Interviewed by Brian Rademacher
Date: February 2007

Brian Rademacher: Carlos, welcome to Rockeyez!

Carlos Zema: Thank you very much for the support, Brian, thanks a lot! It’s a great pleasure for me to be here.

Brian Rademacher: When you first heard OUTWORLD what was your thought?

Carlos Zema: So I heard OUTWORLD for the first time at a friend’s house in Brazil on their MySpace player, you know. I heard many of Rusty’s songs 2 years ago; when a friend in Brazil showed me his solo works. So when I heard OUTWORLD I thought “Man, what a hell is that?!” I said to him, “Unbelievable band, dude, they kick ass. How can I get in this band?” (laughing) I was kidding and there weren’t any auditions, you know? So seriously, I thought they were playing great music with a different style of heavy metal, and a very, very interesting musicality!

Brian Rademacher: What did you think of Rusty as a guitarist?

Carlos Zema: Man, he’s unbelievable, and I am talking about him as a musician and as a person! He’s a great person and an unbelievable guitarist! I like him very much: he is very fast, very musical, with very creative licks and glorious riffs (impossible to hear this without banging the head, you know what I mean?), a perfect guitarist in my opinion like Bobby on keys, Matt on drums and Shawn on bass!

Brian Rademacher: When you lived in Brazil, you sang in VOUGAN and HEAVEN’S GUARDIAN. Was it a hard decision to leave Brazil to come and play in OUTWORLD?

Carlos Zema: Brian, you can’t believe how hard it was, man! That was my hardest decision in my life, you know? I was playing in HEAVEN’S GUARDIAN for 10 years. We played with so many cool bands like SAXON, BLIND GUARDIAN,SEPULTURA, etc. I played with VOUGAN for more than 2 years. They are my great friends and they respect my decision. I told them all that I was trying to play in America with OUTWORLD, and they told me “We’ll kill you, motherfucker! Hey, we’re kidding. Go ahead with your dreams!”

Brian Rademacher: What is the thing you will miss most leaving Brazil besides family?

Carlos Zema: It’s very delicate and complicated to talk about, man, but I don’t have a mother and father: my family is my sister, my brother and my dog. My friends are waiting for the next concert to bang their heads and drink some beers to think bout the party after the show! Horns up!

Brian Rademacher: What was the first concert you attended and first record you ever got?

Carlos Zema: My first concert was by MANDATORY SUICIDE (Brazilian band from Goiânia), that band was pretty much over when I went, but that was my favorite band in Brazil. My first album was “The Keeper of the Seven Keys” by HELLOWEEN. Great fucking album! I love it!

Brian Rademacher: Who told you that you were the new man? And who took you under their wing when you arrived in the US?

Carlos Zema: Rusty and Bobby talked with my manager, and said that they very much liked the live video clip, and to tell me that I was the new front man, but I didn’t believe them. On the next day after this, I saw my name on the site and on MySpace, and everything happened. So they’re trying to help me make my way to USA, but this is very difficult for a Brazilian guy, you know. I’m working online with OUTWORLD right now while my visa is in the works.

Brian Rademacher: Do you play any instruments?

Carlos Zema: Yeah, I play electric guitar, acoustic guitar, drums and bass, but just a little bit of everything else. I’ve been just singing for a long time! I’m a bad instrumentalist; please don’t let me play anything! I just use guitar to compose and study vocals, you know. I prefer to study and teach my classes in Brazil with my old acoustic guitar.

Brian Rademacher: Have you had any contact from Kelly Carpenter since replacing him?

Carlos Zema: He sent me an email telling me “Good luck, they will treat you well!” and nothing more! I think he’s a great vocalist, it was very important for me!

Brian Rademacher: What are your hopes for OUTWORLD?

Carlos Zema: I think that we will be an audacious project in heavy metal! They are very great musicians, with great technique and perfect performances. And of course, before I forget, these guys are transmitting to me the best vibe I felt in all my life! I hope OUTWORLD will someday be taking over the mainstream radio!

Brian Rademacher: Do you still use the same equipment that you used in past ventures?

Carlos Zema: Yeah, I still use the equipment, “my voice”. That’s my only indispensable equipment; all the others for me are very, very secondary. I think the voice is very special in this way.

Brian Rademacher: Ok what do you think of the OUTWORLD release on Replica Records? And how can you make the band better?

Carlos Zema: I think it was an innovation to heavy metal! It was a great album; Kelly was singing very well, very complex compositions, very nice melodies and aggressive riffs! Perfect for me and for all heavy metal fans! Well, how can I make OUTWORLD better? I really don’t know, but I’ll do my best, of course. I think maybe if I answered something like that, I would feel forced. But I’ll try to sing like in my other projects before OUTWORLD. I can use guttural vocals; maybe it’ll be a special thing to do in the band, because Kelly never used this kind of vocalization in their music. But the only thing I can say about that is its better just to listen to the next CD! I’ll try to do something really good, alright?!

Brian Rademacher: As a vocalist who are some of the best vocalists that would make your icon list?

Carlos Zema: Man, there are so many great vocalists around the world... but ok, let’s try to write some of these monsters: Kiske, Dickinson, Geoff Tate, Homero Henry, Adré Matos, Halford, Ralf Scheepers, Dio, Joey Tempest, Jorn Lande, Russel Allen, Ed Motta, Djavan, etc...

Brian Rademacher: When can we expect a new OUTWORLD CD?

Carlos Zema: We’re planning to have the CD finished in June, but for a release in September, and I promise you, that it will kick some asses!

Brian Rademacher: Please don’t tell me you will not come to the East Coast New York/New Jersey?

Carlos Zema: Yes, I hope we will find some contacts to be there, I swear we will be there soon!

Brian Rademacher: Well Carlos, Rockeyez and I wish you the best in OUTWORLD and can’t wait for you to play live and hear you on the next OUTWORLD CD. You have some great guys working with you in Rusty and Bobby, both good friends of ours. Would you like to say anything in conclusion?

Carlos Zema: Hey guys, I’ll see you on the road at the concerts! That would be a fucking great pleasure to see you there! HELL YEAH, HORNS UP!