Armored Saint will open the sold-out WASP show at The King of Clubs on Wednesday, November 30. Doors open at 6:30pm.

John Bush recently checked in from the Armored Saint tour bus in Texas just before the band was set to hit the stage in Houston opening for WASP. Armored Saint and WASP came up in the early ’80s LA metal scene together and spent part of 1985 on the road as part of a triple bill with a new, up-and-coming thrash band named Metallica occupying the middle slot. While Armored Saint was on pause for nearly 13 years while Bush fronted Anthrax, since reforming in 2008, the band – Bush (vocals), Joey Vera (bass), Jeff Duncan (guitars), Phil Sandoval (guitars) and Gonzo Sandoval (drums) – has released 3 studio albums and 2 live albums. 2020’s Punching the Sky came out months into the pandemic so Bush is excited to get out and play these songs as part of this tour.

(Listen to the full interview or read excerpts below)

Had this tour not come up, would Armored Saint be on the road right now or looking at dates in 2023?

That’s a good question, actually. I don’t know. We never did any dates in conjunction with Punching the Sky, which was really a bummer for obvious reasons. We won’t even address that because everybody else didn’t do dates either. So we certainly weren’t alone. We obviously are happy to go out and promote a record that’s not necessarily new, but it was our most recent release. So, doing the dates with WASP sounded like a great idea. The dates have superseded anything that we could imagine in terms of how the excitement is and the way the tickets have sold. I mean, three of the first four shows were sold out, the lone one being Tempe, which was still an awesome show. There’s a big buzz surrounding WASP because they haven’t done like a legitimate tour in 15 years or something like that.

Certainly Armored Saint has played around the country and the world in the last 10 years, but there’s still a lot of territories we still have never played. As a matter of fact, Albuquerque, the other night, we hadn’t played there since the Delirious Nomad tour in 1986.

I don’t remember the last time you played in Columbus.

We played there many times. We played the Newport Music Hall a bunch of times back in the day. I certainly played there with Anthrax. The last time we played Columbus, if I’m not mistaken, was probably at the Alrosa Villa. That was maybe on the Revolution tour (2000). But, it’s been a while so we’re due.

For some bands, it takes a few shows to start firing on all cylinders. You guys have been together on and off for 40 years. Do you still have to shake off the rust when a tour starts or are you on target with the first show?

We played the first four shows in a row on this tour and it felt like we were on the road for a month. It was weird, not in a bad way at all. It felt like we had been on the road a lot. We probably did the most rehearsals that we’ve done in a long time for a tour because we had to incorporate a couple of new song we wanted to play and we had to learn them as a band. It kind of feels like riding a bike. After the second show, it felt like we had been out for two weeks. I mean, we’re pros. We’re veterans. We’ve been doing this a long time so it’s not like there’s anything new to this. There’s aspects of things that are new – working with new crew people, incorporating new tunes, you name it. But, the reality is, it should be like riding a bike. And, it’s been great. It’s exceeded our expectations so far.

You’ve maintained a consistent lineup over the years, it’s not like you’re bringing in new people and having to develop relationships.

It’s been the same guys since 1991. Other than that, we had Dave Pritchard in the band who died in 1990. I always champion that kind of thing because I think it’s awesome. We’re not a band that has much of people rotating in and out. I get it, especially with bands that have been around a long time. They kind of do that. It’s just not our vibe. Our friendship goes back to before we even were a band. We’ve been friends since we were little kids. There’s a special quality to that.

Has there been anything that’s surprised you on this tour?

Well, Blackie (Lawless) is being super nice, I guess. That’s not really a surprise. He’s just being really kind. All the WASP crew, the band, everyone’s being super nice. I maybe was a little surprised because we didn’t know how he was going to be. He’s been nothing but nice and just really fired up. I think the dates doing well and the vibe around it has made him happier. Surprised? Maybe the amount of merchandise we’re sold has been a slight surprise.

I’ve read that you don’t want to play the same set every night. So far on the tour, have you been able to change it up?

