Interviews

Michael KISKE – Amanda SOMERVILLE

Kiske Somerville

September 08 2010

It’s after the long search for the entrance of the hotel where was going to take place (with a kinda “after nuclear war” vibe and look to it, due to big renovation work) the interview, that I at last take a seat with legendary German singer Michael Kiske, along with Amanda Somerville, for a 30 minutes long conversation (rather than a purely bounded interview, that explains the strange structure of this interview) about their common project (ndlr: Release planned September 24th, 2010). I can only say that with their kindness and passion, you really feel at home! Go to the end to see a surprising answer about the musical guilty pleasure of Michael!

Fab: What is the main difference between doing a duet on one song for an album, and doing it for a whole full-length album?
Michael Kiske (Vocals): That's great! I mean, it's like… That was actually the question Serafino (Perugino, Frontiers Records Owner) was addressing to me. Before anything was organized, he was asking me if I would like to do a full record with a female voice. Like on every song, we both sing. It's a cool idea, it's a very nice thing to do. And he was actually asking me at the right time, before it was before UNISONIC showed up, you know? Now that I'm into a real band, obviously I can't be doing those projects anymore in such an amount. So, I'm quite happy that it sneaked in, because I really like it, I really like Amanda, she's a really nice person. It could have been different, but I really like her. Her voice anyway is awesome! But I also like her personality, I'm really in touch with her. Even if we do our own thing, it kinda matches together very nicely. It was possible that it didn't work, but it worked very nice, I'm very happy on how it turned out to be.
And Serafino was the one who got the idea. And the guy who did all the work was definitely Mat Sinner. It's his baby. He got the songs together, got all the musicians together, he's the producer, he did most of the work. Eighteen months! It was easy for me, but for him, it was a lot of work.

Kiske Somerville

Fab: What were your feelings at first, to be summoned like this, for this kind of project?
Michael Kiske: When it came up? The thing is, for me, this is… I always have the opportunity to reject a song. The same thing with PLACE VENDOME, they send me the material, and if I don't like it, I don't have to do it of course. I always have the sort of decision, but I never needed to reject a song, because Serafino is very carefully picking the songs. I think, I'm not sure, something you'll have to ask Mat, because he was more involved in that, but I'm pretty sure that Mat was offering the songs, and then Serafino had the decisions, "Yeah, that might work", and then he sent it to me. He had a lot of good ideas! Especially concerning my person. He helped me a lot. Sometimes, I need that, I need somebody to push me.

We have the pleasure at that point to welcome the charming Amanda for the rest of the interview -

Fab: Hello Amanda! So, how do you meet each other with Michael?

Amanda Somerville (Vocals): Well, it was funny because, you know, I do these video blogs that I post on YouTube, and at the video shoot, I was doing a video blog and I'm very candid with my camera. Nothing is rehearsed. I'm always putting my camera on everybody's faces (laughter). I was talking about it, Michael was there, and I say "hey, for the first time, Michael Kiske and myself are in the same place! You know? After years of working on different projects together, we're finally face to face!" And you see his face on the camera, "What? Really? We already worked together before ?". He didn't even know that we had done things on AINA and AVANTASIA! Although he really liked the demo that I had done of "Silver Maiden" for AINA. And later, he was like "Oh, that was you!!" (laughter). He never made the connections. It was a lot of fun to finally meet face to face.

Fab: As an American, according to your experience, do you think that the European Metal mentality and community is different from the one in the US, in terms of approach, image, etc?
Amanda Somerville: It's difficult to generalize Europe. I mean, France and Germany? Come on! You can't compare! (almost offending laughter if it wasn't so true…). And it's also difficult to generalize the U.S., because the East coast is so different than the West coast for instance. I'm a North-Eastern, or Mid-Western girl, so I come from a very hard-working, kinda German mentality. We're not as open and friendly than the people in the sunny South…
Michael Kiske: But when you say something, you mean it…It's how I describe the Northern people. They're not easily friends with you, but when they do, they're true friends.
Amanda Somerville: Yeah. And the stereotype that Europeans have about Americans being very superficial? (almost shushing) That comes from California (general laughter). But I love the diversity of both Europe and U.S.A..

Fab: Is there a concept throughout the album?
Michael Kiske: Hum, I don't think so. (Turning towards Amanda) Is there one? Maybe relationship…
Amanda Somerville: Yeah, I think, whether it was planned like that or not, for me, it's really a relationship album, in every sense of the word. There's a man and a woman, it's mostly songs about matters of the heart and emotional things. It's a very emotional soulful album that you don't necessarily find in the scene at this time. So, for me, it's unique. So I guess, it could be a concept album in that sense.

Kiske Somerville

Fab: For now, my personal favorites are " Second Chance " and " Arise ". Any anecdotes about these songs?
Amanda Somerville: Well, it's funny that you mentioned that, because "Second Chance" is also one that I really like…For me, one of my favorite lines on the album is on this song (starting to sing the song)…And I wrote "Arise", so…They're part of the three songs that I wrote with Sander Gommans from AFTER FOREVER. They have of course a particularly personal meaning, I wrote them in a very personal time for me. It's funny because you think that's it's a funny rock song, but it's sort of melancholy with hope.

