Morgan “Evil” Steinmeyer Håkansson is a man who should really needs no introduction, having been the founding member and undoubted leader over the past 22 years of the Swedish Black Metal war machine Marduk– one of the most original and influential bands of this extreme genre. Following the release of the band’s twelfth studio album “Serpent Sermon” and having enjoyed a long conversation with the tall and fast-talking Swede in the past, I grabbed the opportunity to repeat the experience once again. Being of a similar age and sharing a fascination for a number of things, including WWII, we began to delve into various topics, including people’s perception and appreciation of history, the pros and cons of illegal downloading and the Internet and noted down a few pieces of advice for any young band out there from a man who has already been there and done it all! Enjoy.

By Yiannis (John) Stefanis

Hi Morgan. It is nice to be able to talk to you again, especially knowing how busy your interview schedule has been today but I guess this comes with the business, right?

Morgan: Yet is does (laughs). What’s most bizarre about doing interviews, though, is that you are asked to explain your music and your thoughts and I really think that it sometimes very hard to find the right words. Therefore, I really believe about letting the music do the talking as it is really there that you can get everything from and is the easiest thing to do, you know?

Quite rightfully so as, with art, you are better off finding things out for yourself.

Morgan: Exactly. Sometimes there are people asking me to explain this and that lyric and I cannot get that as I personally believe in the idea of not explaining everything. When you go and see a famous painting, especially the more allegorical ones, they contain things that you are asked to discover for yourself – the same is with music. You should never be asked to explain everything because this takes away a bit of the mystique of the music.

Having you performing again in London, a place that must feel like a second home to you by now, is an absolute pleasure.

Morgan: Yes, it is one of those places that we always return to and it always feels great to be here. We actually had one of the wildest shows ever in this venue (note: the London Underworld) even though it is a fu*ked up venue, I still like it.

This venue does tend to bring the band and the crowd closer together, something that makes total sense considering its size, however I always felt that a band like Marduk, for which imagery plays an equally important role as the of music, would manage to eventually play a bigger size venue here in London so as to finally get the opportunity to present your music in the right environment.

Morgan: I know what you mean. When we are on tour we play in such a large variety of venues; sometimes you go on stage and it is all so squeezed up and sometimes we play in really large stages – we are always adjusting to different stages. We are the kind of band that plays really well in small clubs but we are equally good when we play larger venues. I don’t know which type I prefer, because in a small venue, you get a different kind of energy, you see the people who are up front and you feel a different kind of aggression, whereas when you play festivals you sometimes get an eight meter gap between you and the crowd which feels kind of strange. I do appreciate doing them both, you know, as I think I enjoy the diversity too much I guess.

The last few years that I have been attending major festivals abroad I have seen many Black Metal bands becoming prominent in the billings, so much so that I would venture to say that an open air festival is becoming the ideal setting for a Black Metal gig – especially after the sun goes down.

Morgan: That is true. I remember having to play in some festivals in the middle of the day when you get all of the sun and that destroys a little bit of the feeling, but the same would be if you had a band like Slayer playing in the middle of the day! It does take away a lot of the excitement I think, but what can you do?

I actually saw Immortal once performing in Athens at a festival which took place in August under what was probably 40 degree (Celsius) heat, and witnessing their corpse paint gradually melting away was funny to watch for us but I am sure quite uncomfortable for them to experience!

Morgan: I have been there and done that, you know. I remember having the sun right in my face during a festival in Hungary…no, actually it was in the Czech Republic, the Pilsner Open Air Festival and I had the sun burning right into my face like I was on a beach or something. It did take a bit of the power of the music away I would say but it still worked – the music was delivered to the people so it all worked.

Having witnessed your previous interview I will add to my fellow journalist’s positive comments and say that I also feel that “Serpent Sermon” is a truly amazing album and I guess you are indeed very proud by the result achieved there.

Morgan: I am but I am also proud of everything that we have done. Even when I go back and check out our previous albums every once in a while, I really realise how proud I am of everything that we have done, even though I do see a few things that I would have wanted to change and had done a bit different. These things still reflect what we were about at that period in time and it is something I am not interested in changing – I am instead quite proud of, you know? Some of the earlier albums, when I go back and listen to them or read the lyrics I prepared for them, they ‘talk’ to me in a different way – they mean even more to me today than they did at that time. I am often trying to remember what I was thinking when I was working on them because they paint an even stronger vision in my mind now.

