MetalGod: Tell me about the new live FireHouse record.
Bill Leverty: We were asked by our label in Japan, Pony Canyon Records, if we'd like to record a show while we were on tour over there last year; and our manager, Perry Cooper, thought it would be a great idea. After convincing us that we should make this album, we found that the show in Osaka would be the best show to record for technical reasons, so we hired a state-of-the-art mobile recording company to do the job. They had an SSL console and all the great microphones we requested. Since our budget only afforded us to record one night's performance, we were very nervous, but I think we pulled it off real well. It's our first live album, and I'm very proud of it.

MG: What's your favorite track on the CD? Why?
BL: I think my favorite song on the album is "Overnight Sensation" because it really captures the energy of the audience and the band together. It's the opening song. I am also really happy with the way "I Live My Life For You" came out because the audience sang along with us so loud that we had to turn down the room mic's in the mix!! Another song that kicks is called "Bringing Me Down". I like it because it was the first single off of our Category 5 album, the Japanese fans love that song, and I sing the high harmony.

MG: What about a U.S. tour? Any plans? Where can we get info?
BL: The best resource for info is www.FireHousemusic.com. We're recording another album right now, and we hope to be back out on the road after it's done late summer/early fall. Our booking agency is Artist International Management and Mark Lyman is our agent. They do a fantastic job.

MG: FireHouse was Pigeon-Holed as an "80's Hair Band" (even though your first record came out in '91) and you kind of suffered from the MTV led rebellion against 80's bands which was highly unfair. How do you feel about that?
BL: I think that the whole melodic rock scene is coming back strong. I don't think that it's coming back fast enough, but it's getting much better nonetheless. VH-1 came out and did a piece on us. They cast us in a very favorable light. That definitely helped. The reality is this: until we have more melodic rock bands out there with some success with sales and airplay, it's going to be tough for melodic rock. FireHouse never put much emphasis on the visual image at all. The marketing guys at Epic Records did however! Our emphasis was always on our music. We've worked real hard on establishing a level of musical credibility with our fans. Our fans know that when they buy a FireHouse album, it will contain an entire album of quality songs instead of one good song and the rest throw-aways.

MG: As a guitar player, you have a very unique sound. Tell me a little about your sound. What kind of equipment do you prefer to use? Is there one particular piece that you can't live without?
BL: Right now on the road I have a very simple setup. I'm using a Rivera M-100 head for my main tone. I go line out into a GCX and feed an SPX-900 (for delay only), which goes into a Rane mixer, which has an effects send and return, which goes to an Alesis Quadraverb (set for a dark reverb sound). I feed a little bit of my dry sound and the delay into that verb through the mixer. I usually use a tube screamer and the delay/verb for solos, not rhythms. I'm using an All Access pedal to switch. I keep a lot more gear in my studio because the road beats the crap out of everything. Since we're doing many fly-out dates where the promoter provides backline gear, I've just gotten a Lexicon MPX-G1 and the R-1 foot controller. This is a fantastic system for flying in with a rack that can fit in the overhead compartment. In the studio, I've recorded layers and layers of rhythm tracks to get that huge sound. People e-mail me all the time asking me how they can get the sound from the first and second albums, and I tell them that you need to record the exact same thing 6-8 times with different amps. I recorded stereo pairs of mid 70's Marshall, Pre CBS Bassman, Soldano, and Music Man (all tube) amps panned hard left and right. I triple-tracked the solos on the first album, and single-tracked all solos ever since. In the studio, I record everything dry with the guitar plugged directly into the head with the exception of an occasional Tube Screamer. I use close mic'ing with an SM-57 or Akg-421.

MG: How many guitars do you own? Name a few.
BL: My equipment and sound is constantly changing. One element has been the same for the past 11 years, and that is my guitar: The Yamaha Pacifica. I've got several of them and I love them all for their tone and ease of playing. Right now I'm playing a Pacifica Custom which is available only in Japan. It was designed after a guitar that I had Yamaha make me at the custom shop: mahogany body, flame maple top, Warmouth compound radius neck, Seymour Duncan pickups, (JB in the bridge position, the rest stock) and I've never been happier with any guitar I've ever owned. I play it on every song on the live album except for "Here For You" where I play the Yamaha CPX-15... the greatest acoustic/electric ever made!!! I can't say enough good things about Yamaha guitars. I also have a couple of "collectibles" like a 1965 Fender Strat and a late '90's mint condition Les Paul 60's Classic Plus. I don't play these guitars at all. I also have a banjo, mandolin, guitarelele, and a Yamaha Attitude Bass. I own about 15 guitars total.

MG: If you could add ANY guitar to your collection, what would it be?
BL: I'd like to have a '59 Strat for my collection. White would be nice.

MG: As a musician and songwriter, what inspires you?
BL: Inspiration comes in all forms. As a writer, I have to open myself up to EVERYTHING in order to come up with new ideas. Practicing helps with the musical ideas. The more I practice with ideas that I haven't played before, the more I come up with new musical phrases, progressions, and riffs. I often practice with a drum machine. I sometimes even go to the piano to get something fresh, or I'll put a capo on the neck of my guitar so that different melodies will develop from different keys and chord voices. The lyrical ideas come from personal experiences and other peoples' experiences that I embellish. I find that once I have an idea of what a song is going to be "about" lyrically, the rest falls into place. I've just finished a song that's taken me over three years to find that idea. The music came quickly, but the IDEA for the song and lyric seemed to take forever. I don't like to settle on something that doesn't make me really excited.

