When I first contacted Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal I was taken aback by the guy's genuine interest in his fans. I firmly believed Ron to be the “only nice guy in the music industry” and even frequently stated such a notion. However, at Bald Freak Music (a label in which Ron is heavily involved), I was pleased to find another strikingly amiable character, Ron Scalzo (also known as Q*Ball). It is with great pleasure that I can now say “I know the two of the few remaining musicians who strive for their fan's contentment”. When I first approached Ron Scalzo for an interview on both himself and “Bumblefoot” his immediate obligation was nothing short of refreshing. Q*Ball is an astoundingly warming person and his music represents a superlative also. I thank him unreservedly for providing what follows this opening:
1. What genres of music do you have a tendency to pursue in your musical exploits?
Q*Ball: I think my criteria doesn't focus on genre as much as mood - it's gotta make me think, it's gotta make me cry, or it's gotta make me move. That's really the philosophy behind Q*Ball. I certainly drift to certain genres like electro-pop and dance and funk because of the instruments I play, but what the hell is a 'genre' anyway nowadays? I hate having to add a genre when I encode all my music for digital distro.
2. What inspired you to put together musical ideas of your own?
Q*Ball: Like most other musicians, I heard really good music as a kid and a teenager, and I was hooked early on. Going to that first live concert (Jesus Jones at The Academy!), hearing the drums mic'ed up, the guitar amps at full volume just electrified my fucking brain. 7 years of piano lessons, 3 years of drum lessons probably played their part, too.
3. Whom would you outline as being your musical influences?
Q*Ball: Trent Reznor, Beck, Mike Patton, Radiohead, The Beatles, James Brown, Beastie Boys, Bumblefoot, a lot of 80's new wave bands like Depeche Mode, Tears For Fears, Tangerine Dream. So many artists past & present have played their part in this Q*Ball mess haha!
4. To date you have released three studio albums (“This Is Serious Business”, “Fortune Favours The Bald” and “Q*Ball In Space”. Could you generally describe the vibe from each record?
Q*Ball: 'Q*Ball In Space' came first and that was just me bringing a bunch of tunes I had written to Bumblefoot and asking him to record them, play guitar on them, add his ideas to what was already a well-thought out album's worth of songs. I had been in an electronic band called Secret Army before I started Q*Ball and I always thought the biggest flaw in that band was the lack of a quality guitarist. I knew Ron would bring a new level of professionalism to the project and I was super pumped when we started to polish off the first few songs. It was the first time we had worked together as a team, we did most of the recording at his house in Jersey. Lots of cat hair (Ron has lots of cats).
'Fortune Favors The Bald' was an attempt to outdo the first album and it came from a much darker place as a result of some major changes going on in my personal life. I had experienced some failures that made the album title a bit ironic, as I didn't feel very fortunate at the time. But you write what you know, and making the album was fun and cathartic in spite of my personal drama. Ron had just bought a house in Princeton and was knocking walls down, turning it into a studio, so a lot of the tunes were recorded amongst rubble and dust. I remember singing "John Hughes" with big garbage bags full of plywood and insulation all around me. I think this was the best album we did together since we were both the most focused on making something great together and there were little distractions at that time in our respective careers.
'This Is Serious Business' was more of a collaborative effort involving other folks, as Ron was on duty with GnR at this point, but he still managed to mix and master the album, not to mention his contributions on some of the better songs - 'His Name Is Goliath,' and 'Pez Dispenser' are two of my faves. Ron's bass guitar work on this album is so kick-ass. I was in a better place personally while we were making this one and it's definitely a more upbeat record. At the same time, it's a bit of a mixed bag - a lot of different styles on one album, and while I like the songs individually, I think the album suffers as a whole.
5. You describe Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal as being your “partner in crime”. Could you delve into how your relationship with Ron came about?
Q*Ball: I met Ron in 1997. We were making our first Secret Army CD at a basement studio in Brooklyn and the studio owner had an engineering partner who would come in and work the board for a lot of the bands who came in to record. Mainly a lot of hardcore bands from the Brooklyn scene like Most Precious Blood and Shutdown, and Secret Army was definitely a different animal. Some dude with a red wool hat walks in - there are holes in the hat and little dreadlocked tufts of hair sticking out from the holes, and we're like, 'Who the hell is this maniac?' Ron wound up engineering most of the album and like most people who get to know him, we still thought he was a maniac, just a super cool one. At the time, I had no idea about his abilities on the guitar or his solo albums, but I came to see his band (which was called Bumblefoot) a few times in NYC and my head exploded. Wow. In between short tours, Ron was really getting into the production end of things, and there was always a need for him to tweak some live tracks we needed before playing a show, so we always stayed in touch because of that. After Secret Army came to an end, I was playing keyboards in an alternative rock band for a few years, and in 2001, I started dabbling in electronic music again as Q*Ball. There was no one I wanted to work with more than Ron and he foolishly obliged me. 3 albums, a ton of songs, good and bad live shows, and plenty of war stories later, we're still great friends and musical cohorts.
