Nick Sterling Interview

by Rick Landers

Ready or not, a new generation of young rockers is scorching through classic rock, grabbing inspiration from a full spectrum of music that includes the blues, classical, and the finely crafted tunes of the singer-songwriters of the '60s and '70s.

One at the head of the pack is fifteen-year-old Nick Sterling who made his first CD at the age of ten, appropriatey called Ten, that's just been re-released.

His newest CD, Life Goes On, frantically rocks with a series of cuts that are all written and sung by young Sterling. Nick's a bit of a prodigy it seems and the liner notes mention that, along with being the CD's producer and engineer, he also laid down all the instrument tracks.

Hailing from sun baked Mesa, Arizona, Sterling helps kick up the dust at local venues, framed on stage by the Nick Sterling Band's bass player Bill Hensen and percussionist Eric Borgiono. He's opened for such greats as Aerosmith, Steve Vai, Eric Johnson, Jackal, Joe Satriani and Cheap Trick.

Steamrolling along like a veteran, Nick's now working on an autobiographical video documentary called, Nick Sterling: Catch Me If You Can.

Last year, Sterling was honored at the Young Artist Awards show in Southern California withy a Special Achievement Award for Young Rock Musicians.

At an age when most guitarists are flailing away at three chord garage band progressions, Sterling is rockin' alongside roadhouse warriors with thirty or forty years of rock stardom behind them.

Modern Guitars thought it best to catch up with Nick before he grabbed the reins of yet another big project.

Listen to Nick Sterling.

____

Your music tends to target hard rock with '70s style riffs. Did you reach back to some older rock heroes to build your own style?

Nick Sterling: Well, most of my favorite bands are classic rock groups from the '70s, such as Boston, Queen, Rush, Yes, and Journey, so I suppose I have learned a lot about songwriting from listening to those groups. I think the classic rock groups had a lot of talent.

How about a list of your favorite rock guitarists?

NS: I hate to sound like every other musician out there, but some of my favorite guitarists are Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Randy Rhoads, and Eddie Van Halen.

I have great respect for Jimi, not only for what he did with the guitar, but his unbelievable ability to write so many smash hits in such a short amount of time. Stevie for his conviction, Randy for his melodically structured solos, and Eddie who undoubtedly changed the face of rock guitar forever. They are all truly guitar heroes. I also really like Uli Jon Roth and Guthrie Govan. They both have awesome tone and are great players.

You got your first guitar when you were 7-years-old. Tell us about that and what motivated you to keep grabbing it and learning to play.

NS: There was always music in the house growing up because my dad plays guitar. Not as much as he used to, but he's the one who taught me my first chords and how to play twelve barre blues.

Once he showed me the pentatonic blues scale that was it. I started moving it all over the fingerboard. I was lucky enough to progress very quickly. Some of the first rock tunes I remember learning were off of Diary of a Madman and the first Van Halen album.

On your new CD, "Life Goes On," you seem to be a "one man band," playing all the instruments. How did you gather up all those other skills along the way?

NS: I started playing drums about four years ago for fun and I have been singing since I was 10. The bass came pretty easily for me and I've been playing piano and other keyboards for about three years now.

Once I had ten songs I wanted to record for this album I decided it would be better if I had the flexibility of playing all the instruments myself. That way I could make adjustments to the structure of the songs and try whatever I wanted as far as different music ideas and arrangements go.

What was it like to make your own CD and who helped guide you in the production and engineering of it?

NS: I recorded and engineered the new CD "Life Goes On" over the course of about 10 months in my home studio, "The Penguin Factory".

As far as engineering goes, I've done a lot of recording and learned a lot about different techniques, mic placement, and mic types and other things. It's all by trial and error. I just keep doing it until I get what I want.

I believe there are somewhere around 300 audio tracks on the album, but I probably canned around 150. For me, the toughest part of recording each song was conquering the drums. Once I had them down to my liking, the rest of the tracks came much easier.

I would usually track the bass next and then guitars and when I got to the vocals I would always get carried away because I love vocal harmonies along the lines of Queen, Boston, and similar groups.

The album was mixed by Ryan Greene at Crush Recording in Scottsdale, Arizona. It was mastered in California at Red Mastering by Brad Vance.

What gear are you using?

NS: As of right now my live rig consists of two Wizard Modern Classic Heads with my '68 Marshall Basketweave cab and my 1971 Marshall Checkerboard cab for my dry tone.

I'm also using a Diamond Memory Lane analog delay to run my wet delay signal though two Genzbenz G-flex 2x12s. I use quite a few different guitars but my favorite is my Tom Anderson Drop Top.

