The album cover skeleton head resembles “Eddie” from Iron Maiden. Redline is from Birmingham, England. It’s a good listen and it doesn’t disappoint. Everything is kept simple and the sound is classic heavy rock/metal, however nothing stands out as memorable.
Tag Archives: Classic Rock
Vito Bratta: A Rock N Roll Technician That Got Lost In All The Noise
Vito Bratta is one of the most searched artists on the internet, especially around what he is doing right now. Like me, thousands of other people that visit this blog, can’t believe that a talent like Vito, just walked away from it all.
In order to understand why Vito Bratta walked away from it all and stopped writing music, I went back into the past and I started re-reading a lot of the interviews I have from him.
THE STATE OF SONGWRITING
In a “Guitar World” interview from July 1991, Vito had the following to say on the state of his guitar playing vs. song writing.
“A weird thing happened to me this year I started thinking less in terms of guitar and more about song writing. I’ve never been the kind of player to showboat, but more and more I’ve been concerning myself with structuring and orchestrating.
On the last record, everyone commented on my playing, but hardly anyone said anything about the songs. That really bothered me. This year people have been saying. “Man, that song killed me.” which I prefer. When I heard the last Van Halen record, my comment was. “It’s not Eddie any more, but the songs sure are great.” That’s the way it should be.”
Vito thought he needed to change to accommodate the expectations of the fans and the label. In the end, the fans didn’t want him to change. We loved him exactly as he was. His guitar playing made the songs.
So Vito changes the way he thinks around songwriting. The results don’t generate into sales. In 1991, success in the music business was relative to the sales of the record. The confidence and the self-doubt that comes with disappointment is enough to kill a career.
Brad Tolinski, the person who was conducting the interview mentioned to Vito that it seemed that he made a conscious effort to play differently on “Mane Attraction” and that there are less broken arpeggios and other styling’s that Vito is renowned for.
Vito answered that with the following words;
“I don’t play like myself on this record. My sound is much heavier. For example, the lead break on “The Warsong” marks one of the first times I really explored what I call those “Zakk Wylde Pentatonic’s” and “Ace Frehley Bends”. It was just a mood I was in. While on tour with Ozzy last year, we started feeling like we weren’t the hard rock band that we used to be. On this record I just wanted to rock out.”
Remember back in 2007, when Vito appeared on the Eddie Trunk show. One of the comments he made on that show, was that he realised during the “Big Game” tour, that White Lion need heavier songs that worked more in a live setting. So instead of having a mindset about writing songs, Vito now has a mindset that he needs to write better songs, heavier songs, rockier songs and songs that work in the live show.
Vito’s whole thought process is now putting unwanted pressure on the song writing process, which to me should be natural and not forced.
In the “Guitar World” interview from July 1991, Vito also said the same when Brad Tolinski mentioned, that he could understand why Vito is frustrated as the tonal subtleties of his best work, like the solos in “Wait” and “Little Fighter,” tend to get lost in an arena.
Vito responded with the following; “Yeah, I agree. But I think “The Warsong” will kick ass in any situation. The real subtle tasty stuff seems to get lost outside the studio, and that’s a real problem.”
This is an important distinction to make between bands that have gone through the stratosphere and bands that stagnated.
On the Justice tour, it was noted that Metallica fans were seen yawning during the longer complex songs from the Justice album. So what did Metallica do next? They released the monster known as the “Black” album. Shorter songs, less complex and songs that rocked hard.
All the Classic Rock bands used to perform their songs live before they recorded them. That is why all of those albums from the Seventies had songs that rocked hard in the studio and in the live arena. In the end a musician’s level of success depends on their ability to entertain. It is never about their level of technical proficiency. Bands like Kiss, Motley Crue, Metallica, Van Halen and Bon Jovi are mega successful in the business because they can entertain. Are they the most virtuosic bands out there. Of course not, however they have had a career at a level that the most virtuosic artist out there dreams to have.
THE PROBLEM WITH OVERTHINKING
Brad Tolinski mentioned that the “opening track, “Lights And Thunder,” is interesting. It’s epic in length and structurally complex, yet the solo is relatively simple and minimal.”
