Interview: UK's Neonfly guitarist Frederick Thunder discusses live show energy and unity, interests, influences, 2025 plans

Written By Neil Shumate, OOTB Publications

London, England hard rock power metalers Neonfly have continued to make big strides since their formation in 2008. The band tours worldwide and make a memorable mark in each city they perform, notably at large festivals.

To showcase their live shows, Neonfly recently released a series of live music videos to give viewers a taste of their performances. Watch the video for “The Future, Tonight” filmed at Ripollet Rock Festival in Spain, August 2024, where Neonfly performed to a crowd of nearly 10,000 fans in a prime-time slot. (Watch Video Here)

Since forming they have released three studio albums including their most recent, The Future, Tonight in 2021.

In this interview with OOTB, Neonfly founder and guitarist, composer Frederick Thunder discusses energy and unity at live concerts, songwriting influences, personal interests, looking ahead to 2025 and more.

Being an internationally touring band, has traveling experiences and being in different geographical locations influenced you personally or in your music writing and band endeavors? If it has, in what ways or how so?

It’s something that’s hard to define or to quantify. I think all of our experiences in life, if we receive them with an open heart and mind, can influence who we are as people and have an impact on us in one way or another.

We forge our character with the knowledge and the experiences we accumulate along the way and that ends up translating into everything we do, including the music we write.

Even if it’s not a direct influence and it might be hard to pinpoint something specific, I think all of our experiences in life have an influence in what we create as artists.

Your new music video showcases and captures what your live shows encompass and it salutes the fans. Why or how did you decide to release a video with that focus?

I personally love festivals—as a performer and as a fan and audience member. Seeing so many people from all walks of life united for a moment because of our shared love for music, the energy that you can feel in those moments, whether you are part of the audience or performing, is something really magical, and I love the way this was captured in our latest video.

For me that’s what it’s all about, that’s what a live performance should be, and that’s how it should make you feel. We wanted to make sure that the video would transmit that feeling and all that energy visually.

Considering the focus on live shows, what’s your favorite song to perform live and why that song?

On the shows where I get the chance to do fire-breathing, I think “Aztec Gold” is my favourite song to play, because it’s usually at a point in the set where everyone’s warmed up, excited and ready for anything. By that point I’m already completely into the performance and I start the song with my fire-breathing act; it’s a dangerous trick that requires concentration, I need to make sure that it looks spectacular whilst ensuring nothing goes wrong and remaining connected with the music. The audience goes wild and I feed of that energy. Then I quickly grab my guitar and come back into the song with one of my favourite guitar solos. In that moment I feel like I am one with the universe. Like everything is in harmony, mind body, soul, music, band, audience… it’s like being in a lucid state of trance. And then the heavy riffs kick in, and it’s raw power, rushing from one side of the stage to the other. I could live in that moment forever.

With your touring slowing down and the band taking down time to write new material, can you foreshadow or preview how that process will be approached currently as compared to past albums?

Probably with a lot more stress and less free time. It was already hard enough to find the time to write the previous album and I don’t know how, but as time goes by, it just seems harder and harder to find the time and the space to be creative, but we will find it somehow. What would art be without a struggle anyway?

What are some of your hobbies and things you enjoy when not on the road?

I love traveling. I guess I just love being on the road in one way or another. I’ve also recently taken to dancing. I’ve taken a lot of dance lessons and I find it really fun. It’s another way to connect with the music and translate that into your body movement. It opens up a new perspective and a new way to perceive it. And I really like moving and being active, so it’s a great thing for me to do.

What are your immediate plans for what’s next and your future goals of the band?

We definitely want to write new music, I think that’s my biggest priority now. To write some new songs and be able to release new material in 2025. I’d love to release a few new singles, some live stuff, and keep touring. Hopefully starting again next year with a busy festival season.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Well, I'm happy to add something, but truth be told, I've always been more of a multiplier. I avoid subtraction, and I’d never want to divide.

Thanks so much for your time with this interview!

Thanks to you!

Neonfly are:

Frederick Thunder – guitar

Paul Miller – bass, backing vocals

Willy Norton – vocals

Declan (Dec) Brown – drums, percussion

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