Witchfynde
no the band at the time played what they played and played what they loved.2 Was not surprised nwobhm and witchfynde reached the hights it did raw and powerful. really cool there's no greater compliment 4. sad but everything has it place and time,we took a break got outta our.crypt back into loop finally as you see us now.5. live work.is our forte it's one he'll of a drug.6 quite a few raw exciting that's rock n roll 7 bands can do it all themselves now keep there own identity put it down and put it out its the way it's all evolved. 7 keep to your beliefs be true to yourselves and your songs.Hard work but worth every minute and welcome to the Devil's playground. blessed be Luther Beltz
Grimreaper
1 no and it was a label given by other people, we didn’t even know about it
2 to be honest we didn’t have a lot to do with any other country but the States as that’s where sales dictated, and we were never dubbed by the press as being NWOBHM
3 I have to say that’s given me a lot of pleasure, knowing famous musicians have done that, and that I have got a lot of famous musicians wondering how I can sing that way all night every night
4 that’s still a sore subject, because of a legal problem we got dropped like a stone and we spent years not doing anything because of a court order the eventually came to nothing, Nick went on to do another project, I joined a band called Onslaught and the other guys gave up it’s a bloody shame
5 it’s still the same I love it, I love seeing the fans world wide, as we only did the States in the 80’s but we travel all over the world now, and I still have a passion for the studio
6 I have heard and played with many, I just have to say it’s tougher out there than it’s ever been you have to take the knocks and get back up again, you might not ever become that “popular” band but you have to keep at it, the industry is there to knock you down
7 it’s changed, for many you have to pay for your recording and Artwork before any label will touch you, gone are the days when a label would back you to the hilt with money they too have to be careful with their money
8 like I said before, you have to keep fighting and never get down about the knocks because at the end of the day you might not make it
Tokyo Blade
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> At the time, did you see yourselves as nwobhm?
>
I guess we've always had the same vision (for want of a better word) that being that we write songs that we like and we don't really worry too much about the genre or label. However, I understand that some fans and the music press in particular, like to put a label on it and we're ok with that with the exception that when we do something that they might consider to be contradictory to that label we don't get slammed for it LOL!
Why? Or why not?
Please see above
Were you surprised by the success of nwobhm as well as your own?
Extremely surprised by our success, as for the genre it was a backlash against punk and pop in my opinion. Heavy Metal has always been shunned by the mainstream media and treated as some kind of joke. I think their view is very distorted by what they perceive to be Heavy Metal. Labels of any kind are nothing more than a generalisation after all and taken too literally by many. Mine is a very simple philosophy "see what you want and hear what you want and if anything offends you then rule it out. I don't like dubstep or rap but I would readily defend anyone's right to chose to like it.
And your music inspired many musicians that followed in your footsteps.
How cool was that?!
Very cool, it's always nice to know that something you created has had some kind of impact on others. I believe that music should touch your soul in some way and provoke an emotion
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>
>
>
> How about when it was all over. What happened to the band?
Well the band suffered from bad Record companies and Management and having been ripped off for almost every penny the situation within the band became irremediable and although I personally tried to keep the name and the band alive my efforts were ineffective to a large extent. How many times has music history shown us that a band is more often than not greater than the sum of it's parts? This was certainly proven in Tokyo Blades case.
>
>
>
> And now you're still playing and gaining new fans. Whats your feelings
> on playing and recording now?
>
> We still what we do because we enjoy it and if any of it touches someone and makes the slightest change to their day that's a massive bonus. We certainly ain't in it for the money! Lol
>
> How about the new generation of bands following in your foot steps? Have
> you heard any of the NWOTM (New Wave of Thrash Metal) bands?
>
> No is the short answer, personally I've never really liked much thrash stuff but again I wouldn't knock it as there's some great talent in it and it obviously floats someones boat :-)
>
>
> What do you think of the music business today?
