Tag: Interviews Around the Web

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ICE-T Talks PnB Rock’s Murder: “I’m very cautious of my surroundings because I know I’m a target” – INTERVIEW – 2022

Rock the Bells: “The whole game just changed. This is not okay. But it’s a lot of elements to it that are creating the situation, and the first one is poverty.”

You can read the entire interview @ this location. An excerpt has been provided below.

Rock The Bells: I’m not sure if you saw DMC’s video about PnB Rock’s murder, but he said he thinks Hip Hop needs to reset itself. What do you think?

ICE-T:

Well, I don’t know if you can ever start over. Nobody wants to see anybody die, and that’s just the worst shit that can happen, especially these kids that come out of the ghetto, and to have a level of success, and they die. That’s awful. And like Chuck D said, someone’s dying once a month at least.

But it’s a lot of elements to it that are creating the situation, and the first one is poverty. And then that’s put up against a few people that are making money, and I hate to say it, but flaunting it.

When you wear money and you put on half a million dollars worth of jewelry on and decide to walk through Brazil, you got to understand some people will take that as disrespect. They’ll think, “Wow, you got a lot of nerve to come around here when we don’t have nothing.” To some, you kind of look like a big piggy bank. And I was talking to Tone Trump today, and he said, “Ice, what happened?” And I never thought of it like that. But he said when COVID came, a lot of people were getting those—what they call them?

PPP loans.

All of that stuff, right. People that didn’t have it, all of a sudden, they’re in five-star restaurants. And it’s kind of like, they got a taste of the good life and now that’s run out. Now you back fucked up. It’s like they say a taste of honey is worse than none at all. So, the element is thirsty, and people feel broker than they ever felt because they actually had some money for a hot second.

Somebody from Inglewood was telling me he didn’t understand why PnB Rock was at that particular Roscoe’s because most people who visit go to the Inglewood location.

Right. It’s 87 Crips and it’s Swans over there, too, which are a Bloods gang. If you get off over there, you could tell it’s different. On the east side of L.A., we call that the evil side. There’s a fucking Roscoe’s in Hollywood, man. Go there.

You don’t need to be up in over there and if you do, you want to be low-key. You just don’t want to pull up in a Rolls-Royce or nothing. You become a target, man. And they don’t know you neither. We always say check in and this, that and the third. If you were checking in, somebody would’ve told you not to go over there. If I go to Atlanta, and I know people in Atlanta, they’re going to say, “Ice, don’t go over here. Don’t go to this club. This is fucked up. They’re riling over here. They shooting over there.” Having somebody to tell you what’s going on is not stupid, and it’s not being a punk either. You just have to be smart. And even now, man, I’m Ice-T. I’m grown. I’m very cautious of my surroundings because I know I’m a target.

You can read the entire interview @ this location.

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Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine: “Very rarely have I started sh**, you know?” – 2022 – Interview – Talks Metallica, James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Gar Samuelson

Classic Rock Magazine:

The Big Interview: Dave Mustaine

An excerpt from the interview can be found below. You can read the entire interview @ this location.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

Is it difficult for you to talk about Metallica?

Dave Mustaine:

No. I really don’t give a fuck. And you know what? I love those guys. I sent a text message to James just a couple of days ago after he’d said that he was insecure about his playing. I said: “James, I love you and I really like your playing.” He didn’t answer. Of course not. Why would he? The point is I wanted him to know that I’ve had those feelings too, but I don’t now.

I must remind you that when I joined Metallica, James did not play guitar. He just picked it up and started playing when I was in the band. But let’s be honest, James is one of the best metal guitar players in the world. So for him to have those feelings, that’s a lie, because he’s a mind-blowingly talented guy. So I just felt I needed to say something to him. I didn’t tweet it. I didn’t want anybody to know what I said. But I’m telling you because, hey, you brought it up!

(In your autobiography) You said of your time in Metallica: “I was the leader of the band.” That’s quite a statement to make.

Why?

Because the guys who founded that band, James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich, are such alpha males.

Oh no. I am clearly the alpha male between the three of us. Why did I have to do everything when I was in the band? Why did they always ask me talk to the promoters and collect the cash? Why was I the one who had to do the fighting? Why did I have to talk in between songs?

You’ve said your father was an alcoholic. Have you ever felt that your descent into alcoholism and drug addiction was in some sense pre-ordained?

I was always curious about drinking, and it tried to lure me into that abyss. There’s a lot of other people from that period that didn’t make it out alive, but I’m still here to tell the tale. I consider myself to be really happy. I have a wine company, and I’ll sip the wine to taste it when we’re doing new blends.

And when my son Justis got married, it was balls-hot and I wasn’t going to just sit out in the sun drinking water, man! But the days of looking for hookers to help me find some heroin in the Moulin Rouge district? Those days are over. And honestly, I don’t know why you brought that up. It’s kind of unfair. I mean, fuck, it’s not very flattering.

You weren’t shy about telling your drug stories in your autobiography ten years ago. On the contrary, you put it all out there in lurid detail.

My point is, do we want to regurgitate stuff, or do we want new stuff, seeing as I’m living and breathing, and I’ve got new things to talk about? It’s your call. And however you write it, I just hope that nobody who looks up to me would read this and think that something like heroin is the answer. Because that’s how I got tricked into it. Gar [Samuelson, former Megadeth drummer] told me if I wanted to be great, I had to do it.

Looking back at your life now, do you have any regrets?

Yeah. I regret not saying goodbye to Gar. When we parted ways, it was really ugly, because Gar and Chris [Poland, then Megadeth guitarist] were selling [the musical equipment] for heroin. Every time we get ready to go on the road we had to go to all the neighborhood pawn shops to get that stuff back. So when we parted ways it was bad.

And then many years later, out on tour, we went through Florida one time, and I saw Gar and he looked really different – and not in a good way. His hair was super-long, and his eyes were really sunken. He ended up dying from liver failure. I wish I would have known and been able to talk to him a little bit more. It was always: “Hey, I’ll call you in a couple of days.” And you don’t. So that’s a regret for me.

That said, you seem happy with where you’re at now.

