Hi James, how are you doing? How are you dealing with this damned pandemic over there in Canada?

James Delbridge: Hey man! I’m doing better, this pandemic has really thrown us for a loop. It’s been really hard to cope, but since we can’t play shows or tour we’ve filled all this free time we have with writing and recording.

There were some line-up changes in your band. Have you already selected new musicians for Lycanthro?

Yes, towards the beginning of the pandemic we had to let go of our bass player and our guitarist of 4 years, Dave, left the band. But fortunately, if there was a time to look for new members with minimal stress, this was it! So, we took our time to find the absolute best fits for the band – not just in a playing capacity, but also in terms of work ethic and personality. Us and the new guys have great chemistry musically and personally. I can’t wait to unveil the new line-up to everyone!

In 2018 you released a fantastic EP with Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse – especially “Pale Rider” blew me away. Are you going to stick to this style?

Thank you very much man! In terms of style we will be keeping elements from the Four Horsemen EP. But, we are going to be adding new elements. A lot of our new songs that are being written are very varied, mainly drawing influence from European Power Metal like Blind Guardian and Prog Metal like Dream Theater. We will be mixing that with the Speed/old school style that we’ve been doing to this point along with little bits of genres like Folk Metal and even a bit of Melo-Death. It’s like I always say about our music, there’s something for everyone!

Yeah, that sounds promising, James! In 2019 you shared the stage with HammerFall. I suppose this has been one of the highlights of your career so far.

Oh absolutely, sharing the stage with HammerFall was a dream come true. It’s an absolute honor to be able to share the stage with such legends in our genre as those guys. On top of that it was a nearly sold out show and the HammerFall guys were so kind and humble. Overall it was in the top 3 best shows of our career easily.

I’m a big fan of your vocals. What are you favourite metal singers?

Oh thank you so much! And I have so many! But if I had to boil it down to a few. Rob Halford from Judas Priest, Freddie Mercury from Queen and Hansi Kürsch from Blind Guardian are easily my top 3. Those 3 have heavily influenced myself not only as a singer but as a performer as well. Some others I could name are Eric Adams from Manowar, Tobi Sammett from Avantasia/Edguy, Adrienne Cowan from Seven Spires, Brittney Slays from Unleash The Archers. The list goes on!

I think the Canadian metal scene is in its prime these days. Do you agree?

Yes absolutely, there are so many great bands coming out from Canada in all genres in Metal that are all stellar! The biggest example would have to be Unleash The Archers, they’re easily the most popular Canadian Metal band at the moment. We opened for them 2 years back and it was easily the biggest and best crowd we’ve ever played in front of! Canada overall is producing some great and quality Metal across all genres.

What’s your favourite Canadian metal band of all time?

I don’t know if they count as metal but it’s easily Triumph. They’re not only my favourite Canadian band but they’re my favourite band in general. Their lyrics and musicianship are very underrated. If not them then Exciter would be my favourite

Can you tell me three underground Metal albums released in 2020 that our readers definitely should check out?

So far my 3 favourite albums of the year so far are Emerald Seas by Seven Spires, Question Everything by Helion Prime and Strangers by Scardust. All stellar albums! If you are into Power Metal!

James, thanks a lot four your time. I’m looking forward to new Lycanthro stuff.

Thanks so much for having me! Our new album is most likely going to be out March/April next year!

We’ll definitely review it on Epic Metal Blog, James!