The main driving force and founding member of the US rockenroll gang talks about the new singer and how he would smash Seb Bach like a mosquito...

SKID ROWВ are aВ super coolВ USВ rockenroll gang. After 3 and a half albums with charismatic frontman Seb BachВ he got so high with success that got fired from the band.

InВ 99 Skid Row got together but with a new singer - Johnny Solinger.В Today they released throught SPV their second albumВ with the guy "RevolutionsВ Per Minute" (SPV/Wizard). And it's surprisingly fresh, powerfull,rockenroll and with some punk energy blasting.В 

AndВ ifВ you want to know why, Rachel Bolan is the man to talk to!В 

V.V.: So, let’s start with this: I was fucking amazed by your new album so this interview is to tell you how great folks you are, but at the same time I have a couple of questions for you.

R.B.: Absolutely, man. I’m glad you like the record. Give me all you got!

V.V.:  OK. Well, the previous record didn’t get much attention, did it. So, do you think that with this one it is going to be the same?

R.B.: Well, I’m hoping that this one will get more attention than the last one. The last one did exactly what we were planning – make sure that people know we are still around and we’re still making music.

This one is energized – a lot harder, a lot faster, a lot heavier and goes in a lot of different directions so I think by the response we’ve been getting lately I think it’s going very well.

V.V.:  It’s been said a lot about Sebastian Bach in Skid Row and Sebastian Bach not being in Skid Row anymore. So, let’s talk a bit more today and about this new guy Johnny.

R.B.: We found Johnny through a mutual friend – knew a friend of his and so we went to his website. We were putting together the band again back in 1999 and we knew we wanted a new singer. So we auditioned a few guys and that friend suggested John and we went to his website and saw what he looked like and heard his voice and it was amazing.

We brought him up and when we heard the first song we knew he was the guy, you know.

V.V.:В  What was the first song you made him sing?

R.B.: The first song was Piece of Me from the first album. We gave him some standards and then some obscure stuff and he just nailed it all.

V.V.: What are the three best things about Johnny Solinger then?

R.B.: The three best things about him

One: he’s a very nice guy and has no ego.

Two: he brings a lot to the table – his songs, his voice and his ideas for the songs..

 and I guess the third one would be that he knows what this band is all about and what we’re trying to accomplish. He’s a very nice guy and has his way of taking over the crowd and this is very important.

V.V.:  Obviously you have to face the comparisons between now and then all the time and I don’t think that hurts. But when did you find out that Sebastian Bach was not your cup of tea anymore... When you had to face this dramatic thing about change in the band, do you think that this made better friends of the guys remaining in the band?

R.B.: Absolutely, I would say definitely. It was a situation that went completely bad and then the three of us knew that we’re getting a new singer. We got Johnny and it was really cool and we sort of became brothers. And that’s a way a band should be – it’s a unit.

We’re not in our different little camps anymore. We’ve got Johnny for seven years now and we’ve done tours and this is our second album and the comparisons are a lot less than you would think.

People accept Johnny with open arms and when they go to a show they walk away as fans because they see Johnny and feel that he’s not just going through the motions. He does the old songs and the new stuff as well.

V.V.:В  I do remember your album B-Side OurselvesВ  the one with the cover versions. At the time I discovered that you are more of a punk rock band than a heavy metal band. Do you like punk and hardcore today?

R.B.: Yeah, I like a lot of the stuff that comes out but I listen to the new stuff and then go right back to my Ramones and Sex Pistols records, because that to me is true punk rock. I’m not saying anything bad about what’s coming out today but I like the punk rock from when I was growing up and that was a really important part of my life and I never shy away from it.

V.V.: Which of the 11 tracks in your new albumВ is your favourite?

R.B.: Oh, man, it’s hard to say. But if I had to pick one, it would be When God Can’t Wait, but, man, they’re all like… I love them all and there’re no ballads, which I love. But if someone put a gun at my head, I’d pick When God Can’t Wait.

V.V.: Well, we started playing You Lie because it starts out as a conventional country song then it gets more and more intense and it ends with the words “motherfucker”, which is not exactly a radio friendly song, but we don’t give a shit here.

R.B.: When I was writing this song I was worried about presenting it to the band because I did not know how are they gonna react, you know. But it was all good.

V.V.: Did I tell you you’re Jack Daniel’s band of the week?

R.B.: Oh, I love Jack Daniel's!!!

V.V.: Yeah, me too. Tell me one more thing,В If you see Bach on the TV, which is quite possible, do you turn it off immediately?

R.B.: No. I don’t really watch that much TV and I don’t seek him out. I don’t see that much of him either.

It’s like having a mosquito in the room to me – eventually I’ll just kill it.

V.V.: Can you promise that you’ll never get together again like so many bands having reunions these days?

R.B.: Oh, I can promise. We’re happy now. We’re making new music, we’re in the world, we’re putting out records. We’re the only band from our era that has a record deal. I can promise that Johnny is the singer of Skid Row!

rights: Tangra Mega Rock