MILLENNIUM interview with Mark Duffy & Mike Muskett

MILLENNIUM same-titled album, originally released in 1984, is definitely one of the best British Heavy Metal records of the 80s. However, after the album, there are many demo recordings, enough to create another album, that some people could consider it, even better... With the album re-released recently via No Remorse Records, including many of those unreleased demo songs, we had the opportunity to speak with Mark Duffy (vocals 1982-1988) and Mike Muskett (guitar 1984-1988) about the history of this great band.

-When did Millennium started?
Mark: Millennium started in 1982 me and Pete McArdle started writing songs on acoustic guitar in 1978 when we went to guitar lessons together then we moved on to electric guitars.

-What do you remember from the late 70s – early 80s New Wave of British Heavy Metal era, as a young fan and as a young musician? 
Mark: There was a great interest in British bands at the time and there were lots of bands and clubs putting bands on. It was a great time to see new bands that had a different style after the punk era.

-Which bands did you like back then?
Mark: The bands we liked at the time were Saxon, Heavy Pettin', Girlschool, Trespass and a local band called White Spirit. We also liked early Whitesnake and Black Sabbath with Dio.

-So, when you started writing the songs for your first record, what was your expectation?
Mark: Our expectations were to show record companies what we could do.  There were so many bands trying to get record deals so we decided to do it ourselves and hoped a record company would pick up the album or be interested to do another album with us.

-What do you remember from the recordings of your fist album and what kind of feedback did you get back then?
Mark: The recording of the album was not a good experience for the band. We had a lot of disagreements with Guardian Records who released the album and we were not happy with the way the recording was done. When the album was released we had great feedback and some great reviews but the band just wanted to forget about the album because of the bad experience in doing it and just move on and write new songs. Dave Merrington left the band after recording  the album because of the bad experience of recording it.

-What about live shows?
Mark: We only did one tour in 1985 around England and a few shows from 1986 to 1988 because we spent more time writing and recording demos during that time.

-After the album, you recorded some demo tapes and your music style became faster and more powerful. How did that came and why didn’t you record another album?
Mark: We recorded a lot of demo tapes between 1985 and 1988. I think the metal scene was changing and getting heavier with thrash metal coming through. We also replaced our guitarist with Miles Lofthouse who brought a heavier style to the band.
Mike: The musical style kept on changing, evolving, improving; each time were were knocked back by a record company we'd try to take the music a bit further, explore more avenues and heavier styles. I don't remember what was happening in general within the heavy scene, we were so caught up in wWith songs like 'Confession' and 'The Beast' I think we were finally becoming what we wanted to be; it was complex, hard and fairly fast paced, but still with some melody.
We never managed to spend enough time in the studio to make the demos sound right; most songs were just recorded without any fine-tuning or without proper arrangement; if I was going to do it all again it would be very different!
A second album would have been great, but it would have been a very different Millennium from the first album. Finance was the real problem: without record company backing it was almost impossible to achieve, back then.
Shame - I would have liked to do an album: I was writing more and more powerful music, the band was becoming really tight as a unit and Mark was a brilliant frontman.

 
-Mark, do you think that this faster and more powerful style was your first step to your next band, Toranaga?
Mark: Yes I think I felt more comfortable with the heavier and more powerful style as a vocalist and felt it was where I wanted to go. Toranaga were a heavier band with a Black Sabbath influence that I thought I could work with, which suited my vocal style.

-Mike, when did you join Millennium and which were your memories before that regarding Heavy Metal music in England?
Mike: If I remember correctly, I joined Millennium in '84/'85; the guys were looking for new direction, and I had just quit 'Skitzofrenik' and was looking for an outlet for some music I was writing - perfect timing. I'd spent a few years gigging around the North-East of England with Skitzo, but I was really still trying to learn my instrument (I didn't start playing until I was around 18 or 19 - quite late).
The musical style kept on changing, evolving, improving; each time were were knocked back by a record company we'd try to take the music a bit further, explore more avenues and heavier styles. I don't remember what was happening in general within the heavy scene, we were so caught up in what we were doing.

-Why Millennium split up back in the late 80s?
Mark: Millennium split when Mike Muskett and Steve Mennell left the band. We did replace Mike and Steve but the style had changed, we became a lot heavier and it did not sound like Millennium anymore so we changed the name to Major Threat then our bassist moved away and it started to be line up change after line up change. I then saw an advert in Kerrang magazine for a vocalist to join Toranaga which I auditioned for and then joined.
Mike: I had to quit music altogether in 1989 as I contracted RA (Rheumatoid Arthritis), which badly affected my hands; I couldn't even walk for around 1 month when it first hit. That was the end of my musical career! Luckily, I had some skill in art. That we were doing.
I managed to get a job in the computer games industry, producing artwork for Codemasters video games (a small company called Optimus Software). I moved into programming and then Art Direction (with Iguana Entertainment and Acclaim Entertainment (Mortal Combat/NBA JAM). I still can't play, but I do have a small collection of guitars - I guess some things will never change!