Well, there’s a saying we have here in Tennessee: that dog don’t hunt. And there’s another around here: if you’re going to run with the big dogs, you need to learn how to piss in the tall grass.

That’s an odd expression. Can you explain how it relates to you?

Let’s just say that it takes a little bit more to get me riled up nowadays. In the past, when people used to talk shit about me, I would look at who it was and I would think: “This guy is saying something, and he wants me to respond because he’s got a new album coming out. He wants some cheap publicity.” Usually whenever I say anything, it’s back at someone else. Very rarely have I started shit, you know? But someone would say something and then I’d say: “Alright, game on!”

You can read the entire interview @ this location.

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Accept Guitarist Wolf Hoffmann on “Fast as a Shark” Giving Birth to Thrash Metal: “Looking back, I guess it’s true” – 2022 – Interview

VWMusic: During one of his off days on tour, Wolf Hoffmann recently joined VWMusic via phone to discuss, among other topics, Accept’s upcoming North American tour, Too Mean to Die, and the significance of some of the band’s classic albums. You can read the entire interview @ this location.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

During your formative years, Wolf, who were some of your most prominent guitar influences and how did they shape your sound?

Wolf Hoffmann:

Well, one of the earliest influences was probably Ritchie Blackmore, both the lead guitar players from Judas Priest, and Angus Young from AC/DC was always an influence as well. So, out of those, I think I’ve sort of formed a little element from all of them. Uli Jon Roth has always been one of my heroes as well, of Strat players, basically, that I’ve really admired most. And then for songwriting and the bluesy aspects, I’ve always liked AC/DC as well. So, I guess, as I was growing up, I listened to all the bands of the ’70s, and we formed our own style out of it. My guitar playing was always kind of influenced by classical music. I don’t know why, but I like these sorts of classical touches in my guitar solos and in my songwriting.

On the song “Fast as a Shark” giving birth to thrash metal:

A lot of people have said it over the years, that “Fast as a Shark” is maybe the first thrash or speed metal song ever. That’s what most people say nowadays, then looking back, I guess it’s true. Of course, it makes me super proud. At the time, nobody could have known that; we just had a bit of fun. Like I said, we were starting to be pretty daring and not to give a shit anymore what people thought, and what the mainstream was. I mean, back in those days, it was all about radio.

It’s hard to imagine nowadays, but back then, it was all, “Oh, you can’t do this. You will never get played on the radio.” So, at that point, during Breaker and Restless and Wild, we said, “Fuck it. We’re just gonna do what we want. If the radio doesn’t play it, so be it. They won’t play it anyhow, no matter what we do, so let’s just have a little fun.” All of a sudden, songs like “Fast as a Shark” were born, because, hey, why not? We didn’t have anything to lose, we felt; we were young and wanted to just do whatever we could to shock the parents and play it as loud as we can.

On the song “Balls to the Wall”:

“Balls to the Wall” was a scary track because it came together in minutes, I have to say. The title was there, and I guess that came from Gaby back then. She had seen it in a magazine article, where somebody in Kerrang! Magazine called the band “balls to the wall.” And we had never heard that term, but it sounded cool, and it was provocative, so she basically said, “Hey, here’s a cool title: ‘Balls to the Wall.’” You know, I thought about it, and all of a sudden, I had this riff, and I had the melody and the chorus. It was just a few parts missing, but I brought it to the band, and within five minutes, it was done. It was scary.

On the album Metal Heart:

Yeah. We produced Balls to the Wall, and also Restless [and Wild] ourselves, and back in the 80s, there were all these legendary producers that made these bands famous. So, they said, “Well, if you guys would work with a top-notch producer, lots of doors would open up for you.” And that legendary producer was supposed to be Dieter Dierks, who had worked with the Scorpions. So, he worked on that album with us, and I have to give him credit, we did learn a lot from him, and we made a great album together. We really did. I think that is probably the reason why there are a lot of stylistic changes, and it became a little more polished or whatever. You know, songs like “Metal Heart,” “Midnight Mover,” and things like that, they certainly became a little more radio-friendly, if you want.

You can read the entire interview @ this location.

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Sex Pistols’ Steve Jones on John Lydon: “I’ve a deep love for the guy, but I don’t wanna hang out with him” – Interview – 2022 – Johnny Rotten – Sid Vicious – Chequered Past – Michael Des Barres

Classic Rock Magazine: Steve Jones: the Classic Rock interview – You can read the entire interview @ this location.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

John Lydon – there couldn’t have been a Sex Pistols without him. But you never really know which John you’re going to get, do you?

Steve Jones:

I love John. I’ve a deep love for the guy, but I don’t wanna hang out with him. He can be hard work, but I obviously admire what he brought to the table. He was unquestionably brilliant, the full package: the look, the great lyrics, he was sharp as a diamond back then, and of course it wouldn’t’ve taken off without him, never. But I think we all played a big part.

Even though Sid’s story was a cautionary one, you fell into heroin addiction after the Pistols’ break-up.

After we broke up, smack was the perfect remedy for me – just to fucking check out, not deal with it. I don’t know if it had anything to do with the Pistols, I think that was just my destiny anyway. Being an alcoholic and having a shitty upbringing, doing smack was the perfect thing for me. But I’m fucking grateful that I’m thirty-one years clean and sober, because a lot of junkies don’t make it.

Between completing the Pistols film The Great Rock ’N’ Roll Swindle and launching The Professionals, you were a gun for hire, working with Chrissie Hynde, Johnny Thunders, Thin Lizzy, Siouxsie And The Banshees, Joan Jett and, for a short while, Sham 69 frontman Jimmy Pursey. Could a Sham Pistols have ever worked?

No. It didn’t seem like a bad choice at the time, because he was a frontman, he was Jack the lad. But when we tried it there was no chemistry, it had nothing. We gave it a go, but I didn’t give a shit about anything, I just wanted to get high. I wasn’t focusing on a career, even in The Professionals. It was just something to do because I didn’t have anything else to do. I just wanted to be fucking stoned the whole time, I didn’t wanna feel.

You did manage to make an album with The Professionals, but left following an American tour to stay in the States. Had life in England become too junk-focused?

