Interview for DEATHTHRASHER MAGAZINE by ARMANDO MUTILATOR :

DT: Your Top Ten German albums from ever?
Martin Missy: Oh, that’s difficult. I’ve never listened that much to German Metal, mostly American and English. But I’ll give it a try:
1. KREATOR “Pleasure to Kill”
2. HELLOWEEN “Walls of Jericho”
3. ACCEPT “Restless and Wild”
4. SODOM “In the Sign of Evil”
5. SCORPIONS “Love at First Sting”
6. ACCEPT “Breaker”
7. DESTRUCTION “Infernal Overkill”
8. KREATOR “Endless Pain”
9. RAGE “Perfect Man”
10. RUNNING WILD “Branded an Exiled”

DT: MARTIN, do you know HANSI MULLER before the "DEMO 1986"?
Martin Missy: No, I hadn’t met HANSI before he and MICHAEL recorded the Demo in November 1986. I had met MICHAEL a several times earlier though.

DT: Do you like Punk / Hardcore? ... do you like bands like THE EXPLOITED, CHAOS UK, RAW POWER, RAMONES, CIRCLE JERKS, 7 SECONDS and VARUKERS?.
Martin Missy: Yes, I like Punk and Hardcore. Especially AGNOSTIC FRONT, DEAD KENNEDYS, RAMONES and the german Punk-band SLIME.

DT: Do you agree with those that say a Metaller should not listen to Hardcore or Punk?.
Martin Missy: No. I think everybody should listen to the music he likes, and it doesn’t matter what kind of music that is.

DT: Do you think that wearing chains, blood, make-up and all that stuff is important for you image?.
Martin Missy: Hmmm, I don’t know. I wore the spikes because I thought it was cool. I didn’t care much about image and stuff. I don’t know what other bands think when they put makeup and blood on…I guess they also just think it’s cool, like I did back then when I wore the spikes.

DT: What can you talk me about your first work with PROTECTOR "MISANTHROPY" (1987)?.
Martin Missy: I had been in the band for only 3-4 months and we had signed the record-deal with ATOM H just 2 months before. It all went so fast. We had a lot of fun though! We recorded “MISANTHROPY” at the “WHITE LINES STUDIO” in Braunschweig, which is just 20 kilometers from our hometown Wolfsburg. It was my first time in a studio, and I was a little nervous, especially because my voice, which I never had heard professionally recorded before, didn’t “work out” in the beginning. But after I had been screaming and shouting for a while, I finally got the voice that you can hear on “MISANTHROPY”. It was an incredible feeling to hold a record, that you had been a part of recording, in your hands!

DT: How do you feel about the future of Metal in general?.
Martin Missy: I am not worried. I think there always will be a need for hard and fast music. As long as there is Pop-music, Rap or HipHop, there will also always be the other alternative (speak: Metal) for people who want to listen to music that doesn’t sound that artificial or mainstream.

DT: Do you considered “GOLEM” (1988) as a classic Metal gem?
Martin Missy: Well, I think it is a good album, but I never considered it a “classic” myself. But I’ve heard from a lot of Metalheads that they like “GOLEM”, so probably it must be a good record.

DT: Talk me about "URM THE MAD" (1989) please !!!
Martin Missy: I got the idea to the name of the record and the song one year earlier, when we recorded “GOLEM”. In the apartment, that was above the studio, and where we lived during the recording - session, there were a lot of Magazines and comics, among others a comic called “HEAVY METAL”. In one of the comics there was this character called “URM THE MAD”. I liked that sad, brave and wicked character, so I decided to write lyrics to a song about him one day. Well, and one year later we were at the “PHOENIX STUDIO” in Bochum, were we also had recorded “GOLEM”, and recorded (among others) the song “URM THE MAD”. We had, once again, a great time, and I remember that on the last day, a lot of friends from Wolfsburg came and visited us, and we had a big party in the apartment above the studio.

DT: What do you know about Peruvian Scene?
Martin Missy: To be honest: Nothing. I’ve heard about some bands from Brazil and Chile, but never from a band from Peru. But on the other hand: I do not listen that much to Underground - Metal, mostly bands that are distributed by major companies, so you can get them in almost every record-store here in Europe.

DT: What were the reasons for you to leave PROTECTOR in 1989?.
Martin Missy: In the beginning of 1989 I suddenly realized that I didn’t have the power, commitment and energy anymore to continue in a band like PROTECTOR, that was trying to become a major band at that time, so I said to the other’s that it would be better for them to continue without me.

DT: What do you think about 3 albums, "LEVIATHAN'S DESIRE" (1990), "A SHEDDING OF SKIN" (1991), "THE HERITAGE" (1993) with OLIVER WIEBEL on vocals?.
Martin Missy : I think they are good, especially “A Shedding of Skin”. At that time PROTECTOR had changed their style from Thrash Metal to Death Metal, which probably was Olly’s influence, because he was very much into Death Metal back then.

DT: The German Thrash Metal scene has become almost legendary for several reasons but which bands do you like the most?.
Martin Missy: As I already mentioned in the “Top Ten List”: KREATOR, SODOM and DESTRUCTION, but I also liked TANKARD and NECRONOMICON.