-What about now, Mark? You are still active in the music…
Mark: I am still active in music and re-joined Toranaga in December 2010. We released a new album "Righteous Retribution" in September 2013 and we are playing live shows. We are also writing new songs for the next Toranaga album. I would also like to do a reunion show with Millennium if the opportunity comes along!

-What about you, Mike? What is your epilogue?
Mike: These days, it's great to see guys from the old music scene in Teesside (like Mick Tucker from TANK and Janick Gers) doing well. Davy Little (Axis) is doing some great stuff with 'Lies of Smiles'; I played with Davy back in the '80's just before joining Millennium - I think there was a huge amount of talent up there.
After I left the band I think they did 1 more demo, but then folded and went their seperate ways. Mark can tell you more about that part of the band's life; I was so cut up about my physical condition that I basically cut myself off from everyone and everything for around 12 months. Not a happy time, but on the plus side it led to a fantastic 15 year career in video games - priceless.

"Millennium" was originally released via Guardian Records on vinyl format in 1984.
Re-released via No Remorse Records on CD format in 2014, including 8 bonus tracks.

MILLENNIUM line-up
Mark Duffy - Vocals (1982 - 1988)
Steve Mennell - Drums (1982 - 1988)
Pete McArdle - Guitar (1982 - 1985)
Dave Price - Bass Guitar (1982 - 1986)
Dave Merrington - Guitar (1982 - 1984)

Mike Muskett - Guitar (1984 - 1988)
Dave Hardy - Guitar (1985 - 1986) / Bass Guitar (1986 - 1988)
Miles Lofthouse - Guitar (1986 - 1988)

Join MILLENNIUM on Facebook HERE
Join TORANAGA on Facebook HERE

SPARTAN WARRIOR interview with Dave & Neil Wilkinson

The NWOBHM Files

Being one of the greatest British Heavy Metal bands formed in the 80s, during the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement, brothers Dave Wilkinson (vocals) and Neil Wilkinson (guitar), speak to Crystal Logic about everything around Spartan Warrior, in the most complete interview taken so far for this great band.

How did you come up with the name?

Dave: Originally the band was called Deceiver. At that stage, the band members were Gordon Webster (drums), Tom Spencer (bass) Dave Wilkinson (vocals)  Pat Thompson (guitar) and Gordon Craig (guitar). It was at the stage that Neil Wilkinson and John Stormont joined the band each on guitar that we decided to have a fresh start and a change of name. Gordon Webster was very much interested in Greek History and it was he who suggested the name "Spartan Warrior". For myself, I only knew a little about the Spartan culture at the time but what I did know was that their society had honesty and integrity at its heart... and a real hard edge too. That I think suited us... it still does and we try very hard to live up to that.

I want to know from you guys, how did you spend your free time at late 70s – early 80s in England, before you start your band. Which are your memories from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement? Bands, rock clubs, gigs, etc…

Dave: I left school in 1978. Neil is two years younger than me so he was still at school when we formed our first band together who were called Easy Prey. We actually wrote a version of “Mercenary” whilst in that band... I think the lyrics remained unchanged when we used them in the song of the same title in Spartan Warrior. Most of my spare time at that point (1978- 1980) I spent hanging out with friends, drinking and watching bands. I used to watch the likes of Saxon, White Spirit (Janick Gers) and Raven most weekends then at one club or another. I also listened to a lot of music in my spare time... just about anything that I could get my hands on. I built up quite a large collection of vinyls which I still have. My favourite bands at that time were Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Thin Lizzy, Van Halen, Rush and Judas Priest. Of the NWOBHM bands of the time that surfaced around 1979/1980 I was only really a big fan of Diamond Head, Samson and Iron Maiden. I saw a lot of gigs some large and some small... some in clubs and bars but mostly at a venue called Newcastle City Hall. Amongst the club and bar gigs of note were AC/DC, UFO, Marseille, Saxon and Iron Maiden all between 1978 and 1980. At the City Hall I saw just about every band you can imagine, Rainbow, Rush, Van Halen, Judas Priest, MSG, Scorpions, Motörhead, Diamond Head and Thin Lizzy... There was a time when I virtually lived in that place.

Neil: How did I spend my time? Well you have to remember that in the late 70s I was still at school. I was quite into skateboarding but I would say it was around then that I became really serious about playing music and that’s when me and Dave formed our 1st band with some school mates. I think I was about 14 then so it will have been around 1978, maybe 79. I did spend a lot of time practicing guitar and when I joined Spartan Warrior I put all my time into that. Apart from that it was just all the usual stuff you hanging about with friends and going out to gigs. The places I would go to see bands were The Old 29 pub in Sunderland and also Sunderland Mayfair that always had name bands on. At first I used to have to sneak in being under-aged and that… he he. I saw some great bands locally. In terms of NWOBHM I went to a gig to see Mythra and Hellenbach and The Tygers were always on. There was loads of NWOBHM going on where we lived and a lot of them are still going now with us included!

So, when did you start and what made you play music?

