Original Trouble members vocalist Eric Wagner and drummer Jeff “Oly” Olson, longtime former Trouble bassist Ron Holzner, and guitarist Lothar Keller was recently interviewed by Jeremy Moore of The Sleeping Shaman to discuss The Skull, the new heavy doom-rock band formed by Wagner, Olson and Holzner. Former Pentagram guitarist, and currently The Skull’s newly recruited guitarist, Matt Goldsborough was not available. Excerpts from the chat can be read below.

Moore: Some may (incorrectly) simplify The Skull as a classic Trouble reunion but it’s obvious you guys have a lot more in store for us. How did the idea to form the band come about?

Ron: “This whole thing has evolved very quickly. It started simple enough with Eric, Oly, and myself getting together at The Days Of The Doomed Fest in Wisconsin for a little Trouble jam since our other bands were all playing there… Blackfinger, Retro Grave, and Earthen Grave. The fans really wanted to hear the three of us play some Trouble tunes and they still do. I guess the promoters do as well since we got booked onto a few European festivals soon after; so we started the band to have some fun, play some Trouble tunes, and give the fans what they want. We relive the past a little bit, drink some beer, and get our ‘YaYa’s’ out you know? Now with Lothar and Matt… damn man, we are writing, recording and setting up tours. We are a real band and shit!”

Moore: Lyrically “Sometime Yesterday Mourning” suggests new beginnings, bittersweet nostalgia and the complex emotions associated with burning the past to make room for the future. But at the same time it’s apparent you value the past for the perspective it gives. How has age and a more mature perspective impacted your writing style?

Eric: “We’ve done this a million times. It’s too late in the day to be making mistakes now. If you learn your lessons then you can move on to the next chapter. That’s what we are doing with The Skull.”

Lothar: “Experience and wisdom are something to be valued. That’s not to say that a ten year old can’t write a masterpiece, musically that is. But, there is something to say about how life experience can really contribute to how you write. Sometimes you have to go through great times and hard times to change your perspective on things. Writing music is something that comes from the soul, and what you feel is how you write.”

Moore: On that note, tell us a little about your writing process.

Eric: “My best lyrics are written in the morning when I first get up and my brain is empty. I’m doing well until the world starts infiltrating.”

Ron: “Everyone has brought something to the table on this.”

Lothar: “Riffs, riffs, and more riffs… My phone is full of ideas that haven’t even been used yet (laughs). I have written in so many different ways that it really gets down to what started the particular song. Sometimes all it takes is one riff and lyric idea to start the idea. Like with “Sometime Yesterday Mourning”, we actually went through several part changes and moving around arrangements before we were done with it. Hell, we were making changes while we were tracking in the studio (laughs).”

To read the rest of the interview visit this location.