Key Takeaways

• Album Title: John Bush credits Phil Sandoval for the title Emotion Factory Reset, which reflects the band’s emotional range.
• Creative Process: Bush describes the band’s dynamic as a factory where each member contributes to a cohesive sound.
• Songwriting Challenges: The song “Close to the Bone” addresses personal struggles and relationships, showcasing the band’s emotional depth.
• Future Plans: Bush hints at new material for Category 7 while emphasizing quality over quantity in songwriting.

There are times a title just presents itself perfectly and for Armored Saint’s John Bush, Emotion Factory Reset not only encapsulates their latest album well, but is also reflective of their overall process.

Speaking with Full Metal Jackie on her weekend radio show, Bush credited Phil Sandoval with providing the title and shared how well it seems to fit.

“For me personally, I feel like it encompasses a couple things. Number one is I think Armored Saint’s music is quite emotional. We can touch on lots of different feelings and obviously we can be powerful and angry, but we could also kind of get into a melancholy state with music that we’ve made and ballads that we’ve written as well as just different emotions can come out by the listener by listening to what we’re doing,” shared Bush.

He then added, “Then I kind of thought of the way we function sometimes is like a factory and I say that in the most endearing of ways ’cause everybody’s got their job. There’s the drums. Kyle’s, he does drums and we do the bass and then the guitar players bring their thing. And it’s almost like an assembly line if you’re like the Ford Plant and I like that because it’s efficient and then everybody’s contributing and it feels like this machine that’s kind of working as a well-oiled machine.”

So I like the idea of a factory and it sounded cool to me. And then the reset, when every time you’re making a new record, you’re kind of regrouping, resetting, trying to reevaluate what you wanna do for something new. Kind of looking back, but also like Joey [Vera] says, shedding the skin and it’s time to move onwards.”

Within the chat, Bush digs deeper into the Armored Saint creative process, picks which song from the new album challenged him the most, discusses the power of music as a cathartic platform and he also reflects on 40 years of the Delirious Nomad album.

Elsewhere within the chat, Bush discusses his recent “John Bush Plays Anthrax” dates and clarifies his love for doing that on his own terms while appreciating the support of his farmer bandmates. And Bush concludes the interview by discussing what may come next with his other band Category 7.

Check out more of the chat below.

It’s Full Metal Jackie and it is always a pleasure to welcome back a friend of the show. Glad to have Mr. John Bush with us. For Armored Saint fans, we’re psyched to have our first new music in a while, a new album called Emotion Factory Reset. John, you talked about approaching this album, any album for that matter, like a shedding of the skin. Obviously, the band has a distinct sound, but does approaching it from a clean slate mentality put more or less pressure on you to reach a certain bar of quality that Armored Saint has always brought?

I don’t think it increases any kind of pressure because we’re making music and we’re making heavy metal music, hard rock music and it should be fun. Here we are four decades later still making albums, so we’re pretty fortunate and that’s the way I kind of see it.

That being said, we kind of feel like we have our style and I think the goal is to always try to push ourselves and push our style. I’m not sure exactly which direction. It kind of is open to whatever we wanna do, we can do it. I’ve always said that.

I kind of feel like we can do whatever we want within reason of course. At some point somebody might say, “Okay, what are you doing? I don’t know if I can relate to this.” But it really is rare when that happens. And I think that we just have this broad mentality that we can do whatever we want.

So based on that, I think we open the door and we start working on tunes, writing and see what happens. And that stuff kind of just happened naturally and organically. Next thing we know, we have a bunch of songs and I think the songs are pretty good.

So I’m really proud of this record and I think we kind of built on what we’ve started the last 20 years in particular and we keep going.

Armored Saint, “Hit a Moonshot”

It’s Full Metal Jackie. John Bush on the show with us. We’re talking about the new Armored Saint album. It is titled Emotion Factory Reset and I understand that comes from Phil Sandoval. Can you talk about the title, where it comes from and how that applies to working in a band dynamic?

When we started working on tunes for this record, Phil told me, he goes, “I have some lyrical ideas.” I was like, “Okay, send them to me.” I’m open-minded, of course. I’m not over here trying to hoard. “I write the lyrics and nobody else can contribute.” That’s not the mindset at all. Bring something in. If it’s cool and it’s jiving with what I’m doing, it’ll only embellish it. So that was kind of the mentality I usually have.

He wrote some stuff and I was like, “Oh, I like that. I like that with those words. That sounded kinda cool.” So I was working on the song “Close to the Bone,” which was our first single, and it seemed to work with the second bridge of that song, which is funny ’cause that song has two bridge parts. I just thought it sounded cool and it kind of changed the dynamic of the song in that particular part. So when we were going back and kind of reevaluating some of the lyrics and seeing if anything would work as a title, that was one of the lines I liked the best.

