UFO Drummer: 'There's Something To Be Said For Playing Small Intimate Clubs'

Patrick Prince of Powerline recently conducted an interview with drummer Andy Parker of British hard rock legends UFO. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

On UFO's new album, "Seven Deadly":

Andy: "I'm real happy with the mix as such because I haven't been totally happy with the last couple [of albums], drum-wise. Which is a bit selfish of me, but you obviously got to start with your own stuff and I felt that the last couple, the drums were a bit buried — but I really like the mix. We discussed this long and hard before I left the studio this time and I think he [Tommy Newton] actually came up with something that I like a bit better. It's more representative of me or how I would like to sound."

"There's some good stuff on there. It still has that blues kind of tone that we're going through right now, which the band has kind of been in since I came back in '05. I noticed that it had gone more from rock into the blues thing. And, to me, this whole blues thing, where it was at when I came back, it's kind of where it was at when I started with the band. That's where we came out of, so, to me, it was a natural progression to go back to your roots. I don't know if it's going to stay like that. As far as I'm concerned, it may not be to everyone's liking, but it's real. And it's from the heart. I think that matters more."

On whether he knew that the band had something special while in the studio for "Seven Deadly":

Andy: "It usually takes me awhile. I have this thing sometimes. If I really like an album straight out of the box, I get bored with it real quick. And some of our albums I have to listen to them. At first I think, 'Man, I don't like it that much.' It's a disappointment. It's like Christmas, I open up this gift and it's 'Oh, I didn't really want this.' But then after awhile you go, 'Hang on. I see.' You're kind of in the dark with [vocalist] Phil [Mogg] because he does keep things a bit quiet until he's ready. You go, 'Man, I wasn't expecting that!' And sometimes I find those are the ones I end up liking the most. They tend to creep up on you, you know."

On whether he thinks UFO should have been more popular in America, starting with back in their heyday:

Andy: "I think we would have been more popular. I think Michael's [Schenker] leaving was a very poor timing. I mean, we were really riding a wave there and we had some successful albums and the band was really getting a name, but there's no point in looking back. It's not gonna gain you anything. 'We could've been this. We could've been that.' Which is to say why I'm so happy we are out there still doing it. For what it is. Yeah, we don't play the huge places anymore, but there's something to be said for playing small intimate clubs. I really enjoy that. And I kind of missed that. And they're still out there to play. There was a time when those venues almost disappeared off the map. But now there's a lot more of them. And I really think that's healthy."

Read the entire interview from Powerline.