TESTAMENT's ALEX SKOLNICK: 'Our Current President Has Created A Disaster For The Country'

Blasting-Zone.com recently conducted an in-depth interview with ALEX SKOLNICK TRIO/TESTAMENT guitarist Alex Skolnick. Several excerpts follow:

Blasting-Zone.com: In hindsight, what was the final catalyst that prompted you to step away from the heavy metal genre?

Alex: "Well, there were a few things actually. I was at a point where I knew I didn't want to do just metal for the rest of my life. I wanted to be an all-around type of musician. I had a situation with Ozzy Osbourne where I got flown out to England, auditioned with him and did an unannounced show. I actually got hired by him, but Sharon Osbourne decided to go with a different guitar player. That was like the ultimate metal guitar gig and when that didn't work out, I decided that I didn't want to sit around and wait for the phone to ring anymore and I wanted to be able to do other types of music. Once I went to school, I was able to really just focus on developing my improvisational skills and my compositional skills. The type of music I'm writing right now I never would have been able to do ten years ago. It's a whole other language and people don't realize the years and years of practice that go into that. Just to be able to read my own charts and be able to read other people's charts, to be able to work with piano players, to be able to work with horn players… I just didn't want to be limited and I felt so limited within the rock-band format. It's a great thing to do, but it's only one thing (laughs) and there's a wide world out there with different music and different musicians. I wanted to experience that."

Blasting-Zone.com: What prompted you to become involved with TESTAMENT again? I have to admit, all things considered, I didn't see that one coming…

Alex: "I don't think anybody did (laughs). It was a situation where we got a couple of offers to do some shows in Europe. They were really good offers and it just seemed like a fun thing to do that nobody would expect. We did a few shows in the States as well and the reaction from the fans was incredible. I wasn't sure how many people would still remember TESTAMENT. I thought it would be mostly older fans, but the majority of the audience was twenty five and younger (laughs). Some of them were in tears because they couldn't believe they were seeing the original lineup. It just means so much to the fans and it's hard to not be affected by that…it just felt right to do it. I know it's kinda crazy to have a jazz career and a metal career at the same time, but if I'm gonna be the first to do it, I'm gonna do it (laughs)."

Blasting-Zone.com: In regards to the recording of the new [TESTAMENT] album, how have the songwriting and pre-production sessions gone thus far?

Alex: "Well, it's slow, but it's coming together. There really hasn't been any pre-production yet. Right now, everybody's just been coming up with ideas. We're all starting to collaborate. I think it's going to come together naturally. We've been apart for a long time and there's also been quite a bit of uncertainty about who was gonna play the drums. I think that had a lot to do with it. Then, when we finally got (former CRADLE OF FILTH/DIMMU BORGIR skinsman) Nick Barker, who's playing the drums now, we had a bunch of shows lined up, so a lot of the initial songwriting sessions ended up turning into crash courses with Nick so he could learn our set (laughs). I had no hand in picking him and had no idea who he was, but now I have a lot of appreciation for what he does."

Blasting-Zone.com: What prompted you to stop playing Ibanez guitars? Are you still playing Les Paul Gibsons?

Alex: "Well, the Ibanez was a great metal guitar when I started playing it, but a couple of things happened. I felt that the quality of the guitars that were being sold weren't of the same quality as the guitars I was playing. They would send me these really nice, well-crafted guitars, but then if you went and bought one in the stores, they were just terrible. I felt bad that people were buying an instrument because I played it and then having it not be of the same quality. Another thing was that once I switched to playing jazz, I was mostly playing hollow body guitars, which I still do. I've found that the Les Paul guitar is a very versatile guitar and it actually feels the closest to a hollow body. Much more so than a Stratocaster-type guitar. So I started playing Les Paul guitars and then got turned on to Heritage guitars. Heritage guitars are actually made in the old Gibson factory in Kalamazoo and it's run by old Gibson workers. The guitars are very similar to Gibsons but the quality is…as good as the Gibsons from the '70s and the '80s. A Gibson now…they have good years and they have bad years. And there such a big company, everything is mass-produced. Some of them play great and some of them play not so great. It's kinda hit-or-miss. I still play a couple of Gibsons, but the ones that I play are older. With Heritage, you can buy a new guitar with them and it's guaranteed to be handcrafted."

Blasting-Zone.com: Do you think you'll incorporate any of your jazz style into the new recordings?

Alex: "I don't think so. It's a completely different genre. I think it may open the door to some new ideas. It's definitely made me a lot quicker. It's also made me hear a lot better. Part of being a jazz musician is about being able to hear changes quickly and hear different intervals and chord changes. I find now that when I work with metal riffs or vocal ideas, things happen a lot faster. I think I'm open to a lot more ideas than I used to be."

Blasting-Zone.com: What inspired the title (for the new ALEX SKOLNICK TRIO disc) "Last Day In Paradise"? I have to admit, it initially struck me as a very non-jazz and almost morbid title…

Alex: "We did a festival last year called the Earthdance Festival in Sarasota, Florida. There's actually Earthdance festivals held simultaneously all over the world. In Sarasota, their Earthdance is run by this whole community that supports the arts. They became big fans of the trio and every time we play in Sarasota, we hang out with these people. The title in part is about driving away from Sarasota after we'd just had an amazing gig, met a lot of cool people and hung out on the beach. It's this just really cool place and we were leaving to do the rest of our tour, so it felt like the last day in paradise. It kinda has a double meaning. The other meaning is that within the last few years, things have just been so bad, especially for the United States. I think our current president has created a disaster for the country. It almost doesn't matter what your political beliefs are. This guy has been a just absolute disaster and it's scary, ya know? It's scary to see how this country is seen by the rest of the world. It's kinda like the country is falling apart, so the country could represent paradise. In addition, it also applies to global events. Paradise can also represent planet Earth and look what's happening to the environment. It's so uncertain about what's gonna happen. How much longer are we all going to be here? I think that kinda reflects in the mood of the songs."

Read the entire interview at Blasting-Zone.com.