{"id":9451,"date":"2017-12-12T10:50:19","date_gmt":"2017-12-12T01:50:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.museonmuse.jp\/?p=9451"},"modified":"2017-12-12T14:36:30","modified_gmt":"2017-12-12T05:36:30","slug":"vol-80-jennifer-batten-december-2017-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.museonmuse.jp\/?p=9451","title":{"rendered":"Vol.80 Jennifer Batten \/ December 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jennifer Batten<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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\nPhoto by Ali Hasbach<\/span><\/p>\n

The SCHERER\/BATTEN project features Marc Scherer, vocalist extraordinaire with a skyscraping clear voice, along with female super guitarist Jennifer Batten, known for working with artists such as Michael Jackson and Jeff Beck. SCHERER\/BATTEN has just released their album \u201cBattleZone\u201d, produced and written by Jim Peterik, who is also known for his prolific collection of songs including SURVIVOR\u2019s \u201cEye Of The Tiger\u201d and \u201cBurning Heart\u201d from the Rocky movies.
\nThe SCHERER\/BATTEN album displays a great collection of pleasant yet catchy and melodic rock tunes featuring a great vocal performance by Marc Scherer, and Jennifer Batten\u2019s melodic guitar along with a taste of some flashy licks and energetic performances.
\nJennifer Batten took some time with MUSE ON MUSE to talk about the new album, and also shared her thoughts about the current music scene, as well as some of her memories with Michael Jackson and Jeff Beck.<\/p>\n

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Interview \/ Text\u00a0 Mamoru Moriyama
\nTranslation\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Louis Sesto (EAGLETAIL MUSIC)<\/p>\n

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\nPhoto by Sergey Ivanov<\/span><\/p>\n

Muse On Muse : Your new album \u201cBattlezone\u201d showcases a great collection of melodic and catchy rock tunes. Can you please tell us how the Scherer\/Batten project was formed?<\/span>
\nJennifer Batten : It started over a lunch time conversation between ex-\u201cSurvivor\u201d band Jim Peterik and Marc Scherer about Jim\u2019s prolific back catalog of songs and unreleased gems. Jim and Marc did a previous record together and wanted to continue working together. I was originally flown into Chicago for recording sessions. After I was brought in for the second time Marc called me up a few days after my return and said he felt my guitar work had added another \u201cvoice\u201d on the record and he wanted me to become a bigger part of the project. So the Marc Scherer CD became Scherer Batten that day. BattleZone was a song the three of us wrote after breakfast on my 2nd day with them.<\/p>\n

MM : The album was produced and written by Jim Peterik, who also released the PETERIK\/SCHERER album \u201cRisk Everything\u201d with Marc Scherer in 2015. The album displayed great songwriting with melodic and catchy tunes, but on the other hand also seemed to lack a bit of the flashy 80s guitar hero aspect. It seems as though your participation on the \u201cBattlezone\u201d album filled in the missing piece on \u201cRisk Everything\u201d.<\/span>
\nJB : One benefit of the BattleZone CD is the executive producer Danette Pahl is a huge guitar fan and insisted on more and more guitar. She was like a cheerleader in the studio when I was playing. It was a vibrant environment.<\/p>\n

MM : Mike Aquino, Bryan Cole, Dave Carl and Jim Peterik are also credited as guitar players for the album. How were the guitar duties split? Did you play all the solos and were the rhythm parts played by the other guitarists?<\/span>
\nJB : The CD was almost done by the time I joined in. The other guys recorded most of the rhythm parts and I did all the solos except the first solo in Crazy Love which I adore.<\/p>\n

MM : Please tell us in detail about the recording process. How did you record the guitars for this album?<\/span>
\nJB : I brought my (new at the time) BluGuitar Amp1 to Chicago along with my Digitech RP1000 for fx and expression pedal. I recorded most with my signature model Washburn JB100 guitar that\u2019s been around the globe many many times over 20 years and has been broken multiple times and stolen. I got it back and have finally retired it. I did some final bits in my own studio with my new Washburn Parallaxe PXM10 and ran it into the Amp1 plus Thomas Blug\u2019s new speaker emulator called the Blue Box which has 16 IR speaker cabs to choose from and a virtual mic placement knob. I used the Marshall 1964 model.
\nWhile I was in the studio with Jim, I found him to be very on the spot inventive with ideas and places he wanted me to fill between vocal lines and tags. Where there were obvious solo sections, he just let me go and do what I do.<\/p>\n

MM : What did Jim Peterik, the producer and composer for this album, tell you when he asked you to take over all of the guitar solo parts?<\/span>
\nJB : Aside from his choosing spots for me to play, several times he would think of little melodies to use for the fills and possibly harmonies to those as in the intro to Cuts Deep.<\/p>\n

MM : Please tell us about your approach to lead guitar performance. Is there anything you keep in mind when you play and\/or construct the licks and phrases?<\/span>
\nJB : I think the best way to record guitar solos is to jam along to the solo section if you have the luxury of time on your own, which I did for the first session. Then you get a feel for what\u2019s needed and experiment with various approaches each time you fire it up and play. In the end it\u2019s all about reacting to what you\u2019re hearing and what the drums are dictating time wise.<\/p>\n

MM : The title track \u201cBattlezone\u201d written by you, Jim Peterik and Marc Scherer starts out with some wild whammy bar licks. Tell us about this song.<\/span>
\nJB : It\u2019s the only one I had a hand in writing. Jim is super prolific. They intended to do several songs and take advantage of my time in Chicago but I had no idea how much we\u2019d really get done until I left. He suggested we get together and write something and asked me for a riff or groove. The verse groove came out immediately and he started humming a melody to it and added acoustic piano. Within an hour the sections were essentially set as was the title and a few spattered lyrics. Then Marc went to work with lyrics after I left. I really don\u2019t know how the melody and lyrics developed after I left, or how much came from Marc or from Jim. I left town with a rough iPhone recording. I think we changed keys from the original for Marc\u2019s voice. I rerecorded my parts at home and sent the update to Marc to work with.<\/p>\n