Michael Monroe interview

The legendary rock icon talks to us about his new band ahead of his performance at Download 2010

Download: Hi Michael, welcome to Donington.
Michael Monroe: Thank you – it’s good to be here.

DL: How many times have you been here before?
MM: None whatsoever. It’s my first time.

DL: Well it’s great to finally have you. You’re here with a new band, headlining the Pepsi Max Stage. Tell us about the set you’re playing tonight.
MM: We’ve got the best of all worlds. Some Michael Monroe solo stuff, some Demolition 23 songs, we got some old Hanoi Rocks from the early 80s and a couple of new songs.

DL: So truly something for everyone?
MM: Yeah, it’s gonna be a great rock ‘n roll show.

DL: Outside of your die-hard fans, who does your music appeal to?
MM: Anybody who likes good rock ‘n roll would like this. It’s high energy, there are good songs with good melodies, good lyrics and great players – I’ve got a great band. Sammy Yaffa, Ginger [from British rockers The Wildhearts], Steve Conte and Karl Rosqvist – it’s a really good band

DL: That really is a great bunch of players – did you find them, or did they find you?
MM: They kinda chose me. Sammy came up to me last summer at the New York Dolls show in Finland and we got together. They invited me up on to stage to jam with them, and we talked after the show. He said that he’d really like to work with me again, and we started putting the band together.

DL: And it just sort of grew from there?
MM: I hooked up with Ginger last summer too, just to write some songs. Then in early December at the Alice Cooper show in Helsinki, Ginger came up to me and said he’d very much like to be part of my band. I called Sammy the next day, and he said “yeah, that could be great”. We tried it out and it worked out cool. So far it’s been really good.

DL: So it’s a fairly new band in the scheme of things. Will it continue to exist with this line up for a long time?
MM: I hope so [laughs].

DL: Are you going to get a chance to see any other bands today?
MM: No, I don’t think so. I’ve got interviews from now up until the show, then I’m probably going to leave right after I finish playing.

DL: Who’s the one band you wish you could have seen at Download this weekend?
MM: I’d have liked to have seen Slash, because he’s a friend of mine, and also to see the new band. But I’m going to see them in Finland in July anyway. AC/DC are always great, Aerosmith is a band I’d loved to have seen, but not this time, I guess.