Every now and then I get excited about music again, that things are alright and we are on the right track. Who am I kidding, I can find great music just about anywhere! When my kind of rock is not rolling, I turn to dance, or pop, or caliente, or classical, and so on and so forth as well as vice versa. Poor prose I realize however the point is made.
Tigertailz is my kind of rock n’ roll. Glam, fun, hook laden and here we are in 2016 with a new album about to come out from this band that has been hanging in there for some time. For that, I say thank you! I recently spoke with Jay and Rob who were gracious enough to extend an interview. If you are not familiar with the band here is a brief bio from their own site:
“A quarter of a century after the release of Bezerk – the 1990 album that defined the whole turn-of-the-decade glam metal zeitgeist – Tigertailz roll on to new and fairer horizons. Greater challenges met head-on by bigger riffs, sharper solos, melt-yer-brain vocals and hooks heavy and dark enough to reel in not only Jaws but all the sequels too.”
2016 will not only see a plethora of UK and overseas tour dates, but the release of Daggerz will mark the first new music from Tigertailz since it cemented its dynamic, forward-leaning new line-up. In a new dawn that sees the band step it up on every level, founding member Jay Pepper is joined by frontman Rob Wylde, long-time drummer Matt Blakout and new bassist Berty Burton to create a savage statement of intent. Having recently supported KISS and Cheap Trick on the KISS Kruise in support of last release Knives, it’s a pivotal time for the band. A time when it sounds hungrier than ever, and when the Daggerz are most definitely coming out.
Here is what the guys have to say to Blair at DecibelGeek:
DG: You seem to be still having fun. How do you accomplish that 30+ years on?
Jay – When you’ve been doing this for as long as we have it’s not easy as there’s still all the shit that goes with being in a band. But you have to focus on the good stuff and enjoy it for what it is. That kinda passes you by when you’re young as your so focused on becoming successful. Whereas now I couldn’t care less what people think of us or what reviews we get. I just love making music and playing Live shows around the world. And at 52 years of age I feel very lucky to be able to do that. So will enjoy it for as long as I can.
DG: What was the KISS Kruise like for all the bands, other than KISS, is there generally good reception? I happen to be a KISS fan, never been on the Kruise yet, and I know how KISS fans can be to other bands!
Jay – We had a great time on the KK and everyone treated us really well. The audience seemed to love what we do and the fact we were there. So it couldn’t have gone any better and was a fantastic experience.
DG: Ever thought about or spoken to other UK/European based bands about bringing a package tour to North America?
Jay – We’re planning a run of US shows later this year around October. Getting into the USA as a band isn’t easy and they make it really difficult to get visas. So trying to tour with other European bands would be really difficult due to all the red tape and cost. But it’s a great idea and we’d certainly be game if a promoter wanted to put a package like that together. But for now we’ll be doing our own US shows in October this year.
DG: “Pipped It Popped It” is great both in sound and visuals, well done! Do you ever have concerns about blow back from those that may not get the genre or at this point are you focused on your audience?
Jay – The new single called “Pipped It Popped It” has been a total success for Tigertailz. Over 23,000 views in a few days and people loving the throw-back concept to the 70’s with the costumes etc. I can’t believe how well it’s gone down. But it’s a great feeling to see everyone loving it and having the intelligence to see the humour in it all. A lot of bands in our genre take themselves far too seriously. And they’d rather imitate their idols rather than create something unique of their own. I always feel the early Van Halen era had it all. Great music with a fun image and band that looked like they were enjoying every minute of it. Whereas now bands just try too hard.
But we’re over that now and just do what feels good and is fun.
DG: Anything else you want to share and tell?
Jay – Just like to thank all the Tailz Maniacs our there for sticking with us for so long. You really are the best and we love you all. And our new album BLAST will be released in April. It’ll be our first album for nearly 9 years and it totally rocks and is full of catchy fun tunes. Tailz fans will love it.