Yeah. Coming to somewhere where there was always sunshine was attractive, and leaving grim London behind, all the junkies, was a no-brainer. I was in New York for a year before I drifted to California. Doing dope there was a totally different scene from London, a lot more dangerous. I must’ve looked like a fucking fish out of water in Alphabet City.

You then spent a couple of years in Chequered Past with Michael Des Barres, but by your own admission you “didn’t give a shit about the music by then”. Did the smack even rob you of that?

Completely. We did a showcase at New York’s Peppermint Lounge, and someone said: “Let’s start a band.” I’m a junkie, so I’m like: “Yeah, okay, great,” but all I’m thinking is where can I cop, where can I get money. Chequered Past brought me out to LA and I cleaned up. I went to this fancy methadone clinic in Century City and got off the smack. I was still drinking like a fish, doing blow and all the rest of it, but I quit smack for a bit. I sold my passport as well, as you do.

You can read the entire interview @ this location.

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L.A. Guns’ Tracii Guns on Early Motley Crue: “Vince (Neil) was a really special vocalist” – 2022 – Interview

AL.com: These musicians made their names during the 1980s, but they’re not stuck there by any means. Tracii Guns talks L.A. Guns, Motley Crue, & Jimmy Page. You can read the entire interview @ this location.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

Jimmy Page, Randy Rhoads, Johnny Thunders, I can hear those influences in your tone and your playing. Who are a few guitarist people might not guess that you love, that have impacted you a lot?

The one I mention the least is really Dave Murray. When I was a kid, I was so into those first two (Iron) Maiden records, and I think it has more to do with like live. Like with the “Over The Edge” solo, the way I do the vibrato is very Dave Murray, and I never really connected that until a bunch of years ago. A lot of people say it’s like a (Michael) Schenker kind of thin. And I’m a huge Schenker fan but the way I do that slow vibrato really sounds more like Dave Murray to me.

And then obviously (late Irish guitarist) Gary Moore. (Jimi) Hendrix to the max. I mean, a lot of the improvising I do live is more Hendrix than Page really. My tone is way more on the overly distorted side than Page live. Page was like almost in control, almost. [Laughs] But Hendrix and Randy are very out of control, the guitar sound. And so, when it’s like slow Zeppelin blues jam it’s still more like “Red House.” I still phrase it more like Hendrix would.

But yeah, I do have a weird palette. Because it’s Johnny Thunders and (The Germs guitarist) Pat Smear on one end and then it goes Gary Moore, Page and Hendrix right in the middle. It’s a weird combination but those are the guys I like.

So, a little something different about your history, with the Motley Crue “Stadium Tour” recently launching, I was watching a video of Brides of Destruction, your supergroup with Nikki Sixx, playing the Motley classic “Live Wire” and sounded awesome. What do you think is brilliant or underrated about those early Motley songs? Because those first couple of records are just so great.

It’s the innocence, isn’t it? It’s these guys that are kind of from working-class families. Nikki’s kind of a terror and wants to be a rock star so bad to validate him as a human being, right? So, number one, the chemistry. Those four guys, man, the chemistry is undeniable. And the great thing about (Motley Crue’s debut album) “Too Fast for Love” is they really wore their influences on the sleeves. It sounds like Sweet, but it sounds like Motley Crue, this new band.

And the way it was recorded, that’s really what they sounded like live back then. Really raw and really loud. And Vince (Neil) was a really special vocalist. Nobody sounded exactly like Vince, and it was really coming out of the L.A. punk scene. New wave was done pretty much.

And there was W.A.S.P., and I loved W.A.S.P. too but Motley Crue just seemed to have … more chicks. [Smiles] More chicks went to the Motley Crue shows at the Troubadour, you know? So, for me, it was like a lifestyle. That was my lifestyle when I was 15, 15-years-old, going to see Motley Crue, dyed my hair black, wore leather 24 hours a day, going to high school thinking I was cool and all that stuff.

And so when I got to do Brides, I didn’t really give a hit about Brides, I just really wanted to play Motley Crue music. [Laughs] And I only wanted to play stuff off “Shout at the Devil” and “Too Fast for Love” and that’s what we did. Nikki was like, “We’ve got to play some L.A. Guns” and I’m like, “No!” and we did, and it was so cool watching Nikki each night play the intro to “One More Reason” because “One More Reason” I got that from (Motley Crue song) “Take Me to the Top.”

There was a lot of that going back and forth between Nikki and I. He liked L.A. Guns and I liked Motley Crue. And as much as I have a f–ked-up relationship with Nikki, and I really don’t care at this point, I love that music. I love that image. And if it wasn’t for him and his vision for that band, I wouldn’t have done L.A. Guns. I might not even be a successful musician if not for that band. And that the truth.

You can read the entire interview @ this location.

The “f–ked-up relationship” between the former bandmates likely stems from comments made by Nikki Sixx on Twitter in 2017.

Tracii responded to Nikki’s comments on the Metal Sludge website.

Tracii Guns:

Nikki and I once upon a time were in a midlife band crisis. We were looking for something to do that would be fun and make some music together no see where it would lead. We were very good to each other and also enlightened each other in various ways musically vs business.

We didn’t have a lot of money. His manager paid for our rehearsals and Nikki actually paid me 2000 a month for about 6 months until we eventually got a nice little record deal between sanctuary and universal Japan. Until that point, I started an eBay account and helped Nikki sell his extra equipment to raise cash. I got 10% of that for doing the grunt work and I was happy to do it as he was very grateful that I took the task on for him. I also helped him to restructure his outgoing dough to help reduce his monthly nut and we did a good job and things were less stressful for him.

Basically, we were allies and temporarily best friends because we needed each other at that point in our lives.

We did not end our band on good terms. However, I was paid for my services that I contributed to his next venture. Scot Coogan was also involved longer than I was in these services and claims to me that he was never paid.

I know Nikki as a person very well and he is lashing out in an abusive way toward me right now. As hurtful as it is, I understand him as a person and l have no interest in this internet drama.