Vito responded with the following;
“The lead part is simple, but I think it fits. When I was listening to some of our old records, I noticed a few lead breaks that struck me as being inappropriate. It’s not that they were bad; in fact, most of them were melodic and performed well. But in retrospect, some of them struck me as being too busy or ornate. When I first played the lead to “Lights And Thunder,” I thought, “God, I can’t play that. It’s bullshit. It’s too easy.” But everybody in the studio loved it and told me to sleep on it and listen to it again when I was fresh. The next day I came in and thought, “It still doesn’t sound like anything I would play, but it sure fits the bill.”
He is not sure and he is doubtful. He is over analysing his past work. It is all counter-productive. The interview with Guitar World was in the issue from July 1991. By September 1991 it was all over. When you overthink things too much, you second guess everything you do and in the end, you lose your fire, the motivation that kept you hungry.
THE STATE OF HARD ROCK MUSIC
In the June, 1989 issue of “Kerrang”, Vito states the following on his views of the current state of hard rock;
“I know a lot of bands who’ll write a song and their guitar players will say I’ve got to do a lead break here, I’ve got to let rip there. It’s an ego thing. When I write, I say well, the song will sound better if I have an acoustic here or a clear sounding guitar, maybe no lead. I think it’s really annoying when a melodic song is ruined by a guitar player blasting away, it grates on my nerves.”
In an issue of “Guitar World”, dated July, 1991, Bratta more or less stated the same view point as he did a few years ago.
“You can see the guitarist thinking. “Forget the song, forget the band, I just want to get my name in Guitar World.” That’s not where it’s at anymore. Everybody can play these days.
While I was living in L.A. last year, I went into a local music store to pick up an issue of your magazine, and I heard this incredible guitar player. It turned out to be some little kid with his dad! I mean, he had twice the chops I had. He came up and asked for my autograph, and I said, “Sure, one minute.” Then I snuck out the back door before he had a chance to ask me to jam.
I’ve run into kids that can play “Wait” better than I can, but what’s the point? Being a technician is only part of the equation, and I’m trying to study the other half: song writing.
I hate it when people say things like, “I know you write songs that are heard by millions of people, but are you really happy?” I mean, yeah. Don’t be absurd. I want as many people as possible to hear the band. I’m convinced that the reason people like Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton and the reason why they have endured is that they have composed memorable songs as well as solos.”
I have always said that Grunge didn’t kill the hard rock / glam rock movement. The rock movement killed itself. Hard Rock in the Eighties started off with the first wave of L.A bands. Then the second wave of L.A bands came along with the Classic seventies rockers who started to rebrand themselves to fit the scene. Then the third wave came and the fourth and the fifth further diluting the pool. Every two years, new cities got identified as the next big hub. So the Record Labels swarmed and so many inferior derivative bands got signed, that in the end, it all imploded. The real good acts couldn’t be heard from all the noise of the crap acts.
The current state of affairs in the music business bothered Vito. It played on his mind. He was a technician trying to find out how he fitted into the current climate. Should he write they way he also had or should he change and adapt so that he can meet expectations placed on him.
Unfortunately, Vito gave in to the expectations. He gave in to all the leaches that made multiple millions from his hard work.
VITO BRATTA RIG 1991
The “Mane Attraction” record was done with his trusty Steinberger guitar. In the “Guitar World” interview from July 1991, Vito said that he was planning on using something different when White Lion goes on tour as the Steinberger was starting to bother him because it was almost too easy to play.
“I’m not fighting for the notes anymore and I miss that tension. This may sound bizarre, but if you give me a Les Paul or a Strat I’m lost, and that bums me out. Lately I’ve been using an old ESP Strat that I’ve had laying around, just to get me back in shape.”
His amplification was basically the same system he has used for the last few years. The heart of Vito’s rack consists primarily of three units: an ADA MP-1 preamp, a BBE 422A Sonic Maximizer and a Digitech DSP 256 multi effects processor. The system is powered by a Carvin FET Series amplifier, and a Rocktron Hush keeps the lid on any excess noise.
“It’s a relatively simple rig, but it’s very effective. I put it together with Michael Wagener, who produced Pride and Big Game.”
THE GUITAR WORLD REVIEW
Mane attraction is Top 40 stuff, for sure. But not quite as gooey as the usual radio fare more like what the Baby’s used to do. Except White Lion has Vito Bratta. Though you have to wade knee-deep through patently clichéd arena rock-ioms for that Bratta burn, when he does cut loose it’s worth turning up the volume knob a decibel or three. But in bands where song writing is the chief concern, really exceptional guitarists always end up getting be shrouded like a lace covered end table. Your little sister is gonna buy it, so borrow it when she’s watching Dance Fever. And try to figure out how Vito manages to retain his credibility.
It’s funny reading the Guitar World interview first and then the review (They both appeared in the same issue). In the interview, Vito is talking about how he wants people to say that the song knocked them out, and then you have the reviewer saying that you need to “wade knee deep through patently clichéd arena rock-ioms for that Bratta burn.”
TRIBUTE TO SRV
In the same Guitar World interview from 1991, Vito commented on his tribute to the late Stevie Ray Vaughan.
“”Blue Monday” was my way of paying tribute to Stevie Ray Vaughan. I’m not really a lyricist, but I figured I could try to express my gratitude to him through my guitar. To this day I can’t even figure out why Stevie meant so much to me. He was just a guitarist, but his playing destroyed me. He was probably my favourite. You don’t really hear him in my playing, but I could listen to him night and day. I wasn’t trying to show off my blues chops. It was just a simple memorial to someone I admired very much. I don’t care if people think it’s the worst thing they’ve ever heard. It was my tribute to a great man.”
FINAL WORDS FROM MIKE TRAMP
Mike Tramp had the following to say on Vito in an interview with the website Metal Sludge; http://www.metalsludge.tv/?p=36727
“I had made a public statement that I was not willing to talk about all this anymore, and I don’t know what he is doing, but as far as Vito the guitar player and Vito the songwriter and musician, he was in a calibre all by himself. It shows in his great solos, and so many people love the way he played like Eddie with the hammer-ons and all that stuff like the Van Halen solo on “Ain’t Talkin’ Bout Love.” I just love the way Vito played solos on “Wait” and “Little Fighter” and some of the others. He was like Mozart.
We tried to do new White Lions with Warren DeMartini and Paul Gilbert and all these others, and no one wanted to do Vito. He was unlike anyone else, he had his own way of doing thing, and plus he was a great songwriter. Had he remained in the business, Vito would have been bigger than Steve Vai and all those types of guys. With him the melody came before anything else, and that’s nothing but the highest praise. I loved the sound of his guitar and I loved writing songs with him and stuff like that, but we had nothing else in common, unfortunately. There isn’t any bad blood between us. It’s just frustrating that I’ve had to carry on White Lion all by myself 100 percent. I just want to set in on record once again: We were White Lion once, but never again. But as for Vito, I am surprised he isn’t a million percent bigger in the music business. I don’t have an answer. No one ever will.”
Could you imagine White Lion with Warren DeMartini on guitar or Paul Gilbert? Great players, however as Mike said, they wouldn’t touch Vito. He was better then all of them and the above words from Mike prove that. The difference between them is the mindset. Vito confused thought process with what was expected of him, instead of what he expected of himself. That is the difference between followers and leaders.
Where are the new Classic Rock heroes?
The main classic rock bands were all about individuality. The Eagles, Boston, Styx, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Kiss, Rush, Bad Company, Foreigner, Aerosmith and Cheap Trick all had a unique sound.
The Eighties gave us Metallica, Motley Crue, Guns N Roses, Bon Jovi, Def Leppard, U2, Duran Duran, AC/DC, Journey, Whitesnake, Van Halen (and yes i know that some of these bands formed in the seventies), Aerosmith again and Foreigner.
Look at the list, Metallica played fast speed metal that was labelled thrash, Motley Crue played a hybrid version of pop, punk, rock and metal. Van Halen wrote the book on the nuclear band, Guns N Roses rewrote the seventies classic rock period with a dash of punk and Def Leppard merged Queen, with Bowie with Mott The Hoople with their NWOBM leanings into a pop rock format. Each band spawned thousands of imitators.
Today, all the young bands want to be a member of the same club. Metalcore is one club that is completing suicide on itself. Each year, thousands of bands come out that sound the same as the original bands that came before it.
Modern Rock is another genre that is suffering from over saturation. Where is the uniqueness. The reason why Imagine Dragons are at the top of the food chain is that they had that uniqueness that separated them from the pack.
What is the difference between Pop Evil, Young Guns, You Me At Six, The New Black, The Maine, Tango Down, Smile Empty Soul, Red Line Chemistry, Redlight King, Pillar, Plan Three, Projected, Nonpoint, Three Doors Down, My Darkest Days, Rev Theory, Three Days Grace, Eye Empire, Egypt Central, Emphatic and so on? Absolutely nothing is the answer.
