Hey, it's Joel Hokstra. Hey, Joel, it's Renee Denio. How
are you? Renee? You're like the number one fan? How bad can
I be when I get to tart You know what, I will take that,
because yes, I am the number one fan since day one. In
fact, since you've been coming to Connecticut, I've had the honor and privilege
of introducing every single show with a charitable angle. It's always great when TSO
comes to town. Well, thank you so much. I mean, we
love you, guys, always feel the love when we visit. SO.
Looking very much forward to being back out this year and can't wait to get
there. All right, Joel, So, you've been on our program a
million times to talk all about Trans Siberian Orchestra, about the event of what
we're going to see on stage. Now we know that you're coming Sunday,
November twenty six, Mohegan send two shows three pm and eight pm. I
have to ask, because this is always my favorite question and it's always the
same answer. Is it even bigger and better than ever before? I mean,
that's always been Polonio's philosophy from the beginning, and the truth beat old
as the musicians we don't know. I mean, we're not in the know
in terms of what the stage looks like until we get to rehearsals and we
see them assembling it. That's usually when we get really excited and you know,
revved up about like, oh, you mean I'm going to be like
at the ceiling of the arena with Pyro going off on each side of me,
and like, I mean, so you know, but yeah, listen,
I guess I can guarantee anything it will be that because that was always
Paul O'Neal's thing, and everybody really wants to respect his vision for this and
the tradition of TSO SO production wise, get ready to have your jaw on
the floor. Oh it never disappoints the ghosts of Christmas Eve, the best
of TSO and more coming to Connecticut now on tour. When we announced TSO
here in Connecticut, it is like the holidays are on. You know what,
put up the reeds, let's go. It is the best way to
kick off the holiday season. Now, you have talked to me in the
past, and I am a bit of an animal person? Did I in
fact here an animal? Did I hear dog? I am a cat person?
Or did I hear a cat. I thought I heard annoys. Yeah,
yeah, two cats, So you know they're I called them the inmates
around here. Yeah yeah, so the inmates maybe got a little restless,
all right, I thought I heard something. Well, we like that.
Now listen, I'm gonna unveil with you for the first time on the Trans
Siberian Orchestra tour for Connecticut. Anyways, the charity of choice, which Paul
O'Neill gave me the distinction every year, and now it has been transferred over
to management, but I get to pick the charity, and so this year
we're going to do the Hometown Foundation, and I think you're gonna like this,
Joel. They help not only all of our military and veterans. They've
a huge pillar into the military, veterans and law enforcement community. They help
special Olympics not only here in Connecticut but around the world. And they have
a huge animal advocacy platform dogs and cats. So just so your clear cats
are involved in that stay. This organization has been around Connecticut for many,
many years now, very respected and so apportion the proceeds from your ticket sale.
As you know, we'll benefit the Hometown Foundation this year. So I
wanted to let you know that. Yeah, I mean again, you know
you knew Paul and the probably the most generous person you'd ever meet. And
the fact that you know, a dollar from every ticket Soill goes to a
local charity, something that we're very very proud of. It very much in
line with the Christmas spirit. I think we've now over the years got eighteen
million dollars to local charities through doing this, which is just you know,
it's it's a feather in our cap for sure. Now, tickets will go
on sale here in Connecticut Friday, September fifteenth at ten am. You can
go to ticketmaster dot com. We can put all the links live up everywhere.
But you're offering a specially priced ticket for one week, well supplies last.
Can you talk a little bit about that, you know, I this
was not in front of me, but I've heard that there's a special ticket
price of thirty nine dollars. Is that what you have in front of you?
Yeah, that's what I haven't read, so thirty nine dollars. And
you know what I'll do, Jill, I'll save you from this. I'm
gonna let everyone know because now that I've opened that can people are going to
want to know about that. I'll put all the information up online at the
riverwet five nine dot com and my community Access dot com. I'll put links
up to the Hometown Foundation of course all the videos of Tso let's get back
to some of the music and some of the things on tour. What's it
like embarking on this tour? That really just it takes you to the end
of the year, right, So you're coming back to Connecticut again and you're
getting in shape and you're getting ready for this incredible performance that must take a
lot out of you, right yeah. I mean I refer to it as
the Marines of Rock, where we do our h shows of weeks, and
so you know, when I go out with White Snake, I feel like
I'm on a clubbed vacation. When I'm doing three four shows a week,
I go, gosh, there are we not doing two shows today? That's
it. It's one. So, I mean, it's definitely a labor love.