6. “Bumblefoot” has helped both musically and production wise on every Q*Ball album. How important have his contributions been?
Q*Ball: Indispensable. Those 3 albums wouldn't exist without Bumblefoot's contributions. My Achilles Heels an electronic artist are Ron's greatest strengths - knowledge of audio software, patience, perfect pitch, the ability to play a stringed instrument. I've fancied myself more of a bricklayer when it comes to songwriting - quality ideas, lyrics, and melodies, a little keyboard and vocal flash here and there, but if I lay the bricks, Ron decorates the place, and makes my tidy little house look like a palace. It still bugs me that he's not as heralded as a producer as he should be. You can blame part of it on his guitar skills, as people probably can't imagine a guy being so masterful at two separate things, but he is. Most producers hide behind thousands of dollars worth of gear and reputation, Ron does so much with just his ears, his brain, and his two hands.
7. You along with Ron Thal established your own musical label Bald Freak Music. What does Bald Freak Music stand for and what impulsed you to bring about its creation?
Q*Ball: I've been let down by the industry and so has Ron. You can argue that Ron is in GnR now and I'm signed to Metal Blade, have my own label, put 3 albums out - so why should we feel let down? It took a long time for both of us to get to where we are and it wasn't without its misfortunes and bumps in the road that slowed down that progression - and it wasn't just one label or one booking agent or one club owner, or the dozens of musicians we committed our time, money, and energy to over the years - it was all of it. If one guy wasn't making empty promises, another wasn't showing up for rehearsals, and another was lying thru their teeth about what they could do for our music. I think we were both just tired of it. People are flakes and the music biz is a fucking dandruff factory.
I remember being 17 - I was a shy dude, playing drums and singing in my first metal band. We won our high school battle of the bands because we mixed a lot of good grunge into our set with our originals and the college-aged judges dug that we had our ears to the walls of alternative music. A kid in another band that played was impressed with my voice that night - real nice guy, good guitarist - and asked me to sing in a Rush cover band he was starting. At the time, I wasn't huge into Rush and the kid made me a tape, gave me handwritten lyrics to 'Red Barchetta' and half a dozen other songs, was super psyched to get it going. And I flaked on him. Told him I would do it and after a few weeks, just bailed on it because I wasn't familiar enough with the material and probably not brave enough to pull it off. I always felt bad about that and ever since then, I've committed myself to being a reliable and responsible musician.
Bald Freak Music is for us - for our projects, for our friends who want to do things on their own terms with little pressure. We're not blowing up the world, we're just getting things done slowly but surely. I don't have investors, it's all mine and Ron's money, and it was born out of necessity because Ron and I are both scarred by our dealings in this cutthroat industry. We're not cutthroat guys, we're musicians who want to sit on our own little beach, lay out a picnic blanket and eat lots of hot sauce on it without anyone coming over to kick sand in our faces.
8. Studio wise yourself and Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal have become somewhat of a deadly duo. Just how good is Ron as both a guitarist and person?
Q*Ball: Ron has been very generous with his time - Q*Ball hasn't made a ton of dough, and years later, he's still in the trenches with me whenever he can be. He's done plenty for a lot of other artists out there who he didn't owe shit to, that's just who he is. He's one of the good guys, plain and simple. Does he have his moments and his moods and have we had our squabbles and disagreements? Hell yeah. We've known each other for 15 years, that's only natural, and our battles have been short-lived and have been learning experiences for both of us. But our relationship is very unique, built on a mutual respect and empathy for what we've experienced as artists and people and what we will continue to experience for years to come.
I don't have to tell you what type of guitar god the guy is, you already know. It's not just the noodling, the shredding ability, the jaw dropping stuff you hear on "Guitars SUCK" and "Don Pardo Pimpwagon" - he's just a professional who can play anything, any style, and play it spot on every time. He's a fucking android. A bearded Jewish android.
9. Recently you along with Ron created the fantastic track “Submarine” (which simply exudes aquatic imagery). Could you describe the creation process of the song? What is the meaning of “Submarine”?