All the young uns want is to be a member of the club however individuality is the key to creating everlasting art. Don’t shun your individuality. Dream Theater stayed true to themselves at a time when grunge, industrial and nu metal ruled the mainstream. Tool came through on their terms and in the words of Frank Sinatra, they did it their way.
Today’s world has everybody Tweeting and Facebooking just to be liked. Where is the edge of the Classic Rock era?
Dave Mustaine and Ted Nugent have an opinion and everyone has a knee-jerk reaction to it.
Rolling Stone is coping a lot of flak for their cover of the Boston Bomber. What did the outburst of David Draiman or Nikki Sixx or any other celebrity that wanted to join the anti-Rolling Stone club do to change the matter? Nothing.
If anything they brought more attention to the Rolling Stone article. It’s the Streisand Effect all over again. However at least they are going out there and stating an opinion. Did anyone come out and say that the Rolling Stone cover was cool?
Magazines like artists live in the culture of being paid right now. Do the people that work for Rolling Stone magazine care if the magazine is still around in 12 months’ time? Of course not. They will dust themselves off and get another job.
Everybody’s got their own agenda. When I read a tweet or a post from a celebrity, I evaluate where they are coming from as opposed to accepting it as truth. Has anyone seen a news story that says piracy doesn’t hurt sales?
A lot of research has come out from various Universities that support this argument. Instead we get the RIAA/MPAA piracy stats banded about on major television, with no information as to where those numbers come from. Why? The major televisions are owned by the giant copyright monopoly organisations.
Another important distinction from today’s artists and the Classic Rock era artists is that no one can say no to the money. Rush could have recorded a mainstream radio friendly album in 1976 just to please the record label. Instead they recorded 2112, an album that set up a very lucrative future for Rush and an album that made the record label very nervous when they heard it. As guitarist Alex Lifeson has stated in numerous interviews, 2112 set up a career for Rush.
Egypt Central wanted to be a member of the Modern Rock club and have disbanded. Three Days Grace were a member of the Modern Rock club and lost their vocalist with the parting words that the recording industry just want hits and push artists to write songs in that vein. My Darkest Days and Rev Theory are all modern rockers and they have lost their lead guitarists, which are normally significant songwriters.
Remember, individuality is the key. How good is Machine Head, since they broke away from following the trends that the label used to push on them. Since 2003, they have gone from strength to strength.
The old rock star is dead. Its time to create a new rock star that is a product of the times
Influences/Inspiration
Nobody exists in a vacuum. Inspiration comes from what you read, watch and experience. Inspiration is the merging of these experiences and influences into something new. When Metallica came on the scene they were inspired and influenced by the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. They were influenced by Punk. They were inspired and influenced by Classic Rock. They were excited and this made them nervous. Nerves made them play faster.
When Black Sabbath came on the scene they were originally influenced by the Blues. Just another blues band among the many blues bands doing the rounds at that time. Then they applied their gloomy industrial upbringing and the rest is history.
Experience
Inspiration doesn’t take place in a vacuum. All day long you are experiencing.
Could Nikki Sixx have written Kick Start My Heart if he didn’t experience death and life? Could James Hetfield have written The Unforgiven if he was brought up in a wealthy household that didn’t have Christian Science beliefs? Could Richie Sambora and Jon Bon Jovi have written Wanted Dead Or Alive if they never toured? Could Dee Snider have written We’re Not Gonna Take It, if he was rich?
If you think you can write a hit song with no prior experience, you’re dreaming. Our whole life is information. Be ready to reference it. Trust your first initial feeling.
Sign Of The Times
Don’t get caught up in doing things in the old way. Today’s medium is the Internet. No one wants to hear new music from their favourite artist every two years. We surf the net each day, looking for new music and information. If there is a demand for your music, you should create and distribute constantly.
The days when we used to have very little music are over. The days of saving up to buy an album and the playing the same album over and over again are also gone. Now, we’ve got the history of recorded music at our fingertips. YouTube has everything that you want, Spotify has almost everything that you could want and if all of that fails cyber lockers and The Pirate Bay fill the void.
Product Of The Times
The old rock star is dead. Its time to create a new rock star that is a product of the times. Keep innovating. Embrace the new reality that is being born. Stop playing by the rules of the Classic Rock artists.
