Sick Man

Sick Man
It Sometimes Feels I Have Had Several Lives

24.12.2017

Архив интервью | Русская версия

All is well that ends well. And even if the cooperation between German aggro/EBM legends Funker Vogt and singer Sacha Korn did not last long and caused quite a big scandal, it did attract a lot of attention to Sacha. After a couple of years off, he is back with a new band, and their first single is already in Top 20 of the German alternative charts. Completely un-political, but totally aggressive and relentless nevertheless, Sick Man promises to be a new beginning for the singer who has had quite a long career and a lot of musical output as a solo artist. In which he is, by the way, assisted by a new label partner, Russia’s Soyuz Music, which has already released the band’s debut full-length, “Sick Men”. We got in touch with Sacha to find out more about his new endeavor and the personality behind the mask that scares people so much.

The name of your new band, Sick Man, immediately connects it to your short-term cooperation with Funker Vogt. Given that this cooperation caused so much stir, why did you decide to stick to this name?

We received a huge amount of fan messages right after releasing the first tracks and the EP back then. It still keeps going. So it was actually quite clear to keep working with this name. Sick Man was already known by this cooperation and the major part of the feedback that came to us was good. So we thought why start with a new name if good reputations has been built.

The lead single, “Sick Man”, is, as far as I understand, the same song that was released by Funker Vogt in 2014. How much does it represent the rest of the upcoming full-length album? Did Gerrit Thomas and Rene Dornbusch contribute to the new full-length?


Yes, it is the same song. We made a few new mixes of it for a later single or EP release where it will be contained. The act's name Sick Man is coming from the Funker Vogt song "Sick Man". It plays a vital role in the band's history so it has to be on the album. That was clear from day one. Also the song has to be available worldwide again. Since we took it all off there needed to be a relaunch. People were still asking for it. We get lots of fan mails from America, north and middle.

In my eyes it is a very characteristic song comparing to the rest of the album material. That is why I took some time off before the start of the Sick Man project. I wanted to work with producers and musicians that deliver that typical aggro EBM sound with that melodic dark touch to it. That was actually what fascinated me once we started with that kind of music. Gerrit and Rene were not taking part.

Can you say a few words about your bandmembers, Guido Schade (ex-Subway To Sally) and Robert Tuta (Agressiva 69)? Why did you choose these two people for the band?

First of all I want to work with friends rather than session musicians or whatsoever. From my time being a session guitarist working in studios I know the difference between playing with session professionals and friends. And I know the discussion from other bands I know when you tour and play over years. Guido and Robert are both long term friends of mine. With both I played in bands before, with both I know what it is about to be on tour, on stage, hangover. (laughs) I lived for a few years in Poland, Robert was my neighbor. We lived in the city centre of Lodz and in the summer we did barbeques on the roof of our block, you know all those things. We share many interests, not only music. It is the perfect constellation as we went a long way together already. We are all very happy. It really feels like family and party time at the same time when we meet, cool!

Why do Guido and Robert wear masks on the promo photos? Is there any kind of concept behind it?


Well, during Funker Vogt photo shooting we had only me wearing that mask. That was part of the idea how to introduce a new vocalist to the audience without any discussion about how he looks, what he did before etc. We wanted them to listen first not showing anything but giving them a voice only. During photo shooting with Sick Man we thought we would give it a little twist and joke a bit. We are funny people you know. Me with a clear face and the others with masks is the other way around from what we did at the Funker Vogt shooting.

Do you have any plans to perform live with Sick Man? If yes, what kind of setlist do you intend to have?

Yes, we are keen to play live. We start rehearsing these days. Of course we play the songs of our debut album. We want to promote it. But we have already worked on new demo songs for the next album. I took 3 years' time to choose which way to go with whom and after I got the band together we really took our time. So we can step by step include new material in the live set and check out how it works, perhaps change little things. But the major part will be the album material.

How do you look back on your cooperation with Funker Vogt? Is there anything you would have done differently about it if you had a chance?

It was a very interesting time and a new experience for me. I would not change anything.

What do you think about the new Funker Vogt album “Code Of Conduct”? How much is it different from the vision you had for working with that band?

I haven t been listening to all of it. But what I heard is cool. They are on a good way again. Gerrit deserved it I can say and I am happy for them!

You were born and raised in the GDR, where Western music, as far as I can say, was not very easy to find. What were your first musical impressions as a kid? What was the artist/band that made you want to be a musician yourself?

AC/DC's "Highway To Hell" in the Amiga release was my first western music impression. I changed form piano to guitar right away. Besides that album my grandfather and father were both musicians and so I got involved at very young age with music. Me and my dad went to Pankow or Phudys (rock bands form Berlin, GDR) concerts and my father was working in the GDR music scene. When I was 12 years old he took me to my first GDR metal concert, Babylon. Funny, cause Guido Schade (Sick Man drummer) played drums for Babylon that night as I learnt decades later. (laughs) I must say now that the GDR music scene was not that bad as its reputation. We all wanted to listen to “the originals” from the west. But looking back I must admit that many GDR rock bands had more personal identity than many bands now. First of all they sang in German and not in English. And when I think of the lyrics they were great. But back then we wanted western music. AC/DC, Stones, Depeche Mode etc.

Very little is known about your musical activities before you began studying music in Los Angeles. Did you sing or play in any bands? How did studies in the U.S. change your view of the world and perception of music?

