Ground
Attack
Tom Katz of GROUND ATTACK
ia real cool guy. I always liked the artists that don't have the rock star
attitude and they are siimle and like what to do. I think that Tom is very
interesting person and from the first words you will read from this interview
he will win you with his sincerity. Also check out their album "Sectioned"
which is a great hard rock work...
1. HELLO! "SECTIONED" IS A VERY GOOD HARD
ROCK ALBUM! HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT IT?
I feel very happy with Sectioned - it rocks
like crazy! Recording it was a breeze but then I'm very lucky to
be working with some very talented people.
2. THE BAND'S HISTORY STARTED BACK IN 1979 AND
ENDED UP ABRUPTLY IN 1982. YOU ALSO REFORMED FOR A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME
BACK IN 1989. HOWEVER, I FEEL THAT THIS REUNION HAS MORE POSSIBILITES TO
LAST. WHAT MADE YOU RESURRECT GROUND ATTACK ONCE AGAIN? IS THIS REUNIUON
LIKE STARTING FROM POINT ZERO AGAIN?
Yeah! You're right Nick this is Zero
and it's forward from here. I've waited all my life to work with
these guys. Ground Attack has so much to say and these are the guys who
will be now and forever.
3. IN THE 80S HEAVY METAL WAS VERY SUCCESSFUL
FINANCIALLY AND VERY POPULAR. THERE WERE MANY MUSICIANS BACK THEN THAT
FORMED A BAND WITH THE DREAM OF BECOMING ROCK STARS. SOME HAVE SUCCEEDED.
NOW, THAT THE HARD ROCK/HEAVY METAL MUSIC IS NOT SO FAMOUS, WHAT KIND OF
EXPECTATIONS DO VETERANS LIKE YOU HAVE? WHICH ARE THE TARGETS YOUR'E AIMING
AT? WHAT DO YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE?
Veterans like me - wow! I just wanna
rock Nick, I can't help it! It's something I do and always have done
since I was at school. I'll rock 'til I drop. I expect nothing,
therefore whatever happens is a plus! I have no targets persay - just to
keep creating great rock music! Maybe one day Ground Attack will be on
jukeboxes worldwide - now that'd be cool!
4. I READ IN YOUR BIO THAT MOST OF THE SONGS INCLUDED
IN "SECTIONED" ARE COMPOSITIONS FROM THE PAST. I'D LIKE TO ASK YOU WHETHER
YOU CHANGED THEM A BIT OR NOT. DID YOU ALTER THEM IN ORDER TO SOUND MORE
MODERN AND FRESH? HAVE YOU LEFT ANY OF YOUR OLDER SONGS OUT OF THIS ALBUM
AND ARE YOU PLANNING TO RELEASE THEM LATER?
All art develops as with the passage of time,
we evolve. So, yes, the songs have developed as has technology, hand
in hand, together into the future. We feel that the sound is much more
modern and fresher whilst still maintaining an edge of the old days! I
have a mountain of material which I hope to record in due course.
We have just recorded a track called Motorbike Song for a compilation album
which is being put together by Mike Grindstaff from the Old School Metal
Show at www.hardrockin80s.com.
Ground Attack can't wait to record the next album -it's all down to finance
though.
5. SINCE WE TALK ABOUT THE COMPOSITIONS, DO YOU
HAVE ANY NEW READY? HOW DO THEY SOUND? WHEN DO YOU PLAN TO RELEASE
YOUR UPCOMING ALBUM?
There is another album ready to record. A
mixture of old stuff and new stuff. It's all in the lap of the Gods!
6. I DON'T KNOW IF I AM MISTAKEN, BUT "SECTIONED"
IS A SELF FINANCED RELEASE. WHY DID YOU DO THAT? I FIND IT EXTREMELY HARD
TO BELIEVE THAT YOU DIDN'T HAVE ANY PROPOSALS FROM A LABEL, SINCE THE 80S
SOUND IS POPULAR NOWADAYS. HAS ANY LABEL APPROACHED YOU AFTER THE RELEASE
OF "SECTIONED"?
We haven't approached any record companies
- didn't give it a thought. Ground Attack iss an art form for us.
No one has approached us either! They probably don't know we exist
- but you do so that's pretty cool!
7. DURING THE BAND'S HISTORY THE ONLY STABLE MEMBER
WAS TOM KATZ. SO, I'D LIKE TO KNOW WHICH OF THE MUSICIANS THAT PASSED FROM
GROUND ATTACK WAS VERY IMPORTANT FOR YOU AND WHY?
Everyone who has been part of Ground Attack
has been important. They have all played their part and made Ground
Attack what it is today. These are the most important people in the world.
Matt Alan, Bob Bradbury and Corrie have made flowers blossom from the seeds
that were sown in '81. All are relevant who have been part of the
journey.
8. EXCEPT FOR GROUND ATTACK, YOU WERE ALSO A MEBMBER
OF A BAND CALLED "HELLO". CAN YOU TELL US WHICH ARE THE MAIN DIFFERENCES
AND SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THESE 2 BANDS? DO YOU HAVE ANY PLANS TO REFORM
HELLO AGAIN?
Hello is one of the biggest glam rock bands
of the 70's. Bob Bradbury is a rock icon. Hello sold millions
of records. I play lead guitar with Hello. We play the Arenas and
Stadiums in Germany to audiences of up to 20000 people and that doesn't
include the audiences watching and listening on the live TV and Radio gigs.
