Every now and then there are some bands that remind us of how important it is to honor your music roots. Thankfully, Love.Might.Kill did so but they filtered those influences through their own personal music criteria. They are a band that once you come across it there’s no chance not to fancy their music. Michael Ehré the mastermind, songwriter & drummer of the band explained us all about this up-and-coming group called Love.Might.Kill…
Hi Michael… Congrats on “2 Big 2 Fail”. It’s actually a rejuvenating hard & heavy album with lots of great hooks. Grande Rock has named it the Best Album of October!
M: Thank you very much! Great to hear because that’s exactly what we wanted to achieve.
Given the chance, tell us how did you come up with the idea of forming Love.Might.Kill and what was the vision you had/have about this band?
M: It all started years ago when I decided to learn more about the production process of an album. So I started to record some songs that I couldn’t use for the bands that I’ve played with because they didn’t fit into the styles of the different bands. I played the songs to some friends and they said that I had to form a band and release the stuff. Back at that time Metalium split up and I thought that this could be the right time to start something new.
Thus, you released your debut right away, in 2011, and then without taking a break you went back to the studio and started recording the new album “2 Big 2 Fail”. It seems that you wanted to keep things hot around the band’s name now that you are at the beginning, right?
M: Exactly! As Love.Might.Kill is a newcomer band it was clear that we couldn’t spend years to release a new record. The reviews for our debut were excellent and overwhelming. We didn’t expect that to be honest! We had to keep the name in the peoples mind…
Can you spot any differences & similarities between your new work and the debut?
M: There are some differences... now we have ex-Mob Rules keyboardist Sascha Onnen in the band so he had a big influence on the songs. Though our debut sounds fantastic we tried to create an even better sound on “2 Big 2 Fail”. We didn’t want to change anything in our style as we and also the people liked “Brace for impact”. I hate when bands that I like as a fan change their styles because they want to “extend their creativity”... blablabla... I hate that! (i.n.: Hmm, that thing is kind of a double edge sword…)
Where is the album’s title referring to? Who’s “2 Big 2 Fail”?
M: When we released “Brace for Impact” in 2011 we got tons of excellent reviews. We soon realized that we have to continue with Love.Might.Kill. We also played some shows that were also fantastic, so we said “Okay, here we are, let’s follow the path and see what will happen”. We simply thought that what we started is “Too big to Fail”. (i.n.: I like that perspective…)
What does the cover artwork imply with that Celtic-like Cross created by bats… in front of a city?
M: The cross is the “O” in love. We never had any celtic-like stuff in mind. The bats create this sign to symbolize “in union we stand” and we can achieve everything together.
On a song by song account what would you say…?
M: “Save My Soul”: This is the intro of the album. Our keyboardist Sascha Onnen did a real good job. He creates a mood that we all know from the good old “Rainbow” and “Deep Purple” days. But he takes it a step further by transporting it into the here and now.
“XTC”: XTC is our first video because the song combines all the Love.Might.Kill trademarks that the people know from our debut album. Heavy guitars, catchy melodies and a solid bass/drums groove. In the solo-part of this track we kind of introduce our new member Sascha Onnen as he plays the very first solo on the album followed by a twin guitar duel. The song is obviously about drug abuse.
“Burn the Night”: With “Burn the Night” we show our heavier side. The song features some fast double bass stuff with a really cool guitar/keyboard-solo in the middle. It describes the feeling when you go out on stage and feel the energy from the people.
“The One”: The one is a really slow but heavy track in the tradition of Black Sabbath. It’s about those people who try to find their big love via internet.
“Restless Heart”: Restless Heart was our first single. If I’d had to describe someone what Love.Might.Kill is about I would probably play him this track. The song has a strong groove combined with some cool guitar-riffs and very melodic vocal-lines.
“Home”: A very personal song written by our guitar-player Stefan Ellerhorst. This is the only track written in triplets which adds a very cool note to the album.
“The Great Escape”: The “nice” intro of this track leads you in a wrong direction. As soon as the heavy-guitars start you know that this song makes no prisoners. It’s about businessmen who earn a lot of money while they spent millions without taking care of if it’s right or not. They don’t show any responsibility for the things they’re doing.
