Speaking to Glyder mainman Bat Kinane on the release of Glyder’s second album, “Playground For Life”….
Congratulations on the new album Bat, a late contender for many peoples “best of 2007 list” I’m sure. 10 cracking songs, which have had some heavy play in my house, could you talk us through them track by track?
Many Thanks Dave, I’m hoping it will make the best of in 2008, as it’s a bit late in the year now!! Its officially released late Jan 2008 in the UK and Ireland, here is some stuff I wrote about the songs that is included on the DVD that comes with the Pre Orders of the album,
Gamblers Blues was written in the South of France on a break from touring with Thunder. The song came very quickly and it started off with a riff idea that Pete had and it inspired me to complete the music for the rest of the song. The lyrics deal with a Gambler which for me playing in a band is like being a Gambler..You might just have that winning hand. The first verse came straight away and Tony and I wrote the lyrics to the last two verses in preproduction. It has a dramatic intro and gradually brings the listener in. This one works well in the live set.
Sweets is one of the first songs written for the album, very menacing and dark but funky. Musically this is the one I’m most proud of. It has lots of changes and moves along very well. The crazy intro hook is doubled up on slide guitar and sounds great. Pete has an amazing solo at the end that reminds me of Randy Rhoads in its structure and melody. There are some nice harmony parts there too and its double tracked note for note in Randy Rhoads fashion Tony wrote the lyrics after a trip to Amsterdam and it deals with that culture and all its trappings…
Puppet Queen started off with the intro riff, I played it to Tony and he came back with the verses, chorus and lyrics. I think it has a real punk thing going on and is reminiscent of the punk era in 1977 and reminds me a bit of the Clash and The Only Ones. The Chorus brings Deep Purple to mind and Tony’s backing vocal reminded me of Zappa. Davy does a great drum solo at the end. Lyrically it deals with a lot of the celebrity culture we live in and the fickleness of it all.
Playground for life started off as a song called “Midnight in San Salvador”. I was listening to “Songs from the Capeman” by Paul Simon and watching a programme about gangs on the television and the film “City of God”. The music fitted the Latin vibe I was in. Tony took it and replaced the lyrics and vocal melodies but keeping the hook “is it really me their after” and the line “playground for life” out of the chorus. The theme of the song changed and it became about the overall theme of the album and how the world is your playground and you choose your own path.
For your Skin is a love song composed by Tony. It is one of the strongest songs on the album and vocally, Tony delivers a passionate performance. I think the song builds well and we put in two key changes to build it. The lyrics have a poetic feel and are written like the way Phil Lynott wrote some of the early Thin Lizzy stuff with references to places and people and a play on words.
Walking my Own Ground was the last song written for the album. It was the most difficult to write although musically a very simple song. Originally demoed as “A walk in your Shoes”, it just wasn’t working. I started afresh keeping the bridge riff and some of the music on the chorus. I rewrote the words and Tony took it and added new lyrics for the bridge bit and I couldn’t think of the last line so Tony came out with it….”Walking my own ground”. Musically it reminds me of a mix between Thin Lizzy and Green day. Lyrically there is a little influence of Rory Gallagher and solitary way of life it can be being a musician and following your own dreams and not what society expects you to do.
Sleeping Gun was originally on the debut EP “Black tide silver path”. The main hook is a guitar part that creates a certain mood when I wrote it I was listening to Sting “Mercury falling”. Tony came up with the Lyrics and melody lines and wrote the music in the midsection piece. This version Tony reworked the lyrics and melody lines. It has more of a groove now and vocally it reminds me of Sting. The lyrics are about the school killings in America. Pete has a very short but great solo at the end. It brings Michael Schenker to mind.
Dark Meets Light started with the intro riff that Pete wrote. Tony took it and altered it for the verses and wrote the Chorus. This song was originally called “Satellite” but we felt that it wasn’t working in its original form. Tony reworked the chorus but kept the verses. I think the verses are really strong and that Tony has a great vocal here. The chorus makes me think of Metallica in the melody and the lyrics. The song breaks down nicely with just bass and vocal and coming back in strong on the chorus. There is lots of harmony guitar going on and Davy adding a great groove.
Over and Over is a Tony composition. We recorded this song for Irish National radio station 2fm in late 2006.The song hasn’t changed a lot since its original form. It has a very contemporary sound and the main riff has a punk vibe. This is a great song to play live as it has a real power groove and stomps along. Davy has some really fine drumming in this.
The Merrygoround is probably the oddest song on the album and most removed from the Glyder sound and has a Pink Floyd feel to it. Lyrically it deals with the clerical child Abuse scandal in Ireland and the way the church chose to deal with the situation. It is a protest song and its deals with the sheer apathy of the Catholic Church in Ireland to the problem. It is also relevant to all abuse of power and when people are in power they neglect the needs of the ordinary man. I think it works best as the outro with the epic feel at the end of it.
You seem to have made a habit of surrounding yourself with some of rocks biggest names. I’m thinking in particular about Chris Tsangarides who has mixed both your albums to date, so how did that all come about and what influence did he have on the direction taken with Playground For Life?