The Germans say that Hello are now "Power Punk". Bob and I are great mates
- together we rock like fuck, whether we aree Hello or Ground Attack.
9. ONE THING THAT PISSES ME OF IS WHEN AN ARTISTIC
WORK IS TREATED LIKE A RARE COLLECTOR'S ITEM AND NOT FOR WHAT IT REALLY
IS. I CONSIDER THAT COLLECTORS DON'T LIKE THE MUSIC THAT MUCH, BUT ARE
MAINLY INTERESTED IN OBTAINING ALBUMS THAT ARE RARE, JUST TO HAVE A UNIQUE
CD COLLECTION. SO, WHAT DO YOU THINK ON THAT ISSUE? DO YOU PREFER A DEDICATED
FAN THAT HAS YOUR SONGS ON TAPE OR JUST A COLLECTOR THAT GETS YOUR ALBUM
JUST BECAUSE IT IS RARE?
I'm a collector's item - that makes me feel
like a fucking fossil! Joking aside - I'm thrilled whether it's a collector,
a dedicated fan or someone using my stuff as a table matt or door stop!
It's like autograph hunters who wait in the cold and rain - do they dig
ya or is it a business for them? Who gives a fuck! It's great
theatre. "The world is a stage and the people are but actors" (Thanks Willy!)
10. SINCE YOU ARE ONE OF THE FIRST MUSICIANS THAT
PLAYED HARD ROCK/HEAVY METAL, CAN YOU TELL US WHAT HAPPENED AND ENGLAND
FROM BEING THE CAPITAL OF HEAVY METAL HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS MUSIC
NOW?
Time waits for no man. I suppose when
the motorcycle laws changed and kids didn't have the right to kill themselves
anymore on 650 motorcycles without passing a test - that changes things.
You know - no bike, no leather jackets. When Interpol said all members
of motorcycle clubs were deviants and should be watched I suppose that
changed things. When pubs and clubs put noise meters in their venues that
changed things. You know, who wants to play rock with your amp turned to
number one. Rock isn't for the faint hearted. I tell you what though we
didn't go away. We're still here and you know what - we're louder!
11. HAVE YOU LISTENED TO ANY NEW METAL BANDS THAT
YOU LIKED A LOT? WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ABOUT THE HEAVY METAL MUSIC AS IT
HAS EVOLVED?
I listen to loads of bands every week as I
spend a lot of time in the Rehearsal Studios. Every now and then
I hear something interesting. I do get bored with the same
old bollocks mind you. I like metal bands who have tried to move with the
times and make something "different".
12. THIS MIGHT SOUND AS A SILLY QUESTION, BUT
I HAVE TO ASK! WHY DID YOU CHANGE YOUR NAME FROM TOM ATKINSON TO TOM KATZ?
When I was a kid there was a teddy boy gig
which I was too young to go to called "Cats Night Out". The name
stuck in my mind. A few years back I did a psychedelic gig with myself
on guitar a drummer and a bass player. We had a million guitar effects
and a huge laser light show! I decided to call it Tom Catz. When I got
to the gig they had made a huge banner and put it up outside the venue
but it said Tom Katz - so I kept it that way!
13. INTRODUCE TO US THE OTHER 2 MEMBERS. HAVE
THEY PLAYED IN OTHER BANDS BEFORE JOINING GROUND ATTACK?
There are 3 other members of Ground Attack!
Corrie Shiells, who'll be my wife soon, is a multi instrumentalist. In
Ground Attack she plays Bass Guitar and backing vocals but she also plays,
Saxophone, Violin, Flute and Keyboards. She is classically and Jazz
trained, writes the dots and is excellent in the studio. Bob Bradbury
has been a rock star from the age of 13! Bob is a mountain of talent
and an excellent Producer and Sound Engineer. He is a guitarist and vocalist
and fronts his own band Hello of which I am proud to be a member of.
Bob is a joy to work with. Matt Alan is a drummers drummer he started playing
at the age of 5 and works with many chart topping artists and has played
Wembley Arena. He is very sought after. Matt has an artistic
approach to his work and he can play anything!
14. IF YOUR MUSIC WERE AN EMOTION, WHAT WOULD
IT BE? IF IT WERE A PAINTING, WHAT WOULD IT SHOW?
If my music were an emotion what would it
be - probably a nightmare! If it were a painting what would it show - well
I'll tell you what it would show. Check out www.tomkatz.biz
and there you'll see all the answers - surprise surprise!
15. WHICH WORDS DO YOU THINK DESCRIBE YOUR MUSIC
THE BEST POSSIBLE WAY AND WHICH PHRASE CAN UNDERLINE AND SUM UP ALL THE
BAND'S EFFORTS UP TO NOW?
Ground Attack music is what it was, what it
is and what it will be. A phrase to describe the bands efforts up
to now would be: "It was worth waiting a lifetime!"
16. THANK YOU! HAVE I FORGOTTEN TO ASK YOU ANYTHING
AND YOU'D LIKE TO MENTION?
Nick, my fingers are stiff, my pen is running
dry and my brain hurts! Thank you so much for keeping all of this alive!
All our love to you all in Greece! From all of us in Ground Attack!
Nick "William_Kidd"
Parastatidis
|