|
Mike Levine of
Triumph - Audio
Interview |
Classic Rock Revisited Editor Jeb Wright
has begun doing interviews for many media outlets.
Jeb has joined the team on a weekly show titled Decades of
Distortion. The interview
that follows was originally aired on the radio but we want to
share the interview with our readers at Classic Rock Revisited.
For too many years Triumph was too
quiet. Guitarist Rik Emmett was at odds with
drummer Gil Moore and bass player Mike Levine.
Lawsuits were filed, mud was slung and voices were
raised. The instruments, however, remained silent,
collecting dust in the corner in Moore's and Levine's
case. Emmett embarked on a successful solo career
but nothing like the worldwide success he had with
Triumph. This seemed to be one band that would
never get back together.
Then the unthinkable happened.
Canada put them into the Hall of Fame. Still, this
was not enough to completely bury the hatchet.
Tragically, it took something much more serious to put
things in prospective. It took Rik's brother
passing away. His brother made him finally
understand the importance of Triumph to both the fans
and to Rik.
The guys had dinner before deciding if
they would be able to forget the past and accept the
accolades their homeland was bestowing upon them.
Funny enough, the guys in Triumph, before the
war...before the lawyers got involved....were all
friends. They liked each other a lot and shared a
lot of laughs. The spirit of friendship ended up
showing through that night and before long Triumph took
the stage at the Sweden Rock Festival. Next was a
one off gig at Rocklahoma in the United States.
Then, once again, silence.
Triumph is now back with what they
consider to be their first true greatest hits album (one
was released by the record company but it did not have
the bells and whistles that Triumph has always insisted
their fans receive.) This time out they took over
the reigns and did it right . The classic songs are
there, remixed and sounding fresh. A bonus DVD
contains coverage of the band at the Canadian Hall of
Fame as well as many of the bands' videos, also given
new life and vibrancy in the modern age.
We caught up with Mike Levin, the bands'
hard working bass player, mouthpiece, publicity monger
and producer to see what he thinks of the new Hits
package. We talk all things Triumph, including if
the band may once again hit the trail and put on another
blinding light show in 2011.
|
