Welcome to The Razors'e Edge and our somewhat lovely, warm desert island. Don't worry about it's name I'm sure it's not as bad as that would suggest.
So you're marooned here on this island, but before you ended up shipwrecked you chose one album that you couldn't live without. Which album did you each chose and why?
Mike: I’m bringing Whitesnake’s 1987. John Sykes is a monster, Coverdale is one of the best vocalist in the history of people making noise with their throats and I guarantee all the others in this band will pick weird shit. If I’m stuck on an island I want a tan and music I can get heavily and happily drunk to.
Terry: I think I’d likely grab my phone which has numerous albums downloaded on Spotify but I guess to not be a fun sponge I’ll play along. I would likely grab 10,000 Days by Tool. Everytime I listen to that album I always spot something new and interesting that I tell myself ‘was not there last time’. With sod all else to do, I will know every little detail about that album
Franco: Oooooft! How are we supposed to each just pick one? I’ll go with Queen II. Not because it’s their best or my absolute favourite but sentimentally it was the first album I ever fell in love with. It clearly sounds like a band finding their feet but - like all Queen’s back catalogue- it’s bombastic escapism. The vocal arrangements have never been topped in my opinion and I still find new things in it all these years later. For it’s time as well, it’s got some crazy heavy moments, Ogre Battle being one. Imagine Pet Sounds done by gothic romanticists and you’ve got Queen II.
James: Well, I sure hope Devil Island has some power and a CD player, yeah, a CD player… I still love that format and while I’m getting into collecting more vinyl as the years go by, my collection is almost entirely limited to that format. I guess it’s my age. Anyway, the album which I would have to take is Mezzanine by Massive Attack. That album made a massive impact on me, and music as a whole I would say. While it’s not my number 1 album ever, it’s got a lot going on, which would keep me going for most occasions on Devil’s Island.
Just behind that palm tree is a shack for each of you to stay in, with enough space for you to put up a poster on the wall of one album cover. What album cover do you each chose?
Mike: Def Leppard - Hysteria, because you just can’t beat the 80s for album covers and it’ll add a splash of colour to the desolate bleakness.
Terry: My album cover wall art in my shack home would have to be Sgt Pepper. As I slowly descend to madness, I could have a conversation with a different person every day.
Franco: I’m going to stay on the nostalgia trip and pick Rage Against The Machine’s debut. I had the image of the Buddhist monk engulfed in flames plastered on my wall when I was about 16 and it is easily the most striking album cover that springs to my mind. It’s not a contrived piece of album art but visceral reality and beautifully grisly. It grabs your attention from the get go and I find it tricky to tear my eyes away from. It’s the almost serene composure he holds himself in as his body is ravaged by fire.
James: I guess the Artpop album cover from Lady Gaga? I’ve always liked her style, and a fringe apparently… So frankly while I don’t especially care for the record, the cover would suffice if marooned.
There's also a bar on this here island. But alas each of you only get to choose one drink for the entirety of your stay. What's your tipple of choice?
Mike: Gin & Tonic, served in a coconut with an umbrella obviously.
Terry: One drink to have every single day? All day? I would have to take that Delirium Red thing we had in Bristol. The tastiest most potent Kreik. Changed my life.
Franco: Without a doubt, Kriek - which is a cherry lambic. We rehearse right next to a micro brewery in Stevenage called The Broken Seal and not only do they serve it on draft but they‘ll can it for you to take away. It’s my first port of call every Sunday and my poison of choice. It’s only 3.5% so super light but a good session drink that leaves me walking on air after rehearsals.
James: Do cocktails and their listed ingredients count as one drink?! If they do, I’m in with the Long Island Ice Teas… Absolutely not a problem! Okay okay, if that’s cheating, a nice cold pint of hazy east coast pale ale.
Your suitcases were lost when your ship sank, but you managed to salvage one item of band merch. What’s the merch and for what band?
Mike: Something else alcoholic like a keg of Iron Maiden Trooper.
Terry: If we had my way, I’d salvage some Metallica pop figures. I’ve seen Cast Away, I’m not going to talk to a ball am I? I’m not a lunatic. But I will talk to my good friends James, Kirk, Rob and Lars. Hopefully they don’t sue me.
Franco: I got a signed print from a Faith No More show years back which sits pride of place in my living room - much to my wife’s bemusement. She loves the band but hates the design. I could then hang it next to dear old Thích Quảng Đức in my shack. Other than that, the last piece of merch I brought was a white T-shirt from our friends in The Grey which has a kick ass design by Ace from Skunk Anansie on it. One of those. All my other band tees are worn out.