“Too Big to Fail”: The title track of our second album is a kind of a ballad. I was never a big fan of ballads because there´s always a thin line between a good ballad and a cheesy one. It’s not so easy to write cool ballads that’s why I’m always sceptic about that. But with “Too Big to Fail” we wrote a really strong song that’s not cheesy at all! It’s also very unusual to have a ballad as a title track but I like those little strange things, hahaha.... the song is about us as a band. In the beginning it all started without any intentions to form a band and now... here we are with our second album.
“We Fall”: The second fast song on the album combines some heavy guitars with real cool melodies. This double-bass-track is a straight forward metal song and a cool contrast to the former song “Too Big to Fail”.
“The Big Screen Pleasure (and Pain)”: The big screen pleasure (and pain) is about those who spent their lives sitting in front of a computer and playing games. They build their own universe while they’re losing the contact to the reality.
“Alone”: This song was written by our singer Jan Manenti. Jan has a real strong sense for cool melodies. He wrote the track before he joined Love.Might.Kill, so we just made a little change here and a little change there to make it LMK-compatible.
“The Perfect Mistake”: The last song on the album was once again written by Stefan. Stefan is a real cool songwriter who doesn’t care too much about showing his fantastic skills on the guitar but writes great songs. He is real team player!
Of course, you did a great job with the album’s sound. Certainly, Markus Teske played a major role as he mixed and mastered the album as well. The production is a killer one by any means. Are you totally satisfied with the final result?
M: Absolutely! I also have to mention my friends Martin Pfeiffer (Redhead Audio) and Holger Thielbörger (Eastfrisian Audio) who engineered the album and did a great job! I’m really happy that we can work with all these fantastic people. Markus Teske for example is a very, very important part in the production because he’s not only a brilliant mixer but also a fantastic musician.
The first song that was digitally released as a single is “Restless Heart”. What’s the second one? Probably “Home” which is an incredible & catchy rocker… personally speaking.
M: No, the next single will be “Too Big to Fail”. ”Home” would be a cool second single, too... or “The One”... or “Perfect Mistake”...hahaha (i.n.: I know there are quite a few songs which you can choose for the next single…)
The first song that was recorded as a video is “XTC”. Are there gonna be any new videos in the next time?
M: Right now we’re producing a videoclip for “Too Big to Fail”. I think we will release it in January or February 2013... let’s see... (i.n.: Amazing ballad… I’d like to see the video as well.)
You did a German tour that ended on 27th October. Are there any other tour plans? Any talking with some Summer Festivals yet?
M: No, not yet... it would be great if we could support a bigger band to increase our fan base. It’s not so easy because we are all very busy... I’qm playing with a lot of other bands so it’s always hard to organize all these different activities. We’d also love to play summer festivals but the promoters are always a bit scared to book a small band like Love.Might.Kill.... but hey, in my opinion they should give it a chance because we won’t disappoint anybody! (i.n.: You’re right dude… those damn promoters, they never give the chance to newcomers to prove who they are…)
I’ve written: “Love.Might.Kill released a killer second album, that numerous other bands will envy and lots of fans will cherish. Everything we loved about hard rock & heavy metal music is here…”. What do you think?
M: What I think? THANK YOU!!! Hahahaha!!! (i.n.: You’re most welcome…)
So, what does the future hold for Love.Might.Kill? What are your expectations for this band?
M: Hard to say... I hope that we can extend our fan base with our second album. But times are tough and I’m in this business now for years and I know that it’s hard nowadays. “2 Big 2 Fail” will be released in Europe, Japan and for the first time also in the USA. To be honest this is more than I’ve ever expected when I started the band. So, I’m thankful for every little step forward we make. I’m also thankful for every minute we spend together as a band because we have a really good relationship.
Having been around for many years and seen & experienced various things, what do you think that Love.Migth.Kill have to offer in the scene?
M: We try to convince the fans with our music and only with our music... we will never put on any masks or let any naked girls dance on stage to get the attention from the people. That makes it harder to get some popularity – no question – but that’s what we stand for! (i.n.: Although I love seeing naked girls dancing… it’s all about the music guys…)
Even though the hard rock/melodic metal scene is kinda overloaded with bands that steal the big ones of the 80s, I believe that a newcomer like Love.Migth.Kill was needed just to blend that 80s/90s hard & heavy elements with some fresh & revitalizing ideas and a powerful sound. What do you say?