Fab: Where was the location for the " Silence " video? Looks like an Opera.
Michael Kiske: That was in Nuremberg. It's an opera house, it was an old nineteenth century swimming hall…
Amanda Somerville: That was for "If I Had A Wish"…
Michael Kiske: Yeah, the second one. Very cold but very nice.
Amanda Somerville: You can see our breath while we were singing if you look carefully.
Michael Kiske: It was like a refrigerator. The thing is that nobody invested money to get it fixed…
Amanda Somerville: …because it's under historical protection.
Michael Kiske: It has these rooms with just the bath tubes in it, because in those days, people went to this place to have a bath. I didn't know that. Of course not. I'm not that old! (laughter).
Amanda Somerville: A community bathing. It was interesting anyway.

Kiske Somerville

Fab: Amanda, did you start working on the successor of " Windows "?
Amanda Somerville: Yes (laughter). Actually, "Windows" has many successors. When you're a prolific songwriter… I write a lot, I have like forty songs or something like that, just waiting to have something done with them. And so…It's coming!

Fab: Michael, news for a third PLACE VENDOME record?
Michael Kiske: No, I cancelled it, or at least, pushed it very far away because of UNISONIC. That's just my main priority. But it's almost the same people, so. But I don't say that it's never gonna happen.

Fab: Michael, as you have a very wide range with your voice, with high-pitched possibilities not always obvious for male singers. Would you sing a song with Andre MATOS someday? (Amanda worked with SHAMAN & Andre MATOS)
Michael Kiske: I doubt it…
Amanda Somerville: You never know. He's singing on AVANTASIA, so…
Michael Kiske: That could happen, it's just…now that I'm in UNISONIC like I said earlier, I probably won't have so many projects anymore. When you're in a band, they want you to be…especially the vocalist. But I'm happy with that!

Fab: What is your favorite song from this album?
Michael Kiske: "A thousand suns".
Amanda Somerville: For me finally, "Set Afire"…The bonus track, the third that I wrote.
Michael Kiske: And from the ones which are on the actual album? Or, it's just the bonus track? (laughter).
Amanda Somerville: I also like "The End Of The Road".
Michael Kiske: Yeah, me too. And "Silence".

Fab: Amanda, you're a multi-talented musician, as you're a singer, a vocal coach, a producer, a choir conductor, a lyric editor, etc... Do you think it's all complementary by nature? Or it's just a way to discover other possibilities within the music business world?
Amanda Somerville: Yeah, I like new challenges. I like to grow and to work with different people and do different things. So, all that stuff kind of all comes together. I never thought that I would work in the metal scene…
Michael Kiske: Maybe that's why bring something fresh. You give something, the others don't have.
Amanda Somerville: I certainly have grown as a person, as a musician, as a songwriter and also as a listener. My main passion and love is singing and songwriting, and doing my own stuff.

Fab: Any plans for touring?
Michael Kiske: We talked about it, it depends on record sales, as always. Tour promoters don't book anything unless it sells a little bit. If people want another record, and want to see us live, they'd better buy the record instead of stealing it.
Amanda Somerville: We'd love to tour.
Michael Kiske: We're not begging for mercy, we all have jobs to do. I'd like to play on stage, but it depends on the audience, always.

Kiske Somerville

Fab: How do you analyze the music business nowadays? It is always the same thing, or has it evolved?
Michael Kiske: I haven't been analyzing it for ages. It's difficult. I personally think that things now are upside down. When it all started off, with THE WHO or THE BEATLES, it was more like it should be, the bands did the music…And then, the industry is trying to build a market for them. It's the way it should be. Nowadays, it's the opposite. The industry is designing the musicians. So when you look at the casting shows, they're in fashion actually. That is for me a misunderstood music culture. It should never be about kissing butts, it should never be about trying to please. In these music reality tv shows, they have no dignity, they're begging to the cameras to be liked, to be voted for. They don't write the songs, everything is done for them, how they move, how they get dressed, it's just a product. There's nothing left of what makes music to me. They're not themselves, and they won't have a chance to be themselves. Musicians should do what they believe in, and then, find their audience. Even myself, as a singer, when I sing songs which are written by someone else, I am still me! I just make it my own. The whole idea of rock'n'roll is identity, personality being yourself. But it has become just an image, rather than be real.
Amanda Somerville: But it's always been that way…
Michael Kiske: It got worse.

Amanda Somerville: Yeah, but I mean by that… "Motown", they had their look, their image, they took their people, dressed them all alike, etc…And now it's like everything has been done, like if we were pushing a wall, and people are only recycling. It's very rare to hear something that is really innovative.

Fab: Last question guys , any musical guilty pleasure?
Amanda Somerville: Mine will have to be…Neil Diamond. I'd love to do like a metal cover version of "Forever in blue jean" (burst of laughter).
Michael Kiske: There was a very short period, when I was a teenager where I was listening the SLAYER records.

Fab: (very surprised) SLAYER??
Amanda Somerville: (as surprised as me, turning to him) You come from the Metal scene, and SLAYER is your musical guilty pleasure???
Michael Kiske: I hate Satanic bands. I listened to "Show No Mercy" stuff, and I really regret that. To me, they're betrayers of humanity. I'm the opposite of that. I stand for different ideals.

   

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