James: My Gene Simmons branded fresh OJ press of course! Sunday mornings would never be the same without it. Thanks Gene!
You’re sat on the island thinking “I’m stuck here on this island with my bandmates for eternity”… who would you rather have been shipwrecked with?
Mike: Gal Gadot… Wait… I should probably say my wife right?.. My wife…
Terry: I could think of nothing worse then being stuck with these 3 troglodytes on an island. I joke of course, between us I think we’d be pretty savvy and we could play as loud as we want, all day. Everyday. But if I had to have anybody else here other then these 3 fine individuals, I reckon I’d have Tommy Lee or any of those Crue guys. The stories they could tell would keep me going I think.
Franco: Sophia Vergar…wait…this sounds like a trap. My wife. Naturally. My wife. Are you mental asking me that?
James: Almost anyone else to be honest haha! Nah, I love those boys, but a team of absolutely bossin shipwrights to give me a chance of getting back home to my family. I wouldn’t want my family there on the ill-fated perils of Devils Island, no sir!
There's a walkman in your pocket, on the tape inside is the recording of the one live show that stands out for you. It could be any show, from any band, anywhere in the world. What show is on that walkman?
Mike: Pink Floyd Live At Pompeii.
Terry: I went to see Gallows at the underworld in Camden years ago. The issue was, Marmozets opened for them, a band I hadn’t heard of or anything. They put on the best live show I think I’ve ever seen from any band. The energy in that tiny, grimy little room was amazing. I’d have that on tape. Sorry Gallows but Marmozets stole the show that night.
Franco: Aretha Franklin’s Amazing Grace or Jeff Buckley’s Mystery White Boy.
James: “The high and lowlights of Woodstock 99”, which doesn’t exist, but in this theoretical situation I see no harm in that? Alternatively, the Monsters Of Rock, 1991 Pantera show in the former Soviet Union.
You're getting desperate, you decide the only course of action is to put a message in a bottle and hope someone finds it. Your message could be to any member of any band, but should be the most suitable for a rescue attempt. Who is it?
Mike: Duran Duran and the Yacht from the Rio music video, sharp suits and the Saxophone dude has his own raft if it all goes wrong.
Terry: I hope it finds old Bruce from Iron Maiden. Mans a pilot. He can come get me.
Franco: The Beatles. They had a Yellow Submarine and I’m assuming I’d be sick of the sight of the ocean’s surface at this point. Why not get the hell out of dodge on an animated submarine and check out the bizarre technicolour marine life that vessel seemed to encounter wherever it went. The heat stroke might add to the fun.
James: Er, Sting? Just as long as the bottle was a Newkie Brown.
You've been stuck here for a while and food supplies are running low. There's only one thing for it... which fellow band member gets sacrificed to help the others survive?
Mike: I think about this a lot... I sit there at rehearsal sometimes, watching them all potter about wasting time and money while they set their gear up talking about inconsequential nonsense like how their weeks have been and what they’ve been up to, you know, real clingy shit like that. Sometimes I feel like I’m on the set of Loose Women… Anyway… It’s Terry the drummer, he’s the youngest and he’s probably the healthiest, the rest of us are completely fucked. I’ve even heard rumours that he frequently attends a gym and actually enjoys it.
Terry: The one who gets sacrificed is the one who falls asleep first. First one to sleep isn’t pulling their weight. Dibs on the thigh.
Franco: There’s nothing to me so would make for a pretty underwhelming meal. James always smells amazing but as a result of his Greek heritage I’m guessing he would either taste of goat cheese or cinnamon and alas I can’t stand either. Terry’s a big boy but a bit on the lean and sinewy side and I have a feeling it would be like eating biltong. A nice snack but not hugely appetising, Mike on the other hand has some beef on them bone. I’ve seen the jiggle in that wiggle so I’m plumping for some prime Lewin rump.
James: Mike’s beard would make a great fishing line… Guys, seriously, why have we not explored this option!?
Finally, when the ship sank you each managed to save one person from the wreckage. That person is the one musician that has influenced your career the most, shaped your way of thinking and your outlook on life. Who did you save?
Mike: There hasn’t been one specific so I’ll bring back Lemmy because the world needs more alcohol, drugs and hefty noise.
Terry: I mean, most of them are already dead. Already dead… good song title. But no, I would save Buddy Rich.
Franco: Most of my musical heroes are long dead but I’ll return the favour to Brian May and Roger Taylor (they’re basically one person right?)… because their band undeniably saved my life - on countless occasions - growing up.
James: Wesley Willis.
