Devin Townsend, 19, scores opening gig for Michael Schenker with his first band, Gray Skies

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MARCH 19, 1992 By Steve Newton Decisions, decisions. Tearing open the shrink-wrap from a tape by a local band called Gray Skies, I see that one side of the six-song demo is labelled the Juvenile Side, while the other promises the Dyslexic Side. Just as I’m ready to go … Continue reading Devin Townsend, 19, scores opening gig for Michael Schenker with his first band, Gray Skies

Album review: UFO, Making Contact (1983)

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, APRIL 15, 1983 By Steve Newton While we're on the subject of riff-riddled hard rock, take into consideration the latest UFO release, Making Contact. The man who now holds Michael Schenker's old position on lead guitar, Paul Chapman, is no lightweight when it comes to intense blues bastardization. UFO … Continue reading Album review: UFO, Making Contact (1983)

Album review: Contraband, Contraband (1991)

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JUNE 6, 1991 By Steve Newton Ian Hunter must be feeling pretty comfy these days. First off, Great White made him a pile of royalty bucks with its hit version of his 1975 barrelhouse-boogie “Once Bitten, Twice Shy”. Now Contraband—a new conglomeration of members from the Michael Schenker … Continue reading Album review: Contraband, Contraband (1991)

Graham Bonnet was bandmates with Ritchie Blackmore, Michael Schenker, and Yngwie Malmsteen, but called Gary Moore his hero

By Steve Newton When I interviewed Graham Bonnet back in 1984 he was fronting a hard-rock/metal band called Alcatrazz that featured an unknown guitarist named Yngwie Malmsteen, who would not stay unknown for long. Two years earlier Bonnet had been a member of the Michael Schenker Group, which also boasted an amazing guitar player, a guy … Continue reading Graham Bonnet was bandmates with Ritchie Blackmore, Michael Schenker, and Yngwie Malmsteen, but called Gary Moore his hero

Back in the ‘Wack Vol. 9: Thunderhead are “heavy metal all the way”

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE CHILLIWACK PROGRESS, JUNE 17, 1981 By Steve Newton (In the final story of a series on local bands that has profiled Joker, The Lakers, The Vacationers, Loose Change, Citizen's Band, The Postcards, Midnight Smoke and Homegrown, The Progress presents a look at Thunderhead.) Heavily metallic rock music has come a long way … Continue reading Back in the ‘Wack Vol. 9: Thunderhead are “heavy metal all the way”

That time Uli Jon Roth told me that Yngwie Malmsteen was “one of the alltime greats”, but that he wasn’t impressed by speed

By Steve Newton When Uli Jon Roth called me up in 2016 to promote his Ultimate Guitar Experience show in Vancouver, we ended up chatting about some of the other guitar tours he's been on, like the G3 European Tour back in 1998, when he shared the stage with Joe Satriani and Michael Schenker, who … Continue reading That time Uli Jon Roth told me that Yngwie Malmsteen was “one of the alltime greats”, but that he wasn’t impressed by speed

Uli Jon Roth recalls the friction between Joe Satriani and Michael Schenker on the 1998 G3 European tour

By Steve Newton Back in 2016 I had a nice chat with German guitar maestro Uli Jon Roth. As we were talking about Uli Jon Roth's Ultimate Guitar Experience--the tour he was on with Jennifer Batten and Andy Timmons--I mentioned a previous guitar tour he was part of, the G3 European Tour of 1998. That … Continue reading Uli Jon Roth recalls the friction between Joe Satriani and Michael Schenker on the 1998 G3 European tour

Scorpions inflict deadliest sting yet as lead guitarist Matthias Jabs helps cause a devastating Blackout

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JULY 16, 1982 By Steve Newton It's a hard road, and often a long one, that leads to success in the world of heavy metal. With the exception of a few bands that luck out on their debut recordings because radio is good to them, most hard rockers fight an uphill battle … Continue reading Scorpions inflict deadliest sting yet as lead guitarist Matthias Jabs helps cause a devastating Blackout

Joe Satriani takes a techno turn on new Engines of Creation

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 18, 2000 By Steve Newton I’ve yet to be bitten by the techno bug. You won’t find any discs by the Chemical Brothers or Crystal Method in my collection, or any stashes of Ecstasy in my dresser drawer. But after listening to the new Joe Satriani CD, Engines of Creation, I’m … Continue reading Joe Satriani takes a techno turn on new Engines of Creation

Guitar hero Michael Schenker goes acoustic and his fans are fine with it

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MARCH 12, 1992 By Steve Newton When Michael Schenker was only 15, he met up with Scorpions singer Klaus Meine. Just a year later, he was laying down the white-hot guitar licks for the Scorpions’ debut album, Lonesome Crow. But Schenker’s early musical accomplishments were not without their price, … Continue reading Guitar hero Michael Schenker goes acoustic and his fans are fine with it