Perry: I was in Destiny`s End from 1997 to 2000. I wrote and recorded two albums with them. Unlike Falcon and Artisan, I only played guitar in Destiny`s End (no vocals for me there). While I was with DE, we toured the US with Iced Earth and Nevermore in `99, played the Wacken festival in `99, followed by a small tour of Europe. DE were a very fast and technical metal band. I guess you could call it power metal. I quit DE just after we finished recording Transition (the second album) and formed Artisan with Mike Bear (bass/vocals) and Ana Greco (guitar/backing vocals). Artisan were even heavier than Destiny`s End, incorporating elements of thrash, power, and death metal. We explored that direction mainly `cause we all had similar heavy-ass influences (for me that meant stuff like Death, Sadus, Sacrifice, Anacrusis, Coroner, etc). I was in Artisan for over three years, until 2003. We recorded a four-song demo that was never properly released, although it can still be downloaded from www.artisanmetal.com. Mike and Ana handled the clean vocals and I was in charge of the aggressive vox with Mike. We played a handful of gigs while I was in the band, alongside folks like Arch Enemy, Engine, Onward, Prototype and Dreams of Damnation.
I really started to burn out on playing a million miles an hour, and also on the growled vocals. I had to follow my heart, which is 100% in Falcon. My farewell Artisan gig was at the Whisky in Hollywood in Sept. `03, opening for Cathedral, Strapping Young Lad, and Samael. Artisan kept things going in my absence, recruiting my friend Ed Laing to fill my shoes. Ed does a phenomenal job in his own right! The Artisan guys and girl are my friends, and I`m really glad they`re keeping it going.
Falcon got its start in 2002, with me and Greg Lindstrom (Cirith Ungol songwriter/bassist/guitarist/keyboardist extraordinaire!) laying the foundation in Artisan`s jam room. I was still full-time in Artisan, so I had a really full plate. Things got even more full when I answered my English metal bro Rich Walker`s call for a lead guitarist to play in Isen Torr, which is very much Rich`s baby. Having hung out with Rich on tour and kept in touch with him for years, I knew he was one guy I wanted to work with musically. A very unique guitarist and awesome songwriter.
The Isen Torr chaps met up in Germany in July `03 to record the Mighty and Superior EP. It was Rich and me on guitar, Oliver “Zulle" Zühlke on bass (Savage Rites, ex-Ritual Steel), Tony Taylor (Twisted Tower Dire, Ballistic) on vocals and Martin Zellmer (Z-Iron, Ritual Steel) on drums. It was my second time in Europe; needless to say I really like the vibe out there. I`d sat down with the Artisan folks just before leaving for Germany to talk things over with them and give them my notice that I was leaving.
Falcon are so raw and to the point compared to anything I`ve ever done before. A lot of folks weren`t expecting that, `cause they`ve really only heard one side of my guitar playing. Destiny`s End really didn`t allow for anything loose, jammy, and bluesy. The solos I did for Isen Torr also had a lot more of that bluesy feeling in them, which I just didn`t explore in DE.
Keith: You¹ve said that Falcon is something you¹ve wanted to do for a long time. Why did it take so long to come to fruition, and what was the motivator that got it going after all that time?
Perry: It took a long time to find just the right people to make Falcon a reality. I couldn`t have done it without guys like Greg Lindstrom and Darin McCloskey. They`re just as die-hard about old vintage heavy rock as I am - stuff from the late `60s into the `70s. I tried to get Falcon going seriously before that in `01 with other people, but it just didn`t gel. I had one jam with Mike from Artisan and a drummer we both knew, and then I just put Falcon on indefinite hold. I think one of the biggest motivators for me was meeting Greg and just hitting it off with him, hearing many of his old Cirith Ungol tunes that never made it on an album. Another thing that got me up off my ass was the desire to sing. I`d been wanting to give that a shot for years, but I just wasn`t at all happy with my voice for a long time. Falcon thankfully allow for a raw voice like mine. Ha!
Keith: Working with Greg had to have been a dream come true. How did you meet him?