>
> Well there's no short answer to that question, but I'll do my best. In many ways it's tougher owing to file sharing etc which means the bands have a bigger financial struggle. Having said that we made virtually nothing from the record companies that screwed us back in the day. In juxtaposition it's easier to get the band publicised owing to the various internet platforms such as FB, YouTube etc and of course selling your music on your own website means that record companies aren't as vital as they once were.
>
> Any advice for new bands?
>
> Difficult to say as I'm an old codger now but the single best piece of advice I can think of is whatever your genre and style be sincere and do it from the heart, people can smell a fake from a mile away and if you stay true to what you do you'll get the satisfaction of listening to what you've done if nothing else. :-)
VENOM / CRONOS INTERVIEW REQUEST 2018
At the time, did you see yourselves as nwobhm?
Cronos: NO!!! I saw the new rock bands emerging from the late 70’s
after the Punk explosion as lame copies, I thought most of them were
copies of the bands who already existed, nothing new and definitely not
as good.
I still don’t get how it was called a new wave, so when was the first
wave?
------------------
Why? Or why not?
Cronos: I wanted to create something new, new image, sound, style and
approach. I wanted to create music that had never been seen or heard
before, and made people shocked and pay attention.
------------------
Were you surprised by the success of nwobhm as well as your own?
Cronos: I didn’t expect the NWOBHM band to do well, as they seemed
stuck in the clubs as support bands, and only a small few ever made it
out of those tiny venues.
I was really making music the way I wanted, not for anyone else, so I
wasn’t thinking of ‘making it’ or fame etc. The fact that we started to get
attention from fans around the world who wanted to see us play shows
abroad, was encouraging, and if it wasn’t for the fans abroad Venom
would probably have never made a second album.
------------------
And your music inspired many musicians that followed in your footsteps. How cool was that?!
Cronos: Venom were a catalyst, we inspired people who were also
wanting to make something different with their music, so we opened the
gates to give confidence to others to do their own thing, and experiment
with their music, rather than trying to sound like something that had
already been before.
As an English musician I was inspired by the likes of David Bowie, Jethro
Tull, Status Quo, the Pistols, Led Zeppelin, the Stones and the Who etc,
all bands who created their own styles and broke down barriers, so it
was in my blood to do something different, and create my own ideas.
------------------
How about when it was all over. What happened to the band?
Cronos: I don’t know how long it will last, till I die I guess, no one knows
how long they will be here.
------------------
And now you're still playing and gaining new fans. Whats your feelings on playing and recording now?
Cronos: I’ve been creating art and music since I was a small child, I don’t
see any point when this ever stopped, so to me it’s all one long journey,
and you learn as you grow, so my feelings are the same as they’ve
always been, I enjoy what I do, this is my life.
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How about the new generation of bands following in your foot steps? Have you heard any of the
NWOTM (New Wave of Thrash Metal) bands?
Cronos: I like that music doesn’t stand still, it evolves and grows which is
as it should be. There will always be high and lows with some music
becoming very popular and others not so much, so this is just normal and
the way it goes. I think this is how the industry determines the ‘waves’,
when one period ends and another begins, but to me I see new bands
forming all the time, so its just young musicians being inspired by others
and changing from a fan to a musician, as we all did at some point.
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What do you think of the music business today?
Cronos: It always changes, but this is the way with everything, the labels
act more like banks today, with more emphasis on their returns than
their investments. Back in the 60’s and 70’s it wasn’t uncommon for a
label to invest their money into a band over several albums to build the
reputation of a band / artist before they ‘made it’, where as today, if a
band doesn’t make the returns on their first album their career is in the
bin and the label moves onto their next act. There’s a lot more one hit
wonders nowadays.
------------------
Any advice for new bands?
Cronos: Stop bitching about your band mates and just concentrate on the
music. Get a grip on what’s important. Your music will be around a lot
longer than you will, so leave your petty arguments on the tour bus.
------------------
Cronos: Stay Wild, Hell Yeah !!!