Neil: I was always keen on music even when I was 4/5 years old. I don’t know what it was I just loved it. I had loads of different instruments as presents for birthdays and that but obviously I settled on guitar, gutted really because I wanted to be a drummer! Still once I got into guitar at about 5 years old I didn’t really think about playing anything else. Later on as I got into heavy music I just found the whole thing very exciting and I just knew that I had to play in a band. I think the thing that really made me want to get seriously into it was going to see my 1st live gig, I just had to do it!

How did you get in touch with Guardian Records for your first album “Steel ‘n’ Chains” and what do you remember from the writing and production procedure?

Neil: Well I heard about Guardian through a friend of mine who said that she’d seen an ad looking for bands. Her sister’s boyfriend also had a copy of a compilation album from Guardian called Roksnax or Roxcallibur – something like that (editor’s info: it was “Roksnax”, a split LP with Saracen, Samurai and Hollow Ground). Anyway by this time I was playing with Spartan Warrior and I told the lads about it and we all agreed that we should contact the studio to see if they would be interested in putting 1 or 2 songs on the next compilation album. So we recorded a rehearsal on cassette and went to Guardian so that terry could listen to them and that’s when he chose “Steel n Chains” and “Easy Prey” for the “Pure Overkill” album (editor’s info: “Easy Prey” was also listed under the title “Comes As No Surprise”). As far as writing goes, we would just come up with stuff at practices so it was fairly straight forward although I would also write songs on my own as did the others, so it was a bit of a mixture. Again production was very straight forward and “Steel n Chains” was actually an album of demos and was done as and when we could afford it, so we would usually do 2 songs a session and mixed it the same day.

At the time of its release (1983) New Wave of British Heavy Metal was starting to fade and few bands continued (and fewer became really big). How things were in England at that time and how was your first album accepted by fans and press?

Dave: The first album “Steel n Chains” was a real pleasure to record. By that time John Stormont had left and had a spell with Jess Cox (Tygers of Pan Tang) and Battleaxe. We had recruited Paul Swaddle to play guitar alongside Neil and Paul was a real nice guy and a stunning guitar player. The album was recorded two songs a day and pretty much live. Although it’s a bit raw I still love it today... Good memories. As I recall we had a great response locally and I know we featured on local radio quite a bit on the stations Rock Show which went out on Saturday night into the early hours of Sunday morning. From what I saw in the music press (Kerrang) we had quite a positive response too but I have to confess personally I wasn't really paying attention to what was going on around us and I was quite content just doing what we always did. I remember being told to play things down, that big things were going to happen for us and the more we kept away from the music press the more interest their seemed to be... I suppose it was a bit of management style hype... a bit cloak and dagger and it really didn't interest me. It was a huge wake up call when I was asked to quit my job and go professional with Spartan Warrior when we signed to Roadrunner. I had just got married and had a huge financial commitment so that was never going to be easy. After we had done the second album for Roadrunner things looked as if they might just take off and that scared the hell out of me... so I got the hell out of it. Part of me wishes that I hadn't ... who is to say whether we would have been a major success or an outright failure ... I just couldn’t run that risk.

Neil: I think the band was very well received and we would have done well if we had stayed together and also the fact that NWOBHM was coming to an end didn’t do us any favors either.

Guardian Records released also a split compilation called “Pure Overkill” with you, and had in its roster some other great bands also, like Satan, Incubus and Mythra. Tell us a few words about them.

Dave: I really didn't know anything at all about the other bands on “Pure Overkill”, that came out before “Steel n Chains” album. I remember meeting Incubus in the studio... they were really nice guys and I loved their contribution to “Pure Overkill” too. I also really loved Risk… they put down a class track on that album.

Neil: Its difficult to say really because the only one of those bands I ever met was Incubus. They seemed ok lads but that’s about all I can tell you about them.

How was a Spartan Warrior live show back then?

Dave: Spartan Warrior live back then was great fun: we all got on really well: we loved playing and I think that we were very laid back in our approach... I don't recall anything regimented about our approach and we weren't self critical or analytical back then either. I think that we are much more self aware now and far more driven in our approach... Neil makes sure of that and there is never anything that is second best… never !

 

Neil: Pretty much the same as it is now! We always do our best when we play and I don’t think that will ever change. Someone who had seen us at Headbangers Open in 2011 left a comment on a YouTube clip saying “Stormer the opening song at HOA it nearly ripped my head off!” Well we view that as job done and I think we play the same now as we did back then if you know what I mean…

Which were the best live shows you attend in England?

Dave: The best live shows that I saw back then I think would have been Iron Maiden on the Powerslave Tour, Ozzy Osbourne with Blizzard of Oz, Queensryche and Dio.

Neil: Tricky! There were so many. I’ve got to say seeing Randy Rhoads with Ozzy was a treat and also the UFO gigs and MSG gigs just because Michael Schenker is my favourite guitarist. Seeing Saxon playing bars when they were called Son Of A Bitch was good and locally Raven used to get on The Mayfair and The Old 29 a lot.

In 1984 you joined Roadrunner Records for your second album, “Spartan Warrior”. How did you get in touch with a US record label?

