ANDY SUSEMIHL

#interview

ANDY SUSEMIHL

💿 Hi, it’s a pleasure for us to have on Hardrockheavymetal ANDY SUSEMIHL! Welcome!!

Hello ! I’m really honored to be on the show – thanks for having me.

💿 On June 12th will be out your new EP entitled BURNING MAN, well- received on our pages. Can you tell us somethin'about its composition process and style?

Well the composition and recording process started immediately after I was done producing and mixing “Cacophony of Souls” by David Reece. I ended up having 19 songs so I decided to put out an EP first and a full length album in fall. I was a little worried about not getting enough material together but then the songs literally fell from the sky and I ended up having a luxury problem. Style wise it’s really great to work without the limitation of a certain genre…I just compose and record what I deem good and worth putting out there…I would call it Sophisticated Global Rock in a wider sense.

💿 Two special guests on the title track..PETER BALTES and ANDRE LABELLE..especially the first is a big shot..PETER is a private person and not easy to involve..

I met Peter when we recording “U.D.O. – Mean Machine” at the Dierks Studios in Cologne Germany in 1989 while he was recording “Eat the Heat” with the new Accept singer David Reece. We hit it off pretty good and started to write some songs in the demo studio in the basement. So we more or less stayed in contact over the years. Peter is a great guy and I’m absolutely honored to have him on my next 2 albums. Andre Labelle I met in L.A. in the 90’s and we played in some bands together. He then moved back to Virginia and we lost touch but reconnected over the net a couple of years ago. He already played some killer tracks on the last album.

💿 BURNING MAN is a starter in waitin for a new full-length, scheduled in autumn. Can you tell somethin’about in preview?

Like I’ve said I had 19 songs total…I was contemplating of turning it into a double album but that’s maybe a little old fashioned plus nobody buys double albums these days. So we thought it’s the best thing to spread the material and release an EP before the summer and then a full length album. I don’t want to say too much since we’re promoting “Burning Man” right now, but I can say so much that it will be the best album so far…Peter is playing on 4 more tracks and I have Andre’s great drumming also on 4 more…I’m also very proud to have Francesco Jovino on Drums on 2 tracks - the live gang Harry, Andy, Alex and Paco will be on board too of course.

💿 In your early times as musician which artists influenced you the most?

It all started of with a and called “Sweet” from England…they where the initial band that pulled me into music…then I was a big fan of Status Quo…as guitar players I really liked guys like Michael Schenker, Gary Moore and after we toured with Ozzy, Zakk Wylde. Later I got into players like Michael Landau, John Scofield and such. I had the big luck to having met Ted Greene for some guitar lessons while living in L.A.

💿 Recently we appreciated your countribution on new DAVID REECE album CACOPHONY OF SOULS.. Are you satisfied about this brilliant album? Can you tell us somethin'about your long friemdship with DAVID?

Like I’ve already mentioned I met David in the Dierks studios in Cologne in ’89 and we became friends ever since…we had a great time hanging out there.

David lived in L.A. at the same time while I was there but for some odd reason we never met. It was in 2005 or so that I happened to visit a club of a friend of mine near Cologne and David was there.

So we talked and the rest just happened. I produced his first solo album “Universal Language” and the 2 Bangalore Choir follow ups.

I think we created his best solo release with “Cacophony of Souls” so far.

💿 How is difficult promote a new work after the lockdown drama?

Well that’s a though question since there’s a lot of emotional stuff going on. All I can say is that it’s not really a good development, because we artists are living from live shows.

If you play live you sell records and make a living. Streaming or downloading music doesn’t pay the bills. Above all it’s rock’n roll and RR is energetic and live…that’s why I don’t like to do living room concerts over the internet…it turns the whole purpose of this genre upside down.

💿 Here at HARDROCKHEAVYMETAL we are strong defender of classic format..love for vintage or isn't there a future outside digital?

I’m afraid the vinyl format will never come back full force. I’m already happy when the CD doesn’t die. I don’t know but maybe you have to be oldschool to appreciate it, but when I listened to new music back in the days I wanted to look at the cover and read the notes.

Even on a CD there’s limited space so that already a compromise…but downloads & streaming? That development takes the whole soul & spirit out of the artist & music. Plus if you’ve ever heard an analog recording over really top of the lie equipment you never want to go back to digital. So in a nutshell digital can be seen as audio junkfood for the ears.

💿 Among others, you played with U.D.O. and SINNER in first slice of your career..Can you tell us somethin'about this years?

9Sinner was the first band that pulled me out of my hometown area…I did 2 records with them, we had a great time and some nice tours & concerts. The offer from Udo was something I couldn’t turn down of course because that put me on an international level back then. We did the first tour in the USA with Guns’n Roses and boy there where some wild times & stories written.

Back in Europe we finished the second album Mean Machine and went on tour with Ozzy Osbourne playing all the European dates.

💿 You shared stages with many artists..who were the craziest?

If you ask me for the craziest then among the famous ones I’d say Ozzy, but in a really nice way because he was a real gentleman. Although in my 12 years living in Los Angeles I met people who where way beyond that level of craziness…it would take hours to tell all the stories – at least live in music doesn’t get boring.

💿 Thank you so much for your time! See you soon on Hardrockheavymetal, hoping to see you also on the stage as soon as possible.

I definitely hope to see you life sometimes soon!