We changed it. We played one set and then the next night we changed one song. Then, the next night, we changed another song. The third and fourth shows we played the same set. I don’t know what we’re going to do tonight, I’m still mulling that over. When you’re a support act, you don’t have as much wiggle room as you would if you were headlining. You have a certain time and we don’t want to go over time, we want to be respectful. I like changing sets. The last thing I want to do is play the same set every night. I always say we’re not a Broadway musical. This is a rock band and we have a lot of records so we can play a lot of different stuff. I know Gonzo’s not a big fan of changing the set list. He’s a little more creature of habit and he’s like, “I’m in a groove and now you’re changing it on me!” And I get it. I understand that too. He kind of crumbles a bit when I’m changing the set around. Sometimes it’s geared to how my voice feels. Certain songs are a little harder than others. I don’t want to be playing the same exact set by the time we get to you in Columbus. I also don’t want to change things if it’s flowing well. Some of it’s geared toward the city we’re in. I look at Setlist.fm to see what we’ve played before. For instance, we’re in Houston tonight and the last time we played Houston was in 2016 with Queensryche. Since it’s been 6 years, we’re changing like five songs. We’re playing two new ones so I think that’s good enough. How much are people really there scrutinizing this? Probably not. It’s more of my OCD thing than anybody else. We’re going to play some different songs than we did that night and it should be great.

I looked at your Wikipedia page and it mentioned that you had a brief cameo in the Huey Lewis and the News video, “The Heart of Rock and Roll.”

That’s correct. We were on the same label at that point. We were signed to Chrysalis. The guy who I think was our A&R man at the time pitched the idea to me to do that part because it was a heavy metal dude who had just gotten out of a limo in Hollywood and that kind of goes along with the second verse lyrics in the song. So I did it. I had way too much makeup on which is not how I normally dressed on stage but I did wear the costume in the video that I was wearing on stage at the time. So, it’s pretty funny. It’ll forever be there. Huey and the band were great. They were nice guys and that was a great album for them.

(Check out John’s brief cameo at the 1:40 mark)

The first concert I ever went to was Huey Lewis and the News. I wasn’t old enough to drive so I talked my mom into taking me. My first real concert was Aerosmith on the Done With Mirrors tour with Ted Nugent opening.

That’s funny because we did some dates with Aerosmith on that tour. We played the Joe Lewis Arena in Detroit. We also played the Iowa Jam with Aerosmith and Ted Nugent.

You started the band in the early ’80s in LA. What bands were you going to see at that time?

That was when we got a little older and were going to clubs when we could drive. Prior to that, I saw KISS at Anaheim Stadium in 1976. We saw Queen and Thin Lizzy at the Forum. We saw ELO at Anaheim Stadium in ’78 with Journey opening on the Infinity tour. It was the first tour with Steve Perry. We saw the legendary Van Halen, Black Sabbath, Boston, Sammy Hagar show at the Anaheim Stadium in, I think, ’78. We saw Van Halen at the Long Beach Arena. Aerosmith, of course. AC/DC. All these bands inspired us and we kind of tried to model a little bit of our style after. As time went on into the ’80s, we saw Priest and Maiden and Motorhead. We saw Quiet Riot at the Starwood, which was a club in Hollywood, with Randy Rhoads. There were a bunch of local bands that were really cool at the time, bands like Snow and A La Cart. Those were really fun shows we’d go to when we were seeing local bands at clubs. We were so young and just very inspired.

What band really turned the Sunset Strip into the lipstick-and-leather scene that was big in the late ’80s?

Motley Crue and Quiet Riot were kind of first, they were before us. Quiet Riot was playing in the ’70s. Nikki was in a band called London and they kind of had that look but Motley took it to a whole other level. They were a big part of transitioning from the ’70s to the ’80s. The ’70s were a little bit more glammy, bands dressing accordingly. By the ’80s, it got a little tougher with the leather and stuff like that. We tried to take it to another level with our costumes where we incorporated armor and things that looked like armor. Then it got a little bit glamming, ’80s glammy, with bands like Poison and Warrant. We had kind of moved on a little bit at that point from being a club band.

