Axe Dragger LIVE on The Zach Moonshine Show: Minnesota Pete Campbell Talks True Heavy Metal, Brotherhood, and the Return of Real Riffs
Heavy metal doesn’t need permission, trends, or a damn algorithm. It needs riffs, conviction, and people who...
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Axe Dragger LIVE on The Zach Moonshine Show: Minnesota Pete Campbell Talks True Heavy Metal, Brotherhood, and the Return of Real Riffs
Heavy metal doesn’t need permission, trends, or a damn algorithm. It needs riffs, conviction, and people who mean it. That message landed loud and clear when 108,646 metal maniacs from around the world tuned in live for the broadcast of The Zach Moonshine Show – Heavy Metal Reloaded, featuring Minnesota Pete Campbell, drummer of the new American heavy metal supergroup AXE DRAGGER, on Metal Devastation Radio.
This wasn’t background noise radio. This was appointment listening. A global audience showed up for real heavy metal, real conversation, and zero compromise.
Axe Dragger Was Never “Planned” and That’s Why It Works
Axe Dragger didn’t start as a label idea or a calculated supergroup. It started the old-school way. Two musicians trading riffs because they couldn’t not do it.
“The original origins of the band was me and Bob Balch,” Pete explains. “He started sending me these riffs and I was like, yeah… these are f***ing badass. Let’s do it.”
Balch, known for Fu Manchu, brought something heavier and sharper to the table, and Pete didn’t hold back.
“This motherf***er is a maestro. To me, he’s one of the most underrated guitar players in music.”
From there, the band came together organically. Fredrik Isaksson of Dark Funeral, Candlemass, and Grave joined on bass. Then came the moment nobody expected.
“Bob texted me and said, ‘Dude, I’m friends with Terry Glaze on Instagram.’ I was like, yeah okay, whatever.”
That “whatever” turned into instant electricity.
“He sent the demo back and that’s the take on the record,” Pete says. “The minute I heard him, I was like, oh my God… this is exactly what this needs.”
Terry Glaze and Capturing the Moment
Terry Glaze, original Pantera vocalist, didn’t overthink his return.
“That was it,” Pete says. “We had no choice. We had to be a band.”
There was no polishing the life out of it.
“That’s literally the demo vocal,” Pete confirms. “That’s what’s on the record.”
That honesty resonated hard with the audience, and judging by the live listener numbers, the metal world agreed.
Recorded Remotely, Sounds Like a Real Band
One of the biggest revelations of the interview came when Pete explained how the album was recorded.
“We’ve never actually played together. Ever,” he admits. “Bob would send me tracks, I’d do drums, then it’d go to Fredrik, then Terry.”
Yet the result sounds like a band that’s been locked into the same room for years.
“It sounds like a live f***ing band,” Pete says. “That’s because we’re all professionals, and it was meant to be.”
That kind of chemistry can’t be manufactured. You either have it or you don’t.
Classic Heavy Metal Values, No Apologies
Axe Dragger proudly stands on the shoulders of classic heavy metal without copying it.
“Bob’s whole thing was like, ‘I want old Priest, old Riot,’” Pete explains. “And I was like, man, nobody even talks about Riot anymore.”
This is fist-pumping metal. No irony. No filters.
“You can pump your f***ing fist to every tune on this record,” Pete says. “Studded bracelet mandatory.”
Album Art, Lyrics, and Doing It the Right Way
Pete also spoke passionately about album artwork and lyrics, two things modern music often treats as disposable.
“That’s the kind of record where, back in the day, you’d flip through the bins and go, ‘This has got some nasty s*** on it,’ and buy it just off the cover.”
Lyrics mattered too.
“I used to pull out the booklet and read the lyrics while the record played,” he says. “So we made sure that mattered on this too.”
No AI. No shortcuts. Just metal done by humans who grew up respecting the craft.
Ripple Music and a Perfect Home
The album lands on Ripple Music, a label trusted by underground heavy music fans worldwide.
“Todd at Ripple rules,” Pete says. “For him to hear this and go, ‘Yep, I want this,’ that meant a lot.”
Sometimes the right label isn’t about genre. It’s about belief.
Ozzy, Sabbath, Kiss, and the Roots of It All
The interview took a powerful turn as Pete reflected on Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, and Kiss.
“Those guys were my superheroes,” he says. “If it wasn’t for Ozzy and Sabbath, I wouldn’t be here doing this today.”
It wasn’t nostalgia. It was gratitude.
“Ozzy is forever,” Pete adds. “That man is my whole childhood.”
That reverence is baked into Axe Dragger’s DNA.
What’s Next for Axe Dragger
Despite being spread across Minnesota, Texas, California, Washington DC, and Sweden, Axe Dragger is already moving forward.
“We’ve already got riffs for the second record,” Pete laughs. “Bob needs to chill.”
Two more singles will drop before the album’s release on March 6, 2026, and live shows are firmly in the discussion.
“We all agree we need to play at least once together,” Pete says. “This can’t just live on a hard drive.”
Final Word: The Numbers Don’t Lie
When 108,646 listeners from around the world tune in live for a heavy metal interview and radio show, it says everything. The demand is still there. The hunger is real.
Axe Dragger isn’t chasing relevance. They’re proving it already exists.
“This is my favorite thing I’ve ever done,” Pete says. “I’ll put my stamp on this forever.”
Heavy metal is alive, global, and louder than ever. Turn it up. Drag the axe.
Track List:
Battle of The Bands Top Six Winners:
1 - ANTISAINT - SNAFU2 - Bound To Prevail - Consecrated Perdition3 - Eden On Fire - Brigade4 - Scandal Tree - Tooth Fairy5 - Them Damn Kings - Burn6 - AnomiC - This Blood Is Mine
The Zach Moonshine Intro
7 - Ozzy Osbourne - Perry Mason/See You On The Other Side8 - Zakk Sabbath - Electric Funeral/Into The Void
Axe Dragger - Interview featuring Axe Dragger
9 - Pantera - Heavy Metal Rules/Ride My Rocket/Come-On Eyes10 - Rust Bucket - Four on the Floor11 - Black Label Society - Southern Dissolution/Crazy Horse/SDMF12 - Dark Chapel - We Are Remade13 - Megadeth - Let There Be Shred/Mechanix/Take No Prisoners14 - Kings of Thrash - Megadeth medley live15 - Cÿanide - Drinkin'16 - NetherDred - The Hateful Undead17 - Septarian - Descent To Ruin18 - Metal Church - F.A.F.O19 - Viperwitch - I Rule The Ruins (Warlock Cover)20 - NEMESIS - Hell's Last Kiss21 - Vick Lecar - Never Stranded22 - Altared States - Among the Shadows23 - Acid Bath - The Blue
Full show now available Mixcloud:
Interview segments available also on YouTube, Spotify etc
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Check out the record at Bandcamp and support!
Axe Dragger by Axe Dragger
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