Metal Bulletin Zine: interview with Brain Damage (ex Vendetta) from Germany

Brain Damage (ex-Vendetta)

This is Metal Bulletin Zine’s interview with heavy metal/thrash band Brain Damage from Germany. Below is this zine’s original review of Brain Damage’s album. The review explains a bit about the band, and after the review is the new interview, which Micky (vocals/guitars) answered just a few days ago!

Brain Damage (Germany): Born to Lose … Live to Win

Brain Damage is the brainchild of former vocalist/ guitarist of 80s thrashers Vendetta (Germany) (on Noise Records) Michael “Micky” Werner. While Vendetta did not reach the level of success of Kreator, Sodom and Destruction, the two albums “Go and Live … Stay and Die” (1987) and “Brain Damage” (1988) are albums that I listen to on a regular basis, and hold in high regard, and would recommend to anyone into 80s thrash. Vendetta is still active today, but without the main figures of Micky and Daxx (also vocals/guitars), and with only the bass player from the old days, Heiner, today’s Vendetta is a different band in sound and vibe, as reviews have pointed out already in the past.

In my opinion, this band here Brain Damage carries on very well the values of old Vendetta: thrash that does not forsake melody; social criticism; the Vendetta songwriting vibe; and the familiar vocals. I have been listening to the album a lot and find a good quality recording with memorable songs. Actually, I find the album to be very good. I did not know what to expect, as I don’t know what Micky has been doing. Metal Archives does not list a bunch of activity between 1990, when he left Vendetta, and 2014, when the album was released. It does appear that Brain Damage is something that Micky had been working on for years on his own, and he plays everything on the album, except for the drums. The band started out as a solo project, the band is unsigned and the album is self-produced. I was able to find the album on Amazon and got it there, as it is very reasonably priced.

I’m certainly glad that I got the album. Brain Damage is relatively varied between thrash and a bit more melodic metal, and it shows a serious effort to have good guitar work. This better not be the last thing we hear from Brain Damage! Those into traditional heavy metal and thrash should give this album a chance. It’s about 40 minutes, eight songs; quality, not quantity; no filler. Contact: contact@brain-damage.eu www.facebook.com/braindamagemetal www.brain-damage.eu

How are things going for Brain Damage now, Micky? Were you pleasantly surprised or were you disappointed with people's reaction to Brain Damage?

I actually sort out my ideas for the songs of the forthcoming album. During the last few years I made so many song-ideas, they would be enough for a double-cd, but first I have to analyse them. The reactions to “Born to lose...” have been entirely positive. It seems, we still know how it works ;)

You did a lot of work for Brain Damage before it became a band. Were you not interested in having a full band? Or, did you have too many responsibilities of family and work to have a band?

2003-2006 I did a second education for the job of a “media-creator” (maybe you would just say “producer”) for audio and video. During this time I had a band-project, called “Suicide Nation”, but it already died after the first live-show. Then I established a little sound-studio and produced live-videos to earn money for my family of five. My children are 9, 17 and 18 years of age. But I always had in mind to found a new line-up again, - a real band, either able to play live-shows. 2012 the time was ripe. Surely it would have been great playing together with Daxx again, but he's not able to do this because of health problems.

Are there offers for Brain Damage to play shows in Germany and Europe? Are you interested in working with a record company?

In April 2015 we play in Dettelbach/Würzburg at the “Franconia Metal Festival”, together with Sodom, Korpiklaan, Dew Scented, Die Apokalyptischen Reiter, The Flesh Trading Company and others. The second of May we play in Andernach/Koblenz on the “A Chance For Metal Festival” (with Edge Of Thorns, Desaster, Dragonsfire etc.). Apart from that we concentrate on recording the new album and start to play live again in fall. If we can't get a deal with a record company, we plan to establish a label on our own. With the media “Internet” you have a real chance to distribute your product by yourself.

How would you describe the lyrics for Brain Damage in comparison with 80s Vendetta? Is it correct that you are still not a big friend of capitalism and politicians? You have written about anarchy. Is it frustrating to find that things do not seem to change?

I think the lyrics of today are more critical and direct, no wonder, if you look around! We live in a so-called Social State, but they exploit the common man, while the greed for money of the bigwigs has no end. Anarchy surely was a well-meant concept, but I think it won't work. There's too many different opinions in the population, so it's hard for any system to function without probs. With “Anarchy” we exaggerate a little bit just to criticize and polarize and either bait the reader. Politicians are the puppets of the economy. Economical interest is the reason for so many wars. Innocent people die because of an endless greed for money of the politicians and their masters.

Changing the topic a bit here. Can you explain how you first started out in music?

