John Wetton is een van de groten van de progressive rock scene. Na veel solo werk en via een hernieuwde samenwerking met toetsenist Geoff Downes leidde zijn pad een paar jaar geleden terug naar de band Asia. Samen met Downes, drummer Carl Palmer en gitarist Steve Howe bracht Asia onlangs het tweede post reünie album ‘Omega’ uit, waarmee de opmerkelijke creatieve weg die met de comeback plaat ‘Phoenix’ twee jaar geleden was ingeslagen verder voort. Wetton was vanuit Engeland bereid om dit telefonisch toe te lichten aan ons…
Hello John, how are you doing? Hi Winston, I’m having a bit of a cold at the moment but I’m fine thank you, how are you?
Having a bit of a cold myself as well, so I know how you feel, haha… Time for the summer to come then…
Yes, let’s hope so, but that’s not why I’m calling of course. I was impressed by the new Asia album, better than I imagined and expected to be honest… It’s more straight forward and I think it was intended like that looking back. I just write my music and when I played it to our producer Mike Paxman, who was recommended to me by my good friend Mick Box (Uriah Heep) saying how his approach was very direct and rocky it fell together when we met him. He loved the idea of putting Asia more into a rock pocket while keeping the lyrical edge. He was open to ideas but also firm in the studio. What was very important to all of us in Asia that he could be a sort referee, but he didn’t have to pull a red card, we did come close to yellow card sometimes, haha. We need that or else it threatens to get in a big row and that could have led to the band breaking up. We wanted it to keep working and Max was perfect.
..and you learned from the past of course. It was kind of a surprise to see Asia release a follow up to ‘Phoenix’ this fast. We did indeed learn from the past. We wanted to let it show that we are still a true and real band so we kept on going. We are together longer than the first time and also played more live dates now than in the eighties with this line up. The band is still very tight and I hate to say it but things are looking very good at the moment. We had an important band meeting and rehearsal yesterday, we changed our whole set around, we will be selling Asia only merchandise at our shows and we won’t be playing our other bands songs anymore live. We are really into it.
It’s not a shame to refer to your past members though… Sure it’s not but when we first got together it was always about Yes, King Crimson, ELP. It took a long time before that passed. We did some songs by these bands during the last tours and now we are moving on. But we can always dig them up if we want to, but not this time around. The response I have been getting through my website when I said we will be doing Asia only material were very positive and thankful even.
Did that also have some influence on the new material? I think so, yes. It’s similar with the very first two albums ‘Asia’ and ‘Alpha’, we were kind of afraid to become this new band because of the past bands we were in on the first album, despite of the hit songs. The second one was more how we really wanted to be as the band Asia. And this seems to have happened this time too with ‘Phoenix’ and ‘Omega’. It also fits to the name as well, ‘Alpha’ and ‘Omega’, it happened in a natural way but it doesn’t mean it is our last one, haha.
If things keep going like this you probably have to make another one anyway… There are no reasons at all to think ‘Omega’ is our last one, no. People were afraid that it would be and were saying “it’s very Asia” to call it like that, so I said what’s wrong with that? We áre Asia!
Musically speaking you guys seem to be on some sort of creative flood; Steve Howe is doing Yes and his own Steve Howe Trio, you are doing solo albums, iCon with Geoff, Carl is doing ELP again. Steve is the hardest working man in show business, haha. I forgot to tell you. He will be Asia’s support act… No I’m just just kidding hahaha!
Hahaha, well, I wouldn’t be surprised really… you are all, if you don’t mind me saying, a bit older now. How does it feel to be still very creative like this? We are older but also a lot more tolerant with each other. People are allowed a bit more space, time and more comfort zones. In our thirties we were more brutal, there was no give and take. I feel very comfortable in the band now, I can say whatever I want and when I bring a tune in everyone will listen to it. That is the good side of being older, the downside that you don’t have the full energy anymore so we have to build that into the touring. Fortunately and I’m touching wood here, my voice have been behaving quite well on tour over the last five year. No smoking and drinking helped a lot there of course. We don’t play more than for shows in a week and travel shorter distances in between. It’s a lot easier but still rock ‘n roll at least for the road crew it is, hahaha.
While on the subject of touring, Europe is first up, what happens after that? Sixteen dates in Europe, straight to Japan for five dates after that, Then we take a short break before to the US for all of August and a few festival dates in between.
The new High Voltage Festival in London is one of them I noticed! Yeah, that’s a big festival and the reason we aren’t doing UK shows now. An exclusive for High Voltage. It’s turning into something great, for prog fans especially, the bands on the prog stage are getting better than on the main stage, with Opeth, Marillion, Transatlantic, Steve Hackett and others...
I will be there to see those bands ánd Asia as well, one band seems to be missing as many great names are booked. How cool would it be to have Yes added to the bill… Absolutely but I haven’t heard Steve about it but who knows. They are touring the US a few weeks before.
Mentioning Yes, I read that you will be recording with Billy Sherwood (in Yes 1994-2000)? Right, Billy and I have been doing lots of stuff together already, mainly for the cover or tribute albums he was doing a few years ago. I was very impressed by the way he did these, I think I did appear on about ten of them. I saw something in him apart from being the producer. He’s a prog fanatic and kept sending me all sort of songs. So after three iCon albums and two Asia album it’s time to do a solo album again and in October I will hook up with Billy to see what will happen.
And so yet another Yes name will be added to the family tree... \
I’m hoping it will turn out to be something in the vein of my album ‘Battlelines’…that will be our main aim.
Good luck with that John and with the Asia touring first of course! Thanks a lot Winston, hope to see you at High Voltage in London, say hi when you can…
A nice invitation of course and I will go and say hi when I can but as the bill is shaping up more than fine I doubt very much if I can find the time. John Wetton clearly is more creative and active than ever and hopefully we’ll get much more fine music from him in the next couple of years.
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