M: You got it! That’s exactly what we wanted to achieve: combine the music of the 80ies with the sound of the 21st century. This is why our music sounds so familiar but also so fresh and new.
I think Europe is the major representative of hard rock/melodic metal music nowadays… what’s your opinion?
M: Maybe... but to be honest: I don’t care where the bands that I like come from. What I know is that this kind of music is alive and will never die. (i.n.: That makes two of us…)
You are rather influenced by the 80s/90s hard rock era. What was the thing that pushed you to play and write this kind of music? What is that element that makes this music so beloved even today? Certainly, this kind of music was way stronger in the 00s and now than it used to be in the mid-90s…
M: I simply grew up with that kind of music. I grew up with bands like f.e. Rainbow, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Accept and Whitesnake. And back then It made no difference between a band like Whitesnake or Judas Priest. I didn’t care if somebody called it hard rock or heavy metal. If music can take you on a journey and creates a certain feeling it doesn’t matter how you name it. And it also doesn’t matter how old or old-fashioned the style is. Compared to classic music the rock scene is still young but even though some people say that we play old-fashioned stuff. But we create a certain feeling, so what!!!
Obviously, we can’t resurrect that era… but what can bands like Love.Might.Kill offer in order to keep the fans of this music hungry and wanting for more while help the whole scene to grow stronger?
M: Bands like Love.Might.Kill can simply continue writing good songs. We don’t want to change the world and even if we wanted to we can’t. For us the most important thing is to be satisfied with what we’re doing. If we wouldn’t be satisfied how could we convince anybody else? (i.n.: You’ve got a point here…)
Are you willing to give some songs or probably the whole album to the fans for free in the near future as some bands did… or you are not so much into this downloading notion?
M: Mmmhhh, hard to say. In times of “You Tube” you get nearly everything for free. I mean it’s a good way to become popular even if you’re absolutely not talented in what you’re doing. We offered our new album as a digital download on Amazon for 5,00€ for the first three days of the release. In my opinion this is nearly for free compared to the fact how much work and time and ideas we’ve put in the album. I don’t want to give it for free. All the people who download music without paying for it are simply stealing these products. No one would ever go into a store, take whatever he wants and go out without paying. If someone does he’s stealing the stuff.
What’s your opinion of people downloading free music from the Internet? What shall an artist do in order to avoid losing money and time?
M: You can’t do anything against it! The musicians have to live with it and take the consequences. But believe me: the business suffers a lot because of that and no one has an idea how to stop it... (i.n.: Still we have to find a way to convince people to get the real thing and not an mp3 file…)
And some weird Questions now!!! How did you come up with the name Love.Might.Kill for the band? The first time I saw it, I thought it was a gothic band or something like that.
M: It’s really hard nowadays to find a cool band name. I had tons of ideas... but every time I googled these names I saw that I was not the first one with that idea, hahaha... one night I was watching TV and they showed a short trailer with that real cool name... to be honest I don’t remember the name exactly but it had the same idea, so I changed it a little bit and translated it into English. I know that this name causes some confusion but it’s unique!
Which is the record you wish you had written and why?
M: Probably “Screaming for vengeance” from Judas Priest or Metallica’s Black Album, because both are simply perfect!
Which are the things that piss you off from today’s music industry?
M: It pisses me off that times are that bad that it’s hard to get that little money you need to make even a low budget production. It’s not only that we as a band don’t earn anything but we also bring in our private money. Most of the people out there would say that we’re crazy... and they are right, hahaha
Were you obliged to give just one album to extraterrestrials that would represent the whole human music evolution, which album would it be and from which band/artist?
M: This I really hard to say and a little bit unfair because you could only present a certain style... But as I’m a metal fan I had to choose between “Screaming for Vengeance” from Priest and the Black Album from Metallica.
What do you think about the International financial crisis? The rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer… but for how long?
M: If nothing changes I’m pretty sure that someday all will end up in wars because the poor won’t take it anymore. (i.n.: Yeap, I believe the same thing too…)
Is the European Union condemned to fail in the end? That would probably cause a worldwide domino of destruction at any level...
M: In worst case it is... I still hope that things will change but I’m probably a dreamer, hahaha…
Shall we wait for extraterrestrials to save us… or we must first make a stand and save our lives ourselves… instead of waiting for miracles? Are the stars our destiny eventually?
