\u201cThe recording process of our last album was disorganized and not the way we wanted it,\u201d says Thornley. \u201cWe\u2019re the kind of band that goes into the studio until we can\u2019t hear or our fingers can\u2019t play the guitar anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n
Big Wreck broke up a year after the album\u2019s release. Thornley went on to a solo career, achieving two mildly successful albums in Canada, Come Again<\/em> and Tiny Pictures.<\/em> During his tour of Come Again<\/em>, Thornley ended up with laryngitis, something he hopes to avoid on the upcoming tour of the recently reformed Big Wreck.<\/p>\n \u201cMy nemesis is being sick,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s a nightmare to try and sing when you\u2019re sick, like trying to play guitar with gloves on. I just don\u2019t want to cancel a show, though.\u201d<\/p>\n Sick or not, Thornley\u2019s song delivery is always going to be powerful. He wants the audience to feel their heartstrings being pulled.<\/p>\n \u201cAll songs I write have a meaning, at least some kind of memory attached to it,\u201d he says. \u201cIf they don\u2019t have a meaning when you perform, then it feels like you\u2019re doing a job. I have nothing against people performing cover songs, but for me I feel like it\u2019s telling somebody else\u2019s story.\u201d<\/p>\n Thornley must be doing something right because he caught attention the attention of rock guitar legend Slash. The former Guns \u2018N\u2019 Roses and current Velvet Revolver lead guitarist phoned Thornley up personally and asked if he\u2019d be interested in auditioning for the frontman position of Velvet Revolver when Scott Weiland left the band in 2008.<\/p>\n \u201cOh, it was great fun,\u201d says Thornley. \u201cSlash is exactly as you\u2019d think, a real sweetheart. The auditions went well until the manager asked me to not play the guitar. I\u2019m not the kind of guy to perform without a guitar around my neck; I don\u2019t feel comfortable with that.\u201d<\/p>\n Fans should consider themselves lucky that it didn\u2019t pan out with Velvet Revolver, otherwise Thornley might not have had the chance to reunite with Doherty and reform Big Wreck. The band\u2019s third album, Albatross<\/em>, was released in March. Now they are kicking off a tour in support of the album, starting here in Victoria.<\/p>\n \u201dVictoria\u2019s a beautiful town. I love the people there,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s nice going to perform on the island; some old friends live there. Actually, my best friend from high school lives up island.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/bigwreck_pressphoto2012horizontalcolourcreditrichardsibbald.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
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