Thunder’s new album “Robert Johnson’s Tombstone” is released on 30th October on STC Recordings (via Universal). The band will tour the UK in November to support the new release.
The band have played 2 UK tours, 2 European Tours, done lots of festivals and finished off with a triumphant appearance at the Monsters of Rock Festival in Milton Keynes in June. They’ve recently released their fourth self financed DVD – a double affair called “Thunder Go Mad In Japan” – which, as the title suggests, was filmed on tour in Japan in February 2006. Disc 1 contains a documentary of the trip, and Disc 2 features a full blown 2 hour show. Harry performed with Ian Gillan at the Teenage Cancer Trust show at). The campaign for the new LP is gathering pace, and full details of all their activities can be found as ever at.”
Formed at the turn of 1989, Thunder have enjoyed an eventful career that has thankfully witnessed more highs than lows. The release of “Robert Johnson’s Tombstone” finds the quintet on a very remarkable high, and in a position where they are pretty much masters of their own destiny.
Having known each other since they were 11 and been playing in bands together since they were 15, Danny and Luke knew exactly what they were going for when they began demo-ing tracks with Duran Duran guitarist Andy Taylor producing. With Harry James occupying the drum stool, bass player Mark “Snake” Luckhurst and guitarist/keyboardist Ben Matthews swiftly joined the trio, and by this time a record deal had been inked with EMI. Debuting in front of a mere 35 punters at a gig in Southend in July 1989, they did a handful of shows before the band entered the studio with Taylor and engineer Mike Fraser (Bryan Adams, Aerosmith etc) to cut their first magnificent offering in the shapely form of debut album 'Backstreet Symphony'. More touring followed, including two dates at the NEC in Birmingham opening for Aerosmith, and the band's fondness for the road would only increase their popularity. “In our previous band Terraplane,” notes Luke, “we never got any support from radio and TV and with Thunder we just assumed the worst. So”/Fraser produced second album, 'Laughing On Judgement Day' was released in August 1992 (held off the Number One spot in the UK's album chart only by a Kylie Minogue greatest hits package).
However, the tour to support 'Laughing On Judgement Day' (which included headlining dates in the UK and a European tour supporting Extreme) proved a step too far for bassist Snake. He quit after Japanese dates.….
“I don't think we were particularly affected by Grunge in terms of musical influence,” reckons Luke. .
The band's first official live album, 'Live', hit the stores in February 1998 and the quintet toured the UK once again, and doing another couple of bits for charity by abseiling off of the side of the Tyne Bridge in Newcastle for the British Lung Foundation (not Luke - he hates heights), and doing a freefall parachute jump (Danny & Ben). Thunder are, of course, no strangers to charity, having organised several highly publicised gigs in aid of CRISIS in the past. Surprisingly, eight months after the release of the next studio album, 'Giving The Game Away', in 1998, Thunder announced a split due to “outside business forces”, going out in typical style with a series of farewell shows, climaxing with two gigs at Dingwalls in Camden on May 4 and 5 2000.
Danny “We’d been at it solidly for eleven years, we were still doing great touring business and we were solid as a unit, but we felt frustrated. There didn't seem to be any room for us to operate outside of our own fanbase..
“I'd had the idea of the 'Monsters Of Rock' tour and took the concept to Clear Channel. I convinced them it was a workable thing to do, thinking that my role would be behind the scenes, and just walking around telling people what to do!
“But they felt Thunder should reform and be on the bill. ‘It would be great for ticket sales’, they said. settled on an EP to start with. When the news got out, we were offered record deals, but with the advances in technology and the internet,...”
“The thing is, we never fell out, we’d all remained good friends,” continues Luke.  'Back For The Crack' EP sold incredibly well, as did the 'Shooting At The Sun' album. Amazingly the fans were still there and they’ve continued to grow throughout the campaign for 'The Magnificent Seventh', and all the touring we’ve done with it”
Indeed. Onward and upward and there's clearly no chance of Thunder joining the derelict old barflies up on Boot Hill just yet!
Luke “There was a period just after the whole Brit-Pop thing in the late 90s when we were truly out of sorts. But rock is back, and we're having a great time, and what’s even better, now we’re doing it all on our own terms.”
Danny “There’s no doubt it’s very hard work doing this all ourselves, but the rewards are there with each record selling more than the last, so we can see the curve going upwards, and it's great not to have to deal with all the record label bullshit, now it’s my bullshit, and everyone else has to deal with it!”