Interview with Eric Zimmermann of Under-Radio ( www.lionmusic.com   ) by Johnny C of www.loudmetal.com 

Which guys would you consider to be your main influences?

I was always inspired by bands that had what I considered to be cool songs. It wasn’t always about the guitar player or his solo. Given that I tend to have the attention span of a 2nd grader, my definition of a cool song changes pretty regularly. One day I may listen to George Michael, the next, I’ll listen to Pantera. I simply like music with some sort of substance or redeeming quality. But when the day is done, each and every one of them, I always go back to Rock and Roll.

How would you describe your music to someone who is not familiar with it?

If I had to choose one word, I would say “Eclectic.” Since I like many different types of music, I find myself pinching from different genres. Yeah, some songs are going to lean heavier in one stylistic direction than another, but I don’t think you can listen to the Under-Radio CD and say it’s only one style of music.

How did you develop your own style of playing, did you take any lessons?

As far as the way I play, I guess it just sounds the way it does from being open to experimenting with different things. I like to take a little of this and a little of that and see what comes out of it. In terms of lessons, I was very fortunate to have three kick-ass guitar teachers. John Petrucci, Rich Kern and Terry Syrek. I studied under Petrucci for about three years. I remember I was taking lessons from a local teacher, and he was teaching me all this boring shit, this guy was literally teaching me Nursery Rhymes. Let me ask you something, When in the world would I – or anyone, ever want to play a  Nursery Rhyme? Anyway, I finally had it when I walked into my house one day and saw Steve Vai on MTV playing “Yankee Rose” as soon as I saw that, I knew it was time to stop screwing around and get a real teacher. So my friend Steve Matasavich who was taking lessons with Petrucci hooked me up with John. I learned so much from John. When I started with him, I literally couldn’t hold a pick right. When Dream Theater got real busy, I studied with Rich Kern. Rich is the guy who got me really into recording. Recording is so important because even if you want the tape to lie, it won’t. Terry and I actually went over a lot of blues stuff which is interesting considering most people know him as a completely over the top player. Like I said, I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to hang with those guys. They are all so damn good that you can learn something by osmosis – all you got to do is sit in the same room as them and you’ll get better.

What is the most important, feeling or technique? can you survive with only one of them?

If I had to be stuck with one or the other, I would say I’d rather be a “feel” player. If you go to a Pink Floyd show, people sing Dave Gilmour’s guitar solos, they are lyrical and memorable parts of the songs. One thing that I think is important to point out is: Just because you have chops, doesn’t mean you don’t have feel, look at guys like Yngwie and EVH, those guys have chops and feel. I guess that’s really the best case scenario.

What kind of equipment are you using live or in the studio?

It’s the same for live and studio. I just completely redid my entire set up. I recently picked up a Marshall 800 and a Fender Blues Jr. In addition to that, I just signed on with VHT Amps. Those amps (VHT) are so god damn cool I want to marry one. I also use a Line6 POD when I record. Another really cool pedal is “The Valveboy” made by J.T Pedals they are tube driven stomp box/distortion pedals and kick serious ass. I also just got some new guitars from Fernandes Guitars. The Ravelle is a great guitar. My strings have always been D’Addario and I use Seymour Duncan Pickups – the JB Jr. along with the Fernandes Sustainer is all I used on the Under-Radio CD.

How was the album recorded?

Mark Zonder and I wrote and recorded three songs together, so we just busted those three out at his studio in North Hollywood. Mark ended up moving to New York shortly after we were done with the first batch of songs so Chris Howard tracked his drums at Marks house back East.

The vocals and bass on the other tunes were record by Brian Hall who is better known as “Tackelberry” Did you ever see Police Academy? Well, Brian Hall is pretty much like the character Eugene Tackelbery, the guy loves guns, it’s pretty funny. I did the song “How was the funeral?” with John Ugarte at his studio, that tune is just a nylon string and a guitar synth.  

I recorded the guitars at my studio Zoo Dog over in Hollywood, all the amps are from the Line6 POD, which I used exclusively with the exception of the acoustic tracks. I would simply turn knobs until I thought it sounded cool, which wasn’t hard to do since it is very user friendly. We used Pro Tools and Nuendo to track the CD and Pro Tools to mix.

Which musicians would you like to play with some day?

Hmmm. There are lots of people I’d like to work with. I’d like to work with someone like David Gahan from Depeche Mode or Robert Plant. That would be a thrill for me since I love their music.

What kind of music does you like the least?

I don’t like Creed. I think Pearl Jam along with Alice In Chains and the Heirs to Jim Morrison’s Estate should file a joint lawsuit and take them to court and sue the balls off them for stealing their likenesses.

Do you ever listen to music that is very different from what you do, if so what?

Believe it or not, I listen to a lot of Hip Hop. My company Zoo Dog does Digital Mastering and I’ve had the opportunity to work with quite a few different artists. Mystic is a really amazing artist, picture Sade singing over kick as drum beats. I’ve also been doing a lot of work on Snoop Dogg’s music. The guy is real talented.

 Are there any plans to tour?

Yeah, but I don’t want to do that until we have more material.

What other plans do you have for the near future?

For the near future, I just want to keep writing and recording. That’s basically my first and only priority right now.

How is the musical climate for hard rock in your country?

In some respects, it’s non-existent on mainstream television. MTV is simply a politically correct advertising campaign. I think it was called MTVX or something but that channel was supposed to be the alternative to MTV, they would play rock videos from bands like Ratt and Motley Crue and that even got changed to a rap channel. You’ll hear about Hard Rock on television when either Marilyn Manson or Ozzy are getting blamed for the Bubonic Plague or the Kennedy Assassination.  Fortunately, every major city in the United States has a Hard Rock radio station. Here in Los Angeles, KLOS would cover that. They play Van Halen, ZZ Top, Led Zep and cool stuff like that. I think it’s ironic how you’ll hear the “rock is dead” phrase yet see and hear hard rock all around the U.S.

What are your feelings about the world we live in and how do you look upon yourself in 15 years from now?

I’m a happy person, I like to laugh and I’m the first one to sign up for the worst dirty joke and a beer, but I’ll tell you one thing, I honestly think a significant portion of the world is a big fucking mess - literally and figuratively. I also think there is a lot of good and beauty in the world, there are infinite opportunities. However, I feel that people need to be very aware of the current state of world affairs in order to preserve and perpetuate the positive aspects of the world we live in. This may sound extremely negative, but given this date and time, in my opinion, I think that we are involved in the Third World War. You can actually trace WW I back to the 1870’s. Terrorists started fucking around with hijackings long before 2001. So you see what I’m getting at with the math? These things just don’t mysteriously appear out of thin air. The general populous of the United States didn’t tune in to the fact that there are a lot of pissed off people who want the United States and its allies extinct until 9-11 because that’s when they hit the U.S. on its own soil. In my opinion, I think the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks should be broadcasted daily to remind people why the U.S. and some of its allies are fighting the war on terror. I’m all for taking military measures as a preventative action in order to prevent future terror attacks. P.S. I’d also like to add that I would love to take a bat to Osama Bin Ladens head while he’s sucking off that prick in Iraq.

On a brighter note, I’d like to think that in 15 years from now I’ll be happy and successful with whatever I’m doing at that time.