Vardis
At the time, did you see yourselves as nwobhm? - It wasn’t a term that was used until Sounds magazine did a feature on new bands including Vardis around 1979.
Why? Or why not? - Everyone used the term Heavy or hard Rock at that time so I never gave it much thought. Heavy Metal was only used in reference to the band The Heavy Metal Kids who where more of a punk band really. I think these genres develop and appear over time and sometimes in retrospect. NWOBHM was just a title for an article we appeared in as I remember.
Were you surprised by the success of nwobhm as well as your own? - In the 1970’s & 80’s great original rock music was all around us, so its hard to measure success with so much diversity in Rock. Its a bit like comparing oil paintings by different artists from the same era.
And your music inspired many musicians that followed in your footsteps. How cool was that?! - It is very humbling and I always feel very pleased when people enjoy our music and keep Rock n Roll alive.
How about when it was all over. What happened to the band? - We played professionally for a bout 6 years from 78-86 so in that sense I feel very proud to have made records and play at so many shows, at that time. It had to end as I was in a legal dispute regarding ownership of my songs and that stopped my career. The lads joined other bands and got other jobs. I am not really sure as we didn’t stay in touch once we split.
And now you're still playing and gaining new fans. Whats your feelings on playing and recording now? - Yea we got back together in 2014 to play at Brofest in Newcastle it was a blast and after a 27 year break it felt and sounded the same, but of course we all look very different. The fans gave us a great welcome back. I am enjoying writing and recording again for sure and we are getting together this summer at my studio in Kalymnos Greece to record some new stuff so really looking forward to this.
How about the new generation of bands following in your foot steps? Have you heard any of the NWOTM (New Wave of Thrash Metal) bands? - To be honest I am not sure to which genre the bands fit. We have played many festivals over the past couple of years and I think that in Italy & Greece we played alongside quite a few NWOTM bands. They all sound really cool and play with a genuine passion. Rock & Roll never stands still, and these bands do a great job taking it forward for the next generation.
What do you think of the music business today? - I think it is a better and fairer system for bands who want to record music as the internet allows bands to get new music out to get out to the people. In the old days a handful of labels and managers controlled the whole industry and this was very corrupt. However I wish live promoters would take more chances with unknown original bands instead of tribute acts as they seem to be everywhere at the moment in the UK.
Any advice for new bands? - Yes enjoy what you do and be relentless in your commitment to your music.
HOLOCAUST
At the time, did you see yourselves as nwobhm?
Yes, it was an exciting feeling, being part of a movement like that.
Why? Or why not?
Well, the band was formed whilst we were all still at high school. We were very much affected by the tribalism in music and youth culture at that time. The Punk thing was huge, the Mod revival and then, (much to my surprise, I have to say), the rise of Metal.
Were you surprised by the success of nwobhm as well as your own?
We never felt particularly successful because the album sales were nowhere near the level required to be able to contemplate a full-time professional career based on the band. So far as the success of the nwobhm goes...it was a surprise that the UK music media latched on to what was happening. Once the media got behind it, (only for 3 years or so), it was clearly going to be a big thing because the music media of the day could make anything they got behind a "happening" thing.
And your music inspired many musicians that followed in your footsteps.
How cool was that?!
It's just awesome.
We played a show in Montreal that was attended by "Snake" and "Away" from Voivod. That band has had a huge influence on me, especially in the late 1980s and the Sound Of Souls album (1989), is a real testimony to that. We still play "Dance Into The Vortex" in the Live set. After the show they told us that in fact Holocaust had been a big influence on them and the very first song they jammed as Voivod was "Death Or Glory" from the Nightcomers album. I was just stunned!
Then of course there are the covers by Gamma Ray, Metallica, Six Feet Under and others.....it really is wonderful when these things happen.
How about when it was all over. What happened to the band?
