TNT Drummer Says There Is 'No Bad Blood' Between Band And Ex-Singer TONY HARNELL

Denmark's Antenna recently conducted an interview with TNT drummer Diesel Dahl. A few excerpts from the chat follow:

Antenna: You recently had to find a replacement for your distinctive singer Tony Harnell, thus finding AOR vocalist Tony Mills. Why did Tony [Harnell] leave?

Diesel: Tony Harnell had been in the band since 1984, but the reason he left was, because with him being an American singer in a Norwegian band, he found it exhausting due to the long distance. Whenever we had to do a show here, he needed to fly in two days ahead to not suffer from jetlag. He was tired of the constant traveling. There's no bad blood between the band and him. He decided to quit, and we decided to move on. Luckily we found a new singer and nice guy in Tony Mills.

Antenna: Why did you decide on Tony Mills, and how did you audition for a new singer?

Diesel: In this day and age, auditions go through the Internet with MP3 files. We listened to some of his material. When you're the singer in TNT, you have to follow a certain singing style. Most of the material, especially from the Eighties, is rather high-pitched, and we wanted a singer who could also do the old stuff. Tony Mills is one of Europe's most respected vocalists, and frankly he was our best choice by far.

Antenna: You personally enjoyed much success in TNT after the release of "Tell No Tales". Why did you decide to leave the band at this moment?

Diesel: You know, we were this hard working band from Norway when all of the sudden the American's took over. We spent so much time over there. There was a lot of money involved, yet there was never any for the band. I had my family back home in Norway. I just had had a daughter, and to tell the truth there wasn't exactly the best climate in the band, especially between Harnell and me. So I went back home and formed my own band TINDRUM, and TNT continued with various drummers.

Antenna: When can the next studio album be expected from TNT?

Diesel: In the beginning of 2007, hopefully around February/March. We're heading into the studio in November. We're using Ronnie LeTekro's studio [TNT guitarist]. Most of the songs are already written; Ronnie and Tony are the main writers. With Tony Mills in the band, we feel the urge to prove that we're still rocking and we still deliver high-quality hard rock.

Antenna: Your daughter Carina Dahl (web site) is an aspiring pop singer; is there any chance of a TNT/Carina Dahl collaboration some time in the future?

Diesel: She's now living in Stockholm, working with some guys who's got a lot of hits on their hands. There's no deal signed yet, but it looks really promising. TNT actually already shared the stage with her. It was really special for me that my daughter played the same stage before TNT went on.

Read the entire interview at www.antenna.nu.