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Interview Michael ‘Whip’ Wilton of Queensryche.
Hello Michael, how are you? I am doing good, it is being a good 3-week blitz through Europe and just having a great time playing festivals, headline shows and co-headlining that has been great. We played a variety of great venues and shows so it has been a good tour.
Did you saw Todd playing with Crimson Glory before you met him at the 2012 NAMM? To tell you the truth I never really follow Crimson Glory so I knew nothing about any of them. I remember them back in the 80ths and that was about it, I didn’t know that he was singing for them until he told me.
Is it for you and the band a big surprise that Todd is so welcomed by the fans? Yeah we wanted somebody that was easy to get along with and the fans would accept, someone who is a team player and so far, everything is thumbs up. The main thing was he had all the Crimson Glory and the metal fans but getting the hard-core Queensryche fans they opened up their arms to him and have accepted him as the next step in Queensryche.
Is there a lot changed now in writing songs and recording with Todd as singer? With this new direction of Queensryche there is a whole new writing dynamic, Todd is a musician so he speaks and communicate to everyone as a musician, everybody is involved now in the writing so all ideas are put on the table and all ideas are worked on no matter how far they in the development of the stage they are. There is a coefficient bond. We are all kind in the same wavelength of where we want the music to go. We were all rude in our past obviously we are the DNA of the band. We respect the past especially the first 6 albums and you hear that a little bit in the modern Queensryche. There will be the comparisons in the writing, so hey this sound like something of Operation Mindcrime or this sound like something of Rage for Order well that’s because we are that. So the writing there is no shortage of ideas because everybody is really got their creativity on theme. We already starting writing songs for the next cd or whatever we do so there is a constant new creativity and everybody is so positive and that is what so great about it
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Your new album will come out in October 2015 in your opinion what will the album sounds like? Can you reveal more info about the upcoming album (album title, amount of songs)? This is the follow up from the 2013 album and something that Queensryche has always done since the early days is we want each album to evolved. So this album we had more time because we had less of the pressures that we had on the first 2013 album. So this album which is called “Condition Human”, the main album has 12 tracks on it. There is a LP that is gonna come out which I believe will be a double album and that will be have 13 songs on it and I believe there will be a deluxe cd booklet package that has 15 songs and finally I think there is 1 song for Japan. We have just completed this, day to day, we just finished the album cover, approving everything and putting it on the internet. Let me explain you a little bit more about the album, as far as the creativity in everything it is really a step forward evolving for Queensryche again we are rude in our past but we are more than modern in our situation the different dynamic in the band there is a lot more energy and a lot more creativity. The songs of condition human have a theme within each song and in the title you will find that. This is a perception how we see the world how we see evolution, evolving it all comes back into different little stories in each of the songs, We really made it more I think for the Queensryche fan that like the debts in the music, that likes to go back listen to the song and find every time he listens to the song something new. I would like to say that some of the songs are more in the style and inspiration of “rage for order” Being a little more creative not the same cookie cutters song format. The reactions of the people who have heard it are really positive.
Is Pledgemusic a crowdfounding or a fan club? In this staying age are pledgemusic and all the other crowdfunding sites ways for music, small businesses, start-ups to get people involved in what you are doing and to be a part of the growing process. In the United States it is hard to get loans and record companies don’t give big advances anymore. So if the artists to survive sometimes they have to go in this kind of a crowdfunding. It can be used for many different purposes we did this to accentuate the recording of the album and get people to buying and preorder the cd and we threw in order items like guitars, golf packages and all kind of things. I think we completed in a month it has been successful and so far, you know everybody is really happy because those people who are interested in the CD they gonna get their CD’s first. As far as all the other things, we got the guitars in customs on a boat somewhere, the golf games we have to try to figure out some weekends somewhere. It is just a different kind of tool for small businesses and especially great for bands to get the fans interest and invested so you can get what you want to accomplish done.
