Information
Transatlantic interview by John Silverwood
Roine Stolt of the Flower Kings (Guitars, vocals)Neal Morse of Spock's Beard (Keyboards, vocals)
Pete Trewavas of Marillion (Bass, vocals)
Mike Portnoy of Dream Theater (Drums, vocals)
Interviewed for FlowerPower by JOHN SILVERWOOD
John: The Transatlantic project seems to have gone incredibly well doesn't it?
Roine: (Laughing) Well, it isn't released yet!
Neal: I think we're all pretty happy the way things turned out ... eerrr ... d'ya wanna know the dirt? (Laughing)
John: I don't know...
Neal: Well there's always dirt y'know....
Mike: The making of the music was the easy part. The collaboration and recording went very smoothly and everyone was on the same page, but now the little details like the band name and the artwork and the mixes have caused one or two problems, because we live on different continents and all of the communication is done on the Internet. I guess also that myself, Neal and Roine are all used to being in charge of our respective bands and we all have a big say in how things are done, so there has to be compromise when making some of the final decisions.
Roine: There were 2 mixes that we had to decide on. The original mix was done by Rich (Mouser), the Spock's Beard guy, but I felt Pete's bass was too low down, so I did a mix myself. In the end the guys preferred Rich's mix and so we went with that. Like Mike said, there are a lot of different Captain's in this ship and I'm used to getting my own way, but one of the reasons for choosing the first mix was probably the great drum sound.
Pete: The whole project went really well, it was great fun to do, especially because of everyone's playing ability. Mike is an amazing drummer and just so good to listen to and play along with. The music was also quite different to what I'm mainly used to doing, although musically the Iris project I did with Ian Mosley and Silvan Guvenier was pretty close. Considering the time we had, we got a lot of music recorded in the week at Millbrook and had loads of fun doing it, although I only went out of the building once.
Neal: I told my wife while we were recording, "I don't know. This might be a masterpiece, a "Close To The Edge" ... or it might just be a load of crap!" There are things that I really loved and some things that I wasn't too crazy about and I'm still the same now. I think it's like Roine said, I wasn't in control of it, like I usually am. I had to make compromises with the guys and so some sections ended up differently to the way I would write them. But it works both ways. Some of the things I was against at the time I really like now, so I had to tell myself that I had to keep a more open mind. I think the biggest problem I had, was in pieces that I had written and the other guys would come in and rewrite sections. So I'd sulk and say (adopts spoilt brat tone) "Huh, I don't really wanna do that" but I got outvoted. (Laughing) Can you believe that? I got outvoted on my own song. I've never had that in my entire life but I had to go along with it or just leave the studio. Having said that, that was the whole point of this project. We weren't just there to write and record Neal Morse songs. The whole point was to make it some other thing, but it was hard ... but I'm glad now we did it that way because hopefully, something special can come from that creative type of ... I don't want to say argument ...
John: Discussion?
Neal: Yeah. But in Spock's I suggest stuff and usually the guys go "Yeah, lets do that". It wasn't hostile, there wasn't any fighting ... but sometimes I'd say "Can't we all just agree on something, please!" Some of the best records come from these sorts of situations, so...
John: So how would you describe the music to someone who hasn't heard it?
Mike: Well, the obvious comparison would be a cross between Dream Theater, Spock's Beard, Marillion and The Flower Kings (laughs). I guess if I'm not to use such obvious comparisons though, I would have to say that it's very much in the "old school" retro-prog sort of vein, like Close To The Edge era Yes or Wish You Were Here era Floyd. The songs are very long and the arrangements are complex, so there are a lot of prog type elements. However, the songs are also very vocal oriented. All 4 of us are singing and there are a lot of harmonies and this makes it quite Beatles-esque at times. There's a bit of King's X in there as well.
Pete: I was talking about Transatlantic to a friend the other day and said "It's like Close To The Edge, and Fragile, with a bit of Crimson and Tull, all rolled in to one" and I think that probably sums it up quite well. It starts with a 30-minute classic full of Great melodies and themes, which tie in with four main songs of the piece. "We All Need Some Light" is the second song is a simple folk song reminiscent of early ELP. "Mystery Train" is third and is rocky with Discipline-type verses followed by Going For The One-type choruses with great Beatles-esque harmonies. "My New World" is another long musical adventure with interwoven themes and some great Todd Rundgren-ish guitar solo's amongst the main song, finishing with the biggest ending in the world and it's solar system. 'In Held Twas In I' is an old classic but having said that I didn't personally know the song before we decided to rework it ourselves. We try and stay authentic to the original, as it is an old favourite of Roine's and Mike's and in the main keyboard theme's you really can hear Gary Brooker and Matthew Fisher , which shows Neal's musicianship and amazing feel for the piano and organ.