Perry: I`d been friends with Rob (Garven, Cirith Ungol drummer) for years before I actually first talked to Greg. Rob had retired from drumming, which is a shame, `cause he was my first choice for a drummer in Falcon. Rob told me Greg was itching to jam again after having been out of the music biz for 20 years. Initially, Greg and I met up because I was doing a follow-up interview to the one I did with Rob for Psychedelic fanzine. Greg and I just hit it off and realized we had lots in common. Greg played me some old Cirith Ungol riffs I`d never heard, and I played him some of my Falcon stuff on one of his guitars, and we just decided to start jamming. It was more than obvious that Greg`s songs fit very well with mine. After all, Cirith Ungol was heavily rooted in the `70s. Looking at Rob and Greg’s record collections, you`ll find all the stuff that I stumbled on in some cases 20 or more years after the fact. They were listening to stuff like Captain Beyond, Tin House, Demian, Night Sun, Hairy Chapter, Bull Angus, Tempest, Masters of the Airwaves, Moxy, and Left End when it was originally released.
Greg is every bit as good as he was when he left Cirith Ungol around `82 – better, actually. Let me tell you, Keith, it`s definitely like living a dream being in a band with Greg. He`s the coolest, and I`m not just butterin` him up when I say that. I never have to worry about any bullshit from Greg. He`s down-to-earth and no-nonsense. A guy I can trust! And when we`re on stage or in the jam room, all I`ve gotta do is look outta the corner of my eye, and there he is... Greg Lindstrom, with his thick bass notes pumpin`... and it just pumps me up. It puts a huge smile on my face!
It goes without saying that I`m playing with one of my all-time biggest music heroes. He plays a mean guitar too and a damned fine keyboard. One smart dude! Frost and Fire is my fave Ungol album, mainly `cause Greg wrote all those tunes. His lyrics really strike a chord with me. I think I`ve been through a lot of the same stuff Greg has... "Edge of a Knife," "What Does It Take" and "Better Off Dead" really hit home for me.
Keith: Darin McCloskey of Pale Divine is pictured as the drummer on the CD, and Andrew Sample is listed as your “live drummer.” Can you clarify your drummer situation?
Perry: The logistics of having a drummer who lives 3,000 miles away just aren`t there, but Darin is still in Falcon without a doubt. Darin`s an awesome drummer and a great friend. I just love Pale Divine, and Darin is a big creative force in PD. He did a stunning job of recording with us. I`d known Andrew for a while, but didn`t realize he played drums. Andrew had hit me up to jam with him and a guitarist friend of ours named Dave Bone. They were playing some heavy rockin` stuff that had some similarities to Falcon. While I was jamming with Andrew and Dave, the thought entered my head that maybe he could help me and Greg out with Falcon here in L.A. Andrew actually asked me before I could ask him! We ended up playing several shows with Andrew here in L.A. I honestly didn`t think we`d get the chance to do that, `cause I didn`t want to settle for just any drummer. But Andrew loves the old heavy rock stuff too, so it makes a lot of sense. Greg and I both knew we wanted to at least play a few shows with Darin behind the drum throne, and we`re gonna get that chance in April when we go to Europe for two weeks... with Pale Divine and Rising Dust. I`m really happy that we`re getting the chance to play live with Darin, `cause there`s a lot of chemistry there and we work well together. As a matter of fact, I`ll be filling in for Jim Corl on bass for Pale Divine, so me and Darin will be playing two sets at almost every gig. We also hope to get back to doing some Southern California gigs with Andrew whenever possible.
Keith: What brought you to Maryland to record?
Perry: Chris Kozlowski is the reason! Chris has recorded some really killer things in his time for bands we all admire, whether you`re talking The Obsessed, Pentagram or Internal Void. Chris mixed Pale Divine`s Thunder Perfect Mind, so Darin had some history with him. We knew if there was anyone out there who could help us preserve the vintage jammy vibe of Falcon it was Chris. I wouldn`t trust recording Falcon to just anyone. Chris is very passionate about recording. He`s got a great studio setup at his pad, and there`s great atmosphere there. I think that was one of the reasons why recording the Falcon disc, even in five days or so, was the easiest album I`ve ever worked on. You`re out in rural Maryland with lots of nature around you -- the cows mooing to the low end grind of the bass -- and it takes your mind off the distractions of the city. It made a lot of sense for me and Greg to fly out to Pennsylvania to rehearse with Darin for a couple of days prior to recording too, `cause Maryland`s only a couple of hours away. Sure, there are plenty of studios here in L.A., but there`s just not really anyone out there as far as engineers who I feel are on the ball about getting that old live/analog type vibe, not to mention someone affordable for a band like us who are paying for their own recording. Chris is the coolest, and we owe him big time for helping Falcon sound on a recording the way we do live. There are always a million variables, but I know our album would`ve come out different had we stayed in L.A.
