4
years ago I had the great experience to have an interview with you, then
you told me about your album "Normal", your experience with Mattias IA
Eklundh. As well as your experience as a producer, how did it come the
idea to get your own "Custom Shaped Bumblefoot Guitar" and being part of
the G3
Then
you were living another musical moment very cool i think, you got
married too Over the years I've followed your career especially when you
told me in an email your were gonna be part of the Guns n' Roses, then
it came a long tour for "Chinese Democracy", your new solo album "Ab
Normal", your acoustic album "barefoot" and many tours all over the
world ... that even finally brought to you to visit my country.
About
this and much more i would like talk now. First If we look the past
¿What does mean for yourself your album "Normal"nowadays?
Today
I see the Normal album as the beginning of a crazy roller-coaster ride,
that leads up to this moment.... it's part of my own GNR chapter, it
was events with GNR that got me to write a lot of the album.
It was 2004, and dealing with the music business inspired songs like Real, The Color of Justice, Rockstar For A Day.
Is
it crazy to be part of GNR. ¿How did you make " Abnormal" after being
a member of GNR and going back to the studio to keep working in your
own career?
It's big juggling act, juggling time. When
GNR takes a break, I lock myself in the studio and work on my own music,
other people's music, everything else. It's a battle against the clock,
24/7.
GNR finished touring in mid-2007 and I went into the
studio and started working on the 'Abnormal' CD, while also recording
bands for a friend's TV show 'Talking Metal On Fuse'
By the time I
finished and released Abnormal it was mid-2008, soon after 'Chinese
Democracy' was released and I quickly put out an acoustic Ep, 'Barefoot'
in Dec 08.
In early 09 we started rehearsing for the next batch
of touring, took a break for the Summer and I toured the US & Europe
playing guitar with Lita Ford, went back for final rehearsals with GNR
in the Fall and hit the road in Dec 09.
Been touring since, and
during any breaks in between legs of the tour, I'm right back in the
studio taking on years of work that have been waiting to get done, guest
solos for albums and producing other people... while I was rehearsing
in 09 I spent 6 months mixing the 'Automata' album by the band 'Return
To Earth' (Metal Blade records) - the album was released this week,
great band!
By Kimmo Pulli
You dont have too much time for your family.
10
things at once while racing against the clock, haha.My wife would come
visit while I was in LA, and she joins me on tour whenever possible.
She's the best. I call her my 'Partner In Crime'.
Your
first album "The Adventures Of Bumblefoot" is about to be re-released
with a complete songbook of the album. Why did you choose re-released
this album? .and there is a chance to get re-released "911", "Hands",
"Uncool" or the Sheet music book?
Shrapnel Records owns
all the rights to the album, so it was completely up to them whether the
album would/could be available or not. It was released in '95, on
Roadrunner Records in Europe & Japan... when I left the label in 97
they stopped manufacturing, and the album making 'out-of-print'. No
more copies, became a collectible on eBay, haha.
It stayed this
way for a decade, and then last year Shrapnel got in touch, said they
wanted to re-release it. I was happy as fuck - so we worked together on
tweaking the artwork and adding some bonus tracks from a video game
soundtrack I did for Sega in '96..
Starting this week you can get
signed copies at my li'l webstore (www.bumblefoot.com/store) and $5
from every album is being donated to Multiple Sclerosis research. The
songbook.
In 97, I decided to take on the challenge of
transcribing the 'Adventures' CD inits entirety. Every note played, the
fingers, picking, musical notation, TAB, noises, vocals, everything.
It took 6 months of re-learning the album and writing out the parts,
probably another 6 months just for typesetting and art work and making
it all 'book ready'. 200 pages... I gotta say, writing out the album
was tougher than making the making itself, haha.
That's at the
ol' webstore too. All the other albums, “Hands”, “9.11”,“Uncool”,
“Forgotten Anthology”, “Normal”, “Abnormal”,” Barefoot” - they're all
available at my webstore, on iTunes and all those kinda sites, they're
all available.
