INTERVIEW WITH DAVE HARVEY OF MILLENNIAL REIGN

 

Millennial Reign, l-r: Pedro Cortes (drums), Dave Harvey (guitars, BGVs), Tiffany Galchutt (vocals), and Neil Bertrand (bass, BGVs)

Allow me to admit: I was probably born a symphonic metal fan, long before the genre existed. One, I love symphonic music period - when I got familiar with classical music, I was hooked. But also, even my taste in music as a teen-ager - Kansas, Styx, Yes, ELO, and the later Beatles - showed that leaning. So I'm excited to get to interview another Christian symphonic metal, along with my interview two years ago with my buddies Divine Martyr. I have the honor of interviewing guitarist Dave Harvey.

JR: Welcome to my blog! I'll start with my typical first question for bands: How did you get started, and what inspired the group's name?

DH: Millennial Reign actually started as a recording project. I had already released one album in an 80s genre but was wanting more of a powermetal direction with the second. I had the right vocalist lined up and we signed with Ulterium Records during the recording process. Once we did that it was decided to create a full band. As for the name, it literally came from a church service one morning. The pastor mentioned the thousand year millennial reign of Christ and I remember thinking, that’s a good name for a band.

JR: Usually at this point, I ask about the most recent project. However, I hear you've got a new project due out this summer! I'm excited and can't wait to hear it. Would you like to tell me and the readers what to expect about it? 

DH: In my opinion it’s the best album we’ve released to date. The current lineup of the band is by far the best since its creation, everyone is on board and fully committed to the vision. One video “Bring Me To Life” has been released and a second is coming in May.

JR: "World on Fire" is your first full project since 2018's "The Great Divide." What has the Lord been teaching you during that period of time?

DH: For me personally I’ve been much more focused on the Word and the ministry. On this album I wanted to be much more direct with what we had to say. These are perilous times we are living in and it’s no longer optional to be vague in the message. A strong word is what everyone needs.

JR: I'm sure you're familiar with the old adage "You can't judge a book by its cover," but in your case, your projects have great artwork (see bottom of interview). Could you tell us about it?

DH: Our record label takes care of hiring the artists to do all of their covers. Jan Yrlund did the last two album covers for us. He does a lot of very well known bands in Europe. 

JR: One hunch I have is that Christian rock bands endure a lot of spiritual warfare, especially those who break into a new genre where the world formerly had a monopoly. What warfare have you seen, and how has God helped strengthen and encourage you during the heat of battle, either through the Word, prayer, or fellow believers?

DH: The only quote, unquote “warfare” that really comes to mind would be that Christian bands aren’t taken seriously by some of the metal world. I see this a lot with Stryper by a few of the bigger zines using headlines that mock rather than actually promote the story. Jesus himself said that we’d be hated by the world so personally this doesn’t get to me. I know exactly who I am in Christ, what I can do in Christ and the final outcome of the mockers.

JR: Thank you for your time. How can we keep up with what's going with you all? And is there any closing remarks you'd like to make?

DH: All our info is posted on our webpage at https://millennialreign.com or https://facebook.com/millennialreign

We are having an album release show June 22nd at Platinum Music Complex in North Richland Hills, Texas. Greg X Volz of Petra and CPR will be speaking and performing at the event. See our pages for ticket links.