Alter Bridge: Mark Tremonti Talks Creative Partnerships, 'The Last Hero' And Future Goals

With song titles like Show Me A leader, Writing On The Wall and Island of Fools, Alter Bridge’s ‘The Last Hero’ seemed incredibly timely when it was released in October. A month later, following the outcome of the US election, the anger and bewilderment contained within its bombastic, angst-ridden tracks now appear terrifyingly prophetic.

Allied to that political commentary is a thrilling stylistic smorgasbord of thunderous head bangers, arena rock anthems and progressive sojourns, with the album hitting new heights at home by debuting at number eight on the Billboard 200 Chart.  

We caught up with guitarist Mark Tremonti ahead of Alter Bridge’s forthcoming UK tour to discuss their new album, his creative partnership with singer Myles Kennedy and when he plans to retire. Sort of.

‘The Last Hero’ has a strong thematic core that unites the songs. Who was the architect behind it?

Myles is the main lyricist. Even if I write a part with a melody and start lyrics, he may use a key line or something that I had in place, but he’ll finish them off. I think singers should finalise lyrics so they believe in what they’re singing. He kind of created the whole theme behind all the songs, the main theme of the record.

The lyrics he’s written are very passionate without preaching his political views. They tackle the emotional resonance of the subject in a way that feels both personal and universal.

Yeah, it’s definitely not trying to push our political views on anyone. I think it’s more about saying that we’re not happy, and I don’t think the country or world is happy, with a lot of the leaders that are out there at this moment, especially here in the States. It’s turned into a circus when it comes to the election and it’s just not the way things should be done.

How does the collaborative process work between you and Myles when you’re writing for a new album?

We’ll be writing for years before we get together to do the record. So when we do get together I’ll throw him a part and say ‘here’s my favourite chorus’ and then he’ll say ‘I’ve got a great verse’ or ‘I’ve got a great bridge that would fit that’. Then I’ll go back and get whatever riff that I can. It’s never ‘here’s a song’, or Myles never comes in with a whole song.

For Alter Bridge we write parts so that we both contribute to every song. And they’re complete parts, they’re music and they’re vocals. The only thing that’s not complete are the final lyrics because if you put two parts together that have different subject matters you have to start over. So we let the lyrics be loose at first and finish them at the end.

Myles recently said: “We weren’t afraid to travel certain roads we might’ve been hesitant to venture down on the last two albums. As a result, some of the songs are more uplifting and melodic”. What caused that shift?

Just diversity. We want to make the albums dynamic. If the record was all heavy and dark it wouldn’t seem as heavy and moody without those other sounds on the album.

The Alter Bridge sound always evolves from record to record. Do you plan that in advance or does it happen naturally?

We always try to keep expanding our horizons as much as we possibly can. Y’know, keep ourselves satisfied as artists. I’ll talk with Myles and we’ll try and do something different than we’ve done in the past.  [On this record] I’ve tried to do a song with a seven string, that was Show Me A Leader. Then we used three different guitar tunings just to mix it up, different chord voicings. New guitar tunings just open new doors, a whole new sound. It keeps things fresh.   

You have also been getting more progressive with each album. What’s appealing to you about exploring that style of music?

When you’re trying to expand what you do, you have to push more into that progressive side of things, where you’re trying to get rid of traditional song structures and come up with ideas nobody else has thought of. I think the root of progressive music is just coming up with stuff that’s new and inventive.

I’m not a huge fan when it comes to trying to overdo it because, a lot of the time, you lose the emotion. I think you have to have that strong melodic sense and I don’t want to lose the core of the song. There’s definitely a fine line, but we try to make it as unique as we can without ruining the song.   

There’s a lot of great anthems on the record too. My Champion, for example, is so uplifting I imagine it will get played over sports montages and celebrations for decades to come.

Well, that would be wonderful. I think we had that song played on Monday Night Football here in the States, which is a huge thing for us. So it’s definitely starting to get played at some of these sporting events, which is a great thing to see.

And what can you say about You Will Be Remembered, which also has a huge, universal appeal?

That song is dedicated to all those who fought for…all the first responders, all the military, who put their lives in danger to protect everyone else and passed away doing it. This song speaks out to not forgetting them.

Cradle To The Grave is also deeply emotional.

That is one of the first riffs I worked on with Myles and I’m glad it got put together. When the song was finally done and I heard what Myles had done with the lyrics, I thought it was one of the most personal songs on the record. To me it speaks of him losing his father early on in life and, ever since, being worried about losing other loved ones. Not wanting to lose the memory of his first father and telling his father, who took him in, who married his mother, he appreciates what he’s done for him. All these years he’s treated him like he was his own son, which he really is his because they’re so close.

In terms of your contribution, which guitar parts on the new record are you particularly proud of?

The solos I love to do and the riffs I love to do, but for me the vocal melodies are my favourite parts to write for a record. The chorus for Show Me A Leader I love. The solo from This Side of Fate could be one of my favourites and I also dig the solo for Twilight. I do like the fun, fast ones in Show Me A Leader and Poison In Your Veins, but I really enjoy the emotional solos like You Will Be Remembered, the more melodic ones.