Q*Ball: "Submarine" was one of a series of monthly singles I started releasing digitally as Q*Ball beginning this past Summer. "Submarine" was one of those happy accidents - I came to Ron's studio intending to work on another song but wasn't really feeling the vibe going in so I suggested we dig into the archives for some unfinished symphonies we'd previously worked on. "Submarine" was one that we both kinda dug and we took it and gave it a makeover. I'd like to say there's a specific process we employ, but there isn't - each song kinda speaks to us in its own way as far as what it needs or what direction to take it in. "Submarine" was no different - the chorus came kinda quickly and naturally, and all I usually need is a song title or a line in the song to get the rest of the lyrics out of my skull. "Submarine" is about a failing relationship - we've all had 'em - about trying to escape from your problems rather than addressing them, and what fates awaits you if you choose that route. The only constant in the production process when Ron and I get together is that at some point we both feast on a ton of sushi, and "Submarine" was no different. It used to be KFC before Ron joined GnR, but we're both watching our weight. Or at least watching all that sashimi go down our gullets haha!
10. Your enticing voice along with Ron's guitars seem to consistently produce fantastic results. Will you (again) be linking up with Ron sometime in the near future to create some more “beautiful music”?
Q*Ball: Shit, I hope so. Ron's actually coming here this week to help me track some new piano tunes I've been working on. I bought a Yamaha upright earlier this year, just had it tuned, and I have about ten new songs swimming in my head. Very personal stuff, and if "Fortune Favors The Bald" was any indication, I have high hopes for these new songs. Ron and I also did a song called "Sinful Nuns" a few months ago, a very wacky Bumblefoot-sounding tune that's out on iTunes.
11. What should fans of Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal expect for 2011 (aside from Guns N' Roses)?
Q*Ball: Ron is always lamenting to me that his commitment to GnR doesn't really allow for him to spread his wings as far as he would like as a solo artist and a producer, and that's certainly understandable. But I know he'll do whatever he can to keep the Bumblefoot stuff fresh for the fans. I've been bugging him to get back on stage as a solo artist lately, he's got some new material that he's been working on that will see the light of day in 2011. What I've heard so far is pretty massive. Bald Freak was heavily involved in the re-release of "The Adventures of Bumblefoot" and my new publishing company, Bad Button, was involved in the release of the tab book, so I'm hoping we see "Hermit" re-released in 2011. Ron also has some cool cover songs that we're gonna put out, some new merch for the kiddies, and of course, I hope to hear his magic on some of the new music I'm working on as Q*Ball this coming year. And then of course, we should all expect to see Ron's Beard achieve world domination at some point.
12. And finally, would you please outline your own personal exploits for 2011 and is there anything else you'd like to say to fans of the Bald Freak Music franchise?
Q*Ball: In addition to these Q*Ball piano tunes, I'm working on a new electro project with my former Secret Army bandmate Mike Bandolik called Hooper. I've pretty stoked about it - Mike worked on the Q*Ball single "Filling In The Cracks" with me a few months ago and I was real happy with the results, was hoping the collaborations would lead to another project and this is it. It's got a fun blend of 70s soul, modern-day hip-hop, and Nine Inch Nails style moody rock. I just wanna get back on stage this year in some capacity and perfect a live show for once in my life, it's been too long since I did it with Q*Ball.
My hard rock band on Metal Blade, Return To Earth, got some nice acclaim for our 2nd album 'Automata', and we're gonna do some shows over the next few months. Chris Pennie (Coheed and Cambria) is my drummer and he's off the road with Coheed for most of 2011, so that will mean a lot more RTE material being written this coming year, as well, which I'm real excited about. Bald Freak is picking up a few new acts next year, too, including a modern rock band from NYC that I've been courting for awhile called The Head Set. Can't see enough about how good their songs are, hoping to get them the exposure they've long deserved.
I always bow down to anyone who supports Bald Freak, who helps spread the gospel about our acts, and you guys are no exception. It's so hard to get people's attention nowadays, no matter the number of releases, Facebook fans, Twitter followers, newsletters, etc. Word-of-mouth is still the best way to get noticed, and I thank each and everyone of you who's forwarded over a link, re-posted an article, bought someone a Bald Freak artist album, wrote a great review, joined our Street Team, or read our blog. You guys and girls are what makes it all worthwhile, and I thank you. I hope you enjoy what we have to bring you in the new year, I'm pretty pumped about it :)
Click the following links to delve deeper into the Q*Ball lair:
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