ICED EARTH Founder JON SCHAFFER

ICED EARTH Founder JON SCHAFFER - "When MATT BARLOW Joined PYRAMAZE I Knew He Missed Working With Music, And I Contacted Him About Starting A Side Project"


ICED EARTH guitarist/founder Jon Schaffer is featured in a new interview with Torgeir P. Krokfjord at Norway's Metal Express Radio. An excerpt appears below:

MER: What was the first rehearsal with (Matt) Barlow like (upon his return to the band)?

Schaffer: "The first session together was in the studio, and not a rehearsal so to speak. But we’ve done some touring together now, and the chemistry in that environment is incredible. Perfect, I’m tempted to say. To use a cliche it’s almost as if he’d never been out of the band at all. It felt good, and most importantly it felt just like it should."

MER: As opposed to when he was not there, or what?

Schaffer: "Well, Tim is a great guy to work with in a studio environment. I have only positive things to say about the stuff he recorded with Iced Earth. Live, on the other hand, he was never even close to Matt’s level of performance. He’s never had the feeling Matt has, and after all that’s what matters. There used to be a certain chemistry onstage, when Iced Earth played live. And I’ve missed that feeling. I realize now that I’ve simply missed Matt. When he joined PYRAMAZE I knew that he missed working with music, and I contacted him about starting a side project together. But the more we talked, the clearer it was for the both of us what we really wanted to do. Iced Earth missed Matt, and Matt missed Iced Earth."

MER: Schaffer does on the other hand not miss Tim "Ripper" Owens...

Schaffer: "Tim has a different presence, in a way. When we were touring after The Glorious Burden I suffered from these back pains, so I couldn’t be so active on stage as I usually like to be. For that reason I didn’t notice that something was wrong. But when we hit the road again after Framing Armageddon, I really noticed what was going on. It didn’t feel right with Tim. Tim is a man who, at least until now, has been very focused on himself and his own career. He’s not that good at working in a band environment. To be a part of Iced Earth you need to be a true believer. To be honest I believe we would have found a new singer even if we couldn’t get Matt, just because of the lack of commitment from Tim."

Go to this location for the complete interview.