Keith: How did you hook up with Bobby Liebling for the track “On the Slab?” Any good Bobby stories to tell from the recording or hanging out with the man?
Perry: Well, Bobby sang on two songs on Thunder Perfect Mind. Darin knew Bobby, and of course Chris had recorded Bobby more than a few times. The possibility of having Bobby sing a track was something both Darin and Chris brought up. Greg and I were totally into that of course. I tried to sing "On the Slab" as best I could, but it just didn`t come out in a state we were 100% happy with. It was near the end of our fifth day of recording, and we needed to catch our flight back to L.A., so we left it to be completed later. It still wasn`t happening when we came back to mix for a few days, so I left the lyrics and a short note for Bobby with my phone number. Bobby called me a couple of days after I got back to L.A. just ecstatic about the tune. It gave me a real thrill to hear how "On the Slab" floored Bobby as a very genuine tribute to Phil Lynott - so Thin Lizzy-like. He said he always wanted to pay tribute to Phil, one of his heroes every bit as much as he is to everyone in Falcon. That floored me coming from Bobby, `cause he`s such a killer songwriter and singer. So, I didn`t actually get to meet Bobby, but we talked on the phone a bunch of times. We think he did an awesome job. Bobby stories? None beyond being able to talk to one of my fave lyricists/songwriters and singers of all time. He`s extremely knowledgeable about the old heavy rock stuff.
Keith: Given Bobby¹s own past demons, was it awkward or weird at all to have him sing a song about a rock icon burning out?
Perry: That`s one reservation I had about leaving this one for Bobby to sing. I thought he might not like the subject matter. But I was actually pleasantly surprised about that. Bobby took us up on the offer and sang it. I think it meant a lot to him, and it made me feel good that we could give Bobby a reason to sing some more and take his mind off certain things for a while. I`m sure Bobby felt this was a very personal song. Just look at "Prayer For An Exit..." on Pentagram`s Show ‘em How.
Keith: Do you truly feel “born too late?” Would you give up the modern “conveniences” for the chance to live in the heyday of your favorite bands?
Perry: Home computers, CD and DVD players and recorders, cell phones, and other gadgets are a luxury. Once upon a time they didn`t exist. Sure, they`re cool and all, but... I wonder what it would`ve been like to have been born a bit earlier and experienced those bands like Greg - firsthand. To have seen Black Sabbath in `71 or Rush opening for Moxy at the Whisky in `74! But I wasn`t born till `75, and that`s life. I don`t sit there everyday bemoaning not being born earlier. There are certain things I feel really fortunate to have been a part of. I was there to see Death transform from a raw, primitive beast into a technical and polished metal juggernaut in `91 with Human. But I think the music explosion that was happening in the late `60s and early `70s, from what my older friends tell me, was much more exciting. Of course it was! No one had ever heard guitar played as heavy as Jimi, Leigh Stephens, Tony Iommi, and Leslie West. I`ll never dump the turntable or the `70s threads! No way! Hell, I guess I`m just a throwback... The music, the books, the flicks... I love it all. A simpler time when technology hadn`t quite eliminated the need for the creative human element! Analog tape, tubes, noisy stompboxes, film (with no CG and warm color), vinyl, righteous Gibson guitars with PAF pickups, paperbacks with Michael Whelan and Frank Frazzetta covers (though my taste in books goes further back than that), sideburns, bells, butterfly collars, leisure suits, platform heels. Flavors of a place in history I`m forever drawn to.
Keith: Talk a little about your vocal influences. Have you gotten any feedback from (Cirith Ungol singer) Tim Baker on the CD? I would assume Bobby, Tim Baker, and Ozzy would be high on your list...