If there was any reality to the fact of Me stealing money from Nikki, I am sure enough time has passed to where he could have gotten ahold of me and made me aware that he felt something wrong happened, but the fact is, there isn’t anything to talk about as far as theft or wrongdoing is concerned on my part.

I am sorry he has anger toward me, but I’d like to take the high road at this point and wish him strength in his future.

Good luck with your guitar lessons, Tracii.

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Pantera’s Dimebag Darrell to Guitarist Michael Angelo Batio: “I got your instructional program. You’re like my guitar teacher.” – 2022 – Interview – Vinnie Paul

Ryan Roxie: AUDIO VERSION UP!!! “Michael Angelo Batio – Guitar SECRETS revealed!”. ⚓ You can listen to the entire interview @ this location or via the embedded widget below.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

On Pantera Guitarist Dimebag Darrell:

Michael Angelo Batio:

I had the one called ‘The Star Licks Video’ before ‘Speed Kills.’ I was still playing locally in Los Angeles. I hadn’t been signed with Nitro, but it was after the band Holland. That was right around when I did the first instructional program and people like John Petrucci (Dream Theater) watched it, got the idea of Jazz IIIs (guitar picks) because I always use jazz picks. He studied it. Michael Romeo from Symphony X, he told me he studied it, and then one of the biggest ones was Dime. Dime saw me in concert before they were big.

‘Cowboys from Hell’ had just come out. I hadn’t even done ‘Speed Kills’ yet. We were in Florida recording our second album, ‘Nitro II: H.W.D.W.S.,’ and we went to this little club. Nobody was there except for the band. We knew the bartenders there, so we were just hanging out. Then my guitar tech, he went by Dragon, he said: “Dude, you’ve got to hear this band, bro. They rule, dude.” You know, he was from Fresno.

So, I go there to see this unknown band named Pantera. Nobody was in the crowd. I’m standing in the audience, and I see this dude come out with this beard and these long shorts. This is the era of Larry Bird with the little, short shorts. He’s got these long shorts on and we’re thinking, “Boy, he looks out there.” And here we are, these L.A. hair metal guys, “No, we don’t look weird.” And he actually stopped, there was nobody around me for ten feet. There was nobody there, literally. ‘Cowboys from Hell’ had just been released and we’re in Orlando, Florida, and all of sudden Dime goes, “Is that Michael Angelo?” I’m like, “Yeah, dude.” He goes: “I got your instructional program. You’re like my guitar teacher, man.” And then he goes, “Pantera’s going to dedicate tonight’s set to Michael Angelo,” and I was just floored.

I had heard those songs from ‘Cowboys from Hell.’ I was already a fan before and, of course, shortly after that, they exploded. That album just blew up. But I talked to Dime afterwards, and we just got to be really friendly.

I was with Washburn for a while in the ’90s with Dime. So, we would do like in-stores together, and I got to know him really well. He was supposed to play on one of my albums called ‘Hands Without Shadows.’ The next tour stop was Chicago before he got shot. We were just devastated.

On Pantera Drummer Vinnie Paul:

I know this is off topic, but I knew Vinnie Paul and his brother pretty well. And because of Dean, you know, Vinnie was with Ddrum and that was a Dean company. We would go to Europe and we would congregate in these different music expos, like in Frankfurt, Germany.

Vinnie used to have a bodyguard at that time called Cowboy. So, it was me, Vinnie, David Vincent from Morbid Angel, who is our close friend. We were sitting down to have a really nice dinner in Germany, and we’re drinking beer. Vinnie told me…and I would never ask in a million years what happened. How rude can that be?… But Vinnie talked to me about it, about what happened on stage (The mass shooting at the Alrosa Villa nightclub in Columbus, Ohio where four people were murdered and three others were wounded. One of those murdered was Vinnie’s brother, Dimebag Darrell).

He goes, “Man, the only thing that saved me was my drums.” He said the guy was pointing the gun right at his face and shooting, and the bullets were ricocheting off the hardware of his drums. To this day, I can still picture sitting there and me and David didn’t say a word. I mean, no comment. I didn’t ask him about it, but I can only imagine the feeling of that, you know, at point blank range. To live through that ordeal, it was just something else.

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Manager Doc McGhee on KISS’s Decision to Create Alter Egos: “They didn’t feel like they could compete in blue jeans against the rest” – 2022 INTERVIEW

VWMusic: From his hotel in Helsinki, McGhee recently chatted with VWMusic via phone regarding his quarter-century-long tenure as the unquestioned coach of KISS. You can read the entire interview @ this location.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

Throughout The End of the Road Tour there has been near-constant speculation if Ace, Peter, or Bruce will be joining the band on stage. Are any of these guys going to come and play, or will it just be Paul, Gene, Eric, and Tommy standing together on that final night?

Doc McGhee:

Honestly, I don’t know. You can invite them, but they may not come. They may come, they may not come, and we might not invite them. We’ve talked to them, and we’ve talked about it. Well, we don’t talk to Peter, but we do talk to Ace. We haven’t talked to Peter in a long time. But you know something? They were part of it, they aided in starting this band, and they should be part of the end of this. They started this, so in some way, they should be able to share that spotlight on the way out. Now, regardless of if it happens or not, you’re not going to get six guys up there in makeup. That’s not going to happen.

There’s an interesting quote floating around out there that basically says, “The reunion era killed KISS as a creative entity.” I personally don’t agree with that, but I wanted to get your two cents as well.

When you’re at the top, everybody wants to take shots. So they go, “Well, they’re not being creative,” or they say, “They aren’t doing what they did when they recorded Revenge.” Now, I personally thought Revenge was really good – if was really good if it wasn’t KISS doing it. This wasn’t The Beatles going from “I Wanna Hold Your Hand,” to Sgt. Peppers. [Laughs].

Look at other really successful bands who have had great longevity, and I’ll use ACϟDC as an example. You don’t see ACϟDC changing their sound, do you? Although I really like ACϟDC, you can’t deny that they stay true to what they do and that’s what I thought KISS had to do. Whenever bands and artists make really big changes, it’s pretty much because they’ve had such an amazing record that they can’t duplicate it. But with KISS, you never had that one massive record, or that one single massive song that we couldn’t beat. Instead, we have a lot of great, classic songs that mean so much to a lot of people.

