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Chris Poland interview
June 2007 By: Joe Florez
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Just because guitar God Chris Poland hasn’t been
as visible as he once was in Megadeth, that doesn’t mean he hasn’t
been busy. He put out a fantastic solo record called “Return To
Metalopolis” back in 1990, but he has also been involved with Damn The
Machine, more solo work and working with artists like Lamb Of God and
Pharaoh. Fans will obviously praise the man for his metal prowess with
the legendary band, but has since shifted to a more jazz/prog/metal/fusion
and you know what? He’s very much at home here and is just as crafty
and technical than ever before. What’s funny is that he was in this
genre long before going full throttle thrash. The man has become more
mature with age and he can play with the best of them and show the new
kids a trick or two. What was once considered lost forever, Chris has
managed to dig up “Return To Metalopolis Live” and has added a few
extra goodies for the fans that will make it worth the purchase. Lion
Music is proud to exploit this for the world to hear and you would be
doing yourself a disservice if you didn’t give it a spin. Chris
elaborates further on this and clues us all in on what the man has on
his plate.
This new CD Return To Metalopolis Live is the only known recording.
How did you come across this?
There was a cassette tape that I knew I had, but had no idea where it
was. When I came across it I was afraid to listen to it because I
figured the sound quality would be bad. My manager encouraged me to
listen to it and see how it sounded as he knew of a label that would
be interested in releasing it. I did eventually check it out and found
that it sounded pretty good. It was tough for me to listen to at first
because of where I am at with my playing today in OHM:. Still I am
proud of that part of my career and I thought the fans would enjoy
hearing some more material from that era.
Why did you take so long in releasing this
classic?
Well, initially because I did not know where the tape was and after
the tape was found we had to find some more tunes that could be used
to round out the release.
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The production is pretty much raw and
unpolished. Did it ever come across your mind to try and clean it up
or just leave it alone?
Well the music was transferred to cd from the original cassette tape
it was on, so that explains the sound. With that being said, not many
people who have heard the disc had any idea it was from a cassette
based on the sound. They really liked it. You have to also realize
that at the time this was recorded it was just a soundboard mix. The
disc was mastered by Randy Pevler, but I really like the rawness of
the performance and the powerful drums and bass.
What is crazy is that the live songs on here,
like the title track and Khazad Dum sound exactly like the CD note for
note. I should know. I have listened to your disc thousands of times
over and memorized all the compositions forwards and backwards. Did
you rehearse these tracks live before hitting the road?
That’s cool that you feel the material reproduced itself
live well. |
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were in a three piece format live. My solos are improvised
live unless I can remember a part to build off of what
I’ve played before. You’ll notice we did throw in a few
changes in the tunes, like the bluesy outro to “Khazad Dum” and the solo variations I mentioned.
The bio says that this solo tour was very short.
What happened?
We were excited about getting on the road for the disc and had started
doing some shows with Death Angel and Flotsam and Jetsam when we got
word that Enigma Records (the label that issued Return to Metalopolis)
had gone bankrupt and the tour support was pulled. I can’t tell you
how disappointing it was for all of us and for the record, which
really did not get the time of day promotion-wise, due to the
bankruptcy of Enigma shortly after its release.
The one interesting track on here is your
version of “Wake Up Dead.” The only difference is that you have bass
player Dave Randi singing the lead here and he sounds like he’s
struggling with the song. Were you happy with the end result or not?
Actually, when I first listened to the cassette of this show after
finding it, I thought the performance on this tune was one of the
strongest. Sure Dave Randi, cannot sing the tune like Dave (Mustaine),
but I feel good about the energy and vibe that is on that tune and the
record as a whole.
I have always loved your brother Mark’s drumming
on the solo disc, OHM and Damn The Machine. What is he doing
currently?
Mark is currently fronting his own project called Fester, on which he
sings and plays piano (www.festervision.com).
It is pretty interesting stuff and much different that his work with
me. After the Damn the Machine days he played with me in a band
called, Mumbo’s Brain. After that project went under he really got out
of playing metal and more musicianship-oriented music. He still does
play drums though occasionally and did a tour with White Zombie back
in the day.
On this live disc, you have also hired the
services of drummer David Eagle who I am a fan of since his days with
Guy Mann Dude and he participated on your first OHM: recording. How
many people remember him? How did you get involved with him?
