OUT OF THE CELLAR DEBUTS!
Jordan Interviews Greg Fraser of Brighton Rock/Fraze Gang
Hello and welcome to The Cellar, I'm Jordan a British media student hoping for a career in journalism and by writing for the site I'm hoping that will help me gain experience and exposure, I'm also a big fan of 80s Glam Metal music and that's probably an even more important reason why I'm here writing this today. Anyway enough about me, this is the place to come for interviews with bands that just didn't get the exposure they deserved back in the day. I'll be asking members of such bands about their memories back then as well as any new projects they're working on. Just as the column title suggests it's right here where I'll be letting some of the forgotten bands Out Of The Cellar, hopefully you'll remember some of the bands and maybe even be introduced to something you missed first time round!
- Jordan
In the mid 1980s L.A. was the place to be if you had big hair, loud guitars and were interested in scoring girls, drugs and record deals. However over the border in Canada there was one band making similar waves; Brighton Rock. Hard to categorize as simply a Canadian Glam Metal act the band had a sound more like Foreigner than Motley Crue or Ratt. Their debut album Young, Wild And Free (1986) spawned the singles We Came To Rock and Can't Wait For The Night. The band released two more studio albums, Take A Deep Breath (1988) and Love Machine (1991) but when the Grunge movement took the market by storm bands like Brighton Rock found it harder to cope and eventually disappeared. However after taking a break guitarist Greg Fraser and bassist Stevie Skreebs are back with new drummer Phil Ebb in the power trio Fraze Gang. Their self titled debut album released this year claims to combine the attitude of 2006 with a healtly dose of '80s party Rock! I talked to Greg Fraser about his Brighton Rock memories as well as his new project and ambitions for it. Sorry I only asked about a British tour, next time I'll be more open, but I honestly didn't think I'd be posting this on a website until a few days ago!
Fraze Gang: STEVIE SKREEBS - bass; GREG FRASER - guitars, vocals; PHIL EPP - drums
Jordan: So Greg, did you ever consider taking the name Brighton Rock and using it for your new band?
Greg: I never considered it because very few bands can pull off carrying on with a band without the lead singer. And since my voice is so different than BR's singer (Gerry McGhee) it would a second rate cover band trying to live off the past. Although I'm very pound of all of Brighton Rocks accomplishments I am very excited to start fresh with FRAZE GANG
Jordan: Okay, Fraze Gang is a pretty obvious name choice but how about Brighton Rock? Did you name yourselves after the Queen song or the British seaside town or is there another story behind that one?
Greg: Our singer was reading a book by Graham Greene called "Brighton Rock" about the Mods & the Rockers. When we toured, we would sometimes pass through Brighton Ontario which is in Canada. Since our record company wanted us to change our name which was "Heart Attack" at the time, Gerry mentioned Brighton Rock and we all liked it. And the fact that Gerry was also a huge Queen fan didn't hurt his decision either!
Jordan: Brighton Rock were always a bigger success in Canada than the U.S.A., did you target Canada more or was this just how it turned out?
Greg: Although we were very successful all over the world Canada really embraced us from the beginning and stuck with us each step of the way. The Canadians were very proud that one of their own was out there proving that Canadians knew how to Rock too and could also compete with the heavyweights much like the way FRAZE GANG hope to do.
Jordan: So you've just released your debut album as Fraze Gang, is it all still as enjoyable to do as it was back in the day?
Greg: We still get a rush doing this and as long as that feeling is there, I don't think we will ever stop. There is nothing like rockin out on stage and seeing people get into it and the overwhelming response we get from it. It is very addicting.
Jordan: Okay, so will you be touring with the album? If so any chance of it hitting British shores?
Greg: We are planning on touring and are in the process of laying the groundwork to make it happen. Brighton Rock got a chance to tour England in the late 80's and nothing would be more exciting than hitting the British shores once again. All of our biggest musical influences are British and it would be an honor to spread the FRAZE GANG word there. And the fact that journalists like yourself are getting our name out there really makes the dream a reality.
Jordan: Do you have plans for follow up album yet? Any writing or recording gone off for that yet?
Greg: There are plans for a FRAZE GANG 2 album and writing is being done as we speak. Realistically I think recording would probably start in early 2008 which still gives us lot's of time to promote this record and also to write a record.
Jordan: What's your overall best and worst touring experiences?
Greg: The best touring experience was touring England and selling out places like the legendary "MARQUEE" and also touring America for the first time in a luxurious tour bus and seeing all the great cities that we would see on TV when we were growing up and getting a chance to play there and kick their ass! The worst experience was probably our last tour when our record company basically turned their back on us and did very little to promote us. We would get to a city and our records were not even in the stores and there would be no advance promotion like we had in the past. All of the people who used to be behind us at the record company were either fired or moved on and we had nobody backing us anymore. So needless to say it was very frustrating. So all you can do is learn from it.
Jordan: What are Gerry McGhee and the other B.R. boys upto these days?
Greg: Everybody is still in the music business in some facet. Gerry works for a company called Isotope which imports and exports music all over the world. Mark & John are still out there playing and recording with different projects and are still kicking ass!
Jordan: What genre do you consider Brighton Rock? Some people would say Glam Metal but you had a full time keyboard player and we've even seen you working with a full orchestra.
Greg: I think much like FRAZE GANG I would consider Brighton Rock "Melodic Hard Rock." Although our foundation is hard rock we definitely have a melodic thread weaving through everything. I've always found it a little boring to stick with one style and therefore being pigeonholed. We like to change things up a little and try to come up with something new instead of rehashing the same old stuff much like the way Led Zeppelin did it. They would rock out, and then throw in a little reggae or folk or blues which in the long run gives the listener something fresh and helps give you longevity and also helps you grow as an artist.
Jordan: During your days in Brighton Rock you were always the guitarist, now in Fraze Gang you've been giving singing a shot, how's that working out?
Greg: It's going extremely well. It is really gratifying hearing songs in my head and seeing them through until the finished product without having to second guess myself. The response from the fans has also been very motivating and is gratifying to know that people have accepted me as a singer. And it's a lot of fun too!
Jordan: Thanks a lot Greg, one last question. Are there any goals you're still hoping to achieve in your music career?
Greg: I try not to set any goals with my music career but instead focus on making great music and having a blast doing it. I found with experience that if you don't reach some of the goals you set out that it can be very disappointing but if you let things unfold naturally it can be very rewarding because the expectations are not so high. We just go with the flow in FRAZE GANG and have fun and any kind of success is icing on the cake. The fact that this record is released is an achievement in itself. At the end of the day we just want everybody to know that if you are having a house party, throw on a FRAZE GANG cd and have a blast!
For more info on Brighton Rock, check out BrightonRock.ca and Brighton Rock on Myspace . To rock out to Greg's current music, go to FrazeGang.com and Fraze Gang on Myspace
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