On the eve of the current US tour with Rob Zombie, Kelley Simms of Illinois Entertainer spoke to John 5 over the phone. During the course of the conversation they chatted about the recent Europe tour, the Zombie Horror Picture Show DVD, John 5’s next album Careful With That Axe, and writing for the follow-up to Zombie’s Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor.
Pre-order your copy of Careful With That Axe here: http://smarturl.it/CarefulWithThatAxe
To read excerpts from the interview, click here >>>
Read the interview in full: illinoisentertainer.com/stage-buzz-preview-rob-zombie/
A Rob Zombie concert is a spectacle of spectacular proportions. The man, and the band (including guitarist John 5, bassist Piggy D and drummer Ginger Fish), puts on one helluva show. Spectators are treated to dynamic pyrotechnics, complete with giant video monitors, scary makeup and costumes. An RZ live concert can be described as a cross between a circus freak show, a horror movie and a roller coaster ride. You’ll have a chance to see the Zombie and his band on one of his few tour dates July 19 at Fuel Arena in Grayslake with opening acts: Stone Sour, Theory Of A Dead Man, Devour The Day, The Last Vegas and Wilson.
Blessed with a storied career in music (and most recently film), and an impressive discography to boot, fans are almost guaranteed the set list will be packed with classic RZ tunes as well as some integral White Zombie treasures.
On the eve of the US Tour this week IE’s Kelley Simms talked to Rob Zombie’s guitarist John 5:
Rob Zombie guitarist John 5 (John William Lowery) is one versatile musician. The guitar maestro has one of the most impressive and most diverse musical resumés, which includes playing with David Lee Roth, Marilyn Manson, k.d. lang, Meat Loaf, 2wo and many more. John 5 is also a successful instrumental solo guitarist, which he proves on his eighth full-length album, *Careful With That Axe*. Rob Zombie band recently returned from a successful European tour and are gearing up for some dates in the US. During a phone interview on Tuesday, John 5 talked about how psyched he is for the upcoming Rob Zombie US tour, which will be making a stop at Austin’s Fuel Arena in Grayslake on Saturday.
IE: How did the recent European tour go?
John 5: I’ve been to Europe a ton of times and this was by far the best trip I’ve had in my life. The weather was great, the crowds were great. I really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed the whole experience and the whole vibe. It was really a successful trip.
IE: How fun was it making the Zombie Horror Picture Show DVD and what do you think of the final results?
John 5: I have been pushing for this DVD for so long. Because the Zombie show is so big and it’s such a spectacle and everybody has a DVD. I was always asking when we were going to do one. So luckily, the time was right and Rob decided to do a DVD. I have to tell you, and I’m being completely honest, there was not one overdub. There was not one tweak or anything. Nothing was fixed with the sound or the instruments. Rob said he wanted it to be completely real. He didn’t want it to be edited back in the studio like bands do. We decided we were going to move around a lot and try not to mess up. I was telling Piggy D our bassist, and Ginger Fish our drummer, that we had to really concentrate because there weren’t going to be any fixes and that Rob didn’t want any overdubs or anything. We really killed it and I’m really proud of everybody. The other thing when you’re watching that DVD, we’re in Texas and it was literally a 1,000 degrees out. We were dying up there. It was like playing in a sauna.
Read the interview in full: illinoisentertainer.com/stage-buzz-preview-rob-zombie/