I know it sounds corny, but it comes back to the idea that you can be what you want to be. That’s how KISS got there. They couldn’t compete. They didn’t feel like they could compete in blue jeans against the rest. So they went the route of alter egos, and they did that so they could go and be that person that they wanted to be, and it was awesome. To this day, Gene, Paul, Tommy, and Eric own those characters when they’re on stage. They fucking work them, and people believe them. That’s what has kept KISS alive.

You can read the entire interview @ this location.

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Michael Schenker on Judas Priest Guitarist K.K. Downing, “Look, he was a fan, and there was no point in denying it” – 2022 Interview – Joining Whitesnake

Flying V strapped across his chest, blonde-haired, and leather-clad, Michael Schenker has influenced generations of guitar players worldwide over the course of a now fifty-years-strong career. You can read the entire interview @ this location.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

On David Coverdale asking him to join Whitesnake:

Peter Mensch (manager) came to me one day and said, “Michael, David Coverdale wants you to be a part of Whitesnake.” So, I called David, and I said, “No, why don’t you come and join the Michael Schenker Group instead?” Well, David did not want to be part of Michael Shenker Group, and he was upset that I did not want to join Whitesnake. So, suddenly, I look up, and Cozy Powell has left my band, and had joined David Coverdale in Whitesnake. This was after Bernie Marsden had left, and before John Sykes had joined.

The way it all happened was I was jamming with David at my house one day, because he had come over, and was hanging out. I started playing what would become “Searching for a Reason,” which would end up on Assault Attack, and David started singing some words – none of which ended up on Assault Attack – and it went from there. You know, we were just jamming, he was singing, and we did that until the sun came up. After that, David asked me to join Whitesnake, and I declined, which I guess he did not like. It was all very messy, but the outcomes were good for all of us eventually.

I saw an interesting quote recently where you mentioned that you feel that you had a great deal of influence on K.K. Downing, so much so, that he imitated you. Can you expand on that at all?

According to the reports I’m getting – and I’m not searching for it – apparently, my influence over him was overwhelming. I mean, my girlfriend, and I went to see him when I was around nineteen years old. We had come to see Judas Priest at the Whiskey A Go Go, and she looked at me, I looked at her, and we couldn’t believe what we were seeing. You know, K.K., he had the same blonde hairstyle as me, the long black boots, and all the rest. I will say that it could not have been a coincidence, I mean, K.K. had the Flying V guitar, the curly hair, everything. Look, he was a fan, and there was no point in denying it.

The fact is, there were so many people – all these guys – who wanted what I had, and I didn’t even know what I had. [Laughs]. But apparently, they all wondered what I had, and they were searching for it through imitation. To me, it was just the perspective of the guys, they thought if they had what I had, they would probably get all the girls, but I wasn’t doing anything on purpose, and I was never doing any of it to get girls. [Laughs]. I was just being myself as a musician through self-expression.

You can read the entire interview @ this location.

K.K. Downing: “I was the First Guy to Bring the FLYING V to Heavy Metal”

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Gene Simmons to KISS Manager During ‘Revenge’ Album: “There’s peace in the valley that’s got to be kept. We’ve got to have a Paul song be the next song.” – 2022 Interview

VWMusic: We recently sat down with former KISS manager Larry Mazer to discuss his five-year KISS tenure. Tons of long-standing rumors put to bed. Dig it. You can read the entire interview @ this location.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

Would you say that Gene Simmons asserted himself more on Hot in the Shade?

Former KISS Manager Larry Mazer:

Well, my record was Revenge, because Hot in the Shade was mostly recorded by the time I was hired. In most ways, it was already a finished record, so there’s not much I could do there. I will say that to this day, I do not think Hot in the Shade is a great record. I think there are three great songs, and the rest of it is filler. The album that I really stake my reputation on is the Revenge record because that was me forcefully putting my foot down as far as Gene coming back into the mix was concerned. I said, “Guys, if we’re going to do this and do this right, Gene needs to be upfront. We have to get heavier.” And we lead off with a Gene Simmons song for the first time since the Creatures of the Night record, and that was a Gene Simmons song called “Unholy.” We had another track in “Domino,” that I wanted to go second, but I got voted down, so “Domino” ended up being the third single. Again, my goal was to bring back the heavier side of KISS, and I think I achieved that.

As you mentioned, Revenge saw Gene Simmons positioned front and center from a musical standpoint. What went into the decision to release “Unholy” as the lead single?

I can tell you that putting “Unholy” out first got pushback from Paul, but I put my foot down and I said, “No, Paul. “Unholy” is going to be first.” I wouldn’t be swayed, and I refused to be moved off my view. I said, “Paul, you hired me to do this. This is my decision. We’re going with “Unholy” first, and that’s the end of it.” He wasn’t happy at first, but it obviously worked out.

Which track did Paul want as the lead single?

Any one of his songs. [Laughs]. I think you know the answer, because what was the second single? History shows that it was “I Just Wanna,” so there you go. That’s what Paul wanted as Revenge’s lead single. I didn’t agree with that either, I wanted to go with “Domino” as the second single. I was pushing for that, and again, Paul was not happy, even after “Unholy” had been successful, so “Domino” seemed like the obvious call. Well, Gene called me up one day, and said, “Larry, we have got to give a Paul song.” I said, “Gene, look what we just did. We rebuilt this band. We rebuilt you. We’ve got to bring it home. We have this other track in “Domino,” and it’s a great song. It’s a boogie song. It’s perfect. That’s got to be the second single.” So, Gene said, “You’ve got to trust me on this. There’s peace in the valley that’s got to be kept. We’ve got to have a Paul song be the next song.” And that’s why “I Just Wanna” was the second single, which I still don’t agree with. [Laughs].

In regard to the long-standing rumor that Eric Carr was to be fired regardless of the fact that he got sick, that’s not true?