I am a firm believer in the idea that music works in circles and I also believe that art becomes in itself an inspiration to the creator, thereby creating another important creative circle. That is why I can understand why an album like “Serpent Sermon” can be as modern and innovative a Marduk release as it is a traditional one.

Morgan: I agree! What should I say…when I listen to the album myself I think that, for being around all those years, I think that it is a very good…it portrays a very strong side of Marduk’s personality in the year 2012. It is a strong album that indulges in both heaviness and fastness and I think that it is a perfect record in all those respects, you know? But we never sit down when it is time to record an album and say to each other “we have to do things this way” or “this is how we are going to sound on our next album”. For us, it is about working with music and lyrics and making them become one, then getting inside the studio and nailing the feeling and when we get inside the studio we tend to work really fast- we don’t take a lot of time there! With some albums, for example, I find my guitar sound in less than two minutes! I do not sit there for days with different amplifiers. I believe that it was when we were recording the “Rom 5:12” album that I took my old Marshall from the rehearsal room, put it up, put my pedal, did a chord and thought “yeah, it sounds damn good – this is the way we sound when we rehearse”! The same was with the new album! It is a very basic album when it comes to sounds; it’s still very strong. On some old albums like “Plague Angel” we would put five or six guitars on every song to get a big sound but on the new album we have only added two guitars and by doing that you get more of, how should I say, dynamics in the music.

Sometimes less is actually more, right?

Morgan: Yeah! So all we need to worry about is to nail the song, be in the right mood and have the right focus when you record – that is what is most important. We record on a time span of over two or three months but we sometimes do spend three days in a row- when we go in we forget to come out. We then go home for five or six days and then we return and work on the songs again. I like to work that way especially as we have our own home studio which means that we don’t have to work ‘nine to five’, we don’t have studio technicians that need to go and pick up the kids from school as that destroys a lot of the feeling. I mean, when we work we really want to work! Therefore it is great to have our own home studio as we end up working only when we are in the right mood for it. I have experienced returning to Stockholm three o’clock at night and going straight into the studio and work! It is great to be able to work when you are in the right mood and you get to have the things around you in the recording studio which you can use and appreciate as not many studios have the equipment that you need!

I do consider myself to be a Marduk fan and that is why I cannot begin to describe how annoyed I am with a certain ‘section’ of your fan base and the comments that they have been making throughout the years. During the “Panzer Division Marduk” era they were accusing you of being mono-dimensional and when you decided to go more for atmosphere as in the last three studio albums, it seems that the same people say things like “what happened – are Marduk going soft on us”! With “Serpent Sermon” being a mixture of both they complain again…I mean, there is nothing that you can do to please some people, right? It must be so infuriating for you to hear and read such comments!

Morgan: Not really. I mean, I know how it is that some people ‘work’ and so I don’t really get affected by it. As an artist I believe mainly in being true to my own vision and if the end result pleases everybody then that’s great – if it only pleases ten per cent of the people then that is good as well! Really, you cannot please everybody! As an artist you should never operate on the idea that you have to please everybody because you really have to do only what comes from within! If what I was feeling to do was Space Jazz music I would do that; not using the Marduk name but a different one. Even though we are always free to do what we want there are still certain elements that you cannot really add in a Marduk composition. A lot of bands lose their own spirit and move in directions that I personally don’t appreciate and the moment they realise their mistake they desperately try to get back to where they were originally. I think that bands like that ought to change their name before they decide to invest in something that is radically different and not use the moniker that they usually do. I mean, as I told you, we are free to do what we want but we still have certain obligations to adhere to. There are certain things that we would not do as, first of all, they do not interest us and secondly because you need to have a certain level of loyalty towards your music in order to be able to keep doing what it is that you are doing. This is what we love to do – we like to play fast and furious music and we love to play heavy stuff so we are doing what we like.

You mentioned in you previous interview that you are a fan of the music of Dead Can Dance and I assume that you are not really referring to the Goth, but their Atmospheric period, some traces of which can be found in your new album which is album number twelve, by the way. Have you never found yourself thinking “ok, Marduk is one baby – maybe I want to do something else also in the form of a side project”?

Morgan: I do as well. I have a side project called Death Wolf. We did one album on the Swedish Regain Records right before it went down and now we just finished recording our second album while will come out on Century Media beginning of next year. That is kind of a more…how should I say, a more Heavy Metal album of the Motorhead type and I play the bass there so, for me, it is something completely different that demands a different type of energy than the one when I work with Marduk and this provides more inspiration for Marduk in a way.

I was not aware of that so I am happy I asked that question now. Keep feeding me stuff like that – fantastic!

Morgan: OK (laughs). I mean, being around for twenty three years I probably feel stronger in body and mind now than I ever did before and that is a great feeling as one ought to think that it should be the other way round. As a band we feel more inspired than ever before, we try to do as much touring that we can in a row, be out there and spread the message of “Serpent Servant” to as many people as we possibly can. We already feel excited enough to go back home after the tours are over and start working on our new album.

Earlier on I checked again your tour schedule and it is indeed relentless!

Morgan: Yes, and there are more dates to come!

It is crazy! I believe that you and Rotting Christ are two of the most hard working Black Metal bands in the business when it comes to touring.

Morgan: There are also parts of me that feel content to be at home. Until the day I leave I will think to myself “oh, I don’t want to get away” but on the other hand I love the feeling of playing live, especially in places like Irkutsk which is on the Russian border with Mongolia. It is a great achievement to perform in such places that rarely Metal bands have been before and we do try to reach all the territories in this world. I mean, we were one of the first bands to play in Venezuela, Guatemala and all those places; for me that is a bigger achievement than to play in the same countries over and over again. It is great to discover new areas and the power of the people and their enthusiasm there…in Europe we are so used to having shows, especially in London where you can see everything at any given time as all the bands will be playing there, while not all bands go to Venezuela! As a result, they are really hungry for these shows and that is why you are absorbing so much energy out of these shows!

For my next question I will use the US as a point of reference, in the knowledge that this is the most difficult market to crack when it comes to Metal. If you compare the sales figures for “Serpent Sermon” after the first week of sales with those achieved by “Wormwood”, “Wormwood” reached position number 99 in the ‘new band’ charts, which is a ridiculous concept in itself, but let’s not get there…

Morgan: (laughs) But we must comment on that because it is really silly. I just don’t know what is wrong with the whole industry! You see, when any band is ready to do a new album they are estimated to do 10,000 sales in the first week of its release and that is the first week of sales which means shit! It is so stupid! If you read what’s being reported on Blabbermouth, I get depressed by reading what people are expecting you to do and what they think should be your achievements!

I sympathise, however, the fact remains that this idiotic system of describing one’s ‘achievements’ concluded that “Wormwood” reached position no.99 whereas “Serpent Sermon” reached position 44 which makes it almost double the sales which in the era of illegal downloading means absolutely nothing.

Morgan: I remember reading an interview with the guys from Anthrax actually where the interviewer said something like “oh, you’ve never reached such a high position in the American Billboard before” to which the guys replied “yeah and we now sell a fifth of what we did in the past” so it really doesn’t mean anything! People are obsessed with lists and things like that which don’t mean shit, you know? What does mean something is getting out there and playing for your loyal fans – that’s what really matters!

I agree with you but what I am trying to establish here is whether the above position means that there is something in “Serpent Sermon” which captured people’s attention in the US that was perhaps lacking in “Wormwood”. Is it that, or just a matter of sheer luck?

Morgan: I don’t know. I don’t even know how our older albums sold but something tells me that they sold even more in the States but I really don’t know as I am not keeping track. We didn’t tour the US for so long; from 2001 to 2009 we didn’t play there at all but what matters is that we now go there and play for our fans even though the States are a bit strange when compared to Europe. In Europe you have a constant flow of people but in the States there are certain areas that are very strange; every band that are from the States say that the market there is dead, you know? There are some areas that I think are still great and, as with other continents, when I visit the US I want to play in unusual places; I enjoying places like North Dakota or Albuquerque New Mexico. This is a great achievement regardless as to whether there are a hundred people or four hundred people in the audience – it is great to have done it, to have been there and put your mark.

I am actually a Historian with a strong appreciation of the period of WWII – a subject that I find to be absolutely fascinating and I know that you also do as it is a subject from which you have drawn much inspiration over the years. I believe that with History being the science that records human life, it is a science that should be cherished and invested in so as to be understood. I am quite annoyed with people who have chosen to associate Marduk with certain extreme ideas as, to my understanding; this is not really the case!

Morgan: Well most people like to see things either in black or white! For example, when I read history about a certain topic as in WWII or even a certain person, I will aim to read at least a few things about that person because different historians always use different angles to approach their subject and there is never such a thing as ‘one truth’! Different people look at the same things in a different way! When you write a biography about a person you either get affected and, even if you don’t like that person, you write about them in a certain way – not a positive way perhaps but it almost becomes like the kind of person that ‘lives’ with you for a while so a certain relationship is established there. People do like to see things in black or white, especially when it comes to topics such as WWII. I mean Lemmy has spoken about this topic before and has been chastised by some for openly talking about such things. If people took things for what they were they would have no problem with them. Just take things for what they are and don’t react like someone is trying to promote certain ideas! If my topics were about the Roman Empire, nobody would have asked me “what, you support the Roman Empire”? What do you mean by “support”? It is history, what can I do? It is interesting, it is fascinating and when you get into things you don’t have to support them. Even about a topic like the Thirty Year War, nobody would ask you “do you support that”?

Are you, by the way, a fan of Gustavus Adolphus (I laugh)?

Morgan: (laughs) Yeah! What does it mean “support”? You do get fascinated by people regardless as to whether they are good or bad, you know?

Good point, and most importantly, if you think that a specific idea is bad, the best way to tackle it is to present it and talk about it rather than trying to hide it ‘under the carpet’ so to speak, right? You present it to people and you let them reach their own conclusions and, at the end of the day, if people choose to reach certain conclusions you cannot and you shouldn’t stop them from doing so.

Morgan: Yeah and that is why I believe that I have the right to sing about whatever it is that I want to sing about and if certain people have a problem with that then they will simply have to take it. I understand that certain people might have such a problem but I don’t see why they should. If they don’t get what it is that we do then it’s OK!

Well, as far as I am personally concerned just make sure that you continue to do what it is that you do as you are doing it well and because we do, supposedly, live in a free world.

Morgan: Well, if you say so (laughs). As I told another interviewer before you, when it comes to history, it is absolutely tragic that a lot of people today , even though they now possess more ways of getting fast and vast amounts of information, they somehow know less and less about everything! Touring the States and seeing what they know about their own country is, like, indescribable – I get totally surprised! I believe that any country I would have lived or chosen to live in I would have immediately learned things about the land’s history! I mean, I know where I live, I know why we have the borders that we have, I know the history behind them and I believe that it is important to know such things because the stupidity of people who don’t know their own history is the one that creates even more conflicts and tensions around the world, you know?

Without going into any ‘conspiracy’ theories, the best way to control people is to control their intake of information and make them numb to things. You throw programs like Big Brother or TV and a few trivial everyday ‘news’ about which celebrity did what and you have achieved your goal.

Morgan: Yeah and that is what matters to most people! The same with the whole Facebook thing; people are so preoccupied visiting the Internet and checking what other people are doing! Even if you live in the same city with the people involved, you would still sit in front of the computer and ‘communicate’ with them. For me that is ridiculous, you know? I don’t have a Facebook site – I don’t need it! We do have one for the band, of course, but I personally I don’t need one. I already have a hard time keeping in contact with people that I know so I don’t need to sit there and write things on line. I really wonder if people still meet up at all or they simply choose to ‘connect’ with each other through Facebook.

You know Morgan this could easily be an age related issue as you are thirty nine and I am not that much younger than you so it could well be our generation being somewhat resistant to certain elements of technology…?

Morgan: (laughs) I guess that every generation tends to complain about ‘this’ or ‘that’.

I am also one of those people who think that “Souls For Belial” is an amazing video and I was truly surprised to have heard you say that it was quite a cheap one to make. I mean, it looks very professional indeed!

Morgan: Well, as long as you have a good vision you are halfway there, you know? E recorded most of our parts in a rehearsal room and the rest in the countryside. We knew how we wanted things to look and we had an idea of how to capture the feeling we were aiming at and it worked OK in the end.

You realise, of course, that those people who always enjoy making nasty comments will most likely turn and say “oh look, Marduk are becoming quite commercial now” (I laugh).

Morgan: When we did the “Throne Of Rats” video we used simple technology and of course it was a much more primitive affair with us spending €20.00 or something. All you need to have is a strong picture and the right feeling to get the message across.

I have to admit I am disappointed by the fact that you are only going to play for one hour tonight! I was kind of hoping for a longer set this time round as, if anything, you have released twelve studio albums and many top quality songs!

Morgan: It is hard to decide what to play and try to present it within the time frame provided which is unfortunately sixty minutes, especially when they have booked a venue which on a Saturday has to be closed by ten!

That is crazy! Anyway, I really hope that you will enjoy yourselves tonight because, based on my experience, the last four tours you have done, during which you have visited London, you have received a great reaction from the crowd which is well earned, as you are demonic on stage!

Morgan: Thanks but you never know how these shows will go. When you are out doing as many shows as we do there will be some days when the shows will not be that good and that is natural. I have seen Slayer so many times; sometimes they have been good and sometimes not very good but, of course, you believe in what you do and you try to go out and try to get the message across, you know?

Many artists crave the crowd’s energy in order to perform a good show. Is this something that you also believe in?

Morgan: I believe in it too!

That being the case do you even become annoyed or disappointed if you realise that certain fans who listen to your music do so mainly for its aggressive value rather than the message which you try to convey?

Morgan: I do feel that, yes. Sometimes when you put so much energy into your lyrics and ideas it feels bad when certain people would not bother to try to understand them but, I mean, you are still predominantly doing this for yourself. There are some people that are totally not getting the point and that is because they really don’t care – they will like the music simply because it is aggressive. What is most disappointing is to have people standing in the crowd not moving at all, staying to themselves! When you are right there in the front it should all be about energy! In Black Metal you do get people standing like this doing nothing but I personally prefer to have people reacting to what I do and doing whatever it is that they want to do as long as they are getting into it in their own way instead if just standing there and taking photos or whatever. I also saw once Bruce Dickinson reacting about a guy in the crowd for a similar reason saying to him “hey, are you here for the show”? Sometimes all you see is the lights from people’s phones shining. I mean, you are here to watch the show and offer your energy to it and not to watch it on YouTube later on! I mean, people nowadays record everything and then put them on YouTube and that takes away some of the magic of the music! Having said that, there are good things about YouTube as I sometimes find stuff about old bands like full shows from 1982. I mean back when I was young you traded things like bad VHS copies of shows but there was much excitement about it! You were waiting for this cassette to drop in your letter box – now everything is so accessible, which is both good and bad.

To my memory, going to a gig was pretty much a ‘take your life in your hands’ kind of scenario. I once went to see Destruction in Athens back in 1989 and there were many times throughout that show where I could easily have lost a limb or something as a result of the violence in the pit. Now things are much safer.

Morgan: Yes, they are. There were many people getting hurt back in the day and so they have come up with all those regulations to protect them. It was indeed crazy back in the day, crazier than now.

Illegal downloading & internet: friend or foe?

Morgan:…(note: short pause) that is also very hard to say because I still believe in what Yngwie Malmsteen said which is “you don’t go out to steal cars – why are you stealing music”?

Malmsteen said that??

Morgan: Yeah. I laughed also because he is the way he is –a very funny character, you know? I mean, with the internet you can spread music easier and that is something that I can understand but unfortunately the younger generations are not used to buying albums. I am used to buying music. I mean, what I miss today, with the music industry going down and people buying stuff from the Internet, is the feeling of being in a record store! I was walking down this street in Camden earlier on and two or three records stores that were here last time are not around anymore. The same way, I remember that in the town where I live we had five record stores and now we have none! We now have to go to the Media market which has a small selection and that is bad. I remember meeting with people and standing and looking at various album covers thinking to myself “is this good”? Then you got home and listen to it. Of course you can now discover things on the internet as many people do and when it comes to illegal downloading it is still stealing music but I understand it and…I don’t know.

I am not again sure if it is an age thing but I believe that people like me who are collectors are going to buy an album regardless as to whether they have a digital copy already, providing that they like it. People my age who download stuff are the equivalent of tape traders back in the day who would tape a copy of “Ride The Lightning” from Metallica on cassette and if they were never inclined to buy it they wouldn’t – if they were collectors they would buy a copy regardless. On top of that, my understanding of things is that, nowadays, bands make money predominantly from ticket sales and merchandise sold on shows, right? Is that not part of the reason why you guys go on massive tours every year?

Morgan: Yes, well I mean, it is a combination. I don’t know how many bands have been affected by downloading and I am sure that it has affected us but we are still selling pretty much the same amount of albums. You still make money out of doing albums but I guess that most of it is in touring and that is why most of the bands, even the ones that first existed in Metal, are out on the road again. All the bands from the 70s that had split up are back together and touring and all of a sudden all these people that used to hate each other’s guts are now like “oh, we like each other and we’re touring together”. I read one interview from a Swedish artist, an old Punk Rocker called Torsten, who has always been so truthful and I always liked him for that and the fact that he always said ‘no’ to things. He got offered so much money to do things in the past to which he would say “I am not interested” and he said in that interview things like “I don’t want to go out on tour anymore – I am not into it”. Then he did a ten day tour and the journalists asked him “you said earlier that you never wanted to go back on the road again but last summer you did it – why”? His reply was “yeah I did and I hated it but I just really needed the money”! My reaction to that was “OK, cool – I buy that”! Instead of saying things like “well, it felt so good” and all that crap he said “for the first time in my life I really needed the money”.

Honesty is very rare nowadays.

Morgan: It is indeed and so I respect him for what he said. I have more respect for somebody who says such a thing than the ones who say that they did it for fun, in cases like these with old bands getting back together! I believe that as a musician you will always find your way even if you have to make other music on the side – whatever will happen to us we will still be making music one way or the other, you know? Even if people don’t buy the albums we will perhaps release them on the internet for free – I will still put the same amount of passion and energy into making sure that they will come out! At the same time though, I believe that this situation destroys things for many bands because it interferes with something that has been around for a long time – the record industry. I mean, some bands need the budget in order to be able to make an album and as long as they don’t get that they will not be able to record. Studios are also going down and that is perhaps good as many studios have been charging so much people for so long and also technology makes it easier for bands to record albums. By having a good computer at home it is easy to make good music and get it out. The thing with the internet is that you can really spread your music.

I believe that the ones that are more hard-hit are those bands that did not manage to establish themselves prior to the change. Marduk are too well known to have such problems.

Morgan: I think that it is really hard to start a band nowadays and come to terms with all these things. I remember even back in the day when bands like Entombed or Merciless did their first couple of albums we were thinking “Swedish bands are doing albums” and then in the 90s everybody I knew started doing albums and maybe all this became too much after a while…I don’t know; it is interesting to see what will happen in the future. Things will always change and people always complain!

Do you see Marduk promoting and creating music without the help of a label in the future?

Morgan: Maybe. I mean, you need a label less and less today, you know, but it is always good to have them. When we decided to quit working with Regain Records when they were getting problems, a lot of those smaller labels did and will disappear and only a few big ones will survive – at least in Metal! When we decided that we needed a new label we didn’t settle down with the one that promised us most money in advance as we are looking for a longer cooperation and to work with somebody that has a strong idea of the future and the music industry and that is hard working and believes in the music. That was because a lot of labels sign up bands because they are popular and they aim to sell a lot of albums. I like to work with people that are into the music, you know? That is the most important thing. They also need to have a clue of what to do because they know that the industry is going to get worse and worse and still they have an idea of what to do and have a good mind to keep working, you know? A lot of labels in the past used to be this high profile…how should I say it…they used to have something like fifty people working for them with some not really doing anything. Some labels now kick a lot of people off and remain with two or three people doing all the work and it does work.

If a man of your experience and stature was asked to give advice to a young Black Metal band, or any Metal band for that matter, which is starting now what would that be?

Morgan: Whatever music you work with, whatever you do, it should come from the heart! Do whatever it is that you believe in and do not be affected by what is popular today or tomorrow. Even if it is not popular today it might just become popular again tomorrow. Being an artist is about giving a reflection on what you believe in and what you want to transfer to other people so you must do whatever comes from the heart, otherwise you are on losing ground or whatever (laughs).

Now, that is a great statement with which to wrap up this interview. I understand that you need to prepare for the show….

Morgan: Yeah. You need to work with what you’ve got and keep doing what you want to do. I mean, I remember back in the 90s when Grunge came in, I remember all those Hair Metal bands all of a sudden trying to become Grunge bands! That was strange especially afterwards when they tried to find their way back! I mean, you shouldn’t change but keep doing what it is that you believe in – even if it is not popular, just keep doing it, you know? Keep beating the drum (laughs).

Morgan, I am happy to see that the great feeling I had talking to you five years ago is still here in this interview!

Morgan: Yeah, I remember doing an interview with you backstage.

Well, I want to wish you all the best and personal success. You very obviously have a vision and you know what you need to do in order to turn that vision into reality and, as with everything in life, what you need is a certain amount of luck which I hope you will get. That is the only thing I am going to wish for you as the rest you are more than capable of achieving for yourself!

Morgan: I hope so – we try.

Good luck with your long and immense touring schedule, try to enjoy yourself as much as you possibly can and please kick ass royally once more tonight!

Morgan: I will try (laughs). Thank you!

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.

Next session: Sunday 19 January

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 1 December 2024.

UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 3 December 2024.

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Listen via Windows Media Player. Click or tap here and “open file”
Listen via other media player (eg. VLC) Click or tap here and “open file”

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com

Power Plays w/c 9 December 2024

In this sequence we play ‘The Best of 2024′ GRTR! reviewer selections

Featured Albums w/c 9 December 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2024 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2024 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2024 (Singer Songwriter)