Neil: Well, the Roadrunner deal came on the back of “Steel n Chains”. Terry was in touch with them and when they asked if he had any interesting bands he put us forward. Mind that Roadrunner wasn’t a US label, they were operating from Holland. It was good for us to do and it was definitely a step up for us and we still benefit from being a Roadrunner band to this day. I don’t think that was any other band from our area that signed directly to Roadrunner, although I think they lisenced some other band from other companies. Not many people know but we actually did a compilation with Roadrunner called “The Metal Machine” with bands like Lee Aaron, VoiVod, Slayer and Cirith Ungol being on there too! Wish I could get a copy of that!

And what about the music and the recording procedure for that one?

Neil: The production on the 2nd album was more involved .We though a lot more about the song structure and harmony guitar parts were played as overdubs. As far as the music goes it’s a bit strange in as much as some of the songs on the 2nd album were older than the songs on “Steel n Chains”. The reason for this was that we got the Roadrunner deal just as we had finished recording “Steel n Chains” so we had to pick songs that we had decided not to use on the first album, but there were also newer songs that we had written while we were recording “Steel N Chains”. “Mercenary”, “Black Widow”, “French Girls” and “Broken Promises” were all older songs.

Most of the times, the band titled album is the first one, but you made it different! How did that came up?

Dave: The second album was supposed to be called “Assassin”. I don't know what happened about that... We recorded the album, set up the concept and made our wishes known and then the album appeared in the shops, untitled and with artwork that we had never seen before.

After a while you disbanded. Why did this happen?

Dave: I left the band after the second album came out. I had just got married and I simply couldn't commit to the band anymore. The other guys carried on and recruited another singer but I think that they started to move in a different direction and Paul Swaddle also left after a while. I know that Neil, Tom and Gordon carried on writing and recording demos and I even went back and recorded four tracks with all four of the original boys on a demo tape (a copy of which I still have) . I think that eventually things drifted and fell apart and that was that. I have to accept the blame for that... If I had stayed, I don't think that the band would have split and there would probably have been a tour and a third album at that point.

Neil: There were a few reasons. I think life and responsibility got in the way for some band members and there was some friction though not between the band or Roadrunner and it was that which caused Dave to quit. After that it wasn’t really the same and then Roadrunner said that they wanted us to play “Devil Music” so that was that! We tried to keep going for a while after but then Paul went. After that it sort of just faded away.

What have you done all these years until your reunion in the mid 00s? Did you follow the Heavy Metal music evolution worldwide?

Dave: I dropped out of the music business completely. I pursued a career outside music... and I am still married and I have two children that I adore.

I never lost touch with music... I remained a fan and at some time around 2005 I started singing in a band again… nothing serious… just good fun. It didn't take long though for Neil to reform Spartan Warrior and he and I started writing and recording demos before we approached Tom and then Gordon: the result was the release of “Behind Closed Eyes” in 2010 with shows at Hard Rock Hell in Wales and Headbangers Open Air in Germany.

Neil: Well I kept playing! Mostly did covers with friends but I kept writing music and made rough demos for no reason other than I liked doing it. Just before I reformed Spartan Warrior I played in Waysted and wrote songs for their last album “The Harsh Reality” but when that ended I knew I wanted to do Spartan again. As far as following the metal scene I always have.

How did you decide to reunite and when did this exactly happen? Also, this is one of the few times when a (let’s say) small band - and not a huge mainstream name - is reunited with almost the original line-up, right?

Neil: Well it was after I had finished with Waysted, so I think it was around 2008. Like I said earlier having done stuff with Waysted, I knew I wanted to get Spartan going again. I had songs so I just contacted the lads to see who would want to do it. At first only Dave agreed but after hearing the ideas Tom and then Gordon came on board. Paul wasn’t able to do it although I think he would have liked to. It was important to me that we did the new album with as much of the original line up as possible so I decided to do all the guitars myself and then recruit a 2nd guitarist once we started to play live again, so to get 4 out of 5 members was quite an achievement!

In 2010 you returned in discography with your third album, “Behind Closed Eyes”. All the songs there are new ones or some of them are older? Do you have any leftovers from the 80s?

Neil: The songs on “Behind Closed Eyes” are a mix of ancient old and new. The oldest song on there is “Never Take Me Alive” which I wrote in 1983 and was originally recorded for “Steel n Chains” but Terry didn’t think that the song worked. “Tear Out Your Heart” is from about 1987 and “Last Man Standing” was written in 1996. The rest of the songs are much more recent from about 2007 onwards with some of the songs being written as we recorded them – “Flesh and Blood” being one of them. We’re busy working on the next album at the moment and I’m always listening to old ideas that we never used as well as working on new stuff  so nothing gets ruled out when it comes to song writing really.

How easy or difficult is for a traditional Heavy Metal band to survive in England, today?

Dave: It is very very difficult to survive as a band in the current climate. It costs money to run a band, to travel and to record and for some reason these days everyone wants music for nothing... The availability of free downloads can very easily be the death of a band who are not that commercially successful. It's something of a cliché to say that Spartan Warrior aren't in it for the money, but like many other bands like us that is true... It would be great to be able to make a living doing this but it simply doesn't pay. So we work our day jobs, we play when and where we can and we love each others company, the people that we play for and meet and just doing what we do.