The tour is called ‘return to history’ did your choice the songs or are they requested by the fans? That have been the burning question for the last 10 years, “why don’t you playing all the old stuff”, “why don’t you playing all the songs from the great old albums”. That had a lot in the return to history kind of situation that we decide to call that tour and is ironic because in the past they wanna to hear old music and not new music and we are playing old music and they wanna to hear our new music as well. So there is a kind of switch and I think that is a good situation to be in because we have a legacy of touring. We want to please the fans that have been hardcore queensryche fans for a long time we have been doing this for 30 years so you wanna touch them. We are seen audiences that are younger, we seen the kids of our hardcore fans no getting come to the band and other fans they are maybe went away for a long time and now they are back now they are curious and wanna hear how the new music sounds on the set and we are doing that. You must make a balance so many people wanted to hear different songs so that is really hard. The whole “return to history” list we concentrated on the first 5 or 6 albums and parts of our new music and that is kind of what we really wanted to do and so far, it’s had been a great success.
My first Queensryche show was in 1989 (Aardschokdag) my last Queensryche show was yesterday Melkweg and yesterday I relived my first Queensryche show but this time with Todd. How does this make you feel? One thing that really touch us was which I have mentioned we getting the praise and recognition of fellow bands like Slash. Miles Kennedy told me ‘My god Todd is such a great vocalist” All these different guys from Alice in Chains’s are saying great job on the direction of the band and love the new album. We are now doing a lot of festivals were these bands are coming up and that is “WOW”. These guys are on fire; this is really great.
It is like the whole door has swings open again, and it is now like works excepted with all these bigger bands again and that is mind blowing. Mike Portnoy wondered on the masters of rock cruise and says; “God I have to close my eyes I thought I listening to “the Warning” for the first time. That kind of reactions are “WOW” Jaws dropping when they hear “Queen of the Rych” and songs from that old albums because it is part of our past it brings back good memories and the whole package that goes with us. It is really great and also for us it is fun to play because we wrote this song when we are twenties, early thirties.
Are there future plans to make a concept album or to work again with Pamela Moore? Pamela has always been such a great supporter of the band and she is worked with us in different projects. We cross pads as we do and help each other out. We are always so supported of Pamela I mean she got a great voice and a lot of great talent but we were really busy and I mean all doors are open to creativity, you know she will take any kind of ideas. She is on her own path right now; you don’t never know. Maybe someday our pads will cross again, we play songs with her live on stage a few times and that has always been fun. We will see how it goes.
Is there anything you like to say to the readers? First I would like to say on the behave of the band thank you for believing in Queensryche. Thank you for following the band get your news and information from Queensryche official, Queensryche official facebook, Twitter and Instagram all media package. Just thank you for believing in the band and supporting the music and supporting the music in general so bands can perform life and keep creating CD’s, albums and doing what they do So a big thank you for believing in Queensryche
Thank you very much for this interview and Ryche ON Interview by Hans Clijnk & Yolanda Clijnk All photos made by Hans Clijnk
Interview Thomas Youngblood and Oliver Palotai (Kamelot) Haven is a safe place for us
Haven will be released in 2 months can you tell who wrote the lyrics for the album and can you tell something about the theme of the album?
The lyrics are mainly from Tommy and partly from Thomas, me and Sascha our producer. The biggest part is definitely written by Tommy. The theme, there is no concept it is not a real concept album like Silverthorn but it has that louche theme about Haven being a safe place for everybody. I think we live in pretty complex times at the moment there is a lot going on and I think the next 20 years going to be very crucial and important there is artificial intelligence there is robotics there is a lot going on in important science, areas but also they in violent destruction there is return of imperialism in countries like Turkey, Russia or China or you have like stone age shitheads like the IS. There is a lot of things are going on at the moment and I think there is some reason to feel not safe so everybody has to create his Haven for him or herself.
Does Haven look like music style at a previous album and what album is that?
Maybe most if you need a comparison there is a lot of Black Halo feeling in that. I love the sound and the production of Black Halo a lot and we wanted to go back a bit to the Black Halo style regarding the production but on the other hand it is like every Kamelot album it is different
we had a lot of experiments on it, new things so it is a little bit stepping back to the Black Halo times but of course like always like two steps in the future.