1980 I played bass and vocals in my first band “Rank Xerox”. We only played cover-versions (Ramones, Motörhead, Neil Young, Judas etc.). In 1983 I met the drummer Samson, and we founded Vendetta. At this time our influences were Iron Maiden, Motörhead, Scorpions, Deep Purple and so on. Especially in the first years of my guitar playing time, Scorpions was the biggest influence for me. Scorpions was and maybe still is the greatest German metal band. Later on, when Daxx entered the band, he brought influences like Metallica and Slayer. He also was a Venom-Fan, but I didn't like them so much. In my opinion they just tried to top the loudness and dirtiness of Motörhead, but they simply couldn't.

Vendetta was on Noise Records. Do you have some good memories from those days? You probably have some bad ones, too. By the way, did you know the other bands on the label, like Kreator and Scanner?

Noise was a company known worldwide, and we actually were proud to have a contract with them. The recording time of our first two albums was a beautiful experience. We spent several weeks in Berlin, the divided city and a burning point in history. Our only food had been Döner Kebab and Pizza, which we had right at the wall. The famous “Checkpoint Charly” was our neighbourhood for this time. With “Tankard” we had a lot of fun, when we shared the tour-bus for a few days. Daxx and Gerre (the leadsinger of Tankard) were drinking vodka like it's going out of style ;) Gerre couldn't start the show next night, without having visited the doctor! With “Helloween” we actually had our first big show, which was great!

You were in Vendetta from 1984 to 1990. What happened that you decided to leave?

Daxx left Vendetta his first time in 1990 for private reasons. Andre Klein took over his place for a year. But after that we had to realize that Daxx, as the main songwriter, simply couldn't be replaced. So Samson and Heiner founded the groove-metal-combo P.O.K.E. (Product Of Keen Energy) together with Daxx. In 1995 Vendetta's reunion occurred. We tried to develop a new style: a fusion of groove and thrash, and we recorded a 3-track-demo-cd with the songs Shine/La Pura Vida/Drowned. But I was the first to realize that this way of fusion-metal was the wrong one. This wasn't Vendetta any more, so I quit. The following 4 years were just for my family.

Do you regret leaving Vendetta and giving up the name of the band? Was it not strange for you and Daxx to leave the band that you were the songwriters and leaders for? No, I don't. Sure, it would be much easier with the famous name, I can't deny that. But having a new name, I'm able to do new things; nobody is actually waiting for the “Real Vendetta Sound”, you know.

(Daxx) That's the prob that the new Vendettas have. Everybody wants the Old-School-Typical-Vendetta-Sound, and they just can't deliver. At first it was kinda strange to see other persons playing our songs, having our name, but we both decided to leave, and so it is the right of the “left behinds” (Heiner and Lubber) to keep the band alive.

Daxx seems to have returned to Vendetta from 2002 to 2005. But you, Micky, did not. Can you explain this? Did you talk with Daxx about this?

(Micky) Daxx was at Vendetta again from 1995-2005. After I had left, we had no contact for years. Everybody did his own thing. Since 2008 we actually have close contact again and I'm happy about that.

(Daxx) After Micky had left, all the work of the group was on me: song-writing, teaching the band the new songs, leading the practise every week etc. etc. End of 2004 I had kinda burn-out-syndrome, so I had to quit. The plan was that I'll return, but I decided that it's better for me and my health not to come back. Now I'm composing songs and write lyrics for others (Brain Damage/Paradox/Vendetta) and that's good for me.

Do you consider Daxx as a brother? Both of your voices complemented each so well and it seems you almost had one mind when it came to songwriting.

For sure we are brothers! I'm really happy about having musical contact with Daxx again. On the “Born to lose...” album there's one song, we wrote together (Shooter), and one song, Daxx (his real name's Achim Hömerlein) wrote for us. This song's called “Terrorizer”. And we actually have planed to record one or maybe two songs from Daxx on the forthcoming album.

What else can you tell us about Brain Damage for 2015? By the way, after you made the 2014 album, have you heard from old friends?

At the time I sort out all the ideas, I collected over the last few years. Two songs are already finished; they just have to be recorded without any faults ;) They are called “War Crime” and “Walk On The Ridge”. The 3rd one has not a title yet, but Daxx is writing the lyrics right at the moment. One thing is still clear: the new album will be more varied and experimental as the 1st. When the recordings are done, we try to get some live-shows. All our friends and acquaintances have been talking very well about our début. Most of 'em told me, they see it as the continuation of the old Vendetta sound. Seems logical to me, because there's two former Vendetta-songwriters working on it ;)

Thanks for answering the questions. It's good to have you back!

(Micky & Daxx) Thank you very much! Thanx for the interview and for your appreciation! Bye bye :)

THE END

Brain Damage - Born to lose...live to win