Threshold I n t e r v i e w w i t h Ri c h a r d W e s t By Jen @justjenrees
Ten albums into a career that began in London’s leafy suburbs back in 1989, it’s time this situation was reassessed. Sure, Heavy Metal and Progressive Rock are the cornerstones of the group’s sound, but as proven by the consummate quality of their last several albums, THRESHOLD are a classic Hard Rock band, built upon high-quality musicianship, enormous quantities of musical light and shade and, above all, memorable, hummable songs. Few bands are capable of gracing the stage of a leather ‘n’ studs gathering such as Bloodstock, as Threshold did in 2004, or conversely the Hard Rock
all-dayer the Firefest, at which they played three years later. Their music is eloquent and deeply melodic without relying upon the usual gratuitous levels of power and repetitive twiddly bits. “The key to THRESHOLD is songs,” believes long-serving keyboard player Richard West. “By all means we have all those extra ingredients, but without the song you’ve nothing.” “I’ve no objection to the label,” elaborates Damian Wilson, among the finest singers of the current Hard Rock scene, “it only bothers me when causing people, who might otherwise enjoy us, to shut them-