Tokyo Blade-Andrew Boulton Interview

I had the absolute pleasure of speaking to Andrew Boulton the guitarist and founder of New Wave of British Heavy Metal veterans Tokyo Blade.

ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE

What inspired the formation of the band?

Trying to choose a band name is always a nightmare, it’s hard to get 5 people to agree on anything so trying to get 5 musicians to agree is almost impossible. Originally, I wanted to call the band “Tokyo” but Alan has always liked double-barrelled names like Black Sabbath or Thin Lizzy and he wanted to call the band “Blade Runner” but as that was a movie I suggested Tokyo Blade everybody seem to like it so that’s what we stuck with. I guess I’m guilty of starting the whole thing, I took to guitar playing like a crazy duck to water. This was undoubtably due to inheriting my Dear late Parents genes as My Dad was very passionate about music and my Mum was the most amazing pianist who was blessed with perfect pitch. This is a rare talent; she could literally hear something and play it immediately!!!!! Once I had the basics down, I was desperate to play with other people and slowly I got together with like minded guys and off we went.

How do you approach songwriting, and who writes the most songs in the band?

I generally write all of the music and Alan writes the vocal melodies and lyrics there is no real approach to song writing. I just kick around a few riffs and ideas in my home studio and do a quick demo which I then give to Alan. If we both like it we go for it and complete the song making changes along the way that’s about it really. We’ve thrown out more song ideas than we’ve recorded as we try to set the bar pretty high.

NO REAL APPROACH

How do you approach songwriting, and who writes the most songs in the band?

I generally write all of the music and Alan writes the vocal melodies and lyrics there is no real approach to song writing. I just kick around a few riffs and ideas in my home studio and do a quick demo which I then give to Alan. If we both like it we go for it and complete the song making changes along the way that’s about it really. We’ve thrown out more song ideas than we’ve recorded as we try to set the bar pretty high.

FRESH MATERIAL

What was the thought process and writing process like for your latest album Unbroken?

Well as I say, we just love creating and we wanted to do a new album with some fresh material. We started with about 20 ideas and chopped them down to the 12 or so that we have on unbroken. We wanted to keep the Tokyo Blade sound but with a maybe more modern approach without straying away too much from our early days.

Basically, we just do what we do and if people like it that’s great, if not, don’t listen to it.

There is no financial income from making albums anymore and as we got ripped off for all the albums we did in the early days, we’ve basically made nothing from recording albums. We don’t do it for money we do it because something inside of us keeps us creating and being creative, but not being able to make a living from it means we all have “real Jobs” Lol, that means it’s a struggle to keep the band afloat and dedicate the time it needs to it but we struggle on lol.

You’ve been a band for a long time now, how do you keep things fresh?

Yes, it’s been many years since I formed the band, it’s a difficult question to answer. Most of our fans want to hear the songs from the early days, so live that’s the stuff that we generally play with a few songs from unbroken to keep us happy more than anything else lol. I mean if we did a show without playing “if heaven is hell” or “night of the blade” the fans would be really pissed off and I wouldn’t blame ‘em.

DIFFICULT

You’ve been a band for a long time now, how do you keep things fresh?

Yes, it’s been many years since I formed the band, it’s a difficult question to answer. Most of our fans want to hear the songs from the early days, so live that’s the stuff that we generally play with a few songs from unbroken to keep us happy more than anything else lol. I mean if we did a show without playing “if heaven is hell” or “night of the blade” the fans would be really pissed off and I wouldn’t blame ‘em.

WHAT WORKS

DON’T THINK

How do you approach translating the songs you’ve recorded into a live setting?

I don’t think about translating the songs to play in a live setting really. We’ve been doing it for almost 40 years so it’s not something that we need to plan or think about we just play like we’ve always played. Personally, I’ve changed a few of my guitar parts and solos as I’ve developed as a player, I don’t want to keep playing the same solo note for note perfect it’s not something that interests me. I like to move ahead and try new ideas and be creative, I guess it’s the same for the other guys to a degree.

How have things changed in the music industry since you started?

The music industry is and always has been a pool full of sharks stealing every penny they possibly can from the artists. Little has changed in that respect other than there’s not so much money for them to steal now with streaming and downloading. Music has pretty much become an almost free commodity, only the committed and creative musicians continue to record music.

You don’t choose to be creative; it chooses you, it’s in your genes. Like every other vocation it’s perfect for exploitation by managers, agents, record companies, merchandise companies and all the other parasites. It’s sad but that’s the way it is, if we wanted to earn more money than we do from the music business we could all get a job working in McDonald’s. I don’t want to sound so negative and as I say we don’t do it for money, fame or glory so the pittance we’ve made in almost 40 years is irrelevant, however it would have been awesome to earn a living wage from it and have been totally dedicated to our music.

FULL OF SHARKS

How have things changed in the music industry since you started?

The music industry is and always has been a pool full of sharks stealing every penny they possibly can from the artists. Little has changed in that respect other than there’s not so much money for them to steal now with streaming and downloading. Music has pretty much become an almost free commodity, only the committed and creative musicians continue to record music.

You don’t choose to be creative; it chooses you, it’s in your genes. Like every other vocation it’s perfect for exploitation by managers, agents, record companies, merchandise companies and all the other parasites. It’s sad but that’s the way it is, if we wanted to earn more money than we do from the music business we could all get a job working in McDonald’s. I don’t want to sound so negative and as I say we don’t do it for money, fame or glory so the pittance we’ve made in almost 40 years is irrelevant, however it would have been awesome to earn a living wage from it and have been totally dedicated to our music.

HEALTH AND PASSION

What does the future look like for Tokyo Blade?

Well that’s a good question. We are working on a new album at the moment which should be out in the early New Year. We make albums for our own muse, but it’s a massive bonus when the fans enjoy it too and the reviews for unbroken were fantastic.

It helped spur us on to record a follow-up record and God bless our long-suffering fans. We are all old men now and who knows if this next album will be our last? It’s difficult to say but speaking personally I will carry on to create music as long as I have the health and strength and passion to do so. When the passion dies, I will call it a day and retire, quietly proud of everything Tokyo Blade has achieved in its lifetime.

In closing I would most sincerely like to thank you, all our beloved fans and all the good folk out their who email me with such love and support for Blade. All the fans young and old who come to the shows to support us and have a good time.

We have been a band stricken by bad luck, bad management, and more tragedies that you can ever imagine, but we’ve carried on regardless and that tenacity and refusal to quit despite the odds is what has made us all so strong.

It is basically an unknown fact that during the rehearsal and recording of the last record, one of my band mates lost both his Parents and another had the unthinkable tragedy when his 80-year-old Father was murdered by a knife wielding maniac for absolutely no reason. Is that enough shit to suffer all in the space of a couple of months?

Both of my friends still sought to focus on their music and both did an amazing job of playing their hearts out on that album a fact that makes me so proud of them. Hence the title of the last album “Unbroken”