Was the total writing and recording of Haven complex or was it easy?
It always is, first Thomas was for a couple of weeks in Germany, Tommy was all together for 3 months in Germany and we are also working with a new software program from Steinberg it is called VST Connect that is a little bit like a Skype for musician so you can work through the internet and work on song ideas and record also. So that file swapping was also done a lot.
Are you not afraid things will leaked out before it will be released?
There will be always some assholes, the weird thing is it must come from the journalist because they are the only ones who are getting the album and some, I don’t know why, they are putting it on the internet what kind of weird fucked up philosophy is behind that, I don’t know.
Are you already excited for your tour in September (2015) and to perform songs from Haven for the first time live?
Our first tour is in may (2015) in the US so it is even closer. I am not very much looking forward for the concerts because I am not a big fan of touring because you are traveling all the time, you are in tour busses, in planes, on ferries it is waiting, waiting, waiting you have no private sphere, there is a lot of down sides on touring and some people really like it I am quiet sensitive about it because at home I work in my studio all day and have the same environment which I like to be creative.
But of course there is that great part of going on stage and interacting with the fans and that is really fancy and what I really like.
The artwork for Haven was done by Stefan Heilemann did you gave him free hand to make the artwork and did he hear the theme of the album and music?
Stefan is one of my best friends and he lives 20 minutes from my place and he always needs a bit of first input like a first idea what it is going to be about so we were talking to him of course but then he started off by himself he is presenting then the first pictures and then there is a lot back and forth what we want to have changed. I think we had 20 versions at least before he presented the final version.
Charlotte Wessels (Delain) is one of the guests on this album, why did you asked her and how was it to work with her?
All the guest singers or guest musician are almost all, people we know personally, they were support bands or we were supporting them like in the Nightwish case and when we write songs then we have a spot and then we think this boys would be great at this spot and Charlotte came immediately to our minds when we wrote Under Grey Skies, the ballad but she did that all in her studio or where she is working at, we never met her for that that went exactly through the internet then she sending stuff and then we trying to correct something and that went great.
To show that taste is different for every band member I want to ask you both to pick you top 5 of favourite songs of Haven?
A top 5 is better because everybody is always asking me for one song and that is super difficult.
Oliver’s top 5: 1 Citizen Zero 2 Here’s to the Fall 3 Insomnia 4 Fallen Star 5 End of Innocence
Did you choose these songs from a keyboard vision?
No because when I write the demo’s I also play guitar. So I look to the whole picture like a producer does it.
Thomas’s top 5: 1 Veil of Elysium 2 Citizen Zero 3 Insomnia 4 Liar Liar (Wasteland Monarchy) 5 Under Grey Skies
Oliver how special is it for you to do the promotion for Haven on your birthday?
Honestly I really don’t give a shit about my birthday. The others don’t even know, so I think you are the first one actually. My mom was congratulating me, my wife (Simone Simons) by telephone but nobody else knows it and I like it like that. I don’t like attention very much but thanks anyway.
Do you have anything to say to our readers?
Oliver: we are very grateful specially to our fans and people who like our music that they are so openminded we always experiment a lot on our albums I know that and there might be fans which want to have the same album basically reproduced every time over and over and we are always going some unusual ways and I am very happy that our fans accept that and even expect that’s make it for me as musician a very good feeling to create music and again I just can say thank you for that.
Thomas: Hello readers, this is Thomas of Kamelot, we love you guys, thank you for your support and you better come to see us at the shows where ever you live. Interview by Hans Clijnk & Yolanda Clijnk All photos made by Hans Clijnk
10 years Delain: We are no others Interview with Martijn Westerholt of Delain:
Was playing in a band a youth dream? It was actually developed like that, I just want to make music, when I was going to school I start to playing in a school band and for me it became seriously when my brother asked me for Within Temptation.
This year it is Delain’s 10th anniversary are there special plans to celebrate it? Actually not, no that is a good one, we should think about that. It is going so fast, the show must go on that you almost forget about this kind of things and what you should not do, you should have to think about those things.
