TOME RAIDERS

OLIVIER BADIN TALKS TO DAVID E. GEHLKE, AUTHOR OF DAMN THE MACHINE – THE STORY

OF NOISE RECORDS

Written by Pittsburghbased heavy metal journalist, David E. Gehlke, Damn The Machine is centred around Noise Records’ key bands but also the complex personality of Karl Walterbach. A great read, it chronicles the trials, tribulations and inner workings of a record label in the 80s and 90s.

HOW DID THIS PROJECT COME ABOUT?

“I initially interviewed Karl in 2013 for one of the websites I write for and we ended up talking loosely for two or three hours, as he’s a natural storyteller, so I remember getting off the phone and saying to my wife, ‘This guy’s so interesting, I should write a book about him and Noise Records!’ But he first said no – a few times actually! – until I offered to chronicle his early days as a squatter living in Berlin in the punk community as well as capturing both the music business side and the musical side of things.”

SOME OF THE BIG BANDS HAD A NEGATIVE EXPERIENCE WITH NOISE IN GENERAL AND WITH KARL IN PARTICULAR. HOW DO YOU FIND THE RIGHT BALANCE IN BETWEEN HIS VISION AND OTHERS’?

“Indeed, the entire book could have been a big love letter about Noise Records, but what really interested me was the relationship between Karl and his bands as well the behind the scenes aspect of the music industry. People often forget that what goes on behind the scene has a tremendous effect on how albums are released or how bands’ careers develop. Look at Helloween: after the Keeper s albums, they were on their way to the top but in 1989, they tried to get off from Noise after they got involved with both EMI and Rod Smallwood. It didn’t work out and as a result, their career was derailed. Had none of that happened, do we get the notoriously hated Pink Bubbles Go Ape album? Does Kai Hansen leave the band? We’ll never know.”

DID ANYONE REFUSE TO BE INTERVIEWED FOR THE BOOK?

“I was turned down by only two people. First, Rod Smallwood; although he’s known as Iron Maiden manager, he was also taking care of Helloween in the late 80s and throughout the 90s and, of course, was behind Sanctuary Records, who bought Noise back in 2001, so it would have been great to pick his brain about how he and Karl confronted each other, but his office answered politely that Rod doesn’t do any interview when it’s not about Maiden. I also really wanted to talk to Tairrie B, the frontwoman of Manhole and later Tura Satana. They were two of the label’s biggest metal bands in the late 90s but Tairrie said she had such an acrimonious relationship with Karl that she felt she wouldn’t be able to talk objectively about her days on the label.”