Interview taken from Tave Wanning.
GEORGE: Welcome to BeRock Radio guys, the most melodic place! I am George, please make yourself comfortable!
We’re glad to have you here. Will you tell us a few words about how ADRENALINE RUSH was founded, and how you
came up with the band name?
TAVE: Hi George.
The band actually started as a solo project. I had been playing in different bands for a long time but nothing too serious.
I knew I was ready to take my music to a more professional level but wasn’t sure how to go about it.
And then just by chance I ran into Erik. I had worked with him briefly a couple of years back but didn’t really know him.
But we got to talking and ended up deciding to meet up and see if we could do some serious work together.
And as it turned out Erik totally understood what I was looking for musically. Ideas just kept coming and after a short while
we had a bunch of tracks that were exactly the way I wanted – good melodies, great riffs and very energetic and live oriented
songs with a modern production with one foot in the 80’s.
I knew I wanted to play the songs live, it’s the main reason I’m even in the business at all. It’s always been about the show and
performance for me, the connection with the audience. I love bands like Hanoi Rocks and Van Halen – really tight bands that
can give a crazy front man a solid foundation to stand on so they can focus on getting the party going and entertaining the crowd.
I will always try to be the circus monkey and give the people their money’s worth. If you want to hear me focus on singing you have
to get the album. When the album was ready I got in touch with some guys I knew from school and other bands around town.
They liked the songs and were also fans of Erik, so we decided to hook up and see what would come of it.
I came up with the name Adrenaline Rush. I think it really sums up how we sound and what we’re trying to do live.
GEORGE: It has been about a year since the release of your debut album.
Are you satisfied with the feedback and the sales of the Album?
TAVE: Absolutely! The preliminary reports look good, way beyond what I originally hoped for. Right now I’m hoping the numbers
will be good enough to get a chance at a second album. I sort of expected to get torn to shreds, but we haven’t seen too much
of that so it’s all good. I mean, you’re not going to please everyone no matter what you do, but we have been getting mostly
positive feedback. People that are into heavy music and clenched fists don’t usually get us but that’s cool. It goes both ways.
We are what we are and this is what we sound like. We're having a party and everyone's invited!
I am happy if you show up but if you don't, well that's really up to you.
GEORGE: The compositions of the album are splendid! The tracks are amazing.
You don’t find songs like “Black n' Blue”, “Want It All”, and “Change” together in one album.
What was the secret when you were writing the music, causing you to provide us
with so many Melodic Hard Rock diamonds simultaneously?
TAVE: Thank you. I am really not much of a songwriter, at least not yet. So I depend on others to help make music out of my ideas.
I usually know what I want a song to sound like and the feeling I want it to convey, and to get there I will discuss ideas and try
different things with whomever I am working with on that particular track. Sometimes I listen through demos to see if there is
anything that catches my ear - it can be anything, a whole song, part of a song or even just a sound. And I will usually have input
on vocal melodies and lyrical content. The lyrics are important and I have to be able to relate to what I am singing. I am not out
to change the world so I try to keep things positive and light. There might be a few people involved in the writing, but I am always
responsible for the lyrics in the end so they have to be right!
On this album I worked mainly with Erik and like I said earlier, we really hit it off and the process was smooth and easy.
And its not only the actual songs, the production and “sound” is just as important.
And I think we found the perfect balance between the 80’s and modern.
GEORGE: What are the most memorable moments during the album’s making?
TAVE: It was probably somewhere in the middle of the process, when I realized that everything was actually going better than
I had hoped when we started. I thought to myself that “Hey, this is actually going to sound really good once we´re done!”
It was a really cool feeling and I’m still happy about the album.
GEORGE: Rockers loved the video of “Change”.
Are you thinking of shooting another one from “Adrenaline Rush”?
If so, which song would you choose?
TAVE: I would love to shoot another video. Nothing is planned but who knows… I’m not sure which track I would do though.
Maybe the ballad (“When We´re Gone”) since we’ve already done an up-tempo one? Or maybe “Oh Yeah!”
because I think it has a summer vibe to it.
Which one would you pick? GEORGE: (I believe that "Black n' Blue", with good inspiration, can become an amazing video!)
GEORGE: Will you tell us what activities the band has been doing ever since the release of the album until now?
TAVE: Sure. We’ve been trying to get our name out there by playing as many gigs as possible.
But this is one thing that has not gone exactly according to plan.
As it turns out finding gigs can be really difficult for a new band!
GEORGE: On July of 2015, you’ll be playing at the great Vasby Rock Festival with names such as H.e.a.T, Danger Danger,
Eclipse, Work Of Art, Nubian Rose and Dalton. Tell us a few words about this event.
TAVE: It’s going to be an awesome event. I love festival gigs because the vibe is usually very positive.
And you get to play on a big stage with good sound (even the monitors usually sound good), you meet other
bands and a whole lot of cool people. I like to watch other bands play, there is always something you can learn.
A lot of the bands also played at the Frontiers Festival, so we’ve met before.
I hope we get a good turn-out, we have a few surprise cover songs that I think people might get a kick from.
GEORGE: For the past 3-4 years, we’ve been seeing a bloom in Melodic Rock\Melodic Hard Rock.
Do you believe that rockers want more quality in the music and listen to more of this centre?
What is your opinion on this?
TAVE: I wouldn’t call it better quality (although I’m glad you think it is) but it is definitely a change.
To me, music is entertainment. I am not looking to change the world, I just want to be the soundtrack to a week-end party.
And that’s why I love the vibe of the 80’s.
Something happened in the 90’s and rock became ugly, aggressive and shoe-gazing serious.
I don’t like that, I like happy and I think it’s time we brought some of that back; music that entertains and leave you with
a positive feeling, like you’re driving off into the California sunset in a big American-made convertible sports car.
I like up-tempo tracks with big drums and bass to bang your head, and a cool riff and solo to play air-guitar.
GEORGE: The music industry in the recent years has changed.
We see that a lot of people prefers digital purchases,
which is more convenient, faster and accessible.
What is your thoughts on the future of CDs?
TAVE: That is a complicated question. I think digital music is here to stay. I am a big fan of Spotify because it’s really convenient
and I listen to it all the time on my cell-phone and computer. I have a premium subscription and would gladly pay twice the amount,
I think it’s that good. At the same time there is a big difference in sound quality between streamed music and CD’s, so when
I really like a band I will buy their CD. And then there is the money side of things. I like to support the bands that I like so I will
buy their CD and merch, because I know they usually make more royalties from CD sales than downloads.
And that is messed up, the music business really needs to do something about it.
But what I really like is LP’s. I like the feel, the sound and the actual size of the cover, the pictures are so much bigger
and easier to see. Plus they look really cool in my bookshelf.
GEORGE: When do you plan to get into recording for new material?
TAVE: I’m hoping maybe towards the end of this year. Everything depends on the sales-figures for the current album.
I already have some thoughts on what I want the tracks to feel like, so I really hope I get to make a new album soon!
GEORGE: What are your plans for the rest of 2015?
TAVE: To play as many gigs as possible.
And then hopefully getting green lit for the new album.
GEORGE: Thank you for your time, I wish you all the best for the future! The last words are yours for this interview.
Feel free to say whatever you want to all BeRock’s Radio minizine readers!
TAVE: Thank you so much for having me, it’s been a pleasure. And thanks to all who supported us this past year.
Hope to see you out there… until then, stay cool and ENJOY THE RUSH!
Oh and while I’m at it, please check out our video “Change” on YouTube, we’re trying to reach 100k views!