Roine: I would say that's there's a little bit more Spock's Beard than the other bands. Neal did a lot of song writing and singing but even when we were working on one of my songs, Neal would come in like a walking music machine (laughs); you just can't stop that guy. (Still laughing) I don't think he realises that he's taking over actually. Having said that, we all contributed to the writing. For example, Pete contributed a whole riff on one of a section of one of Neal's songs. Neal does the bulk of the singing. I sing lead on one of my songs and Pete and Mike sing a lead bit in the Procol Harum song.
Neal: I would say that it's just a real strong progressive album. It's much more progressive than Spock's ... a lot more in fact. There's a lot of Beatles in there and of course a lot of the English bands like Genesis and Yes but there's also a jazz element in there too.
John: So are you pleased with how it all turned out.
Neal: Some of the stuff I was bouncing off the walls about. I just loved some of the stuff.
Pete: I am very pleased with how the whole thing turned out and as I told our European record company Inside Out, I can't stop playing the thing. We put so much effort into it that it's nice to hear it back and still feel as excited. There are so many things that can go wrong with records -they hardly ever end up how you want them to or even how you expect them.
Roine: It would have been nice to spend another week in the writing process. We have some really good songs though and I think that's important. I mean, you can have a lot of fancy playing but if the music's no good, the fans won't be fooled.
Mike: Oh yeah! I'm really proud of it and I had an amazing time making it. I just can't wait for people to hear it now. I did have high expectations before we even started because I know how incredibly talented these guys are. It totally ended up meeting all of the expectations I had though, in fact I'd say it actually exceeded them. The composition of the songs is so strong and the playing is really great, so it felt like we were doing something really significant in musical terms y'know. It felt like we were writing Close To The Edge.
Neal: Mike's been pretty much turned onto it the whole time. At the end of one of the sessions he said to me (adopts Mike's New York accent) "Oh man, isn't this killer. I love it!" and I would say, with my brow furrowed (slowly and deliberately) "Yeah, I ... eerrr ... think it is" I don't know, I think the jury was out with me for some time but now the jury's come in and I must admit ... I like it!
John: I know it's looking some way ahead but with the positive feel that you have for this project, do you think it's possible that you'll all get back together again in the future?
Mike: Well, that's what happened with the first Liquid Tension album. The record was a success and we all loved it, so there was no reason to not get back together. I think it's the same with this project. The fourof us all loved it so much that I think we're all open to making more records together. Obviously, the four of us are all in hard-working bands that make a lot of records and we all tour a lot but, providing we could make the time, then sure ... why not?
Neal: I hope so. I get the feeling that this record will get really well received, so it makes sense. I think it's gonna fly.
Roine: I think were actually going to try and plan something for the next one fairly soon. It does take a lot of planning.
Pete: It looks like we have a couple of shows in USA in June, so the plan is to get together to work on some new material for Transatlantic II while we're rehearsing. Also I would love for us to do some shows in Europe, especially the UK, but that will be down to money and availability in the end, as always.
John: So is it possible that Transatlantic may play some live dates?
Roine: Like Pete said, I think we're going to try and play a couple of the progressive festivals in the States this summer. There's NearFest and then we could play ProgFest in Los Angeles, but we're all busy. Mike's got some big tours with Dream Theater this year.
Neal: I think we all want to do the live thing but until the contracts are signed, I rather not say anything definite. Let's just say that it's all being discussed.
John: So, what are you thoughts on all of the guys in the band? Let's start with Roine.
Neal: Can I dish the dirt now? Ha, ha. No, that would be cool. I couldn't about Roine anyway. I really love Roine's playing. He brought a quiet creativity to the whole project. He was always very quiet, in fact he communicates with e-mail! I talk to him on the phone and, maybe it's because English is the second language, but he'll be very reserved and then I'll get these 3 or 4 page messages from him after he's had time to formulate his thoughts and then I realise that he does have a lot to say.
