H.e.a.t

Frontman Kenny Leckremo on the state of rock, his predecessor, why Swedes write great songs, big hair...

- Dave Everley

Kenny Leckremo is a man with no 'off' switch. H.e.a.t's ebullient frontman arrived only seconds ago, yet here he is, beaming a thousand-watt smile. “Let me get rid of this jacket, I’m burning up,” he says, shrugging off his leather without breaking his verbal stride. He’s currently on the road as part of his side hustle as guest singer with power metallers Avantasia, but today his enthusiasm is focused on his regular band’s gleaming new album Welcome To The Future, his second record with the Swedish hard rock champions since rejoining in 2020 after the departure of Erik Grönwall, who replaced him a decade earlier.

The album is called Welcome To The Future. What does the future look like through H.e.a.t's eyes?

We called it that because this album doesn’t really care what came before it. Force Majeure [Leckremo’s first album since rejoining] was a great album, but it had to live up to [Erik Gronwall’s 2019 swansong] H.e.a.t II, whereas this one is unapologetic. It doesn’t give a shit. This is how we are moving forward.

Ghost are basically a hair-metal band these days. Are you a bit jealous that they've stolen your thunder?