1 - How did you come up with this idea of an album between you and Akira Kajiyama? You already knew him before from several projects, including the Japanese Rainbow tribute album, some of your solo records and even the Japanese tour of HTP but, how did you came up with this new idea?
Basically, we came up with the idea because of the connections you stated in your question. In addition to that, the record company thought it would be a good idea.
2 - In the press-release it is mentioned that you recorded the vocals and he recorded all the instruments. Does he really play all the instruments: guitar, bass, drums and keyboards? Didn't you have any guest musicians in the recording process?Absolutely no guests per se but Toshio Egawa played keyboards and is credited on the liner notes to the CD. That is one aspect that makes this CD so brilliant is that Akira not only produced it but played so many instruments. He is truly a major talent.
3 - This new record "Fire Without Flame" has lots of different songs, it has some fast songs, mid-tempos, AOR ballads, bluesy rockers, etc. It just came out like this or did you really wanted to write such an heterogeneous record?
We did not set out to make it this way. The songs reflect styles that are influences that we both have. It's better to showcase a bit of diversity that to be one dimensional.
4 - You also have a new label for this record, AOR Heaven. How did you got in touch with them and why did you chose them to release this album?
Akira and Yamaha sought out AOR Heaven. They knew I was on Frontiers as a solo artist in Europe and I know they did not want a conflict of interest and I respect that. We are very pleased that AOR Heaven has released this record in Europe... I am especially happy to see Akira get some deserving attention from the European fans and media. He deserves it.
5 - Where did you recorded the album and who produced it?
5 - Where did you recorded the album and who produced it?We both produced our parts separately but exchanged files back and forth. Technology enables us to do this that it is like being in the same studio. Gary Tole and I produced the vocal tracks. Akira did all the rest.
6 - What kind of subjects did you used for the lyrics in this record?
Reincarnation, romance, lack of romance, broken hearts, personal transformation, rock and roll wildness, ripping it up, interpersonal and even some political subject matter (i.e. "Slow Burn").
7 - Do you plan to play this songs live of with Akira or is it just a studio project?
Certainly, it would be great to expose the European and other continents to the talent that Akira has and the synergy we have together onstage. However, there are no definite tour plans in the works as of the date of this interview. If the right situation were to come about where it would make good business sense for us to do some shows outside of Japan, we would probably entertain the idea. When we set out to do this record we did not set out with it in mind as being ONLY a studio project, if that is what you mean.
8 - In the past year I've been asking to a lot of musicians and bands what do they think about the internet piracy, the albums being available months before the release date, etc. I'm curious with your response to this because your career is over 3 decades now and you saw a little bit of everything in the music industry, it is always changing so, what do you think about all this internet file sharing, downloading, mp3?
It was bound to happen with technology. There really is no stopping it without severe invasion of freedoms. Regulating can only do so much. Boots and pirating will exist no matter what changes are brought about in technology. Hey... there was just as much of this going on back when we had analog and tapes.
9 - What are your plans for the future? Solo records, collaborations like this one, playing live, DVD?
This summer, I am heading to Japan for a very special show with the New Japan Philharmonic. I have a few USA shows planned, one is a major radio festival in Tucson, Arizona with Alice Cooper and others.I just finished filming a major TV commercial here in the USA. I contributed a song to Howard Lease's (Heart) new record in the works.And, yes, I do hope to start writing and recording another solo CD fairly soon.
10 - Do you want to leave a final message to your fans?
I want to say thank you to them all from the depths of my heart and soul. It is their loyalty that keeps me going. I love them all and thanks for their support.
Entrevistador: RDS
Entrevistado: Joe Lynn Turner – Vocals
-
AOR Heaven: www.aorheaven.com
GerMusica: www.germusica.com
No comments:
Post a Comment