M&SR: We all remember you for your guitar work. But please tell about your new band. How has the reception been on your solo album? And we’ve heard you collaborated with Dee Snider on a version of “Eleanor Rigby.” Is that correct?
Ojeda: Yes, that’s correct. We did a video too. It played on VH-1 Classic a couple of times. Originally, we did the video more as a promotional thing for myself. But I went to VH-1 and they really liked it. I also collaborated with Ronnie James Dio on the first song of the album, called “Tonight.” He did an amazing job. He probably has one of the best voices in rock and roll. I also got Joe Lynn Turner to sing a song. I sang five songs myself. Sebastian Bach was supposed to sing a song too. But because of his busy schedule, we couldn’t get together and I had to get the album done. The one thing I didn’t realize was by getting Ronnie James Dio, Dee Snider, and Joe Lynn Turner to sing on the album, I was raising the bar for myself. [Laughs] That sure brought me up to a different level in my performance. The reception to the album has been great. A lot of people are really digging it. And I got my own solo band together. We have Chris McCarvill on bass. He played bass on nine songs out of 11. Also, Rudy Sarzo plays bass on two songs. He was in Quiet Riot, Whitesnake, and Ozzy Osbourne’s [band]. Joe Franco plays on drums. He’s in Van Helsing’s Curse with Dee [Snider]. He’s done sessions with everybody from Celine Dion to Twisted Sister. [Laughs]
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M&SR: Speaking of Twisted Sister, you were on top of the world for quite a while in the ‘80s. What do you miss most about those days?
Ojeda: Actually, not too much. The only thing I miss is being younger. [Laughs] But I feel great. It’s weird. I don’t feel older. I’ve been holding up physically also. My father was always one of those people who looked 20 years younger than he was. So I have the genetics. The whole thing back then was about the thrill of the chase. We were at that point in our careers that we had the records out and were signed to a major label. We were “real” recording artists. That was an exciting time. Getting to that level. That’s one thing that happens once in your life. It was pretty cool doing a reunion and we came back as strong as we did. Especially in Europe. It seems we‘re bigger now than we were in the ‘80s in Europe. We’re headlining all of these festivals. We weren’t third or fourth on the bill. We were the headliners. And some of these festivals have 30,000 or 40,000 people. We also did a show in Quebec and it was just us and The Scorpions. And we got 80,000 people to attend. That’s the biggest crowd they’ve ever had at that festival, and they throw it every year. It was plastered all over the newspapers the next day. Here in the States, people have so much to choose from that things get a little bit lost.
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M&SR: Tell us about your current gear. What guitars, amps, strings, and picks do you own?
Ojeda: Right now I have a signature guitar made by Wayne Charvel in California. He calls them Wayne Guitars. I use one guitar primarily that has a pink-and-black bull’s-eye. I have an EMG pickup on that. I also have a Sustainiac pickup, which is a very cool tool. You have a switch that turns on this magnet and it vibrates the string. It’s a little tricky to play with, but if you learn how to use it, you can hold any note forever. It’s like Nigel in “Spinal Tap” when he says [in a British accent] “it’s cool when you want to get sustain.” I also have a guitar we call “Edzilla.” It’s another signature guitar. And I’ve been using the 1984 Kramer reissues. Eddie Van Halen loved playing those guitars back then. The one I’m using is almost exactly the same as the one Eddie was using when he toured with Van Halen in ’84 and ’85. The colors are different. Mine are bull’s-eye designs. I have a red and white one I used on the Christmas tour and I have a black and red one. Those are very cool. They’re made in the USA and have the exact same specs and come with a hot-sounding pickup. I also have assorted Fender Strats I like to use in the studio for recording. Strats have a unique, cool sound to them. I’m an admirer of Strats of course because of Jimi Hendrix. Most of the guitars I have are Strat-style; hot-rod Strats. I have some pretty cool Epiphones for acoustic recording too. There’s an Epiphone that just came out with Masterbuilt acoustics. For the money, you can’t get anything better.
As for amps, I use mostly Marshalls. On occasion, I use Randalls. I have one in my home studio. But I really like the Marshall 800s. I also have a Vox AC30 I like to record with.
As for effects, I use Digitech pedals. I use the GNX3000. I also use a Line 6 pedal board or the PODXT. Live, I use the PODXT a lot. It’s extremely reliable for me. In studio, I use Digitech, which makes really cool pedals. The Jimi Hendrix pedal is really cool and you get some really nice effects from it.
Everything has its own sound. I like to experiment with sound and see what works; especially when recording.
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