Bruce Franklin From Trouble

1.I read you dropped out of college to play music,looking back it proved to be a wise decision but how was it at the time?

I actually never went to college,even though I had 2 differentscholarship offers to Big Ten colleges.Looking back I think it was amistake for my longterm security.Although, I was able to really enjoymy younger years and experience a whole lot of things and places that Iprobably wouldn't have if it weren't for Trouble.

2.You always read about bands struggling in the early days,having nofood to eat and so on.What was it like with Trouble in the early days?

Well, when we went out to L.A. to record our first album and again to record our second album,times were challenging.
I remember sleeping in Metal Blade Records office for a week because weran out of money for a hotel room.I also remember stealing oranges froma tree in someones yard near by the office, so that we could eat. Ithink we made it back to Chicago with everyone of us broke and about1/4 of a tank of gas left. Weate at a gig in San Francisc,and then drove for 2 days without foodbecause we needed all our money for gas.That is a couple ofexamples,but there's more...

3.Sabbath is of course a huge influence but was there any underground bands at the time that proved to be a major inspiration?

Underground bands that inspired us?Do Captain Beyond or Budgiecount?Angel Witch is really the only contemporary underground band thatI would say inspired us.There was an English band called Satan,that Iliked,but I don't think the other guys listened to them.

4.What was your take on tag "Christian Metal" that Trouble got.What it something you approved of ?

I wouldn't say that I disapproved of it,but I don't think that it was quite accurate. Wewere just a heavy rock band with really no agenda.Eric wrote lyricsabout things that interested him and the Bible was one of them.Thewhole Satanic Black Metal thing was kind of ridiculous to us becausethese bands were all posers.90% of those bands were just trying tocreate this tough mean image and we knew that they were full ofshit.Besides,Sabbath had songs like After Forever,Tommorrow'sDream,Lord of This World,Sabbath Bloody Sabbath,etc. and people didn'tcall them a christian band.

5. Is there a era of the Trouble story you are most fond of or do you take each year as it comes?

Looking back,I would have to say that the years that we were signed toDef American,which became American Recordings,were my favorite time. Wewere able to experience our carreer to the fullest those years.Therewas money to record in some of the best studios in L.A. and we wereable to do lots of touring,while at the same time hitting our peak inpopularity with record sales,but also among our peers. We realized that quite a few big name musicians and bands were appreciating us and taking notice. It was a very optimistic and fun time.

6.How did Eric's decision to leave the band affect you personally?

Who said that it was Eric's decision?
I was conflictedbecause there were problems,but I personally wasn't sure that Ericleaving was the best thing for Trouble.Eric and I joined Troubletogether and before that we played in a band together.I've known himsince I was 17.I'm still not used to him being out of the band.

7.How did the Supershine band get together ?

.I had been writing music that I wanted to do outside of Trouble.The big question in my mind was ,Who could I get to sing on it. My first choice was Doug Pinnick of Kings X because I loved his soulful, yet powerful voice. We had gotten to know each other from being fans of each others band.I had talked to him on the phone a couple of times. So I thought that I would ask him if he would be interested.I hoped for the best,but wasn't sure at all that he would be interested. Hesaid,"Sure" and the rest fell into place.I knew that his vocals and myriffs would be a great fit.I'm very proud of the songwriting andperformances on Supershine even if there are some deficiencies in thetechnical recording.One of these days we'll get another record out. We've written a good portion of an album already.

8.How do split up the time to devote to each band and is it something thats hard to do?

If you have enough free time,then it isn't that hard to do. My problem now is that I have hardly any free time.

9.What is some of your favorite Trouble tunes?Songs you really enjoy playing.


I tend to like the heavier stuff,but The Misery Shows is one of myfavorite songs.I also like Flowers from Plastic Green Head.I'm the onethat writes stuff like Psalm 9,Revelation,Pray for the Dead,TheWish,R.I.P.,Daze,The Sleeper,Strawberry Skies,Opium Eater,TheEye,Mindbender,Simple Mind Condition.2 examples from each album to showwhere my musical head is at.After the Rain from the last album isanother example of a song that I like because of versatility andmelody.I could name the Trouble songs that I don't like,but that listwouldn't be too long.

10.Out of all the places you have played over the years,which one has the most dedicated fans in your opinion?

From early in our carreer through 2008,the most consistent dedicatedfans are Cleveland.Although in recent years,some places in Europe havebeen excellent. We really didn't do a tour in europe until some time in the early 90's. We had been playing in Cleveland for 10 years already by that time.

11.What is the future of Trouble as you see it ?

Not exactly sure,but I guess that we are going to do a new recordsometime this year and I think that we may do a tour and some festivalsin europe this summer.

12.Compared to some bands that started back in the late 70's,Troublemusic still sounds fresh.I blame this on the Sabbath influence.What isyour thoughts on this?

Sabbath influence along with a lot of other great bands influence likeDeep Purple,Captain Beyond,Budgie,Pink Floyd.All bands that write greatsongs with memorable riffs,but also memorable singing melodies.

13.Any final words you would like to put out there?

I've said plenty.Thanks,to the faithful Troubleheads that keep the band alive.

www.myspace.com/brucetrouble