See you all soon……Jay
DG: Thanks for taking the time to speak with us Rob, really looking forward to the new album. How is that shaping up?
Rob – The new album Blast is shaping up nicely. We’re about 80% done and will be putting the finishing touches to it over the next month or so. Overall I think the album has a real ‘classic’ Tigertailz feel to it. There’s the usual kick ass rockers on there, but there’s also a huge ballad and some more poppier, commercial stuff so it very much has a vibe of the Bezerk album and earlier Tigertailz material in general I think. We can’t wait for you to hear it!
DG: What was the KISS Kruise like for you Rob?
Rob – KISS is my favourite band of all time so to do the cruise in 2014 was a dream come true for me. The whole cruise in general was a blast and the fans reacted really well to us. I certainly feel that our style suited the environment a lot more than some of the other bands that played on the bill that year. We played 2 full shows on the cruise as well as the sail away show where all the bands playing are asked to get up onstage and cover 2 KISS songs. We covered “I” from The Elder and “A Million To One” from Lick It Up. Cruising around the Bahama’s in 90 degree weather certainly didn’t suck either, but the highlight of the whole thing was meeting KISS, and Paul Stanley saying, ‘It’s Tigertailz’. The fact that he knew who we were I thought was awesome!
DG: How are things shaping up for 2016 live dates?
Rob – We’re confirmed to play the Rock N’ Skull festival in Chicago in October so we’re currently in the process of booking about four or five additional shows which we’ll play en-route to that. We’re currently working on a couple of East Coast shows, then a couple in Ohio which we’ll be announcing in due course. In terms of doing a full U.S tour, we’d love to! It’s all just a matter of finding the right bands to tour with and making it all work financially really, but I think a 3 band package tour would work great. Jay has mentioned Wednesday 13 in the past (who is a massive Tigertailz fan), so maybe doing something with him and another band would work out great!
DG: Tell us about “Pipped It Popped It”.
Rob – We knew that there would be a backlash to some degree. When you make such a bold statement like that, people are obviously going to react but I’d say 80% of the feedback has been really positive and the 20% of people who hated it clearly don’t ‘get’ what the video and concept was all about in the first place. The song was purposely written for the Eurovision song contest which happens every year and is broadcast on prime-time TV all over Europe. It’s literally ran for over 50 years and is a real big deal over here! The whole vibe of the contest is very camp, very tongue in cheek, cheesy and a bit silly in general so we shot a video with that whole concept in mind. We wanted to make it look like a clip from 1970’s Top Of The Pops and pay homage to guys like T Rex, The Sweet, Slade, Bowie etc..and if YouTube any of their clips, you’ll see that we came pretty close to replicating that whole vibe. We weren’t taking ourselves seriously, it was a one-off fun thing to do and got everyone talking about us, so it was a win win for us, despite not making the final cut in the song contest.
DG: Rob why don’t you tell us about yourself and background? How did this gig come together?
Rob – Well I’ve been doing this for well over 20 years and have played in a ton of bands including Steevi Jaimz, Vega, Issa, China Doll, Inside Out. I also lived in the States for a few years a while ago and fronted Boston band Sins Of America. I joined Tigertailz in early 2012 as rhythm guitarist, then switched to bass the following year when there was a line up change and played bass right up until Jules Millis left the band in March of last year when I then took over lead vocal duties from him.
I grew up worshiping Tigertailz so to now front the band is a big deal and I’m loving every minute of it!
In addition to Tigertailz, I’m also singer/ guitarist/ songwriter in a Powerpop band called Teenage Casket Company who I formed 13 years ago who I continue to write, record and play with.
DG: Anything else you want to share and tell?
Rob – Just want to say a big thank you for the support and interest in the band. Our new album Blast will be out in April and we know you’re gonna love it! We have a UK tour booked for April, the US in October, and we’re also working on European dates as well so make sure you look our for us! Thanks again x
Thanks to both Jay and Rob for taking the time to speak to DecibelGeek.com
– Blair De Abreu
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