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As always, Michael is a very down to earth and approachable person who it is a pleasure to talk with as he reveals in details behind his new solo album as well as future plans for Stryper, Sweet & Lynch, and more work with Joel Hoekstra.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \n JM: So, let\u2019s talk new album – One Sided War<\/span><\/a>. You have lots of great guest musicians, so tell us the who, what, when, where and hows of it all.<\/span><\/p>\n \n MS: I am a big drum fan, and drums are always really important to me, so I always like to work with the best. That is why on my Truth album I worked with Kenny Aronoff, and on my last solo album (I\u2019m Not Your Suicide<\/span><\/a>) as well. And then on the Sweet & Lynch<\/span><\/a> album I worked with Brian Tichy, who is another phenomenal drummer. And then on this album, One Sided War<\/span><\/a>, I\u2019ve got Will Hunt<\/span>, who plays for Evanescence<\/span> and a number of other bands. Those three guys are three of my favorite drummers.<\/p>\n \n I like the guys that don\u2019t overdo it in showmanship, and their playing doesn\u2019t suffer because of that, and yet the guys do have some showmanship and they put on a show and you\u2019re glued to them, they\u2019re just not over doing it. So I have Will on this album and I couldn\u2019t be more thrilled.<\/p>\n \n And then I have Joel Hoekstra<\/span> (guitarist \u2013 Whitesnake\/Night Ranger<\/span>) guesting on three songs, and Ethan Brosch<\/span> guesting on six songs. Ethan is a great player, he is a local player, and he is mind blowing. I have John O\u2019Boyle<\/span> on bass. I used him on my last solo album and wanted to use him again because he is that good. He is solid as a rock and a super sweet guy.<\/p>\n \n It is equally important for me to work with great people as it is to work with great musicians. There is nothing like working with a great musician who is not easy to work with, and I\u2019ve done that many times, and it is not fun.<\/p>\n \n I also have Mariah Formica<\/span>, who is a 15-year-old, singing on a song. I did a show with her about ten months ago and she blew my mind, so I wanted to have her on the album (JM: Here is a YouTube video of her singing a track with Stryper<\/a> live, and here with Michael<\/a>). She sings, she plays guitar, she solos, and is very talented, and she is a rock star \u2013 I think everyone will be hearing about her very soon.<\/p>\n \n JM: How do you get some of these people on your albums? Do you personally know them, or just cross paths at some point while touring. Take Joel Hoekstra for instance, he is a pretty hot commodity in the rock and metal world these days, how did he get involved?<\/span><\/p>\n \n MS: I met Joel for the first time on the Monsters of Rock Cruise a few years back, and Joel is a fan of Stryper. He was out in the audience watching, and bobbing his head, and I talked to him later and he said he loved Stryper. He said he respected us, and would love to work with me, and he is a brilliant player, such a talented guy. So I had him come out and be a part of my videos off of I\u2019m Not Your Suicide, and he wasn\u2019t even playing on the songs, yet he was in my videos for the title track and Heart of Gold. So this time around I got him to play on the songs, and be in the video.<\/p>\n \n Next time around, we\u2019re going to do a full-length together, so we\u2019re pumped about that. It is a little ways down the road, but we\u2019re going to do a full-length album together. I\u2019m looking to go a bit more old-school seventies, with a little more kick to it. Kind of like a Whitesnake or Zeppelin of the seventies sound with lots of nasty organs and ripping guitars, vocals and melodies.<\/p>\n \n JM: Your new single is for the song Radio, tell us a little about the idea behind that track.<\/span><\/p>\n \n MS: Radio is a parody lyric based on rock guys going to country and trying to be country guys. I grew up in a country home, my parents are country western singers, my dad wrote a number one country song, and so it\u2019s dear to my heart. I thought it would be fun to write a song and do a video just to have a little fun.<\/p>\n \n JM: Now with Stryper apparently so much more active, and popularity seems to be on the rise, why not just more Stryper albums? Why the solo albums?<\/span><\/p>\n \n MS:\u00a0 Because I love it. I remember times when finishing up with Stryper I\u2019d jump right into a solo album. My wife would say \u201cYou just spent four months on a Stryper album, are you serious?\u201d I say \u201cyes, I have a lot of ideas and this is what I do.\u201d It is just the way I am, it is how I\u2019m built.<\/p>\n \n JM: With all of the solo stuff, do you get much of a chance to tour for them, or is Stryper your main touring engine?<\/span><\/p>\n \n MS: Stryper is my main touring engine, but I have to say, next year it\u2019s going to be all about Michael Sweet. I am just going to say that and put it out there to the fans. It\u2019s not me being a jerk or anything, but last time I toured solo was in 2000.<\/p>\n JM: Hey! I know! Why don\u2019t you tour and open for Stryper? Could your voice handle doing two shows in a night?<\/span><\/p>\n \n MS: It\u2019s not the length of how much I sing in a night. With Stryper we do a 90-minute show, and I am just getting warmed up during the last 15 minutes and I want to go back and redo it all because I am warmed up much better than early in the show. So if I did open, I would probably sound better with Stryper because I would be warmed up. The main problem is going out and touring and doing three or four nights in a row, or if I were to get sick \u2013 that is the tricky part.<\/p>\n \n Plus, I am not sure how in demand that would be for the buyers and promoters \u2013 whether it would bring enough additional value to the tour or the night. I will say if it could be worked out financially, and I could put the guys all on the same bus, it would be really, really fun.<\/p>\n \n JM: So, new solo album just came out, what is next recording wise?<\/span><\/p>\n \n MS: We\u2019re starting a new Stryper album in February, and once that is done around April, then George (Lynch) and I are starting on a new Sweet & Lynch album.<\/p>\n \n JM: Ah, a follow up? So how did the first one do \u2013 how was it accepted in general?<\/span><\/p>\n \n MS: Exceptional! For that kind of an album, basically a new band and sort of a super group, it was received well. When you look back in history, typically super groups don\u2019t do that well. Occasionally you\u2019ll have one like Chickenfoot that does really well, but most of the time that they not do well, they do okay. It is hit or miss with these types of super group, and considering that, Sweet & Lynch has done really great, from both initial week sales as well as the continued life of the album. And the reviews and comments have been great too.<\/p>\n \n JM: I guess it must have done well, since there is going to be a follow up.<\/span><\/p>\n \n MS: Yes. And on the follow up I want to get a little more aggressive. I want to light the fire under George\u2019s butt a little more and get him to cut loose even more.\u00a0 More guitar ripping and shredding that will make people just go \u201cWHAT!?\u201d So we\u2019re going to have fun doing the next one, and I want to have the same line up.<\/p>\n \n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/heavensmetalmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/mqdefault-5-0-7.jpg\")
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