Hoo boy, here we go....
1 - Who/what introduced you to Alter Bridge?
Followed from the Creed days. Following the breakup, most of us who were on the old CreedPit board kept tabs on what was happening with them, and when rumors started flying about Mark, Flip, and Brian starting up a new project, we started excitedly following "TNB" (The New Band) until they announced the details. I had already committed myself to supporting the band whether or not I actually enjoyed the music, because I believed in these men and what they were doing with their careers - this support included starting up one of the first fan sites for the band. A trio of us bought up the domain name "AlterBridgeBand.net" as soon as the name was announced, and that site later became "TheAlterBridgeNation.com." The site we're on now.
While I'm not part of the admin team here anymore, this site and its existence is one of my proudest achievements as a fan.
2 - How many AB concerts have you been to?
Man, I couldn't even tell you. Other people have been to far more than I have, but I lost count around 10 or so. Probably between 10-15?
3 - How far have you travelled to see AB live?
My longest overall trip included the drive from my home to St. Louis (about a 7 hour drive) to meet up with my best friend and a mutual friend who had flown in to visit from England - then us 3 driving another 8+ hours from St. Louis to Cleveland for the show on Blackbird release day. Then of course driving all that distance back, so probably over 30 hours of driving time total!
One other notable trip, not for the distance but the circumstances - I went to a show in Green Bay, Wisconsin, which is roughly a 5 hour drive. The hard part was that my boss at the time wouldn't give me the following day off, but I just went anyway. By the time the show and the after-show festivities finished up, it was probably 12 or 1 AM. 5 hour drive got me back home around 5 or 6 in the morning, and I started work at 8. Absolutely worth it!
4 - Who's your fave band member and why?
Ugh, why not just ask me who my favorite child is? I dig them all for different reasons. From a musical influence standpoint, Myles - dude is amazing, always growing and learning and adapting, and while there's no way I could ever approach his league, he's the one I emulate the most in my own musical ventures. From a purely fan standpoint, Mark - watching him progress from "that dude from Creed" into the foundation of AB, and now unleashing himself as a frontman (and a friggin Sinatra cover band?!), I love love LOVE watching him in everything he does. From an entertainment standpoint, Flip - he doesn't get a lot of limelight but when he does, that goofball always makes me laugh. From a personal standpoint, Brian - something about that dude just radiates warmth and light, and his existence makes my heart happy.
5 - What is your favourite album and why?
Of course they all have a spot in my heart for different reasons, but if I have to pick, probably Blackbird with Walk The Sky a very very close second. Blackbird because every second of it is just iconic and I've lived with it for so long, and WTS because it showed a big leap and growth in the band's songwriting and creativity with the inclusion of new sounds.
6 - What is your favourite song and why?
It changes occasionally, but I always have to go back to Watch Over You. When I play my (bastardized, standard tuning) cover of it, I always introduce it as "my favorite song by my favorite band."
7 - Do you have any Alter Bridge tattoos? (share a photo if you wish!)
Currently no, but maybe someday!
8 - How has Alter Bridge changed your life?
Oh man. Well, in a roundabout, Butterfly Effect sort of way, I say that AB led me to meet my wife and start my family. So, back in the long ago days of 2004/5, when AB was first announcing that they were a thing, they had a contest on their website to give away a PRS Tremonti SE signed by the band. I happened to win, and a shiny new PRS guitar was in my possession. Now, even being signed by the band, it was too cool not to play with - so I used it to sort of learn how to play guitar (poorly). I parlayed that knowledge into the chance to start a band with some guys at my workplace, which in itself was a lifelong dream come true. It took us a while, but we managed to write a bunch of songs and put out an album, and started playing some local shows in our city park (cause we're metal like that). Well, the lady who would later become my wife happened to come to a couple of our shows, because she had been friends with my singer back in their high school days, and she wanted to see what he was up to. He introduced her to me after the show, and we ended up becoming facebook acquaintances for a while. She was married at the time, but we sort of got to know each other from a distance, as many facebook friends do. Fast forward a bunch of years, and her husband leaves, and she posts that she's looking for fun people to hang out with now that she has some newfound freedom. We happened to have a lot in common (including musical taste), so we ended up getting together for coffee a few times, she hitched a ride with me to one of my acoustic gigs, and lo and behold, we fell for each other and ended up married and having a baby together. None of that would have happened had I not won that guitar from Alter Bridge so many years prior (not to mention Tremonti's influence on my attempt at songwriting and guitar playing), so I give them the credit!
9 - Do you have any stories to share when you have met the band members in person?
I was lucky enough to sort of be part of the "in crowd" in the early days, the first couple tours. Before streaming took the music industry's revenue away and bands started having to charge for meet-and-greets and such, Michael T. used to help out us hardcore fans and hook us up with after show passes to hang out. One of my favorite after show moments was at the aforementioned Green Bay show. To preface this, during the show, I was up front right by Mark, and at one point, was reaching up with my hand in the \m/ horns, as you do. Mark saw this, came over in the midst of playing, and reached down with the same hand formation and gave me a bit of a high 5. Er, high 2, in this case. So... after show, a bunch of us are standing around in a circle, chatting it up, including Mark and his wife. I had all but forgotten that moment in the show already, but Mark pointed over towards me and said (and I'm paraphrasing from memory, this was in November 2004), "and this guy... so I was up on stage, and I was feeling kinda tired, and I saw him reaching up like 'YAAAH' *makes the \m/ sign with his hand* so I was like 'YAAAHHH' *makes the \m/ sign with his other hand and touches them together* and that picked me up, man, got me through the show." I'm sure he was joking around, but friggin' cool moment.
10 - Do you have any AB memorabilia?
T-shirts, hoodie, that PRS Tremonti SE signed by the band.... y'know, the usual stuff.
11 - Have you introduced anyone to Alter Bridge?
For sure! I've been preaching the good word for about 18 years now(!), so I'm sure it's rubbed off on somebody here or there.
12 - Musically, where do you want to see AB go in the future?
You know, when the subject comes up, I always stick up for the creativity of the band - I want them to be whatever they want to be, to put their creative energy into the world rather than kowtowing to whatever the fanbase (including me) wants them to be. That said, I was very impressed with the songwriting and sound experimentation on Walk The Sky, and really hope to see further exploration of new ideas and sounds. I'd hate to see them come out and just put out a "standard" AB album - keep making each one special, make sure each album has its own feel and sound, continue growing and maturing and trying new things, rather than getting stagnant and repetitive.