Interview by Kris Peters
While many bands of the rock to metal nature often collaborate with rap artists on individual songs or across whole albums, it is generally a one way street in that direction.
Seldom does the music world come across a rap artist who integrates rock and metal through their music as par for the course but try telling Houstin innovator Hyro The Hero that and chances are he will greet that comment much the same way as he does everything else in life.
With a warm smile and infectious laughter.
Hyro has faced all kinds of doubts, knockers and ignorance since releasing his debut mixtape Gangsta Rock on Christmas Eve in 2007.
But even then the future seeds of amalgamation were gathering momentum, manifesting themselves to great effect on his 2011 debut album Birth, School, Work, Death which included tracks produced by Ross Robinson featuring Paul Hinojos (At the Drive-in, the Mars Volta, Sparta) on bass, Daniel Anderson (Idiot Pilot, Glowbug) on guitar, and the Blood Brothers alumni Cody Votolato also on guitar, and Mark Gajadhar on drums.
Fast forward just over a decade and Hyro The Hero is about to release his latest album Bound For Glory on September 15 which outlines his long journey to achieving success and some of the many obstacles he has endured.
Including guest appearances from David Draiman (Disturbed), Brandon Saller (Atreyu), Spencer Charnas and Dan Sugarman (Ice Nine Kills), Chad Gray (Hellyeah), AJ Channer (Fire From The Gods), REDDSTAR and Markus Videsäter (Solence), Bound For Glory is much more than another rap/metal crossover attempt at unification or target audiences.
It is a statement of intent from a man who knows only those musical barriers he sets for himself.
HEAVY sat down for an interesting chat with Hyro The Hero earlier this week.
"I'm excited man," he beamed. "I can't wait to put it out there to the world and have everybody take it in and put their thoughts in. I love it man. It's a great feeling making some music and having it put out to the world."
We follow up by asking Hyro to explain in more detail what he was going for musically with the album.
"Basically it's my career, my life on the road," he quipped. "That's why I say Bound For Glory because you know, you take those steps and you know and you feel it in your heart I'm bound to get to this successful spot that I feel in my head. I'm gonna take those steps and work hard and get there. I just want the listener to come in and let them know I'm on the same path as you, let's just go up this road together to get somewhere we wanna be."
In the full interview, Hyro speaks more about what drove him to make Bound For Glory, the guest artists and what they brought to the table, getting to record with some of his peers, covering Busta Rhymes and why that was so important to him, mixing rap and metal and why it works, future plans and more.