GEORGE LYNCH Is 'Excited' About Upcoming Performance With DOKKEN At M3 ROCK FESTIVAL

Guitarist George Lynch (LYNCH MOB, DOKKEN, THE END MACHINE, KXM) recently spoke with Clint Switzer of the "Music Mania" podcast. The full conversation can be streamed below. The full conversation can be streamed below (interview starts at the 5:50 mark). A few excerpts follow (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On the recently released self-titled debut album by THE END MACHINE, his new project with his former DOKKEN bandmates Jeff Pilson and Mick Brown, as well as WARRANT and off-and-on LYNCH MOB vocalist Robert Mason:

George: "We're excited about the record. For Jeff and I, it's really just sort of a seamless evolution of our history together, all through DOKKEN and beyond. We're close friends and we're neighbors, and we work together as much as possible because we're kind of made for each other. [Laughs] It's just really a wonderful thing — when we get together, the chemistry is so quick. We just read each others' minds and finish each others' sentences. We love writing together, so any time we get a chance or an excuse to work on some music, we do. It all came together on this record. We've done a couple of other records post-DOKKEN together, most notably LP [LYNCH/PILSON] and T&N, and they were really good records and we're proud of them, but there's really good records and then there's those wall-to-wall records, where it's just... I don't want to sound like I'm beating my own horn, but I'm just really happy with the fact that it's one of those records where you drop the needle anywhere, and it's all killer, no filler... We hit all our bases, and I think we really reveal our influences on this record. You hear a lot of everything — you hear [LED] ZEPPELIN, you hear [Jimi] Hendrix, you hear QUEEN, all the stuff we grew up with. BAD COMPANY, ZZ TOP — it's all in there."

On performing live with THE END MACHINE:

George: "Very few of my projects ever see a live stage. KXM has never played out live, unfortunately. It's kind of frustrating to do these projects and then never [be] able to flesh them out in a live context. At least we're getting the three shows in. That's something, and now there is some talk about possibly going to Japan later in the year. If we end up doing that, that could open the door for even more domestic touring — more dates in the States, if not this year, maybe next year. There's no doubt that it would be a great band. We do have our work cut out for us, because it is a complex record [with] a lot of moving parts. It's one thing to go out and do DOKKEN music or LYNCH MOB music that I've been playing for decades. It's another thing to deal with a whole new animal."

On the importance of camaraderie:

George: "Everybody's great guys. That's really important, I've found. [As] you get older, that's almost the most important thing — just working with people that you love and respect. Everybody kind of takes care [and] tries to do the right thing. That helps go a long way with morale and dealing with the ups and downs and inevitable obstacles that come with the work that we do."

On his upcoming performance with DOKKEN at the M3 Rock Festival:

George: "I'm excited. I did one last year with them. Very, very occasionally, I'll get up on stage with Don [Dokken] and Mick, but this is the only show I'm doing with DOKKEN this year, as far as I can tell. We're doing the new studio song that we came out with last year, '[It's] Another Day'. I'm excited about that — a brand new DOKKEN song we've never played live. I think it will induce some new energy into a set full of old songs."

On Pilson:

George: "I can't even believe the level of touring that this guy maintains. When he's not out there on the road, he's in his studio producing records. He's just incredible — he has so much enthusiasm and energy for it. It never wanes, and I've never seen him without a smile on his face and in his heart. He's just such a positive human being and always very supportive of other people. That's one of the wonderful things about working with Jeff — he's very reinforcing and positive and supportive... He's probably the best hands-on producer I've ever worked with in my life. I've worked with a lot of producers — big names and so forth — and a lot of times, they don't do anything, or they have very few skills. Jeff is a multi-instrumentalist; he's engineer; he's a mixer; he's a singer, keyboardist, guitar player, bass player — he plays just about any instrument you can think of; composer, lyricist. That's the whole package right there. Most bands have one of those guys in their band. I call them the Swiss Army knife — the guy that can facilitate just about everything. They might not be the standout singer [or] flashy guitar player guy, but he's the nuts-and-bolts foundation of the band. Jeff was always that with DOKKEN, and I don't think he ever got enough credit for that. He facilitated everything and made it all possible."

THE END MACHINE's self-titled, Pilson-produced debut album was released on March 22 via Frontiers Music Srl. The group played its first set of shows in early April, albeit without drummer Brown, who was unable to make the dates and was temporarily replaced by EVANESCENCE's Will Hunt.