Neil: Financially, extremely difficult. Bands cost money to run and what with free downloading it can make life for a band practically impossible, having said that I do this mostly because I like playing. In recent years in the UK I’ve seen support growing for our style of music with gigs and festivals being more and more well attended, so hopefully things are on the up and bands like us will be able to make ends meet. At least we are fortunate enough to have our previous albums that have kept people interested in us, but I have friends in other bands starting out and its very difficult for them, which is a shame.

Which are the best moments in the history of Spartan Warrior?

Dave: The best moments for Spartan Warrior... I loved playing Headbangers Open Air in Germany in 2010 and I loved reforming with Neil, Tom and Gordon recording and releasing “Behind Closed Eyes”. I have special moments every time I play with Spartan Warrior now.  We have James Chartlon on drums, Dan Rochester on Guitar and we have Tim Morton on bass and every show we play together, every rehearsal and every recording session are just the best times ever... I love being in this band with these guys and the best part is that it just gets better and better. I'm not going anywhere this time, I'm here until they nail down the lid on my coffin!

Neil: For me it was playing HOA in 2011. We were 1st band of the last day. On what was our first major gig since reforming I was amazed when we opened to a full field – unbelievable and ill never forget it.

So, what the future holds for you?

Dave: We have started writing for the fourth album. We have three new songs recorded as demos and another two completely written. Next step is to deal and record or just do it ourselves and put it out. There's no hurry with this one but it'll be worth the wait... It's going to be explosive, man!

Neil: More of the same! We’re working on more gigs more festivals and also on the next album. We’ve also had some line up changes since I reformed the band. First both Tom and Gordon went and we replaced them with James Charlton (drums) and Dan Rochester (bass). More recently though Dan has replaced Mark on guitar as Dan was originally a guitarist. So, to replace Dan we have only just recruited Tim Morton. Now we have a full line up again we will be getting to grips with getting the new album done so watch this space! I know that me and Dave feel that we have a very strong fresh line up so its full steam ahead!

Last wish / message for everyone…

Dave: My last words to you are these:

To my band mates Neil, Dan, Tim and James... I love you boys.

To metal fans everywhere, I hope that life is good to you all, stay hungry, stay loud and stay proud... See ya in 2013!

Neil: Since reforming Spartan Warrior I have been amazed at just how much support this band has from family friends promoters and fans. I would just like to say a big thank you to everyone for their support - it really does make it all worth while! Once again thank you my metal friends. I hope to see you all soon!!! Metal on! 

Spartan Warrior Official Facebook Page 

 Photo by Chris Jones

PRAYING MANTIS... This journey never ends! - Interview with Chris Troy

Praying Mantis is among the best and most unique bands that ever came out of England. The band is about to give some gigs during summer, while working on new material and I took the chance to have a couple of words with Chris Troy...

So here we are again. This is the third interview in the last years, this time for my personal blog/site. I’ve told you that Mantis' music always meant a lot for me. These melodies and lyrics made me wanted to be a better person, so thank you for that.

That is such a kind thing to say and it is very much appreciated.

“A chance we had, to cry for the new world”. So, do you think there is hope in the next years and what do you believe we, the people, should cry out?

Yes I do think that we will emerge and everything will return to a better level. Sometimes I look at the thousands of people as they disappear out of the cars, trains, buses, etc and head towards their jobs or things that they need to do. It all seems so such an intricate finely balanced economic model but in reality it only takes a very slight shift and everything can suddenly go off-balance which it has and it seems to have rippled everywhere. Some countries more affected than others! Cry out for more good music! :-)

“Time has no meaning, time tells no lies. Man has evolved as a predator in disguise”. So, is it all in man’s nature? 

I think it is. I wrote those lyrics in 1976!!! …And the theme seemed so very pertinent even back then. Around that time the population was under 4 billion and now it has gone over 7 billion in what is actually a very short interval in terms of the life of the planet. Yet we carry on unabated and if we continue down this incredibly blind and utterly ignorant path. Who knows what the future will hold. Man of course is the predator, maybe now, no longer in disguise..!

“Welcome to my childhood dream; reliving what I’ve missed before, time and time over again”. In July 27, Praying Mantis will play live in Cyprus at Power of the Night festival. How do you feel returning to the land of your father and which are your strongest memories from Cyprus?

I am hoping it will be a fantastic experience. My father unfortunately passed away around 16 years ago, and Tino and myself took him to Cyprus to see his family before he really became ill. So I have some very sad memories of the place but I also remember the fantastic people that we met… Everyone seemed so warm and friendly. We are so looking forward to it.

“Running for tomorrow, hiding from today. Running for tomorrow, can’t look back on yesterday”. But yesterdays define who we are, right? So, from all these past years of Praying Mantis, what do you believe you finally achieve? 

Well after all these years we are somehow still going as a band and this makes me incredibly proud. There is no doubt we have gone through some very difficult times but in addition there have also been some amazing moments. I feel so privileged to have been provided with a position to get our music and lyrics in a form that can be conveyed into people’s lives. And if they relate to the lyrics and interpret them how they feel the theme , then that is even better!!! There can always be more, but to the same degree we could always be richer! …i.e. I cannot complain, we have left our mark in history.
 
