Over the years Sebastian Bach has become an ever more frequent visitor to Australia, usually with a new album for us when he arrives. This time though his latest release has been his Autobiography ’18 and Life on Skid Row’ – we get to grips with that, the recent Hard Rock Heaven show in Hull UK and the chance of new music on the horizon. Just don’t mention Michael Sweet…
This time round interviews are via conference call so we phone in at the designated time just as Seb is finishing up with his previous interview. The question they close with is about his favourite song. I know it’s a cliche the interviewer says hesitantly, but he has to ask: “…your favourite song, the best thing you have ever put down on record?” Seb replies in his excited voice that “On record it might be ‘In a Darkened Room’ vocally, or it might be ‘Monkey Business’. Those are two different styles of singing but when I hear the song ‘Monkey Business’ on radio to this day sometimes I’ve gotta pull the car over ‘cos it sounds incredible.”
After the obligatory shout outs and goodbyes it’s over to The Rockpit. It’s interesting getting to listen into someone else’s interview, even if it’s just the tail end. I find myself musing bout the questions, how many times he’s heard the same ones today. I wonder if I’ll get anything fiery or controversial, or maybe just the fun Sebastian we had he last couple of times? There’s not a lot of time to ponder though, our fifteen minutes starts now…
Sebastian: Hey Mark
Mark: Hey Sebastian, how are you?
Sebastian: Good, nice to talk to you.
Mark: I think this we’ll be the firth time we’ve had the chance to catch up in the nine years we’ve been going. We’ll have to make up an award for our most interviewed artist. And don’t worry I’m not going to ask what your best song is, I’ve written the answer to that one down already.
Sebastian: (laughs) You heard that! That’s funny.
Mark: You’re coming to see us in just a few weeks now but you’ve recently just got back from the other side of te pond playing as The Sebastian Bach All Stars over at Hard Rock Heaven in Hull UK, we just talked to George Lynch who played with you and he had a great time despite the travel. What was your take on the Festival?
Sebastian: Well I mean for me I’m honoured to play with Vinny Appice of Black Sabbath, and play ‘Mob Rules’ with him because that’s him playing on ‘Mob Rules’ (laughs) and ‘Stand Up and Shout’. I rehearsed singing those songs, you know really screaming like Dio, and you don’t just roll out of bed and it happens, unless you’re Dio. So I rehearsed those songs for a couple of weeks and picked songs I really liked like ‘The Hunter’ which is my favourite Dokken song, and Loudness’ ‘Rock and Roll Crazy Nights’ which is so much fun to play. So I came there to sing and that’s what I did and then… I left (laughs)
Mark: (laughs) and people had a great time before that last bit happened. I hope you didn’t have as far to travel back as George!
Sebastian: (laughs) I’ve been doing this for 30 years now, if I told you about all the travel to the gigs that would be a pretty boring interview. But that’s what being on the road is.
Mark: I guess it’s always good for us to appreciate the effort you guys put into getting to come over and see us in places like Australia. We get the wonderful two hours on stage and you get that but also the hotel rooms and the travel.
Sebastian: Well you know I’m a life long cannabis smoker and I’m going to Singapore before Australia and I know for a fact there’s not going to be any cannabis for me in Singapore so that flight alone, that’s not fun for me really but let’s go you know! (laughs) I’m not going to let it stop me doing what I do but it’s challenging going from country to country. One thing I will say is that in Australia and America we understand the concept of air conditioning. And sometimes in the UK you’ll go on these outrageous van rides for eight hours or whatever and you’re thinking of a nice hotel room ad you get there and a lot of the times there’s no air-conditioning and it’s like 80 or 90 degrees right – man you gotta be kidding me and that makes me crazy ‘cos I’m not used to sleeping with the windows open, with the street and the noise of the traffic. Does that sound like whining? Well believe me when you’ve been traveling all day and you get there and they’re like “Would you like a fan?” And I’m like “No, I want a room like the Holiday Inn in America!” (laughs) But Australia totally gets it, I love Australia (laughs)
Mark: Unless we have another power crisis then we’ll all be opening the windows. Normally when you come and see us you have a new album with you, so I have to ask are you writing?
Sebastian: Yeah, yeah we started demoing a new record but you gotta realise in the music industry when a guy like Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey, Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, Billy Joel say there’s no reason to do another record other than that’s what we do because there’s no record industry. So I am doing one but after doing ‘Bring ‘Em Bach Alive!’; ‘The Last Hard Men’; ‘Angel Down’; ‘Forever Wild’; ‘Kicking and Screaming’; ‘ABacalypse Now’; and ‘Give ‘Em Hell’ that’s a lot of records. (laughs) If you collect all my solo records that’s a lot of records and so I’m not in a rush to do one , I’ve given all of my energy and time and money that I’m not in a hurry to do another record. My fans if they want to checkout my solo material there’s more than enough of it and maybe some they’ve never heard. So while I’m not in a rush, having said that I am demoing and I am wanting to get back in the studio. I’m making anew record because I want to pretty much for no other reason.