Actually, the track “Tin Man” that David plays on is actually a
leftover from the first OHM: recording session that did not make it to
the record. David is a great and unique drummer who added his own
thing to OHM:. When he was playing with us, he had one of the most
unique drum kits you’ll ever see.
David Eagle became a member of OHM: when our first drummer, Koko
Bermejo left. Dave was in the rehearsal room next to ours and he loved
what we were doing. Sometimes he would even play along. When he heard
we were looking for a drummer, he dropped a note under our rehearsal
room door and said he wanted to play with us. From there the rest is
history.
In order to make this a worthy purchase you put
“Pandora” which was an unreleased studio demo and an OHM B-Side “Tin
Man” on here as well as a CD enhanced track “Alexandria.” Was this
something for the fans?
Yes. I originally wanted to release this as an EP, but through the
encouragement of the record company and my management we put on a few
more tracks I had in the archives. “Pandora” is a working demo I did
when I was trying to determine the direction I wanted to go in after
Return to Metalopolis. I also hope everyone enjoys the version of
“Alexandria.” When we started OHM: I rearranged the tune to fit what
we were doing. As for “Tin Man” I previously explained where that came
from.
For the life of me, I can’t figure out where
“Psycho Boy” and “Nightmare Hall” come from. Can you please elaborate?
These were 2 new tracks were working on at the time of the live
recording (1991) that were intended for vocals. In fact after the
Metalopolis tour we began putting together the band that would
eventually become Damn the Machine. I actually have a vocal audition
tape with this great Paul Rodgers-like vocalist doing “Nightmare
Hall.” However, I had no idea how to reach the guy to get his
permission to put that recording on Return to Metalopolis – Live.
Return To Metalopolis has been released several
times over. Were you involved with each pressing?
Yes. It makes me feel honored that the recording had such an impact
after all the record label turmoil that ensued when it first came out. |
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OHM is your main gig now. How is the new record
Amino Acid Flashback doing? I don’t think what people realize is that
you were a fusion player before joining Megadeth. How did you make the
jump from playing jazz/fusion in the late 70’s to Metal in the early
80’s?
Actually Amino Acid Flashback was released back in 2005 and we are
recording our new record now. Hopefully we can get it done by the end
of 2007. I am excited about the new tunes, which are still very much
OHM:, but a little heavier. We were very pleased with the response to
Amino Acid Flashback and the US tour that we did to support it. Making
the jump from playing fusion was exciting for me and Gar (Samuelson)
as we loved the energy and complexity of what Dave (Mustaine) was
doing and we felt we could add something new to that type of music
with our fusion backgrounds.
How did you get involved with Megadeth anyways?
Gar (Samuelson) joined first and told Dave and Dave about me. They
heard me playing in my room in rehearsal hall that used to be an old
brewery here in LA. I just remember I had the volume all the way up
and that is when Dave came in and asked me if I wanted to join
Megadeth.
It’s no secret that the debut record Killing’s
My Business is a bonafide classic. Did you have a clue that this brand
of metal would take off in the mid-80’s?
Not at all. I was just into the challenge of playing it and trying to
get used to the crazy fans ;0) Man those times were definitely wild
and we were all doing some pretty crazy things. I feel privileged to
have been part of it all.
A few years ago you were on the VH1 Behind The
Music for Megadeth. I have to admit, while I knew you dabbled in drugs
I had no idea just how bad it got. The heroine and anything that was
hard. What was life like at that point when you were knee deep in that
stuff? How long have you been clean and sober for?
What can I say? It is not something I am proud of, but when I truly
realized that I was going to die if I kept doing this to myself that
is when I got sober. I have been sober ever since I left Megadeth.
After your stint with Megadeth was over, what
did you do until the solo release came out?
I first got sober and then I went out on tour with the Circle Jerks, a
punk band, playing bass. It was a lot of fun traveling around the
country with my band mates in a van and having fun playing music and
without the need to get loaded all the time.
Unlike Steve Vai, Satriani and the like, Return
To Metalopolis is a record I can come back to over and over again and
sit through it without touching the skip button. It seemed like you
took your time composing the disc with great care and all the songs
are memorable in some sort of way. You avoid shredding and do so
successfully. What was the secret to making a fantastic album?
