With Michael Spencer (right) at the Atelier Z Guitar Works Booth
While preparing for 2020 NAMM, I looked over the schedule for interesting people to talk to. One of the most interesting was Michael Spencer, Bassist for Flotsam and Jetsam.
The Atelier Z Guitar Works booth was quite busy throughout the show. On Saturday afternoon, we convinced Michael to sneak away to a quiet spot. After a short introduction, we chatted about his career and the future of Flotsam and Jetsam.
We’re here with Michael Spencer (the Bassist) with Flotsam and Jetsam. Flotsam and Jetsam is a great rock and roll band. How’s NAMM going for you?
So far, so good. It started off with a Metal Hall of Fame event. I was in the house band for that. Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Don Dawkins, Stephen Pearcy, and Metal Church all got inducted this year. There are rumors that Flotsam and Jetsam will be getting inducted in 2021.
That is so cool. Michael, before we get started talking about the music, I’d love to hear your story. I see a big break with you and Flotsam and Jetsam. You were there in ’88 and back in 2013. What were you up to in all those years?
Working.
Making money?
Yeah. Because I think I was with them in ’87 primarily after Jason Newsted joined Metallica. I’m the one that replaced Jason and co-wrote a few songs on the band’s No Place for Disgrace album. I got let go because I had an issue with their personal manager having so much influence over the band. I was one of those guys that believed the five musicians should be able to have a say, not an outside source. So, that helped me get pushed out. I went to a trade school for heating and air conditioning. So, I basically started a 30-year career once I left the band. Actually, I can retire this year; 30 years in my Union.
Oh?
And so I’ll get a Union pension and sell my business.
That’s pretty fantastic.
Oh, yeah. In that time, I stopped playing bass. I got back into motocross racing, which is what I did before I became a bass player. My dad basically was, “I’m not going to pay for your motocross habit anymore.” And I was, “Oh, well cool, buy me a bass guitar.” That’s how I became a bass player. The bass player was always the musician that stood out in the band to me. So, whether it was funk bass players or like Richard Finch of KC and the Sunshine Band, or Louis Johnson, Tom Hamilton, Gene Simmons; it was always the bass player. Paul McCartney is one my favorite bass players.
In 2016, Flotsam and Jetsam released a self-titled effort. After all those years, was that an attempt to reintroduce yourselves?
In 2014, we re-released or re-recorded No Place for Disgrace because the band didn’t have any of the mechanical rights to the original recordings. They phoned Elektra Records. Elektra can’t even find the masters so those are just gone.
Things are burning up these days I hear.
Yes. Everyone’s vaults are getting lit up! (Laughter)
Atelier Z Bases on Display at the Booth
Right.
When we reformed the band, Michael Gilbert was back; Kelly Smith was the drummer, Steve Conley and myself were the new guys. It was a nucleus of saying, “hey, this sound that we have right now has the potential to push a Flotsam forward.” It was almost just like a rebirth or restarting over.
You play obviously, but you write as well?
Yes. I don’t necessarily write metal. My genre is Rival Sons and the Black Crows. That kind of Rock.
Oh. I like that.
That’s my passion of what I would do outside of metal.
Oh. I see.
Metal to me is youth. I can go back in and I’m 19 years old on stage again because I love that generation of ’80s sound.
Yeah, me too.
The creativity, the rawness of pre-click track mentality where in not everything had to be polished. And so, I just like to go back to that era of music and still have a youthful heart and soul about it.
When you’re alone, you look down and there’s your guitar. You pick it up; what do you like to play? What soothes you?
Soothe might be the wrong word for what I do. I’m in an AC/DC tribute band in Sacramento. (Laughter)
Oh yeah?
Yeah, RIFF/RAFF. So, busting out any old school Bon Scott era songs like “Touch Too Much” or something like, “What Do You Do For Money?” off the “Back In Black” album are great songs to rock and puts me back too being an 18-year-old kid again.
Yeah.
That keeps my chops up. Beth Hart is someone I’ve really gotten into lately. I would love to play base for an artist like Beth. Piano based blues, with powerfully soulful vocals and great lyrics; that’s a hard combination to look away from. I feel like I play similar to her bassist, so if he ever needed a break from touring I’d be willing to help out. (Laughter).
