Interview with all 5 band members 

 

The quintet always knew how to surprise and enthuse in the last years and months. The concerts of the five guys are not just concerts, they are magnificent events. Fortunately, the line-up shows with its concerts real presence and points out they want to be near their fans. To spend a special day together, that's it! The band was very spontaneous in regard of taking pictures and answering some questions.

 

Orkus: What do you still remember from your very first performance on a stage?

Chris: The older I get the more these memories mix. My first performance on a stage was for sure with a cello, but I'm not sure if it was still in Kindergarten or already in school. I really liked it, otherwise I would have chosen another way very early.

Bo: My very first performance was at the age of ten or eleven. It was a concert, organized by the musical school whereby primarily parents and friends of the respective pupils were sitting in the audience. I was unbelievable nervous and sitting there with my acoustic guitar and shivering hands. Sadly I don't remember which song I played.

Class: I was nervous at my very first performance. It got better now. But it's already 15 years ago. We were a Funk-New-Metal-Trio. It was a lot of fun to play in the youth center of the town Stade.

Gared: If I remember right, it was at the school festival of my elementary school at this time. I was sitting, as a seven year old nipper, at the piano and belted out in front of 50-100 children and parents “Komm lieber Mai und mache.” Both, the flutter before, as well as the relief afterwards, were big.

Tobias: My first performance was at eight, with the band of my father. I was very nervous because I had to replace their drummer for a whole set.

 

Orkus: And your memories about your first performance with Lord of the Lost?

Chris: I know I was, after a long time, nervous again, before this January 16^th, 2009 at Schweriner Zeppelin in front of about 50 people on an approximately 20 centimeter high stage. It was a great feeling for me, after many years of musical experiments, to make music again in which I feel at home.

Bo: My first Lord of the Lost-show was in December 2009 at the Hamburger club Headbangers Ballroom. Nervousness was barely-there. I just looked forward to a nice party with my friends and family. I think at this evening, about 50 people were in the audience. Since then, a lot has changed, but the pleasure and joy of playing are still the same.

Class: It was incredibly narrow on stage. This was at Zeppelin in the beginning of 2009. And my make-up reminded of Black-Metal-Corpsepaint. We had a lot of fun.

Gared: It was in May 2010, at Kaiserkeller Hamburg. Not so much nervousness, instead a lot of fun, great debut and aplenty Jack-Coke subsequently...

Tobias: My first performance with LOTL was in March 2014 in Chicago, and solely the fact to have, as a German musician of a German band, the first performance with your band in the US, is very remarkable.

 

Orkus: Before you go outside on stage, there is a lot of practice. How does this practicing look like nowadays for you?

Chris: Rehearsals primarily take place without me. When I get the signal that the instrumental foundation is stable, I join, listen, give, from an objective view as “new” listener, input, we work these points off one by one, and then I join with vocals and my string instruments. The whole thing happens in blocks before tours or festivals, meanwhile mainly early in the morning. So we have the evenings off; we are out of the old to spend our nights drinking beer in the rehearsal room. I never had interest in this way of daily-Rock'n'Roll. Rehearsals are in equal measure boring and necessary, therefore: doing it fast and effective.

Bo: When it works temporally, we rehearse regularly together. Since it is not always possible, I regularly refresh the songs at home.

Class: I regularly rehearse the songs we play at the current tour. I prepare them at home. We rehearse the nuances together before the tour.

Gared: My practicing for performances is less practicing, but mainly refreshing of what I already played in the studio, what is still familiar for me. More important and interesting is the following interaction with the whole band. It has to work out for every new song. But this has always worked impeccably.

Tobias: I regularly practice between two to four hours a day. Therefore it's quite easy for me to prepare for LOTL-songs, as I am in practice.

 

Orkus: And at which place do band rehearsals take place?

Chris: In the rehearsal room. Unbelievable, right?

Bo: 99% in the rehearsal room. When it's about checking the technique before a tour, we meet at the studio and rig up everything right there, so we can detect mistakes timely and fix them.

Gared: And recently, right before the tour, we lodge ourselves in the Chameleon Studioin Hamburg, play the whole setlist a few times and do the soundcheck on our mixing console, which we take along on tour. The result is a big saving of time every day on tour!

Tobias: We have a shared rehearsal room, in which we all, or just me alone, are practicing.

 

Orkus: Where was your first rehearsal room and how did it look inside?

Bo: Our first rehearsal room was near Hamburg-Hamm. We shared a tiny room with The Pleasures. It was very narrow, but it was enough. Mainly, loud. Meanwhile so much equipment has been hoarded, we need a big room and additional storerooms, to store everything safely away.

Class: In some kind of bunker. But with a window. It was small and not very comfortable. But we wanted to work and not hang around. So it was all right. And it was easy and fast to get there.

Gared: The first rehearsal room was extremely small, extremely piled up and was also used by Chris' Glam-Rock-Band The Pleasures. Thus the walls were full of pictures of half-naked women, sparkling guys and here and there a feather boa wiggled over some amplifiers.

 

Orkus: Which, from today's point of view, embarrassing moments did you experience there?

Bo: I went to the band rehearsal without my guitar once.

Class: To be honest, we did no experience a lot of embarrassing things there. We displaced this.

 

Orkus: And which moments were full of happiness and proudness?

Tobias: In regard of the rehearsal room? Nothing. In regard of LOTL in general, the very first happy and proud moment was already during the announcement that I am in the band now. The positive acceptance of my own person as a full-value band member as a consequence thereof was a great feeling.

Class: There were always good moments. For example when we get to know about great new shows where we can play.

Gared: The confirmation we would play at WGT, Wacken and M'era Luna in 2010. You are new and for the first time in a serious band with promising expectations and get this... I was speechless.

Bo: There is a lot and every day something new joins. Both in private life and with the band. Everyday I'm overjoyed to be able to live the life I'm living. I live my dream and therefore there is no 'ranking list'.

 

Orkus: How did you come up with the idea of being musician?

Chris: In the age of two I was sitting, during a Christmas concert of a string quartet, on my mothers lap, right before the cellist. I was so deeply impressed, I desperately wanted to play this instrument. I never aimed at being full-time musician, it happened sneaking and accidentally, got more and more until it outweighed all other professional careers. But I would never give up my work as songwriter and producer for other artists, regardless of where the journey with LOTL is heading.

Bo: My grandfather was opera singer. Therefore music was omnipresent in our family. Someday I took a guitar in school during music lessons and fell in love. Ever since I can't imagine a life without this wonderful instrument.

Class: I was always a rocker. For example I started with AC/DC and NOFX. In school I took a guitar in hand, but switched to the bass quickly and stuck with it. I never stopped making music. Bit by bit I got more professional and now I am headed in the right direction to the top with LOTL.

Gared: I can't do anything else. And I am serious.

Tobias: My father is musician, so it was half-hard-wired. I already started drumming on everything I could find when I was two years old.

 

Orkus: And was it, from today's point of view, a good idea?

Chris: Like I said, it was no idea and it wasn't planned. It is from the economic view always a bad idea to be a professional musician. There are mainly only two possibilities: Either you keep the wolf from the door lifelong or you're part of the vanishing low section which got very rich because of indefinable providence. But if I was interested in the money I would have become notary, accountant or lawyer. Then I might be rich today, but not happy.

Class: It was the best idea I ever had. I think thereon nothing will change.

Gared: Hell yeah!!!

Tobias: For sure the best idea of my life.

Bo: DEFINITELY!

 

Orkus: In your opinion, what does Lord of the Lost make to something special?

Gared: For sure me!

Chris: Our music didn't reinvent the wheel, we rarely move in musical extremes, and we make music for the listeners, not for musicians, so we also move technically at an understandable level. All that is not special and also not unique. What makes us special in my mind is our very wide range of music, our need for brave and scene-unfamiliar experiments and mainly the fact that we don't take our whole image and our character at Lord of the Lost too serious. We can laugh about all this, don't wear scene-mindcuffs and don't take all this too serious. Life is not only about lifestyle, music or the color of clothes.

Bo: I think it's a fact we don't take ourselves too serious and don't want to serve this stereotyped thinking of different scenes, no matter if rock, gothic, metal or whatever. We just make music and have fun doing it. That's the point. As a musician you basically make music for yourself. We just have a lot of luck so many people have the same taste in music and are coming to our shows.

Class: We are strong on all levels. Music, performance, outfits, authenticity. We have a good total package. Today that's more important than ever. There are so many bands throughout the market which are good. But not necessarily on all levels. I think we are well-placed on that front. Furthermore we are five friends. A rare phenomenon.

Tobias: Mainly the brotherly manner and team spirit. We are just an idiotic awesome group and luckily the fans find it amusing.

 

Orkus: How do you handle the vast pressure and stage-fright?

Chris: You can either handle it or not. This are First World Problems. I wont' complain about stage-fright when little children are starving somewhere else.

Bo: I personally don't have stage-fright. Or rather very rarely. During the first shows I was very nervous and uncertain, but meanwhile I just look forward to going on stage and let it all hang out. Standing on stage is my therapy.

Class: Normally I don't have stage-fright. I am just up for going on stage. Only at for me important events (e. g. Full Metal Cruise or concerts at home) I am nervous.

Gared: I gave stage-fright up as a child. To be honest, no soap.

Tobias: I don't have stage-fright.

 

Orkus: How do you prepare mentally for your upcoming tour? Or: What are your first thoughts when do you deal with going on tour soon again?

Chris: My thoughts as the boss of this small business are much less interesting as the reader wishes: “How does pre-sale work, do we have reached the break-even so we can pay the nightliner and crew, or do we walk out with 10,000 euros in the red?” Eight jobs are directly attached to us as LOTL, as well as a nightliner, which becomes our home during the tour, and diverse deals and contracts with bookers, promoter, organizers... All this always involves a big risk. I mentally prepare for the tour by planing the light show and stage decoration, during the last rehearsals or in the last hours before the show, when we paint ourselves.

Bo: A lot is happening. There is a lot we must think about. A bus must be booked, light must be planned, designed and rented, constructing a setlist and much more. I think meanwhile we are so often regularly on tour, it got daily routine. We normally plan nearly every day something for the upcoming tour. That's a pro when you're often on the road. There is no time to let things slide. Most important is for sure the planning of the whiskey bar in the bus.

Class: “What should I wear?!”

Gared: The first thought is “YEAH!!!” The following thoughts are ironically about first ideas for make up and clothes.

Tobias: I practice a lot and do a lot of sport, so I can keep my performance over several weeks. A live show costs, especially for me as drummer and with my very energetic playing style with LOTL, a lot of power and this must be practiced forwards.

 

Orkus: Do you all do sport activities to stay fit?

Chris: In the meantime unfortunately far less than in the past, because I don't have the time, but whenever it's possible, yes.

Bo: I try to go running three to five times a week and do as much sport as possible. I don't like gyms, therefore I try to do a lot outdoors to stay fit.

Class: I'm very active in general. I sometimes go jogging and always tell myself to do more. It's not always easy to put this into action.

Gared: Less than I should. On tour, the every evening concert is my sport activity. Partly it borders on high-performance sport.

 

Orkus: How are the lighting conditions at your concerts? How much of the audience can your really see?

Chris: In some moments you can see more from the audience than the other way around. But I don't really observe it, during the concert I'm somewhere else and someone else. The only moments where I apperceive the audience is during the announcements, because I gave up staying in my 'Song-Performance-Mode' long ago and change into normal mode.

Bo: Actually we can always see everyone, because there are “blinder” directed at the audience. During the show I disappear in my own world and merely realize what's happening around me.

Class: We have very good light. And the teamwork of the band and our wonderful light technician NASA always improves. I sometimes feel like playing at a theatre, in a positive way. We see enough from the people. During special moments the audience is specially illuminated. It is for sure sufficient to be in contact and party with the mob.

Gared: From the second stage row and with this much backlight, I can mainly only see the first four to five rows. Behind there are also people, but from my position, communication beyond the fifth row is aggravated. Instead I hear a lot from the audience and that's also quite important!

 

Orkus: What was your most beautiful experience with a fan so far?

Chris: The prettiest and most stirring experiences with fans so far were the ones I attended indirectly. Our song See you soon, which deals with disease, death and farewell, already gave hope to a lot of people, both dying persons and bereaved people. For me most stirring was the story of a girl suffering from cancer, who wanted to have this song sung on her deathbed and fell asleep peacefully during the song. Since I know by myself how much hope and strength music and words can give, it makes me unbelievable happy to help other people likewise.

Bo: There is no ranking list either. Since I am still a fan of many bands I know that one single plectrum or autograph can rescue a completely crappy day. Therefore every experience with every fan is always again the best experience.

Class: Very hard to say. There are too many and diverse. A couple of days ago I was as happy as a lark because people came to me who traveled for example from South Africa to see our show. On this tour we had Swedes, Americans, Russians, Frenchmen, Dutchmen and the South Africans. Probably I didn't even list all nationalities.

Tobias: Most hellacious was maybe to see the first photo from an American fan who got my autograph inked.

 

Orkus: Which two songs do you prefer playing at the moment – and why these songs?

Chris: From Venus To Mars because I nearly forgot what a deep feeling this song can convey live and We're All Created Evil because in my opinion it's the most powerful song we produced so far. The mixture between raging elemental force and viscous steamroller is very fascinating for me.

Bo: At the moment Fists Up In The Air and Full Metal Whore. Both songs are great fun at the guitar and especially live, and I can let off a lot of aggression. But I can change them nearly everyday. I like all our songs, otherwise I wouldn't play them.

Class: I'm a metalhead, therefore currently Love & Hate and Kingdom Come.

Gared: Full Metal Whore, because it's a lot of fun to open a show with such a stunner, and still La Bomba. It's by far the greatest to see how adherents of a pretended (!) listless, life-negating subculture can't help but dance to a bastard out of metal and samba.

Tobias: We're All Created Evil and Fists Up In The Air because there is happening a lot of drum action within very brutal metal songs.

 

Orkus: What happened the last time that you were so moved, you had to fight to hold back the tears?

Chris: It happens nearly every day, it are the small things which are the greatest. My little Mika is just four and an half year old and it's enough when he shows me his newly built DUPLO® airplane or holds a self-painted drawing out to me. Nothing could ever move me more and in the end he is the only one who matters.

Class: A longtime fellow from an AC/CD cover-band died way too early. The funeral was pleasantly unchristian, but it was still very moving.

Bo: The birth of my second nephew.

Tobias: I laughed myself to tears while watching 00 Schneider – Jagd auf Nihil Baxter the first time.

 

Orkus: How is it for you to play a song live and in front of audience for the first time?

Chris: It's sheer stress. I only pay attention that everything works like planned. I only can enjoy it afterwards, when everything's over.

Bo: It's a really suspenseful moment. At the beginning you notice that the audience maybe doesn't even know the song so far and reacts very mildly, but when the refrain is sung-along at the second time, people are headbanging and dancing, you know happily and calmly that we could “infect.”

Class: Something new always makes fun. But since every show is different it's hard to answer this question.

Gared: It's always suspenseful. You never know at 100% how a song works and comes across live until you play it in front of audience.

Tobias: I'm mainly busy with myself and my drumming. Even if I practiced the song a thousand times beforehand I still have to get used to play it with an increased adrenaline level.

 

Orkus: You are, to the delight of your audience, a lot “on the road.” After the tour is before the tour, right? What do you miss first after a tour-weekend?

Chris: After a tour-weekend I don't miss anything, I'm happy to be at home again. To be on tour is great, but I can not long sustain mix with people, I linger very fast after my own refuge. A bed in a nightliner can not be compared to the own home. The longing after the tour and my boys is coming back after a few days at home.

Class: My friends which were on tour with me. Both the own and the support band as well as the best crew on earth.

Gared: Short and crisp: Everything on tour.

Bo: Catering.

Tobias: I miss my beloved band mates and the daily music-making. Being on tour is like holidays. My everyday life is much more stressful and boring.

 

Orkus: About which little quirks of your band mates do you dare to speak?

Chris: I prefer to talk about my own quirks. I express myself too dry and laconic, which results in an unwanted unfriendly and arrogant impression, I have problems to surrender tasks, I tend to intense control and I am often more egocentric than I think. I don't want to talk about quirks of others, because everyone has flaws, we are best friends and often make fun of the quirks of others to spot and work on them. But these are things which are only our business.

Bo: About none... otherwise they would beat me up. On a serious note: A quirk might be something that only bothers me and thereof exist a lot. I love the boys like my own family. Therefore I say they all equally suck.

Class: There are too many. The quirks cancel each other. Hard to locate a quirk.

 

Orkus: And what is in your opinion a very big strong point from your band mates?

Chris: The most important strong points from the other four in our bond... Tobias: Organization, motivation, perseverance. Gared: The absolute hearing, reliable executive, musical and instrumental variety. Class: Calm anchor in the chaos, chaos anchor in the stage-beast-mode, master of diplomacy and overlooker of numbers. Bo: Positive energy-center, unbeatable stage-presence, my backbone and main-reference-point during live shows.

Bo: We pull together and respect each other. Each member looks out for the other and the teamwork is so good, it is little short of lousy.

Class: Bo: Collegiality. Tobi: Collegiality. Chris: Collegiality. Gared: Collegiality.

Gared: It's evenly spread – what one can't do can do the other one. There is for every specialist field a minister with accordingly fitted tasks.

Tobias: Two of the most important strong points of Chris are organization of the band and the creative output: not only musical through the songs and music productions but also in regard of image and look of the band on and next to the stage. He keeps things ticking over. Gared is our top-class musical universal weapon and besides also a pleasant and understanding companion with whom you can never have a row. Class deals with a lot of things for the band, not many people would like, selflessly. This includes financial and commercial topics. Bo is a very funny companion, who always puts everyone in good humor, even if the case seems hopelessly crappy. He really is how you know him via TV of the Lost.

 

Orkus: With what could a concert promoter make your day?

Chris: With confidence, everything else is unimportant. At first a promoter is a business partner, everything private comes afterwards.

Bo: With a good whiskey.

Class: Good food is the fuel of every production. Fancy beer-specialties tempt me immensely.

Gared: With a good, balanced catering and a nice housecrew. You work together the whole day after all. If someone lacks the get up and go, is unfriendly or doesn't know what he's doing, it can prejudice the whole show. It applies for both parties, band & crew as well as in-house crew.

 

Orkus: What's your favorite drink after a concert or in a bar, which should be enjoyed carefully and not in en masse?

Chris: Jack Daniels with soda and a half-squashed lemon. We call this creation “Viva con Jack.”

Bo: Beer, at the moment Desperados.

Class: I don't have one.

Gared: After a concert: Beer and/or Jack-Coke. Without care and sometimes en masse.

Tobias: A cold wheat beer.

 

Orkus: What can you estimate, when will there be the next musical release from you?

Chris: A regular next album is coming in 2016, probably in summer.

Bo: In the next one to twelve years.

Class: There will be something in 2016.

Gared: It looks a lot like summer 2016...

 

Orkus: And which two sentences can you already reveal?

Chris: It will be different, like always. The whole album is following a musical and contentual concept. This time Gabor from Formalin will be co-producer and therefore new aspects will come into play.

Bo: It will sound different, but will still be from Lord of the Lost. A new facet of us.

Class: I don't even know if I can reveal something at the present moment, but it will sound unexpected.

Gared: The classics: everything stays different. But still Lord of the Lost.

Tobias: Overall it will be about music, which will appear polyphonic. There won't be a six-minute-long trumpet solo.

 

Orkus: For everyone individually: Lord of the Lost is...?

Chris: A very big part of my life, previously hobby, now job, refuge, compensation and therapy.

Bo: Family.

Class: … the band I want to conquer the world with.

Gared: … my second family.

Tobias: For me, Lord of the Lost is a lifestyle. 

 

Translation: Nico Scissorhands