Here is a Q and A that was given to the members of MetalMorphosis. We hope you enjoy it. If you have any questions (or comments) please use our contact page. Also on facebook.com/metalmorphosisband

 

 

HERE WE GO!

 

Q and A with Guitarist Brandon Cook

 

Who are your favorite musicians? Bands? 

BC: my childhood was Metallica and Megadeth!  I love both of those bands but Metallica and Megadeth are the music of my Youth.  If I had to choose, Megadeth.  They were the ones that were at the very dawn of my musical awakening and led me down a path of writing, riffing and studying music to the highest level I could attain.

 

 Ozzy or Dio?

BC: I love both singers. they were both so distinctive, I would never choose between them, they both brought soo much to Sabbath.

 

Favorite Metal Song?

BC: Too many hundreds to choose.  

 

Top 5 Albums of All time?

BC: And Justice for All Metallica

Rust in Peace Megadeth

By the Grace of God Hellacopters

One by One FooFighters

Morning View Incubus

 

Can you tell us a little about how you all met and what was intriguing about Andy's proposal of turning jazz tunes into Metal masterpieces?

BC: Andy and I met thru Wil Kinky a Portland local songwriter and Andy had an idea to do some metal music project that mixed Jazz and Metal.  Larry and I met thru my friend Charlie Swift. They had a band called second hand buzz.  I noticed Larry's voice was extremely professional right away but due to many commitments we only played together one time, and that time was the performance that inspired Andy to do a project with us.  Call it fate.  :)

 

 Can you tell us about your gear.

BC: I play: GJ2 guitars built by Grover Jackson 

I have a white Glendora(Hilde) with a black pickguard and a black Glendora(Lucy).

I also have a Gibson VOS 59 Les Paul (Jeannie) Lemonburst

I use Dunlop accessories, MXR pedals, FullTone and Boss pedals

Are you subject to brand loyalty or will you play with whatever's available? What made you 

choose the instruments you have now? 

BC: I prefer Marshall amps and I've just recently discovered Friedman amps. they are frickin' amazing.

 

Of all the songs on MetalMorphosis Volume I- which song do you connect with the most?

BC: Food.  it's so rock n roll.  it's like The Who's Tommy.

 How do the 3 of you generate ideas.  

BC: It's a very organic process.  I think of things seemingly at random and just try to make them work with what we are doing. The process grows as the music starts to take shape and just keep building.The material is usually internal as I've studied a fuck ton of music over my life.

 

Are you more of a hunter or a gatherer? 

BC: Yes.  I hunt and I gather.  I seek people and ideas and I gather them and bring them home with me, there is not a task in music that I have not done.  I've done guitar tech, drum tech, bass tech, sound engineering, hauling gear, writing, recording, playing, changing strings, drum heads you name it.  Hunting and gathering.  Yes. Both. You bet your ass.  :)

 

You’re a new addition to the crayon box. What color would you be. 

BC: I would be all the colors in one crayon and as you thought of the color you wanted to use, I would become that color.  and whatever I would envision that color would come forth. 

 

What is one thing that inspires you? 

BC: the night sky on a clear night, with billions of galaxies visible.

Favorite Superhero?

BC:Spiderman

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Q and A with lead vocalist (Sir) Larry Smith

 

 

Who are your favorite musicians? bands? 

Singers-

LS-(so for clarification, some people consider vocalists as non musicians, singing is the greatest instrument ever!)

-Freddie Mercury , Robert Plant ,Geoff Tate, Robin Mc Cauley , Oni Logan          

Bands-

LS-Queen, Yes, Zep, Extreme, Queensryche,Lynch Mob

Led Zeppelin or Sabbath?- 

LS- Zep

Ozzy or Dio?  

LS- Dio

Favorite Metal song?  

LS-Holy Diver

Top 5 Albums of All time? 

LS-Physical Graffiti ,Yessongs ,CSNY- 4 way Street, Queen Jazz, Badfinger Straight Up

Can you tell us a little about how you all met and what was intriguing about Andy's proposal of turning jazz tunes into Metal masterpieces?

LS- Andy heard Brandon and I perform at Dantes in Portland .The Monsters Of Rock benefit for Autism, I have shared the stage with Brandon a few times, internal thought (what a pro), played some very tricky stuff perfectly. Met Andy at at a show I was performing at,then met for coffee and listened to his concept. It was something different and new. Whalla!

Of all the songs on MetalMorphosis Volume I- which song do you connect with the most?

LS- Strangers and Favorite Things.They are edgy and hopefully people will truly understand the hidden meanings.

How do the 3 of you generate ideas.

LS-  Through a true brainstorming experience.

 

What does the band name mean and where does it come from?  

LS- Kind of like Alchemy, the mixing and stirring of different substances together to create something stronger, not necessarily better, because face it, these are great songs to begin with, but different, spicy, sexier and more aggressive.

Are you a Hunter or a gatherer?

LS -I gather while I hunt.

You’re a new addition to the crayon box. What color would you be.

LS- Clear

What is one thing that inspires you?  

LS- the night sky on a clear night, with billions of galaxies visible.Making people smile, think, hope and escape for maybe just a moment..oh wait didn't Brandon say that? :/

Favorite Superhero?

LS-Thor 

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Q and A with Drummer/Producer Andy Korn

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who are your favorite musicians? 

AK: Frank Zappa, Peter Gabriel ,Bill Evans, Steve Gadd, Jaco, Michael Brecker,Led Zeppelin, Josh Fix, Jeff Bova, Freddie Mercury,The Pat Metheny Group,The Beatles,Sabbath.

