'We Are What We Are': Steve Lukather On The Return Of Toto

There are few better surprises than a beloved band getting back together to make a new album, with the possible exception of that release turning out to be something of a masterpiece.

AOR legends Toto have done just that with the stunning 'XIV', a record touted as the natural successor to the remorseless 1982 hit machine ‘Toto IV’. In the first of a colourful two part interview with guitarist Steve Lukather, we discuss the making of their new album.

Steve, 'XIV' is exceptional - you've knocked it out of the park.  

Oh man, thank you so very much for your kind words. We spent over the course of 10 months working on this, trying to push each other to make the best possible record and dispel the myth that older guys got no new tricks, don't care, are phoning it in for a cheque so they can go on the road and make money.

After 10 years away did you feel extra pressure?

People expected a lot from us, so we wanted to deliver, we wanted to make an artistic statement. It's just getting out in the world now and the reaction is almost overwhelming because when you're done with it you go “I think this is good”, but you've worked on it so hard you know every nook and cranny in every track. To have somebody listen to it with fresh ears and go 'wow – I really like this', that means a lot to us.  

In 2007 you walked away from the band and you've since released three successful solo albums. What drew you back?

Our brother Mike Porcaro [the former Toto bassist, who sadly passed away prior to publication] has ALS and it's a brutal, fucked up, awful disease. In 2010 [David] Paich called me on the phone and said: “Hey man, we gotta help Mikey out.” I said: “I'm all in, but I've got to have Steve Porcaro back and I've got to have Joseph Williams singing again.” And then I said: “Whoever wants to come along with us on the ride for this one tour in 2010, we're going to give Mike a bunch of money and help him get back his medical bills, help his family take care [of him].”

We went out on the road with the intention of doing one little summer tour in Europe, and it was so much fun we said “let's do it again in 2011”.  Then came time for our 35th anniversary and we wanted to do it again and maybe record and film the trek. Then, all of a sudden, we're getting sued: “We own you, you owe us a studio album.” All this crazy shit. We're like: “Woah, woah, woah.” We started to fight because we didn't want to be told what to do.

At that point we didn't think you'd make another record.

If we're going to do something we want to do it on our own, and after going back and forth and haggling our lawyer goes: 'Hey man – rather than waste all this money fighting why don't you just take a big cheque and fucking make a record. And then you have new product and you can help Mike, you can help yourselves and you can walk away from this madness of throwing money at lawyers." And we looked at each other and went: “That does seem pretty logical, but if we're gonna do this it's got to be great.”

What motivated you while recording 'XIV'?

We've got to prove we can still do this to ourselves, make a great album for us and not try to be trendy and bring people in: “Oh, let's gets some rapper.'  We said: 'Fuck that shit, we're gonna make a Toto record. The best one we can.” People seem to be reacting to it because it doesn't sound like anybody else.  

Steve Porcaro said you were treating this album as if it were Toto V – the logical follow up to Toto IV.

It was the first time that Steve, Joe and I and Dave had been in the studio since the ‘80s and the way we approached it, with different multi-vocalists, the diversity of the material on the record, stylistically the choices we made in writing and production, maybe that's what he meant.  

How would you describe the style of the new record?

I would say it's a nod back to the beginning and a 2015 vibe without trying to be too modern. We just wanted to have fun with it and this combination of co-writers, co-producers and my high school brothers making music again. I mean, all of us are songwriters in our own right and you put us in a room and we push each other to write what you hear. There was a little pain, blood, sweat and tears in there, but the end result is what counts. A little tension can create really good music.

The album is very immediate and catchy, but there's also depth to it.

Well, we did that on purpose. You listen on headphones and you hear all sorts of little Easter eggs and hidden gems in there. Some of these tracks have 180 to 200 fucking tracks going, not all at the same time, but little things come in and go, embracing the ability to use the technology to our advantage and not to fix things. We purposefully left a lot of loose shit on the record, like the song Unknown Soldier with the acoustic guitars squeaking and not being perfectly doubled. Sounds like it should have been on 'Led Zeppelin III’ or something like that. We didn't try to buff out everything, those are actual performances. It's something that sadly seems to be rare in records these days, everybody is so concerned about perfection. An unrealistic view of perfection. We are what we are and we're playing to our audience.  