When it became clear that the nwobhm had run its course, so to speak, myself and the drummer Nicky wanted to take things in a more extreme and experimental direction. Basically we wanted to play around with what would shortly become Thrash Metal and Doom Metal. The other three guys wanted to go in a more rock, American radio oriented direction. The band split in two. The record label went with the other guys, which I suppose is understandable, since they were comercially minded. However the Rocky version of Holocaust split apart due to internal tensions that were ultimately of a personal nature. I just went on writing songs and experimenting with Metal.
And now you're still playing and gaining new fans. Whats your feelings
on playing and recording now?
Oh, I love it FAR more now than in the old days. The only negative is the frustration at not being able to be full time as a performing and recording artist. Still got the day job...hey ho!
How about the new generation of bands following in your foot steps? Have
you heard any of the NWOTM (New Wave of
Thrash Metal) bands?
I listen to Outrun The Sunlight, The Contortionist and Animals As Leaders...that is what inspires me now. I haven't actually heard any of the bands in the NWOThM sub-genre.
What do you think of the music business today?
Much healthier than in the bad old days, when greedy parasite stuffed suits exploited everyone more easily than they do now. The "democratisation of information" extends to music, which after all IS information and so there is greater free access to music and it's down to fans to support what is truly important to them.
Any advice for new bands?
Not really – it's the new bands should advise me!
www.facebook.com/holometalDiamond Head
At the time, did you see yourselves as nwobhm? Once the movement got christened.
in 1979 I thought Diamond Head aligned perfectly with it. We were just the right age and had been perfecting our craft for three years when NWOBHM exploded. I thought It was a brilliant opportunity for Diamond Head to get press and maybe even a record deal. Before NWOBHM came along we were just another wanabe rock band stuck in Stourbridge emulating the giants of the 70s like Zeppelin, Sabbath & Purple. Once NWOBHM happened and we had been featured in Sounds we could get gigs all over the UK.
>
> Why? Or why not?
>
> Were you surprised by the success of nwobhm as well as your own?
Yes but it was inspiring to see bands like Def Leppard and iron Maiden getting massive press exposure and in-turn record deals. Pretty soon every record company had to have a token NWOBHM band so rock groups were being snapped up all over the UK. I saw both Leppard and Maiden in the early days, it was encouraging to see a band who were my age up on the stage giving it their all. People still love NWOBHM today, almost 40 years after it stared.
>
> And your music inspired many musicians that followed in your footsteps. How cool was that?!
Bands like Diamond Head and Motorhead were the missing link between the classic 70s Rock bands and Thrash bands of the 1980s. I was always very interested in song writing and creating something original that would stand the test of time. We combined the energy of Punk Rock with the classic epic arrangements of the 1970s bands. We were very fortunate to be covered by Metallica, not once but four times. Who knew they were going to become the biggest Metal band of all time?
>
> How about when it was all over. What happened to the band?
Diamond Head fizzled out in 1985. Their seemed to be a cull of NWOBHM band in the mid 80s, it went from hundreds of bands in 1979/80 to only a handful of survivors by 1985. MCA records dropped Diamond Head in January 1984 after two albums and everyone except Sean & I disappeared to find work in other paid jobs. I began working in the local studio Reg had built for Diamond Head called RPK as in-house engineer and put together a new band called Radio Moscow. Sean carried on writing songs and got a publishing/record deal with Pete Winkelman, but didn’t release anything on his own. Eventually he teamed up with Robin George for a project called Notorious. Diamond Head reformed in 1990 to tour and make the album Death & Progress.
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> And now you're still playing and gaining new fans. What’s your feelings on playing and recording now?
I still enjoy playing live and the camaraderie of being in a band, I have been doing it for forty two years now and it’s definitely what I do best. I like going to countries Diamond Head have never been to before, that novelty has not yet worn off. Recording has become much cheaper thanks to the digital age. Diamond Head can make an album much cheaper now than it would have been in the 1980s. You no longer have to get a record deal and expect them pay for it all, you can do-it-yourself. I still enjoy the creative spark when writing songs but I don’t really enjoy all the stuff that goes with it like mixing, mastering, artwork, photos, interviews, traveling etc. They are just necessary evils.
