ANGEL DUST INTERVIEW W/ STEVEN BANX 3-02
ALINA: How has the band evolved since Bernd left and Ritchie joined the band?
STEVEN: It's changed, that's for sure. You can hear it, we can feel it… It's a different person, a different musician that is playing with us. But we are pretty satisfied so the whole situation is pretty relaxed. There's no trouble and everybody enjoys Ritchie's playing and we have fun with how it is now. Personally I miss Bernd a little bit in the band because he's a friend of mine and I always enjoyed playing with him, but it's only a little uncomfortable (at first) playing with Ritchie.
ALINA: Your new album, Of Human Bondage, is quite a bit heavier and darker then your previous albums. Why the change and is this the sound of Angel Dust we'll hear in the future?
STEVEN: First of all, I think it's a kind of natural evolution of Angel Dust. So if you listen to all our albums, we changed sound and we changed the style a little bit from album to album and we just went on with that. I think it will go further on the next album… We will have another "evolution" on the next album. You always have new influences and new ideas and you feel different for the moment you write the songs and so it just happens. We don't "bondage" ourselves, you know, and we don't tell ourselves we need to write the same kind of album as we did last time because we felt good or something like that. We just do our songs.
ALINA: You guys seem to be masters at doing cover tunes. What are some new cover tunes that you want to do?
STEVEN: New cover tunes? I don't think we will do a metal song, a song that was originally metal, and do another metal version of it. I don't think that this is necessary. I find it interesting to do a pop song like "Killer" and make a metal song out of it. That was interesting, but I don't know if we will do another cover because we have done quite a lot of cover versions on the albums already. But I would pretty much enjoy to do another pop song… Something like, oh, Madonna or Britny Spears…
ALINA: HAHAHAHA Oh no!!! I'd probably die of laughter!!!
STEVEN: Uh huh.
ALINA: Have you ever recorded "Believe" (Savatage) and will it ever be released on cd?
ANGEL DUST INTERVIEW W/ FRANK 3-02
ALINA: How has the band evolved since Bernd left and Ritchie joined the band?
FRANK: Mainly that we don't rehearse three times a week anymore because Ritchie doesn't like to come to rehearsals… I don't know why (laughs)
ALINA: Your new album is quite heavier and darker than your previous albums. Why the change?
FRANK: Well, you remember that everybody was a little angry on the last tour we did in the USA? This is one of the reasons because this aggression came into the music of course. It also has a lot to do with Ritchie's kind of guitar playing because he's definitely a different kind of guitar player than Bernie is. Bernie grew up with this traditional European metal bands like Rainbow and stuff and Ritchie has grown up with this Bay Area thrash music. When we finished Enlighten the Darkness we wanted to be a little thrashier on the next album and Ritchie was helpful with this (aspect).
ALINA: You guys seem to be masters at doing cover tunes. What are some of the songs that you would want to do later?
FRANK: If you ask me personally, yes, I would love to do something like March of the Black Queen from Queen but I don't know if anyone else in my band would agree with me. But this would be something I would really spend a lot of attention on.
ALINA: How come "Believe" (Savatage) has never been released on cd?
FRANK: Century Media asked us to do this tribute to Savatage for a compilation. No one in the band has any idea when this tribute album will be released.
ALINA: What's the hardest song to play live and what's your favorite song to play live?
FRANK: I really like Cross of Hatred very much. The hardest song to play would be all the songs on To Dust You Will Decay because I can't remember how to play them anymore!!! I have no idea.
ALINA: Yah, you and your funny picture on that album! Hahaha I love that picture though!!!
FRANK: I'm a nice guy in that picture, yah? This is with at least 30cm more hair and 40 lbs. less weight! I was about 140 lbs. in that picture.
ALINA: In ONE word, describe each band member, including yourself.
FRANK: Today I saw a picture of a very rare frog that reminds me of Assy. So he's a frog or a frog-face. This is very difficult!!! Ritchie is sky-nose because in all pictures it looks like everyone can look inside his nose. Dirk…hmm… I just call him "dicker" which means fatty in English.
ALINA: Awwww, you're mean!!!
FRANK: That's what we call him in the band! Okay, my brother… THAT'S difficult! Hey wait, my wife is around me now. Hey, what's a good word for Steven? Oh yah! Shorty, "der kurzer". Myself… alte hackfresse. It's something like having a very, very ugly face. (In English, it means something similar to having the type of face when you smell a skunk or sulfur..Alina).
ALINA: What is the best question ever asked to you?
FRANK: How would you describe yourself….
ALINA: That's a good question! Okay, what is the one question that no one has ever asked that you would think they would ask?
FRANK: I have no idea!!!
ALINA: You'll be on tour in April with Rhapsody and At Vance. How did this tour come about and what was your reaction to it?
FRANK: Century Media Europe really wanted us to do a tour for this album and Century Media USA wanted us to do a tour for this album as well. So they were almost in competition with each other. First we said we would prefer a tour in the USA again and so we said no to two offers to tour in Europe. We have been in the inner rings of the bands that might tour with King Diamond but then it was cancelled. In the last minute we got the offer to tour with Rhapsody. We know that the package doesn't really fit together too well, but we don't care.
ALINA: So you guys won't come here yet then?
FRANK: Century Media is still trying to get us over there this year.
ALINA: In November you performed at ProgPower. What type of experience was it for you and how does it differ from the European festivals you are used to?
FRANK: Yes. The festivals in Europe are definitely a lot bigger. With bands like that in Europe they would've had at least double the amount of the audience for sure. But this festival was very well organized for all the bands. I would like to thank Glenn for all his hard work. To play in a festival that far from home is a big honor for every band I guess. We were really surprised that the audience was able to sing along with us! We didn't expect that. We definitely had a great time there and we would love to do it again.
ALINA: When you got back together as a band, you changed your musical direction… why? It used to be thrash and now it's power.
FRANK: One thing I really want to mention is that I personally don't care about all these "categories". I don't think they are helpful for neither the people nor the bands. Because we got many new members in the band since we started playing music in the 80s, of course we changed the musical style because everyone is involved in the songwriting. That's the main reason.
ALINA: Is it difficult or easy to having your brother in the band?
FRANK: Easy, very easy. He's a very clever guy and he knows when I overdo things and I know when he overdoes things. So we help each other deal with all things that happen to us to make it as easy as possible.
ALINA: Do you think it's hard to market your style of music in the US compared to Europe?
FRANK: If my information is correct, it is easier to sell our music in the United States. We played at least 150 shows in Germany but we sell more records in the USA. We sell at least the same amount in the US as we do in Germany.
ALINA: The first two albums… will they ever be re-released?
FRANK: You know all the people from Century Media… Ask them!
ALINA: Where did the name Angel Dust come from?
FRANK: It's a song from a Venom album called Welcome To Hell. It was very fashionable in the 80s to choose a name from a song of another big band. Like Running Wild is a Judas Priest song for example. We had NO idea this was the name of a drug! You know when we first recognized the name Angel Dust was a drug was when this movie from Michael Thomas from Miami Vice appeared on video here in 1990 or 1991. That's when we first realized it was a drug, PCP.
ALINA: Who is your favorite bass player?
FRANK: My favorite bass player is John Deaton. The bass player from Queen. He's one of the most unrecognized bass players in the music business but he's awesome. He's a genius on bass. It's also my most, most, most favorite band.
ALINA: In a hundred years from now, when you're dead, would you rather be hatefully remembered or totally forgotten?
FRANK: Hatefully remembered, of course! Any promotion is good promotion. Maybe then my grand-grand-grandchildren can profit from the money then.