On my pedalboard I'm using an old Mutron Octave Divider, a Teese Picture Wah, a Lovepedal BBB, a Lovepedal Eternity, a Hermida Zen Drive, a Pink Purple Fuzz, an old Phase 90, and an Analogman Bi-Chorus. When I'm recording guitars I use a lot of different equipment such as my 1970 Marshall Superlead, my Soldano SLO, my Diezel Herbert, and my 1969 Park 75.

We understand you're endorsing GHS strings.

NS: I use GHS Boomers [11-50]. GHS is a very supportive company.

I also work with Soldano, Bogner, Mojave, Diezel, THD and Wizard amplifications. Some of the guitar companies I work with include Tom Anderson, Vigier, First Act, Floyd Rose, Emerald, and Gibson.

Any endorsements I have are non-contractual. I just think it's better for me to have the freedom to be able to use what ever I want.

Besides rock, what other styles of music are you listening to in order to gather up a range of influences?

NS: I listen to a lot of different types of music, everything from Jazz to Rock to Classical to Blues. Pretty much anything that I like has influenced me a lot.

Tell us about your first band and how things have changed since then.

NS: When I first started out I was sitting in with local bands just playing anywhere I could. Eventually I started taking lessons at a local music store where I met Jack Wolf, my guitar teacher. Jack was in a local band called Attitude Cat, so I ended up playing primarily with them from the time I was 8 until I was 11.

Everyone in that band was really great to work with. How many other 40 year old professional musicians would let an 8 year old kid play with them on a regular basis?

Eventually through friends and music acquaintances I met Billy Henson, my bass player and Eric Bongiorno, my drummer. They have both been excellent to work with and are really nice guys.

You've played with some heavy hitters in the music arena -- tell us about some of your favorite experiences.

NS: Two of my favorite experiences on stage are probably getting the opportunity to open for G3 and getting the chance to play with Kid Rock opening for Aerosmith, once in Boston and once in Phoenix. I've gotten to do a lot of really cool things with my music, but these are a couple of the highlights.

How are you balancing your music career and all the other responsibilities and things you like to do?

NS: I take my music very seriously, but I think that family and school are also very important.

I am doing my schooling in a normal high school, so it gets really hectic trying to balance everything with my music. I just try to structure my time to be able to get everything done and still be a kid.

Your parents must be very supportive. How have they influenced you musically, professionally, and personally?

NS: My parents are extremely supportive. They have really done a lot to help my musical career. Everyone in my family supports what I do. Even my Grandpa, who is 76, makes it to a lot of my shows.

My Dad is the head roadie. He does everything from setting up and tuning the guitars to loading in equipment at the shows and everything in between. My Mom spends a lot of time updating my website, doing e-mails, and lots of other networking. My entire family is very supportive of my music.

What types of challenges, if any, do you face being a young rock guitarist?

NS: Sometimes it's just difficult to have enough time for music, school, and free time. I find that my days are very full and I don't have much down time. When I do, I try to make the most of it by hanging out with friends, riding my bike, skateboarding, playing basketball and stuff like that.

On the music side, sometimes it's hard to get respect because of my age, but I don't normally have too much trouble with it.

Would you mind telling us of any interesting or humorous things that you've encountered with fans along the way?

NS: Most consist of parents and their children. I do have a lot of adults at my shows because they really like some of the classic rock covers I do, along with my originals.

Their kids also seem to really enjoy the live show. There have also been a lot of really funny fans out in the crowd.

Probably my favorite time was when I was about 8 years old. We would play at this funky biker bar called Jake's 'O' Mine and there would be this crazy biker grandma out on the dance floor dancing with her motorized wheelchair. She was really into it!

Who are you listening to now and is anyone just knocking you out with their sound?

NS: Lately I have been really into The Mars Volta and Muse. I think they both have really creative recording techniques that I like a lot and they definitely consist of some really talented musicians.

Is rock 'n roll going to be a career?

NS: I hope to be doing music all of my life whether it be as a session musician, songwriter, recording engineer, producer, or a live performer. I have worked more than half my life at music, so I don't plan to turn back now. It's just really what I want to do.

Each stage of guitar playing seems to end up with a plateau and then there's a next new level to reach. What are you trying to do better on guitar or to learn now?

NS: Right now I am trying to improve my rhythm playing. I think anyone can learn how to play leads but to play rhythm well takes a lot of musical maturity.

What acoustic players or singer-songwriters get your interest and why?

NS: I really like Simon and Garfunkel.

Do you practice guitar every day?

NS: I really don't spend that much time practicing guitar. When I'm getting ready for a show I go over all of my songs I'm going to play to be sure I'm prepared, but I don't practice on a regular basis. I spend a lot more of my time writing, recording or playing other instruments.

Being a "rock star" at such a young age must boost the old ego, how do you keep that in check?

NS: I just try to keep my music separate from my personal life and I want to be treated the same as everyone else. When people do ask me about my music I try to not be egotistical at all. That really isn't my personality anyway.

Related Link

Nick Sterling