> How about the new generation of bands following in your foot steps? Have you heard any of the NWOTM (New Wave of
> Thrash Metal) bands?
There are some good bands about, it feels like the metal market is saturated and a lot of them sound alike but the good ones shine through. I do appreciate that it is very difficult to climb the ladder and keep a band together having tried to do it myself for so long. I am full of admiration for a bands like Aerosmith or U2 or Metallica or AC/DC who have been going flat out for decades and remain at a very high level year after year. New bands I like include Ghost, The Amazons, Scorpion Child, Raven Eye, Greta Van Fleet & Monster Truck.
>
> What do you think of the music business today?
Its very different but it still relies on good singers and good songs IMO. The way bands can be exposed has changed and it’s harder to make money from record sales, those days are gone. The money is in live performances and merchandise. Everyone still loves the live experience. The only reason to make a new record now is so that you can build a world tour around its release.
>
> Any advice for new bands?
Write songs, write songs, and write songs. You need a great singer and great songs. Songs more than anything else will sustain a career. Record everything and keep everything, you never know when you may need it. I have riff tapes and demos dating back to our start in 1976. Be prepared to give it everything you’ve got because if you don’t someone else will. All the members of Diamond Head gave up their day jobs in 1980 once we had a chance at making it. Try not so sign away your publishing.
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>Brian Tatler
QUARTZ – Tim Perry
At the time did you see yourselves as NWOBHM?
To be honest at the time we did not really know or understand what The New Wave of British Heavy Metal Movement was. We probably would have considered our music genre back then to be either Hard Rock or Heavy Rock. That’s the reason why we liked and chose the name QUARTZ. We actually changed the original name of the band from BANDYLEGS to QUARTZ just prior to the release of our debut album in May 1977 to reflect the type and style of music we were now writing, playing and performing.
Why OR Why Not?
Well depending on which set of criteria you choose to use to define NWOBHM bands then some say that we predated the start of the movement by a few years. Also many cite the fact that we released our debut album in 1977 which was two years before some say the movement began. However because we had changed our name and as Jet Records had decided to pull the album after a relatively short period of time when we did embrace the ethos and essence of the movement by picking up our instruments and doing something independently many people, including several music journalists, thought that we were new and included us as being part of the NWOBHM movement. Given the modest success we enjoyed during 1979 to 1980 Jet Records decided to rerelease our debut album by putting it in a brown paper bag and renaming it “Deleted”.
Were you surprised by the success of NWOBHM and your own?
In the aftermath of the Punk Rock explosion a lot of established main stream bands folded as a direct result of being let go by the major record labels but we carried on writing and gigging and managed to come out the other side stronger and more determined. What Punk Rock did demonstrate in its brief existence was that you didn’t need the backing of a major record label with money, impressive studio facilities, engineers and PR companies to produce a record but you could do it yourself and be more in control of your music and you own destiny. So following on in this belief would herald a new wave of young and enthusiastic musicians (and bands) who were willing to pick up their instruments and try and that was very exciting and refreshing at the time. We had some success with the release of our music on “Reddington’s Rare Records” which a close friend of the band i.e. Danny Reddington and ourselves financed that caused some ripples in the industry and put us back on the radar of the major labels that were now looking to eagerly sign up these NWOBHM acts to their rosters. We were signed by MCA Records in the summer of 1980 and released our second studio album entitled “Stand Up and Fight” which is considered by many music aficionados to be one of the finest examples of the NWOBHM genre albums still today. We also went out touring supporting bands such as Saxon, Rush and UFO and played Reading Festival for a third time.
And your music inspired many musicians that followed in your footsteps. How cool was that?!
Yes well if that is in fact the case then we are very proud that we managed to make an impression and leave a mark during those heady times back then. We tried extremely hard to try and get to the next level and made several personal sacrifices so it’s nice to read and hear that we didn’t waste our time completely. We had some great times, have some great memories and stories from back then but also there were several lows, setbacks, frustrations and disappointments along the way.
