Interview with: Eric Brittingham from CINDERELLA

Hello Maria, how're you doing?

Well I am doing great.

Ah, yes Friday the 13th, hahahaha.

(laughs) Well, I've always been lucky. Actually I got married on Friday the 13th. And it was a Good Friday also...

A bit odd (laughs).

Actually I haven't got any feedback yet... hahahaha and I haven't talked to anyone yet, how do you like it?

Ah, yes, that was the live album that we did not want actually to put out. Universal wanted to put it out though and well... I think it sounds like shit... hahahahaha!

The album we put out now with Frontiers is an actual live though, that was it, there was no mixing, nothing, so that's how it sounded on the show, and the one that Universal did, the Live at Tokyo Dome, they had some guy to mix it and it sounds like crap you know and they released it and it's unauthorized, therefore the title. Because the band said we didn't want that coming out, we would love to have mixed it and make a sound like major sound and yeah.. well, anyhow if someone has listened to the Live at Tokyo Dome and was disappointed, we should make a new one, hahahahaha!

There is nothing on the table right now but we do plan to do a US tour this summer for sure and we would really love to tour Europe as well and South America, but we have to wait and see what the offers are and if we can afford to do it. We had offers in the past and then we would actually loose money, and we cannot do that, so we are crossing our fingers and hoping that we will do a European tour.

We would love to. Right now, we can't. We had a deal....

Yes, and the label fold it actually one week before we started to record. We were ready to do it and the label folds it because of legal crap though. But actually in that time we saw all these bands like RATT, GREAT WHITE, all these bands from the 80s putting new records out and they weren't selling, so we said if we had done a record that would be probably without a sold... I know that our fans would love to see a new record from CINDERELLA, but we must have a label and then, there is the probability of not selling, so we won't record anything.

Yeah, he's been working on his solo album for the past five years and I do not know where he stands with it, if it's going to come out, but I think he kinda feels the same way. He spent a couple of hundred thousand recording it, if it happens that a label, independent or major whatever, picks it up and they can't sell it, you know he probably won't put it out. I can't blame him, I mean I have a fellow band called NAKED BEGGARS, we have 3 cds and trying to push all over the internet, it didn't sell that many copies, you know we really have fun with it but at the end of the day, it costs you money.. you know, people complain but they do not go out and buy it so...they are not helping the situation... (laughs).

People, if I can say, they have the instinct of gratification in a short tension, they go on the internet, like youtube and see video clips or listen to an entire album, I have done it myself many times. You know every record that's come out the last ten years, you go on the internet and you listen to the entire album, and guess what... you are listening to it through a computer which sounds like shit anyway and then you go..Hmmm, naaah, it doesn't sound like something great, I am not gonna buy it... well what the hell!...hahahahahah, so that's hurting sales, just by doing that, the only exception was with AC/DC and their last record, they refused having it on iTunes, no video clips... and they sold millions of copies in the first week, so, the only way of hearing the album was by buying it.... You know... it's brilliant... WOW!!!

Yeap, that is the only way that a band is making money these days, and even in that, you know, in big concerts the tickets are really price-high and in club level... well in clubs in the US less people are going out mainly because of the drunk driving laws, so you know, who wants to go out have a couple of beers and end up in jail?..and so people are thinking..It's not worth it (laughs). So you see there is a big difference in the amount of people going out in clubs to see bands.

Oh, yes sure absolutely, imagine we have tones of material. Once again, before we record the last time we had something like 40-50 songs ready to record and that was eight years ago. If someone comes to us like tomorrow and offers a good deal, I mean we have no problem making as many records as they want. We have lots of songs written.

Everything changes, every song is experiences pretty much and when you experience something is to say that millions of other people have experience the same thing and they can relate to it. So sure, it would be relevant to what's going on and the way you try to write a song, the way you try to express the song.

Well I think the big plus in the 80s was the way the music industry was back then, you know you became fan of bands, you bought their record and they were able to make more records, and the record sales were quite enormous, that's the big plus of the 80s on the other hand the minus was the technology back then. Now the technology is great and through the internet is easier to promote a band. I wish it would be this easy to promote a band without any effect on record sales, but apparently you cannot have both...hahahahahaha!

Actually it happened on the last tour, hahahaha, I have a belt that I screw into the guitar. So when I spin it -I do not use strap on only screws- I want to know that the guitar will be secure , but even with those precautions, it happened that I pushed a bit harder, the screws were ripped out, and that happened a few times, the guitar went flying over the amps and broke the neck... we were with SCORPIONS back then doing the European tour, I think it was 1989/1990 and it was the very first show... and in the last tour, ahh it was awful., I threw the guitar so far, it came off my shoulder, I was standing there, in front of ten thousand people without a bass... oops sorry!

Yes, it is, but a bit embarrassing at the same time, 'cause you know, it won't be the last time that happens... hahahahah!

Yes my wife is the singer, but you know since four months we have a baby, so we might do some recordings in the future but for the moment we will take our time and try to raise a family.

If you are curious though, we have a myspace page www.myspace.com/nakedbeggars and our home page is www.nakedbeggars.net, check it out, I think it is pretty cool stuff.

Yes? It is rock, I like it, I think it is cool.

I was talking with POISON, they were on tour with DEF LEPPARD and they were selling 18000 tickets on a night, and that is actual ticket sales, without backstage passes and promotional stuff, and yeah that's a lot of people coming out to see a band. That would be great to see. Thank you for your time, hope that soon we'll tour Europe.