Hailing
from Germany Dezperadoz have created an interesting spin on the old
Spaghetti Western theme with their latest album 'An Eye For An Eye'.
With our spurs a-jingling we head over to the OK Corral to catch up with
head honcho Alex Kraft to find out more ...
MM -
Tell us how did Dezperadoz first come
together?
Alex - Howdy, In the studio production to the Angelripper album "Ein
Tröpfchen voller Glück" in 1996 or 7, I asked Tom if he would sing a few
western songs for me. Tom is also a big western fan and was totally happy
with that idea. So we started the Band.
MM - The whole Spaghetti Western theme is quite
unique, how did you come up with the original concept?
Alex -
I was born 1968, right at the end of the
great "italowesternmovietime".
Movies like "Il grande silenzio", "The
Good, the Bad and the Ugly", the "Few Dollars trilogy", for sure "Once
Upon a Time in the West", you know all the movies, with actors like Klaus
Kinski, Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Charles Bronson, made a real
"Western fan" since I was 4 years old.
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All this great music, it's not country
music, no, real dirty and hard Western stuff by Ennio Morricone. This was
my main music influence. I started my first Band called Jail in 1983.
Music between Metal and Southern rock. |
In the 90's, on my MI time in
Los Angeles (I studied Jazz guitar there), I've found my way of a new "crossover". I
saw a lot of the American west. The country, the old ghost towns,
silver mines. Dirt and dust of the desert and this young history. Sometimes
I felt I can smell the dust of history there. I'm a collector of old
weapons and stuff and a kind of hobby historian and it's more for me than
only the music.
MM - Where did the story of Hank come from and
was he factual or was he fictional character?
Alex -
During the work on my last album "the
legend and the truth" I saw an old letter from a young gunslinger in a
museum. His story was mostly similar and the inspiration for this story.
He was on death row and wrote it to his dead mother. Revenge is a
weakness, a never ending story. A nation and its justice must be
considerate and confident. Isn’t all the experience of the human race
enough to know this? For me it is unbearable to see people who kill each
other, trying to force their opinions on others in the name of religion,
ideology, a "holy war", god, justice, insanity, politics or different
races. Killing is unholy in every religion! That is why I wrote and
composed this album.
MM -
What was it like working with Tom
Angelripper again on the album?
Alex -
We work all the time together as friends
in the studio and in saloons ;-)
MM - Do you foresee you’ll be working again
with Tom in the near future?
Alex
-
Yes we have some "Onkel Tom Angelripper"
Shows. I'm guitar player and producer of that and we try to get the time
for a new Onkel Tom album.
MM - Why did you decide to cover The Doors
classic ‘Riders On The Storm’ for this album and are there any other
covers you’d like to on future releases?
Alex - I love this song and it fits perfect in the story. I think I made my own
version this great song. For this song the Doors were inspired by the
cowboy song "Riders in the Sky". Riders on the storm tell's the story of a
murderer.
MM - On the band's first album Tom
Angelripper did the vocals, but on the second and this album, you (Alex)
took over the vocals. Do you find it easier writing for your own vocal
style?
Alex -
After the first album I, right away,
started writing for the second and already in 2001 I went to the studio;
Tom was still on the mic here, though. During this studio session fate
slapped me in the face quite harshly and I had to go on with my life
without my wife somehow. In this time I sank quite low but I luckily also
learned what truth, friendship, pride, grit and compassion meant.
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I wanted
to start a new life, cut off my long hair, broke up the band, told Tom Angelripper and the others that I wanted to leave the whole scene,
retreated into my own shell and started, between self-pitying and boozing,
to write a diary to be somehow able to assess myself before I would turn
into a complete asshole. Boggi (Drakkar) released me from all my duties.
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Tom Angelripper, Manni Eisenblätter, Michael Kleanthous offered me help in
every way. Well, the guy's didn´t leave me alone. Took me, dragged me with
them to tour with Sodom around the world until my spirits were revived
again. I never touched the tapes of the second Dezperadoz again. I wrote
the second record all over again in 2003 because I began to see the topic
of Wyatt Earp, especially the big changes in his life, also as a part of
my experiences.
So I changed the name in Mexican authentic
"DEZPERADOZ" (It's also better for search on the net without getting drunk
before you find the Band ;-) On the search to the "legend and the
truth", I was in some museums in Tucson, Arizona. There I saw a letter
from a man on death row, wrote to his dead mother. This letter was the
idea for the new album "An Eye For An Eye".
MM - Do you have any tour dates lined up for
this year to promote the new album?
Alex
- First we jump tomorrow to the Rage Tour.
After that we make a for all free big Wild West DEZPERADOZ Release party
on 10th of May in Bruchsal "the Fabrik" Germany. After that we start
directly with Festival "Pfingstfete Albersdorf" near Wacken. After that we
make a JAILHOUSE Tour (that's a cool thing!). After that a Club tour,
some single Shows also in Europe and Russia and hopefully a Support tour
with a bigger Band in Autumn.
MM - Going back to the Spaghetti Western thing,
do you see yourself as the lone gunman, a man with no name, the Clint
Eastwood figure or the Sharp Shooter out for revenge, the Lee Van Cleef
figure?
Alex - Haha, I want to be like Clint ;-)
MM - Have you started working on the next album
yet? If yes can you give us an idea what to expect from it?
Alex - Yes for sure a "VAMPIRE-ITALOWESTERN-HEAVYMUSICAL!”
MM - What's the most memorable thing that’s
happened to the band so far?
Alex
- 8 Hours before a DEZPERADOZ Show in St
Petersburg the drummer Sascha told me about his extremely fear of flying.
We arrived St Petersburg with no drummer, after a sleepless night on the
telephone to organize a Russian drummer, who knows our songs perfect. We
found him! After my longest rehearsal in an old Russian factory we made a
real great show in St. Petersburg with our Russian
"one-day-guest-drummer". Yee-Haaw!
MM -
Who or what keeps you grounded and focused
in this dog eat dog business?
Alex
- I live for the music, for art. It is a
honor for me. The rest is not so important for me!
MM -
Finally do you have any words of
inspiration for all the young guns out there who hope to live the rock n’
roll dream?
Alex -
Do your own thing, your own ideas of
music. Forget the cliches.
MM - We'd like to thank
Alex for
taking the time out to chat with us today and wish him and the rest of the
band happy trails as they ride off into the sunset as all good cowboys
always do. With that we wish them a hearty 'Yee Haw!' and look
forward to seeing them out on the road some time soon.
