A summer of rock and pop at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light kicks off with the highly anticipated visit from US legends Bon Jovi on June 13. In an exclusive interview, Matt Westcott speaks to drummer Tico Torres

TICO Torres is in Vienna when we speak. He’s heard there’s a Picasso exhibition in town and he’s off to check it out. Not very rock and roll; in fact rather civilised and a measure of where Bon Jovi are these days.

Almost 30 years since their eponymous first album, the New Jersey rockers are still selling out concerts the world over. Now on the European leg of their Because We Can tour, Torres, Jon Bon Jovi and David Bryan, hit the stage at the Sunderland Stadium of Light in June 13.

Still belting out the anthems as they did when fans pumped the air to the sound of Livin’ On A Prayer and You Give Love A Bad Name – songs from the album Slippery When Wet that catapulted them to world attention – there is a maturity to their music and their look.

Gone is the need for hairspray and the wearing of bandanas to be replaced by a more conservative appearance, in keeping with rock’s elder statesmen.

Drummer Torres, 59, says: “We always grew as a band and we are blessed to have had such a successful record this late in our career. We have grown up, cut our hair and grown out of those goofy clothes that we wore. You can chuckle now, but I don’t think we would be true to ourselves if we were still in that genre.”

The success of the latest album, What About Now, proves that Bon Jovi still has what it takes. Released in March, it reached No 1 in Australia, Austria, Canada and Sweden and No 2 in the UK. For Torres, however, the reaction from playing live is the true test of just how good it is.

“You make a record and you don’t know how it’s going to turn out, it’s only when you play it live and you see the immediate gratification on people’s faces... it’s something special,” he says.

Few bands are lucky enough to have had the longevity that Bon Jovi have enjoyed. Torres says they are still enjoying every moment.

“We live in the present, take what we can from the past and throw the rest away,” he says. “The future is what you make it. We try to be opti- mistic, not only in the song-writing, but in our attitude to touring. As a band we give our all, and are happy doing what we do and I think that transcends to the audience. If they can walk away with a positive edge, I think that’s important.”

Lead guitarist Richie Sambora has not travelled to Europe. There’s been plenty of theories why, but Torres says it’s down to personal matters and says that there will always be a place for someone he regards as a brother.

“Of course it affects us,” he said.

“But everybody goes through this.

You have got to give him the time to work through it. We miss him and would love to have him back, but we are all human. Everyone has to go through their own situations in their own time. We have to be supportive, and we are.

“I think everything comes with age. There is a certain amount of camaraderie that comes with being in a band. Initially, with the five original members, it was us against the world. I don’t mean in a bad sense. It was ‘Let’s go out there and show them what we’ve got. Put on the greatest show we can’.

“There have been a lot of stories about the Rolling Stones and they are still together. You find there are bands that can work through it , and there are some that just break up. We care about each other, care about Richie and his health, and that is more important. When you sort that that out then you can go: ‘Let’s play music’.”

When it comes to playing their music live, few groups are as memorable as Bon Jovi. They have played the North-East twice before, both times at Gateshead International Stadium. Torres recalls one thing about his last visit.

“I remember it was cold,” he says.

“But no matter how bad the weather, you look at the people out there and say, ‘If they can do it, we can do it’. They have probably been sat out there for three or four hours. That’s an incentive for us to get out there, whether it rains, hails or snows; get off our asses and kick some butt for them.”

With that, it’s time for Picasso.

  • Tickets for the Stadium of Light gig on June 13, priced from £12.50 through to £125, can be purchased via aeglive.co.uk. The album What About Now is available via Mercury Records and single of the same name is out now.

Win Bon Jovi tickets

WE have two pairs of general admission tickets to give away to Bon Jovi’s Stadium of Light gig on June 13.

The tickets are worth £65 each and to stand a chance of winning a pair all you have to do is answer the following question: What is the name of Bon Jovi’s latest album?

How to enter By phone: Simply call 09013600862 and leave your answer and details when prompted.

By text: Send your text to 80360 starting with BAND leave a space, followed by your answer, name and contact details. Calls cost no more than £1.02 per call from a BT landline. Calls from mobiles and some other networks may cost more.

Texts cost £1 plus your normal operator text charge. Telephone and text voting lines open today and close on Wednesday, May 29 at 23:59pm.

Alternatively, you can email your answer to competitions@nne.co.uk. Mark your entry Bon Jovi Competition, Sunderland.

Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult.

For full terms visitnewsquest.co.uk/terms Service  Provided by Newsquest Media Group.