M: Uuuhhh, I don’t know... I don’t think that extraterrestrials will save us, hahaha... and I also think that just a few people on earth are able to change things. I hope that these people are aware of their responsibilities!
Who is your favorite philosopher and why?
M: I’m sorry I don’t have any favorite philosopher...
You have the opportunity to sleep with the movie-celebrity of your choice. Who would it be?
M: As my wife and my son stand above everything else in my life I would never dare to do things like this. Not even with a movie- or any other kind of celebrity. Sounds boring but it’s very important for me!
If you were the opposite sex for one day, what would you look like and what would you do?
M: I’d probably like to be a politician... I’d really like to know their daily routine. I know that they earn a lot of money but they also have tough schedules and a big responsibility... And if it would be just for one day I’d know that I’m not caught in that circus.
If you could be born as any famous person in history who would it be and why?
M: As I’m really thankful for the life I’m living and for what I’ve achieved I’m never thinking about those things. Mmmhhh, who would it be???? Maybe I’d like to be one of the Beatles... but please Paul or Ringo, hahaha... (i.n.: The reasons are so obvious right!)
Are groupies a necessary evil for each and every rock/metal band?
M: No, not at all. We’re not living in the 80s anymore. Times have changed and the most musicians I’m playing with are beyond 40 years old, hahaha... what would you expect? (i.n.: Oh Lord… let’s go back to the 80s!)
What do you think of Charlie’s quote: Beers, Pizza, Hookers? Which one is the most tasteful of all?
M: Pizza!!!! I’m not a Beer drinker... to be honest I don’t drink much alcohol at all. I’ve seen a lot of people and musicians drinking too much and this always ends in chaos. In my opinion every musician has to give his best for his fans... and you definitely can’t give your best when you’re drunk... especially when you’re a drummer. I don’t care if someone says that I’m boring because I prefer to do a good job instead of making party all night long.
Imagine that your wife is selling your whole album-collection just to buy an expensive ring for herself. How would you react?
M: As my wife knows that I’m a musician and that this takes a big part of my life she would never do things like that... to be honest I think that she would rather sell her rings to buy more CDs, hahaha (i.n.: That’s cool!)
Thank you Michael for taking the time to do this interview… Thx for the music... Please leave a note to Grande Rock readers… Take care!
M: I’d like to say Thank You to all the people who supported Love.Might.Kill so far! I hope to see you all on tour soon!!!
M: Thank you very much! Great to hear because that’s exactly what we wanted to achieve.
Given the chance, tell us how did you come up with the idea of forming Love.Might.Kill and what was the vision you had/have about this band?
M: It all started years ago when I decided to learn more about the production process of an album. So I started to record some songs that I couldn’t use for the bands that I’ve played with because they didn’t fit into the styles of the different bands. I played the songs to some friends and they said that I had to form a band and release the stuff. Back at that time Metalium split up and I thought that this could be the right time to start something new.
Thus, you released your debut right away, in 2011, and then without taking a break you went back to the studio and started recording the new album “2 Big 2 Fail”. It seems that you wanted to keep things hot around the band’s name now that you are at the beginning, right?
M: Exactly! As Love.Might.Kill is a newcomer band it was clear that we couldn’t spend years to release a new record. The reviews for our debut were excellent and overwhelming. We didn’t expect that to be honest! We had to keep the name in the peoples mind…
Can you spot any differences & similarities between your new work and the debut?
M: There are some differences... now we have ex-Mob Rules keyboardist Sascha Onnen in the band so he had a big influence on the songs. Though our debut sounds fantastic we tried to create an even better sound on “2 Big 2 Fail”. We didn’t want to change anything in our style as we and also the people liked “Brace for impact”. I hate when bands that I like as a fan change their styles because they want to “extend their creativity”... blablabla... I hate that! (i.n.: Hmm, that thing is kind of a double edge sword…)
Where is the album’s title referring to? Who’s “2 Big 2 Fail”?
M: When we released “Brace for Impact” in 2011 we got tons of excellent reviews. We soon realized that we have to continue with Love.Might.Kill. We also played some shows that were also fantastic, so we said “Okay, here we are, let’s follow the path and see what will happen”. We simply thought that what we started is “Too big to Fail”. (i.n.: I like that perspective…)
What does the cover artwork imply with that Celtic-like Cross created by bats… in front of a city?
