By: Matthew Warnock
After finding international success in the 1970s, Progressive-Psychedelic rock band Nektar found themselves going their separate ways, and not releasing an album after 1980s Man in the Moon. The next two decades found Nektar’s band members doing solo project and pursuing other endeavors as the band moved further away from their heydays of the ‘70s. While many other bands would have simply moved on and called it quits after such a long time apart, in 2002 Nektar reunited and have been recording and touring together ever since.
Their determination to reunite has sparked resurgence in their careers, and the band is currently working on a new album, titled Juggernaut that is expected to be released later this year. Fans, both new and old, are enjoying the band’s renewed creativity and commitment to bringing Nektar’s music to a public that waited many years for this reunion to come about.
Guitar International recently caught up with Nektar guitarist Roye Albrighton to talk about the newest incarnation of the band, guitars and his 40 years in the music business.
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Matt Warnock: What was the inspiration behind recording a live performance for your latest album Fortyfied
Roye Albrighton: After several changes within the bands line-up, many people were continually asking who was in the band now and what we sounded like. I decided that the best way to answer these questions was to release a complete set of “live” performances, and put to rest the confusion about the new group.
Matt: Your songs are very intricate and contain multiple sections in many of them. How do you approach writing a new song? Do you come up with multiple ideas through jamming and then bring them together to see what fits, or do you prefer to sit down and compose a new piece from start to finish?
Roye Albrighton: Mostly the songs are written in sections. I usually just keep playing around with an idea until I feel it sits right and then take it from there. This could be on any instrument, not just guitar. For example, a track from the forthcoming album was conceived on the bass guitar.
Matt: How much improvising do you do in a live setting and do you think that, because of the difficult nature of your music, that there is more or less room for improvisation than say a more standard rock song?
Roye Albrighton: There’s always room for jamming in the “live” arena however, time restrictions are a problem and since Nektar music contains long pieces, we have to keep an eye on the clock. If we feel one night that a little extra fun can be had, then we have to drop a song to be able to fit it in.
Matt: The band was on hiatus from 1982-2000, what brought you all back together and how did it feel when you got back together and jammed for the first time?
Roye Albrighton: We were approached by the Nearfest organization to do a show with the original line-up. We all practiced the music at home alone and then met up at our sound engineer’s rehearsal studios for a run through of the show. It was fun to see they guys again, and considering the length of time that passed since we last played together, it was quite something to see how it all came together. Of course there were difficult moments there, but we had 5 days rehearsals before the show and eventually it all came together.
Matt: After being in the music business for over 40 years, what are some of the biggest differences you notice on today’s scene as compared to when you first started out?
Roye Albrighton: Many musicians from our period went through what one would call an “apprenticeship,” basically growing from a grass roots following to obtaining international status. I feel today that that is missing from the music industry. It would be great to see a new act that made it on their own merit, as opposed to having thousands of dollars thrown at them right from the start.
Matt: What guitars do you play and why do you prefer to play these models?
Roye Albrighton: I have always played semi-acoustics, except for one time years ago when I had to play a Les Paul. I like semis because they feel like a part of me when we play. It’s kind of an organic thing, which I don’t get from a straight plank of wood.
Matt: Do you have plans to tour in 2011 and if so any plans on coming over to the US?
Roye Albrighton: We’re concentrating on organizing a USA tour this year, but with the financial problems in the world right now and the restrictions imposed on Musicians entering the USA, it may become difficult, but we’ll see.