How about when it was all over. What happened to the band?
After some line-up changes and the release of a third studio album in 1983 aptly called “Against All Odds” the band decided to call it a day. People had already or consequentially went on to do other things for example Geoff Nicholls had left the band in the summer of 1979 to help Tony Iommi (who was a good friend of ours and produced our debut album) in Black Sabbath initially for two weeks but ended up staying for nearly twenty five years. Taffy Taylor left in summer of 1981 to pursue a project he wanted to do called the “Taffy Taylor’s Big Roll Band” which combined heavy rock with brass and orchestra and then moved to Weymouth to run a pub that had live music and Derek returned full time to the construction industry as a brick layer to support his wife and young family. Mick and Malcolm continued on as QUARTZ playing, recording and gigging until 1984 with Steve McLouglin on bass and Geoff Bate singing vocals. Afterwards though all the band members would keep in touch and even work on small side projects continuing to write and practice together when they could.
And now you're still playing and gaining new fans. Whats your feelings on playing and recording now?
The band got back together in 2011 for a one off charity show boasting four of the five original members. That gig in our home town was such a success and a blast that it was an easy decision for us to reform. It’s easier to go out now without all the pressures and constraints that there were back then when we were trying hard to break through and our lives and livelihoods depended on us being successful if we could. It’s great fun now to be out there at gigs and festivals, both here in the UK and abroad in Europe, and to look down at the youngsters head banging down at the front of the stage who are all singing the words to a song that you have written. It gives you a great feeling inside! It was hard years ago when we first tried but I think it is even harder today with the internet and so many exceptional musicians out there. There have been great leaps in technology and it is possible now to record things yourself and get very professional results at a reasonable cost. We produced and recorded our fourth studio album “Fear No Evil” that was released by High Roller Records back in 2016 and we are currently working on a follow up album which will feature vocals, keyboard and guitar contributions from Geoff Nicholls who sadly passed away in January 2017.
How about the new generation of bands following in your footsteps? Have you heard any of the NWOTM (New Wave of Thrash Metal) bands
Wonderful just go out there and have some fun. Follow your dreams and don’t give up. We have played with several young bands at gigs and festivals and are very impressed with what we have seen and heard. They are very professional and more au fait with current technology, facebooking. YouTube and self-promotion via the internet than we are. We have become good friends with a young band called “AMULET” that you should check out they play old style NWOBHM music and with luck and hard work could go far.
What do you think of the music business today?
It was hard for us way back in the day when we tried but think it is even harder today as we touched on and alluded to earlier in the interview. They say that fame is temporary but class is permanent so you have to work very hard at practising as nothing comes easy and that is very true as we can testify from our own experiences.
Any advice for new bands?
Keep playing and experimenting. Try to be different but also stay true to your beliefs.
Rock On
QUARTZ Facebook Page
www.facebook.com/QuartzBackintheBandCurrent line up
Malcolm Cope (drums), Mick Hopkins (lead guitar), Dek Arnold (bass), David Garner (vocals),
Geoff Nicholls RIP (rhythm guitar, keyboards & vocals) NB David Garner was in the band in 1981-82
Original line up
Malcolm Cope (drums). Mick Hopkins (lead guitar), Dek Arnold (bass). Taffy Taylor RIP (vocals),
Geoff Nicholls RIP (rhythm guitar & keyboards)
Barry Thunderstick
At the time, did you see yourselves as nwobhm?
In a word..no. It all felt like ‘work in progress’ each band trying to get tighter and more proficient at song writing and performance. Many of us would frequently run across each other on the road all having the utmost belief in what we were doing. I can’t speak for others but I don’t ever recall considering ourselves to part of anything particularly different until it all started for real. This being when the words ‘NWOBHM’ and ‘KERRANG’ were first written in review of Samson, Iron Maiden and Angelwitch gig by a music journalist in attendance named Geoff Barton for a paper named ‘Sounds’. A two page spread spoke of us all having something new and different from the pre punk heavy rock predecessors often referred to as ‘dinosaurs’. They put a picture of me in the mask on the front cover and lo and behold a movement was born. The flood gates then opened. From out of the blue each emerging band of the time made aware of this new musical force jumped onto the fast moving NWOBHM train. Punk had now officially been killed off after a time of domination. Music was ready for something else. Us.
