From: magazine unknown, date unknown
Author: Jasmine Minx
Their nine
year struggle to succeed is finally paying off.
In 1979, a local Tampa band began what was to become a lengthy career by playing small high school gigs and neighborhood parties. Calling themselves Avatar, they stood out among the competition by delivering original material with a fierce driving edge.
Skip ahead a few years and several hundred live shows later, and this gang, now called Savatage, are hard at work touring to promote their latest Atlantic release Hall of the Mountain King. Long-time veterans of the tour circuit, they've played with the likes of Dio and Motorhead and traveled the world.
Drummer and band spokesman Steve "Doc" Wacholz explains: "It's funny, you know, we toured Europe to a thunderous response and received more than our share of great press. We had a blast with Lemmy and the Motorhead gang, but the most interesting thing of all had to be playing to thousands of kids who spoke no English, yet sang the words to all our songs. It was amazing. In Europe the audiences are a bit more unbarred. It's like they don't care what other people think about them - they just go ahead and do their own thing, which is refreshing. They really get into it."
Steve, a self-confessed show-off and maniac behind th edrum kit, believes that playing live is the best high possible. "I'm a real ham, and I love getting in front of a crowd - doing what I do best. To tell you the truth, drumming and performing is all I know how to do, so it's lucky I've been able to make a living out of it. We're all very fortunate to be in the place we are at the moment. We're doing something we love and we're putting everything we've got into it."
With five LPs under their collective belts, Savatage are no overnight success. Steve realizes that a lot of young bands would give their back teeth to be in the position he and his band have worked several years to obtain. "We've built up a foundation, slowly and steadily; our walls will never fall."
And in the long run, what do Savatage hope to acheive?
"Success! We take goals one step at a time," says Steve. "The material we're writing at the moment is stronger than anything we've done thus far and we're touching on a lot of areas we've not gone near before, using some classical pieces and continuing to experiment. We're a very tight group personally and professionally and we are quite proud of what we have been able to achieve. We've all had offers to go our separate ways, but there is such a strong bond within Savatage we'd rather just stick it out together and strive for bigger and better. A gold record is our next goal.
"Every dog has his day," he continues with a chuckle, "and we're going to have one hell of a day when it happens!"
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