METAL HELL: How would you compare FROM BEALE ST. TO OBLIVION to past albums?

NEIL FALLON: One of the last tunes we recorded for Robot Hive was Howling Wolf’s “Who’s Been Talking?” That was a good indicator of where FBSTO was headed. It’s more succinct than Robot Hive. That’s probably a reaction against the more nutty aspects of that record. Stripped down, I guess one could say.

MH: What inspired naming the CD after this legendary Memphis street?

NF: In the tune, “The Devil & Me”, there is a line, “I’am headed back to Beale Street and Oblivion.” The lyrics are an imaginary argument between God and the Devil on two street corners.

MH: What inspired the lyrics this time?

NF: This record is more of an earth bound record I suppose. Most lyrics came about by taking note of the surroundings and taking great artistic license with it. For example, “Black Umbrella” is about an O.T.B. next to a nightclub in Sauget, Illinois. I was in there when a lady waltzed in like she had just returned from a jazz funeral. No one seemed to notice. Odd.

MH: Are you a fan of blues in general & what attracts you to blues-rock the most?

NF:  I’am a huge fan of the genre. And I’am a huge fan of the first generation of rock bands that took the blues and ran with it (Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, Cream). There’s a sincerity and power in that music that is hard to find these days. Maybe it’s because rock isn’t a risky proposition anymore. It’s become a commodity.

MH: Do you leave room in the live set to improvise?

NF:  We play a different set each night. There are usually one or two parts that are left open for a jam. Sometimes it’s great, sometimes it’s not, but we’d rather take the risk than just spit the same numbers out again and again.

MH: How would you describe the bands recording process? Do you prefer a live organic sound?

 NF: Before we went into the studio we brought the material out on the road. We knew it all back and forth, even the album order. That gave us the luxury of going straight to tape with no click-track, no pro-tools. It’s a lot more efficient to do it that way. We’d like to perform in that manner from now on. Digital has its strong suits, but it can too easily become a crutch.

MH: Any other future plans?

NF: Touring now until the end of the year.

MH: Any messages for the readers of Metal Hell?

NF: Please, just say no to false metal. You’ll thank yourself later in life.