It's something that we're very proud of. We worked very hard with Singular
Vision and given everybody the best possible show, and that's the coolest thing.
Everybody there knows. It's not about them. It's about Trent Siberian Orchestra,
and it's about the fans, and we have a special relationship with our fans.
I mean, as big as we've gotten having you know, I guess
played the eighteen million people now since we started touring, and seven hundred and
fifty million audio video streams and sold over twelve million CDs, it still somehow
feels like we're like a local band where we have this like first we're on
a first name basis with a lot of the fan bases. It's like,
I can't really describe the way it works, just a touchback. I'm gonna
rewind because thirty nine bucks, I'm buying a ticket to see myself at thirty
nine bucks. I mean I think I'm getting a ticket. I think I'm
made, Like just see if I can sit down and play my guitar like
seated and like just check out the show myself while I play it. Because
that is fully incredible. Man, I can't believe the generosity of the O'Neill
family is magnificent. That's you know, so that Paul O'Neill resisting that whole
Ticketmaster Gold Circle thing where tickets were going to be you know, twenty five
grand to sit in the front row, and I mean, just it's amazing
how they've been able to keep it so that the diehards are upfront and we're
just I'm just so grateful to be a part of something like TSO, and
not just the generosity aspect of it, but just the tradition of getting to
spend my holidays with my friends playing music that I love, and spend a
time with the fan base and seeing everybody and making everybody happy. And it's
almost like for a performer in this Christmas really gets to last about two months,
which is it's an incredible feeling. I know we don't have a lot
of time with you, but I want to talk a little bit about the
music and about the choices. I mean, when you first hear about Trans
Siberian Orchestra, if you've never gone, you can't even possibly imagine. But
once you go, it is an addiction because it transcends the quote unquote holiday
music, It transcends ages and demographics. It is it is something really for
everyone. And I love the fact that you do have to do two shows.
It's almost that it was warranted to do two shows in most of the
cities that you play in because one just wasn't enough, and it gives an
opportunity for people of all ages to go, like here in Connecticut, you're
going to do one at three, You're going to do one at eight,
And just to give people a little bit of you know, a reality check
on it, it's literally forty six days that you're going out on tour.
But in those forty six days you're visiting sixty two cities and doing one hundred
and four concerts. That's ridiculous. That's ridiculous. Yeah, I mean I
think, well a lot of that is out of necessity. I mean,
nobody's going to go see a Christmas show on July Well okay, right,
yes, yes, but you know, yeah, we have a lot of
people that go to boll shows that one isn't enough form and they want to
see both. But also, you know, it just speaks to how well
it actually does sell commercially and how much people do want to be there.
And yeah, you know, it always feels incredibly cliche when I say it's
a show with something for everyone, and people will go yeah, yea yeah,
right, But I'm like, yeah, but look at if you look
at the production alone, you got the video screen width of the arena.
You got a pink Floyd laser light show going on. It's knowing indoors,
you've got Pyro going off all over the place. The performers are out on
hydraulic lift side over the crowd in the back of the arena. So kids
are just like they're happy just looking at it. They're just like, hey,
wow, this is like the coolest thing I've ever seen. And then
you get the story on the front half. So a lot of our older
audience really enjoys that. They feel like they're getting something. You know.
I guess that puts them in the holiday spirit. But truly, I look
on on a regular basis and see family's three generation seep out there. You've
got the grandparents, the parents, and the grandkids, and everybody's going to
smile on their face. It's like it's not a hostage situation or no kids
that's talking at the parents, please go on? Is it almost over?