You are at the beginning of a massive big European tour and then 2 months’ support Nightwish in America. Are you excited about these tours Sure, yes, it is fantastic! It is always great to do tours with bands who also draw a lot of crowd and also of course in another countries. I do this now for quite some time but every time again when it is just before the tour, you started to get some itch. If you know, so that itchy feeling you like to go, so it is really cool.
You will do a support with Nightwish is there probably a chance you will ask Marco to join on stage? I already asked him and he will join us a couple of shows, not all shows but some shows he will joining. That would be great!
"The Human Contradiction" club tour is to promote the cd how are the reaction so far? We have already done 2 shows it is difficult to get an average answer about that but so far it is ok. It is always a challenge with German crowd even more with bands like Sabaton, the crowd is a little bit different but that is good you need to approach new people to introduce yourself. If you go to crowd who already know you then you can’t introduce yourself to new people, that is the point. But till now on we are pretty satisfied.
Do you need a special preparation or ritual before a concert? No not for me, for me it is just like go through that we don’t forget anything we have less a meeting before the show for the set list. And then everybody has his own preparation, some will do some exercise, or they will do a game or something like that.
This year you will have your birthday in America (the city called Charlotte to be correct) is this planned this way or just by accident will you family be there? Charlotte: No we have not planned it like that, it was pure coincidence and I look forward for it!!
Are you already busy with writing lyrics for the next album?
Yes, absolutely, we started in November, exactly I also before did some small stuff but we hired a holiday house in November we were there for a week to make the raw material and that is where we at the moment.
On previous albums there were duets with many guests (Marco of Nightwish, Sharon of Within Temptation and Liv of Leaves’ Eyes and more) Is there a singer (male or female) you really want to sing a duet with?
I am thinking about it and it also needs a little bit preparing what the song is asking for. But in general it is the future, the main future of Delain to have guests on our albums. We are working on that and there are some people on our wish list but it also depends on the music and what a song is asking for. It is always nice because it is a surprising result always and very rewarding.
On this tour Timo is absent because of other obligations, you asked Merel, does Otto thinks back on the (ball) accident during the tour in England? (note: during a concert in England Otto jumped in the line of fire while there was a shot with a confetti canon which hit him in the balls and injured him badly).
Merel played even before the accident with us so there is no feeling in regard to that (ball) accident. Timo actually will be playing tonight with us, it is strange to have Timo not with us but on the other end it is also good to be flexible and be able to do a tour without Timo and will manage that, but it is good to have him back afterwards.
The time that Merel played in England was that to prepare her for this tour?
Yes, also but also in general we were a little bit doubt in between if we will have two or one guitar players. Sometimes a song needs it but not always and sometimes it also has a charm that you are not on stage with too many people and keep it simple it is a little bit in between that we don’t know yet.
And there will be also more taking care about the pyro and things like that? Actually we did the same thing for years already and this time it was really strange how it went wrong. This time we had an additional person on stage (Merel) that was also a part of the problem. We will solve that for the future.
Mostly the confetti canons are at the front of the stage and if I am correct were they are now more on stage? Yes, you are right but that was because we also have to watch out for the people in front of the stage and in this particular situation we thought it was better to put them behind so there is more space between the crowd and the canons and Otto was actually not line of fire when we shot it, he jumped in the line fire at the moment supreme. A lot of incidents is in top of each other which makes this happen. Always with disasters also with plane crashes there is never one because there are always more things what is going wrong what leads to the accident.
Do you have something special this evening? Something special? Our show is always special, the special thing this evening is that we are with six people on stage and it is special for us to play at home in a European tour and we are thinking about what songs to play, the set list we hope will like it!
Is there anything you like to share with our readers? First of all, I thank them for taking time to read the interview and hope they can enjoy our music and for all the people who are coming to our shows without them we can’t do this we need them so we are able to make music. Thanks to them they are there.
Thanks for your time to answer our questions. You are very welcome!
