“Goodbye Scorpions” that was the title of Scorpionism‘s last event at the Culturewheel, and what a wonderful goodbye it was, well let’s let go of the interview introduction this time and enjoy reading this interview with the legendary band “Scorpions” in mind
When and how did the band start? And who founded it?
Noha: August 2008. I had the idea for sometime ‘n I was waiting for the right time to put it in action. Mostafa Fathy and I co-founded it. I called in my musician friends whom I thought would be interested in the idea and Mostafa instructed the technicalities.
why did you choose to be a Scorpions tribute band?
Noha: Most rockers have listened to Scorpions as first hand rock experience ‘n left them for more sophisticated styles or genres. But some got stuck. I did. And I thought why not reviving those sweet memories specially that it would be a privilege since no other Egyptian bands have come up with the idea and only a few ones world wide have, and that it would be a challenge to try to reflect their sensation to the people. The Scorpions’ music may sound simple but it is actually full of rhythmic and vocal harmony that would reach four harmonic lines; and that is actually hard work to bring on stage whilst you are doing a wild show.
I have noticed many changes in Scorpionism line-up, can you please tell me about the current line-up and the former members?
Noha: They are not many changes as far as all the members have work demands that sometimes can expand and exceed other priorities. For example we had Amgad Shebl as a second lead guitarist but after a shift in his career we had to replace him by Tamer Ibrahim (Tamer Brazily) who’s currently our second lead guitarist with Mostafa Fathy. And so was the case with Omar Al Husseiny our first bassist. Lately, there has been some technical differences between some of the band members and settled by the latest line up that is : Tamer Essam on drums, Tamer Ibrahim on guitar, Sherif Adel on keyboards, Moatafa fathy on guitar , and myself Noha Taha on vocals.
What troubles did you face while establishing the band?
Noha: None. Everything was smooth sailing.
Noha, many of the band’s fans doubt your ability to always perform right for Scorpions as we all know that Scorpions are a very hard band to cover, what’s your response to them?
Noha: At first I was afraid I could not meet the expectations and that made me make mistakes. However, even after gaining a lot of confidence from our supporters and by experience, there are still a few people who would never accept a female rocker not to mention one who is singing male songs. But those who are being negative based on nothing I have to tell them on behalf of Scorpionism “Either watch one of our shows to have something to talk about or shut up.”
Are you willing to continue as a Scorpions tribute band or are you going to start soon with originals as well?
Noha: I shall quote from Klaus Meine’s words to us and say that friendship is what is holding the band together, so we will continue to play as long as we are enjoying what we are doing. I do already have a band playing my Arabic original songs written and composed by myself and arranged by lots of dear friends of mine called “S.M.S”.
What did you feel when you knew that Scorpions have announced that they are going to retire from music bussines?
Noha: I respected that they knew when to stop and enjoy another section of life.
The event “Goodbye Scorpions”, can you please tell us about the idea of this event and the guests who performed with you?
Noha: The idea was Amgad Shebl’s our former guitarist due to the retirement decision made by the Scorpions after the release of their last album “Sting In The Tail” and the following world tour. The guest guitarists were: Ahmed Shingy, Weka Moez, and Ally Salem. The guest vocalists were: Hisham bluse, Ahmed A. El Haggar, Omar El Deeb, Elie Naggar, Mohamed Emam, and Nagham Samy. The guest bassists were: Seka and Sherif Roshdy.
And Nader Samy the motion music composer was our guest pianist.
You said in the event that you have talked directly to Klaus Meine the vocalist of Scorpions during his interview with an Egyptian magazine, can you tell us about this experience and what did you feel?
Noha:It was a surprise to all of us especially on the same day of the event. I unfortunately arrived a bit late so I missed talking to him but he told the interviewers and the other members who attended that he is very proud and excited about the tribute and thanked us sincerely.
What’s the song of Scorpions that you always love to perform the most and why?
Noha: “May Be I May Be You” would be it. The first time I heard it I just fell in love with it right away. The first time I sang it was back in Alexandria my home town with a rock formation of very close friends of mine called “Cube 60”. It was an out door event and when I started singing, it had started to rain heart touching everyone. The whole atmosphere was so perfectly beautiful I can never forget.
Pick a song of Scorpions for every single member of Scorpionism that sounds just like them.
Noha: We never sound exactly like them. Although my wonderful guitarists Mostafa Fathy and Tamer Ibrahim tend to astonish me at every song they play with how they sound so breath taking that you forget to compare.
How do you see the future of Scorpionism?
Noha: An atmosphere of enjoyment and trust between us and the audience; one could not hope for more.
A word to your fans.
Noha: Thanks to the encouragement you gave us and many thanks for the criticism that improved our performance. I personally thank all the faces that kept smiling at me through out all of our concerts, and I also thank those who were very opponent they made me want to do this even more.
