MICHAEL SCHENKER Explains Why He Still Doesn't Listen To Any New Music

In a recent interview with Jorge Botas of Portugal's Metal Global, legendary German guitarist Michael Schenker was asked if he still doesn't listen to any new bands or pay attention to what is happening in the rock world. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yeah, I did [in the past]. In the beginning, when I was jumpstarted, [I was] inspired by all the late '60s guitarists. But then, [when I was] 15 years old, I already subconsciously knew that that was something I wanted to do. And when I was 18, I made that decision to stay away from [listening to new] music to self-express. Because when I heard the guitarists in the late '60s, they all had their own style. And it was really good — everything was, like, 'Wow, this is great. Oh, this is great.' All different. But [in] the '80s, everything was the same. And that was basically watered-down '70s; [they] made it simple and commercialized it [to] make money. But the '70s [and] late '60s guitarists, it was art; [they were] pure artists."

Earlier this year, Schenker told Classic Rock magazine that he doesn't listen to other people's music. "Never," he said. "I have never had a record player, nothing. I just watch the news and that's it. Listening to music would be poison for me. I need to be completely empty in order to create what I need to create."

In a 2019 interview with Decibel magazine, Michael was asked for his initial impression of Eddie Van Halen. Schenker replied: "I haven't listened to any music for half a century now, because my vision was pure self-expression and still is, and I don't listen to music so I don't get tired of it and get consumed. I knew intuitively what I had to do in order to keep fresh for as long as possible. By writing from within, I'm not part of any trend. Just the opposite: I'm a trend maker. In the '70s, that was my assignment. I created a trend for the '80s. But I must tell you one thing: When VAN HALEN did the first album, I couldn't ignore it. Eddie Van Halen, I never knew him until he made the first album, and I was blown away by it. Of course I didn't know he had a special technique of tapping. [Laughs] I didn't know what that was, so I was quite confused about how he was making that noise with a [guitar] pick. That was obviously very confusing for many people. How can he sound like this? But even regardless of a tapping technique, he is a very melodic, fantastic player, and one of my favorites, actually. And I cannot compare him to many people, because I never listened to anybody.

"The only other person I couldn't help but overhear was Yngwie Malmsteen, because he was playing faster than lightning — faster than the speed of light — and that was sensational. Based on that, I had to pay attention to him, but I found out very quickly that it was very repetitive. Those are the only two guitarists on my whole journey of 50 years that I paid attention to other than, of course, the people that I looked up to and that inspired me like Jeff Beck and Leslie West, all the great guitarists from the late '60s.

"I used to go guitar hunting, trying to discover new guitar riffs — something extraordinary. Then when I turned 17, I stopped listening to music altogether. I knew I had to do it the way I see it, so I did it from within. As a result, it turned out unique, because nobody knows what goes on in somebody else's head. Each one of us holds very unique ideas that are not known to other people until we release them. I somehow knew intuitively that that's what I needed to do. So, whatever came out of me, it was very attractive to other musicians or other people, because it was always something, like, 'I never heard that before. What is this?'"

Michael Schenker first appeared on SCORPIONS' 1972 album "Lonesome Crow", earned acclaim in the 1970s on classic UFO albums such as "Phenomenon" and "Lights Out" before rejoining SCORPIONS for 1979's "Lovedrive". He departed soon thereafter to launch MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP. And while his sometimes-erratic behavior have derailed parts of his career, Schenker remains one of hard rock and metal's most influential axemen.

Schenker recently announced a spring 2025 European tour in support of his "My Years With UFO" album celebrating the 50th anniversary of Michael's years with UFO. Joining him on the trek will be former SKID ROW frontman Erik Grönwall, who is the featured singer on the "Mother Mary" song on "My Years With UFO", which also includes a guest appearance by GUNS N' ROSES' Slash on guitar.