As you saw those bands getting bigger, did you ever consider dumbing down what you were doing to be more like those bands?

Armored Saint always had a slight inferiority complex in the sense that we never really fit perfectly in with a scene and a genre. We were from LA but we didn’t sound like those LA bands. We played with a lot of them, like Ratt and Great White and Steeler but we didn’t really have the LA-type sound. We were more inspired by bands from Britain and Europe like the Scorpions, UFO, Thin Lizzy and Iron Maiden. We were a little more geared towards that style. But, we were from LA so we were proud of being from LA and we played with all those band, we were just a little different. It was also when the thrash movement was starting to explode. Even though we were very powerful live, and still are, we didn’t really fit in with bands like Exodus, Anthrax, Metallica, Megadeth and Slayer because we would pull out a ballad, put out a bluesy, swagger-type song. It was kind of a little frustrating because we weren’t able to benefit from those two scenes that were both slightly trendy. I know it sounds funny to say the thrash scene was trendy, but it was. And, certainly the glam scene was. It wasn’t until we got dropped by Chrysalis and we were writing songs for what would become Symbols of Salvation that we just didn’t care and when we had that mentality, I think that’s when we kind of found our true identity.

Getting back to the modern era, when does John Bush get to pull out and play his “Rock Star” card? Do you ever use it to go see a band and get good seats?

I’m kind of weird like that. I’m reluctant to do that. I always feel kind of embarrassed utilizing that. My wife’s like, “dude, you have no connections!” And, it’s true. I hate asking people for things just because if I get rejected, I’m pissed. I’ve changed a lot in my appearance through the years so sometimes I think I’m a little unrecognizable, especially if I have my glasses on or something. I’m not what you would expect. I get kind of recognized in the weirdest circumstances. Like I’ll be in line at Costco and then somebody will be like, “John Bush!” and I’ll be like, “Oh yeah, that’s right. I forgot.” I could probably go to a rock show and nobody would know who I was. It’s usually when I least expect it but, you know, I try to milk it a little bit, probably more on stage than anywhere. That’s my moment, that’s the time to really bring out the inner rock star. I don’t need to do it at Costco.

Have you ever been at a record store or somewhere that you’re sure somebody might recognize you, like maybe you ever pick up an Armored Saint record and are like, “Um, this is my band,” and people don’t take notice?

I don’t know about record stores but certainly somebody who walked right by me wearing one of my shirts. That’s okay. I’m not trying to be incognito. It just is what it is. If I get recognized, I’m a pretty friendly guy out there in the world. I’m kind of an unusual person because I don’t have social media. I don’t have Facebook or Instagram. It’s just a choice but if you catch me in the right situation, I’ll chat with you for a while. I mean, I’m not overly private. I’m just who I am, you know?

When you’re not being a rock star, is your day job being a dad?

A lot of it is. I’m my son’s personal Uber when he plays hockey. We drive all over the state. A lot of the time it’s me driving and listening to music or just sometimes it’s just silence. That’s probably a big part of my life at this point, being my son’s personal driver. My daughter is 18 now so she has her own car. I don’t have any issues with it because it’s time to be with my kids.

Is your friend group other musicians, neighborhood guys, or the hockey dads you hang out with when your son is playing hockey?

I think it just depends on where I’m at. If I’m at the rink, then I’m talking to those people. If I’m in the world of music, I’m communicating with those people. I’m lucky enough to have a lot of different friends from a lot of different circles and I really cherish that. I’m lucky enough to have known a lot of them through the years. The guys in Saint, we still have friends that we’ve known since were 10 years old which is really crazy.

Do the hockey dads know who you are?

They do. They’ve never really seen me perform and that would be pretty funny. Hopefully they’ll come to the LA show which is the last show on the tour and they’ll get a kick out of it. They’ll see a whole other side to me and I’m sure they’ll be cracking up.