Joseph's been behind the mic since you got back together. What makes him a good fit?

He's stronger than ever, man. He didn't go on the road for 20 years being Mr. Toto, trying to sing all our songs while we were out on the road as well. He didn't burn himself out, he got into TV and film composing and made a few solo records and then got super healthy and got his voice to come back. It's like finding an old Les Paul under the bed and you're going: “This guy is pure, he's singing better now than he did in 1986.” A great drummer and a great singer make a great band, and that's a game changer for us to have that loud, confident, in tune, great lead voice.

And you all sing on the new album too.

We did it sort of by accident. Some of the stuff we'd be sitting in the studio while we were making it and they'd go: “Luke, why don't you sing this part.” Some of these songs have three lead vocalists on the same song. Chinatown – it starts out with Dave, goes to Joe, goes to me. On Holy War it's me and Joe. Dave sings a couple of tunes, Steve Porcaro sings his song and you go: “That's the guy that wrote Human Nature - listen to that song.” Everybody gets a chance to shine. I wanted to make sure that everybody was represented fairly, and people want to hear that from us. That's what they like about us.     

You sing 21st Century Blues. It sounds like a song that could have featured on your last solo album, 'Transition'.

Well, yeah. It's another one of my nods to Steely Dan. Me and CJ Vanston co-wrote wrote that song and wrote this whole middle section as sort of like my Kid Charlemagne solo. We wrote these chords that I could play over, chords that you don't hear in normal rock music, more like Larry Carlton.   

Burn is classic Toto with a massive chorus.

That's another thing that we did. Huge harmonies that aren't just block 1, 3, 5 harmonies, there's a little more to it, more eclectic voicings. And we're not trying to be trendy, we know the radio stations that play Rihanna aren't gonna play our record. We're playing to our strengths and it's like the Beatles, the Eagles, Yes, all the early prog stuff and the Steely Dan, LA thing. It's real melodic, that's what the ideal is.       

Great Expectations is an epic finale with a wonderful instrumental passage. How do you create something like that?

That's my favourite track we've cut in...maybe ever. We all came in with different pieces and put this whole fucking puzzle together with reccurring themes and a bunch of adult chords you don't hear in music. Like all the altered chords and really interesting voicings. Sonic candy, if you will. It just seemed to all fit together, and it was a fun little project. There's three vocals on there, interesting instrumental sections that you would never expect come next. It's gonna be a bear to pull off live, but we're gonna do it.   

Toto are known for production values. What does CJ bring to the table?

He was a great third ear, musician, engineer, songwriter and artist in his own right. He's a big fan of the band, gets great performances, works really fast and is a genius level cat. The right guy to bring in to be a foil between us to keep us from killing each other, tell us when to stop and go: “You got this, get the fuck out of here and let me deal with it.” I don't think we could have made a record without him.

When a band has been around for a long time and they release a new album, fans always wonder if it will be their last. So...is this your last?

Listen, you're asking if we're gonna make another record again, it's like asking a woman who just gave birth if she wants to have another kid. Like: 'No, not now, not at this time, I don't see it.' We don't even know what the business is gonna be like soon. We're gonna be on the road for the next couple of years and I don't foresee it at this point because it was a difficult process and I'm not sure anyone would give us the dough that it takes to make the kind of records we like to make. I can just say I thought we made a really good record and if this happens to be our last one I think we could be proud of it.

Toto Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:

Thu May 21 2015 - GLASGOW Royal Concert Hall
Mon May 25 2015 - MANCHESTER O2 Apollo
Tue May 26 2015 - LONDON EVENTIM APOLLO, HAMMERSMITH

Click here to compare & buy Toto Tickets at Stereoboard.com.

Related News