In a new interview with Metal Global, KREATOR frontman Mille Petrozza has defended the eclectic approach on the band's latest album "Krushers of the World," released January 16 via Nuclear Blast Records. Petrozza stated he would feel "bored" and "underwhelmed" if forced to make a straight thrash album from beginning to end, insisting it "wouldn't come from the heart" at this stage in the band's evolution.
The German thrash veterans, who first emerged from the Essen underground in 1982 alongside peers like SODOM and DESTRUCTION, have always been more willing to experiment than their reputation as one of the "Teutonic Big Three" might suggest. While albums like "Coma of Souls" and "Pleasure to Kill" defined an entire subgenre of thrash metal, KREATOR have spent the past two decades incorporating elements of groove metal, melodic death metal, and even industrial textures into their work without abandoning the thrash foundation. "Krushers of the World" continues this trajectory, featuring groovy mid-tempo passages alongside furious thrash assaults, atmospheric interludes, and some of the band's most ambitious and dynamic songwriting to date.
Petrozza emphasized that artistic growth is essential to maintaining creative passion after more than four decades as a working musician. "If I just tried to recreate 'Pleasure to Kill' over and over, it would be dishonest," he explained with characteristic directness. "The energy has to be real, it has to come from a genuine place. I listen to so much different music — classical, jazz, electronic — and all of that feeds into what we do as KREATOR. Thrash is our foundation, but it doesn't have to be our ceiling."
The interview also touched on KREATOR's upcoming "Krushers of the World" European tour launching March 20 in Lisbon with CARCASS, EXODUS, and NAILS in support — a lineup that represents the full spectrum of extreme metal aggression across multiple generations. Petrozza expressed particular excitement about sharing stages with EXODUS featuring the returned Rob Dukes. The tour will hit 20 countries before wrapping in Copenhagen on April 25, followed by a U.S. leg launching May 7 in Fort Lauderdale.