Chris mixed and produced the debut and mixed “playground”, he didn’t have any input into the production of playground but he definitely put his stamp on it in the mix, We originally approached Chris back in 2005 with our EP “Black tide silver path” and some demos we had made, he agreed to produce our debut album and he chose 10 tracks out of a possible 18. The result was a very up-tempo in your face hard rock debut album which was received very well by the press. I see “Playground as a progression from that and we explore some of the other sides of Glyder. Working with Chris has had a huge impact on us and the way we approach recording and writing now, for a band to work with someone of his level on a first album is a real eye opener and the experience that we have from that will stand to us for the rest of our musical lives.
Of course you must be delighted by Philomena Lynott’s championing of Glyder, just how did that all come about?
Yes Philomena has always praised us since day one, I suppose she sees Phil and the boys in us and it probably reminds her of the days of his career starting off. Its kind of bizarre that one day when Tony was about 18 years old he was walking down Grafton St in his Thin Lizzy T shirt and Philomena stopped him when she saw it and invited him to visit the house. Then not long after a friend of mine brought me out to her house for a visit and we got to see all Phil’s record collection, his Bass and jukebox and his writing desk. At this time Tony Davy and myself were playing in a Classic Rock covers band and we got asked to play a Phil Lynott tribute gig in Dublin, after that we formed Glyder, we were originally called “Hollywood” and we got to tour “Thin Lizzy” in Ireland on 6 dates, which I got for the band by ringing up their management. We got to meet Philomena many times after this as we get asked to play at a lot of the tribute night where we play some Lizzy covers and a Glyder material. We have a lot of friends among Lizzy fans and they have helped us along the way.
Do you think the “next Thin Lizzy” tag is helping or hindering what you are trying to achieve?
We are very proud of the fact that Lizzy are the band that inspired us to play and to be honest it’s flattering that people have tagged us as the next Thin Lizzy. I don’t see it as a hindrance; I believe that there is a huge gap in the music world for this kind of music and I hope we will be one of the bands to fill it. The music world has changed very much over the last 5 years, Classic Rock as emerged as a genre of music the same as country, classical, Jazz or whatever, I think music hit a brick wall and heavy metal went to the extremes and bounced right back to where it began, I don’t feel we need to break musical boundaries but rather write good and interesting songs and try rock out at the same time. I think we are very close to having our own sound and a lot of people have said that about the new album but there will always be a Lizzy influence its in our blood!
I’ve just heard your going to be appearing at the Sweden Rock Fest next year. What a gig! You must be absolutely over the moon with that news?
Absolutely. What a line up Def Leppard , Whitesnake, Judas Priest, Saxon, ELO. Does it get any better?? Its like going back to monsters of rock Castle Donington 1983. That’s the way it should be!!
The Fish tour is another great opportunity, you’re certainly getting dealt all the right cards. I know the support slot for Thunder tour was won through a vote, so how did you manage to pull this one off?
We got the Thunder tour because of the support we have among Thin Lizzy fans in the UK and also some very good friends and supporters of ours in the UK voted for us. Danny Bowes told me that we got the more votes than any of the bands in the UK. To be honest that’s kind of amazing. We are still technically unsigned and I run our own label in the same way the Danny runs STC for Thunder, we have the new album distributed through the same people as Thunder, Townsend records.
I don’t really look at it that we are getting dealt all the right cards, we work very hard. I’m very proud of what we have achieved and we have worked our arses off. We have no financial support or label or manager throwing money into us and we have achieved two albums, European and UK tours and major festivals, airplay and critical acclaim all on our own. I manage the band and I know what it takes to make this succeed and I’m getting there bit by bit and I won’t give up until we have achieved all of our goals.
You’ve already toured with some of the biggest bands Thunder, Bob Catley, WASP, what are the highlights?
The UK dates with Thunder were amazing and so was the tour of Europe with them. They are good blokes and I have fond memories of those tours. The first tour with Thin Lizzy in Ireland was a real buzz because it was the first time we played to full halls. The Gods of Metal in Milan was also amazing and getting to meet Ronnie James Dio and have a beer with him is a memory I will treasure. He was such a nice guys and you know the way the say don’t meet your heroes as they will disappoint. I wasn’t disappointed! Ronnie James Dio is the man!!!
What sort of age group are you attracting to your own gigs? I’m just a bit concerned that by supporting these bands your building an older fan base, something which I’ve noticed has happened to bands like The Answer ….Though it does seem the younger rockers seem to be picking up more and more on this type of music.
We haven’t done too many gigs on our own but it seems that we are attracting all ages, from 13 year olds to 60 year olds and that’s cool. It’s amazing the amount to young people into classic bands. Let’s face it; music has been pretty unexciting since 1987. I think that’s what’s started this obsession with Led Zeppelin. There is really not a lot at the moment to get excited about.
Are there any other up and coming bands you would recommend?
The obvious ones, The Answer and Black Stone Cherry. There are some good bands from Ireland too and they are Celtic Legacy and a blues band called The Deans who I believe will be huge.