Will I ever do sheet music for the other albums? I don't know if I'll live long enough to have time to.
Ok
I remember 4 or 5 years ago it was very difficult to get your records
in South America, I got mine with my good friend Gustavo Serrano of
CDk.cl, however today I see you have your webstore in Brazil with your
last 3 albums. Could we have the complete merchandising in near future?
Yes,
I'm selling CDs on MercadoLivre.com , thanks to the help of wonderful
friends in Brazil! A way to make it easier for South Americans to get
the albums. If there is a demand for more CDs and merch, I'll definitely
make them available.
It would be great to have available all the albums for Southamerica thru Mercadolibre.com
Tell
me about your experience in the contest "Be My Guest" in South-America
during the tour with GNR?, tell me some anecdotes of that visit. i
participe in this contest but i did not win.
That was a
fun contest! That was something I put together on my own with my label
Bald Freak. I wanted to do something special for the S. American tour,
and it worked out well :) Everyone I met with that won the contest
were great, so gracious and kind, really enjoyed meeting them all. Just
hanging out, having good conversation, playing guitar. Some got to
hang a bit with Axl as well, which was an added treat for them. You
entered the contest? Aaahhh!!!! Sorry man, next time we'll have to
figure a little something out, non-contest-related.
"Barefoot" solo artist's latest production.
Tell us
about GNR and ¿What was your "REAL" contribution to the "Chinese
Democracy"? About REAL im just kidding hope u get it hehe.
A
*pun*! A Chilean Pun! Love it! Ha,ha. We'd spend 14 hours a day in
studios in LA and NY between touring, I'd hear some song I never heard
before and start feeling out ideas, rhythm stuff, riffy stuff, melodic
stuff, noodly-noodly stuff, fretless stuff, different amps, pickups,
guitars, fx, just a lot of experimenting, for every song. In the end
there were plenty of options and possibilities, and decisions were made
on what to keep, what to ditch, what to boost, what to duck.
What are GNR currently doing ? Is there a new material out soon? Any idea when GNR would be visiting us again?
Don't
know when we're coming back to S. A., we have a whole lot of the planet
we still need to visit. In a few days I'm flying out to London to start
the European GNR tour, we'll be there for 2 months. After that, we'll
see what comes together. Ya can't predict anything about the future,
just have to see what's able to happen.
Few
months ago in my country there was an horrible earthquake, in fact GNR
was one of the first bands to play for a massive audience after the
earthquake, what did you think then? Do you have friends in Chile?
The
earthquake was a big deal in the US, very concerned. Immediately
people from Chile started emailing me asking us to please not cancel our
show there, they need us to give them a break, some happiness. I heard
a lot of personal stories about loss, it was very sad. And this is why
I say you can't predict anything - you never know what's going to
happen, all you can do is not forget this, appreciate the good people
and good things around you, be a good person and leave behind something
positive.
Good
to know musician like you, are worried about what was happening here,
bringing all your good vibes to CHIle. We really appreciate it.
The whole world was worried and wishing you good vibes.
I waited for about 2 hours to all of you to see on the stage, it started a little bit late lol.
Um, yeah. It was.
Tell
me Ron of what's to come in your solo career, more albums and when they
would be done some dates to tell? and what type of music we should
expect?
I think putting out the Adventures album is giving
me the itch to do more instrumental guitar music. I have a hard time
writing on the road - it can get intense, and I need time away to
re-charge my batteries and get inspired, I don't get that on the road.
But I'm going to try hard to write while I'm in Europe. I'm going to
force it out, haha. It's been 2 years since my last albums came out, and
I need to make more music.
With Guns N 'Roses in Santiago on March 22
Im
pretty sure lot of your fans are expecting a brand new album very
soon....well we will not take more of your time, i know this next monday
you will start a new tour to UK with GNR, more than sure you wanna
spend more time with Mrs bfoot eating sushi. i would like ask you for
the last 2 things ? Thanx for your time , and hope to see you soon
here in Chile.
Great chatting with ya, thanks for the cool questions and all! And the puns!! Lol.