“Hide me from my memories, part me from my soul, but the pendulum of life will carry on”. You never quit music - thanks for us! – and that shows that this is something that you love doing. What music means for you?

No doubt it is a lifeblood. It is also a drug that sometimes you think you can live without, but then you realize you need it again and again, to have another fix! …Yes I am a music junkie!

“Hallowed and be thy name; seeking the road of redemption. Reach for the Gods in vain; guilty of love and temptation”. Which are the mistakes of your past that you would change if you knew the future?

Making mistakes is part of life. Some of those will inevitably be big and involve aspects that we may always regret. Yes there are certain stages at the beginning of our history where I think if we had ventured down that alternative road then we could have been where Iron Maiden are today! And in truth it was really that close! But you learn to be philosophical about these things and quite simply it wasn’t meant to be!

Back in Mantis, which are the songs that characterize your personality and your music?

That is a difficult one. Personally I love writing using minor chords as they conjure up darkness and a depth which consequently one can associate with equally dark and deep lyrics. That is me, I don’t think I have ever written a straightforward love song and I don’t think I am capable of doing that. :-)

After your last studio album, “Sanctuary”, you released “Metalmorphosis” with remakes of older classics. What’s the next step?

As you have stated “Sanctuary” was indeed the last studio album and any of the fans really did like it. “Metalmorphosis” offered us the chance to play some of the old classics with the current band line up. For the next stage, the cliche answer would be that we are working on a new studio album, and actually we are :-) … We will make every endeavor to make it the best album ever, but time will tell!

Give me a couple of words for each of the following names:

New Wave of British Heavy Metal – Great time. It was fantastic to be part of it.
Dennis Stratton – Fantastic guy and an amazing character. I will always fondly remember the time he was in Mantis.
Iron Maiden - Who? :-)
Diamond Head - Yes I think that they were a very good band; should have been bigger than they were.
Stratus – Sad in many ways. The key element of Stratus is that Clive Burr was in the band. I did actually really enjoy the rather brief period when that band existed.
Time Tells No Lies – It was the beginning for Mantis and people will always compare whatever we do to that album. Many fans/critics call it a classic now which is an honour.
Sanctuary – Most fans believe that album now stands up against Time Tells No Lies and hence hopefully we still have the formula to continue for the years we have ahead.

And close as you wish.

Thank you for putting together some of the most interestingly structured questions that I have ever been given to answer!!! :-)

Looking very much forward to playing Cyprus and playing to these amazing people. It will be an honour!

Praying Mantis will play live at 
Power Of The Night Metal Festival 
in Cyprus, along with other great bands, at 27/28 July 2012

7" Singles

Captured City - The Soundhouse Tapes pt.2 (1979) - also released as 12" single

Praying Mantis (1980)

All Day And All Of The Night (1980)

Cheated (1981)

Turn The Tables (1982)

Discography

Time Tells No Lies (1981)

Live At Last (1990 live album)

Predator In Disguise (1991)

A Cry For The New World (1993)

Only The Children Cry EP (1994)

To The Power Of Ten (1995)

Captured Alive In Tokyo City (1996 live album)

Forever In Time (1998)

Demorabilia (1999 compilation)

Nowhere To Hide (2000)

The Journey Goes On (2003)

The Best of Praying Mantis (2004 compilation)

Sanctuary (2009)

Metalmorphosis (2011 re-recordings)

  

 

Praying Mantis official site

with Praying Mantis in Athens 2010 
(Up The Hammers Festival)

Dennis Stratton interview - British words of Iron & Harmony

Dennis Stratton is a legendary British guitarist known to many from his appearance in the first IRON MAIDEN album and for the few, by his long great course with PRAYING MANTIS. The last years he is active bringing the spirit of early Maiden in the new generations and he was kind enough to talk with us about his life in music all over the years.

How did you start playing music? Did you have any influence from your parents on that?

No, I didn’t have any influences from my parents. I started playing because a friend of mine who was in a band decided to sell a guitar, so I bought the guitar and started to learn the basics notes and chords. I used to go and watch in a pub a band called Power Pack, in the early days, at the age of 17. So I learned different notes and chords and then I joined the little band were I bought the guitar from. We were all friends, it wasn’t much of a band, and we just did a couple of rehearsals in a hall upstairs in a pub.

Which ones are the first albums and bands you’ve heard and loved back in the 70s?

The first bands I listened to, have to be The Beatles and Led Zeppelin. I was sitting in the bedroom playing “Whole Lotta Love”. So that’s how it all started, staying in the bedroom playing Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple albums.

Most people don’t know that you played music since the early 70s. With Harvest from 1970, with Wedgewood from 1972 and Remus Down Boulevard until the Iron Maiden days. What do you recall from that decade? How were things for music in England back then?

