By Mitch Lafon

BUCKCHERRY are set to release their infectious sixth album, All Night Long, on August 3rd 2010 and Bravewords.com caught up with original guitarist, Keith Nelson, to talk about all things rock ‘n roll.

Mitch Lafon: Tell us about the new album, All Night Long.

Keith Nelson: “I’m really proud of it. It’s the record that reminds me the most of our earliest album and demos before that.”

BraveWords.com: You were on the road quite a bit for your last album, Black Butterfly, including opening for KISS. How did the new songs come together?

Nelson: "We had the good fortune of being out with KISS and MÖTLEY CRÜE. We were doing a lot of arena shows and that left a mark on us. It inspired us. We wanted to make some anthems and we wanted to keep it really simple. Make a solid rock ‘n roll record from beginning to end. There wasn’t a lot of focus on the previous work except that we don’t really want to make the same record twice.”

BraveWords.com: Was it written while on the road?

Nelson: "Ideas are always collected on the road. Everyone’s got their little bag of ideas and when we got home we went into the rehearsal studio. We started playing around with the ideas and instead of writing thirty songs; we wrote five maybe and recorded them and then went back and wrote a few more. It was more like a workshop mode, but once we went into the studio we took days away from those recordings and we had everybody jamming on ideas, working stuff out and trying things different ways. It was a really cool process.”

BraveWords.com: You’re touring this fall with NICKELBACK. How did that package come together? That’s certainly different than touring with KISS or Mötley Crüe.

Nelson: "You’ll have to ask Nickelback on that one because they asked us to come out and we decided that it was a good opportunity to reach a different audience.”

BraveWords.com: Before the 15 album came out, Buckcherry essentially didn’t exist anymore. How is it for you now? You’ve become a household name again.

Nelson: "It’s awesome man. It’s far beyond any expectations that we had when we were getting together… when we started to write the songs that became 15. At that point, we were five guys that liked each other and wanted to make a record and it’s become much more than that. It’s really become so much fun and everybody enjoys each other’s company. We have so much fun on stage. It’s just such a good time. But to go from playing literally to twenty people in support of that first record to do what we’re doing now… I could have never guessed it.”

BraveWords.com: Why do you think people reacted so positively to 15? What made it such a special album? It was so much more that just the song ‘Crazy Bitch’, right?

Nelson: "If it was just that song, people would have gone to iTunes and bought just that song, but that record is approaching 1.5 million copies sold. I don’t think people were buying the song; they were buying the band. That continues and that’s what makes the difference.”

BraveWords.com: Talk to me a little bit about the ‘new’ band. It’s not the same guys that recorded Lit Up.

Nelson: "I don’t think of these guys as the ‘new’ band. These guys have been in the band longer. They’ve made more records. They’ve played more shows. They’ve been more successful. So, really to me – this IS the band. This is the way it should have been from the outset, but for whatever reason it wasn’t. We knew these three guys (Stevie D – guitar, Jimmy "Two Fingers" Ashhurst – bass and Xavier Muriel – drums) before we asked them to join up with Josh and myself. We knew that they could play, but we were friends with them and when you spend 300 days on the road, away from your family and it very tight quarters… That becomes a really important part of the chemistry of the whole thing and it’s really added to the overall vibe of what we’re doing. Jimmy is a phenomenal bass player. He’s just so incredible and Stevie is just a real joy to play guitar with. It’s really come together great.”

BraveWords.com: Since 15 came out, you’ve been on a non-stop album/touring cycle. How long do you plan on touring on ‘All Night Long’ and, at some point, do you take a break or do you just record the next album?

KN: ‘It’s been pretty much non-stop and, at times, we feel that… the grind of it all, but as long as people want to hear it, it’s relevant and we’re having fun then we’ll do it. When it stops being fun and being relevant… I’m not one to beat a dead horse. As of right now, there’s no end in sight. It’s funny that question has been coming up a lot.”

BraveWords.com: I’m personally not talking about the end. I’m thinking more of a break where you fly off to Hawaii for a couple of years to relax before making the next album.

