Interview & Review by Shawn Perry
Photos by Ron Lyon
I wasn’t really sure what I was walking into when the opportunity to see UFO at the Coach House came along. The last time was at the same venue some time in the mid 90s. For that show, they had the reunited classic lineup of Phil Mogg, Andy Parker, Paul Raymond, Pete Way and Michael Schenker. I had been fortunate enough to see this same configuration in the heyday of the late 70s, opening for Rush and Blue Oyster Cult. Tonight was going be different. Mostly because Way and Schenker weren’t part of the mix.
In my mind, UFO should have been bigger back in the 70s. The albums — Phenomenon, Force It, No Heavy Petting, Lights Out, Obsession and the live Strangers In The Night — are now treasured hard rock classics, blueprints for the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM). Schenker, of course, was the wild card in the deck. He more or less bailed on the band just as Strangers In The Night started to break. Noble attempts with other guitarists like Paul Chapman and Atomic Tommy M failed to raise the band’s already shaky stature back in the 80s and 90s, but time has been good to the music.
The UFO of today celebrates its past while embracing its future. This is due to any number of factors, but you could say guitarist Vinnie Moore is the man of the hour, square in the middle of what’s keeping UFO a significant entity with something still to offer, its musical muscle ready to flex and bend. And like anyone coming into an institution, he’s more than aware of what needs to be there and what can be embellished — for the greater good of progress and relevancy.
A few words with Vinnie Moore
Perhaps, the only way I was going to get to the bottom of what I already knew about UFO and what I could expect to see tonight was to chat with the band’s guitarist of nearly 10 years before the show.
Prior to joining UFO, Moore had established himself as a prolific shredder with a half-dozen solo albums to his name. It only seemed natural that a guitar-oriented band like UFO would want some one of his caliber.
Moore said the tour was going well. It was only three weeks, beginning in Chicago on November 15th and ending December 1st, not far from here in Corona, California. The band would take a break for the holiday and then return to the stage in February for a string of 2013 dates through Europe.
We spoke about the band’s latest album, Seven Deadly, and how it came together. “We started writing ideas and sending ideas (to each other).” he said. “We usually come up with a bunch of ideas beforehand, and then we get together and rehearse and filter things out.”
I asked the guitarist if there was a different process to putting this one together than the previous three he’d appeared on. “There’s really no method of madness,” Moore mildly shrugged and smiled. “We kind of get inspired and get together and a record emerges.”
After listening to Seven Deadly, I can confirm it’s a departure, more varied in many ways, from any of the classic albums of the 70s. Moore’s hand in the songwriting, as well as on the guitar, has obviously affected the UFO sound and style. The guitarist, however, also credits Phil Mogg with how the band has evolved and diversified.
“He’s inspired by different things than he was 10 years ago, in the 90s, 80s and 70s. I can give him 20 songs, and he might feed off the five that are bluesier.” Moore explained. “I could write a song influenced by their 70s style and give it to him. He might hear it and go, ‘Nah,’ and not like it.”
Still, I have to wonder about guys like Moore and Steve Morse, guitar virtuosos who get hired by bands like UFO and Deep Purple to replace guitar legends like Michael Schenker and Ritchie Blackmore. Does Moore feel any sort of obligation or pressure to live up to that kind of legacy?
“I’ve never felt I’ve had to live up to anybody’s legacy but my own,” he pointedly answered. “I have to live up to best of what I can be and I really don’t care what anyone else is doing out there in other any genre of music. I mean, I’m a fan of a lot of people, and, of course, I have people that I like, I’m inspired by and listen to. But as far as what I’m doing, I’m just following my path.”
And that path continues as the guitarist plans to wrap up another solo album during the break, with an expected release date for some time in 2013. Moore assured me he will self-release the as-yet-titled solo album of instrumentals.
Before departing for my seat to watch the show, I asked Moore about Pete Way, UFO’s original bassist who’s been in and out of the band for the past few years, due to several complications, mostly alcohol-related.
“Sadly, I haven’t talked to him a long time,” he remarked reverently. “I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: I love him. When he’s in the band, it’s such a great time; it’s always a lot of fun. He’s a classic character. Always joking and always something to laugh about and I really do wish he was with the band. Sadly, it’s never going to happen. He’s just not healthy.”
I mentioned that perhaps Way, whom Moore told me can’t get a visa to work in the States, will stop in at one of UFO’s gigs in the UK, and he brightened at the thought. I let it go at that and wished him well. Now more than ever, I was anxious to see what the UFO of today was going to be like.
On with the Action
After brief sets from Striker and White Lie, who bravely closed with MSG’s “Armed And Ready,” UFO entered the Coach House stage at around 10, opening with “Light’s Out.” The sound was a little suspect, the delivery a tad sluggish and Mogg’s vocals weren’t coming through as strongly as they should have. So maybe they needed to warm up.
But there was Vinnie Moore slicing the leads like he owned the notes. “Mother Mary,” with its earthy attack, notched up the whole band and the room began to stir with exhilaration. A pair from Seven Deadly, “Fight Night” and “Wonderland,” kept the band on pace and in the moment. The album was recently nominated for Album of the Year by Classic Rock magazine, and playing these tracks, arguably the catchiest of the bunch, validates any doubts of UFO’s abilities in creating new music.
The audience stayed with them. Without pressing their luck, the band wisely returned to familiar territory, “I’m a Loser,” “Let It Roll” and “Cherry,” which found Mogg in far stronger voice. The rest of the band rose to the occasion. Andy Parker, back on drums since 2007, was in the pocket and holding the fort. Paul Raymond jumped from keyboards to guitar and back again through the night. His role as a foil to the guitar player, be it Schenker, Chapman or Moore, has always been integral to what sets UFO apart from other hard rock bands. Only Rainbow came close to that flavor of keyboard-guitar interaction.
With Pete Way apparently on permanent hiatus, a number of bass players have been filling in over the years. Tonight it was Rob De Luca, who’s been playing dates with UFO since 2008. A member of Sebastian Bach’s backing band, De Luca held nothing back, casually strolling out onto the Coach House tables and nearly knocking over a dozen cocktails in the process. Caught up in the spirit of the act, no one seemed to mind.
It was on “Love to Love” where Moore truly distinguished himself. He started out on an acoustic and ended on an electric. While playing the signature parts, he didn’t hesitate in stretching out and going off the grid. To be able to do this without tainting the original flavor of the tune is a gift, and I commend Moore for pulling it off so convincingly. Now I knew what he meant by following his own path.
Even more impressive was how the guitarist was able to work up the long instrumental passage of “Rock Bottom” into a frenzy of insurmountable soloing that made Schenker’s trademarks pale in the wind. At one point, both Moore and De Luca crossed swords, their respective instruments positioned for a little sleight-of-hand, behind-the-back acrobatics to get the juices boiling. Once “Doctor Doctor” arrived for a house call, the audience surrendered their seats and joined in on the chorus.
Off the stage at 11:30, I was surprised they didn’t return for an encore, but we all sort of sat around wondering what else they could do. All the favorites were played. Another new one, or a newer one from any of the more recent albums, would have been interesting. A cover? No longer their style. After a short landing in San Juan Capistrano, UFO were off to Hollywood, the Inland Empire, then home for the holidays before kickin’ out just like a hurricane in 2013.
More UFO Photos from the
11/28/12 Coach House show