I’ve also noticed you’ve supported a couple of “Tribute” bands, how do you feel about that?
No problem as long as we are getting to new audiences, the tribute bands are always Thin Lizzy tributes as we get asked to play at a lot of the tribute gigs.
…. and are there any bands left you would like to tour with?
I would love to tour with Iron Maiden, Foo Fighters, Deep Purple, AC/DC, Def Leppard and Whitesnake…..there’s just so many………, Id also like to do a tour with Black Stone Cherry as they are probably the best of the newer bands.
Ultimately, who would you want to be opening for you?
Thin Lizzy….just Joking!!
I don’t know really but if we were at that stage I would like to give some upcoming bands a break.
I wish you all the best with Playground For Life and what promises to be a very busy 2008 gig wise, do you have any plans past there?
Thanks a mil! We’re already thinking about the 3rd album and Tony has five songs written and I’ve stacks of ideas on my Dictaphone and on my computer so I hope
To be able to make the 3rd album late 2008.
Thanks for taking the time to answer this Bat, see you on the road!
Cheers Dave, Rock on!!
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DH
(pictures courtesy of www.bitchinrockphotos.com)
Opening with “Sudden Life” then personal favourite “All Alone” from the most recent album “Diamonds And Coal”, Man turned in an impressive performance that went very close to topping the fine show played in Cambridge back in the summer. Now fronted by veteran bass-player Martin Ace, although he and guitarists George Jones and Josh Ace share the vocal duties admirably, they delivered a perfectly balanced set that mixed newer tracks with classics like “Manillo“, “Shit On The World” and a particularly impressive on the night “Even Visionaries Go Blind“.
additions of Tweke Lewis too for “Spunk Rock” and then Will Youatt as well for the finale of “Bananas“. An excellent version of it as well I might add with the four guitarists, bass, keys and the superb drummer Bob Richards delivering a rip-roaring set closer.
Snappy Kakkie proves to be the sides and possibly the albums low point though unfortunately while Enjoy And Get It On fails to build upon a promising opening riff despite injecting a bit more urgency into proceedings.
Bill’s Best Of 2007
Posted in Comments, Music on December 28, 2007 by rockofagesTOP 10 ALBUMS OF 2007
1. Heaven And Hell – Live At Radio City Music Hall
at last a live album that does the Dio fronted era of Black Sabbath justice.
2. Velvet Revolver – Libertad
against all expectations the GnR offshoot actually justify the hype
3. Joe Bonamassa – Sloe Gin
blues perfection, even if half of it consists of covers
4. Slough Feg – Hardworlder
‘proper’ metal mixing a twin guitar attack ala Wishbone Ash with the power of early Sabbath
5. Mustasch – Latest Version Of The Truth
excellent melodic hard rock featuring the best Bond theme that never was
6. Magnum – Princess Alice And The Broken Arrow
pomp-rock perfection and an album that went a long way to recapturing their 80’s best
7. Road To Ruin – RIIR
Matt Alfonzetti returns to front an album of excellent 70s style blues based rock
8. Helloween – Gambling With The Devil
aside from one poor track a fine album that proves there is life after seven keys (again!)
9. Mother Superior – Three Headed Dog
underrated and largely unheard of US rockers with an album you’d think was a “best of” collection
10. Tesla – Reel To Real
a covers album done well, breathing new life into a great selection of old and sometimes obscure tracks
plus honourable mentions to Status Quo, Queens Of The Stone Age, Iced Earth, The Trews, Ray Davies and Paul McCartney who all produced hugely enjoyable albums this year too (and probably a few more I’ve missed)!
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TOP 5 Reissues
1. Slade – Whatever Happened To Slade
the long lost 1977 album proved to be the jewel in a fine reissue series
2. Gillan – The Singles Box
every Gillan single plus the promos in reproduced covers and a nice box – a collector’s dream!
3. Jaguar – Archive Alive Vol.1
a superb collection of rarities from the nwobhm bands early days
4. Heavy Pettin – Prodigal Songs
with this many gems not making the actual original albums it’s even more perplexing that Heavy Pettin’ missed the gravy train
5. The Answer – Rise II
one of the best albums of recent years gets better with a full CD of new songs, live takes, covers and demos added
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TOP 5 Live Gigs
1. Heaven And Hell – Cardiff Arena (14 Nov 07)
90 minutes spent in the company of legends
2. Y&T – Bristol Thekla Social (28 Oct 07)
Dave Meniketti and co. on fine form – just why did this band never get huge?
3. Man – Cambridge Rock Festival (18 Aug 07)
I’ve limited myself to one Man gig for this list so it’s the first one! Pushed close by John Otway and Stray as the best performances of a fine festival, the Manband were so good it shaped my listening and record buying for the next few months
4. The Answer – Chepstow Rock Festival (1 Jul 07)
the young Irish four-piece have no right to sound so bloody powerful
5. Twisted Sister – Hard Rock Hell, Butlins, Minehead (10 Nov 07)
he might look like Bet Lynch on a bad day but what a set Dee Snider et al produce – a hell of a show riddled with rock classics and er… Christmas songs!
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BL
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