The weekly radio show Focus On Metal recently spoke with guitarist Adrian Vandenberg about his band MoonKings, and working with David Coverdale and Steve Vai in Whitesnake.

On the Whitesnake Slip Of The Tongue demos:

"If you listen to the new MoonKings album, that's how Slip Of The Tongue would have sounded if I played guitars or very close to it. I'm pretty convinced there's going to be a special edition out and David is going to put the demos on it."

On his relationship with Steve Vai:

"Steve and I are good friends and we stay in touch. I read sometimes that there was a really stiff competition between me and Steve and there wasn't, we are so completely different players and Steve was so respectful to me and I to him."

Go to this location to hear the complete interview.

Although he co-wrote all of the songs for Slip Of The Tongue, while preparing for the recording of the album Vandenberg sustained a serious wrist injury, making it impossible for him to play without experiencing great discomfort. Coverdale had no choice but to find a new guitar player to record the parts and eventually enlisted guitar legend Steve Vai.

Vandenberg's Moonkings, released their new album, MKII on November 3rd, 2017 via Mascot Label Group. A video for the track “What Doesn't Kill You” can be found below.

Four years after Adrian Vandenberg made a spectacular comeback with Vandenberg’s Moonkings the band returns with a sophomore album, simply titled MK II. The album has all the qualities of the debut: once again the four-piece band manages to create a perfect mix of vintage seventies hard rock and current styles of heavy rock. Adrian Vandenberg shines as a bonafide guitar virtuoso, while the rest of the band also delivers in spades. Yet MK II has even more to offer than the highly praised first album. It shows how the band grew into a strong unit during the world tours of the recent years.

“The last few years have been very important indeed,” confirms Adrian Vandenberg, who previously gained world fame as the guitarist and songwriter of Vandenberg and Whitesnake. “We just got to know each other when we recorded out debut album. I think we all exceeded each other’s expectations. But you really get to know each other while on the road. It was then that I really became impressed by the abundance of energy that this band has. We tried to capture this on our new album. At the same time, we all grew individually. I am really amazed by the way Jan Hoving has grown even more in his role as a singer and as a front man. I’ve played with the best bass players and drummers in my extensive career, but with all respect I dare to say that Sem Christoffel and drummer Mart Nijen Es form the best rhythm section I ever had the pleasure of working with.”

Order the new album at this location.

Tracklisting:

“Tightrope”
“Reputation”
“Angel In Black”
“The Fire”
“Walk Away”
“All Or Nothing”
“What Doesn’t Kill You”
“Ready For The Taking”
“New Day”
“Love Runs Out”
“If You Can’t Handle The Heat”

“What Doesn’t Kill You” video:

“Tightrope” video:

Trailer: