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Interviews :: Interview met Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal
Geschreven door Jessica Santiago Lopez op 2012-05-06
Ron
‘Bumblefoot’ Thal is sinds 2006 al actief bij Guns N' Roses als
gitarist, maar als hij niet met GNR on tour is, heeft hij genoeg
andere projecten waar hij ook mee bezig is. Zo brengt hij zelf
materiaal uit en produceert hij ook nog eens voor andere artiesten,
zoals Alexa Vetere, die onlangs haar debuut album uitbracht. Ik
kreeg de kans om deze gitaar virtuoos te interviewen en zo een kans
sla je natuurlijk niet af! Ik sprak met Bumblefoot over de
aankomende GNR tour, zijn solo werk, andere projecten en meer!
Q: Hey Bumble, first
of all I’d like to thank you for taking the time to do this
interview. How are you?
Thank YOU, appreciate
it! About to leave in a few days for Russia, next GNR tour....
Q: You’re always so
busy. Can you tell us what projects you’re working on now?
I've been doing so
much producing, I was approached with a deal to start my own label.
I'm not sure if that's what I want to do, it's a lot to take on. My
heart is in creating, producing, I don't want to spread myself too
thin by taking on more than I can devote myself to.
Q: As I said, you’re
always so busy touring, recording, producing etc. How do you combine
this busy schedule with writing for your solo stuff? And how does
this affect it?
I have a hard time
writing while on tour, I think the intensity of performing and then
all the traveling, I get “music'd out”. But when I'm not on tour,
all I want to do is get to my studio - that's where I can record my
music, other people's music, it's where the creative juices flow.
Q: A bit more about
your solo work. You’ve released two videos simultaneously for
‘Invisible’. Why did you choose to release two?
The whole idea of
feeling Invisible, like you're in one reality and the person you're
trying to reach is in another – the videos hit on that, two videos
out at the same time, one in a normal lit room, the other filmed in
total darkness with night-vision cameras.
http://bit.ly/bumble2vids
Q: The last song you
released in the series of singles was “The Pink Panther Theme” in
December last year. Can we expect some new material any time soon?
“The Pink Panther
Theme” is the version I play live with GNR as my solo, the recording
has my GNR bandmates playing on it – I guess that makes it the only
music released with current members of GNR on it... well, so far. I
have some new music brewing in my head, just need to write lyrics
and get into the studio......
Q: The last few
singles you have released, you’ve been releasing them as you finish
them. Are there any plans to maybe release them all together on a
record as well, or would you rather include all new material when
the time arrives to release a new full length?
I've gotten spoiled
by the ease of releasing music without any manufacturing. Releasing
each song at a time with all the extras – the transcriptions and
backing tracks for guitar players, the recording stems for remixers,
each song release felt like more of an event, each song had all the
options I wish I had available to me when I was growing up and
trying to get deep into a song. I may still release CDs, but for now
the next plans are the tour, next few solo songs, more producing and
writing.... http://www.bumblefoot.com/store.php
Q: You’ve also been
producing and co-writing for ‘Breathe Again’, the debut album of
Alexa Vetere. You’ve actually been teaching her stuff for a while
and now you’ve produced and co-written ‘Breathe Again’. Can you tell
us a bit more about how this all started and what the whole process
was like?
Started back in '03,
'04, she was the daughter of a friend of a friend. Her goal was to
release an album, she had never sang, written a song or played
guitar. It would be a challenge – and I like challenges. So we
started on guitar lessons - she'd play until her fingertips were
literally black. Vocal lessons, songwriting, demoing... my solo band
backed her for recordings and live shows in NY & LA, all was going
well. She got a nice guitar endorsement, we posted a song at
iHeartRadio.... (the song ended up being #1 on the Rock charts with
over 3.6 million plays) Then I started with GNR, she went to
College, life happened. We always stayed in touch, and always knew
there would be a time when we'd put life aside and release the music
we made together. This year we did that. (Finally!)
www.reverbnation.com/alexavetere
Q: You’ve done and
achieved so much over the years. What’s the thing you’ve done that
you’re most proud of ‘til this day?
Playing Madison
Square Garden NYC in 2006. It's where I saw my first concert, was
meaningful to play there.
Q: When it comes to
touring, you’ve been all over the globe. Are there still places
you’d like to play?
Haven't played
Africa, , India, China.... ah, and Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia,
Thailand, that part of the world.
Q: So of course
there’s also a new Guns tour coming up, which will take you through
Europe. How do you prepare for all this touring?
A lot of running on
the treadmill, haha. And some guitar playing too.
Q: During this tour
you’ll also be making a stop over here in The Netherlands in
Rotterdam. Are you excited to be coming over here?
Yes! My solo drummer
Dennis Leeflang will be there, my friend Edo Van Der Kolk, guitarist
of Saturnine – long-time good friends. Always fun in the
Netherlands!
Q: Guns will also be
playing at some festivals like Graspop and Hellfest. Do you like
playing at festivals or do you enjoy headlining shows more?
Either are fine. If
you close your eyes there's no difference between playing in a small
club or at a huge festival, you're doing the same thing, it's
everything around you that's different – as long as you love what
you do, any kind of gig is good.
Q: Guns will be
headlining the Graspop Metal Meeting Festival this year. Do you
actually have spare time to check out other bands as well at
festivals? If so, are there any bands in particular that you’d like
to see at Graspop or at any other festival this year?
I enjoy seeing the
other bands at festivals, but the travel schedule doesn't always
allow it. Hopefully I'll get to see a few – Killswitch, Gojira,
Pain, Motorhead, Hatebreed, Bodom... great bands that Sunday!
Q: So what more is in
store for you in 2012, besides touring with Guns obviously?
Not sure what the
rest of the year's touring schedule will be, but hopefully I can
continue writing, producing & releasing music this year...
Q: And my last
question, do you have any message for our readers?
Thank you for
reading! Hope to see you all very soon! Dank u ! !
www.bumblefoot.com
Posted at:
www.metalkrant.net/nl/interviews/read/3662/interview-met-ron-bumblefoot-thal/
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