M: The cross is the “O” in love. We never had any celtic-like stuff in mind. The bats create this sign to symbolize “in union we stand” and we can achieve everything together.
On a song by song account what would you say…?
M: “Save My Soul”: This is the intro of the album. Our keyboardist Sascha Onnen did a real good job. He creates a mood that we all know from the good old “Rainbow” and “Deep Purple” days. But he takes it a step further by transporting it into the here and now.
“XTC”: XTC is our first video because the song combines all the Love.Might.Kill trademarks that the people know from our debut album. Heavy guitars, catchy melodies and a solid bass/drums groove. In the solo-part of this track we kind of introduce our new member Sascha Onnen as he plays the very first solo on the album followed by a twin guitar duel. The song is obviously about drug abuse.
“Burn the Night”: With “Burn the Night” we show our heavier side. The song features some fast double bass stuff with a really cool guitar/keyboard-solo in the middle. It describes the feeling when you go out on stage and feel the energy from the people.
“The One”: The one is a really slow but heavy track in the tradition of Black Sabbath. It’s about those people who try to find their big love via internet.
“Restless Heart”: Restless Heart was our first single. If I’d had to describe someone what Love.Might.Kill is about I would probably play him this track. The song has a strong groove combined with some cool guitar-riffs and very melodic vocal-lines.
“Home”: A very personal song written by our guitar-player Stefan Ellerhorst. This is the only track written in triplets which adds a very cool note to the album.
“The Great Escape”: The “nice” intro of this track leads you in a wrong direction. As soon as the heavy-guitars start you know that this song makes no prisoners. It’s about businessmen who earn a lot of money while they spent millions without taking care of if it’s right or not. They don’t show any responsibility for the things they’re doing.
“Too Big to Fail”: The title track of our second album is a kind of a ballad. I was never a big fan of ballads because there´s always a thin line between a good ballad and a cheesy one. It’s not so easy to write cool ballads that’s why I’m always sceptic about that. But with “Too Big to Fail” we wrote a really strong song that’s not cheesy at all! It’s also very unusual to have a ballad as a title track but I like those little strange things, hahaha.... the song is about us as a band. In the beginning it all started without any intentions to form a band and now... here we are with our second album.
“We Fall”: The second fast song on the album combines some heavy guitars with real cool melodies. This double-bass-track is a straight forward metal song and a cool contrast to the former song “Too Big to Fail”.
“The Big Screen Pleasure (and Pain)”: The big screen pleasure (and pain) is about those who spent their lives sitting in front of a computer and playing games. They build their own universe while they’re losing the contact to the reality.
“Alone”: This song was written by our singer Jan Manenti. Jan has a real strong sense for cool melodies. He wrote the track before he joined Love.Might.Kill, so we just made a little change here and a little change there to make it LMK-compatible.
“The Perfect Mistake”: The last song on the album was once again written by Stefan. Stefan is a real cool songwriter who doesn’t care too much about showing his fantastic skills on the guitar but writes great songs. He is real team player!
Of course, you did a great job with the album’s sound. Certainly, Markus Teske played a major role as he mixed and mastered the album as well. The production is a killer one by any means. Are you totally satisfied with the final result?
M: Absolutely! I also have to mention my friends Martin Pfeiffer (Redhead Audio) and Holger Thielbörger (Eastfrisian Audio) who engineered the album and did a great job! I’m really happy that we can work with all these fantastic people. Markus Teske for example is a very, very important part in the production because he’s not only a brilliant mixer but also a fantastic musician.
The first song that was digitally released as a single is “Restless Heart”. What’s the second one? Probably “Home” which is an incredible & catchy rocker… personally speaking.
M: No, the next single will be “Too Big to Fail”. ”Home” would be a cool second single, too... or “The One”... or “Perfect Mistake”...hahaha (i.n.: I know there are quite a few songs which you can choose for the next single…)
The first song that was recorded as a video is “XTC”. Are there gonna be any new videos in the next time?
M: Right now we’re producing a videoclip for “Too Big to Fail”. I think we will release it in January or February 2013... let’s see... (i.n.: Amazing ballad… I’d like to see the video as well.)
You did a German tour that ended on 27th October. Are there any other tour plans? Any talking with some Summer Festivals yet?