Look at the band Heartist. When they formed, they decided that they would not play by the old rules of playing as many gigs as possible just to get noticed. They decided to not play by the old rules of guaranteeing promoters 50 presales for each gig (which more or less meant, the band either had to beg people to come to their show that didn’t want to be there or they basically paid to play). They decided to write songs. They decided to keep on writing. They started posting demos on YouTube. They started building a buzz. The songs had quality. People started to spread them, share them, talk about them. They played ONE gig and got signed by Roadrunner and management.
What Does Music and Success Mean These Days?
Music is for the fans. Music is for the people. Music is not for a record executive to make billions so that they can compete with the Forbes 100 Rich List. If you want to be in the music business, you need to focus on what music means. Be inspired! Create! You have to practice, be original and wait for your moment, when you have to deliver.
Def Leppard’s Hysteria was out for over a year before it exploded on the back of the Love Bites single. A sleeper hit that no one saw coming. If the song is really damn good it will get people’s attention.
If you want success, you need to get people’s attention. If you want success you need to work hard and don’t plan for it. If you want success, practice and be ready to turn that inspiration into a product. If you want success, you need to know that you have no control over what spreads and what doesn’t. Don’t judge the success of your project straight away. Success is always ten steps behind. It takes a while for it to happen. Don’t just the success of your project in dollar terms. Success is about laying a solid foundation and building on it.
Your music has to be accessible. It needs to make an instant impact. Fans do not have the time to spend on letting an album sink into our brain like the old ways. These days there are so many options and people don’t endure that which is not pleasing to them, They move on. Repetition is not an artist’s friend in the current times. The life span of a song is different these days.
Most of the time you get one shot for each new fan. It is that one time when people will hear what you have created. One time where you need to satisfy them, so that they can respond and share.
Today, you need to have that one unbelievable cut, that makes the people need to hear it over and over again. That one cut that makes the people want to go and find out more about you.
Whether it be Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It”, Dio’s “Holy Diver”, Ozzy Osbourne “Crazy Train”, Kiss “Lick It Up”, Shinedown’s “Second Chance” or Metallica’s’ “One”. It works in every genre of music.
Connections
Artists can go straight to their audience, there are no restrictions. Artists by now should know that their career depends on building a loyal relationship with as many fans as possible. In order to build relationships, you need to get people’s attention. You need to find a way to be heard over all the noise.
Standing Out – Visuals and Music
You want to be remembered. You want to be talked about. How can you achieve that? Society is a visual culture. That is why we watch TV shows, movies, take pictures and film ourselves.
Why do you think, when you see a preview for a new movie coming out, the studio marketeers have music with it? Why do you think TV shows and movies have soundtracks? They are re-enforcing the visuals with music, as people take more notice when that happens. If people notice they will talk about.
Putting your music with visuals is a big step forward to getting people’s attention. How many times have you walked out of a movie, thinking, what a tough score. I just watched World War Z and I loved the track that Muse did for it. Man Of Steel had an unbelievable score by Hans Zimmer, that captured the emotion in each scene. It was also inspiring and uplifting. I still remember the preview to the Captain America movie, where they had the music (46&2) from Tool playing and that was almost three years ago.
Standing Out – Opinions
No artist can please everyone. So don’t try. All artists stand for something. If you write a song that is anti-(insert topic here), you will alienate some, and connect more with others. When people get fired up (via positive or negative feelings) they pay attention.
Standing Out – Different = Success
If you look at all of your heroes, they are there for a reason. They are different. When they came on the scene, they were different. Twisted Sister was different to all the other bands in the Eighties in how they dressed and looked. Their style was a combination of AC/DC style rock, mixed with Judas Priest metal, with a dose of punk chucked in. Metallica was different to all the metal and rock bands when they came onto the scene. Motley Crue was different to all the new wave music that was popular at the time. Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden were all different to the Eighties Glam Rock movement. Black Sabbath was different to all the hippie folk music at the time.
Different also includes doing cover versions of popular songs. Take jazz songs and turn them into rock songs. Take pop songs and make them into rock songs. The original artist’s fans will be curious to hear these versions. Led Zeppelin did a lot of covers, Metallica the same. Van Halen had cover songs on their first five albums. Motley Crue did Smokin In The Boys Room and Helter Skelter.
What Does It Mean to be an Artist Today?
You don’t want to be an artist that becomes who others want them to be. You don’t want to be an artist that whores themselves out to make money. You don’t want to be an artist that does what they have to do to keep the status quo.
It’s okay to not be liked by everybody.