Tell me about how you and Myles build your guitar parts.

Whoever’s riff it is, or whoever’s part it is, that comes first. The other person tries to either play that exact part or come up with something that complements it. A lot of times I’m playing the straight up meat and potatoes riff and Myles is doing the affected, ambient part that lays on top, because sometimes it’s easier for him to write a part that he can sing over while I’m holding down the rhythm. You can usually tell us apart on the albums.

Both you and Slash have said that Myles is the best guitarist in both your bands. Why is that?

Well, he’s definitely the most schooled. He spent years and years playing in a few different jazz bands. He could sit in with guys like Larry Carlton and be able to play and improvise in any drilled form of music. He’s very good at jazz and blues, his feel and phrasing is great. I grew up in the heavy metal, speed metal, shred world. So it’s a different style. I just kind of learned what I learned on my own. I think I’ve learned theory over the years but he grew up with it.  

It’s funny that you didn’t know Myles played the guitar when he first joined the band. You obviously weren’t looking for a second guitarist, but now it seems impossible to imagine Alter Bridge without one.  

Yeah, we were used to being a three piece, having a singer who could go out and entertain and not have to be stuck in a certain area because he was playing an instrument. That’s what we wanted to do on the first record. Myles was going along with it until we heard him play and saw how good he was. In The Mayfield Four, when he was touring with Creed, he didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. He was holding back on showing the world what he could do on the guitar.

Once I heard, I think when we did our second record, I thought: ‘This could really be our secret weapon, we could really develop by adding Myles’ guitar.’  It changed the way we did things and changed our sound completely. I’m really glad we did it because if we didn’t use him it would have been a waste of his talent. He’s got immense talent with his playing.

Do you prefer being part of a two guitar band?

Absolutely. Especially now, with the amount of guitar soloing that’s going on in Alter Bridge and my solo band [Tremonti]. It feels better to have the band in that space you leave when you drop out of the rhythm playing and go into the lead playing. Certain guys can pull it off really well, like Eddie Van Halen and Dimebag Darrell, but I like to have a rhythm guitar track going underneath when I solo, especially live.

I’ve always been curious, particularly after hearing your Tremonti albums, why you didn’t become the vocalist when Alter Bridge formed?

I just wasn’t good enough. I took vocal lessons and sang on all the demos for ‘One Day Remains’, but wasn’t quite the singer I would develop into. Singing backing vocals, and singing more and more throughout the Alter Bridge years, I’ve just developed. But when I did the Tremonti band there was no question I wouldn’t sing because I love writing vocal melodies. That’s what I wanted to do, sing those melodies exactly how I heard them in my head and just do my best. And going out there and touring, you get so much more experience and develop as a singer much quicker performing in front of people.

In your career you’ve started from zero with three bands, slowly building the audience up. Is there something about being back at the beginning that inspires you and breaks you out of what could become a comfort zone?

Yeah, I think being the underdog is fun. It’s fun to go back to the club circuit and use your past experience to start something new. Especially when I did the Tremonti stuff, to actually get out there and be the frontman was definitely another new challenge and it was a fun thing to tackle. Being the singer in a band is much easier than I thought it would be as far as the performance goes, but much harder than I thought it would be, and much more of a fun challenge, to be that entertainer. Which is something you only learn by getting up there, singing and trying to keep the crowd engaged.     

You’ve released two great albums this year with Tremonti and now Alter Bridge. What’s the secret to being so creative?

I just have so many ideas sitting around that I really want to get out there. It would be a waste if I worked so hard over all these years to write so many ideas and, if I didn’t have Tremonti, a lot of them go to waste. I don’t want to be some miserable old man that said I worked around the clock writing and didn’t get to take advantage of those ideas.

Is there anything you still want achieve?

It’s tough to say. I think if we could break America like we have Europe and the rest of the world with Alter Bridge that would be a great achievement for us. I think if we could ever get to Wembley Stadium in the UK that’s when I could say ‘we’ve done it now, I can retire’. That would be the ultimate.

And finally, which tracks from ‘The Last Hero’ are you looking forward to performing live on your forthcoming UK tour?

We’re already playing Show Me A Leader and My Champion so I’m looking forward to playing those in Europe. Crows On A Wire is going to be a fun song to play. We’ve already been rehearsing The Other Side, which sounds great, The Writing On The Wall and Poison In Your Veins. The rest I’m still working on here at home, so once I get them under my fingers I’ll be excited about playing the rest of the record.  

'The Last Hero' is out now.

Alter Bridge Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:

Wed November 23 2016 - MANCHESTER Arena
Thu November 24 2016 - LONDON O2 Arena
Sat November 26 2016 - NOTTINGHAM Motorpoint Arena
Sun November 27 2016 - BIRMINGHAM Genting Arena
Mon November 28 2016 - CARDIFF Motorpoint Arena
Thu December 01 2016 - GLASGOW SSE Hydro
Fri December 02 2016 - LEEDS first direct Arena

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