Well there you go! That’s one of my questions and you just answered it. (Laughs)
Beth, Rival Sons, Richie Kotzen, or someone like the Black Crowes are a few others. Soulful vocals over guitar-driving groove rock, with a fat pocket drummer is my wheelhouse of music outside of metal. The bass gets to be an “in-the -back” foundation for that kind of music, while at the same time , creating its own layer of groove and melody.
What’s your favorite song to rock?
Altogether, I’d say Flotsam stuff.
Yeah.
“I Live You Die” is probably the favorite classic song. But we have a lot of newer stuff. We have a song called ”Iron Maiden,” which is sort of a tribute the band Iron Maiden. Melody wise or playing style wise, I get to riff all over the place like I’m Steve Harris. That was the most fun because it’s just creative baseline where I’m doing melodies. I can hear a melody in the verse that I’m doing, that’s actually a part of a Jamiroquai song.
Right.
But I also feel pretty eclectic as a person that has had so much music in my life, from my mom and my family, before getting into metal. It was easy for me to revert back to my old school stuff and go I’m probably more of a pocket groove player in the type of genre that I’m in. The guitar players want me to play everything with them until they hear me doing counter melodies and counter stuff or less notes and go; it actually works over with what we’re doing.
There were rumors in 2019 that you guys were working on something. It was due out late last year. What’s on the horizon for Flotsam and Jetsam?
We have the footage for Bang Your Head, full blown DVD, nine camera production, all 24 tracks. We may put out a DVD of that live show. We started working on songs for another album that may come out at the end of this year.
That’s what I was looking for.
Yeah. That’s in the process. I know we’ve got five, six songs moving along because we have a gap between September and December.
When you get back in the studio?
Yeah and where we’re off the road. We have a fairly big European tour that I can’t say who we’re supporting, but that’s a five and a half week tour over Europe.
You know I’ll put my hand over the mic and you can just tell me.
I’ll tell you after we cut off the recording. (Laughter) But yeah, that’s that. The venues will be from 1500 to 7,000 seats.
Tell me about your favorite rock experience: one thing that just blew you away and you thought, “man that was fantastic!”
Probably playing the Hammersmith Odeon in 1987, it was also Megadeth’s very first European show on the continent ever. We had gear problems so we got to share Megadeth’s bank back line. No sound check. The show started late. I was the new guy in the band. Dave Mustaine already knew the guys in Flotsam and actually knew me from my previous band, Sentinel Beast, out of Sacramento.
Uh-huh (affirmative).
Sentinel Beast and Flotsam and Jetsam were both on metal blade records. So, we did our set and walked off the stage. Dave Mustaine, high-fives everybody that’s coming up the stairwell, giving props, “everybody great, great job”. He looked at me and goes, “you sucked.” And I just looked at him like, huh. That’s when I realized he said that because he was giving me grief and just knew I did my job. So that memory has always stuck with me as a cool brotherhood thing.
There’s got to be a lot of that out there on the road. You’ve got to keep yourselves interested. Right?
Yeah. And not be afraid to give each other grief. Half the battle is having a good time while you’re on the road. I’m all about humor and having a good time. Then you flip a switch, then you’re onstage, and you’re a performer.
Sure. You go to work.
It’s not being too serious about life and being on the road. Everyone has different personalities. I’m such a chill guy that it really stuff doesn’t bother me. But I appreciate humor in things.
Before we wind up the interview, tell me about your work with the Atelier Z Bass Guitars. What is it about those guitars that makes you want to represent them?
I appreciate the craftsmanship. Just like anything, there’s a lot of manufacturers that are into the quality of what they’re doing. Atelier is another one of those manufacturers. As an artist, the customization that they’re willing to do for you is pretty awesome. They want you to be happy with the product. They want you to feel good about representing the product and being a sales person for it. As long as the bass sounds the way you want it to sound, it’s going to do its job all by itself.
Pretty, pretty guitars. All right, thanks for talking with us today.
Good deal.
Michael Spencer
Atelier Z Guitar Works (Basically Bass Guitars)
https://bassicallybassguitars.com/
BY: Thorne Schreiber / BackStage360