MICHAEL KISKE: I Would Join HELLOWEEN For One-Off Appearance At WACKEN

In a recent interview with Lords of Metal, former HELLOWEEN singer Michael Kiske talked about his artistic departure from metal, his latest project PLACE VENDOME and a possible one-off reunion with his former HELLOWEEN bandmates at Germany's Wacken Open Air festival. A couple of excerpts from the interview follow:

Lords of Metal: Two years ago Kai Hansen [ex-HELLOWEEN guitarist/vocalist] made a cameo at Wacken as a special guest of HELLOWEEN. Could you ever imagine yourself doing such a thing too?

Michael Kiske: "If I was asked to join HELLOWEEN at Wacken, I would do it. I would never consider rejoining the band on a permanent basis. But if the band would ask me to sing one or two songs live I would like the idea — from a nostalgic point of view. A lot of people would certainly like that and as a one-off thing it could be interesting. A lot needs to be done in the meantime, though. The big thing that stands in the way of such a performance is my relationship with Michael Weikath. I have no problems with any of the band members, but Weiki and I simply aren't the best of friends anymore. Still, if he would ask me to sing with HELLOWEEN, I would certainly consider it; should the past get out of our way."

Lords of Metal: Do you think that we will ever get to see you perform live again, for example solo or with PLACE VENDOME?

Michael Kiske: "It is a possibility, but it ultimately depends on the record sales. To be honest, I feel very insecure about my role as frontman in any given project. I haven't played live in 13 years so I am not confident that I can still be the frontman that people expect me to be. I am simply not the long-haired entertainer anymore who rocks huge crowds. There's a tremendous conflict in me, because I simply do not think I will find my artistic truths on a muddy festival where hundreds of people shout out for 'Future World'. I am thinking about bringing my music to a different stage, like for example in a singer/songwriter context. I love what Richie Blackmore is doing at the moment with BLACKMORE'S NIGHT. I was introduced to that band by my friend Bruce Dickinson and was truly impressed by it. It is so graceful and so dignifying that it created its own audience. That is what I would like to do too: creating my own audience outside of the regular scene with my own music."

Read the entire interview at LordsOfMetal.nl.