Last year saw Magnum release "Into the Valley of the Moonking" and like its predecesor, "Princess Alice and the Broken Arrow", it saw the band enjoy high praise from fans and reviewers alike, many comparing the albums to the bands commercial and creative high points of the 80s. The band have always been a Tour de force live and last year was not exception as Midlands Rocks can testify.
 
I caught up with bass player Al' Barrow for a Q & A to ask him about all things Magnum.
 
Where in the world do we find you at the moment?
 
Well me personally, I’m at home working on some new designs for T-shirts for the festivals we have coming up. Also I do artwork & photos for the band. A lot of my time away from the studio is spent working on new ideas for things that will be months away.
I work on them and then get the guys to make any changes they want. Always ends up being a last minute thing for some reason. All the best plans of mice and men…
 
What are Magnum up to?
 
Tony (Clarkin) called me last night and told me they had a productive week doing the pre production on the new album. No title yet. Well not one I can tell you. New ideas are coming thick and fast and Tony had mountain of new material he wanted to bring in. He works a lot more at home on his home studio and then brings it in to the main studio for the rest of the guys to make a big noise on.
 
You have been with the band for a while now, do you feel part of the Magnum furniture?
 
I think I do. I have only had a few conversations with fans about the whereabouts of Wally (Lowe - former bass player). I think it’s a bass player thing. I think although Wally was an integral part of the band as long as the songwriter and lead singer stay the same many things can change without too much upheaval from the fans. I mean how many drummers have we had now???
 
You also worked with Bob Catley and Tony Clarkin in Hard Rain, what was that like, and how did they feel working outside the Magnum banner?
 
No different at all really. It’s still the same major components. I did get fed up with saying to people I’m in a band called Hard Rain they used to e called Magnum. The set up was the same really. It did have a more relaxed feel to the band when it came to touring and recording, but that was sometimes a distraction.
 
Tony tends to write the songs for Magnum, do the rest of the band come up with ideas and lyrics/songs, and if so how does Tony take these on board?
 
Tony really covers all the areas when it comes to lyrics. Bob will may be change a line or two if he finds something better to sing. But that’s from a singers point of view. We all contribute musically to the tracks. Tony gives us the roots and the feel and then says try this. Once he has what he wants he then says go for it, do what you want. Some parts he keeps and sometimes he doesn’t.
 
The last two albums have seen-what many fans see-as a return to the bands creative high point of the 80s (On a storytellers night, Vigilante, Wings of heaven etc),has this been a conscious effort do you feel?
 
Thanks, that makes me proud to be a part of what I feel is in it`s own way a great set of albums in their own right but there are moments when there is a feeling of looking back as well. They were big albums and it’s always going to be hard to write album after album and come up with something everyone will like. We had the conversation many times when we released Princess Alice & Moonking. If we did another Storytellers people would say we have not progressed. If we do something fresh we get slated for not staying true and forgetting the wants and needs of Magnum fans.
 
Bob's voice is as good as it ever was, how does he maintain such high quality vocals-does he have any pre show warm ups?
 
Bob is a law un to himself. No warm ups no exercises.

Me & Bob have a slurp of Jack Daniels to warm the tonsils, purely medicinal you see. That’s about it. He still smokes and does all the wrong things but he still gets up there night after night and does an incredible job. You really have to see Bob in the studio to really get a chance to hear what power and control he has not to mention the ability to harmonize to anything in a blink of an eye.

Also how does anyone remember all those lyrics, he baffles me.
 
You often play and record with a 5 string bass now, do you find your playing has been enriched by being in Magnum?
 
My playing has completely changed since joining Magnum. I was a 4 stringer for years and played all over the neck. I cut my teeth on bands like Rush, Winger, Yes & other very progressive styles.

I was what you could have called a busy player. Magnum bass playing needs to be simplistic and smooth. It lets the other band instruments cut through and most importantly never distracts from the most important part “the song”.

Occasionally it’s nice to play up the dusty end but Magnum requires a solid almost hypnotic , dare I say mechanical approach. Nail the rhythm and keep It solid. I also sing a lot of high harmonies live so it pays to keep it simple if I have to think about singing a 3rd above Bob.
 
How well did you know Magnum's music before you joined the band-were you a fan?
 
Not that much to be very honest. Saw them at Greenbelt Live once. Saw the on TV but that’s about it. I was very distracted by rock from across the pond and kind of blinkered to the UK rock scene. How stupid of me!
 
What is it like playing a whole album live, are the dynamics different from playing a regular set?
 
It does seem to flow better in many ways. When the albums are put together there is a lot of planning goes in to the running order. The pace of an album is very important. But we all like to mix it up as well. Keeps people on their toes.
 
You have now been 'immortalized' in the lyrics of ''Just like an arrow''-''Just like AL BARROW'' Live, how does that feel?
 
It`s very heart warming and when it happened I could not have been happier that it was caught on film. I was a very chuffed lad. Even Tony cracks a smile on stage at that point, so it must have been cool. High point of my Magnum career. Thanks to the fans.
 
You are personally involved with many aspects of the band-podcasts, website etc, does it ever feel like a 'Job'?
 
Don’t be daft. If it does what a great job to have. I run around on stage, sing some songs. Have a bloody good time with the band and crew and travel all over the place. I do other stuff to occupy my mind which is all part of the parcel. It`s all goood!
 
What has been your Magnum highlight so far?
 
There are many. It does change from time to time. It was one of the first Sweden Rock fest was great, then the recording of Living the Dream. Just being a part of something that I still enjoy and something a lot of people hold dear to their hearts. Lots of highlights really.
 
What is it like working with Harry James-you form a formidable and tight rhythm section-I bet life is never dull with him around?
 
Harry is a god amongst men. What an absolute dream for a bass player to work with. Professional to the last but one of the craziest people I know. I was a massive Thunder fan for years so to get to work with Harry was brilliant. He even danced to Dirty Love at my wedding. He was forced to by my wife. He looked a little awkward. But he gave us a lovely gift of a Helicopter flight over the Barrier reef in Oz. I love that man. Ok so he’s from darn south, he cant help it.
 
The band are playing The High Voltage festival, how does playing outdoors to an audience-some of who are unfamiliar with Magnum's music feel-is it like any other gig, or a good chance to garner new fans. And do you approach outdoor gigs any different?
 
There’s always that thought of how will we go down to a crowd that are not predominately there to see just us. It’s a challenge and we rise to it and always seem to go over OK. I think people are surprised we still rock with the best of them.
 
What direction is the new material taking?

Can’t really say, it’s too early to give anything away. Im sure whatever Tony and Bob and the boys put together will be great. I have to say that and I really believe we will be something very special again.
 
Are there any tentative dates for a new album release,and any proposed titles?
 
Nope, not just yet.
 
What does the future hold for Magnum?
 
Big things I hope. We keep doing what we do and people still keep coming to the shows. So I think we are doing something right. You will have keep tuned to find out what happens in the next exciting installments of Magnum & the future and stuff… the title needs some work, lol