MICHAEL SCHENKER INTERVIEW
Michael Schenker is a German rock guitarist who has played in UFO and led the Michael Schenker Group. He was an early member of Scorpions, the band co-founded by his elder brother Rudolf Schenker. In the mid-1970s Michael joined UFO, playing lead guitar. He left the band in 1978 to found the Michael Schenker Group.
Twinmusix got to speak to Michael Schenker about the upcoming album, coming to Australia and more.
TM - Hey, Thank You for taking this call with us today. How are you?
MS - I am good, Thank You for having this call with me. Where are you from?
TM - Australia
MS - That is far away.
TM - You haven't been to Australia yet. We wish you had been here.
MS - No we haven't, but I can smell it, it's just around the corner. I hope we are about to show up there. I have this funny feeling.
TM - We all hope you do show up in Australia too.
MS - We are working on a world tour, the tricky part is there's such a big undertaking that we have to find a promoter that is willing to take us back home.
TM - You go to Japan a lot.
MS - Yes, we go to Japan but the promoters back us.
TM - There has to be one smart promoter that will bring us off a Japan tour.
MS - I hope so.
TM - How was playing Loud Park Japan?
MS - Fantastic, we even went to Malaysia, Korea, and Singapore as well. We are always delighted to go to Japan, it is always a pleasure to be there.
TM - What is your favorite thing about Japan?
MS - Everything, it is so clean and people are so friendly. They have food in their department stores, it is like Disneyland. Have you been to Japan?
TM - I haven't but I've been to Disneyland.
MS - I will come to Australia and you have to come to Japan.
TM - Ok, deal. What can fans expect from your new album Revelation?
MS - It is the next step up from Resurrection and we have some special guests on the album. Ronnie Romero that is going to lead for Ritchie Blackmore and he's singing. We had Graham Bonnet write lyrics for two of the songs and it sounds majestic. Everyone did a great job. We did a listening party in Germany and one guy said Resurrection made him happy and make is his want to party, so you can expect party music.
TM - You have written with a lot of different artists on your Album, has this affected your writing style?
MS - I always write the same way, it doesn't matter what my circumstances are. When I play guitar you have to explore and discover and find the gold. I will write an album till I find all the pieces. I write the music, send it to the singer and they pick what they like. Then we work on it together. When it is ready to record, we record it and once and it is done. We make it look beautiful.
Our drummer passed away halfway through recording so we had to find a new drummer that could play 45 songs and play a 2 and a half-hour set. We organized Simon to play and then we organised the listening party. On the 11th and 12th we did two videos in LA and on the 15th we started our tour.
The tour was a really big challenge and I was upset that our last drummer passed away. Everyone was upset, but I said we have to stay positive and move on. Then paul Raymond passed away, but now I know I am not going to the unknown. I have people waiting for me, so it takes the edge off dying.
TM - I am Sorry for your loss.
MS - It is not easy, but you get ready for your own departure. The rock scene you fall into is great.
TM - You worked with Kirk Hammet on a song, what was it like working with him?
MS - He is a fan and we became friends. One day I said "Hey Kirk, do you want to do a song on our album" and he said, "Ok Michael, let's do it". He came to a show our first leg of the United States show and jammed with us it was good fun.
TM - If you could have any band play one of your songs, what band would it be, what song would it be and in your style or their style?
MS - I have made over 70 albums and most of them aren't even known to people because they were done in my middle years. There is so much out there so hard to tell. I don't even look at life as what part is the best. Life is a journey and the best parts and even the bad times are good because they form us. I look at life as one piece and one journey. I look at my whole life. I keep to now, I never look back. I stopped listening to music when I was 17. I am not a consumer, I am a Creator and I love to perform it is a passion.
TM - Is there anything else you want to say to your fans?
MS - Keep rocking and hope to see you in Australia sometime soon. I think it's just around the corner.
TM - That is exciting, We hope you come to Australia soon. Thank You for this interview today.
iTunes Link: https://music.apple.com/au/album/revelation/1465323039