Frontline: "My heart told me, go back and make A.O.R again."

Frontline could be described as veterans, since they started out in the early ’90s, but their sound remains impressively contemporary. This year, they returned after a long absence with the ambitious "Rebirth" album, and they could easily claim to being the European band that delivers the best American style A.O.R, on the continent. Stephan Kämmerer, the frontman of the band, replied to Rocking.gr questions and shares his thoughts on just about everything regarding the genre as well as the band’s overall history.

After a 2 decades hiatus, "Rebirth" a quit ambitious achievement is finally out. How does it feel to be back, and what is the fan base response so far?

It feels really great to be back with Frontline, after a 20-year break. The reactions from the fans have been absolutely overwhelming, and we are incredibly grateful for that!

It was a logical consequence for us to offer to Frontiers our new material

Frontiers is currently the premier label for melodic rock. How did the signing come about?

We already had contact with Frontiers back in the 2000s. Since they are the leading label in the AOR and melodic rock scene, it was only a logical consequence for us to offer them our new material. As you can see, they really liked it, and the rest eventually resulted in a release with them.

How did the writing and production workflow evolve, especially with new guitarist Christian Mühlroth? How was it without Robby Böbel? Is Diego de Sousa Pires of Warlord, a full band member?

The working process has changed in the sense that recording possibilities have evolved as well. Since I have always been mainly responsible for all the melodies and lyrics of Frontline from the very beginning, the actual working process remained very similar, almost identical.

I brought in the songs, and Chris and I finished producing them together. That was also the way it worked with Robby and me back then. I have been friends with Chris for twenty years now, and we have been a team for 17 years. I have now been working together musically with Chris for much longer than I did with Robby.

Chris and I also have another band together, called Stereotide. Diego De Sousa Pires and Eric Juris are now permanent band members and are highly appreciated by Chris and me, both personally and professionally.

Looking back in time, what were the primary factors that led to the band's dissolution?

There was actually never, an official breakup of Frontline. Robby and I simply had our own musical projects, and that is the whole explanation. If Robby were still alive, he probably would have been part of it again. Unfortunately, he passed away far too early and unexpectedly.

In 2004 I had a project in Los Angeles, and I was working in the studio alongside incredible artists such as Chris Cornell and the Red Hot Chili Peppers

How did you spend almost 25 years away from the spotlight, and what kept you occupied outside of Frontline during this period?

I was never really away from the spotlight. In 2004, I had a project in Los Angeles with a few other musicians, including Luke Ebbin and Joe Ciccarelli, the renowned producer team behind artists like Bon Jovi, U2, and Queen. We were working in the studio alongside incredible artists such as Chris Cornell and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and things were already going very well for us back then. Later on, I continued my musical journey with Chris and Stereotide.

On the contrary, Chris and I formed Stereotide and achieved quite a lot of success with it.

Our first single "Someday" with Stereotide was an airplay hit in Germany, reaching number 8 in the German airplay charts and being played more than 10.000 times on German radio stations,  something we never achieved with Frontline.

Our album "One" also reached the Top 20 of the German album charts, and seven out of eleven tracks from the album reached number one, in the official Apple and iTunes charts in Germany.

You could say that Stereotide was immensely more successful in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland than I ever managed to achieve with Frontline.

Reflecting on your classic line up era, what stands out as your most defining or fondest memory from that era and live shows?

In that sense, there was actually only ever a classic lineup with Robby and me. All the other protagonists were not permanent band members. Unfortunately, this is often completely misrepresented. I founded Frontline in 1989, and after I had a bass player and a drummer, we found Robby through the drummer at the time. He, just like the bass player back then, was only involved on the first album and was not part of the songwriting process.

Robby was the last person to join Frontline. Since Robby and I were responsible for all the songwriting and recording, it quickly became clear who Frontline really was. You can also see that on the "official" second album "Heroes" (I am leaving the acoustic album "Two Faced" aside here). The best time back then was when I managed to get us the RTL appearance, and we were able to present Frontline to a much larger audience for the first time. That was very exciting for Robby and me.

We have our own style, and I would not compare us to either KISS or Journey

Do you agree that your first two albums shared an 80s era KISS sound?

Honestly, we were never compared to KISS nationally or internationally. What I do remember and what I still have in my archive, is that we were always compared to Journey, which probably fits much better than a comparison with KISS. Personally, I think we have our own style, and I would not compare us to either KISS or Journey. I have far too much respect for both bands.

What prompted the band's gradual shift toward a more polished and cosmopolitan, Journey, A.O.R sound?

I don't think we changed that much. We always sounded more like A.O.R or bands such as Journey rather than heavy bands like Judas Priest, KISS (apart from the album "Crazy Nights") or other heavy acts. I always had to smile when people called us a heavy band, just because we had long hair. The guys in Journey had long hair as well, and nobody would have considered calling Journey a heavy band.

People should listen to tracks like "Another Love", "Endless", "I'm Fallin'", "Our Love", "Heroes", "On The Run", "Get To You" or "Shelter Me" - that is pure A.O.R from the very beginning right up to the latest album "Rebirth". Who could know that better than the person who wrote all those melodies and lyrics himself? The fact that productions in 2026 sound better than they did 20 or 30 years ago, is completely logical. I think everyone should understand that.

I don't think about genres at all, what matters is that I enjoy making music

What is your take on the current state of the A.O.R and melodic rock scene? Do you see a sustainable future and a new generation of fans engaging with the genre?

Honestly, I don't think about genres at all, and it really doesn't matter to me. What matters is that I enjoy making music and I do with Chris and the guys. In the past, that was simply no longer the case. Like so many things in life, as we unfortunately saw with Robby, life is far too short. You should always follow your heart and mine told me: "Go back and make AOR again."

And voilà, "Rebirth" was born!

Are there any plans for a tour, or appearances on the European festival circuit?

I think it is still too early to say anything concrete about that. If there are offers that we can fit into our schedule, then we will definitely consider doing them.

Last words from your side for the closing of the interview

First of all, I would like to thank you, for giving me/us the opportunity to do this interview. We also want to thank everyone for the amazing support, everyone who never forgot us throughout all these years. We carry all of you in our hearts, and I mean that exactly the way I say it. Life is unfortunately far too short, and that is why we should use our time wisely. Stay safe, and we hope to see you soon at one of our concerts!