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 Much has been said over the years about what makes a Rock “supergroup”. Well, GMT qualify, with guitarist Bernie Torme having played for the likes of the Ozzy Osbourne band and Desperado, Robin Guy on drums (Bruce Dickinson, Faith no More) and John McCoy on bass (Gillan, Samson), showing up to rock our asses off at Hard Rock Hell in Minehead this year.
I met up with Bernie, to talk about being one of the Top 100 Wildest Guitar Heroes (Classic Rock), and to see whether the brand of Rock he plays has made the album “Bitter and Twisted” a success.
Krissy Elliott: You guys are apparently a rock super group?
Bernie Torme: Are we? I'm sorry there's no reaction to that one!
KE: Back in the Eighties, people used to put these groups together, and
it was always people other folk had heard of, and you got this title
“Super group” and people were supposed to gasp about it.
BT: The band I had with Dee was a classic
example. It was me, Dee, and Clive Burr out of Iron Maiden, it was like
80's rock super group and it came to nothing in the end.
KE: But you had a great time?
BT: Oh yeah, spent lots of money, huge advances, recorded an album, and it never came out till a year ago! [Laughs]
KE: I was talking to Dee earlier, and he said it was all about having a
good time nowadays, it's stopped being about the money and it's about
having a good time. Is that the same for you?
BT: Absolutely. If you don't enjoy it, there's no
way you could earn enough to spend time with that bastard! [Pointing at
John McCoy] [Laughs]
KE: This is getting personal, he's going to throw cake at you!
John McCoy: I'm not gonna throw this cake away at all!
BT: It's all about enjoying it. Both of us have been doing it for so
long, both of us dropped out of it at various points, and this band is
an enjoyable experience. It's always a laugh and we always enjoy the
playing, and we play off each other.
KE: It's good, and you've got an audience out there that love your style of rock music, and that's what it's all about isn't it.
BT: Absolutely!
KE: Now, apparently you are in the top 100 wildest guitar heroes according to Classic Rock Magazine.
BT: I don't know how I ended up in that, to be
honest I was completely gob smacked. I was kinda thinking, they've
ignored me for 20 years, and now I'm in the Top 100 Guitarists! I was
incredibly pleased about it though.
KE: Recognition is great.
BT: I'll have to send them a cheque!
JM: Seriously though, Bernie has never really appreciated what he is in
terms of being a guitar player, he's not one of those guys that shouts
about it, but he's unique. It took me a long time to convince him to
come back and do something sensible like we're doing now, because he
was mowing the lawn too much.
BT: And I've got awfully long grass now!
KE: So this whole guitar hero, is that what being a rockstar, all the acclaim?
BT: Not really no, guitar hero? I joined Gillan,
they had a great guitarist before me, only he wasn't a guitar hero, I
was told they were interested in having me join, and I went down and
saw them and thought, he's a great guitar player, but I can do the
poses better!
Bernie Torme Live At Hard Rock Hell
KE: You are actually quite rock n roll!
BT: I just enjoy all of that, I enjoy jumping
around and all the poses. To stand and play a note, well it's great,
but it's the whole thing really, the lights, the audience, it's
entertainment as well, it is about entertainment. You can be the
greatest player on Earth, but if you're not entertaining the audience,
then who bloody cares?!
KE: I couldn't agree more, and I think it is about the audience, the
music changed, and the way people want the music has changed, and right
now I think rock music is about the live performance.
BT: Completely I think that's true.
KE: What do you reckon to this whole idea of Internet downloads, free music on the web?
BT: I think it's great because it's given us an immediacy, a contact
with people. 20 years ago, the only people that you ever had a reaction
from were people at a gig, and who can be assed at a gig, and there was
never many people because the majority had already cleared out, and an
awful lot of people are shy! They don't come up and say Hey or
whatever. The great thing about the internet is you come across people,
and they have broad taste, they're into it, they pass comments on it,
and it becomes so much more down to earth.
KE: The barriers are down and people can communicate.
BT: That's right and I think that's a great
thing. I was a punk, I like that ground level thing because I always
talk to anyone, that whole rockstar trip of only talking to people who
are famous, I've never been like that. And because of the internet, I
always say if anyone likes the song, come up and say hello afterwards.
It's really nice to have a conversation with them.
KE: So do you reckon that the rock scene is stronger in America than it
is here? I know that's a broad question, but there seems to have been a
bit of a lull here.
BT: I think there has yeah. I think it's been
hard for bands here, the business just died here, in terms of record
labels it just went ooo, and passed out. That hasn't happened in
America, but it might yet. In terms of over here, I think there's an
awful lot of ground level bands who are pretty great, and I think
they're going to change it.
KE: Do you think programs like the X Factor and programs like that have
influenced consumption, what the public want out of there music, and
made it harder for rock bands?