Real artists don’t believe in conforming. Real artists stay true to who they are. Real artists play to their fans and allow the fans to talk about them. Do not change for all the new people that could tag along to your success train, that’s death. You need to keep playing to the hard core fan base. A great artist is someone who leads us into the unknown who we can’t help but follow.
Dream Theater is one artist that comes to mind, that did it their way or the hard way. Signed as a progressive band, they released When Dream and Day Unite, which the label ignored and then went on a long search for a vocalist. When Pull Me Under got traction on MTV and Radio, the band was then a commercial prospect for the label. So the label now wants more crossover songs, and this lead to the issues with the label around the Falling Into Infinity project. After that the band stayed true to who they are and they have grown with each album and are more successful now than ever.
Alice In Chains
Why, Jerry, why? I like it when artists speak their minds. Once upon a time, the fans listened to every word and never questioned the words of their idols. These days, it is different. Alice In Chain’s need to wake up and realise that it is a different game now.
“something you’ve worked on and poured your soul into, and invested your money in, somehow it’s no longer deemed valuable. That’s fucked up, to me. “
No Jerry, it is valuable to the people who find it valuable. Just because you spent two to three years creating your art, doesn’t mean that people will find it valuable to pay you for it. The ones that want to pay, will pay. They will also come to your shows, buy your merchandise and spend money on meet and greets.
The ones that don’t want to pay, will never have paid to begin with, even in the glory days of record label control.
To be honest, I heard the Alice In Chains comeback album and I didn’t like it. They should have called the band something different. So to be honest, I have no real interest in the upcoming album. According to Jerry, I should care because he spent time pouring his soul into the new album. Sorry guys, there is just too much competition these days for listeners attention these days.
Rudolf Schenker – Guitar World – March 1986
RUDOLF SCHENKER ON THE AESTHETICS OF HEAVY METAL GUITAR
By Bruce Nixon
The below article in italics appeared in the Guitar World March 1986 issue. I have re-typed here and added my bits and pieces to it.
The aesthetics of heavy metal guitar? Well, think about it. Rudolf Schenker was intrigued. He was sitting in a backstage dressing room, a litter of soda cans, ashtrays and half filled beer bottles on the low table in front of him, quietly noodling on his trusty black-and-gold Flying V. He balanced the guitar on his knees and spread his arms out wide, smiling broadly, his eyes sparkling. Already, conversation had drifted over Vs and V players, and the Scorpions’ well-known axeman had displayed a deep and interested passion for the guitar life.
That is the iconic look, Rudolf Schenker with a trusted flying V. This issue is from March 1986. Rudolf had been in the game for over 26 years by now. Rock You Like A Hurricane from 1984’s Love At First Sting album was a monster hit for the Scorpions. Winners never quit. They persist. They persevere. Sure, the Scorpions had an audience in Europe and Asia, but it wasn’t until 1984 that they broke through in the US.
“The aesthetics of heavy metal guitar…” His accent was middling thick with a slightly skewered command of idiom, but it didn’t set in the way of his enthusiasm. The idea had captured his attention, in any case.
“I know of several different kinds of players,” he said. “There is Van Halen, very technical and very creative. Him I like very much, because he has put new things into guitar playing. He is very good rhythm-wise. And the other I like very much is my brother Michael.”
This, of course, referring to Michael Schenker, the Scorpions’ original lead guitarist, now fronting his own band.
“He can play melodically—but he puts the three parts of the guitar together, the melodic, the technique and the feel. Some have more technical skill, but in my brother, all three parts are equal. He has feel, but he keeps the melody inside and the exact rhythm inside.”
The impact of Edward Van Halen to rock music is immense. Back in 1986, it was still at a level of what he brought to the guitar playing circles and how an expectation was made that any band with desires to make it, had to have a guitar hero. Of course afterwards, EVH would branch out into guitars, amps and gear.
I am the youngest of three boys, so to hear Rudolf talk about his younger brother in such high regard, is cool. His words ring true. Michael Schenker was a monster player. UFO couldn’t contain him. Their best works happened when Michael Schenker was in the band. (We will forget about the crappy 90’s reunion album and the bad Vinnie Moore reincarnation, even though i am a fan of Vinnie Moore as well). His solo work in the eighties as part of MSG and McAuley Schenker Group was a stand out as well.
Going back to March 1986, Rudolf’s summation of his brothers ability made me curious to find out more about Michael Schenker. This is artists promoting other artists. I don’t believe that form of promotion happens these days anymore? Growing up in Australia, the nineties brought a certain elitism ideal to certain local scenes, where each band only looked out for themselves as they where worried that another band might take their fans. What artists failed to realise is that fans of music always like more than one band. That is how fan bases are made, a common love of music across different bands.
