Will you ever be in another band where you are not the lead singer?
I have no idea. I kind of doubt it. I'm doing a lot of production these days and that's working very well. I don't see myself joining some other band at this point, but who knows? If I'm going to be in a band I definitely enjoy singing.
Now that you are a lead singer, do you find yourself being influenced by frontmen you've played with such as Don Dokken or Ronnie James Dio?
Certain things either rub off or just become part of your consciousness, but not really intentionally. Even 20 years ago when we were touring with Dio, I used to watch every night, really try to understand how he was able to sing with such power every night. He really had this amazing powerful voice every single night, so I did learn a lot from him.
I certainly learned things from Don. You learn things from everybody you tour with and everybody you were around, but I wouldn't say anything was necessarily conscious.
Are you working on a new War and Peace album?
I am. I am nearly done. I finished the writing, I've got 10 of the tracks recorded and just have to record two more. I have to finish up little bits and pieces, plus I'm hoping to bring in guest guitar players to do the solos.
Now that you've been producing a lot, when you listen to other music, what is the biggest mistake that you hear other producers making?
I think the single biggest mistake is when you can't hear the energy. When the energy is out of a track, no matter what kind of music, I think you really ruin it. I've seen producers dampen the energy.
How did you get involved in the movie Rock Star?
I was originally brought in to play bass on the soundtrack. I started rehearsing with the band and then they made me musical director. Then the director watched us rehearse, liked what he saw, and offered me the part.
Is acting something you'd like to get more involved in?
I'd like to, but it's not something I give a lot of thought to. It's not something I necessarily anticipate, but if it comes along, great. It was a lot of fun. I completely enjoyed it. It did give me the urge to do some "real" acting where you are actually acting. In that movie I was basically playing myself, which isn't much of a stretch.
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