Blistering.com: Tell me about your new bass player, Toni.
Franck: We had about 60 or 70 auditions and we were impressed by some of the submissions we got. We even had some well-know bass players audition, but Toni is from the area, which helped, and he speaks our language, and he’s an amazing, cool guy. He knows the rule of being in a band – he used to play with the Farmer Boys and he’s old enough to not freak out when shit goes wrong. Plus he knows there’s not a lot of money to be made (laughs).
Blistering.com: Onto Downburst. One thing I noticed with the album is that you’re still very much a power metal band, but this album doesn’t seem forced.
Franck: Right. I think it’s our most intense and diverse album. When I listen to it, I was careful to listen to Liquid Monster to make sure there were no songs
that sounded like they could have been on our older albums. As I mentioned before, that’s what happened – I felt like we were getting close to repeating ourselves, so we went back to practice and we wrote the songs and recorded in an area nowhere near our hometown. This place was the most boring town in Europe. It had a huge factor for Volkswagon. We had to time to concentrate on music 24/7.
Blistering.com: “Fire Walk With Me” has already had success on some of the singles chart. What’s the story behind this one?
Franck: I had the idea for this song about the fears we have inside. Two years ago I had some bad psychological problems and people were surprised to find out that Andy from Brainstorm was having some issues. People assumed since I was always running/on the go with two bands that nothing was wrong, but the truth was that I’m sick with these fears that I’ve carried with me. Today I’d say they’re stupid, but I had anxiety problems for about 6-7 months and that’s what inspired the song.
Blistering.com: Another song that jumped out for me was “All Alone.”
Franck: Yeah, that’s another one of my favorites which surprisingly is about the television show Twin Peaks. I had the title in my head just like “Fire Walk With Me.” It’s about always having the fear inside. I was scared my life would leave me, afraid to drive my car
, afraid I would lose my voice, and I was so depressed. Luckily, my wife was there to help and take the burden off me.
Blistering.com: You’ve been a part of the German metal scene since the 90’s. Did you think you’d have this much of an impact?
Franck: For me, everyday is a dream come true. I never expected to be talking to someone on the phone about my band. I still consider myself to be a down-to-earth kind, even after playing in front 10,000 – 15,000 people. It’s hard not freak out after doing something like that, but I think it’s important to never consider yourself too successful. You must be able to sit down and listen to your music and be proud above all else.
Blistering.com: If you weren’t in Brainstorm and Symphorce, what would you be doing?
Franck: I always wanted to become an actor (laughs). It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while and if Steven Spielberg ever came calling needing someone for his movies, he can call me!
Blistering.com: Are you the hardest working man in German metal?
Frank: No, no, no. There are 100 more guys that work harder than me. If you take a guy like Mille from Kreator, he spends two and a half years on road and that’s something I don’t do, but I’m fine with that. I formed Symphorce with the idea that nothing would happen and I never expected Brainstorm to be the bigger band, so it’s all much more than expected.