Great White has been in the industry minding their business by not conforming to something they are not ever since the band figured out their niche in the industry. In a recent interview with Misplaced Straws, guitarist Mark Kendall shared the journey of the band and what their upcoming tour is rounding out to be by comparing their hardcore fan classic to the likes of Metallica’s ‘Master of Puppets.’
After Kendall realized that the band’s heaviest sound, when they tried to emulate the sound of other heavy metal bands, wasn’t working for them, the guitarist started to play what was most organic to him. Their authentic rock sound won over legions of loyal fans who were moved to sing along and sway to the beat, and they have been on that journey ever since.
Now the band is gearing up for an electrifying spring tour leading up to M3, and Monsters of Rock Cruise and Kendall gave fans clues about what they can expect from the show. The guitarist shared that it will be for everyone, including the hardcore fans who might want to hear tracks from their first album. Mark even compared it to hardcore fans wanting to hear Metallica’s ‘Master of Puppets’ while others would like tracks from the Black Album.
Mark Kendall’s words about Great White’s top hits that are comparable to Metallica’s for the coming tour read:
“A lot of unexpected things and everything they want to hear, with a lot of energy. We go out there like desperate men wanting to impress everybody. We go back to the beginning, up to now. So you might hear something like ‘Stick It’ or something from the first album that was a hit for its time with hardcore fans. It’s just like the ‘Master of Puppets’ for Metallica. Okay, everybody wants to hear the Black Album, but the hardcore wants to hear a couple from Master of Puppets. Our first album is kind of our ‘Master of Puppets,’ so we like to grab ‘On Your Knees,’ or ‘Stick It,’ or something.”
He added:
“Actually, ‘On Your Knees’ was the first song we ever had on the radio, and we didn’t even have a record deal at the time, so it kind of has a memory attached to it, even though, like, we were talking about earlier, I was forced, and we were trying to be like heavy metal or something. We give a little bit of that; there are some jams that we don’t know what’s going to happen, so it’s unplanned and making it exciting for us or bringing the crowd into the show. And then, all the hits that they’ve loved for years and been loyal to, I hear story after story after story about where people were when this song came out, and that song came out, and like I was saying earlier, we grew up with our fans. We were kids when they were kids. We’re all still here and still playing, and when we get together, it’s a great time.”
Whether you want to hear from their album that is more popular or you are a hardcore fan that is coming to hear more under-the-radar tracks, according to Mark Kendall, Great White is ready to give you everything and more on their upcoming spring tour, so buckle your seatbelts as it’s about to be one hell of a ride!
