GES: Hello Bumblefoot, so who inspired you to pick up guitar and how old were you?
BF: Greetings! I was about 6 years old and heard the KISS “Alive!” album for the first time - from that moment, I wanted to play music.

GES: You changed your artist name to Bumblefoot, where does it come from?
BF: It started 15 years ago when I was helping my girlfriend study veterinary medicine (Bumblefoot is the nickname of the animal disease “ulcerative pododermatitis”…) I named my band Bumblefoot, and over time it became my nickname.

GES: You've just released a new album, 'Normal'. Is there a special concept behind it?
BF: Yes, the album is about medicating yourself to feel “normal”, dealing with the XXXXXXX and finding peace with yourself. It was inspired by some real stuff.

GES: Which of your albums do you think is the most representative of your musical personality ?
BF: The *next* one - lol. That seems to be how I feel about the albums, always... But, if we have to talk about albums that exist, I’d say Normal – it’s the most recent, and I feel closest to it.

GES: What gear are you using in your solo career?
BF: I use Vigier guitars (with DiMarzio pickups) and a Line6 Vetta2 amp. Real simple, just plug in and play…

GES: Do you play any other instruments?
BF: I play bass and sing. I’m also a quite poor keyboardist and an even worse drummer.

GES: How would you describe your guitar style?
BF: Ah man, nooooooo idea – lol. Everyone hears something different, I just hear myself playing noodly notes, haha. I don’t think about that stuff much, like to always stay focused on whatever song I’m playing, and just do what feels right for it, ya know? The song is everything.

GES: What would you say has been one of your more memorable musical experience in your life?
BF: Playing a song alone on stage in front of 150,000 people and they started singing along – felt like everyone was really connected.

GES: Who are the musicians you admire and you'd like to work with?
BF: Already working with them all  I’ll just say, anyone that has goodness in their heart, and a strong passion about what they do.

GES: Can you also tell us about your activity as a producer ? I guess you are a very busy man !
BF: Pretty busy, haha. I love producing – bringing an artist into the studio and helping their music reach its potential in every way – bringing out their personality, getting creative with sounds, writing and arranging… I just fucking love it. Been working on Q*Ball’s ( www.qballmusic.com ) next album – about half-way done as I type this. Gonna be a great sounding album.

GES: What are some of your interests outside of music?
BF: At this point, I’d have to say sleeping, haha. Used to be photography, that was a big one. What I enjoy now is home improvement stuff – doing drywall and electrical work. My studio is an old house that I gutted and am slowly rebuilding. Gotta say, it’s a real satisfying therapeutic feeling to build new walls. Sometimes, I think I enjoy spackling at the studio more than recording, haha.

GES: Do you have any upcoming projects we should knows about?
BF: Just a lot of plans – wanna get a new album and some DVD stuff out in 2007, if possible. Never enough time…!

GES: Is there any advice you'd like to pass onto aspiring musicians?
BF: Yes – enjoy life, go out and live it as much as you can – the more you do, the more you’ll have to express yourself about when ya go to make music. So yeah, I’ll say “Don’t forget to live.”

GES: Thank you for taking the time to speak with us. Anything you would like to add?
BF: Pleasure’s mine, brutha. Thanks to you guys, and all the folks checkin’ out the site and reading this - take care!