For me personally, I feel like it encompasses a couple things. Number one is I think Armored Saint’s music is quite emotional. We can touch on lots of different feelings and obviously we can be powerful and angry, but we could also kind of get into a melancholy state with music that we’ve made and ballads that we’ve written as well as just different emotions can come out by the listener by listening to what we’re doing. It can make you feel like you’re energetic or it can make you feel bluesy. We touch on a lot of emotions.

Then I kind of thought of the way we function sometimes is like a factory and I say that in the most endearing of ways ’cause everybody’s got their job. There’s the drums. Kyle’s does drums and we do bass and then guitar players bring their thing. And it’s almost like an assembly line if you’re like Ford Plant and I like that because it’s efficient and then everybody’s contributing and it feels like this machine that’s kind of working as a well-oiled machine.

So I like the idea of a factory and it sounded cool to me. And then the reset when every time you’re making a new record you’re kind of regrouping resetting trying to reevaluate what you wanna do for something new. Kind of looking back but also like Joey [Vera] says shedding skin it’s time to move onwards.

So I thought all those things worked really well and in end that was title that everyone agreed upon.

John, one of first songs that we heard from this new record was “Close to Bone,” and I say this with smile. Got anything you need get off your chest?

It’s actually was idea Tracy Joey Vera’s wife who’s head label said Joey holds things too close bone. It was just conversation we were having one night just shooting breeze. And so I was like “Well that’s cool title.” And so Joey kept saying “Well maybe should write song with title.” It’s little bit how he is. And I was like “Yeah great.”

So then I kinda tried expand on it and was like maybe in this world society live you have function people sometimes have deal people you don’t like or don’t quite see eye eye with so how do do because it’s challenge for people challenge in band get along great.

Armored Saint been together over 40 years off on known each other since were little kids for most part which extremely rare but not all wine roses have some beasts issues have things try iron out so think that’s kinda stands rest people workforce they have function sometimes they have deal people they aren’t biggest fans.

So thought was cool topic song went for it.

And how great is it have platform music work through things even trying take higher ground someone who gets under your skin bit?

Absolutely all stuff very cathartic helpful write songs don’t know where I’d actually without being songwriter person making music don’t wanna think about where I’d be but positive been really helpful that’s why love making music that’s why love writing lyrics.

I still feel like actually do pretty well which great knock wood don’t have too many writer’s blocks hopefully way will be whole career still really enjoy writing lyrics really big challenge always trying make sure don’t repeat yourself that’s not easy do when you’ve been making records long as have been writing songs not only this band but other bands.

The challenge is just make sure not you’re not like did do already wait minute melody sounds familiar wait did use word shoot gotta try something else I’m always trying really push myself think stands band well always trying kinda build sound think did.

It’s crazy we’re band started ’80s but here making record 2026 sounds like record 2026 still sounds Armored Saint so that’s beauty.

Armored Saint, “Close to Bone”

John at this point your career you’re very well-established vocalist worked guys years part fun creating music keeping challenging Was there song this record where musical idea pushed either vocalist pushed creatively place felt new challenging you?

I take song “Buckeye.” A lot people talking about particular tune was one first ones wrote really cool song closest we’ve come ballad record has cool slow intro where singing then has same kinda outro part where same part out song then body song heavy kinda groovy almost Zeppelin-y kinda thing slide guitar solo which Jeff played really well it’s really cool.

Kinda shows little different light band again still powerful heavy personal song me because when daughter decided go off college chose school Ohio super proud her real excited had some anxiety sadness associated with as well wanted try write something conjunction her being state Ohio course I’ve been Ohio many many times all various cool cities Cleveland Columbus you name Cincinnati.

So was like oh you know what let’s do something conjunction state so thought title “Buckeye” which famous tree state being kinda shadow shade over her kinda watching over while she gone.

So was just all real personal don’t mind writing personal stuff but also try keep way where slightly ambiguous listener can relate its own terms but yeah was cool it’s kind song when played back wife daughter crying so touched serious emotion she’s done amazingly just really cool connection music that’s what all about.

Armored Saint, “Buckeye”

At this point Armored Saint have toured world over several times there’s more European dates coming up summer As veteran band do find stops where you give yourself little more time take few days explore even think about revisiting when you’re not tour What become some your stops always look forward returning what makes them special?

Well love Europe Armored Saint never Europe enough love European crowds obviously festivals summer always amazing playing some those year Alcatraz Primal Scream among few others doing Stone Dead Festival England first time.

We love going Netherlands first place ever played Europe always just fun go there European crowds very passionate not Americans aren’t but just different always cool play front people listening your music across ocean so me I’ll never take for granted.

READ MORE: Armored Saint’s Joey Vera John Bush Discuss Band’s Longevity