The Dead Daisies have been busy during the COVID pandemic, teasing fans with singles from their long-awaited new album – the first to feature Glenn Hughes on vocals.


Guitarist Doug Aldrich sat down with HEAVY during the week, guitar in hand, to run us through the bands' new album Holy Ground, which will be out on January 22.


"We're really excited,” he enthused when asked about the release. “ We've been sitting on this for about a year now so we're really ready for it to be out."

Holy Ground was originally slated for release early in 2020 so with that in mind we asked if Aldrich felt some of the material might be a bit dated after sitting on the shelf for so long.


"I haven't really listened to it much to be honest," he replied, "but we have also been working on more new material on top of that which is still new but I think it's more about the reflection of how people when they hear it what they think. So far our friends I've played it for love it so hopefully the fans dig it and we're looking forward to coming and playing it for you guys ASAP."


The Dead Daisies released three singles in the lead up to the album, dropping “Unspoken”, “Bustle & Flow” and “Holy Ground”, with each of them displaying a different side to the bands rock psyche. Although undoubtedly and unashamedly rock numbers, each song also has a life of its own and points to a more eclectic range of music this time around.


"You've gotta hear the whole album and the flow”, Alridge measured. "It’s really got a great vibe to it. Originally we had planned on starting off with 'Holy Ground' to be the lead single and then when the pandemic started we basically pushed everything back and we weren't planning on putting anything out but then when we did we felt that 'Unspoken' was a good vibe for someone wanting to hear from the Dead Daisies and it gave us a song of hope during the pandemic. Then we waited a few months and we put out 'Bustle & Flow' which was really cool for the summer and now we're getting back to the original plan which was 'Holy Ground' first. I would say, to answer your question, yes and no because there's a lot deeper stuff and there's a couple of things that I think are going to be surprising for the fans when they hear it. It's a brand new start. We've got Glenn Hughes - the voice of rock - and me and Dave Lowy (guitars) and Deen Castronovo (drums) and it's a fresh start, a brand new start for this band.


In the full interview, Doug talk about the album in greater detail, new member Glenn Hughes and what he has brought to the bands' sound, folding new members into the band and more significantly the bands' established sound, how new members are selected, touring plans and more.