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FEATURE:TESLA: ROCK THEIR WAY INTO THE NOW By Tom Lounges
No longer content to live off their proud past via the hugely successful reunion tour that kept them on the concert trail for nearly four years –– Midwest BEAT welcomed the then newly reformed Tesla to Star Plaza Theatre in July of 2001 –– the group has just released their first album of all new material in over a decade. Their long-awaited new studio effort, Into The Now, finds Tesla –– singer Jeff Keith, drummer Troy Luccketta, bassist Brian Wheat, and dual guitarists, Tommy Skeoch and Frank Hannon –– back to the business of creating melodic and emotionally charged hard rock. “It’s always fun to explore and experiment a bit. We did a few things on this new album that maybe we didn’t do on past albums and stuff, a loop on one song and some strings on a song called ‘Only You,’ but there’s no denying that this is a Tesla album,” assured Keith. Into The Now was released via the fast-growing Sanctuary Records imprint, which true to its name has become a haven for many elder statesmen of rock. “It’s our second one with them,” said Keith, noting the live reunion album that came out in 2002. While one might think that a recording taped during a reunion tour by all of the band’s original members might be a big, in-demand item with Tesla fans, Keith claimed it was not a big seller for them. “I wasn’t that crazy about putting that one out, because we already have a acoustic live album and this didn’t have any the extra or new songs on there that typically make people say – ‘Oh, I want to get that...’,” said Keith. “It’s a very good album performance-wise, but it didn’t really do all that much.” Into The Now is another story in itself. “We are very excited about this new album and playing these songs to our fans,” said Keith, who confessed to having a bad case of writer’s block going into the project. “I just didn’t feel like I could compete with today’s music,” Keith said of his tough start. “That’s when the guys said, ‘Listen...you just need to do what you do best, like you’ve always done, and not worry about trying to fit in with other stuff out there.’ I never worried about ‘fitting in’ before and once I took their advice to heart, things started happening. Me and Frank [Hannon] started bouncing lyrics off each other about what the band had been through and our hooking back up and making new music.” That early lyrical volley eventually became the title track, “Into The Now”, which Keith cites as his personal fave from the new CD. “It’s kinda the story of how we fell apart and got back together and are into the now...which is a great place to be,” he said. “A few of the [song] ideas were written while we were out on the road, which is pretty good for Tesla,” he continued. “We never really write on the road. Our way of doing things is usually getting home, sitting down and putting it all together.” The singer/songwriter mentioned that about 20 songs were in the running for inclusion on this collection, before they were whittled down to the dozen that made the final cut. “The songs all started to really speak for themselves, so it wasn’t really that hard picking the ones that would be on the album,” said Keith. “Every song was a band decision. We do things the democratic way and 3 wins over 2.” Though the group had not been in a recording studio together for over 12 years, it all fell into place very quickly as they set about self-producing their comeback album at Hannon’s home studio. “It was a little strange at first, but then it all just started clicking. Going into it, we weren’t sure how it was going to work out, but it ended up working out great. We all have a lot of respect for each other and worked as a band and voted on things. It actually turned out being a lot of fun!” Telsa is currently spending the next few months crisscrossing North America and banging out the new songs to their devoted fan base. “I know that a lot of bands say it, but our fans really are great,” stressed the singer. “They have always been there for us...always! They’re probably as excited about hearing these new songs as we are about playing them. At least I hope so...” Two of those sure to be in the band’s current live set are the first single, “Caught In A Dream,” and the powerful number, “Heaven Nine Eleven,” which has been getting some strong play at Active Rock Radio across the country. “We weren’t really thinking of radio at all when we were making this album,” he said. “We were thinking about making in on a playlist somewhere...we were just writing for ourselves and our fans, which is why these songs sound so very, very Tesla.” TESLA performs @ Chicago’s VIC THEATRE on March 19 |
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