Birthday: 30.06.1975
Residence: Osnabrück, Germany
My musical biography:
I wanted to make music as long as I can think. But I don´t come from that kind of musician families where all children have to learn piano from the age of 3 on, and I didn´t even feel the urge to practically begin with an instrument myself back then. Nevertheless it was always a dream in a fantasy world to make music. I even had the childish wish to enter ABBA as an additional singer when I was 6, which is not only funny because one year later they did split anyway. But all the time I have been musically influenced by my parents very much: I always “stole” the music tapes from their collection with songs of Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath or Jimi Hendrix on it. So I became a fan of rock music very early, and I rediscovered it in my teenage years with bands like Metallica and Iron Maiden. After failing to learn the piano – the reason have been the landlords of my parents who lived in the floor beneath ours – I started to play on the old guitar of my father at the age of 18. For a short time I got lessons from a class mate and later from a guy from a local metal band, but for the rest of the time I tried it out for myself. At the age of 19 I bought my first electric guitar and soon after the story of Xandria started with a session I did with two friends, because one of them was the drummer I founded the predecessor of Xandria with only a few months later. The rest is the story of this band…
Favourite……
…Xandria songs: Actually always those I am currently working on. In the moment also the whole “Neverworld´s End” album, which is like a dream coming true.
…bands / musicians / albums: Bands: Pink Floyd, Judas Priest, Paradise Lost, Emperor, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Motörhead, Nightwish, Alan Parsons Project, Meat Loaf, Pantera, U2, Abba
Musicians: Roger Waters, Jim Steinman, Alan Parsons, Hans Zimmer
Album: Tiamat – Wildhoney
…movies: The 007 movies, Once upon a time in America, Alien(s), Terminator 2, Planet of the Apes (1969), Spinal Tap, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars IV-VI, Indiana Jones (all of them!), Shaun Of The Dead, Silence of the Lambs and many more…
…books: Douglas Adams – The Hitchhiker´s Guide through the Galaxy quintology, and much stuff from the times when there have been written good science fiction like Tiptree, Asimov, Lem etc…
…drinks: Basic non-alcoholic: Water. Basic alcoholic: Beer.
Special: Islay Single Malts, Rioja.
Cocktail: Cuba Libre, Mojito.
…food: Sushi, Thai, Indian, steak, Spanish Tapas
Best Xandria Concert: Busan International Rock Festival 2004 (South Korea)
Biggest accident on stage: Up to now only the usual stuff: A string breaks and I have to skip one song if I don´t get it working again fast enough. And there is a certain part I sometimes fuck up which always makes me very embarrassed…
3 “must haves” on tour: My iPhone, filled up with all the music and books I love, an own towel (look my fave book), lust for adventure
Best experience on tour: When I see people singing the lyrics along. Exploring new countries and cultures.
A bad characterictic: Unpunctuality, moodiness – sometimes I can´t escape a bad mood and then I´m harder to bear with than I actually want to…
Place I want to go once: To other planets
This is what I want to experience: A travel through time
Wish for Xandria: To keep on having new ideas and being able to make them come true, to let this musical voyage never end!
Personal wishes: To never lose the ones I love. That mankind stops destroying itself and this planet. To get the final truth behind all. Unfortunately, all of them are unrealizable wishes… so I try to concentrate on the “small” things in life that bring joy to me and the ones that are close to me.
What I´d like to have: Currently a guitar that looks exactly like I want it to, and a lifetime ticket to Disneyland. What I would also really like to have is the ability to speak every language in the world.
This is what I always wanted to say: I want to thank everyone who helped me on my way and keep me from falling astray: My family, my friends, my bandmates and all you fans out there!!!
Equipment:
Guitars:
Washburn Mercury II
Gibson Les Paul “Platinum” Ltd. Ed.
Epiphone Les Paul « Gothic »
Yamaha APX-7 semi acoustic
Ibanez 12 String acoustic
Amp:
Earforce Supersonic 100 custom “silver”
Cabinet:
Earforce custom “silver” with vintage 30 speakers
