The songs are all written by me and Mr McCoy. Same raw live rocking approach productionwise and soundwise, all recorded in three- or four-day sessions, followed by the endless mixing, then followed by the night of the long knives in terms of choices of tracks - we had far too many - and then followed by tears and tantrums about the order of songs! But all to the good, we got the best possible album out of it. We are all knocked out with it, we think it rocks, we think it's a monster. And it makes a damn fine beermat too!
We've already played a lot of the new songs live on our tourette in July - Punko Rocco, Bullet In The Brain, You Can't Hold Me, Wheel Of Fortune, and Perfumed Garden all got blasted most nights. They work good. Can't wait to get out and do Evil Twin and Holy Roller and maybe One Of These Days, and of course The Humours Of Mr. McCoy. Let's hope we get booked for a 2 hour set! As for airplay... what's that? Just doesn't happen.

One song which kicked its way out through the walls of the recording studio and landed upright on a roaring Harley which it revved and wheelied at full throttle round'n'round your website to make sure everyone was wide awake in time for the November 17th, is Punko Rocco, featuring the mighty Dee Snider. So... punk, rock, metal, party.... that pretty much sums up what you're about.

Nowadays we've got the same thing as we've had for ever and a day, very safe, makes us all feel cosy and oh so dangerously rocknroll. What more do you need, a tattoo and a tribute band, and you too can be Keith Richards. NOT! Please people, let's have something new! I'm bored, I'm the chairman of the fooking bored! I'm not sure I answered that question...... what was the question? Was there a question? Hmmm... are you sure you're not a bassplayer?

How did it come about that Dee sang on Runko Rocco - and why only on one song? I'm trying frantically to think why, and as usual have come up with absolutely nothing other than my own inspirational genius. Yes, that's it, it was because I ASKED HIM! "Hey Dee, did you know how lucky you were when you met me, you never realised that in twenty years time I'd be hassling you endlessly to sing on some song that's popped through your letter box. Just do it and I'll go away until the next one! And God love ye Mr Snider sir, ye'll have yer reward in heaven, I'll say a little prayer for ye!"
Why that song? Well I couldn't really see him wanting to do Jonny fookin Sitar, not really his thing! He's a very busy guy, it couldn't be anything that would take time, it was hugely kind of him to do it and we all appreciate it enormously, Dee is a true legend and a real friend. There was really no chance of him doing anything else - he recorded what he did in the US, it's difficult doing all that and keeping it organic, especially when there is no budget at all, so it was just a one off special event. And he did it just incredibly.

What are the chances of you all collaborating again, on a complete album in the future? We'd love to do more with him, we'd love to do an album, but it's not likely to happen. He has a huge amount of obligations, and he has Twisted Sister of course. He's a great guy to work with and I consider myself very lucky to have worked with him in the past, if it had worked out then I'm sure we would still be working together. Every day was a gas, but the world leads you the way it does, and there's no return journey. Who knows, if it ever came up again and made sense I'd jump at it, would love to do it.

Earlier this year the GMT tour had the rug pulled out from under it when the Rock & Blues Custom Show was cancelled just a few days before the festival was due to start. How did you feel when you were told that the gig was off, and how did it affect your plans for world domination, oops, I mean for the rest of the shows? Well, not much to say about the RBCS - it was on, it was off, it was on, it was off, you do the hokey cokey and you turn around and then it was still off. And then Nuneaton pulled a gig on us, because it was the same people as the RBCS doing it. We did all the others and had a lot of fun, but it was a bit anti-climactic really in the circumstances, didn't do much for our visibility, but we absolutely rocked and rolled and that's all that matters! Someone also told me recently that the RBCS had not returned people's ticket money. I don't know if that's true or not, but if that is so it's really crap. We never got paid, I'm sure most bands didn't. People should have got their money back, no question.

Do you find the fragile nature of this business exhilarating or exasperating or excruciating or exhausting - or what? Well it's not a business really is it? It's just a bunch of clowns who should've been pickpockets and a lot of people who like getting their assssses kissed, and sometimes that combines in the same person. And yes, I've always felt that getting my picket pocked was damn exhilarating when it was the right picket pocker!

Now that Mr. McCoy's been immortalised in his own song, how has it changed his character? Is he unbearable to live with these days? Does his head still fit through the door? I remember when I had a song dedicated to Me, I was actually quite humble about it - at least until I'd blown all the candles out on the cake, anyway, hah. And does Mr.Guy keep whining'n'whimpering'n'wittering to be immortalised in a song of his own? Unbearable? John? Yes - but that's nothing new, he's been unbearable ever since I've met him - about 50 stone of 100% unbearably miserable bastid walking around in a tablecloth with a hole in it pretending it's a poncho! Did you know his real name is Roger? Mr Roger McCoy. Not many people know that. To be honest he was a bit unconvinced about that track because of the fact it was about him, and he has been ambivalent about it all the way, but Robin and I liked it so it got used. It is funny and the guitar part is 99% irish jig which we all liked.
Robin isn't bothered, he thinks every song is about him anyway.

MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, Twitter, Blogger, Schmogger, Blahblahblah-i-have-no-real-friends-so-i-have-to-pretend-famous-people-and-even-dead-rockstars-are-my-friends-dot-com.... how into each of these are you, and why do you think there are so many of the dammmmn things? Which one is best - i.e. the least worst? My loathing of MySpace is legendary, as you'll see from the profile blurb at www.myspace.com/batttttty - but don't let that influence your answer. Hah. Thanks for the add! And Paris Hilton IS my friend - really! I've stayed there many times. And what do you have against the Nonbeatles anyway? Typical journo spitting bile on a very nontalented band! What about 'She Loves You No No No', you GOTTA like that! It was Number None everywhere! Well... I do "do" MySpace, because it replaces airplay. Really, it made a huge amount of difference to Bitter And Twisted. So that counts against it for starters, haha. It's a great tool for promotion. Me, I have enough friends, I'm going out for a drink with the dustmites later. The other social networking sites whose names I can't remember... well, life's too short, I'd be in big danger of running out of insincerity. But it's good for GMT! Thanks for the add!

© Batttttty - 17th November 2008