With:	Johnny Solinger
Conducted by:
Published:	03.11.2003
Band profile:	Skid Row

Skid Row first got together in 1986. Ten years later, after 3 worldwide successful albums and tours all around the planet the band broke up. Four years of hiatus. But fortunately the band got back together at the end of 1999. With a new line up. And now in the year 2003 "THICKSKIN" , your long waited album is finally out.



1) Where did you find the inspiration for the new lyrics?
Rachel Bolan and Snake Sabo have always written the majority of Skid Row's songs. They write the songs and bring them to the rest of the band , and we jam on so we all put our mark on the song. I think that after such a long break the band have a lot to say. Starting from the first track "New Generation", it is a statement, Hey! This is Skid Row ! Is a new version of Skid Row and we are proud of it, also the name of the album, "Thickskin" . I know that there are gonna be sceptics out there, and people who don't wanna mess with the past and purist. But we just don't care, we want to Rock on, and let the band live. The new material is Rocking and I think it sounds great, and we can't wait to tour.


2) "THICKSKIN" is going to be released by your own label, is that true?
Ah! Yes ! In North America, the band was originally with Atlantic Records, and it's been 7 years since Skid Row recorded a record, so everyone who they recorded with in Atlantic was gone ! The whole company has changed. So we decided to go ahead and form our own record company, because we didn't want anybody to mess with this, to put his hand on this, so we formed our own label, and we made the distribution in North America with a company called ADA, which is still under the Electric Atlantic Umbrella. In Europe and Asia and other places around the world we licensed to different labels.
We are proud of our label, because it is a label of love, because American Rock n Roll has been getting shitier in the last few years. And I tell you, the world needs new records from bands like Skid Row. Because Rock n Roll has suffered so much in the last years?


3) Yeah ! There's a lot of shit out there ! We need new Guns N Roses albums and things like that !
Oh Yeah! There's a lot of crap out there! A lot of Rap N Roll ! I know that a lot of people are into it, but for me, I just like two guitars & bass & drums and a melody you can sing, no rap or scratching on a Rock album, Thank You ! (Laughs)


4) In your last album a new version of "I remember you" is featured, which version are you going to play on stage ?
We do both versions. Rachel had a side project, 2 years back. It was a Pop band and he made a version of "I remember you" for that band, he brought the idea to us. It is just for fun it isn't to take anything away from the original version, which is really beautiful. But we wanted to fuck a like bit with it , (Laughs) , and put it on the record. This is Skid Row, the new Skid Row. It was so much fun to do it.
On stage we play the both versions, because, otherwise people will be disappointed.
The public is responding to this very well, we made it for them.( Laughs)


5) What can you tell me about the upcoming DVD ?
Well? It was a guy we met on the Kiss tour, he was a documentary maker he was working for a news agency in Florida, and he has won several, local EMI´s for his work , and he wanted to film us. He came around very early when I joined. He filmed us in the studio, a lot of live show, behind scenes, there's a lot of fun in it, and so we were able to do a DVD. Basically is about the rebuilding of the band and the recording process. There is a lot of studio and road footage, want we do on our spare time, this is really kind of intimate. You can look into our life in the last two years.


6) Do you think that after these years of hiatus Skid Row is still rocking like 10 years ago ?

Oh! Hell Yeah ! Hell yeah ! I can do the old material, but I don't come in and kind of copy Sebastian. I put my own flavour into the singing, instead it wouldn't be any fun for me. The old songs sound great live and of course the new material too. We play it all, we open the set with "Slave to the Grind", then we of course do "Monkey Business ", we do "Piece of me", which is one of my favourites. And we also do new songs: "New Generation" ? Is a kind of marriage between the old and the new stuff.


7) A few days ago a Def Leppard & Skid Row European tour was confirmed. 7 years without playing in Europe is too much time?

We are getting offers to play in Europe for a long time to play. But the thing is that we didn't want to do it without a new record, we didn't want to play just old songs. I wanted to play old and new songs. Now that the new record is out, Europe is an obvious , natural place to go. We are very excited to go to Europe, I've never been to Europe. I'm such a fan of Def Leppard. I can't wait to go and have fun there.


