OLIVER WEERS
Questions asked by Jon Wilde, added to Rock Realms 3rd March 2011.
We recently reviewed Oliver Weers' excellent new album "Evil's Back", so thought we'd have a chat with the man to find out more...
Hi Oliver, thanks for taking a moment to answer these questions. Hope you are well?
Oliver: As well as can be Jon… Thanks!!
How and when did you realise you first had a talent for singing?
Oliver: Well, quite early on… It was always me that had to sing the Xmas carols, at the age of 6, and I still remember having a very soft and high voice back then. It was always very comforting to sing though and I spent lots of time imitating bands, singing into whatever looked like a microphone.
Do you come from a musical family then?
Oliver: A bit… My grandfather was a very talented piano player but he was probably more famous for his artwork. Just like my mother, he became a very successful sculpture at home... If you’re interested, check out: http://www.ann-weers-lacey.de/ for more information.
Who were your early influences and heroes?
Oliver: My first album was AC/DC's “Back In Black”…. I’d be 11 then… And from thereon in, I moved around all the sorts of Rock Bands that were coming through from the 80's; Iron Maiden, DIO, Whitesnake, Ozzy, Scorpions, Def Leppard, etc.. I also listened a lot to Deep Purple, Rainbow, and Black Sabbath; a real cross-section!
Obviously we’ve got to ask you about talent shows... What inspired you to enter the Danish X-Factor, and even though you didn’t get very far were you happy with the effect it had on your career?
Oliver: Yes… I've been moving around Europe quite a bit in the last ten years or so and each time I’ve moved, I’ve started over again with my music career. When arriving in Denmark, I thought the X-Factor could bring me into the Danish music scene and music consciousness faster. It was the first time they had ever transmitted the X-Factor show in Denmark and I thought, why not?
Today I probably try to leave this in my past, so to speak, but as a very short but effective time in my music career, it was worth doing!
Now it’s out the way, what do you actually think of talent shows in general? Are you negative towards them, or are they a useful tool for getting noticed?
Oliver: I wouldn't really advise anybody to join this show in Denmark today, let’s say that!! It's the 4th season now and it's become very, very "Thumbs Down"! I don't even like writing about it in interviews these days…! It seems to disturb reviewers and the audience…. I think The X-Factor will always take 1 star at least off my reviews, Ha! Ha!
Your first album after that, “Get Ready”, featured big names (Tommy Aldridge, Marco Mendoza etc.)... How did you get guys of that caliber on the album with you? I assume they weren’t big Danish X Factor fans...?
Oliver: No… But Tommy and Marco really liked the songs we were working on and they’d worked with my producer before as well, so it wasn’t an issue…. They understood, I think, that these shows are part of the business today. But they also knew that I’d made 3 albums before I even joined the show and was more than capable of great songs, which was definitely the case on that album… You should check it out. I really love the record!
How did the debut do in terms of sales, press and fan feedback etc.?
Oliver: It all went very well and better than expected, actually…. It was tremendously uplifting to be able to release an album throughout Europe and Japan considering how difficult the market is at the moment. It made me extremely happy that I was able to share my music with so many people around the world and I found so many new friends through doing it.
Onto your excellent new album “Evil’s Back”... How do you feel it compares in terms of style and sound to the debut?
Oliver: I think, this time the album is more me and, in my opinion at least, more European. It's more detailed, aggressive and heavier, but still in a melodic way. It touches your senses deeper than before. The band and I were not concentrating on moving into one specific direction but rather trying to be loyal to the classic rock world giving it a slightly modern touch. And I really love strong melodies and words.
Diversity played an important factor for me when writing “Evil's Back”. It's a little bit like telling a story this time. Sound wise, we were a little inspired by Ozzy Osbourne's latest album "Scream" and Avenged Sevenfold's "Avenged Sevenfold".
Did you try to get the same line-up of performers again?
Oliver: Not really; I was waiting on Søren Andersen and hoping he would join me on album number 2, but he was touring quite a bit with Glenn Hughes and Mike Tramp, so I spent some time looking at suitable musicians, gathered a different, strong team together and one thing led to the other. I really want to do something with these guys now; they’re really hungry and incredibly talented!
