Page 30 - Black Velvet Rock Magazine - Issue 100

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insane!” We ask Michael to tell us more about onetheless, the importance of these
But while he might not yet see the per- what he feels he and his band need to do in Nsmaller shows is not lost on Michael,
son looking back at him in the mirror that he order to improve their future and what in fact he fully appreciates the importance of
wants to see and despite his confession of changes are afoot to achieve that. He offers the shows such as their debut headline tour
his tough love directed at himself, he does us an insightful reply about the work which in Europe which includes their first live per-
admit he is happy things are improving when goes on between and before shows which formances in the UK and, while the majority
he thinks about his current reflection. “I’d many in an audience can often take for of these have seen them playing to much
like to think things are getting better, I cer- granted. smaller audiences than he has in the past, he
tainly think I’m a better person than I was “Something we are looking at is how we completely recognises the significance of
this time last year and I’ll take that; that’s a transport our equipment and sound and we these shows in his long-term vision for the
win.” are trying to make it easier for everyone. We band.
Focusing on the here and now, Michael are constantly battling the sound guys to try “I think it’s what a lot of bands forget,”
says, “This is my entire life, everything is and get our sound. I can’t begin to tell you, he tells Black Velvet. “Building that core fan-
based around this project. I don’t have a day it really is a devil on my shoulder, every day base is super-important. If there are 5 to 25
job or some other stuff, Dead Girls is my life, we’re wondering ‘how is this going to go?’ to 40 people there, every single one of those
so as this band progresses I feel better about Today, actually, was quick. Usually it can people has decided to come and spend their
myself. I think that is how it works!” take an hour, sometimes it can take two time with you and those people can be the
Looking at the comparisons between hours for them to figure out how they are ones who stick with you forever and that is
himself today and the one a year younger he going to make it all work and lately we have what we are here for. We knew the European

says, “I’ve definitely found myself more as been having a lot of issues, so we are more tour wasn’t going to be large but we came for
an artist, more as a singer and I feel I get bet- focused on getting that done. the core fanbase who has been bugging us
ter every day, vocally. I’m very hard on my- “The main thing we hear all the time is to come back. We’d already been to Ger-
self vocally because I want to make sure I am that we have an arena sound, mainly be- many and had a good response there, so we
the best I can be. I have a really great band cause we run all these soundtracks and all went back, but we’ve never been to the UK
and everyone is really tight so I have to work the good stuff that happens and I want to so we didn’t know exactly what to expect,
hard to keep up. I’ve got a better living con- achieve that when we play. We have been but even when we’ve had shows with 30 peo-
dition right now; I’m living right on Holly- confirmed as going out with John 5 from ple, they all had a really good time. And for
wood and Vine and it’s very inspiring and it Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie in the me, I’m already super-weird, so being
is helping me out a lot more. A year ago I was States for a two-month tour and those shows around a small group of people really trips
living with Ronnie Radke from Falling In Re- are already selling well so it’s a good feeling, me out, but you’ve got to make the effort to
verse and we were doing crazy stuff together but it will never be like getting on stage in an talk to every single one of them and con-
and it was an amazing time, but I feel I’m a arena or a giant theatre and that is our goal. nect.”
bit more settled down now than I was then We are working towards achieving some- He continues, “If we came out of the gate
and more focused. I can see ahead of me thing which is of a much larger stature.” and we were playing arenas, and that can
now more than I could before, there is more happen with some bands, you don’t really
of a vision now.” get to meet your core and we are definitely
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