8) Skid Row has toured with the most important bands of the world: Metallica, Guns N Roses? when Sebastian was in the band. And with you: Kiss, Poison, Def Leppard?which band did you enjoyed most playing with ?

It was a freaky thing playing in front of Kiss, because I am such a fan, since I was a kid, "Destroyer" and "Kiss Alive" were some of my first records. So actually being of the road with them was great, we made 130 shows with them. That's a lot of time with your heroes, man! For me was cool to see Gene Simmons without his make up and having breakfast with him. Having dinner with Paul Stanley without his make up and without his big boots on. It was an unbelievable experience.


9) Which bands do you use to listen to in your free time ? Rock n Roll or? ?

Oh yeah man ! I'm a Rock junkie. Hehehe. One of my favourite albums is "Back in Black" from AC/DC. I think it is interesting also, because they successfully replaced a singer. Many failed and many did well, you know, from AC/DC to Iron Maiden, Van Halen.
I'm from Dallas ( U.S.A. ) you know? There is a band here called Drowning Pool , they play Nu-Metal, and they tragically lost their singer last year, he died suddenly . Anyway it is hard to listen to bands that are not Rock bands, there is a lot of crap out there? . I like System of a Down, I think they have a lot to say, even the new U2 record, was very kick ass, also the new Def Leppard album, I want to know this new material, to be familiar with it, while touring with them.


10) What is your opinion about the last Metallica´s album?

Um?, I was disappointed first but , the more you listen to it.. I mean, it sounds like it was recorded in a garage. You know? (Laughs). Everybody who is still playing rock I'm still fan of it. They keep going, and they try to kick ass, so they have to be admired. MetallicA is the greatest Heavy Metal band in history. Maybe they should do a more polished record next time, you know what I mean ?


11) What do you think about the Great White's tragedy ?

Oh man?I think it was so sad? We play clubs too. We never ever thought about putting any kind of pyro in those shows. We played in Providence, and we lost friends in the tragedy. A lot of people who came to see Great White, came to us. We lost friends and fans there. It was the fact that it was a boy named Dirk, 19 years old, which was a big fan of Skid Row, he lost his life in that fire? His girlfriend was pregnant at the time, her name is Barbara, she comes to all of our shows, we come to see her, look his baby growing.
You have to be prepared when you play, or see a Rock concert, I look where the the emergency exits are, and stuff like that for example?


12) Which is the last band you have seen live?

Actually, we just saw Kiss, when their world tour continued ? It was Kiss, Aerosmith and Saliva opening the show, in New Jersey, not too long ago. We where able to go backstage and hang out with them.


13) What do you enjoy doing in your free time, apart from interviews ?(Laughs)

(Laughs) Actually, I enjoy doing interviews and talking to you, I like talking to people from different places, so it is interesting for me. Being in Skid Row is not new for me I've been in the band since the end of 1999, almost 4 years now. Now I'm able to talk to you, to go to different places. I can't wait to go there (Europe) and play, and of course even in Spain. We should have gone there earlier?(Laughs)
In the summer I enjoy fishing, I go to the beach I enjoy swimming. In the wintertime I like to ski. I try to keep myself physically active. In the bus I like to playing video games, that's always a lot of fun ! and of course nobody in the band is sober, so we still go drinking, we still go to parties and bars, check out new bands.


14) Which are your favourite video games ?

Oh man! I like the sports games. I like "Madden" which is a (American) football game, I also like the Hockey games, "NHL ( National Hockey League ) " ones? when you can play for the Stanley Cup.
When the football season starts I play football, and hockey when the hockey one starts. (Laughs). So I have to pick up every new version of these games. I'm a kind of kid! (Laughs)


15) Feel free to say something to your worldwide fans?

Um? You know what? I'm just a normal guy, who has always enjoyed Rock, and I had the opportunity of the lifetime when joined Skid Row. A band which made history, "Snake" Sabo, Rachel Bolan, Scotty Hill, they are so nice guys? I'm not a Rock Star at all. As, I told you. Now I have the opportunity to travel a lot and go out of the boundaries of the United States. Now I want to know European Rock fans, which I'm sure are into the Rock music I like. So thanks to all of you !




I want to thank Johnny Solinger for his generous time spent speaking with me, and Paulo and Jose Maria from Mastertrax and Skid Row´s manager for making this interview possible.