Totally not true. It’s crazy, where do these rumors come from? This said, it’s very funny. I, unfortunately, got off on a not great foot with Eric, because when I got hired Gene, and Paul asked me to call Eric. I had already known Bruce, but I didn’t know Eric, so Paul and Gene said, “Look, you should call him, introduce yourself, and tell him you’re now our manager.” So, I called Eric, and literally, the first thing I said to him was, “I hate drum solos.” [Laughs]. So, right away, things between us were not great. Now, we got friendlier as the cycle went on, but it started off a little tense, because I told him, “I hate drum solos,” which I do. As the tour went on, we got friendlier, and we stayed friendly up until the point where he got sick. There was never a directive to fire Eric Carr from me, and again, I never sensed any tension between him and the other guys at all. I don’t know where all these rumors come from, but I thought it was a wonderful tour that was happy from beginning to end.

You can read the entire interview @ this location.

Unholy Written by Gene Simmons, Vinnie Vincent


I Just Wanna Written by Paul Stanley, Vinnie Vincent


Domino Written by Gene Simmons

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Motley Crue Bassist Nikki Sixx on David Bowie, “In the Beginning,” & His Lucky Road to Guitarist Mick Mars – 2022

full in bloom:

In a recent interview with Matt Pinfield on KLOS, Motley Crue’s Nikki Sixx talked about his inspiration for the intro track “In the Beginning” from the band’s 1983 album, ‘Shout at the Devil,’ and his lucky road to guitarist Mick Mars. Watch the video below.


David Bowie “Future Legend”

Motley Crue “In the Beginning”

Motley Crue “I Will Survive”

Entire Interview w/ Matt Pinfield & Nikki Sixx

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Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott, “Even at the lowest we were still playing arenas” – 2022 Interview – Stadium Tour

Def Leppard: New TIDAL Interview: Hard-rock heroes Joe Elliott and Phil Collen on glam, technology, mass appeal and how they made arena-ready new music from the comfort of their own homes. You can read the entire interview @ this location.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

How will Def Leppard keep its mass appeal in an era without mass media? You managed to find the sweet spot on BBC Radio, then Hit Parader magazine, then MTV. But everything is so segmented now.

Joe Elliott:

Quite simply, the streaming thing has taken over. The information is right in your face. The magazines used to go to print months before they were in the shops, so they had to kind of speculate.

Great example: In my house I’ve got a framed picture of Mott the Hoople with Mick Ronson in the band, and it says it’s for the month of March 1975. Well, by the time March 1975 came along, Ronson and Ian Hunter were on tour promoting Ian’s first solo album.

You can’t cheat the future anymore. It’s real. Booking agents can ask my manager for streaming figures for today and he can deliver them. There’s a lot less speculation. We never really waned too badly, anyway. Even at the lowest we were still playing arenas; we never ended up in the bowling alleys. We were at worst putting maybe 15,000 people in a 20,000-seater. And a lot of that is down to the internet, and then to streaming, which we’ve only done since January 2018.

Within the wide range of music here, is it easy to identify which band member is responsible for which song?

Phil is always looking to start off the next stadium anthem. We’ve got a few already, like “Let’s Get Rocked,” “Rock of Ages” and “Pour Some Sugar on Me.”

But songs like “We Will Rock You” and “I Love Rock ’n’ Roll” are really difficult to write — they’ve all either already been done or you’ve got to go so far into left field. Look at the simplicity of “We Will Rock You.” You can’t replicate that ever, because it would just sound too close. Most rock bands would have said it’s too stupid in the first place.

Queen was so intelligent that they knew it wasn’t stupid. It was just simplistic beyond most levels of simplicity. It’s so crowd — can you imagine?

You can read the entire interview @ this location.

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Buckcherry/Jetboy Guitarist Billy Rowe After Meeting Axl Rose & Izzy Stradlin at a W.A.S.P. Show: “Once both our bands got going, we started swapping shows” – 2022

Metal Edge: Guitarist Billy Rowe talks @Buckcherry, his first-ever gig with Jetboy and hanging with Axl and Izzy at a W.A.S.P. show. You can read the entire interview @ this location.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

Eventually Jetboy moved from San Francisco down to L.A. What were your first impressions of Los Angeles?


Billy Rowe:

Well by the time we moved there we had already been playing in L.A. for a year or more. Our first gig was at the Roxy with Doll and Madam X, which I think was around June of ’85. And from that point on we would play L.A. at least every other month. We would do gigs in San Francisco and then head down. And there was such a big buzz going at that time – it was the whole Guns N’ Roses, Poison, Faster Pussycat, L.A. Guns era. By ‘85, ‘86, that whole movement was just booming. The clubs were booming. So we had a good following within just a few months playing down there.

But prior to Jetboy, when Fern (Rod) and I were looking for singers, we would drive down to L.A. with a friend of ours, this girl Diane, who was really into W.A.S.P. Anytime they would play, and it was mainly at the Troubadour, we would drive down with her and hang out. That was how we met Izzy Stradlin and Axl Rose in ‘83, ’84. Once both our bands got going, we started swapping shows. So when we moved to L.A., we already had this community and this circle of friends and places to go. We were almost like an L.A. band.

So you met Izzy and Axl at a W.A.S.P. show?

It would’ve been at the Troubadour. W.A.S.P. was playing and a lot of times we wouldn’t even really care to go inside. There was such a scene outside, you could have just as much of a social thing outside the club as you would inside the club. I remember Izzy was leaning against a wall and he had that Andy McCoy, Nasty Suicide, Hanoi Rocks look. And that was everything we were all about. So we just started talking. Then this dude, Chris Weber, came up, and they had the band Hollywood Rose together. And then Axl was there, too. And we all just hit it off. We were all into Hanoi Rocks and Girl and Lords of the New Church and we just instantly clicked. I think that night we went up to Chris Weber’s house and hung out, and the next day we went cruising around record stores. We became fast friends.

What’s coming up in the near future for Billy Rowe?

With Buckcherry, we’re continuing on this Hellbound tour through summertime, and then I think there’s going to be a little bit of a break in September or October. Then we’re doing one of the Kiss Kruises, then Australia, and then I believe that’s going to be it for the year. And in the meantime I have my guitar business with Rock N Roll Relics, and that’s growing as well. But after we finish all the touring for Hellbound we’ll also get started on a new record. Songs are being written now. So that’ll happen. Buckcherry, those guys work like madmen. So we’ll stay busy.

