FRED ACHING (KINGS OF THRASH): “Working With JEFF YOUNG Has Become Natural”

KINGS OF THRASH WHISKY A GO GO 1 — Kings of Thrash At The Whisky A Go Go. Photo by Jaime Poulos.

Kings of Thrash just starred in their second live show at the famous Whisky A Go-Go in Hollywood, California, USA. on December 14, 2023. The show features ex-Megadeth superstars, Jeff Young on guitar and Dave Ellefson on bass. The band features drummer Fred Aching from Bulletboys and Chaz Leon from Black Daze – The Ultimate Soundgarden Tribute. The show on December 14 included guitarist Chris Poland, also of Megadeth fame. The group has an album out with Cleopatra Records.

Metal Express Radio’s Jaime Poulos attended the show in Hollywood, for a first person VIP experience with this talented supergroup. After the show she caught up with drummer Fred Aching for an interview.

MER: What is it like being able to perform with Jeff, Chaz, David, and Chris Poland?

FRED: It is super fun. We have a great connection after playing playing for a year together. In Thrashing USA, we played almost 30 shows a month, it was gnarly. That gave us the connection on stage, it has become so natural. Working with Chaz is great because he is the most positive person. It’s always fun with Chaz. He killed it by the way, he sounded amazing. Chris Poland is the nicest dude. He is a badass guitar player. He has a very unique style. It is always a pleasure and he loves my drumming and it is great.

MER: How do you practice? Together or separately?

FRED: We rehearsed for this show three times and we mostly practice separately. We all do our homework at home. It was awesome to play “Black Friday”, it is a great song.

MER: What do you have planned for the upcoming year?

FRED: For next year we definitely have some things that we are planning on doing. We want to go to South America and back to Australia next summer. We have some things not announced yet, but they are in the works. If I was to say anything about the show, I would say Hollywood didn’t disappoint, it was amazing, the vibes were very high and we can’t wait to come back.

Jeff Young and Fred Aching did a tour together with the Dead Groove Band with Holly West from The Zeparellas in 2023. The Kings of Thrash is definitely a show not to miss. Check out their website for upcoming shows!

Author

Jaime Poulos

Jaime is an interviewer here at Metal Express Radio. She grew up listening to music of all kinds. When she was in high school, she danced to DEVO, Thompson Twins, U2, Madonna, and Oingo Boingo. She went to the University of Utah for Accounting. Afterwards, she moved to Sioux City, IA and her musical interests turned to Stevie Ray Vaughan, Robert Cray, Jonny Lang, and Kenny Wayne Shepherd. She was lead and back up vocals for the small cover band in Evanston, Wyoming. She eventually moved on to become an underground Metal band promoter. She hosts shows with Metal bands from all over the US and overseas. It is her strong comradery for these bands, and the passion that they perform with, that inspires her to believe their music MUST be heard!
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