DT: Tell us about your friendship with the legend, MICHAEL HASSE (RIP).
Martin Missy: He was my best friend for about two years. We met like 4-5 days a week. Unfortunately we lost contact after I left PROTECTOR. He was a very sympathic and cool person, but he also had one big weakness: drugs. I met him two times for a short moment just some weeks before he died. When another friend of mine told me that he was dead, I couldn’t believe it. I had heard that he had had big problems with drugs, but I didn’t know that it was that serious.

DT: What can you talk me about the Compilation "LOST IN ETERNITY" dedicated to MICHAEL HASSE?.
Martin Missy: It was in 1995. I hadn’t been in the band for about five years, and the line-up from “THE HERTAGE” (OLLY, MATZE and MARCO) had played their final gig one year before, and suddenly there was this compilation in the record-stores. I think none from the band was involved in that, it must have been a thing the record-company did on it’s own. I think it was a nice thought that the record-company dedicated the record to MICHAEL.

DT: Do you like the "DEMO 2000" with JACEK ZANDER on vocals?.
Martin Missy: I’ve only listened to it a few times, but I think it’s o.k.

DT: Do you know CLAUDIO PIZARRO?.
Martin Missy: Do you mean the soccer - player? Of course I know him, not personal, but from the papers and TV. ;-) It would be cool if Peru could qualify for the next World Championships in Germany, so we could see their white dress with the red stripe on it in a big Tournament once again, like in the “good old days” with CUBILLAS!

DT: How many gigs, concerts, tours, have you played with PROTECTOR?.
Martin Missy: I only played 12 single gigs with PROTECTOR. We didn’t play live that much back then. They started touring after I had left the band.

DT: Do you prefer BON SCOTT or BRIAN JOHNSON?.
Martin Missy: BRIAN JOHNSON is a good singer, but BON SCOTT was the greatest Hard Rock-singer in the world! He had the perfect voice for Rock / Hard Rock. I’ve been listening to AC/DC since 1980, and BON SCOTT is my big idol!

DT: Do you like the old Heavy Metal?
Martin Missy: Yes, I like it a lot. That’s what I grew up with. It all started with AC/DC, then I started listening to MOTÖRHEAD, IRON MAIDEN and VENOM…and then came 1985 with all the fantastic records (EXODUS “Bonded by Blood”, POSSESSED “Seven Churches”, S.O.D. “Speak English or Die”, CARNIVORE “Carnivore”…), so from that point on I listened to almost everything that had to do with Metal, also the “old” Metal bands like JUDAS PRIEST, SAXON and MANOWAR.

DT: Wich was the best audience you ever play for?
Martin Missy: That’s difficult to answer, but I would say Bamberg in 1988. I would have liked to play the METALMANIA-festival in Katowice in 1989. OLLY, EDE and HANSI told me it was incredible! Thousands of people who wanted to listen to Protector…frantastic!

DT: How do you feel about the current Metal scene in Germany and do you have any favourite bands?
Martin Missy: I’m not listening to “new” Metal that much. If I listen to new bands, they are from the USA or England (like URSUPER, SCEPTER…). And I live in Sweden since 1995, so I can’t say what the scene in Germany is like today. I hope it’s still alive and well, as it was back in the 80’s.

DT: What were the reasons for you to return PROTECTOR?
Martin Missy: Suddenly I felt that I had the inspiration and energy again to continue my work with Protector, but after recording “URM…” and playing one gig in Düsseldorf, I realized that that had only been temporary, so I left Protector again, and this time for good.

DT: You’re fave album from PROTECTOR?
Martin Missy: Definetly “MISANTHROPY”. It’s raw and the sound isn’t as clean as on the other records. And I like the songs really much.

DT: Which of your three bands was more important, SODOM, KREATOR or DESTRUCTION?
Martin Missy: Wow, THAT’S a difficult question to answer, if not to say: impossible. I think all those three bands were very, very important for the German Thrash-Metal-scene. I don’t think that one of those bands were more important than the others, all though KREATOR had the most success, if I remember it right.

DT: What can you talk me about "ECHOES FROM THE PAST..." (2003)?
Martin Missy: In Spring of 2003 PETER and OLA from the Swedish Underground – record - label “I HATE RECORDS” contacted me and asked me if they could release our Demo, “MISANTHROPY” and “GOLEM” on one CD. After meeting with the guys and talking to HANSI about it, I helped them with pictures, lyrics and the biography, so that everything would be as good as possible. I think they did a very good job with that CD.

DT: How do you feel when your memory goes back to the past, let’s say to the "MISANTHROPY" (1987)? times and compare with everything that’s going on right now?
Martin Missy: I don’t compare too much with what is going on today. I just become a little bit sentimental when I think back to those days. It was the greatest time of my life.

DT: Talk me about the new chapter in PROTECTOR's Metal career.
Martin Missy: Well, right now there is not much happening. I tried last year to get the band (OLLY, EDE, MARCO) together again, just for a few gigs or so, but they weren’t as interested in that as I am. We will see, maybe we’ll play again together when we’re 60 years old or something, hehehe.

DT: Your future plans?.
Martin Missy: I’m rehearsing with my new band here in Stockholm right now. And then I also have an Old-School-Thrash-Metal-project with some American musicians that is called “PSYCHOMANTHIUM”. We will record a CD in june / july 2004, and it will be released on “STILLDEAD RECORDS”, probably in the fall of 2004.

DT: Your last comment for DEATHTHRASHER's readers?.
Martin Missy: Thanx for reading this interview and stay Metal forever!