It changed everything. Basically I received a great education. I jammed with so many great musicans. Frank Gambale was the head of my guitar class. I jammed with Mike Stern who played for years with Miles Davis, Scott Henderson, Chick Corea, just to name a few superstars from the jazz and fusion scene, just as Frank Gambale. I will never forget how Frank played the solo of "Got A Match?" (a Chick Corea classic - ed.). It's just fantastic! So you can imagine that playing with these cats is an avatar . My teacher in music business was Kenny Kerner, former producer of Kiss. He died last year unfortunately. I learnt so much from these guys but I knew I did not want to follow the jazz path.

When I came back to Berlin I got involved as a studio session musician for some pop productions. Some went ok in the charts, even gold records which means quite large numbers in Germany. But as a hired musician you don’t get any share of it. So I quit a few years later as there was no money to be made at all. Berlin is not the place for session musicians. If one wants that I should have stayed in LA like some of my classmates. It wasn’t mine though.

For a few years you ran the label East International Music. What are your impressions from running the label? Do you consider it successful?


We had good times and bad times. It actually happened by random to me to start a label. My old friend and ex business partner Joe Bramante was an American music manager. We licensed many artists to the Eastern European territory most of the times from the U.S. We had some popular artists such as Eminem etc. Later I represented a pretty big publishing catalogue including Limp Bizkit, Massive Attack, Scorpions etc.

We consulted and managed Terence Trent D'Arby and had an office outside Milan, Italy in the mountains close to the border to Switzerland. You can imagine that this was a cool time. TTD's album got released under East International Music then, which I set up in Poland. We had fun. Then the business changed very quickly a lot and the sales went towards nothing. During the same time I had an artist deal with Universal Music Germany. We couldn’t bring it to an end where both sides where happy. Perhaps I spent too much time outside Germany and experienced too much. I couldn’t fit in their little world. But that time was the start of playing my own music and writing texts. Yes, of course my time in the music business helped me to get away from jazz and all that “university “ sort of playing guitar and writing music if you know what I mean. And it also helped to understand the “other” side. Many musicians see themselves only.

My partner Joe got one day arrested for dealing with arms and received a sentence of 12 years. So the company went belly up some time later. He died 2 years ago at a very young age, I lost a great friend, and fantastic time ended for ever. I like the memories but it is also sad when you see friends pass away. It sometimes feels I have had several lives already. (laughs)

How did you get in contact with Russian football team Locomotive Moscow? Are you a football fan, and if yes, what team do you support?

That happened by a clothing brand that supported Lokomotive. Lokomotive was the Russian Champion in 2002 as far as I remember and shortly after that the collaboration started. We played at events of that clothing brand and so we got in contact. Nice people there. I m not a big football fan. As an amateuer boxer I prefer boxing and other martial arts. You've got good boxers in Russia with a solid education. Long amateur path and then a professional career. And I like Sambo, the martial art from the Soviet army. I would love to learn a bit about it.

Could you describe your impressions from touring Russia in 2005? How did you like the country and the audience? By the way, do you have any plans for touring/visiting Russia again?

It was great. Such a energetic audience. Absolutely great. We will come back any time! Let's see if we receive some likeable offers. We would like to play some Russian festivals. I heard they are great…

Looking back at your career, is there an album/song that you are particularly fond of? What record of yours would you recommend to those who have not yet discovered your music?

I like "Funkenflug" (2013) a lot. "Feuer", the song and the album (2016). "Der Ganze Hass" which we recorded live in Hansa Studios. We invited 50 fans in the big studio where Depeche Mode and U2 recorded some of their greatest material. We recorded most of the album songs of "Feuer" there and played a show on the last day of the recordings. It was very brilliant and unforgettable.

What music do you enjoy listening to at the present time? Do you still look out for new interesting bands, or do you prefer to focus on older classics that you have loved for years?


All kinds of. It is a mix of classics and new songs. And then you have phases where you are listening to Slayer for a couple of weeks, The Cure and so on. I am a vinyl collector and so I listen to decades sometimes.

Your cooperation with Funker Vogt showed that a lot of people in Germany are willing to pass a negative judgement on whatever you do musically before they even take a listen. Do you intend to do anything to change this kind of reputation? Or do you prefer to just ignore it and continue going forward?

I rather ignore it. It is a pretty bad situation in Germany. Slowly I can say it begins to change. The funny thing is that only a handful of government controlled and organized NGOs and people are organizing those shit storms. Having the media behind it looks like the majority of the people are behind. But it is not the reality I can assure you.

Do you consider yourself a happy person? What are the things that make you happy or, on the contrary, that sadden you the most, when it comes to music and life in general?

I definitely am a happy person! I like to travel a lot and meet my friends in the UK, Poland, Russia. It makes me sad that my government is taking part in these stupid sanctions against Russia. Russia and Germany had always a great time when nobody separated us and when both countries worked in partnership. It makes me sad that politicians work contra productive. It was by the way one reason why we wanted to work with Soyuz Music, a Russian label. But again the happy and optimistic person in me hopes that the situation will soon be back to normal again, and I really think it will be.

Thank you for this interview! Please say a few final words to your Russian audience.

Well I hope that the Russian audience will like the music and much more hope to see them live again!

Sick Man on the Internet: http://www.sachakorn.de

Special thanks to Maxim Bylkin (Soyuz Music) for arranging this interview

Interview by Roman Patrashov
Photos courtesy of Soyuz Music
December 8, 2017
(c) HeadBanger.ru

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