M: No, not yet... it would be great if we could support a bigger band to increase our fan base. It’s not so easy because we are all very busy... I’qm playing with a lot of other bands so it’s always hard to organize all these different activities. We’d also love to play summer festivals but the promoters are always a bit scared to book a small band like Love.Might.Kill.... but hey, in my opinion they should give it a chance because we won’t disappoint anybody! (i.n.: You’re right dude… those damn promoters, they never give the chance to newcomers to prove who they are…)
I’ve written: “Love.Might.Kill released a killer second album, that numerous other bands will envy and lots of fans will cherish. Everything we loved about hard rock & heavy metal music is here…”. What do you think?
M: What I think? THANK YOU!!! Hahahaha!!! (i.n.: You’re most welcome…)
So, what does the future hold for Love.Might.Kill? What are your expectations for this band?
M: Hard to say... I hope that we can extend our fan base with our second album. But times are tough and I’m in this business now for years and I know that it’s hard nowadays. “2 Big 2 Fail” will be released in Europe, Japan and for the first time also in the USA. To be honest this is more than I’ve ever expected when I started the band. So, I’m thankful for every little step forward we make. I’m also thankful for every minute we spend together as a band because we have a really good relationship.
Having been around for many years and seen & experienced various things, what do you think that Love.Migth.Kill have to offer in the scene?
M: We try to convince the fans with our music and only with our music... we will never put on any masks or let any naked girls dance on stage to get the attention from the people. That makes it harder to get some popularity – no question – but that’s what we stand for! (i.n.: Although I love seeing naked girls dancing… it’s all about the music guys…)
Even though the hard rock/melodic metal scene is kinda overloaded with bands that steal the big ones of the 80s, I believe that a newcomer like Love.Migth.Kill was needed just to blend that 80s/90s hard & heavy elements with some fresh & revitalizing ideas and a powerful sound. What do you say?
M: You got it! That’s exactly what we wanted to achieve: combine the music of the 80ies with the sound of the 21st century. This is why our music sounds so familiar but also so fresh and new.
I think Europe is the major representative of hard rock/melodic metal music nowadays… what’s your opinion?
M: Maybe... but to be honest: I don’t care where the bands that I like come from. What I know is that this kind of music is alive and will never die. (i.n.: That makes two of us…)
You are rather influenced by the 80s/90s hard rock era. What was the thing that pushed you to play and write this kind of music? What is that element that makes this music so beloved even today? Certainly, this kind of music was way stronger in the 00s and now than it used to be in the mid-90s…
M: I simply grew up with that kind of music. I grew up with bands like f.e. Rainbow, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Accept and Whitesnake. And back then It made no difference between a band like Whitesnake or Judas Priest. I didn’t care if somebody called it hard rock or heavy metal. If music can take you on a journey and creates a certain feeling it doesn’t matter how you name it. And it also doesn’t matter how old or old-fashioned the style is. Compared to classic music the rock scene is still young but even though some people say that we play old-fashioned stuff. But we create a certain feeling, so what!!!
Obviously, we can’t resurrect that era… but what can bands like Love.Might.Kill offer in order to keep the fans of this music hungry and wanting for more while help the whole scene to grow stronger?
M: Bands like Love.Might.Kill can simply continue writing good songs. We don’t want to change the world and even if we wanted to we can’t. For us the most important thing is to be satisfied with what we’re doing. If we wouldn’t be satisfied how could we convince anybody else? (i.n.: You’ve got a point here…)
Are you willing to give some songs or probably the whole album to the fans for free in the near future as some bands did… or you are not so much into this downloading notion?
M: Mmmhhh, hard to say. In times of “You Tube” you get nearly everything for free. I mean it’s a good way to become popular even if you’re absolutely not talented in what you’re doing. We offered our new album as a digital download on Amazon for 5,00€ for the first three days of the release. In my opinion this is nearly for free compared to the fact how much work and time and ideas we’ve put in the album. I don’t want to give it for free. All the people who download music without paying for it are simply stealing these products. No one would ever go into a store, take whatever he wants and go out without paying. If someone does he’s stealing the stuff.
What’s your opinion of people downloading free music from the Internet? What shall an artist do in order to avoid losing money and time?
