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Metal God
An
Interview with Thor
By Bob
Ignizio |
John Mikl Thor is something of a heavy metal
renaissance man. Not only has he been crafting his own brand of rock since
the mid seventies, he also has several bodybuilding titles to his credit and
has been involved in several movies as an actor, writer, producer, and
soundtrack producer. Although his days of competitive bodybuilding are
behind him, Thor is still active in his both his other careers. This year,
Smogveil Records released Thor’s latest album, ‘Thor Against the World’, and
plan to follow it up with a DVD spanning the metal muscleman’s entire
career, the aptly titled ‘An-Thor-Logy’. Thor also has a new film on the
way. ‘Intercessor – Another Rock N Roll Nightmare’ is due out in October
through SRS Cinema. And if that’s not enough, expect Thor to bring his over
the top stage show to a town near you this summer. As you can see, I had
plenty to ask him about, so let’s get to it.
Utter Trash: First of all, I want to apologize for my
preconceptions. I always thought because of the image you'd be kind of
cheesy, but now that I've heard your new album (the first time I've ever
really listened to you) I find out you have a good sense of humor about
yourself, your songs have clever lyrics and catchy riffs, and overall you
probably fit more closely with stuff like early Alice Cooper or The
Dictators than the stereotypical power metal bands. Do you find a lot of
people make similar assumptions, and if so what do you do to overcome them?
Thor: Years ago as a young teenager when I observed
the likes of Alice Cooper and Bowie as Ziggy Stardust, I was impressed by
their music and also their concert visuals and concept. Being into fantasy,
comic books and Sci-Fi, I wanted to see a character that would come out on
stage and be a dark knight, superhuman Viking warrior and belt out powerful
rock songs. Someone or Something that could bend steel, smash bricks and be
a superhero. Alice had the horror show and Bowie was the thin white alien,
but how about a muscular powerful rock warrior? There was no one who could
fit this role so I decided to be the one. If no one else would put the show
on I wanted to see then I would. Did I see it as cheesy. No! However I
wanted a show that could be very entertaining and fun. I feel I could go up
on stage and wear a t-shirt and jeans and could still perform some great
tunes. But when you pay your dollar down to come see a concert it should be
as exciting and entertaining as possible while getting the music across.
UT: You're involved not just in music, but
professional body building and film production. Is there one of those three
careers that is your main passion, or do you feel equally strong about all
of them?
Thor: I still train to keep in shape and to have the
endurance to handle the upcoming 50 city North American tour to promote
‘Thor Against The World’. I no longer compete in body building contests.
Most of my bodybuilding championships were won right before I made the
entertainment business my career. I won over 40 titles which included titles
like Mr. North America, Mr. Canada, Mr. USA and Mr. Teenage America. I feel
music and film production are my main passions now.
UT: You've been making albums for almost 30 years now.
Which one is your favorite and why?
Thor: It's very difficult to say for me. I see myself
as a performer, musician, songwriter and entertainer. I like ‘Keep The Dogs
Away’ , ‘Only The Strong’, ‘DogZ II’, ‘Triumphant’ and ‘Beastwomen From The
Center Of The Earth’, yet they all have different musical styles. I feel
that as a musician/songwriter, I can and should experiment with music. ‘Keep
The Dogs Away’ came out in 1977 and has punk and straight forward rock
influences. ‘Only The Strong’, one of my biggest selling albums which came
out in 1985, is a heavy metal album. ‘Dogz II’ from 2000 is more nu-metal,
while ‘Triumphant’ from 2003 is metal/rock and ‘Beastwomen’ was psychedelic
rock. I would say ‘Thor Against The World’ is my favorite because I'm
having so much fun going back to my Rock n Roll roots again. The new DVD
‘An-Thor-Logy’ coming out on Smog Veil shows different stages of my career.
UT: Even on songs like “Creature Feature” where you
didn't contribute to the writing, the lyrics seem very personal. Did you get
together with your collaborators and discuss certain things you wanted to
cover in the songs, or did they just know you well enough beforehand?
Thor: Frank Meyer and Bruce Duff, the producers of the
album, know more about me than I know myself. Frank Meyer could actually
become Thor himself. He just knows my life, career and how I think.
UT: Everything on the new album fits together really
well except for “The Coming of Thor”, which has a more “classic metal” vibe.
“True Blue” feels more like the end of the album proper, whereas "Coming"
sounds like the lead off track to a different album that might have had a
different direction in mind than what you wound up doing. Was that the case,
and did you have other songs more in that vein that didn't make the final
album?
Thor: I went back to the “rock roots” on this one,
with influences from the ‘Keep The Dogs Away’ period. “The Coming Of Thor”
has a feel of the “Only The Strong” album for which I still have a lot of
respect. Plus, ‘Thor Against The World’ being more of a fun rock record
still has a concept to it. Maybe TCOT sets up the next album.... ‘Thor
Against The Universe’?
UT: I know you're a bit of a comic book fan, so I'm
wondering if “Megaton Man” was in any way inspired by the Don Simpson comic
book character of the same name.
Thor: I wrote the original “Megaton Man” in 1976, so
his character which came much later was not an influence for that song. The
character was my own creation. During the show as I change wardrobe, I
become Megaton Man. I never did an actual studio recording of that song till
we did the new version on the new CD.
UT: How are you dealing with the logistics of using
two different backing bands on your upcoming tour? Have you had a chance to
rehearse with both units?
Thor: We will start the tour in Orlando, Florida so
the band will travel with me up the east coast and through the Midwest. The
nucleus of the band will continue with me and we will add more musicians on
the West Coast. These guys are real pros, so it will only take a few days
rehearsal in LA. I have a great friendship with all the musicians involved.
Everyone understands their duty. We are going out there to Rock!
UT: One of your movies, ‘Zombie Nightmare’, was used
for an episode of ‘Mystery Science Theatre 3000’. What were your feelings
about that?
Thor: The Science Mystery Theater TV show gave me huge
exposure. It made Zombie Nightmare the classic cult movie it is today. The
success of ‘Recruits’, ‘Rock n Roll Nightmare’ and ‘Zombie Nightmare’ has
given me a great movie career as well as music. As well as starring in
‘Zombie Nightmare’, I produced the soundtrack which included bands like
Motorhead, Girlschool and Fist.
UT: I understand you’re still involved in film
production. What projects do you have planned for the near future? Do you
only produce films where you’re directly involved in the
acting/writing/directing, or are you interested in producing other films as
well?
Thor: I'm involved with a lot of movie projects. In
addition to the USA Network movie ‘Murder At The Presidio’, the original
‘Rock n Roll Nightmare’ will be out on DVD this year. ‘Intercessor - Another
Rock n Roll Nightmare’, which I just finished, will also be out on DVD and
shown at various theaters on our tour. “Creature Feature” and “Easy Woman”
from the new CD will be in the movie ‘Creepies 2’. I do have some upcoming
film projects where I will just produce and direct.
UT: Based on the evidence of your new album, I'd say
you've still got a few more albums and tours left in you. When you first
started out, did you ever imagine you'd still be making music at this point
in your life?
Thor: Thanks! Making records, yes! I never thought
that I would keep touring. But if Keith Richards, after living an abusive
life, can still get up on stage then I feel a guy who bends steel should be
able to.
UT: Anything else you'd like to add that I didn't ask
about?
Thor: To everyone out there, always stay positive,
believe in yourself and keep on rockin’!
Visit the Thor
website.
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