Update: To celebrate the 10th anniversary of Delain they will play on 10 October 2016 at the Paradiso in Amsterdam, The Netherlands and this show will be recorded and filmed for a Live DVD and other formats. They also got a Pledge campaign to become the Live DVD and other stuff. For more information about the 10th anniversary show and the Pledge campaign please go to the bands website www.delain.nl. Interview by Hans and Yolanda Clijnk All photos made by Hans Clijnk
Interview with Marcela Bovio of Stream of Passion:
10 years ago Stream of Passion saw daylight a lot happened in these 10 years how do you look back on these 10 years? It has been a nice ride, we gone through a lot of different things and a lot of really nice adventures, yeah it has been good times.
(photos Stream of Passion early years 2005 & 2006)
(Photos Stream of Passion years 2009 – 2016)
Your last album is called “A War of Our Own” any relation between the title and the problem you had with your label? A little bit!!! We choose that title because we know a time to come up with a concept we would have globe the whole album, we got figured out that most of the songs were about some kind of conflict, you know there is of course some songs there about this conflict we were had with the label but there
were also songs about the conflicts in Mexico the drug wars and the social problems happening over there and there is also songs about personal conflicts of friends or family struggling against disease like cancer, depression so “ A War of Our Own” was kind a like a nice way to basically sum up all those battles that we have in our everyday lives.
The problems with your last label also made you decide to make an album with crowdfunding and it was a very big success but did you keep in mind that it was a big risk to do? Of course!!!!! I am not going to lie to you in the beginning when we were setting everything up that we have this question like in the back of our heads…. What if no one…. participate, what if we don’t make our goal but there was someone out there willing to give us a very generous loan in case we didn’t make our goal that gave us a little bit peace of mind. And luckily after the campaign started immediately burst it and I think within 10 or 11 days that we have already reached our goal. So from that moment on it was just exiting and heart-warming and yeah just very eager to finish this album.
A lot of your lyrics are issues of personal nature is this a part of your Mexican roots to sing about these things to give it a place? I think so!!! It is definitely for me an outlet and the more I do it the more I dare to say, I going to like that it is really therapy actually for me to write down something that is very personal and it also helps to give it a place for me.
Beside you are singer of Stream of Passion you also did backing vocals by MaYan and The Gentle Storm and the last band must be special for you because you work with the founder of Stream of Passion (Arjen Lucassen) How was it do backing vocals for these bands and to work again with Arjen? Well it all falling on the right place, when he and Anneke were writing this album they got in touch with Johan and told him they want to do live shows and form a band. When he came home and told me Anneke had contact him I think oh my god, I would die if I ever had the chance to sing with Anneke van Giersbergen and a few weeks later we were talking about it, maybe would it be possible if you(Marcella) like to sing. And it all came together, and at the end we recording a video clip and I did some backing vocals for the clip track and here we are and I am so happy that I am be able to join along because the band is amazing the music is amazing it is a lot of fun.
Are you already busy with writing new songs for a next album or is that too early to ask? I have, I have some ideas that I have been working on, secretly I have been working actually on a solo album that I going to be recording in a couple of months and also a lot of those ideas I think like no this is stream of passion so I got some little box of things already but we still have to get on and work on the details.
Next album: Crowdfunding or release by a label?
I don’t know, crowdfunding was a lot of work but it also gave us so much more back. It wasn’t just about the money but the effect now we see, people wearing the shirts of the campaign everywhere and when we see someone wearing the shirt in the audience we think yeah there is someone that believes in us and willing to keep us going. And people see each other and it come like a really family. For that matter I think we would definitely consider that. I think it is still a good option in our heads.
Is there anything you like to add to this interview or to say to our readers? First of all, thank you for the chance of speaking our minds and say a big hello to all of your readers, I sure hope that we get the chance to visit Poland in the near future, that would be brilliant.
We like to thank you for this interview and wish you and the band all the best
Update 2016: Stream of Passion decided that they will stop but before they will they will play some club shows. On 2 September 2016 they play at the P60 in Amstelveen, The Netherlands and this show will be recorded for a DVD. The Farewell show of Stream of Passion is on 28 December 2016 Tivoli de Helling in Utrecht, The Netherlands. Interview by Hans & Yolanda Clijnk All Photos made by Hans Clijnk