BT: Absolutely. Evey one's able to do two songs and be a star. You
don't have to able to carry an audience for an hour, you have to be
able to do that. It's like instant achievement, and instant reward. I'm
sounding like my parents now!
I see these young bands and some of them are bloody great, but because
it's England at the moment, it's harder for them to get past that
initial thing, I hope it changes, and am sure it will because an awful
lot's happening right now.
KE: You come from punk roots.
BT: Yeah.
KE: There's a lot of bands who have, or at least say, they have a lot
of punk influences. Certainly there's quite a punk sound. If you look
around here and you look at the classic rock bands and the classic rock
fans, you've got a lot of people who are not so young anymore.
BT: Obviously your not talking about me!
KE: Well no of course, we're both 20 years old... again! You've got a
classic rock fan base that's around our ages, and they're coming out
and supporting bands they loved when they were younger. You've got the
younger generation coming out with these punk sounding bands, and
they're frustrated with corporate anything, they're quite angry, and
there's a lot of sign of this in Britain, you've got a lot of bands
coming out and going down that road. Do you think that's the future of
rock music, a bit harsher and shouting about it.
BT: I think it probably is. It's always been
anti-corporate. Obviously, if anyone walked up to you and said here's
half a million, you'd of said, yes mate. It isn't an establishment
thing, I mean the fact that it kinda became safe in a lot areas is
crap. I think young bands have to do things differently.
In terms of us it's been interesting in that we have had a crossover
audience, we have had kids, and obviously it varies from venue to
venue, because a lot of places kids can't get in. Because we embrace
the myspace thing and the web thing, we have actually a lot of young
fans, and to be honest their more important than the older fans, ooops
sorry! I love anyone who's a fan, because they pay their money and I've
had a living out of it, the problem comes when they want just the same
thing over and over again, and that isn't what I'm here to do. That's
tribute band territory.
KE: You want to progress, you want to be creativity. You want to create
and make new stuff. Is that your plan for the future? Keep making new
stuff?
BT: Oh yeah, we are recording a new album at the
moment, should be ready in the spring, which is great. Obviously in
terms of the live set, you have to compromise, you have to the old
tracks, and it's great to have the old tracks, the moment we launch
into Smoke on the Water, which to me is a Gillan track not a Purple
track [laughs], it's instant.
Robin the drummer, has played with an awful lot of punk bands and
hardcore bands, and it's just great to be able to use that high energy
and drive. It's an awesome sound.
KE: You guys are creating stuff together?
G.M.T. Live on stage at Hard Rock Hell With Dee Snider of Twisted Sister
BT:
It's generally John and I. Either I have an idea or he has an idea, and
we split everything down the middle. Robin has had a couple of tracks
on the new album, on the last album he was basically in as a session
guy.
KE: That poor guy has been a session drummer for so long, once your a drummer you've always got a job!
BT: I know, and he's fantastic!
KE: He's a great drummer.
BT: The thing about him is that he's fantastic,
and like an awful lot of session players, he has an instantly
identifiable personality and vibe to his playing, he's an awesome
player. I have to stop talking about him now as he's here!
[Robin Guy at this point wanders over and joins the table...]
KE: I'm interviewing people at the table now!
Robin Guy: Good on you, doing it while we eat is a very good idea.
KE: What I'm going to do now then is ask you all what you;re all listening to on your iPod's or your CD players right now!
RG: The desperado track we played with Dee Snider! I only listen to Bernie Torme's back catalog!
KE: If you were after the job you just got it!
RG: I wasn't after the job!
KE: You still got it thought.
RG: They forced me too!
KE: Twisted your arm and said you must.
RG: That's right. What did we listen to on the way down here?
JM: Gillan.
BT: Gillan pre me. I wasn't on it, and it was really great.
JM: I've just mastered an album from 1978, a live album from the
Marquee before Bernie joined, and I mentioned it to him, and he said
stick it on, so we had it on in the car.
BT: There was actually a couple of tracks that I hadn't heard that they
used to play, and they were fantastic, they were really good.
JM: I've listened to it too much, and I never want to hear it again!
The main thing I'm listening to are a couple of albums by a band called
Sack Tick, they're very very clever, there;s even a blue parrot in the
band!
BT: So what are you listening to? Have you listened to our album?
KE: No I keep finding clips of it.
BT: You should listen to it all the way through, it's cosmic!
KE: Last week I saw W.A.S.P. Live.
JM: Well that was a bit unfortunate.
KE: And got a copy of their latest album.
RG: We should interview you about the W.A.S.P. Record!
JM: So how's Blackie's wig look, good?
RG: Better than yours!
JM: It was expensive.
KE: The bald heads good too!- Krissy Elliott
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