You can read the entire interview @ this location.

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King Diamond on the NEW ALBUM & Gene Simmons’ Lawsuit Threat: “They were not the first to wear makeup” – 2022

Metal Hammer recently interviewed King Diamond. You can read the entire interview @ this location.

-INTERVIEW EXCERPT-

When will Mercyful Fate’s new album be out?

King Diamond:

“King Diamond’s album will be out first. The label wanted that first and that’s what you’re going to get. It’s all a big push-back [because of Covid], but when we come back with Mercyful Fate we are going to be coming with new songs, and it’s going to be a production like you’ve never seen. So, King Diamond album first and then we’ll get down to business with Mercyful Fate.”

When did you discover you could sing that high?

“It happened when an early fan told me I should work on my falsetto. He said the high notes really suit what we were doing; this was in an early version of Black Rose [King’s pre-Mercyful Fate band]. I didn’t really know what he was talking about, but I decided to try and give it a go. That fan is an important part of my career. I can still picture him now, I could draw him for you if you gave me a pencil, haha!”

Gene Simmons sued you for allegedly ripping off his makeup. Have you bumped into him since?

“No, I haven’t. I think that would be a lot of fun. I have no outstanding stuff with him. There’s a lot of reasons why this happened: they’d dropped their makeup around this time, but they still had the copyright on the look. I was never influenced by them – my influences were Peter Gabriel and Alice Cooper.

I said, ‘I don’t have a lot of money that you can sue me for, but you have a lot of money that other people can sue you for.’ They were not the first to wear makeup. It never got to be a lawsuit, it just got stirred up.”

How do you feel about celebrities wearing metal t-shirts? Ever seen any wearing a Mercyful Fate shirt?

“Oh, yes. The drummer from Blink 182 had one [Travis Barker]. Jason Mewes from Jay and Silent Bob has one on a lot – they used Welcome Home and The Invisible Guests in Clerks II. I met them on my tour in 2019, outside my hotel. We were checking out and they had just finished a show.

There they were, Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes coming out of the elevator. They had seen our flight cases so they knew King Diamond was in the hotel. I said, ‘Hey guys!’ And they said, ‘Are you with the King Diamond band?’ I said, ‘Kinda… this is King!’ They freaked out! It was very funny.”

During a 2017 conversation on the Talk is Jericho podcast, Gene Simmons talked about suing King:

Did you want to sue King Diamond for his makeup?

Gene Simmons:

Sure.

It was looking kind of like yours.

That’s what we thought, so he stopped.

It was just easier to send a letter to him?

The letter is cheaper than testing us in court. We’ve never lost a case. By the way, I’m a fan. I liked his stuff, I thought he was doing cool stuff. Make up your own stuff, don’t come into my house unless you’re invited.

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Michael Schenker on His Aerosmith Audition: “Steven Tyler comes in, and he was completely out of it and on something” – 2022

VWMusic: We recently dug in with legendary guitarist, Michael Schenker regarding his latest album, and more. Read the entire interview @ this location.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

You mentioned Ozzy Osbourne. How close were you to joining his band?

Michael Schenker:

I was kind of tempted. I had only just left UFO and the Scorpions, and I had already auditioned for Aerosmith. When I was approached by Ozzy, he told me, “You were Randy Rhoads’s favorite guitarist. I want you to join.” It was kind of strange to deal with that situation because Ozzy called me in the middle of the night, and he was obviously very confused and disturbed and begged me to join. I considered it heavily, but something was pulling me away. I had to analyze what was going on. I didn’t quite understand myself.

And then I came to the solution, I said to myself, “I cannot do this, because I’m working for self-expression. If I join him, I have to play all these past albums. I have to copy all of them. I have to be on stage. And I have to do something that I just ran away from.” In the end, I had to remind myself, “Michael, you left UFO and you just left the Scorpions. You left for a reason, and for that same reason, you should not join Ozzy.” After thinking about it, that was very clear to me, and I don’t regret the decision for one minute.

You just touched on your audition for Aerosmith, which is an interesting footnote in your career. I know this is going back a bit but walk me through how that happened.

Well, it was in ’79, and I was in a transitionary period. I had just left UFO and the Scorpions. I was in a transition-type state and a transition-type frame of mind. It was like a little bit of a limbo. I was not quite sure what I needed to do next, and honestly, all of ’79 is kind of a blur. So, the word got out that Aerosmith needed a guitar player, as Joe Perry had just left. My management said, “Michael, you should do this. Let’s have you go out there and see if it’s a good fit.” So, I went over there, and I was sitting in a hotel room for five days, and nothing happened. That is a good example of what these big bands do – they sit around for hours, and for days, and they don’t do anything and spend money. [Laughs].

Anyway, eventually, there is a knock on my door, “They’re ready for you.” So, I go down, and I went into the rehearsal studio, and of course, everybody was waiting for Steven Tyler. Well, eventually, Steven Tyler comes in, and he was completely out of it and on something, so there was not really any point in rehearsing or doing anything. And to be honest, I was not really straight myself after waiting for five days in a hotel room, so basically, we all split, and I went back to England.

The funny thing was that later on when I was forming the Michael Schenker Group, I was told by management, “Michael, the Aerosmith rhythm section is available. I want you to go to Boston and rehearse with them, and see about them joining,” and I said, “Alright, I’ll go there,” and I went to Boston. So, I started rehearsing with Joey Kramer, and Tom Hamilton in this huge rehearsal room, it was quite a big rehearsal space, and in distance, there was a door, so the doors swing open, and a guy was coming in, and he’s coming closer and closer, and then suddenly, he turns around and runs out. I said to myself, “Was that Brad Whitford?”

My understanding is that he had heard that Joey and Tom were rehearsing with me, and potentially leaving Aerosmith to join my band. I think he wanted to see if it was true that the rhythm section of Aerosmith was rehearsing with Michael Schenker. I guess he saw it, turned around, and ran out of there at lightspeed. At the time, Steven Tyler was in the hospital, and Brad must have run down there and said, “Steven, you must get better soon. Michael Schenker is stealing our rhythm section.” [Laughs]. Anyway, the next thing I know, Joey Kramer and Tom Hamilton were out of the picture, and Aerosmith had reunited with Jimmy Crespo on guitar.