Yea, you’re right. Most people didn’t know that I played in different bands before Maiden. Harvest and Wedgewood were sort of pub bands that did mainly covers, and that’s how we did get improved, by going at the pubs and playing for hardly any money, next to nothing. And then around ’73 we finally got a gig at the Bridge House (where we first watched Power Pack) with Wedgewood and there was another band playing there, with Dave Edwards, and we decided to get together and join forces and then came along Remus Down Boulevard (RDB). There were great times. Remus Down Boulevard started playing bigger gigs and we were signed by Quarry management which managed Status Quo and Rory Gallagher. We played in the Marquee and Jonathan King signed us who had a record company at that time and we recorded a live album at the Marquee around 1975. The biggest step was to go on a tour with Status Quo, because we were signed to the same management and we did a huge European/Scandinavian tour. That was unbelievable and we learned a lot in a short space and time, going from the clubs to a huge tour. And then, when we came back we had a line-up change. We had a different drummer and bass guitarist. We kept playing, but punk scene came along and there wasn’t many bands signed at that time…  

So, in 1980 you joined Iron Maiden. How did this happen and what the Stratton’s diary writes for that year?

Steve Harris and Dave Murray used to come every week and watched RDB at the Bridge House. I didn’t know they were in Iron Maiden, but they were familiar faces. Then I got a telegram that they were looking for a guitarist that would also do backing vocals. Someone with a recording experience and also a touring experience, so I fitted straight in. When I met Steve, Dave and Rod we had a little chat and they gave me a cassette and said to listen to them. I think it was a bit of a surprise to Steve and Rod, because being in a two guitar line-up for most of the bands I’ve worked with and listening to Wishbone Ash and other harmony guitar players, it just came natural for me to pull harmony guitars unto the early Maiden stuff, “The Soundhouse Tapes”, or whatever I was listening to the cassette, “Phantom of the Opera”, “Iron Maiden”, “Prowler”. It just came natural for me to fill out the guitar parts with harmonies. I think it took them by surprise because the harmonies did seem to work. Well, it did work, ‘cause they still using them now!  

It went very well and they asked me to join the band. At the time there were only three of them who signed to EMI because they didn’t have a drummer. I knew Clive from the early days and we were mates. I told him I joined Maiden and took him to the studio where he did a few rehearsals and then they asked Clive to join, so the band was then complete.

I worked only in the earliest stuff because that’s what we wanted to record. Signing to EMI lifted Iron Maiden out of the run of the mill bands that played in England at that time. You know, it was very hard for bands at these days, especially with the punk era coming in, a lot of independent labels opened up and put all these punk bands into singles, EPs and 4-track EPs, so Maiden signing to EMI lifted them out of that and became bigger. With the album coming out, the fan base of Iron Maiden was huge. They’ve done their homework, they did their groundwork, they constantly giged in the early days, so they did have a big fan base. In 1979 I was working with Maiden and in 1980 we carried on. We did some tours, with Judas Priest, Metal for Muthas tour – that’s where I met Tino and Chris from Praying Mantis where in the later days I ended up join them. It was a great year. The biggest thing was when we went to do the KISS tour.

What kind of man was Steve Harris back then?

Steve always knew what he wanted and he run the band with an iron fist. He knew exactly what he wanted – right or wrong - and he always knew that Iron Maiden will be big.   

  

How were things during the recording of the first Iron Maiden album? I know that Steve hates the production of that record but it has a few of the best maiden songs ever, like “Remember Tomorrow” and “Prowler”.

Steve didn’t like the production but you know, in them days it was all a big rush. The album was recorded very quickly. Luckily, I already had recording experience, so I did many guitar parts on my own with the engineers. It was recorded very quickly because there was the Judas Priest and KISS tour waiting. The KISS tour was very good and there I met Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley. That’s were the crack started…  

So, why did you part ways with Iron Maiden?

It was just musical taste differences. I like to listen to soft songs when I’m not playing. The best way to relax is to listen easy listening songs and Rod seem to think when I was listening to The Eagles or David Coverdale singing “Soldier Of Fortune”, one of my favourite tracks, that I wasn’t into Heavy Metal or Iron Maiden and the argument started. He tried to keep the whole band together all the time, but everyone needs a bit of space. So the crack started to appear… 

How important do you consider the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement?

You already had Heavy Metal bands like Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath, but what the New Wave of British Heavy Metal did, was to bring out younger bands that were watching all these big bands all their lives, grow up, got their guitars, they rehearsed, recorded, doing the pub scene and it just gave them the opportunity to show what they can do. Unfortunately a lot of the bands didn’t get through and somehow disappeared after fighting a while. But other bands like Saxon and Def Leppard really make it. With Lionheart we did some amazing gigs with Def Leppard. So, some bands make it, some not.      

Do you remember Rob Loonhouse? The photographer of Iron Maiden and Praying Mantis? The “myth” says that he was the one who invented “air guitar”.

I remember Rob Loonhouse, he wasn’t a photographer, he use to dance around the dance floor with an imaginary guitar and he use to have competitions of who could do the best air guitar and Rob used to win a lot…

Which bands back then in England stayed in obscurity and deserved more popularity?

As I said before, the good bands made it, but there were some bands that I thought they had bad timing. One typical example of that was Lionheart…

You played with Lionheart, so give us a brief bio of that time.

