THE BEAST

Ivor Whitten   of   Belfast Metal   conducted an interview with   Steve "Lips" Kudlow   of Canadian metal legends   ANVIL   prior to the band's February 13 concert at The Limelight 2 in Belfast, United Kingdom. You can now listen to the chat using the   SoundCloud   widget below.

Speaking about why   ANVIL 's 2008 documentary,   "Anvil! The Story Of Anvil"   — which followed the aging Canadian metal band on an increasingly ill-fated tour — seemed to be received more favorably in some parts of the world than in others,   Lips   said (around 5:55 mark in the interview): "What's a really fascinating aspect [is that] in countries where the work ethic is really, really tough, where people really have a good, good, good work ethic, it doesn't matter how hard you have to work, you just go work. [And] those countries seemed to embrace the   ANVIL   story more than others… From my personal experience, in America, it's pretty much taken for granted and people kind of look at it like, 'So what?' Because people in that country, generally speaking, are lazy, and if they can go on welfare, they will. They   don't   have work ethics. So how could they relate to a story about somebody who keeps trying and being faced with adversities and failures? That's not the American way. The American way [is]: if I don't succeed right away, quit and go on to something else. And that's where the difference lies. I really noticed that in particular the movie really struck hard in the U.K. and in Ireland and in Sweden and in Germany. These are places that have very, very, very heavy-duty work ethics. People work because they want to, not because they have to."

"Anvil! The Story of Anvil" , was named one of 2009's best documentaries by a slew of film critics associations across the continent, including critics in Chicago, San Francisco, Toronto, and Las Vegas, as well as the   International Documentary Association , the   Online Film Critics Society , and the   National Society of Film Critics . It also made the year-end Top 10 lists in publications such as the   New York Times ,   Washington Post ,   Newsweek , and   Village Voice .

"Anvil! The Story of Anvil"   was the directorial debut of screenwriter   Sacha Gervasi   ( "The Terminal" ) and was produced by   Rebecca Yeldham   ( "The Kite Runner"   and   "The Motorcycle Diaries" ). The film follows   Kudlow   and   Reiner   and their band,   ANVIL , which released one of the heaviest albums in metal history, 1982's   "Metal on Metal" . The album influenced an entire musical generation of rock bands, including   METALLICA ,   SLAYER , and   ANTHRAX , who all went on to sell millions of records.   ANVIL , on the other hand, took a different path — straight to obscurity. The film was both entertaining and touching as it followed their last-ditch quest for the fame and fortune that has been so elusive to them. Via Blabbermouth