Interviews

MR: You just finished up a short solo tour with Jon Oliva’s Pain. How was that?

Chris: The tour was interesting. I am always happy to play, but in this instance the set up was not great. We did not have much time to advertise. I was very happy with my band, my voice and the results I had from the tour. I was selling a lot of CD's and this makes me happy because I want people to be able to hear the music. Some shows were great...others were...very Spinal Tap like!

MR: Why did you finally decide to do a solo album and why the title of “Faces”

Chris: Well....Savatage has not been too busy. I want to play my guitar. I do not want to play in another band...so I decided to try singing. I am getting pretty good at it! Faces was chosen as the title because of all of the different styles of Rock/metal on the CD

MR: You also took up singing in order to do the album. Why the decision to sing all of a sudden?

Chris: I was writing songs for Savatage...sometimes you hear a melody in your head. I bought a Pro Tools set up for my home and started singing along. 12 months later I had a deal!

MR: Personally, I think you did a great job and in fact your voice is a cross between Jon Oliva and Zak Stevens. It’s probably not too surprising being in Savatage with both of them. Were they big influences on how you approached your singing?

Chris: Thank you! Zak and Jon are amazing singers. I listened to them an awful lot over the past 18 years! So they did influence me. All great singers did. They both approach things differently. Jon is a lot more careless than Zak on the road...I am kinda a mixture of both!

MR: What sparked the song Pisses Me Off on the Faces CD? It seems like a rant against almost everything we all deal with in everyday life.

Chris: That was sparked by the initial reactions of business partners, friends and family members to my singing. I did not know how to record it so my first demos were not too great. It was Pissing Me Off!!! The song was born from that. Everyone can relate to it somehow!

MR: The God Damned War bonus CD on Faces (also featured on the Warped album) is a very personal look at war and injustices that we as humans have incurred on each other over the time of our existence. Is this a topic you feel strongly about?

Chris: I think many people do. This current war really sparked it. I guess when you are younger you kinda get a CNN version of life. I travel a lot and have a ton of European friends and business partners. I had a pretty good education on the war and war in general before I decided to embark on this. Mankind has to take a look at itself...we can disappear just as fast as we appeared and life will go on!

MR: Are you usually involved in the writing process for Savatage? If not, if there’s another Savatage album, do you think you maybe given a chance to contribute seeing that you’ve more than proven yourself with your solo material?

Chris: I have written about 12 Savatage songs with Jon and Paul. 3 were on Magellan and 9 on Poets. I also wrote a song for a TSO CD. I have 3 songs on each of Zak's solo CD's and 2 on Jon's. I have also written for Metalium, John West and other people. It is something I love to do. I hope to write for a lot of other things in the future.

MR: Keeping with that topic, are there any plans in the works to do another Savatage album anytime soon?

Chris: I wish I knew what was up. I think you have to ask Jon and Paul that question!

MR: Do you ever get frustrated with the Savatage situation or just take it as it goes?

Chris: I have been way more frustrated in the past, I still am...but I think I am a bit numb to it now. I want Savatage to play, just as much as the fans want to see it. But SAVATAGE needs to want to play. I cannot force this...so we will see....frustrating has been an understatement at times!

MR: The Doctor Butcher album has recently been re-released in a remastered edition with bonus tracks after being out of print for a while. Are you surprised at the sudden new interest in this album

Chris: No, the CD has always been very highly respected. We had no printings at all as of February of this year. We decided it was time to get it out there again.

MR: Are there any plans to do another one?

Chris: We are hoping to record another this coming year! Fingers crossed!

MR: You’ve mentioned being involved in the writing process for Circle II Circle as well as appearing on John West’s last album. Do you get as much satisfaction collaborating with others as you do in the other musical aspects of your career?

Chris: These guys are my friends. I love to work with them. I get a lot of satisfaction hearing my music on other people's CD's. I am flattered that they want to use it!!!!

MR: The Trans-Siberian Orchestra is gearing up again for another tour. Do you enjoy going out every year around Christmas time?

Chris: I do, it is an amazing spectacle! The new tour is insane! I do miss Christmas, as I knew it. Being away from home every year really takes that away from you, but TSO is a family to me too...the good and the bad I guess. But I love the band and I am very proud of what we have accomplished.

MR: Are you surprised at how popular the tour is getting year after year?

Chris: Actually yes! It is amazing to see it continue to keep getting bigger!

MR: There were plans to either do another non-Christmas themed album or do a full- blown theatrical production of the Beethoven’s Last Night album. Are these still in the works?

Chris: The new Christmas CD will be finished in 2006 and a non-Christmas tour...the long awaited Beethoven tour will follow at some point. I am not going to speculate as to when. I always get blamed for being the boy who cried Beethoven!

MR: You are currently in the middle of recording another solo album am I correct? Is there anything we can expect to see that may be different from either the Faces or Warped albums?

Chris: Yes....It is going to be called Pins and Needles. I think you will see a lot more guitar playing. Not that I got away from it on Faces and WARPED, but I did not feature it. I want people to finally hear what I can do on the guitar. I never show off and I just may this time!

MR: Thank you so much for your time and good luck with the new TSO tour and with the new album.

Chris: Thank you so much for the interview and I hope to see you on the road!

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