Perry: No, I haven`t heard from Tim about the CD. I don`t think he`s heard it yet. I once met his brother Dan at a Thin Lizzy gig, but never met or talked to Tim. Needless to say I`d like to tell him how much I dig his vocals. I can only hope he`d like my performance. I wonder if Rob Garven has shown the CD to Neal Beattie, Cirith Ungol`s first singer... I`ve only heard one song with Neal singing, but I liked what I heard!
Bobby`s an obvious influence for sure, especially the younger Bobby circa 1971. Ozzy`s a big influence, but so is Glenn Hughes. A little early Iggy Pop in there. Phil Lynott, Frank Ferrara from Bang, Dave Tice from Buffalo (he sang with such power!), Rod Evans, Dickie Peterson, Zeeb Parkes from Witchfinder General, Wino, Dick Wagner, Alice Cooper, Roky Erickson, Jack Bruce, Felix Pappalardi, Leslie West, Richie Wise, Roger Daltrey, Mark Shelton from Manilla Road, Johnny Winter... Jeez, there are so many. Some of my old fave metal singers who don`t necessarily influence me for Falcon? Jon Oliva, John Arch, Zach Stevens, Ray Alder and John Bush. I don`t think I could ever pull off stuff like Geddy Lee, Ian Gillan, Robert Plant, Freddie Mercury, Ronnie Dio or Rob Halford, but I love their voices.
Keith: Will Falcon be an active band in the future?
Perry: Hell yeah! We`re a functioning band and have been since we got Andrew. We`ve done a bunch of shows and will continue to take more as they come along. Even though we all have jobs, music is a big part of our lives.
Keith: Is there another record planned any time soon?
Perry: The plan is to go in and record another Falcon album in 2005. We`ve done some writing, but a lot of the material existed even before we were done with the first album. Hell, some of my ideas are really old, and the reason they stuck around so long is `cause over ten years later I still feel very attached to the riffs. We`ll be breaking out some of Greg`s old Cirith Ungol tunes, some with new identities ("Tight Teen" became "Bad Scene"), along with a brand spankin` new song Greg wrote called "Everything You Need To Know..."
I`ve got all of my contributions to the album put together. Some are really old tunes that I just got around to writing lyrics to within the past few years. Some of my titles? "Elfland`s Daughter," "Careless," "Falcon," and "Corporate Whore." "Elfland`s Daughter" was inspired by Thin Lizzy and Lord Dunsany - under the spell of Ireland and heroic fantasy stories. "Careless" was one of the first heavy rockin` tunes I ever wrote. I added a new chorus and bridge, but most of it existed as far back as like `92. I didn`t finish the lyrics until 2003 ‘cause it never really had a home. "Corporate Whore" lashes out at scumbag executives and the like who turned their back on their old beliefs and sold out... ex-hippies to whom peace, love and protest were just a passing phase, but whose greed and appetite for power is all consuming.
Greg made a good joke about some of our "new" material. He joked that we should call our next album Die Wontcha, flipping around West, Bruce and Laing`s LP title Why Dontcha? `Cause some of our lyrics are a little, uh... bitter! There`s another one called "Future`s in the Past" that will hopefully make it onto some Falcon release at some point.
Time`s a precious commodity, especially these days. All of us in Falcon work our asses off... 50 hours or more a week a lot of times. Music ain`t profitable, but it`s fun, so we keep on! We try to jam at least once a week if possible. And as for the inspiration, I think we tend to be pretty inspired most of the time, whether to write new stuff or breathe new life to something Greg came up with when I was knee-high to a grasshopper.
Oh, can`t forget "Flesh Dart," which used to be the climax of Cirith Ungol sets - Rob Garven (who wrote the lyrics) used to go off on a big drum solo in the middle of that song. It has a twisted Spinal Tap-ish title that I think is hilarious and very fitting. It isn`t quite as overt as, say, Nigel Tufnel`s "Lick My Love Pump" though.
Keith: The obligatory “any final words”?
Perry: Thanks, Keith, for givin` me the chance to talk about Falcon. And a big thank you to all the folks at StonerRock.com for sellin` so many Falcon CDs! We`re lookin` forward to meeting up with some of our die-hard fans in Europe in April and hopefully playin` outside of L.A. in the U.S. soon. Keep rawkin` heavy `n` raw!