Thank you for the nice complements. I worked on that record after I
got off tour with the Circle Jerks, where I was playing bass. I had
gotten a bunch of new equipment, a 4 track, and guitars to use. I just
wrote. Mark (Poland, brother) was available and so he played on the
record. Return to Metalopolis was really my attempt to get the
Megadeth out of my system and express my musical ideas that I did not
get to express while I was a member.When you
put together Damn The Machine, the disc was very socially conscious
with songs like “The Mission”, “Corporate Reign”, and “Fall Of Order”
to name a few. Was it an effort to inform people of what was going on
in the world or was it something that came naturally to you?
The lyrics for that record were written by Dave Clemmons (gtr/ vocals
for Damn the Machine) and he definitely did write some politically
charged lyrics for that record. Those were interesting times and I
think Dave wrote some great lyrics for the record. Damn the Machine
was a fun band to be in and it is a shame it ended after only one
disc. I am hoping someday we can get some of the other music we
recorded that no one has heard out there.
The tour you did with DTM and Voivod was kind of
an odd one. How did that turn out in the end?
It was a fun tour. I am a big fan of Voivod’s “Nothingface” record so
it was a pleasure to tour with those guys. A lot of great times and I
was sorry to hear about Piggy’s passing; awesome player with awesome
ideas. With Damn the Machine, we were also lucky enough to tour with
Dream Theater in Europe. There is nothing that forces you to stay in
practice more when you have to open for those guys every night! ;0)
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After that, you have released “Chasing The Sun”,
two (actually 3) OHM records and a “Rare Tracks” disc. Furthermore,
you did some work with Lamb Of God on “As The Palaces Burn.” (and on
“Ashes of the Wake”) How did that turn out for you?
I had a lot of fun doing those solos for Lamb of God. They were fans
and Chris (Alder) got in touch with me and my management about doing a
solo on As the Palaces Burn. They liked what I did with it and asked
me to play on Ashes of the Wake as well. Those guys are very talented
and have some great ideas. I wish them all the best. They are at a
point in their career where they are about to be the next Megadeth,
you know?
You returned to Megadeth for The System Has
Failed. Was there any regrets being on that record? How was the
working relationship between you and Dave?
Not at all. I had a lot of fun making it, especially being able to
play on a record with one of my all-time favorite drummers, Vinnie
Colaiuta. The working relationship between Dave and I was the same. It
was funny because it felt just like the old days. I remember playing
these solos during those recent sessions and they were telling me they
were too over the top for what they were looking for. I felt held back
to an extent, but I still very much enjoyed the experience, met some
cool people, and got to use some awesome vintage equipment that the
studio had.
I heard a rumor from a friend of mine who
said that you had a finger injury sometime ago and that it allows you
to do some really bizarre finger tricks on the guitar that no one else
can do? Any truth?
Back when I was in high school I was horsing around with someone and I
fell through a plate glass window. It ended up severing the tendons in
my finger on my left hand. I swear I never thought I would play guitar
again. When they tried to fix the damage they couldn’t, so I learned
to work around the injury and to play guitar the best I could. I
cannot bend that first finger on my fretting hand and mainly use it to
bar chords. I cannot reach a lot of the notes other people can, but I
play what I like and do the best I can to not let it hinder me. I
guess it is like people say - it has contributed to me finding my own
sound and style of playing.
It seems like you are at home playing
jazz/fusion and it’s some fantastic work that you do on those records.
Is there a new OHM record on the horizon?
Thank you. I am glad you enjoy OHM:. We are currently in the studio
recording our new record. As I mentioned before, a little heavier this
time out in spots, but still OHM:. The drums are just about done and
over the next few weeks while our bassist (Robby Pagliari) is in
Europe on vacation, I will be laying down some guitar tracks with
Petar (Sardelich), co-producer.
How about the metal scene? Are you done with it
or would you bother doing something with someone if the project was
right?
I do enjoy coming back and doing sessions, but I am not going to go
out and form a metal band or anything. I loved working on the Lamb of
God stuff. I also have recently done some sessions for groups such as
Pharoah, Plankton, and others.
Any last words for your fans?
Thanks to you for taking the time to do this. Hope to catch you on the
road again one day with OHM:. Thanks to all the fans for all their
support throughout the years!
www.chrispoland.com |
www.lionmusic.com
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www.myspace.com/chrispolandsohm
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