Were you surprised by the success of nwobhm as well as your own?
Not really, whilst punk had a stranglehold on the music industry there had been many musicians still loyal to their rock roots driven into obscurity by promoters, labels, managers etc who only wanted three chord wonders with attitude problems showing nothing but contempt for their audiences . The rock musicians stayed at home biding their time and learnt how to be proficient on their chosen instrument and when the time was right they all broke out and hit the ground running.
And your music inspired many musicians that followed in your footsteps.
How cool was that?!
I still find it hard to come to terms with that. To be told that I have influenced others by my style of playing, musicianship or stage persona is very gratifying and humbling. The main reason I find it hard to accept though is that I still have many ‘heroes’ of my own artists that I look or have looked up to and could never consider myself in the same class as them. However I do find it most gratifying when anyone talks of my style of drumming being unique. I have never had a drum lesson and I am truly abysmal when it comes to any technical ability, I play purely from the heart (The Keith Moon school of drums) and for others to recognise that …..
How about when it was all over. What happened to the band?
I presume you are talking about SAMSON.? Well the truth is we didn’t ever officially split up. I went ahead with my own band ‘Thunderstick’, Paul carried on under the Samson banner and every now and then we would reform for various high profile gigs such as Japan, USA, and Germany (Wacken festival) it was for me, like returning to the ‘Mother Ship’ once in a while. Then there were other occasions where we did it purely for the joy of playing together. One of my most treasured tapes I own is Paul, Chris and me playing one afternoon in a rehearsal studio just for the hell of it, instrumentally rattling through compositions from our back catalogue, songs that the three of us had written and recorded along with a certain ‘Pilot’. It was just as though we had never been away from each other. I still miss both of them with Cancer taking both of them far too early.
And now you're still playing and gaining new fans. Whats your feelings
on playing and recording now?
Music is such a different animal these days. Recording: once upon a time a drummer never had the luxury of being able to ‘drop in’ at certain points within the recording of a track, they had to complete the performance from beginning to end in one take. It is now so different. The constant overuse of ‘click tracks’ in today’s recordings I find ridiculous. It is almost laughable that so many musicians won’t attempt to start recording until they hear the little reassuring tick, tick, tick of a click track. In my view clicks are there only to make a sound engineer’s life easier allowing over dubs to fall in line on the various ‘files’ created, but in rock music really ? A track should be allowed to ‘breathe’ so if it slows marginally or speeds up slightly within a composition should it really matter that much?… of course it shouldn’t the song is taking on its own personality that’s all. For me continual constant meter can cause sterility within a track when you can clearly hear that the rhythm section would’ve wanted it to ‘build’. It’s all part and parcel of the ideal that music these days is a ‘commodity’ rather than an art form.
How about the new generation of bands following in your foot steps? Have
you heard any of the NWOTM (New Wave of
Thrash Metal) bands?
Sorry I can’t comment on thrash, it is a genre that I have never been involved in and therefore am not really qualified to pass opinion on it.
What do you think of the music business today?
The business of making music is just that ….a business. Gone are the days when a band would hope to find a manager who in turn would hope to find a record company who in turn would find a publisher both of which would offer financial backing enabling ‘artistic development’. Now you can make an album in your bedroom get your fans to commit to the making of it by crowd funding it market, sell, and promote on your social media site. Totally impersonal you can have a fan base of thousands and never have to meet any of them. How cool is that? It’s not !!
Any advice for new bands?
Stay true to yourself, compose and play music that speaks of you emotions.. don’t ever let ‘em turn you into a commodity !
