In a recent interview with Metal Global, Michael Schenker was asked whether he still avoids listening to new bands or paying attention to what’s happening in the rock world.
Schenker confirmed that he did, in fact, avoid new music for many years. “Yeah, I did [in the past]. In the beginning, when I was jumpstarted, [I was] inspired by all the late ’60s guitarists. But then, [when I was] 15 years old, I already subconsciously knew that that was something I wanted to do. And when I was 18, I made that decision to stay away from [listening to new] music to self-express.”
He continued, reflecting on the influence of the great guitarists of the late ’60s. “Because when I heard the guitarists in the late ’60s, they all had their own style. And it was really good — everything was, like, ‘Wow, this is great. Oh, this is great.’ All different.”
For Schenker, these guitarists were true artists, each with their own unique sound and vision. However, he felt that by the ’80s, music had begun to lose that individuality: “But [in] the ’80s, everything was the same. And that was basically watered-down ’70s; [they] made it simple and commercialized it [to] make money. But the ’70s [and] late ’60s guitarists, it was art; [they were] pure artists.”
Now at 69 years old, Schenker has avoided listening to new rock music for over 50 years. Schenker acknowledged that it’s not always easy to avoid hearing music in daily life, but his focus has always remained on self-expression through guitar. “Basically, my focus was on the art of lead guitar with pure self-expression. But it cannot be done perfectly, of course, because you cannot switch off the lobby or the elevator, or you cannot switch off Metallica if you are in Paris and you’re putting new clothes on and you listen to a whole album of Metallica,” he said in an interview with GuitarGuitar.
He added, “But I made a very clear decision not to consume, to analyze or to even show interest. When I drive a car, I never switch on the music. I don’t even listen to the news. I just use driving as a meditation to think of new things.”
Schenker will perform in the Monsters Of Rock Cruise next year. Names like Queensryche, Krokus, Tesla, Extreme, Winger and L.A. Guns will also perform. The shows are scheduled to take place from March 10 to 15 in Miami, Great Stirrup Cay.