How do you go about writing your songs? Talk us through the construction of a typical track...
Oliver: Well, this time, as I said, it was a new team in some way, so it might have been different to the norm for me, but I’m hoping it continues like this now because, typically, songs started with some simple riffs; Laki and/or Anders Bo would come up with those and bring them round, and it was really, really inspiring. I took these ideas to my studio to play around with them, then right after that, just hit the studio and began pre-production on the best ones; so simple!
The lyrics are often taken from my scratch book. The scratch book is a collection of ideas I have gathered when at my house on Crete. It’s a lovely old stone house up in the mountains, where I find time to let the spiritual world take over. It’s a beautiful place…..
Then, once the pre-production is done I finalize the lyrics; changes, enhancements and optimizations happen…., all the way to the final mix. That’s it!
Is there a story/theme running through your songs or do you generally aim for standalone tracks?
Oliver: Well, in principle the songs were written individually, yes, but when we got closer to the end of the production, I realized that we were actually telling a story in some way, unintentionally maybe? It's best to listen to the album from song 1, all the way to the end to see where I was looking. It's like an emotional trip where lyrics stimulate your fantasy!
Are there any particular tracks you rate highly on “Evil’s Back”, or is it all brilliant?
Oliver: All brilliant of course, Ha! Ha! There are some tracks that mean something special to me though; something maybe slightly more. 'Rainbow Star' which is dedicated to Ronnie James Dio, is one in particular. We wrote the song the morning after Ronnie passed away. We were all devastated getting that message on the news; and in the morning Laki and I were playing around with ideas, which quite suddenly became 'Rainbow Star'. All day we just worked on it….. And, the way it is on the album is the way it popped out of our heads that day!
Did you have the album title right from the start as inspiration, or did it only come along later? What is your interpretation of the meaning behind the title?
Oliver: Ahh, that’s quite hard to explain, and no, it came later… The first title I had in mind was "Voices", but during the pre-production I realized that "Evil's Back", or something similar, reflects the overall mood of the album much better. And the song 'Evil's Back' also represents the album perfectly. It had to have this title!
I feel that we are filling our planet with too much negative energy lately. I don't believe in God, nor the devil either really, but in the capability of us; humans. The bad news around us seems to be spreading globally. It's a chain reaction of worry that will lead to a global depression. I chose to call it "Evil's Back" because I feel this is close now. The lyrics and music support this!
Do you have big plans for touring to promote the new record?
Oliver: I’d love to do this right now… I would like to say that we're going on a European Tour and it’s 100% guaranteed; but unfortunately, nothing is set up just yet. It's very difficult and extremely expensive to go on tour and most venues in Europe are struggling today. Lack of funds and the political situation are really suffocating cultural life. We love what we're doing and will try everything to make it possible ASAP., but you’ve got to be sensible, unfortunately!
What is one of your live shows like?
Oliver: Oh, a real blast!! Full of energy!! I kind of agree with reviewers when they say that our live performance is stronger than listening to the album. Like many bands I think you really gain an edge when you play live….. I hope you and your readers can make your own judgment on this very soon!
What have been the highlights and lowlights of your musical lives so far?
Oliver: I don’t like to think too much about the low times Jon; we’re trying to build on a very strong album right now and the best is still to come, leaving the hard times well behind, but I definitely remember with a lot of fondness, getting that first album done!! You never forget that… The tremendous live shows too!!
Any question you love being asked that I’ve missed? If so, what’s the answer?
Oliver: No…. I think you’ve got some very good questions; thanks a lot!
What are you up to once you’ve finished answering these questions?
Oliver: I’m really gonna keep working hard to get out to everybody and do some gigs. I think it’s vital to do that right now… Kick some asses at radio stations that don't play enough Hard Rock and really try to promote this band!! I just have to play!
Anything else you would like to mention?
Oliver: Yes… I would like to thank all my Myspace and Facebook friends for all their great support! Those media are so important in this day and age and I really want to make this work for those guys!”
Thanks for your time…
Oliver: Thanks to you!
Thanks again to Oliver for his time. You can check out the Rock Realms review of his latest album "Evil's Back" by clicking here.
Label: AOR Heaven
Artist's website(s): Oliver Weers | MySpace | Facebook