“You see, metal is a new style. Heavy rock is based on guitar and drums together. If you want aesthetics, when you go looking for a good guitar player, you will find them in heavy rock. This is a place where the guitar player has the most openings. Look at Rick Springfield—his guitar player is good, but the music is based on the singer. In heavy rock, the guitar player has more parts than the singer has. In heavy metal, the players are young and fresh, too, open to new styles and new sounds, new everything! Whole roads are open to them. We all used to copy Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple, but bands don’t do that anymore.”
Bands started to copy their peers.
Motley Crue hit the LA scene in 1980 with a mix of Seventies Punk, Americana Rock / Pop and British Classic Rock. Bands like Poison, Warrant, Bullet Boys and Tuff came out influenced by bands like Motley Crue and Ratt.
Bon Jovi came out influenced by Seventies Classic Rock, Bruce Springsteen and the New Jersey keyboard driven pop scene. Then you had every band writing songs in a pop metal vein.
Van Halen came out influenced by the English Blues Rock and Americana Rock/Pop. Name me one band in the eighties that didn’t try to sound like them.
Def Leppard wanted to record an album that mixed Queen style pop harmonies with the NWOBM sound they were involved in. They achieved that with Pyromania and perfected it on Hysteria, spawning thousands of imitators.
Guitar players became the ones that got the attention as well. The band dynamic had evolved. It started in the Seventies and continued with the Hard Rock / Glam Rock movement in the Eighties.
“I like to listen to heavy rock very much,” he added. “Jimmy Page, in his good days, was so good. Now, Jeff Beck has always been good, and I like his solo album very much. I hear Malmsteen—he s very fast, very technical, much into classical. Take Ritchie Blackmore—of course, he is from the older generation of players, but he doesn’t get older in his sound. Beck is more for older people these days. Ritchie is one of those guys who has old and young kids in his audience. He has that fresh energy.”
Ritchie Blackmore from Deep Purple and Rainbow is one guitarist that appealed to both old and young guitarist. The older crowd that is into the blues rock style loved what Blackmore did with it, the middle-aged got the best of both worlds and the younger crowds maybe didn’t appreciate the blues rock vibe of Blackmore however they related to his classical technicality that fit perfectly with the rise of the Eighties shred. That is where Michael Schenker also comes into the picture. He also accommodated both audiences.
He suggested that the greatest heavy rock players were European-except for Jimi Hendrix and Leslie West. America has not been highly nourishing soil for metal guitarists. In metal, at least. Europeans maintain more of a purists approach to the genre.
“I think European guitarists have been more original.” he remarked matter-of-factly. Page—Beck—Clapton- Ritchie—my brother. In heavy rock. English players, especially, have had a more original feel. In coming from Germany, when I watch television over here, I see everything is made for posing—the advertisements and stuff. In Europe, people are more natural, they are relaxed. They don’t pay as much attention to those things. Maybe the guitar players are like that, too.”
There is that name again Jimi Hendrix and who the hell is Leslie West. It was years later that i heard Mississippi Queen, if you know what I mean.
By 1986, America had a decent amount of heavy rock players. Going back to the Seventies, you had players like Ted Nugent, Ace Frehley, Steve Lukather, Neal Schon and Eddie Van Halen. By the Eighties you had players like Randy Rhoads, Warren DeMartini and George Lynch join the ranks.
It was hard to come up with any more American guitarists who fit the bill. At the mention of Randy Rhoads, Schenker nodded enthusiastically, and then shook his head sadly.
If it wasn’t for Randy Rhoads, I wouldn’t have been able to play the way I play. His dedication and precision on the two Ozzy albums will be forever remembered.
“Blues is the basis of all good guitar playing in this style of music,” Schenker concluded. The Americans are not as bluesy as the English are. Clapton, Beck, Page—they’re all influenced by the blues. English players found the right combination for bringing blues and modern rock together.”
Artists speaking their minds. If you agree with Rudolf’s point of view or not, one thing is clear, he is not afraid to get it out there. Maybe it is that famed German arrogance, or maybe it is truth.
I honestly believe that music captured in its purest form is magical. The purest form is when music is written without the thoughts of profits in minds. In the late sixties and early seventies, this is what music was. It was pure. It wasn’t tainted by Wall Street, by profit margins and balance sheets.