Read the entire interview @ this location.

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Gene Simmons on Donald Trump, Joe Biden, & the Death of Paul Stanley’s Guitar Tech, Fran Stueber – 2022

SPIN: Gene Simmons on Kiss’s future and what the future of rock is. You can read the entire interview @ this location.

On Donald Trump:

We knew each other before that, in clubs and all that. You have a different responsibility when you’re just a citizen or an entrepreneur. You don’t make policy. It doesn’t affect life and death. When you get into a position of power, it does affect lives. I don’t think he’s a Republican or a Democrat. He’s out for himself, any way you can get there. And in the last election, over 70 million people bought it hook, line and sinker.

On Joe Biden:

The current president [Biden], I like the ethics and morality – not a charismatic guy, unfortunately. The first word I keep hearing from people, even friends is, “feeble.” I don’t think he should run next time. So then who’s around? There are no stars and invariably people vote for stars, not even what they believe in. The cult of personality. Americans are star obsessed: “Kylie’s got a new lip gloss? Fuck!”

The End of the Road Tour was interrupted by COVID-19. How did that affect the band?

The pandemic has sadly affected all of us on earth, a million dead in America, even though there are QAnon and other deniers. But of course, it’s sad when it happens to other people and stupid when you’re a minister saying there’s no such thing as COVID and then you die from COVID, which is what happened. Close to 10 million worldwide deaths attributed or close to, whether you had previous illnesses or not. They didn’t die because they caught a cold, okay? It’s affected everybody, tragically.

I know that KISS had some serious experiences with COVID.

I did catch COVID, but I was vaccinated, so I had zero side effects, literally. No running noses. I didn’t grow a second head. No temperature. Of course the doctor stuck his thumb up my ass, but I said, “Next time you do that, take me to dinner first, okay?” I’ve had two shots and a booster, and I’m going to get another booster just because.

It is true however that we had a wonderful member of the family, Fran [Stueber], who was our guitar tech – who may or may not have filled out the right forms and had the right paperwork because everybody [on the Kiss crew] had to be vaccinated multiple times and proof that you did it. He got a little sick. He was asked to stay at a hotel. We stopped doing concerts and he refused to go a few blocks over to the hospital. And within four days he passed away, alone in the hotel room. We went to the memorial and it breaks your heart because you have three kids and a wonderful wife and everybody’s crying their hearts out. And I wanted to jump up and scream: “Why? It’s preventable!”

A seatbelt’s not going to prevent a car accident, but it may prevent you from having to peel your face off of the glass in front of you when you go crashing into it. And the vaccine, we’re told by the CDC, is not going to prevent you from getting COVID, but you may not have to have a tube going through your body and die the way a million Americans have died.

You can read the entire interview @ this location.

Paul Stanley’s Guitar Tech Fran Stueber Dies from COVID – “I’m Numb”

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XYZ Bassist Pat Fontaine on Meeting Don Dokken, Who Produced the Band’s 1st Album, “We had a few beers, a few lines, and a few laughs” – 2022

VWMusic: We recently sat down with bassist, Pat Fontaine, of classic 80s hard rock outfit, XZY. You can read the entire interview @ this location.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:

On the heels of the band’s Sunset Strip takeover, Enigma Records quickly scooped XYZ up. What did their courtship look like?

Pat Fontaine:

We were at a point of complete despair in late 1986, as we had already inked a demo deal with Atlantic Records, and after recording a full album at Cherokee Studios, we were told, “Thanks-but-no-thanks.”

It was devastating to us. After that blow, Terry (Ilous) and I decided to quit “the dream,” and go back to Europe. Lucky for us, we had a friend/manager that insisted over, and over that, we give it another year. So, we reluctantly agreed. Lo and behold, within that year, things began to evolve for the better. There must have been a point at which the back-to-back sold-out shows at the Whiskey somehow reached the ears of someone at Enigma, who inquired about the band. We were quick to get them a cassette demo of “Inside Out.” A long shot we thought, but it did pan out. They liked the demo and were nice enough to show up at a few gigs. Chatting a bit backstage, buying us a few drinks, and eventually, after a few weeks of courtship, we got the phone call that we so desperately wanted.

Just in time, I must say, as Warrant was already on the air, and in retrospect, it seems we were the last “Sunset Strip band” to get signed, I would venture to say. After us, things were shut down pretty much. We got on the last train in the nick of time.

XYZ’s sound and image seemed tailormade for the era, and it seemed to translate on the band’s self-titled debut. XYZ hit the studio with Don Dokken (producer) at the controls. How integral was Don to the sound of XYZ’s debut?

I think back today, and believe we could have distanced ourselves a little more from that very sound. We all were fans of Dokken — Under Lock And Key ruled — still does!

Don did backup vocals on most of our tunes, so his vocal tone is in there somewhere, no escaping that. We did not want too much of his influence at any rate, but at the same time, we were thrilled to have him. He was very dedicated, and present every step of the way.

Don was first brought into our rehearsal basement at Hollywood Musician Institute by our Enigma guy, Curtis Beck. We were a bit nervous, but Don was so casual, even grabbing a microphone to join us on a song or two. After rehearsal, I insisted he come over to our pad a few blocks away, where I made him our daily dish of spaghetti. [Laughs]. We had a few beers, a few lines, and a few laughs. He didn’t care much for my cooking, but he really liked the cute strippers we had living with us. [Laughs].

We talked about working together on a couple of songs, and eventually, we decided to have him as a producer for our first release. It was not always a smooth relationship, and we hit a few bumps here and there. We were a bit more bluesy than he was, I reckon. We fought a bit on musical direction, but his input was always well received, and always valued, as Don is a true pro, and is amazingly quick at writing melodies and lyrics on the spot. He also had great stories of the road, and what appeared to be an endless supply of champagne. [Laughs].

You can read the entire interview @ this location.