In a brand new interview with Rockin’ Metallic Revival, DOKKEN chief Don Dokken spoke about the potential for writing an autobiography. He mentioned (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “I’ve had gives for many years. Quite a lot of bands write their — they name their autobiography, like [MÖTLEY CRÜE‘s] ‘The Filth’ and all that stuff — and I’ve at all times mentioned no. They supplied me only a shitload of cash to put in writing the DOKKEN story as a result of it is great and it is tragic. And I mentioned, properly, I do not wanna write a ebook, as a result of if I inform the reality concerning the nightmare of my eight-year run with these different three guys [in DOKKEN‘s classic lineup], it isn’t enjoyable. I do not wanna throw anyone beneath the bus. I do not wanna speak about I had three bandmembers that had been fully addicted cocaine and alcoholics. I am not defending myself. I simply by no means acquired into cocaine. I by no means acquired into having a drink and a fifth of Jack Daniel’s earlier than the present; it simply wasn’t my factor. And that form of destroyed the band.”

Final month, Don informed the “Battleline” podcast that DOKKEN‘s participation within the 1988 “Monsters Of Rock” U.S. stadium tour, additionally that includes VAN HALEN, SCORPIONS, METALLICA and KINGDOM COME, led to the band’s breakup. He mentioned: “Yeah, that was a tricky tour, as a result of [METALLICA] hadn’t accomplished the ‘Black Album’ but. I imply, METALLICA‘s now the largest band on this planet… And that was form of perhaps the rationale we broke up, due to METALLICA. As a result of after we performed the stadium tour, METALLICA got here on stage day-after-day with this perspective like, you recognize, do or die. I imply, they only gave it one hundred pc, 110 p.c. They had been kicking ass. They had been simply popping out with ‘…And Justice For All’, which was not my favourite METALLICA album. They usually hadn’t accomplished the ‘Black album’ but that is now took them into superstardom. And I might speak to the band. I might say, ‘Have a look at METALLICA.’ They usually’re opening for us. And we had the identical supervisor. And I used to say, ‘Nicely, Cliff [Burnstein], I do know they’re opening up and so they’re solely making half the cash as us, however may you place them on after us?’ As a result of when METALLICA went on and so they closed the present with no matter it was, ‘Kill ‘Em All’ or one thing like that, we’re approaching stage doing ‘In My Desires’, we seem like THE MONKEES virtually, ‘trigger we’re only a straight-ahead rock and roll band. However I revered METALLICA a lot as a result of we would be in Texas and it would be, like, 105 levels and so they’d go on at, like, 3 o’clock, and it is simply sweltering scorching. However they went on day-after-day. METALLICA had this mindset that, ‘If that is our final present, we die. So be it.’ They gave it 110 p.c.”

Don continued: “We would been on the street for a yr and a half. And I feel we simply form of acquired filled with ourselves. I imply, we had toured with AEROSMITH and all these different bands, and we weren’t taking part in properly, in my view, as a result of the medicine. If you’re on stage in entrance of 100 thousand folks, and I am making an attempt to entrance the band, and you have got all these cameras on you and large screens, and the digital camera would go to George [Lynch, DOKKEN guitarist] throughout a solo, and I might look over and there isn’t any George on stage. The place’s George? I hear him taking part in, however he wasn’t on stage, as a result of he was standing behind his Marshall amplifiers doing coke. And I begged and pleaded and mentioned, ‘Is there any means you guys cannot do medicine for 90 minutes?’ And mainly they mentioned no. They had been doing coke on stage and it was actually, for me, miserable. I began the band, the band’s referred to as DOKKEN, and all people was doing coke on stage. And I used to be, like, ‘Jesus Christ.’ And that is when the band unraveled.”

Again in April 2021, Lynch informed MetalTalk about DOKKEN‘s stadium tour with METALLICA: “That was just about the head of it, wasn’t it? That was the final massive tour of that type, I feel, in that form of big rock enviornment tour, I feel that was the final one. So it was form of an finish of an period. No one knew it on the time. And we had been misplaced on that invoice. It was form of good for us, I assume, in a means, however we had been billed over METALLICA; they hadn’t fairly gone over the sting but. We had the identical administration firm [Q Prime], so we had been very lucky to get that spot.

