I recently talked to lead guitarist Mike Mroz (Angus) about BACK IN BLACK and their approach to delivering a fitting AC/DC tribute band.

E.C.: First, how did the band come about? Was it just a love of AC/DC, or were you playing original music first?

Mike Mroz: Back around 1995, we were performing original music in LA and one night we were at the Whiskey and Darren and I decided to have the band close with Touch Too Much. All of a sudden the unresponsive LA crowd came alive. From that point on we started closing all are shows with AC/DC songs. Our band ended up breaking up and I ended up being relocated to Dallas. After about five years of not performing, I wanted to start a band just to play again and have fun. I tracked down Darren and told him that I wanted to do an AC/DC Tribute, and I think he started packing his things when we were still on the phone.

E.C.: The original songs on your CD - were these written before the tribute band came together or afterwards?

Mike Mroz: The songs were written after Back in Black was formed; all the great AC/DC fans were telling us they wanted to hear new music and that we should record some songs. We had previously recorded a couple of songs for 20th century Fox that went really well, so we all knew we would have some chemistry in the studio.

E.C.: Especially when it comes to KISS and Beatles tribute bands, there are a lot of bands with the same name. Did you have to trademark your band name? Of course you picked it from the song, but how long did it take you to come up with a final name?

Mike Mroz: No big decision there, we just felt it was a great name. No need to trademark.

E.C.: One thing I've noticed about tribute bands is that many of them are "localized" - for example, those on the west coast play mainly only the west coast. You are based in Texas, correct? Is your touring localized? And what is your touring schedule like - regular gigs, or do the members have to have day jobs?

Mike Mroz: Over the last year we started traveling more and playing to crowds outside of Dallas. We have now played all over the states and Canada. We just finished a stadium tour in Canada which was awesome; we headlined the Saddledome in Calgary. We have another Canadian stadium tour lined up for July and we can't wait to go. We're also currently routing a West coast tour and a Southeastern tour this summer. We all have day jobs, except for Darren, but we all manage to get the time off to tour.

E.C.: What is the most memorable gig that you've played?

Mike Mroz: Last year's Bone Bash concert in Ft Worth, we played to over 36,000 people and we killed them. We had every single person at that show enjoying our band. There's no better feeling.

E.C.: When I interviewed HAYSEED DIXIE a few years ago, they were actually noticed by AC/DC and were hired to play at a private party of one of the band members. Has your band received any response from the actual members of AC/DC?

Mike Mroz: Brian Johnson invited us to play the Van Wezel in Sarasota last Oct, but he was unfortunately held up overseas. He sent his family to meet us; we hung out with his wife Brenda and his nephews. Brenda told us that we blew her away.

E.C.: Hearing your CD, you guys have got the AC/DC sound down! But, when it comes to playing live, how much emphasis do you place on authenticity, i.e. the movements of Angus live, etc? I imagine that you've studied some of the live footage of the band to get the "act" down?

Mike Mroz: You have to see us live, we have done our homework. We own almost every AC/DC performance and we study them all the time. Before each show we try to learn something new and try to break each other up.

E.C.: Any bizarre or funny gigs that you can think of? When it comes to numerous bands playing on a single bill - what is the strangest lineup that has happened to your band? Any real miss-matches or have you been placed on a bill with any other tribute bands?

Mike Mroz: We've been pretty fortunate, so far no real miss-matches. We have performed numerous shows with other tribute bands. We've also played with some great bands such as Cheap Trick and Vince Neil.

E.C.: A lot of tribute bands aren't given enough credit just because they are a "tribute" band, hence not taken seriously. What is the main critique (if any) that you hear?

Mike Mroz: Initially we ran into some clubs that wouldn't book us because we were just a tribute band, but fortunately we really built up our following and reputation so now we don't have that problem anymore.

E.C.: Your CD of original songs (plus two AC/DC classics) really blew me away. They really sound like authentic AC/DC songs. How many originals do you play live?

Mike Mroz: We usually play 2-3 original songs per show; we realize that people are coming out to see an AC/DC Tribute so we're slowly breaking them in to our own music.

E.C.: How do you balance the AC/DC songs that you play live? Is it a 50/50 split between the Bon Scott-era AC/DC and the Brian Johnson-era AC/DC?

Mike Mroz: Yes it’s been about a 50/50 split, we are very fortunate that Darren can do both voices so incredibly. Not all the other AC/DC tribute bands can give the audience both singers like we can. We split our performance into two sections, one is Brian material and the other is Bon.

E.C.: When Darren is singing, does he try and differentiate his voice between the Bon/Brian songs?

Mike Mroz: Absolutely, Darren studies both singers; he nails both of them with great precision. Check out our recording of “TNT” and then listen to “Money Honey” at www.backinblack.info

E.C.: When I saw AC/DC on the FOR THOSE ABOUT TO ROCK tour, they used cannons. Any pyrotechnics in your show? Or cannons?

Mike Mroz: No pyro, but we do use a sampler for the cannons. We really enjoy the early AC/DC performances without and effects, just raw power, that's what our live show is like.

E.C.: When it comes to audience response do you have any fans that treat you like the actual AC/DC band?

Mike Mroz: Not really, we get a great response from the AC/DC fans who appreciate our band.

E.C.: I’ve got one non-serious question - Is there any groupie action? Any “Whole Lotta Rosie” going on?

Mike Mroz: We have definitely met ‘Whole Lotta Rosie’, and her sister ‘Notta Whole Lotta Teeth’!

E.C.: Finally, any more CD's planned in the future?

Mike Mroz: We are currently recording 4 more songs to be included on the next version of our CD. We will absolutely keep writing and recording, we still love to perform this music.