According to his guitar technician, Vince Flaxington, Rudolf Schenker keeps it simple. The Scorpions’ veteran rhythm player carries six Flying Vs on the road, his favorite of the bunch being a black and white 1964 model that his brother gave him about a year or so ago; he also likes the black and gold model, an ’82 reissue, while the remaining four are strictly backups.
Schenker is a Flying V fanatic, having forty-odd variations of the instrument at home, about a third of which are original issue models. Indeed, he doesn’t own anything else. He saw his first V in the hands of Johnny Winter and became an instant convert to its sleek good looks. The best one he ever had, he said, went with his brother when Michael Schenker left the Scorps. His guitar tech says every one is stock, Rudolf uses only Gibson pickups and refuses to let anyone alter his beloved Vs. Not even with Strap-Loks.
Onstage, the guitarist uses three 50-watt Marshall heads that drive six 4 x 12 cabinets. The Marshalls are “quite old”—a ’67, a 1970, and a 1980, all stock. The volume is set at 9; the EQ knobs are all full-tilt. His sole effect is a Vox wah-wah, one of the first made, although Schenker only uses it for about five numbers in the current set. The cabinets also are stock. He uses a Nady wireless system.
“His tone is like broken glass,” Flaxington grinned. “That’s the way he wants it—sharp, clear and raunchy.”
Simply and effective set up. He is a purest. He didn’t go searching for that sound the way others did. He just plugged in and let it rip.
Polution – Forever And A Day – Classic Song Waiting To Be Discovered
Polution. I came across this band by pure accident. I knew nothing about them. Even Googling the name Polution brings up everything to do with pollution but nothing to do with them. Still I delved deeper into Google. I finally came across some information. You can say their web presence is terrible.
Founded in 1997 and they come from Switzerland. In 2009 they released their debut album called Overheated. Twelve years from when they began. The album I heard was their second album called Beyond Control and it was released in May 2012. I heard it today. Almost a year since it came out. I am not sure why bands these days keep taking a lot of time to record an album. Release frequently and release your best. Four songs at a time, even three. Quality is what matters. No one listens to a whole Foo Fighters album. We just listen to their best songs. Even David Grohl said the same, in the movie they released for their last album.
Live Until You Die. It’s got that sleazy, head banging AC/DC meets ZZ Top La Grange riff. You can even call the riff a rip off. It doesn’t matter, as all musicians are influenced. Music is never created in a vacuum, even though someone like Prince tells you so. The riff is heavy and it makes you pay attention. The drums keep the toe tap feel of the intro riff going. Why couldn’t Bon Jovi release a song like this on the new album? Imagine that, Bon Jovi going back to his Classic Rock roots, taking influence from ZZ Top, Deep Purple, Aerosmith, AC/DC, Toto and Styx. Instead Bon Jovi is trying to compete with Justin When Is My Voice Going To Break Beiber and One Direction.
Forever and A Day is by far the best song on the album. It came out of nowhere. After Live Until You Die, I wasn’t expecting a melodic song. Pure class. This is nothing like the previous song. It has got that melodic arena rock style of 80’s. Europe and Scorpions are two bands that come to mind. I even hear a Michael Schenker / UFO vibe merged with Classic Aerosmith. I even hear current Nickelback merged with Hinder. I even hear Adam’s Song from Blink 182. There are so many elements that wash over me sonically. That is what music should be. If you are a music fan, you need to check out this song. It deserves to be heard. It can stand on its own. It doesn’t need a Gangnam style video clip to keep it going. It makes you want to hear the next song. Did anyone care that PSY released a follow up single? Of course not. It was all about the clip and the dance. The song couldn’t stand on its own without the video.
Check it out here on You Tube.
Polution got me interested and I want to tell others about it. They are not banging my head over with the marketing sledgehammer or spamming me to do so. They just released an album, that I came across today, and had a great song on it that I wanted to talk about. It’s not perfect, it’s not original, but it’s human. Their life experiences shine through on the tracks, their influences shine through.
If listeners can listen to any of the above songs, then I have succeeded in getting this band heard above all the other amateur noise that clogs up the Internet. It’s great how the playing field has levelled, because if it wasn’t, I probably wouldn’t have come across Polution. They would have been lost in the regional restrictions of the old ways and available as an expensive import in Australia.
All they need to do is increase their web presence. They still have a MySpace account. Enough said.
destroyerofharmony 