“The factor I’ll by no means perceive concerning the administration and that tour and the band was that of their insane considering, the administration referred to as a gathering earlier than the tour began and knowledgeable the band that Don was gonna be breaking the band up and making an attempt to simply rent us as musicians on the band,” he continued. “Or else, if that did not work, we did not comply with that, he was simply gonna depart, hold the title and kick us out. [And that was] earlier than the tour began — actually days earlier than it began.

“I function — or a minimum of then operated — out of a way of dedication and on a mission. We constructed this factor as a household, as mates, as a band of brothers. And that was actually the wrestle between Don and I. Don was form of out for himself and used folks as finest he may. I am not saying this in a derogatory means. I am not saying it is a unhealthy factor, as a result of we succeeded due to him and that mentality — the best way he views the world and the best way he operates. He is in a position to do issues that I personally could not do, or I would not stay with myself. For higher or worse, I do not know if it is good or unhealthy — I am unable to even say — however we benefited from it. Nevertheless it additionally was a double-edged sword and it labored towards us in a way that we break up all the pieces up equal, all of us labored laborious and to the very best of our talents, and all of us contributed what we’ve to contribute, and a rising tide floats all boats and all of us win. And we’ve this sense of like we did it collectively, and there is sufficient to go round. Don noticed the writing on the wall, and with the managers’ assist, determined that he wished the entire thing for himself. As a result of we had been up for renegotiation on our [record] contract. And that is the place you wanna be on this profession. If you construct your self up and also you double your report gross sales each report for 3 consecutive [albums], after which your contract ends and you need to renegotiate that contract, that’s precisely the place you wanna be.

“If you renegotiate, you are negotiating from a place of energy. And now you are MÖTLEY CRÜE, now you are VAN HALEN, now you are set for all times,” George defined. “And all of us had been taking a look at that, and all of us labored for that, and all of us earned that, and we must always have been patting one another on the again and in a extremely good place. As a substitute Don took that as, ‘Nicely, I am gonna take this all for myself, and fuck these guys.’ I needed to go on stage realizing that each night time. And it depressed me, and I form of simply fell into medicine and alcohol and simply went out and went by means of the motions. I used to be fairly dispirited. I imply, I had some good reveals, however I used to be perhaps simply faking it to a sure extent, ‘trigger I used to be positively dispirited. All this for this, and now I’ve to exit and placed on a face? I am simply form of like a ‘put on my coronary heart on my sleeve’ form of man, and it was [very hard] for me to do. It was very miserable. And the one means I might take care of it was medicine and alcohol.”

All of the members of DOKKEN‘s traditional Nineteen Eighties lineup — Dokken, Lynch, bassist Jeff Pilson and drummer Mick Brown — reunited on stage for the primary time in additional than a decade in November 2009 on the Home of Blues in Anaheim, California.

Seven years in the past, the 4 musicians rejoined forces for a brief Japanese tour. The trek marked the primary time in 21 years they’d hit the street collectively.

A DOKKEN live performance DVD specializing in the band’s reunion tour, “Return To The East Reside (2016)”, was made accessible in 2018. Along with the Japanese efficiency, the set included footage from the traditional lineup’s solely U.S. present in September 2016 at Badlands in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, in addition to newly recorded acoustic reworkings of “Heaven Despatched” and “Will The Solar Rise”. Additionally featured on “Return To The East Reside (2016)” was “It is Simply One other Day”, the primary DOKKEN observe that includes the group’s traditional lineup since 1997’s “Shadowlife”.

Since finishing the Japanese reunion dates, DOKKEN has continued to carry out with the group’s present lineup — together with bassist Chris McCarvill, guitarist Jon Levin and drummer BJ Zampa (HOUSE OF LORDS).

DOKKEN launched its thirteenth studio album, “Heaven Comes Down”, on October 27 by way of Silver Lining Music. The LP was produced by Invoice Palmer and Don Dokken and was blended by Kevin Shirley (AEROSMITH, IRON MAIDEN).