Groups? Currently? Slayer, Pantera, Polica ,The Invisible ,Azure Ray, new King Crimson ,Tool, Anderson Paak, Lots of of Prog,The Neighbourhood

 

Led Zeppelin or Sabbath?

AK: Love Zep , a few years back I saw Sabbath 3 times and the band is just on the money. They ARE the lords of rock. Tony Iommi after every song gives a very British look/nod,like a “seal of approval”-almost regal. Tommy Cluefetos ( touring drummer) is a monster , so dialed in to what he brings. Effortless mastery, a result you can see paid off with hours in the practice room. Which is where I am now!

 Ozzy or Dio?

Dio. Love Dio. Had a chance to see him  perform with Heaven And Hell in 09. What a show, he was amazing! Ozzy's great but Dio is by far top 5 greatest rock vocalists.

Favorite Metal Song?

A tie between Laterus, The Mob Rules and War Pigs. 

Top 5 Albums of All time ?

Led Zeppelin II , Amadeus soundtrack/Mozart, Bill Evans Solo sessions  ,Zappa- Live In New York,Yes - Going For The One. There's more but you asked for 5 lol.

 

Can you tell us a little about how you all met and what was intriguing about  turning jazz tunes into Metal masterpieces?

AK:I met Brandon through Portland musician Will Kinky . Brandon told me he was performing at Dantes (in Portland) for a benefit . I stood outside and watched him (and Larry) perform Deep Purple music. I was blown away and had the idea to start what would become MetalMorphosis. I then did a full court press on Sir Larry, we all hung, got coffee. I communicated to them "the plan"in my head. After that i started listening to tons of jazz and showtunes. We got together a second time at my old tiny studio and came up with so many musical ideas and places we could take the original music too. It was a great feeling after we completed our first song "Strangers In The Night". The inspiration levels were so high,and we decided to continue, fast forward 10 + songs later .

 Can you tell us about your gear?

Drums,things to hit?

 For the recordings I used a World Max 6 X14 Black Dawg snare drum ,slightly modified.

I use DW BD pedals,PDP HH stand, Yamaha cymbal stands.

Cymbals- I used a variety of crash cymbals. It all depended on the song and the amount of  and resonance and type of pitch I needed for that particular song. Mainly Zildjian , AAX Sabian and Istanbul Alchemy, UFIP.Plus I keep a lot of my previously recorded cymbal samples on file , so I dipped into that for MMVI. 

I used 2 Bass Drums, a1969 Vintage 18 X 22 Pearl Bass drum  and  Pearl 1985 MMX 18 X 22 BD (both refurbished), Gretsch 16 X16 Floor Tom, Orphan 10 X12 and 7X10 rack toms (refurbished) that are primarily for recording.

I have a specialty drum that sounds like a tympani called the Thunder Kat drum - Which is a trash can converted into a tympani. Made in Ohio.Its such a versatile drum.

 

Mic's :

Shure SM 57 top and bottom for snare. Audix mics for toms and Hi Hat. 3U audio warbler VI condenser mic and at times Audio Technica 4033a for overheads and recently changed to 3U Audio CM1s (slightly modified). Love the 3U audio brand

Are you subject to brand loyalty or will you play with whatever's available?

AK: Yes and no,I use what works and sounds best. Depends on the songs sonic environment. Gear wise the most loyal i get is when I record drums. For example, my go to drum heads for this project were the aquarian studio X and clear Evans G1 for toms. I really like the Aquarian Super Kick 3 bass drum head,its has a nice low end punch. Our recording engineer Jaime Durr liked that sound so we kept the head on for MM recordings. I like coated Emperors for snare . Hitting wise,I use whatever is available in my production arsenal. New musical concepts require a different approach to gear choices, not so cut and dry anymore.

What made you choose the instruments you have now.

AK:  For MM I used the best drums ( fit wise) for that particular song. All my recording gear for MM was recommended by recording engineer Jaime Durr.

Of all the songs on MetalMorphosis Volume I- which song do you connect with the most?

AK: I love My Favorite Things. It has two movements. Larry’s vocals on this is his best vocal performance to date. Brandon's solo is stellar. The arrangement has nice dramatic transitions. ....Did I mention I love the punch and swift kick of Good Morning Heartache? 

When you pick a song to record. What kind lyrical element do you look for? 

Ak: All the songs have a message, a thread. The songs we pick must have duality . Between good and evil. men and women, love and heartbreak. The songs delve into blind relationships , humans verses zombies, witchery. Any of the 7 deadly sins, You know, creepy shit. 

How do the 3 of you generate ideas? 

Larry, Brandon and l throw the chosen songs back and forth looking for the right musical elements and approach. Once we settle on an arrangement, Brandon and I hit the record button and hash it out.

What does the band name mean and where does it come from?

AK: Larry came up with it. It means a profound change in form, from one stage to the next as it would be in the life history of an organism, for example  the caterpillar to the pupa and from the pupa to the adult butterfly" (Hannibal Lechter).

It also means a complete change of form, structure, or substance, as transformation by magic or witchcraft.

We get hassled on social media sometimes that other bands use that name,turns out they all suck. So we win...

 

Are you more of a hunter or a gatherer?

AK: Gatherer, although my family would disagree.

 

You’re a new addition to the crayon box. What color would you be? 

It would be called chameleon , and has the ability to  change color anytime.

 

What is one thing that inspires you?

AK: My Family 

 

Favorite Superhero? 

AK: Its toss between Don Corleone and Batman