Mark: And Michael Sweet won’t be producing?
you know when you’ve asked the wrong question when tumbleweeds blow through the silence just before…
Sebastian: ….. No.
Mark: We caught up with Rob Affuso when he was in town a few months ago, I know the latest stage of the ‘Will Skid Row reform’ saga has gone by the wayside but he had some positive things to say and some great things about you, do you get the chance to catch up with Rob much these days?
the tumbleweeds blow through again…
Sebastian: ….. No.
Mark: OK… One of the many interesting things to come out of your book was that you said that when you were thinking of things that had happened in the past one of the things that you did was go out and change your set-list and you put in some older songs that you hadn’t played for a while, are you going to be doing that when you come down and see us?
Sebastian: I don’t know what the set-list is gonna be, we haven’t been rehearsing for that yet but I’m planning to get back to more of my solo material this time (laughs) I just said that a bunch of times, but really I have no idea what the set’s gonna be yet, I don’t know. But I do know that the way I like to do my set now is to do more ballads first and then heavy music because everybody’s filming everything and I myself can’t take the volume of loud Metal for like two hours onstage next to the drums like I used to especially if its a smaller venue. My ears can’t really take the extreme volume as much as they used to. I find it’s better now to come out and do some slower numbers and then the sound man gets used to it and it sounds really good and then we put the hammer down. (laughs)
Mark: That sound great. You mentioned something there that I hate about seeing bands live these days, the sheer amount of people taking photos or staring into their phones as they film the show. It must be something that artists hate?
Sebastian: It is, it is. Because they don’t really have any right to rock into my gig, hold their phone up and film the whole show, go home and then immediately upload it to YouTube it’s ridiculous, it’s not cool!
Mark: And they miss the show!
Sebastian: That’s not what we’re doing up there, we’re giving a live performance! I’ve done 4 Broadway shows and you can’t even have your phone on and you can’t film that stuff or upload it so I don’t understand why Rock and Roll is any different. But you know I don’t really mind if they’re standing somewhat back from the stage 20 or 30 feet you know, standing where it sounds good but if I walk on stage and someone front row centre is just sticking their hand up with their phone right in my face I hate that. Everyone’s gotta hate that, I don’t want to be thinking of how my hair looks or how I’m standing or whatever that is all I want to think about is singing and doing a great show. Not performing for this one person who’s filming the whole thing. And if you have them put it down there’s a weird vibe like you’re a dick! (laughs)
Mark: (laughing)
Sebastian: So you really can’t win. (laughs) But it effects you too, I end up not moving around as much, not running so much, not jumping off the drum riser and that’s the effect it has on me at least.
Mark: I am big fan of Rock biographies and yours has been one of my favourites of the last few years, there’s some great stories in there and some things that just make you re-read them and go “Did he really say that?”, the Ted Nugent stuff was brutal, have you heard anything from Ted about that?
Sebastian: No, no not from Ted anyway, I’ve not heard from him since Supergroup. Well you know what’s going on here politically in America these days is completely polarizing. And (sighs) you know I can’t even turn the phone on some days without seeing all the bad shitty news that is endless ever since Donald Trump came into office. It’s like I can’t even keep up with the misery of what’s happening in the world and there’s really only one side to be on, you know, with what’s happening with climate change – if we don’t stop this our kids are not going to have a place to live! So it’s got to the point now where we really can’t allow this; the same goes for gun control, and everybody knows the NRA is ridiculous to allow, you know machine guns on sale at Walmart – it’s insane! So if I speak up and give my opinion and someone else who supports Donald Trump doesn’t like that I take that as a badge of honour! (laughs)
Mark: (laughs)
Sebastian: Because I’m not into all these things, I’m not into racism, I’m not into guns, I’m not into denying climate change like a moron. I’m not into that shit so if that pisses somebody off – good! That’s the way I feel. I have a ten year old daughter who I can’t imagine what the climate is gonna be for her when she’s 50. So what some person on the internet thinks doesn’t men shit tome,my daughter means something to me.
Mark: We all need to look after each other, you’re right, and it’s not us we’re doing it for its everyone that comes after us. That’s a great sentiment to end with Sebastian. Thanks so much for taking the time to talk to us today. You’re over in Australia in October and on the way it’s your first time in weedless Singapore, but I can’t believe that you’re managing to play a Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp the day before in L.A.!
Sebastian: No that’s a month later dude (laughing)
Mark: (laughing)
Sebastian: I’ll be OK, I think I can handle that schedule! (laughing) I think I can do it, I’m pretty sure (laughing) I’ll think I’m good, I got thirty days to get ready! (laughing)
Mark: (laughing) See you mate thanks for the reassurances!
Sebastian: All right buddy! Take care!
SEBASTIAN BACH IS IN AUSTRALIA FROM 21st – 28th OCTOBER 2017
