Ivan Gonzalez (Secret, 91 Suite) – interview

Ivan Gonzalez (Secret, 91 Suite) – interview

21 Ottobre 2014 0 Commenti Alessandro Lifonti

interview by Alessandro Lifonti

italian version

MR: The staff of MelodicRock.it is really proud to have Ivan Gonzalez answering some questions. 
IG: Nice to hear from you all!!!!

MR: Ivan, you and Jesus started 91 Suite long time ago. Now You made a brand new start with this new band (Secret). Why did you quit 91 suite which already had/have a lot of fans and start Secret?
IG: Well, actually we did not quit 91 Suite. We went through a difficult situation having to deal with the 91 Suite duties and also struggling with our own personal lives. So we decided to put 91 Suite to rest for an undefined period of time. We kept in touch all that time, playing music, writing songs, hanging around…and while the other boys were busy with some other things we decided to star this new project called Secret.

MR: What are the things in common between 91 Suite and Secret and what are the big differences between the two bands?
IG: Things in common.. are Jesus and me…hehehe. Noooooo, seriously we share many things, of course, we still love Melodic Rock and what we do in Secret is what we certainly did in 91 Suite but with a twist. We tried to explore new horizons into the hard edge rock, country, soul and other music styles. We love AOR music though and that was our goal when we first thought about recording a new album, but we wanted to experiment with all those different types of music. It has been a logical evolution in both sound and attitude.

MR: Ivan, let’ s talk about this new band/project called “Secret”! You joined your forces once again with Jesus Espin and you record this brand new album called “The end of the road”! First of all why did you call the band “Secret” and what does the title “The end of the road” mean to you?
IG: There is nothing really important behind the word Secret. As well as with the title The End of the Road. It’s just what we liked how they sound and have many different meanings for everyone to consider. It’s always beautiful to leave an open door at the end of a song..

MR: You guys wrote all the songs, played all the instruments, produced, mixed, and mastered the  album….that’ s amazing! How long did it take you to record the whole thing?
IG: It was a slow process, as long as songwriting is concerned. We had an idea of the album we wanted to put on, but we needed time to have that idea matured.. we started writing song for the album around 2010. We cut some demos and worked on them. We began the recording of the album by the end of 2012. But we needed two more years to get the sound we were looking for. It can be really tough when everything has to bee done by yourself. There are many difficult choices you have to face and many problems you have to solve too. But the truth is that we are really proud of what we have done.

MR: One of the things that impressed me the most is the songwriting! As you and Jesus are not british mother tongue, how tough is it for you to switch from Spanish to english when it comes to writing a song?
IG: It is always a challenge and though we are constantly improving our english level, there are some kind of limitations because of the fact we are not english native speakers. Nevertheless, we tried to do our best at writing and singing stages. People Will come up with their own opinions about it and judge by themselves.

MR: Jesus has such a beautiful and warm voice, and you have an incredible guitar style and touch. I think you guys perfectly fit together! Do you always get along when it comes to writing, or arranging a song?
IG: Thank you! It depends on the moment we come up with the inspiration! Sometimes we develop one idea or riff together and but there are some other times in which we work separetely. We are always try to get together as much as possible to make everything fit perfectly and help each other doing some kind Of brain-storming. You know…..two brains are better than one.

MR: What’ s your favourite tracks of the cd?
IG: Difficult question to answer! I guess it depends on the day. Some day I tend to like more here with me than any other track on the album and then, there are other days that because of the mood I’m in, I prefer when you really love someone or I believe in love….I don’t know. But if you ask me tomorrow maybe I will give you another favourite track.

MR: Are you considering to promote this album with a small tour maybe, and if yes, who is going to join you and Jesus on stage?
IG: This is something we look forward to doing as soon as possible! We have been offered several gigs in our country Spain and we hope to start playing early next year. We have also put a band together and the next thing we are going to do is start doing rehearsals and small clubs. We wish to play outside Spain too but that definetely is not up to us at this very moment.

MR: Will there be a second album from Secret?
IG: We hope so! We are really pleased with the album, people like the album and that is the reason why we want to record another one. It is not for the money nowadays, so at least if people tell you that you came up with a great album is maybe more than enough for a pair of guys like us. We are not going to make any money out of it, we did it for the sake of it.

MR: Ivan, we heard you talking on radiocarcoma that you’ ve been working with Zorro Monti these days. There’ s a new project on the way! Can you give us further information?
IG: Sure! It is going to be one of the best next year releases for the AOR lovers. Pierpaolo Zorro contacted me some time ago and told me he was working on a new melodic project along with talented musician/songwriter Gianluca Firmo. He wanted me to play guitar on two tracks of the album. The idea captivated me from the very first time, the album will feature the great David Readman on vocals. So stay tuned! I could hear some tracks of the album and I tell you this is going to be a blast

MR: Ivan, thank you so much for answering our questions! I wish you all the best and we’ re looking forward to seeing you here in Italy very soon!
IG: It is always a pleasure! You are so kind! Take care. Rock on.

© 2014, Alessandro Lifonti. All rights reserved.