George Lynch is in trouble — or at least trouble trails the guitarist's latest tour.full interview
Cruising through Texas to the next Souls of We gig, Lynch keeps his eyes peeled for police cruisers, trades jokes with his band mates and conducts a Classic Rock Revisited interview — all while driving the boys through Lone Star speed traps. It’s enough to stress the most dexterous of multi-taskers, but Lynch shrugs it off.
“It's how things are today,” says Lynch, happy to handle his own affairs after tasting the benefits and drawbacks of “handlers” who scheduled interviews, booked tours and basically coddled rock stars through the ‘80s. Things are different nowadays. With an unstable economy and downsized record industry, many rock artists not only release their own material, but also handle their own business, a DIY ethos that seems cut from Henry Rollins’ life story, not from a guy who played stadiums and toured with Van Halen.
But Lynch isn’t complaining. Many years have passed since Dokken played arenas and ruled the airwaves, and chances of finding “In My Dreams” on Clear Channel play lists are about as likely as Aquanet spraying its way into Lynch’s darker locks. And that suits the guitarist just fine.
“There's so much going on right now. I really keep busy.”
As if designing guitar prototypes for ESP and educating students in his online guitar academy weren’t enough, Lynch has spent the past few years releasing solo material, re-leasing vintage recordings, splashing paint on canvas, exorcising his darker musical demons with Souls of We and resurrecting Lynch Mob, his first taste of musical freedom after parting ways with Dokken. With Oni Logan back behind the microphone and Marco Mendoza and Scott Coogan holding down the rhythm section, the band's as muscular and mighty as ever.
“Oni is sounding great,” says Lynch, happy to welcome his erstwhile writing partner back in the fold. Smoke and Mirrors picks up where Wicked Sensation left off, but digs deeper than its Wicked predecessor — and much deeper than the self-titled sophomore effort released after Wicked.
From “21st Century Man” to “Mansions In The Sky,” Lynch's latest offering promises the game sweaty groove as Wicked Sensation while rekindling the guitarist’s passion for ‘70s rock and timeless blues. The album comes months after another George Lynch announced his arrival. Another Lynch? Well, if Souls of We is any indication, Lynch “suffers” from multiple musical personalities.
Hunger for straight-ahead rock keeps Lynch Mob pumping, while Souls of We explores darker territory. Both vehicles offer catchy melodies that truly rock, but Souls of We owes more to Alice and Chains and Soundgarden than Lynch Mob's more streamlined veneer.
But it's the latter vehicle that has longtime Lynch disciples particularly excited, and they can look forward to a Lynch Mob tour. Some dates might even feature Dokken on the same bill. But Lynch dodges specifics. And attempts to dodge traffic tickets cut short the following interview, leaving questions about future Lynch/Pilson material, a Dokken reunion and reasons for Mick Brown's absence in the Lynch Mob lineup unanswered. But read on as “Mr. Scary” drives the Lynch machine through Texas...
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