The BIG Über Rock Interview: Scotti Hill (Skid Row)

Written by DJ Astrocreep
Sunday, 25 March 2018 04:40

Skid Row returned to the Über Kingdom of Rock ‘n’ Roll this month for a string of dates, which featured a headline appearance at the annual HRH AOR fest in north Wales. Unfortunately, the band had to cancel the last four dates of the tour, due to illness, rescheduling them for late August (see revised dates at the end of the interview).

However, before all that happened, I took the opportunity to sit down backstage in Pwllheli with band founder and guitarist Scotti Hill to chat about what they are up to at the moment, the “new” line-up and forthcoming recording plans. However, I started by reminding him that his last visit to this corner of the Überverse had been rather eventful…

Yeah, we did Hard Rock Hell – I don’t remember what year it was – maybe 2005 or something like that (it was 2010 – Ed) and it was a great gig, but I happened to get hurt at that gig, so I didn’t get to finish the show! Hopefully, tonight I’ll get to finish the show!

It didn’t put you off coming back at least!

Oh no, never man! If there’s a stage and people, we’re going!

Have you got other appearances lined up this year?

We’ve got some festivals in August in Europe. I’m not sure which ones, ‘cos I don’t really look at the list, I just look at the plane ticket to see where I’m going, you know? *both laugh* We have this UK run, which is going fantastic and finishes around the end of the month, then we go back to the States and play our usual gigs over there – we play a lot of gigs back home. We’ll be back here in August to make up the gig in Dublin that got snowed in last week, which was unfortunate, but we want to keep everyone safe, rather than stuck out there, stranded. In between all that, we’re working on a new record!

Have you worked out any details on that yet? Any songs name or such?

*laughs* I won’t give up any of the titles yet. It’s really early on, but we have gotten in a room, rehearsed and demoed stuff. We’ve got a bunch of songs, Michael Wagner’s going to be producing it and now it’s just a matter of co-ordinating our schedules, ‘cos we’ve got a full schedule this year. It seems like year after year now, we just get busier and busier.

How has ZP fitted in to the band?

Fantastic man. He’s a brother, a warrior. He’s built to rock, man, and he fits in with us so perfectly. We were on the bus the other night, just the five of us, sitting in the back of the bus, laughing our asses off. Not a lot of bands can do that! I’ve seen the dynamics between many bands on the road and it’s like ‘wow man’. I’ve been there and it’s so good to have five guys that get along with each other, respect each other and care about each other and get it done.

With his previous projects and experience, do you think he’s maybe brought something a little bit different than you’ve had before in a vocalist?

He’s very versatile, of course, because of his work in DragonForce and his other bands, of course – IAmI, Tank. He’s both versatile and experienced, especially in this part of the world, you UK guys are very familiar with him. He’s just great to have around and we’ve known him for a long time! I think IAMI opened for us on a few gigs, about ten years ago or so. He came in and it was like BOOM – instant energy and instant chemistry, a great guy to have around.

Do you have any preference between festivals like this or a smaller, more intimate gig?

Man, we’re gonna bring it! Last night we were in Sheffield, a small gig, we were fucking covered in sweat when we were done. Going and doing those gigs reminds me of the early days, in the sweatboxes back home. Everybody’s really close, ceiling’s low. The only real difference between now and then is that the room’s not filled with smoke, you know? Of course, we love doing the big shows. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a festival or a gig with a corner stage, we walk out every night like we’ve got something to prove. Bring it on!

Is it easier to feed off the energy in some types of gigs?

There’s usually good energy. If it’s a good rock show, there will be good energy there. A lot of times, at the bigger festivals, the crowd is a bit further away and you’re way up high, but you can look out over it and see everything going on from up there. It’s pretty awesome! It’s also really cool when you can reach out and touch people, you know, slap their hands and all that, get cuts all over your hands from everybody’s rings and stuff *laughs*

Have you ever had a really bad experience at a festival or gig?

Let me think man… the festivals back in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s, they were a little more out of control, I think, with the piss bottles and all that, you know? You don’t see a lot of that any more. I like the danger of the whole thing, you know? The last time we played Hard Rock Hell, I wound up in the hospital, I didn’t finish the set!

What actually happened?

I fell off the stage in the dark! I landed on my ribs on a road case, went to hospital in an ambulance. I had broken ribs and I didn’t finish the show! So tonight, hopefully, I’m making up for it!

One last question – a technical one. What equipment do you use?

I’m using a custom shopped Yamaha Pacifica, with a Seymour Duncan JB in the bridge, Floyd Rose. My amp set up is a Marshall JCM900 with a – it’s like a tube screamer, but it’s made by Way Huge Electronics, it’s called a Green Rhino. All settings at 2 o’clock with a noise gate a tuner, that’s it. No big effects, or nothing.

Thanks so much for your time, Scotti.

You got it, brother. Thank you!

Skid Row have rescheduled their cancelled dates for August:

Tuesday 14 – Norwich, Waterfront

Wednesday 15 – Nottingham, Rock City

Sunday 19 – Brighton, Concorde 2

Monday 20 – Bristol, O2 Academy

Wednesday 22 – Dublin, Academy

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