Chosen by Monk
Having this past weekend celebrated his 60th birthday in true rock ‘n’ roll style, on stage opening for Iron Maiden at their Eddfest 50th anniversary celebrations, the Belfast troubadour once again switches gears and turns his attention back to his latest upcoming solo album, via this collaboration with Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen:
Speaking about the new single, which gives a nod to the ’70s funk and soul legends he loves, such as The Isley Brothers, Funkadelic and Earth, Wind And Fire, Warwick told us:
’Seek Zen Destroy’ is about the way control gets dressed up as comfort.
The song takes a swing at hypocrisy, fear, fake salvation, and the modern habit of selling people peace while quietly robbing them blind. It starts with old-world repression, the idea that even joy and dancing can be policed, then pulls that same spirit into the present day, where spirituality, rebellion, identity, and even truth itself gets branded, packaged, and sold back to us.
At its heart, it’s about people being fed fear, flags, excuses, and easy answers, while real freedom keeps getting pushed further out of reach.
‘Seek Zen Destroy’ is the contradiction: everyone claims to be searching for peace, enlightenment, and meaning, but the machinery around us is built to divide, distract, and consume. It’s a song about trying to find something real in a world full of false prophets, stolen language, and beautifully marketed bullshit.
Speaking about the upcoming album, which in addition to Collen features appearances from Doug Aldrich (Whitesnake/The Dead Daisies), Charlie Starr (Blackberry Smoke) and Darren Holden (The High Kings), Ricky says:
I wanted to make an album that captures everything I love about rock’n’roll – its power to bring people together, to make us dance and connect with one another, even in a world that often feels consumed by fire and vengeance. At its core, this record is about finding hope and unity in the chaos.
Adding about the songwriting process for the album – his first since he moved back home to his native Northern Ireland last year – Ricky revealed:
I’m not one of those guys who needs to disappear into a cabin in the mountains with all this fancy gear. All I need is a room and a guitar, and the ideas come. It’s a working-class thing, something I had instilled in me when I was a kid.
- ‘Fire & Vengeance‘ will be released via Earache Records on 4 September, after which Warwick will undertake a series of instore acoustic appearances:
- He will then be joined by his band The Fighting Hearts for a run of headline dates throughout November:
