![]() ![]() You just squeeze everything in, wherever you can. I make sure it’s always a balanced setlist, not overdone, and always add a few requests, as many as I can, without losing the obvious important songs. ![]() I put them on paper and then, eventually, they show up in the setlist. People are always going to ask, “Why don’t you play this? Why don’t you play that?” Take it step by step. I just have to play it by ear, keeping my past setlists, comparing them, being sure that songs that couldn’t be played on the last two or three tours make it onto a setlist. When it comes to a career as lengthy and prolific as yours, how do you settle on a setlist? Whether you’re doing Michael Schenker Group shows, or in the case of your last couple American tours, Michael Schenker Fest, everyone’s pumped and singing along to every song. I said to my bass player, “I’d rather play to a half full place of happy fans than a full house of curious people who don’t know what they’re watching.” The last show was so much fun. The main thing is, I just realized the last concert in Rome was half full, but it was full of happy fans. It’s a risky thing to do, to be the starter, but at the same time, I don’t really care too much if I’m playing in front of a lot of people or not. The promoters in general felt, from March on, that half the amount of people would show up than usual because of the pandemic, but we did very good. Nobody could’ve jumped in like that and done so great. I had to accept him not being able to participate, but Ronnie will carry on after, doing the festivals and America and Japan and so on. MS: Fantastic! We were very lucky that Robin McAuley jumped in to replace Ronnie Romero who had a personal problem. I understand the band just finished a run of shows in Europe. I’m great! I’d like to start by congratulating you on your new album, Universal, as well as your ongoing 50th anniversary celebration. Michael Schenker: I’m OK thank you! How are you? Greetings Michael and welcome to Defenders of the Faith! How are you doing today? There’s no greater proof of this than his latest studio album, Universal, which we talked all about and more in this brand new interview. Hard as that was, once I got past the initial shock of speaking to the man himself, Schenker proved to be full of wit and wisdom a trailblazer who doesn’t rest easy on his laurels. I just couldn’t let that excitement show. For a lifelong Chicagoan who was raised on UFO, this phone call was the equivalent of a trip to Mecca. Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you can’t help but ask, “How did I get here?”, or some variation of such? In my case, the question would be worded, “How did I go from reviewing albums to an audience of my closest friends to interviewing Michael Schenker?” This would be a dream come true for any lifelong defender of the faith. "Armed and Ready!" Having already taken over this planet, Schenker strives for universal domination! Photo by Matthias Rethmann ![]()
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