"Someone from the BBC said my outfit revealed ‘too much penis’. I’m not a Ken doll!": Lord Of The Lost reflect on a wild 2023

(Image credit: Jan Season)

Until 2023, Lord Of The Lost were strictly a cult act outside their native Germany. And then Eurovision happened, and the rest of Europe clapped eyes on these latex-clad, feather-sporting industrial metal peacocks. Frontman Chris Harms looks back on 12 months of unexpected attention, royal encounters and genital-related controversy.

You kicked off 2023 with your new album, Blood & Glitter, hitting No.1 in Germany. Did you celebrate by going out and getting trollied?

“No, I don’t drink alcohol. I leave that to the others. Having a No.1 album was a big surprise. We announced it six days before it was released. We were like, ‘We’re not doing any presale, we’re not going to enter the charts with this one, it’s all about the magic of just releasing an album.’

I went on holiday to Tenerife, and I switched my phone on just once daily. I got a message from our label: ‘OK, you guys might make it to No.1, you really need to do some promotion right now.’ So yeah, there I was on my holiday, doing interviews, dead sober, while everyone got pissed without me.”

What was the most surreal thing about taking part in Eurovision?

“A couple of hours before the final rehearsal, someone from the BBC came to the German delegation, saying my outfit revealed ‘too much penis’. Er, I’m wearing skin-tight latex pants and I’m not a Ken doll, so yes, I have a member. You could see it but it wasn’t exposed in any explicit way. But they were like, ‘Could you show it less?’ So for the last rehearsal, I chose another outfit. I was wearing underwear on top of my pants showing a cat. They wanted less penis, so how about a little more pussy?”

Did you bond with the other acts?

“Yes, many of them. We got close with Noa Kirel from Israel and Käärijä from Finland, because we matched in terms of humour. Of course, we got very close to Voyager because we were the only two metal bands on set. I’d love to go on tour with Voyager. Danny [Estrin, singer] is fighting against cancer, so we will have to wait for that. I wish him all the best and all the energy he needs.”

You met King Charles in the build-up to Eurovision. What did he talk to you about?

“It was his very first foreign state visit. He was very interested in our clothes. He asked where were got them from. You might see him in some red latex in the future.”

Have you sent an official Lord Of The Lost butt-plug as a gift to Buckingham Palace?

“No, there’s no reason for us to do so. Unless he asks for one.”

Talking of British royalty, you toured with Iron Maiden for the second time this year. What’s the best piece of advice Steve Harris has given you?

“He told us, ‘If you always do what you love and never listen to others, then you never end up being ashamed for what you do.’ It’s something we already did, but it was nice to know that there’s somebody with the same mindset who has been doing it for decades. The funny thing is that, when he gives advice, he always ends the sentence, ‘But what do I know?’ You’re Steve Harris! If anyone knows anything, it’s you!”

Have you had any offers to act in TV series or movies since Eurovision?

“Yes, I have! It was crazy – I had an offer for a Hollywood production. I can’t say what, but it was a recognisable director and recognisable actors. It was a movie that contained music. I would’ve loved to have done it, but I would have had to go to the US and Canada for five months to shoot it, and I would have to have put Lord Of The Lost in second place for a year. I couldn’t do that.”

Your new covers album, Weapons Of Mass Seduction, features versions of songs by everyone from Judas Priest and Billy Idol to Sia and British indie rockers Keane. What connects them?

“They’re just songs we love, that we have an emotional connection to. We didn’t look for the biggest hits or the songs we might be successful with because it’s going to be chosen by some Spotify playlist. Fuck that. We just chose songs that made us feel something.”

Globally, 2023 has been grim. Do you think 2024 will be better?

“I hope that things get better today or tomorrow, not in 2024. Fans write us messages: are you standing with Israel? With Palestine? Ukraine? Russia? My heart stands with the innocent people who do not have anything to do with all these wars. No child from Palestine, Israel, Ukraine or wherever deserves to live without a mother because she’s been killed. No mother deserves to see her child die. I’ll never stand behind any flag or country or manmade borders or wars that are based on religion. That will always be my answer.”

Weapons Of Mass Seduction is out now via Napalm. Lord Of The Lost play Download Festival in June.

Dave Everley has been writing about and occasionally humming along to music since the early 90s. During that time, he has been Deputy Editor on Kerrang! and Classic Rock, Associate Editor on Q magazine and staff writer/tea boy on Raw, not necessarily in that order. He has written for Metal Hammer, Louder, Prog, the Observer, Select, Mojo, the Evening Standard and the totally legendary Ultrakill. He is still waiting for Billy Gibbons to send him a bottle of hot sauce he was promised several years ago.