CARSTEN SCHUKTZ (EVIDENCE ONE)

Evidence One play the UK Gods Festival at the end of this month and they toured with Saxon earlier this year. Their debut abum was seen as one of the better melodic metal releases for some time, with the band made-up of members of Frontline & Domain.

1. What are you currently up to?

Well, we're in the middle of writing and recording material for the next album, which will be entitled "Tattooed Heart". We plan to release it by the end of the year. There's a couple songs already finished, and we hope to get some soundfiles online on our website as soon as possible. Also, we're rehearsing for the festivals, we're invited to play, like the "Gods Of AOR" festival in Bradford/England or the "Earthshaker Festival" over here in Germany. We're probably gonna do the "Wacken Open Air", too!

2. What has been the highlight(s) and lowpoints(s) of your career to date?

Well, I guess I can say for all of us that touring Europe with SAXON was the definitive highlight! We never thought of performing live and suddenly we're on a full European tour! This tour made us stick together as a unity, which is a really positive feeling. Low points, well, lets see, not many, I'm afraid,... knock on wood!!!

3. How did you first get into the music business?

Personally I started being singer of a German Hard Rock band by the name of MR.HATE, back in the nineties. Though we managed to get a fine record deal together, it wasn't the best of time for Melodic Hard Rock. After MR.HATE split up, I joined German eighties Hard Rock icon DOMAIN, which I'm still recording and performing with. We're about to release our third album together (sixth one for the band) and have been touring regularly. By the way, you can find most of the information on my personal website at www.carstenschulz.com .

4. Who have been your main influences on your career to date?

Well, I grew up with eighties US-based Hard Rock of bands like Y&T and DOKKEN. Later I turned towards Classic Rock of LED ZEPPELIN and DEEP PURPLE. Growing older I got more interested in all sorts of music from Prog to Jazz and Pop, but still my early influences are what really counts.

5. How was your debut album `Criticise the Truth' received? What are your personal highlights and why?

It's sort of a strange experience, but the album received the best of reviews all over! "Album of the Month", "Surprise of the Month" etc. - no matter if it's the Metal magazines or the more AOR-based ones, it seems, we've found the right spot, the perfect mix in the middle of everything. My personal favourites on the album are the title track "Criticize The Truth", because this what I loved from the music I grew up with: A great riff and a strong chorus; the melody rocker "Fool's Gold", because once you've heard it, it doesn't leave your brain again; well, and finally "In The Beginning There Was Fire" - this track played live is nothing but a killer!

6. How did the recent European tour with Saxon go? What was the highlight for you?

Awesome! As I said earlier, we did never plan to play live and then got to tour Europe! We had a new line up together for that tour, and have grown to a strong unity with the running of the tour. We felt a little like underdogs before we started the tour, because we were way softer than the other two bands (WOLF & NOCTURNAL RITES), but in the end, it seemed that fit best to the SAXON sound. We even had the chance to do a couple more shows with guys after the tour. A blast, nothing but a blast! My personal highlight was the sold out show we did at the "Astoria" in London. I've been playing there with DOMAIN as support of the HUGHES TURNER PROJECT half a year ago and it was a mess! The English people didn't seem to like the fact of a German band performing with GLENN HUGHES. When we played it with SAXON as EVIDENCE ONE everything was absolutely different! We were the first band to perform right when the doors have been opened, and when we finished the people were screaming and yelling for more! I remember SAXON-drummer Fritz Randow watching the whole show from aside saluting at us, when we left the stage! He said, he'd never seen a German band been accepted like this by a British audience! Well, we're gonna be the first ever German band to play the legendary "Gods Of AOR" festival...

7. What sort of set can we expect at the Gods festival?

Mainly tracks from the "Criticize The Truth" album. I don't think we can manage to perform some of the new songs, but there will probably be some gimmicks thrown in... The band's sound is way heavier live than on the album, as we rock with two guitars and no keyboards. Let's see, we love to stretch some of the tracks with solos and stuff, nobody knows, what's gonna happen...

8. How do the band approach song writing? Do you come up with ideas separately or all work together?

Pretty easily. Robby works in his own studio. He records his instrumental songs and sends them over to me. I work the lyrics and vocal melodies and head back to his place to record'em. Then the other guys come over to record their parts - that's it! Robby writes an unbelivable number of songs. 99,99% of them are nothing but awesome! He's amazing! He writes way more songs that we can ever record. All I can say is that everything's absolutely un-stressy, like I never had before.

9. What has been the best career decision you have made and why?

Difficult questions. There are a couple decisions that had a major impact on my career. You know, I believe in some sort of fate. The way I see - or believe - nothing in this life happens senseless. There's always a reason, why things to happen the way they do. If I'd never joined DOMAIN and got a little more know among the German Rock scene, I would have never had the chance to work with Robby, because he wouldn't have known me. If I'd never recorded my MR.HATE album, I would have never met my girl friend. Everything leads to another, and you never know, what's gonna happen next, but I do think, if you strongly believe in one thing, it's gonna happen one day. Everything's gonna pay off for sure!

10. What do you do in your spare time outside of music?

There's not much spare time, as work a music journalist, too... So, there's music all around. Music is what dominates my whole life. But, speaking of hobbies, I love cooking!!!

11. Message for your fans...

Spread the word of EVIDENCE ONE! "Criticize The Truth" is only the beginning - there's way more to come! Check our website and spare some time to write some lines, wether in our guestbook or as a personal e-mail!!! POWER TO THE MUSIC!!! Rock on, carsten "lizard" schulz.

Website: http://www.evidenceone.de

Interview © 2003 Jason Ritchie/
Format and edit: The Music Index.

All rights reserved.

Classic Rock News Group