Speaking to My Global Mind, guitarist Adrian Vandenberg spoke about the relaunch of his solo outfit Vandenberg, enlisting singer Ronnie Romero, and chances of reconnecting with Whitesnake and David Coverdale.

On plans to connect with Coverdale: “Just like James Bond, I never say never. David is really happy with the current line-up of Whitesnake as he should be. It’s a great band and I’m extremely happy with this band. I couldn’t have wished for a better line-up for revisiting Vandenberg. Ever since I heard Ronnie on YouTube, he instantly became one of my favorite singers. I’m a fan of blues-rock singers like David Coverdale, and Paul Rodgers; Ronnie fits right in there. At the same time, he can go all the way up like on “Hell and High Water” with an incredible screaming type of highs without actually screaming. It’s done in a very natural way. I want to see how far I can get with this band and tour worldwide. I really haven’t toured outside of Holland in the last 40 years other than some small tours with Moonkings. Now I can’t wait to hit every country possible!”

On connecting with Ronnie Romero: “It’s an interesting story. When I read that Ritchie Blackmore was doing a few Rainbow shows, I was wondering who the hell was going to sing because my favorite period of Rainbow was with Dio. I checked them out on YouTube and Ronnie sang all the songs amazingly well. I was blown away. I spontaneously wrote him a short congratulations message through Facebook. I wished him luck and success but also told him not to let this business drive him crazy. I was recording the first Moonkings album, so I didn’t have any other ideas or plans with him. I got a note back saying thanks; that he was a fan of my work and one day hopefully we can meet. When I started on this new Vandenberg band, I thought it would only work if I could find an incredible singer. I didn’t want it to be one of those tired and uninspired nostalgic trips. Suddenly I thought of Ronnie and after five years I wrote him so we could meet. I went to Madrid, where he lives and we talked about a possible band situation. We made a connection and recorded a few demos. Before we knew it, we were in the studio.”

Vandenberg return with a new lineup, and studio album titled 2020, which will be released on May 29 via Mascot Records / Mascot Label Group.

Led by master guitarist Adrian Vandenberg, the Dutch foursome released three quality albums during the early to mid-'80s, namely, the self-titled 1982 debut (spawning the US hit single "Burning Heart"), Heading For A Storm ('83) and Alibi ('85). They achieved commercial success and earned much acclaim. The band toured the US, Japan and Europe playing with the likes of Ozzy Osbourne, KISS, Rush, Scorpions, Michael Schenker and more.

Subsequently, the guitarist has had an impressive career. He was a member of Whitesnake for 13 years at the height of their fame, contributing the solo on their #1 hit “Here I Go Again”. He spent many years duelling with Steve Vai on guitar and has returned for many reunions. He was part of supergroup Manic Eden, and more recently released a number of albums with Vandenberg's Moonkings.

The guitarist pulled a master stroke by bringing in Chilean born Ronnie Romero on vocals, a singer who forged a formidable reputation over past years with Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow. “I needed an incredible singer in order to make the use of the Vandenberg name make sense and Ronnie more than fits the bill. We got chatting through Facebook, and I asked him if he'd be interested in being in the band. It turns out he is a big fan, as I am of him, so we met in Madrid, where he lives, to see if we could get along, and we really connected.”

“As soon as I knew Ronnie was on board, I wrote the songs to suit Ronnie's amazing vocal capabilities. We then met up again in Madrid to demo songs using my iPad, which is the way I do things.” Romero himself recalls the importance of Adrian Vandenberg on his career. “The reason why I started singing when I was in my teens is when I heard the live acoustic album ‘Starkers In Tokyo’ by David Coverdale and Adrian Vandenberg. So, you can imagine that I am very excited and honored to be the vocalist for the band Vandenberg.”

The rhythm section for the new lineup features bassist Randy van der Elsen (of NWOBHM heroes Tank) and drummer Koen Herfst, (Bobby Kimball, Epica and Doro). Vandenberg says, “Koen has been voted Holland's best hard-rock drummer now for several years. He has the sort of fire in his belly that would make any greats such as John Bonham and Ian Paice smile. Randy was highly recommended to me and has a lot of experience. Like Koen he is a brilliant musician.” There are also two celebrated guests on the album, namely bassist Rudy Sarzo (Whitesnake, Ozzy Osbourne, Quiet Riot, Dio, Queensryche) and drummer Brian Tichy (Whitesnake, Ozzy Osbourne, Foreigner, Billy Idol).

The album was produced by Bob Marlette (Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie). Vandenberg explains the choice. “I went to Los Angeles to meet a few potential producers. Bob was one of these, and his melodic yet hard rocking approach fitted in well with what I was after and we had a great connection right away. We spent three weeks working at Bob's own studio in LA, and then I spent a little more time finishing things at my home studio.”

The album will be available as a Limited CD Box Set, on LP, and via digital alongside all streaming services. Pre-order the album here, and isten to the album opener, "Shadows Of The Night", via the visualizer below.

Tracklisting:

“Shadows Of The Night”
“Freight Train”
“Hell And High Water”
“Let It Rain”
“Ride Like The Wind”
“Shout”
“Shitstorm”
“Light Up The Sky”
“Burning Heart" 2020
“Skyfall”

“Shadows Of The Night” visualizer:

“Burning Heart" 2020:

While nine of the songs here were freshly written by Vandenberg himself, there's one track that will be familiar to all fans. This is a new rendering of "Burning Heart", perhaps the band's most famous anthem. What Vandenberg offer throughout the album is melody, drive, power and class. “Fasten your seat belts, just when you thought all was safe, Vandenberg are back!'” the guitarist explains. “I can’t wait to take our band to the stages everywhere!” says Romero excitedly.

“I believe the vibe we have with this turbo charged line-up is wonderful,” concludes Vandenberg. "We are not at all a nostalgia act, trying to recreate what happened all those years back. This is a brand-new dynamic band with a name that has a legacy and I couldn't be happier with the way it's turned out."