of us about going to Germany and about playing for the fans at the festival. We heard rumors that they will ask us back again, and we hope they will because we would love to do it again.

There’s a vicious rumor going around that there’s going to be a SW Live in Germany release. Any truth to that?

As far asa Warrior live in Germany release, I have not heard such rumors, so do me a favor- if it comes out, make sure you send me the link to it. Lol.

How about any spiritual encounters the band had over there? I know you guys will speak the Truth. Did Bruce have any conversations with unbelievers in Germany?

Cool thing is not only were we well received, but we did get the opportunity to share the Lord with people. Bruce and Larry did with a couple guys. I did with a couple guys. Steve did, and I’m sure Tony and Tom did as well. You know us, bro, any opportunity for an open door, we’re gonna go for it, so there were many seeds planted, for sure.

How about the food and the sightseeing?

The food there was incredible. Funny story- they fed us all this great food for lunch, but no schnitzel and Steve was kind of bummed out about that, but later on in the evening, they brought out some schnitzel and I texted Steve and Tom and they ran up to the lunchroom and got some, so they were happy.

Who were some of the bigger bands that played the festival? Wow! You guys played with Grave Digger?

Ready to take off the rockstar hat and put on your hardhat and go back to work?

Bro, I am never ready to take off my rockstar hat and go back to work. LOL, no man, I enjoy what I do for work and I’m very well taken care of, and I meet great people, and I get to pray over everyone I build a home for.

How did Larry do? Is that new guy pulling his weight? I saw him throw his cowboy hat out in the audience.

And yeah, I was sad when Larry threw his hat out. He was thinking that people were gonna be fighting over it and I don’t know if anyone grabbed it or not. He was having second thoughts bout it, but you know what? It’s the thought that counts. I’m sure somebody grabbed it. We just didn’t see anybody with it. You know what I mean? But I’m sure somebody did- I’m sure.

Are you guys ready for Immortal in September? Everyone get your tickets at bmieventcenter.com

Bro, we’re so excited about going back to Immortal Fest again for the third time. We love the people there, we’ve made some great friendships there, and we’ve seen some great bands there. I’m also looking to do some short interviews for my podcast Is It Wrong? while we’re down there. Looking forward to seeing you, buddy. And I don’t think we need to buy tickets for the festival, but we did get rooms and flights booked already.

That link for the Immortal festival tix wasn’t for you, silly!

Oh. I look forward to seeing you there, bro. Thanks for the interview. Is it wrong for a band to play Immortal Fest 3 years in a row? Not at all!!!! Blessings and God bless.

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