MG: Who are your main influences?
BL: There's a huge list of them on my website: www.Leverty.com, but here are a few: Stevie Wonder, Led Zep, Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, Kiss, UFO, Skynyrd, Allman Brothers, Deep Purple, Steve Morse and the Dixie Dregs, Pat Travers, Eddie Van Halen, Al DiMeola, Allan Holdsworth, Scorpions, Randy Rhoads, George Lynch, Joe Satriani, Steve Lukather, Steve Vai, Eric Johnson, and my favorite guitarist of all time: Jeff Beck.

MG: Do you write your solos after the rest of the song is completed or do you build songs or passages within a song around a solo?
BL: Most of the time, the solo comes last. Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever written around a solo. I look at a solo as a composition within a composition. The solo must fit the song, otherwise, it's just a bunch of meaningless notes. If the solo takes you someplace else that's great, but the transition to and from the solo must feel natural.

MG: There seems to be a lack of musicality, musical virtuosity and melody in the current mainstream acts. What's your opinion on that? What do you attest that to?
BL: I think that today's mainstream music is a backlash to what was mainstream 15-20 years ago. I've always joked that alternative music is just an alternative to learning how to sing or play your instrument well. I think that is changing slowly but surely.

MG: What do you think of the current U.S. music scene?
BL: What scene? The current U.S. music scene is dominated by visual image. The music scene has very little to do with good musicianship. The fact is, if you can get on MTV, you can sell a million records. MTV wants to play videos of artists who look like nothing we've ever seen before, or very visually pleasing to their viewers. This forces the music to take the back seat. There are exceptions of course, but for the most part, we live in a visual music world now. The quality of music is often secondary. The top 40 side of the industry is dominated by hip-hop, boy bands, or chick singers. The only real guitar music that's been played on that format lately has been Carlos Santana, which has sold nearly 13 million records. That's proof to me that so many people do love rock guitar music. They are just not being fed enough of it at the moment.

MG: How do you feel about bootlegs? Let's say a fan comes up to you and hands you a bootleg CD of one of your shows, what do you do?
BL: I say thanks because I don't want to offend them, but I don't like people taping our shows because these tapes usually sound like crap. If people want to hear us live, please come to our website, www.FireHousemusic.com, and get our live CD.

MG: Any thoughts on the Metallica -vs- Napster thing?
BL: I thank Metallica for using their muscle to stand up for many artists who work very hard at a project for a year, and then have Napster and other MP3 sites keep the artists from getting their paychecks. It's a very tough business to make a profit. These sites make it even tougher.

MG: Who would you like to work with in the future?
BL: I'd like to work as a producer with artists who have a clear, focused, and unique direction and concept. They would have to have exceptional songs and vocal ability. For my own music, I'd love to work with producers like Trevor Horn, Bob Rock, and Phil Ramone. I hope to make an album outside of FireHouse one day, and it would be a dream come true to have a budget where I could afford one of those A-level guys. If not, I'll produce it myself, and get inspiration and guidance from the works of these outstanding producers.

MG: If you could have a "Dream Band" who would the members be? Why?
BL: Vocals - Stevie Wonder because his voice has more soul than the capital of Korea!! Guitar - Steve Morse - because he's my hero. Bass - Stu Hamm (If he's good enough for Joe, he's certainly good enough for me.) Drums - Rod Morgenstein - because he can do it all. Keys - Greg Allman because I love his B3 playing and his voice.

MG: What lies ahead for FireHouse?
BL: We're recording another album now. It'll be out hopefully before Christmas. We just signed a deal with Spitfire Records for all territories outside of Japan and Asia (which is handled by Pony Canyon) so I think we have a really good shot at getting our music out there for the people to hear.

MG: Is "Bring 'Em Out Live" going to be released by Spitfire? When?
BL: Yes, my guess will be that it's going to be released within the next couple of months. They will also be putting out our next studio album.

MG: If we were to look in your CD player right now, what would we find? What are you listening to these days?
BL: I have a 5-disk changer. I always have something by Steve Morse in there. Right now, it's a Dregs' live recording by the King Biscuit Flower Hour in 1979...simply amazing. I also have Eric Johnson's - Venus Isle, Sara Brightman's - Eden, Jeff Beck's - Who Else, and Allan Holdsworth - I.O.U. Live.

MG: According to Bill Leverty, where do you see Bill Leverty in 10 years?
BL: On tour supporting an album that millions of people love to keep listening to...I've got a very positive crystal ball!!

MG: And the hardest question, the one that we ALWAYS ask (resistance is futile). If you were stranded on a desert Island, and could only have 5 CD's to listen to for the rest of eternity, what would they be?
BL: That is a tough one. Well, I'd have to start with a Dregs album. Right now, it's that King Biscuit Live Album. Steve Morse is just so inspiring. I'd have to have a Jeff Beck album so I'd probably pick Wired... no, Blow BY Blow... no, Flash... no, There and Back... no, can I just bring his box set? 3rd, I'd bring Aerosmith's first album. I love all the songs and I also love to sing along with Tyler's melodies. 4th, I'd have to have some Satriani, so I'd go with Surfing With The Alien. 5th, I'd bring the latest FireHouse Live album, Bring 'Em Out Live... another shameless plug!!

The House of Shred would like to thank Bill Leverty for taking the time to talk to us.

Photos on this page courtesy of the Official Bill Leverty Website.

Visit the Official FireHouse Website.