For just over 20 years American hard rock/metal outfit Fozzy have been riding a gradual wave of success.
After starting life as a cover band in 1999, Fozzy released two albums mainly comprising other band's material before deciding to release an album showcasing their own orginals with All That Remains in 2005.
That album spawned the singles It's A Lie, Enemy, Born Of Anger and The Test, in the process establishing Fozzy as a band to look out for in their own right.
Chasing The Grail followed but it was with 2019's Sin and Bones that the Fozzy train started gathering steam.
Do You Wanna Start A War (2014) preceded 2017's Judas which saw Fozzy break free from their shackles and hit the stratosphere of metal.
This was helped in no small part by the titular single, which became frontman Chris Jericho's entrance theme song for his highly successful wrestling career and introduced Fozzy and their music to legions of fans that have remained strong ever since.
Now, following the sustained success of this years album Boombox, Fozzy are set to hit Australian shores for a series of shows with good buddies Buckcherry, starting in Brisbane on Wednesday, November 30.
HEAVY caught up with Fozzy's guitarist and founding member Rich Ward for the lowdown.
"I'm so excited to be coming over to Australia for a big tour," he beamed. "I'll be looking forward to seeing all of you guys at the gigs and playing some crushing riffs and having some fun. It's been since 2018, so it's exciting to get back on that plane again and come and visit my friends."
We press Ward on what to expect from the shows.
"Big set and travelling with our friends in Buckcherry, which is fantastic," he smiled. "We've toured with them previously and built a great kinship and brotherhood with those guys, so riding down the road with them is gonna be a lot of fun. It's gonna be a double treat for the audience because I think both bands feel like they belong on the same bill, but we are very different in other ways as well. Buckcherry is much more rooted in classic rock n roll, where we're kind of rooted in classic heavy metal. Still living under the same big tent, but it's gonna be fun. The same ice cream, just a little different flavours. It's gonna be a fun gig. It's always fun when you get to see friends of yours again on the road and I've got so many friends from Australia that I look forward to seeing every time we're over. I love the culture. I love the climate. It's exciting. I'm an American, so every time I get to travel and tour I feel like a bit of a tourist too. I try to find a great coffee shop and a nice meal and soak up some of the local flavours."
In the full interview, Rich talks more about what to expect from the shows, what's different about Fozzy and their stage show since their last visit in 2018, their relationship with Buckcherry, the early days of Fozzy and how they grew from a covers band to playing their own material, having a well known wrestler in the band, the reception to Boombox, the gradual ascension of Fozzy as a band, his status as a guitar player and more.