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10 Questions with ... Mark Morton
May 7, 2019
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. One of the exciting things about supporting "Anesthetic" on the road and doing radio shows is that we got to perform the song "Reveal" live on the air a couple times during the tour. I love the little bit of anxiety I get from knowing we're on the air and there are no "do-overs." It was a lot of fun and I thought the performances turned out really cool
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1) Where does this interview find you today? What's on the agenda besides this interview?
San Antonio, Texas. Relax, get some rest and maybe check out San Antonio a little bit.
2) Before we talk about your new solo album, you initially was the guitarist for Burn The Priest, which later became Lamb Of God almost 20 years ago. What made you decide to do a solo project?
The genesis of the solo project was just really in the course of my songwriting. I was compiling material that really didn't fit into the framework of what Lamb of God does ... more extreme heavy metal band, kind of a thrash metal influence band. I found myself working on songs here and there that were more hard rock and blues-influenced. And while they didn't fit into what Lamb of God typically does, I felt like they were promising and worth developing and that's where the project started. I played them for my producer, Josh Wilbur, and he agreed so we just dug in. That's really where it started and the momentum kind of built from there.
3) After you decided to do a solo album, how did it all come together?
Well, the songs were coming together first and then once I played them for Josh, he agreed that it was good stuff and we started digging in. Then Jake Oni got involved; he was starting a new label with WPP Records when he heard some of the stuff that I'd been doing and what Josh was beginning to work on, so he wanted to be a part of it as well. He got involved on the business side and helped us out a little bit creatively as well. Then we began the process of refining the songs, working on them and bringing on the guest performers involved, which itself was a very large task. But a fun one.
4) Your solo album "Anesthetic" came out on March 1st with great fanfare. Now that it's out, how does the positive response to your first solo album feel?
It feels fantastic; it's just very humbling. First of all, to have had the experience of all these amazing musicians being interested enough in what I was doing to get involved and to collaborate with me on this project. It was just an amazing experience to be able to work with so many amazingly incredibly talented people. That was really one of the biggest joys of the experience for me. The reception of the album has been great beyond anything I could have imagined or could have expected ... to see these songs connecting with people and to see the reaction of people and how much they enjoy the album. It's really exciting particularly in light of the fact that it's very different than what my fans from Lamb of God are used to me doing. And I think that some new fans came on board as well who maybe aren't familiar with or aren't necessarily Lamb of God fans but are more into this Rock thing that I did on Anesthetic, so that's been fun as well.
5) The album features guest performances by Jacoby Shaddix of Papa Roach, Myles Kennedy and the late Chester Bennington of Linkin Park. How did you round up such a stellar cast of rock vocalists?
The strategy was to listen to the songs that we were writing and imagine who would best sing them. In some cases it was a song we already wrote lyrics for and had a demo for. In some cases it was just an instrumental, in some cases it was an in between. But the strategy was to just pick people who best suit the song. In some cases we were reaching for the stars and it just worked out. Fortunately it worked out that these folks were interested in hearing the song and becoming a part of it. Chester, in particular, I didn't have any kind of relationship with him other than just being a fan of his work. So for him to take the time and listen to the song and be interested enough to get with us and co-write it with us and record it with us was amazing. So many others too. I was a big fan of Mark Lanagan -- and I still am - so I was excited to work with him. Miles Kennedy ... just everyone on the album is so stellar. Some were friends ... Randy, Jacovi, Miles and I knew each other a little bit and some I had never worked with before, like Chester, Mark Lanagan and Josh Todd. So it was a different scenario for each particular situation. But it worked out great.
6) Now let's talk about your latest single, "Cross Off," featuring the amazing vocals of the late Chester Bennington. This is one of the top singles at Rock radio so far this year. How was it working with Chester and what was the inspiration for this song?
Chester and I co-wrote the lyrics, but I think we had similar inspiration in terms of the content; it was about some dark places we've been to in our personal lives and how we were navigating that, the impact it had on us, some of the things with regret, then just moving on. Without getting too specific about the things we talked about amongst ourselves, detail-oriented, those are some of the themes. Working with Chester was amazing; he was just so humble, gracious and so very energetic and excited about the song. Really stoked to do something more heavy from the metal sides of things, he was really excited about doing something like that again. I guess it had been a little while for him, but he just genuinely loved song -- and that was the biggest reason he was there.
7) What's your take on Rock radio today? Do you have any favorite on-air radio moments you can share with us?
One of the exciting things about supporting "Anesthetic" on the road and doing radio shows is that we got to perform the song "Reveal" live on the air a couple times during the tour. I love the little bit of anxiety I get from knowing we're on the air and there are no "do-overs." It was a lot of fun and I thought the performances turned out really cool.
8) There's a definite difference between making a record and going out and playing it live in front of an audience. Many feel that the real work is making the record, and the fun part is playing it live. What's your take on both of these processes?
Between performing live and being in the studio, both have pros and cons for me. I'm definitely more of a studio rat; I love the endless possibilities you have in the studio. The fact that you can try anything you want creatively and see how it works, and there's really no risk in trying and idea in the studio. Whereas live you're performing and you don't want to make mistakes, so it's more of an execution thing live. But there is the connection with the audience, which is the plus live. You get to really see the faces and the joy the music is bringing people, which is very powerful as well. I'm lucky I get to do both, but for my personality and the things I get out of writing and recording music, if I had to pick one, it would be studio work, but I'm lucky I get to do both.
9) Who are some of the new artists who inspire you? Who is in your current playlist? Any "guilty pleasure" songs or songs we might be surprised to find on your playlist?
I don't know if I believe in guilty pleasures. I listen to a lot of music that maybe people wouldn't expect the guitar player from Lamb of God to listen to, but I don't feel guilty about it. I am and have been a longtime Lady Gaga fan; I think she writes great songs is incredibly talented. I don't feel guilty about that but maybe some people would be surprised by it. I listen to a lot of Hip-Hop, both old and new. Big fan of new artist Ben Cordy and Ski Mask the Slump God. I was a big fan of xxxtentacion's work that he did before he passed. So I'm in touch with modern Hip-Hop, but I like the classics as well. Kinda everything in between. Love ASAP Ferg, ASAP Rocky that kind of stuff. In terms of new artists who are inspiring me, Deaf Heaven is fantastic. I really like their body of work and particularly I've been listening to the new album. In terms of Rock, they're more of an experimental metal thing but I've been digging on that lately. I like Cheville a whole lot; in terms of like mainstream Rock, they're a great band. Seether writes great songs; I saw them not too long ago. So I'm a fan of some of that stuff as well.
10) Finally, here is a fun one: If you had the opportunity to work with any act/artist from the past, present or future, who would it be and why? If you could spend the day with them, where would you go ... and what would you do?
Jimmy Page is pretty much my favorite guitar player, musician, producer and songwriter. He has set the standard for the rock guitar player. Led Zeppelin is the all -time greatest rock band. The Beatles are more of a Pop band, The Stones are definitely a contender but for me it's Led Zeppelin eeking out the Stones. But Jimmy Page is certainly my favorite guitar player and I would love the opportunity to sit with him, drink a cup of tea and pick his brain a little bit. I don't know if I'll ever get the chance but if I could, that's who it would be.
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