We continue with our interview with Danny Vaughn of Tyketto. In this second chapter we talk about his latest works and tour
You can read the spanish version of this interview here
RnB: Talking about you last studio album, Reach . How’s it going? Is Reach Reaching? jejeje
Danny: yeah I think so. it’s sold much better than “Dig in Deep” did and that makes sense to me. I think Reach is a more complete album because “Dig in Deep” reflected where we were at the time. When it was done we didn’t have as much time to work on the songs and write them and rewrite them. With Reach you’re listening for almost two years of work and it’s very unusual now that bands get that kind of time. We were very lucky.
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Frontiers didn’t rush us and in fact we didn’t even tell them we were working on new songs for a while because we wanted to be certain. And after we wrote the first three or four songs together we were like okay this we’re definitely gonna do.
This is good so I think people have really responded to it and the songs also are really coming across live this this next tour that we’re going to do four or five songs of “Reach”.
RnB: Reach has a very compact sound. Duel between the electric and the acoustic is always there but, nevertheless, the songs are very different. There are hard songs like Big Money, other tracks more classic of the Tyketto style, other songs are more symphonic or even with progressive rhythms. How was it going back into the studio to write and record Reach with the new members?
Danny: By the time we got to the studio we had done so much work on our own in you know at home because everybody lives in a different place. This is all new it’s a new way to make music I would go into my studio and for instance I wrote “Circle the wagons” and I played that almost all the way through on just acoustic guitar and I did some lead vocals some backing vocals and that’s it: No quick track nothing because I don’t want to tell Michael what to do. I send it to Michael and then he would put drums in his studio then he sends it to Chris green and Chris green would think about different guitars and those would come back and so…
The thing about with the way we wrote it though was the question was asked at the beginning what kind of album do we want to make. There were two main rules, first don’t write thinking it sound enough like don’t come easy, and in the other side is don’t write thinking make sure it doesn’t sound anything like don’t come easy you can’t do that either.
So in the end you just have to surrender and go. This is what I’m writing now and if it’s different. When “Don´t Come Easy” was written I was in my late 20s, “Reach” is written when I’m in my 50s. I’m not going to be writing the same kind of songs.I mean something like “circle the wagons” was just it started out as a challenge because the verses are in five four and I’ve never written a song like that. I think it’s very difficult to write a rock and roll song like that, but I thought, fuck it and do it. I can do it. So we just tried and if I send and when I sent it to them I was half expecting them to go -well it’s good but it’s not like yet- and that’s fair because we all make that decision together it’s not my decision it’s not Michaels decision the band’s got her got to feel it.
So there are some ideas that didn’t make the “Reach” album that will go back into the pot for the next album and we’ll think about it and think about if what needs changing until they’re ready. Sometimes it’s like recipes you know it takes a long time for the cooking.
RnB: In a few days your live album and DVD will be released. We have still not seen the DVD but we have made a review about the audio album and we have to say that it sounds fantastic. Why do you have only recorded Don´t come easy songs plus “Reach” and “Rescue Me”?
Danny: Well this was under the guidance of Frontiers. We talked about doing different things. Well I guess I’m just I’m scared of live albums and there are plenty of live albums that I like but they’re also plenty that I don’t.
When Aerosmith wants to make a live album they can afford to bring a recording crew and a sound crew just for that purpose and record every show on a hundred and thirty day tour. Then they sit and they listen to each song from every show and then they figure out which part they like and all that. With bands at our level you get one show because you just we can’t afford to bring guys out to record it every night. So I’ve always avoided it because once you commit that money if something is not good at the show if you have a bad night and my voice isn’t good whatever you have to release that as a DVD and I didn’t want that. So we were very very careful to make sure the band was very warmed up we had done a series of shows just before that. It was the 25th anniversary of “don’t come easy” and we had been playing the whole album on that tour so Frontiers really love that. We thought it was a good idea and hopefully there might be an opportunity in the future to do some other DVD work with you know more varied material.
RnB: In this álbum when you play «Lay your body down» you said something like: «Please, don’t watch the whole show behind your fucking phone, you might miss me, and you don’t want that!». What do you think of people’s dependence on technology?
Danny: Well first of all I have to learn to close my mouth in concert ahaha
RnB: is it hard sometimes to play live watching more apple logs than human eyes?
Danny: I don’t mind that people are filming, but what I worry about…
I am a huge fan of Bruce Springsteen and I’ve just finished his book. He really says it all in there it’s so true. When we get together and do this thing this thing that we call rock and roll if it’s really good then it becomes something else. It’s not just a band standing on a stage We create a kind of a church and that is we’re all there all of us not just a band, everybody we’re there to accomplish something and the accomplishment is to make the show, the concert all together. With us all together we make it better than it then it could be if it was just you sit there and watch while we do what we do
…and that’s what I worry about with the phones is that if you are back there all the time you won’t get the moment you’ll miss it
RnB: You will be playing in a few weeks in spain. All your tours have some dates in Spain. Do you like playing here?
Danny: yeah of course. Everybody is a little different. I find the Spanish fans to be the most passionate about music about all kinds of music. I live here now so I’ve seen a bit of flamenco and I watch how people get involved.
I recently did two little acoustic shows in Cangas and in front of about 90 people but two feet away right there watching you. What I love about it is if you come to a good moment in a song, maybe a nice long note or you do something really sweet on the guitar they don’t wait till the end of the song to say something they jump right in, right there and I think that’s very special and that. It helps create moments and we had some some really special moments in those Cangas shows.
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I don’t know why I just decided to play one we did two and the first night I played Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah which is a really soft quiet song and it’s also for five minutes and nobody made a sound except we got to the choruses and everybody in the room started singing. It doesn’t matter to me 50,000 people 50 people you can have this wonderful special moment.
RnB: How will be your Spanish tour?
Danny: Well we’re going to really try and mix it up with songs from all the albums but the most important thing is that ”Reach” will be featured.
I think on the last tour we play two maybe three songs from “Reach” this time it’ll be more central there’ll be four or five and there’s a surprise song or two.
RnB: What would you say to Spanish fans to encurage them to see Tyketto live?
Danny: I feel the same way again that mr.Springsteen does about it but I feel about my band which is that Waikato was not one of those bands that ever just sort of takes it easy you know we come out there and if there’s 50 of you we’re going to rock you just as
hard as if there is 50,000 of you. we’re gonna work to earn your trust and it’s because we love it. I’m not forcing people to jump up and down and get involved and all that they just know this is the best way to have a great time tonight.
You can Read the first part of the interview here
