Chad Kroeger can’t take all the credit for the songs on Nickelback’s new album, The Long Road. He had some help from Metallica, Mötley Crüe, Aerosmith and Bon Jovi.
No, James Hetfield, Vince Neil and Steven Tyler didn’t actually show up in Vancouver at Little Mountain studio. Nor did they send Kroeger music or vocal parts. But their presence was clearly felt through the studio board, which played host to rock legends through the ’80s and ’90s.
“Mötley Crüe’s Dr. Feelgood was recorded on it,” said Kroeger, “and Aerosmith did a couple records on it including Pump. And Bon Jovi did Slippery When Wet on that board. So it’s got a lot of history and you can get that vibe and that magic when you’re using it.”
Nickelback’s frontman felt so productive when he worked on the equipment that he purchased the board from Little Mountain and had it installed in his home studio in a giant barn behind his Vancouver home.
“Every time I sit in front of that board, the creativity just comes,” he gushed. “I’ve been to a few studios where there is no inspiration. You sit in front of the board and try to think of a line and you can’t think of anything. You just don’t feel it. And you gotta feel it. So that’s why I bought the board.”
Having the historic equipment on which Metallica recorded part of their “Black Album” makes Kroeger almost giddy. Every time he walks from his front door to the barn to work on new material, he thinks of producers Bob Rock and Bruce Fairbairn sitting down at the controls, and he can’t wait to start recording.
“What a feeling, man,” he said. “It makes me think of one of the songs on the album, ‘Feeling Way Too Damn Good.’ In the song I say, ‘Something’s gotta go wrong ’cause I’m feeling way too damn good’. I almost feel that way. Everything’s going great and I’m just waiting for lightning to strike. I’m waiting for somebody to fall down the stairs and break their neck and sue me for every penny that I’ve got, and then I’ll be right back to step one.”
The Long Road comes out on September 23. The first single, “Someday,” is currently at rock radio.