Nelson: "I’d be bored out of my mind. We all have the drive in this band to be successful and to make the music that we would want to buy. We took a week off from the road before we started writing… maybe that was a little quick, but I just don’t see a three-year hiatus. We’re musicians and we love to do this. This is not work.”

BraveWords.com: So, is the next album already being written?

Nelson: "I’ve got ideas. I own a studio, so when I have down time – I’m writing songs. It’s the best job in the world.”

BraveWords.com: A few years back, Josh took some time to do a solo album. Do you have that desire as well?

Nelson: "I don’t see myself as a singer to pull that off. I think that collaborating with people outside of my band is something that I definitely look forward to, have done and enjoy that process, but what I really love is being in a band. I love being one of the five even though I produce the records and write a lot of the music. I enjoy the gang mentality. So, being the ‘front’ guy is not something that is important to me.”

BraveWords.com: A lot of artists want the spotlight on them, so it’s interesting that you prefer to be part of a team rather than go out by yourself.

Nelson: "To be comfortable and successful, you have to know what your role is in your situation. If the drummer wants to be a singer and so on and so on… it’s not going to work and the thing that works in this band is that everybody knows they have a role, they embrace it and are happy with it. Nobody is above anybody else and everybody is important.”

BraveWords.com: It shows. I’ve seen the band live a few times and there’s just such a great energy… great vibe. You guys don’t phone it in. There’s sweat, blood and tears in every show.

Nelson: "It’s full contact rock ‘n roll. We definitely go out and want to kill it every night. It stems from growing up as fans of music, buying a ticket to a show and waiting for your favorite band to come to town… and you know you won’t see them again for another eighteen months and that’s not lost on us. So when we go out every night, we know what it’s like to be in the crowd and want to get your ass kicked by your favorite band and if you’re just phoning it in – you should just not fucking show up. It’s just not worth it. I’d hate for some kid to come to our show and feel that he did not get his money’s worth and feel that the band up there just didn’t care.”

BraveWords.com: You’ve also got a gig with AEROSMITH coming up. How cool is that?

Nelson: "And we’ve got two shows with Alice Cooper coming up – which I’m very excited about. Then there’s the Nickelback tour and we’re doing stuff in Europe with Disturbed and Papa Roach. It’s a great time. We’ve been very lucky that we can bridge the gap of various genres of modern rock and classic rock. We just go out and do what we do.”

BraveWords.com: You must have grown-up being an Ace Frehley fan, right?

Nelson: "I was definitely a fan of KISS.”

BraveWords.com: I ask because I’ve been listening a lot to your new album and there are a couple of riffs in there that remind me of what Ace used to do. You can hear the influence of ‘70s rock on you.

Nelson: "My favorite bands are Aerosmith, ZZ TOP, AC/DC, THE ROLLING STONES… and it’s all in there. I can’t hide that.”

BraveWords.com: All Night Long is a great rock ‘n roll record. I loved 15, but this might be your masterpiece.

Nelson: "Thanks man. A lot of heart and soul and love and thought went into it. I just want to keep making better records. The band wants to keep making better records. Everyone is evolving. Josh has become a much better lyricist. We’re raising the bar for ourselves.”

BraveWords.com: Last year, I was talking backstage with Stevie D. and he mentioned the possibility of a live DVD. Is that still happening?

Nelson: "I don’t want to put out a DVD just to put it out there. I want to put some thought into it. You know we just put out the ‘Live And Loud’ CD. I don’t want to just set up a three camera live shot. I want to do something special and the longer we wait the more special it has to be. So, at some point there will be something like that, but there is no plan for it right now.”

BraveWords.com: Other than plugging the new album – All Night Long that comes out on August 3rd. Is there anything else we should mention?

Nelson: "I’ve been very active on Twitter on behalf of the band and fans can follow us at Twitter.com/buckcherry. We have a brand new rad web site at Buckcherry.com.“

BraveWords.com: Thank you for your time. I’m very much looking forward to seeing the band live this year.

Nelson: "Thank-you man.”