TYSON SCHENKER

The Schenker dynasty has already proven itself a force to be reckoned with in rocknroll circles, and the latest 'Rising Star' is TYSON SCHENKER, who is making a name for himself as a guitarist in his own right.

Tyson's band, which recently underwent a name-change to FASTER INFERNO, has supported The Quireboys and Tokyo Dragons, and in May will tour the UK alongside the MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP, playing at Wolverhampton's Wulfrun Hall, the Garage in Glasgow, and at the Mean Fiddler in London

1. What are you currently up to?

We have a new bass player called Gianzo and are currently running through the songs with him which is going extremely well, we are sounding better then ever!!! We are going to blow your head off live! We are also in the Studio getting the new songs done, we are just under half way through this. 2 songs can be heard already at www.myspace.com/fasterinferno In May we are going on the UK leg of the MSG tour which is gonna be amazing, and we have gigs prior to this around the UK. The dates can be found on our website www.fasterinferno.com

2. Please give us a brief history of Faster Inferno and the style of music you play, and introduce us to the other bandmembers - and tell us how the band differs from Raiders Of Rock and Roll.

On Vocals we have Matt Taylor, on drums we have "the powerhouse" Phill France, and the latest addition to the band is bassist Gianzo, who seems to be able to play every instrument under the sun. The band formed in 2003 and we came up with the name "Raiders of Rock n' Roll" as a joke and just kept it as the band name as we thought it was funny. We recorded a 5 track E.P. called "Strippers & Beards" early 2004 which was only available at our gigs and to download. We then played shows up and down the UK for the following year, supporting bands such as The Quireboys, Tokyo Dragons and The Sound Explosion. We don't try and write songs to a specific style of music, whatever comes out of us is what you hear, but I guess our influences help control the outcome, bands like Led Zep, Free, Guns n' Roses, The who. At the start of 2006 we decided to change the band name to Faster Inferno. The name "Raiders of Rock n' Roll" had become a burden on us, I wish we had never thought of it, but too late I guess!!! Mid way through February 2006 we needed to replace our bassist, and after auditioning bass players for the past few weeks, we found Gianzo, a fantastic musician who is going to add a great deal to the band.

3. How easy or hard has it been to get gigs and promotion for gigs?

In our home town (Cambridge) we get fairly good crowds, even though hard rock is not the most popular choice around here. Out of town gigs are always harder if you are unsigned! Either way, we just want to play music and get our music heard by as many people as possible!

4. You will be playing on the UK dates of the MSG tour later this year. How are the bandmembers feeling about playing venues such as London's Mean Fiddler?

We are all looking forward to the tour, it's a great opportunity for an unsigned band like us. Hopefully it will lead us to higher places. We have played big venues before so we're not daunted by the size of them or the crowds. In fact it tends to make us play better.

5. Who was/is/are the biggest influences on you, musically? Even though you have developed your own style, and your regular audience probably don't know the UFO/MSG catalogue, your upcoming dates with Michael Schenker will find you under intense scrutiny by the die-hard Schenker fans. How much pressure do you feel regarding this?

My biggest influence is obviously my Dad. I started to play the guitar when I was 14 and all I listened to was his stuff. The amount of emotion and melody that he used just blew my mind. Slash is a major influence on me also, another guitar player that plays with a lot of emotion and has an amazing sense of melody. Other guitarists that I'm influenced by are Jimmy Page, Mick Ronson and Joe Perry. We feel privileged to be on the MSG tour and are just gonna do our own thing, obviously people are gonna make comparisons, but they need to get over that and just listen to the music! So far though the Schenker fans have been great to us and we look forward to seeing them on the tour!

6. What has been the highlight(s) and lowpoint(s) of your career to date, and what would you like to achieve ideally by the end of 2006?

Highlights - Our first big gig in Cambridge. Also, playing "Doctor, Doctor" on stage with MSG in London 2003, and recording our first E.P Low point - A few weeks ago when we had no bass player, but that's turned into a highlight very fast as we have now got Gianzo on board! By the end of 2006 it would be cool to have a record deal and have the chance to go on a major tour, getting our music played to as many people as possible. It can become frustrating sometimes, as all we wanna do is play music, but if it takes 10 years for us to break through, then so be it!

7. How important do you feel the Internet is for promoting your music?

The Internet is very important for promoting music, it's probably the most powerful promotional tool there is. To give bands the opportunity to let a worldwide audience listen to their music, promote gigs, etc. is great.

8. What has been your most rocknroll moment so far?

Hmmmmmm. I think our most rocknroll moments are yet to come!

9. What CDs do you have available, and where can we find out more about them.

No actual CDs are available at the moment as we are unsigned, but songs are available from Website

10. Message to your fans?

Thanks to everyone who has come to see us live and listened to our tunes! Check out our website for the latest news (Website) and leave us a message! We look forward to seeing you all at the shows!!