Chris Caffery is the lead guitarist for the East Coast company of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra and also performed with the now on hiatus Savatage.  He was preparing to record and release his first solo album when we did this interview and had drummer Jeff Plate along with him as some production on the music had been done earlier in the day.  We met up with Chris and Jeff at a local bar in Astoria, Queens and talked at length about a wide variety of topics.  Ken Pierce Meets Chris Caffery & Jeff Plate 2/7/04

Before I begin, let me apologize for the length of this piece. This was the first interview I had ever done and at the time I was the US Representative of The Metal Circus in Barcelona Spain. I was fortunate enough to be able to sit down with Chris Caffery and Jeff Plate of Savatage and The Trans-Siberian Orchestra. We discussed music, life and Savatage, The TSO and beyond. Instead of taking this as an interview think of it as a evening out with two great musicians as we all talk about a little of everything in a cool local bar. The empty chair at the table is for you. Sit down for awhile.

KEN – So as I mentioned to you in email, the site is primarily in Spanish, with a couple of dozen items submitted by me that retain an English translation. The goal is to move to a lot more English going forward. The readers loved the Trans Siberian Orchestra review that I did for them back in December and I was told by my colleagues that “we hate you, we hate you…..but we love you since you are able to bring us this interview”

Jeff – So how big is the site?

KEN – The Metal Circus Site is pretty big and it’s connected to a radio station that will soon be something metal fans can hear online. They also publish a magazine which I think is given away at the record shops and club shows. There is a sizable amount of CD and DVD product listed as well as concert coverage and interviews. I was contacted by their Director to be the NYC Reporter several months ago, and as result I have been hitting a lot of shows and reviewing a lot of music for them.

CHRIS – Did you see Iron Maiden a few weeks ago?

KEN – No, could not get a ticket and then the last night got cancelled, and Saturday was cut short since beer fell on a sound board.
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