Why don't we leave it? You know? You see, like everybody's actually
happy. So it's like, you know, Paul was just this mad scientist
that had this ability to see that this was gonna work like this on such
a level and I'm just incredibly fortunate to be a part of it that and
very grateful for it. Well, I will also say, Joel, he
did have a vision with the musicians that he chose and handpicked, and many
of you are are seasoned veterans and pros from from really the rock arena,
heavy metal arena, you know, not traditional. When you hear the word
orchestra, right, so there's such a medley of musicians and a known a
lot of times with the different towns you go, do you choose a local
orchestra or or strings to come up on stage with you as well? So,
I mean this is something like you said, it is. It really
is for all ages. But I mean someone of your background, White Snake
and I know Share and other groups that we've we followed you in the level
of musicianship on this stage. I mean the timing, the sound, and
the fact that you're flying in the air and there's fire shooting off next to
you. But the fact that it's such an I have some musical ability and
not even in the realm of what you will have, but just to hear
that, I love the tightness and the sound. It's it's truly something in
awe when you when you watch it done on stage, well, thank you
so much. I mean, we look, that's that's what we want to
hear. I mean, we work incredibly hard to give everybody the best possible
show they can get. Our music directors do an amazing job of getting us
ready, getting us to you know, the music that we're going to need
to know for rehearsals, which is usually a bit more than you guys actually
hear in the set. Our song list usually is a little bit deeper because
they like to take a look at some things and test it out with the
production before we decide on the actual set list during rehearsals. So it's not
like we come in knowing the actual set running order. There's usually a bit
more that we run. But our goal is, like I said, there's
a lot of talent up there, but everybody knows with Tso there's an understanding
that when you walk in the door that it's about Trans Siberian Orchestra, and
it's not like I'm walking in going you know, g I can't wait to
show everybody when I'm all about this year. It's like our our singular vision
is to give everybody the best possible show they can that we can and you
know, especially nowadays, you know, we know people are spending their hard
earned money to come out and see us, and man, we want to
we want to blow you away. Well, we appreciate you. The Hometown
Foundation will be supported by this year's Trans Siberian Orchestra concert that will take place
at Mohegan's Sun Sunday, November twenty six, two shows three and eight.
I'll be out there for both, so will the charity. I'll have all
the links up to getting tickets. Tickets officially on sale this Friday while supplies
last a special price of thirty nine, so I'll have everything that anyone needs.
If you're a TSO fan up there for you. I will close with
this, Joel, because I am a rocker at heart, and I feel
like you can never cut your hair, dude, Like you could never cut
your hair, because like the day you stop flipping your hair and playing your
guitar, I've never seen anyone so happy to play guitar in my life like
you. I feel like you cannot play the guitar without smiling. You are,
like the joy that comes from you when you play is so contagious.
But you could never cut your hair. Deal. I mean, it's been
good to me. I don't fee a situation and where I'm gonna in which
I'm gonna cut it. No, I mean it definitely has been good good
to me. It's funny. I had a section of my career where it
did get cut, you know, kind of everybody cut it a bit in
the nineties, and then I went full on short hair for a bit and
then you know, my career taking off kind of coincided with that hair growing
back out. I think I'm keeping it just off a good luck. He's
like, hey, if it ain't broke, don't don't don't fix it,
as they say, right, if it ain't broke, just flip it.
If it ain't broke, flip it right, flip that hat. But no,
you are truly and I know I know I have to wrap now.
So what I'm going to do too is also thank you because during during the
pandemic, and I know we've been back trying to you know, everything,
but he's getting back to nor again whatever. But you took it upon yourself
to do guitar lessons and you really shared some more interactive experiences with your fans.
So I know a lot of people met you on different levels, so
I'm sure we're going to see even more new fans of TSO just because of
that relatability and the fact that you always reach out. You're one of those
rock stars that is so approachable and you reach out to your fans and appreciate
them so much. So you know, thank you, thank you for doing
that. And you're such a fantastic guitarist on your own, So thank you
so much for chatting with me today. I appreciate you. Oh what am
I supposed to say? That keeps up on that level? How do I
reply to that? And thank you alway? Thank you, thank you,
thank you so much. I mean what am I? Thank you for your
support, thank you for getting the word out, and that's all. It's
incredibly nice of you to say, so, thank you so much, really
all right, Joel Hookstra Trans Siberian Orchestra. It's official holiday season is underway
with the River one oh five nine the Trans Siberian Orchestra. I can't wait
to see you this November, Jel. I hope you have a great day
to day you too. Thank you for taking the time out and getting the
word out. Can't wait to see everybody throw up your rock fist. You
got it by Joel By