M: You can’t do anything against it! The musicians have to live with it and take the consequences. But believe me: the business suffers a lot because of that and no one has an idea how to stop it... (i.n.: Still we have to find a way to convince people to get the real thing and not an mp3 file…)
And some weird Questions now!!! How did you come up with the name Love.Might.Kill for the band? The first time I saw it, I thought it was a gothic band or something like that.
M: It’s really hard nowadays to find a cool band name. I had tons of ideas... but every time I googled these names I saw that I was not the first one with that idea, hahaha... one night I was watching TV and they showed a short trailer with that real cool name... to be honest I don’t remember the name exactly but it had the same idea, so I changed it a little bit and translated it into English. I know that this name causes some confusion but it’s unique!
Which is the record you wish you had written and why?
M: Probably “Screaming for vengeance” from Judas Priest or Metallica’s Black Album, because both are simply perfect!
Which are the things that piss you off from today’s music industry?
M: It pisses me off that times are that bad that it’s hard to get that little money you need to make even a low budget production. It’s not only that we as a band don’t earn anything but we also bring in our private money. Most of the people out there would say that we’re crazy... and they are right, hahaha
Were you obliged to give just one album to extraterrestrials that would represent the whole human music evolution, which album would it be and from which band/artist?
M: This I really hard to say and a little bit unfair because you could only present a certain style... But as I’m a metal fan I had to choose between “Screaming for Vengeance” from Priest and the Black Album from Metallica.
What do you think about the International financial crisis? The rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer… but for how long?
M: If nothing changes I’m pretty sure that someday all will end up in wars because the poor won’t take it anymore. (i.n.: Yeap, I believe the same thing too…)
Is the European Union condemned to fail in the end? That would probably cause a worldwide domino of destruction at any level...
M: In worst case it is... I still hope that things will change but I’m probably a dreamer, hahaha…
Shall we wait for extraterrestrials to save us… or we must first make a stand and save our lives ourselves… instead of waiting for miracles? Are the stars our destiny eventually?
M: Uuuhhh, I don’t know... I don’t think that extraterrestrials will save us, hahaha... and I also think that just a few people on earth are able to change things. I hope that these people are aware of their responsibilities!
Who is your favorite philosopher and why?
M: I’m sorry I don’t have any favorite philosopher...
You have the opportunity to sleep with the movie-celebrity of your choice. Who would it be?
M: As my wife and my son stand above everything else in my life I would never dare to do things like this. Not even with a movie- or any other kind of celebrity. Sounds boring but it’s very important for me!
If you were the opposite sex for one day, what would you look like and what would you do?
M: I’d probably like to be a politician... I’d really like to know their daily routine. I know that they earn a lot of money but they also have tough schedules and a big responsibility... And if it would be just for one day I’d know that I’m not caught in that circus.
If you could be born as any famous person in history who would it be and why?
M: As I’m really thankful for the life I’m living and for what I’ve achieved I’m never thinking about those things. Mmmhhh, who would it be???? Maybe I’d like to be one of the Beatles... but please Paul or Ringo, hahaha... (i.n.: The reasons are so obvious right!)
Are groupies a necessary evil for each and every rock/metal band?
M: No, not at all. We’re not living in the 80s anymore. Times have changed and the most musicians I’m playing with are beyond 40 years old, hahaha... what would you expect? (i.n.: Oh Lord… let’s go back to the 80s!)
What do you think of Charlie’s quote: Beers, Pizza, Hookers? Which one is the most tasteful of all?
M: Pizza!!!! I’m not a Beer drinker... to be honest I don’t drink much alcohol at all. I’ve seen a lot of people and musicians drinking too much and this always ends in chaos. In my opinion every musician has to give his best for his fans... and you definitely can’t give your best when you’re drunk... especially when you’re a drummer. I don’t care if someone says that I’m boring because I prefer to do a good job instead of making party all night long.
Imagine that your wife is selling your whole album-collection just to buy an expensive ring for herself. How would you react?
M: As my wife knows that I’m a musician and that this takes a big part of my life she would never do things like that... to be honest I think that she would rather sell her rings to buy more CDs, hahaha (i.n.: That’s cool!)
Thank you Michael for taking the time to do this interview… Thx for the music... Please leave a note to Grande Rock readers… Take care!
M: I’d like to say Thank You to all the people who supported Love.Might.Kill so far! I hope to see you all on tour soon!!!