"We weren't seen as enigmatic as some bands. I do feel that we were kind of under-appreciated": Ben Ward looks back on three decades in the Orange Goblin trenches

In their 30 years as a band, there are unlikely to have been too many years that passed without making much of an impact in Orange Goblin’s universe. The British heavy metal quartet have blazed a trail for homegrown music across 10 studio albums, the most recent of which, Science, Not Fiction, is one of their best. And yet they decided to call it a day. Last month's UK tour was their last, their headline show at London’s Kentish Town Forum as memorable a night as any in their colourful career, made even more so by the fact it was the band’s very last gig.

“The idea started floating around, probably around this time last year,” frontman Ben Ward explains. “I already had one eye on moving to France, which was going to put a spanner in the works with the band with regard to rehearsing. Not that we rehearse often, as you know [laughs].

"The album came out, it got great reviews. The label were great, they did a lot for it, but nothing really changed in our world. And it was kind of frustrating that we’re getting the same festival offers and fees and things. We had a chat between ourselves, and were like: ‘Look, this isn’t really going anywhere, and next year is going to be the thirty-year anniversary’.

“We’ve had some changes in recent years,” Ward continues. “It’s never been easy for Orange Goblin. We’ve always had to do things the hard way. But that’s fine, you know, we’re big enough and ugly enough to take that on board. But we just decided that it seemed like a good time to call it a day. Thirty years of giving everything we’ve got to this band – we missed summer holidays with family and wives and seeing our children grow up.

“Ten albums kind of tied it all together. And we all just came to the conclusion that this would be our last year. I think it’s the right decision for us. And we’ve said all along that we’re not saying that that’s definitely the end. Within two months of next year we might say: “Bloody hell, I miss it.” I don’t think that’ll be the case. I think it’ll be a while until we do start to get the itch again, but for now it’s the right thing to do.”

Apart from the momentous decision to end things, was there one thing in 2025 that stands out for the band?

There’s been some great shows this year, because I think everybody’s aware that it’s their last opportunity to see us live, and that’s been really nice to feel that love and see that at the end of each set, that sort of sea of appreciation that we’ve had. But I think the one that really sticks out would be our headline show at Hellfest. Not only is Hellfest kind of like a second home to us – they really adopted us, and we’ve played there six times – that was kind of a really special evening.

It was a sea of people, as far as you could see. It was televised live, which made it extra special. We knew we had to be on our game. The whole set was perfect for us. And the response that we got from the crowd, it’s one of those where all four of us all walked off to the side of the stage at the end of it and just went: “Bloody hell, that was amazing!”

Orange Goblin were never afraid of a challenge. You toured the world, and were of the few UK bands who would regularly tour the States. You went to Australia and New Zealand this year too.

I think maybe if we’d have been American we might have achieved more success. Those bands that we came along with in the mid-nineties – the likes of Monster Magnet and Kyuss – are held in esteem because they’re American. They’re great bands, but I think the fact that we’re English – and we’ve always been like the guys next door, you can stand at a bar and have a pint with, that kind of thing, you know – meant that we weren’t really seen as enigmatic as some bands are. I do feel that we were kind of under-appreciated.

Orange Goblin - live at Hellfest 2025 - ARTE Concert - YouTube

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What can you pick out as some career highlights?

Getting the first album out, Frequencies From Planet Ten [1997]. Being signed to Rise Above by one of our heroes, Lee Dorrian [ex-Cathedral]. Touring Japan with Cathedral. All great steps. But I guess being asked to open the main stage at Ozzfest in 2017 is the big one. Being the only British band on the bill. Never in our wildest dreams did we imagine we’d be flying to California to open a main stage for Ozzy.

You’ve got your Route One booking agency, Ben. What are the rest of the guys going to be doing post-Goblin?

I know they all want to keep their hands in music. Harry [Armstrong, bass] is obviously busy with other bands anyway. Joe [Hoare, guitar] has always been creative and is always making music. And a lot of the stuff he does isn’t suitable for Orange Goblin. Chris [Turner, drums] works for a back line and transport company and deals with music every day. And he’s getting into experimenting with electronic music, kind of like a Brian Eno.

So everybody’s got ideas. And funnily enough, you know, there’s Orange Goblin music still inside us all to come out. And you never know, it might materialise somewhere down the line.

Finally, do you have any regrets related to the band? Not really. I think we’re the sort of band that can cross genres, and we’ve always been able to play alongside different kinds of artists, whether it’s Queens Of The Stone Age or Danzig. We’ve always seemed to go down well with different bands. And we’ve always got on with people. I think it’s a reflection of us as people, more than anything. I think that’s a very good way of putting it. We’ve never fallen out with other bands. We’re easy-going.