Mike: Well, Roine was an unknown quantity for me. I'd never met him before this and I only knew that I admired his writing and his work with The Flower Kings. He's just an incredibly talented guy and he kind of gave me, Neal and Pete a lot of space y'know? He was the sort of strong, silent type. He wouldn't say too much but when he did, it was because he had a very strong opinion about something and it was always very valid. When he took the tapes on, he really got deep into it and added so much depth with the instrumentation. He's not just a guitarist. He did a lot of keyboard and percussion work and a lot of vocal work too, so really he's just a multi-talented addition to the project.
Pete: Roine was the quietly confident one of the bunch, who seemed to stand back and have a good think before contributing in the studio, quite the opposite to me. But when you listen to what he does, it's pure genius. The sounds are killer and the way he approaches things always seemed to be from the most unusual side. A real gift of a musician to have on something like this.
John: And Neal?
Pete: Neal was the one doing most of the singing and was the instigator in the studio. He was always up for trying things and brought a really positive vibe to everything, which was very important to keep the whole thing going. He believed in what we were doing. Neal is also a great all round musician, which always impresses me.
Mike: Neal, like Roine, is an unbelievable songwriter and an endless supplier of ideas. He was the first person that I wanted to do this project with because I really wanted to work with him. Again, like Roine, Neal is a multi-instrumentalist and even though during the writing and recording he was stuck behind the keyboards, when he took the tapes on, he started to add a lot of guitar and percussion and of course vocals. He's got such an incredible melodic sense and it was a real inspiration working with someone like him. I can't say enough about him.
Roine: Like I've said, many times before, Neal is a walking music machine. Once you let the guy in the room he starts playing (laughs).
John: Pete?
Mike: Pete was the big surprise for the project but not necessarily for me because I already knew how talented he was and what a great melodic bass player he is. I think he is under appreciated in Marillion and hopefully he'll get some recognition in this project. I knew what he was capable of but I also know that the other guys were surely blown away with what he offered. He was always involved and he did a lot of singing and a lot of the harmonies. His playing was always spot on and at times I felt like I was playing with Chris Squire or Paul McCartney and this made me feel like I was Bill Bruford or even Ringo.
Roine: He was a big surprise for me too. Somebody, who shall remain nameless, told me, before we got together, that they didn't think Pete was a very good bass player. I didn't know because I hadn't met Pete and I'd only heard one Marillion album, which doesn't really show his talents off. When I met him in New York, I instantly thought, "What a nice guy". When he picked up the bass though, I though "Yeah, this guy can really play." In the end I thought he was perfect for the project. He complimented Mike's drumming very well, he learned very fast and was very professional and positive.
Neal: Pete was very fun. He was the joker, which you need. You need some humour in these things because Mike and I get pretty intense about stuff and Pete brought a lightness to it all. He did an excellent job on this record. I don't want to say he was a surprise, more that he was a very pleasant answer to the question
John: And finally, Mike.
Roine: He's an extraordinary drummer and he has so much energy. He's a late riser y'know, so we didn't start recording until midday but as soon as he got started, he pounded away all day ... and hard. All the way until midnight. He's not just a drummer because he's got a good knowledge of chord structures and music in general. It's the same thing with Jaime (Salazar, the Flower Kings drummer), that's why I like playing with them. They can hear if a note and a chord are wrong.
Pete: What can I say, one of the best drummers around. This whole thing was Mike's dream child and he was very sure of what he wanted the whole thing to be. As we were there to record drums first and foremost and because of the way he works with his other projects, we tended to follow his lead, which was fast and furious. It was a scary thing to just drop the whole band into record in the middle of a take we had already recorded, but it worked because mike's drumming is so precise. All in all, a thoroughly decent geezer.
Neal: Y'know how you always think someone is like the place they're from? Well I always though Mike would be a New Yorky East Coast kind of guy, y'know really pushy (laughing). And he was. In the studio, Mike was the pushiest and I would be second ... I don't think we should print this, he may take offence. I don't think he would though. He's a great guy ... I love him and he's a great drummer too ... (very long pause) ... Oh don't say pushy, say aggressive (laughing), so ... yeah, here we go, Mike's the most AGGRESSIVE and Pete's funny and very British and Roine's very quiet. That should keep everyone happy!
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