Ralph Scheepers
Martijn Balsters
Date: 12-09-2000
When I first heard the song "Journey on the Waves of Time" on the Flight of the Migrator album, I was stunned by the vocal performance of the singer. After looking into the cd booklet I was a bit surprised to see the name of Ralf Scheepers credited with this song. I already knew him from his old band Gamma Ray and his recent one, Primal Fear. His vocals on the Ayreon album didn't really sound like these bands. Here's an interview with Ralf, who proved to be a really friendly and cooperative guy.
Profile
Name: Ralf Scheepers
Date of birth: 05-02-1965
Nationality: German
Residence: Altbach ... 20 km away from Stuttgart
Married: not married
Children: None
Hobbies: Formula 1, Astronomy
Favorite 3 albums:
Unleashed in the East - Judas Priest
Balls to the wall - Accept
Painkiller - Judas Priest
Favorite 3 movies:
The Gladiator
Conan
8 mm
Could you tell (in short) what you've done in your musical career so far?
1981-1982 Voltage (As vocalist and guitarist)
1982-1983 Beast of Prey (Vocalist)
1983-1986 Tyran Pace (Vocalist)
1987-1989 Challenger (Coverband)
1989-1994 Gamma Ray
1995-1997 Just Priest (Coverband (Preparation for J-Priest))
1998-NOW PRIMAL FEAR
When was the moment in your life that you decided to become a professional singer?
When I was 17.........actually I am still working but who wants to know that ?? :-)
You have never made it a secret that you're a big Judas Priest fan. Is it true that when Rob Halford left the band, you stopped all your other activities and spended all your time and energy on becoming Priest's new singer?
Not exactly like that, I did an application when I still was in Gamma Ray but things were not so good anymore... I never thought I will get an answer from Priest but it looked very good in the first 3 years of waiting...
How was it like to do the audition? Did you enjoy the moment of playing with them, or were you too focused on getting the job?
I never got invited to do auditions... inspite of several promises from Mrs. Jayne Andrews and the band... I just received promising letters...
What do you think of their new singer Ripper Owens?
He's a great singer... but actually after seeing him live for 4 times now I don't like his stageacting...
After this, you formed your own band Primal Fear that is doing very well. Do you have any other bands, or is this the only one?
Primal Fear is the one and only... Yeah !!
You just played some summer festivals with Primal Fear. You seemed to have a lot of fun. Can you imagine yourself doing something other than singing in a (metal)band?
Not really... it's my life and I would really miss it if I couldn't do it...
Some Ayreon related questions now. Did you know about Ayreon before you sang on "Flight of the Migrator" yourself?
Yes I did... Arjen sent me his first CD "The electric castle" a killer album !!!
How did you and Arjen got in touch?
He came up to me when we played at the Arena Open Air in 1999 and asked me if I would sing a song on his next album... actually he got in touch with me by e-mail the first time...
Arjen is known for the fact that he wants to let singers do their vocals in a different way than they do in their own band. He once told in an interview that he stimulated you to do this as well. Do you like the idea of experimenting with your voice in the studio?
Yes, it was interesting and I think I really sing different on Journey on the waves of time... but of course it's my voice and you can hear that it's me... :-))
In the song "Journey on the Waves of Time" you show some incredible vocal performances. Especially the higher parts and screams are quite impressive. Is it just a matter of practicing a lot, or were you always capable of doing them?
I always did it... I remember screaming around in my hometown at night and they almost called the cops to lock me in... hehehe...
It was the "Unleashed in the East" of Priest time and I screamed the end screams of "The green manalishi"... :-))
What do you think of the album "Flight of the Migrator" as a whole?
It's amazing... great story, great musicians, great feelings...
If Arjen was going to ask you to sing on one of his next albums, would you do it again?
If I had the time to do it yes, why not... he's a nice guy!!
Do you have any further ambitions for the future?
Makin' music until I die!!! Spreading our kind of music around the world...