Those were great times. Me, Steve Mann and Rocky Newton we wrote loads of songs. We used to do lots of sessions for people who couldn’t play or couldn’t sing. Unfortunately we did all the hard work but we did never deal, so that was how we use to earn their money. Lionheart recorded the album in Los Angeles and it took us 4 years of hard work to get us a deal with CBS. In these days, in the 80s, in 1984 you know, the AOR stuff… I thought Lionheart was a great band. It was a shame that when we came back from America, everything we were promised like tours, they all seemed to fell through. Bad timing, I don’t know, but Lionheart wasn’t given a chance after the album was recorded, to go on a tour for that album. We could go on a tour with Kansas, Journey, Foreigner, any other band alike.

From that time and on, you always had a more melodic approach in music, despite the raw Heavy Metal of early Iron Maiden. Which are the things that influence you in music?

I’ve always been in heavy rock bands and not so much into heavy metal. By joining Praying Mantis, that gave me the chance to show more of the harmony guitars and harmony vocals that I like doing.

In 1989 Paul DiAnno, while he was in Battlezone, he was approached by a Japanese contact to put on a show to celebrate 10 years of NWOBHM. So, if I am not wrong, then he contacted you and Tino Troy. “Live At Last” is the live album that followed under the name Praying Mantis & Paul DiAnno, Dennis Stratton. That whole thing had big success in Japan and Praying Mantis was established again as a band, and you became a full member, along with Bruce Bisland on drums, Chris (bass) and Tino Troy (guitars), while you and Chris shared vocal duties in the new (back then)  Praying Mantis album “Predator In Disguise”. This nostalgic NWOBHM celebration gave birth to a whole new music beginning in your career, right?

In 1990 we were approached by a Japanese company, Pony Canyon, to do three gigs in Japan to celebrate 10 years of New Wave of British Heavy Metal. Chris said that we can do it and they ask us if we could speak to Paul DiAnno and see if he was interested in doing it. Then we got Bruce Bisland on drums and later Clive Burr because Bruce felt from his bike and couldn’t play. We did the three shows and recorded it for “Live At Last” and I stayed with Mantis for many years.

You knew the Troy brothers since 1980, right? I really love Praying Mantis, but back then you had success mainly in Japan, and not at the rest of the world. Why do you think this happened? Which are your strongest memories from these years?

I know the Troy brothers since 1979 when we did the Metal for Muthas tour. I think we recorded some great albums and it is my kind of a band. Harmony vocals, harmony guitars, it’s not too heavy, and these were good years.

We were very successful in Japan, I think we did about 7 or 8 albums with Pony Canyon and sometimes I and Chris used to share some vocals. Again we had vocalist problems and we keep changing vocalists. That was a huge problem.

Which are the “Best Years” you are referring to the same titled song from “Forever In Time”?

It is about my early days, around East End of London, running around with a gang of kids and playing on sites where the houses were bombed in war and that was a part of the best years of my life that I just wanted to put into a song.

Later you parted ways with Praying Mantis. Why did this happen?

Pony Canyon had some problems and we were basically doing nothing. I spoke to Chris and Tino many times on the phone but nothing was happening. Tino went back into work, Chris was always at work but I wanted to do something different. Out of Mantis it was the first time, since probably my first gig, that I wasn’t contracted or wasn’t playing with a full-time band. I was basically on my own and that gave me quiet a lot of freedom, so I was contacted to go to Germany, Italy… In Italy, I am going the last five years and we are doing some Iron Maiden festivals there with different bands from Germany, Holland, England, all over, and these are great shows. It gives to children the opportunity to hear the songs of the first Iron Maiden albums.

I saw you in Keep It True festival in Germany this year with Roxxcalibur. You really enjoyed playing the old Maiden songs. What does this means for you?
 

We did three songs in Keep It True but when I go to Italy for the Iron Maiden conventions, there is a band, The Clairvoyants, one of the top tribute bands in Italy, or I would say in Europe for Iron Maiden, and they go on stage and play sets of early Maiden albums. And then I go on with them and do a 45 minutes set of the early stuff like the “Prowler”, “Remember Tomorrow”, “Phantom of the Opera”, “Running Free”, “Iron Maiden”, “Transylvania”, we go through the whole stuff and I am loving that at the moment. I am going back to Italy to play on the end of June and then I will go back over there in August and September. 

Somehow, I’ve lost your traces the last years… So, what have you done lately?

I am still working very hard in England with three bands so I am constantly working. It is a busy time at the moment with all the festivals coming up. We’ve been in Bulgaria, South Africa and there is lot of stuff on YouTube and Facebook showing clips of us on stage doing the Maiden songs.

  

Knowing the mistakes of your past, what would you change in your music career?

I’ve made lot of mistakes in the past and I am still making them now!

Thank you Dennis! I wish you all the best from the bottom of my heart! West Ham is back in Premier League, also. So, good luck!

Yes, go West Ham! 

Ok Andreas, it was lovely talking to you. Everyone there in Greece, God bless you.

 Dennis Stratton Official Facebook Page