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NOV|DE C2020 30THANNI VE RSARYI SSUE
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
HIGHWIRE DAZE Sponsored by THE SANDGAARD FOUNDATION
INTERVIEWS with...
Steve Kilbey of The Church.................................14 Shane Told of Silverstein.......................................18 Heaven Below.......................,................................22 Held Hostage.........................................................26 Brian Ray Discusses Paul McCartney...................30 Rob Moratti..................... .....................................34 Butcher Babies.......................................................36 The Sight Of Impact/Scarlett O’Hara....................44 Byfist......................................................................48 CONNR.................................................................50 Ænly......................................................................52 Dead By Wednesday..............................................54 Letter Of Marque...................................................56 Leslie Mandoki of Mandoki Soulmates................58 LastWorld..............................................................60 Slow Burning Car..................................................62 We Are The Black Things pt 2..............................64
Publisher Highwire Daze Magazine A General Partnership Editor Ken Morton Managing Editor Danny S. Pasley Senior Photographer Jack Lue East Coast Editor Jupiter Lee Contributors Ken Morton Jack Lue Jupiter Lee James Grover Kim Crain Erica Vincent Cover Art by Yannick d’Assignes of Smart Works Intl Cover Photos by Jack Lue HIGHWIRE DAZE 827 N. Hollywood Way PMB419 Burbank, CA 91505-2814 www.highwiredaze.com email: ken@highwiredaze.com Copyright 2020 Highwire Daze Magazine
BUTCHER BABIES POSTER by JACK LUE.........................40 CONCERT REVIEWS The Beach Boys, Bonnie Brae All Stars ............. 66 ALBUMS REVIEWS Betty Moon, Daniel Markham, Frank Lenz Mitch Perry Group, RVNGE, Slow Burning Car, Squealer.................................................................70
Opinions expressed within this publication do not neccessarily reflect those of the publisher. All rights reserved. Nothing may be produced in whole or in part without the express and written permission of the publisher.
SKETCHES BY THE EDITOR................................................... 8
Supporting Noise Pollution Since 1990!
IN MUSICAL ORBIT BY JUPITER..........................................12
PRODUCT REVIEW BY JAMES GROVER...........................10
SaveOurStages.com
HIGHWIRE DAZE
November/December 2020
7
Sketches by the Editor Thirty Years and Counting
And we are here, the 30 Year Anniversary of Highwire Daze, amazingly back in print and full color glossy. With the assistance of my friends Jonathan Wright and Editor Ken - November 1991 Judith Scott, both who at the Highwire Daze 1st have passed away, we kicked off the dream of Anniversary Party doing a music magazine at the Amor Arms Apartments on Orchid Avenue in Hollywood, CA October 1990. I was still writing and performing in plays at the time, hoping to be the next great American playwright by age 30. Welp, that didn’t happen, and by 1996 I realized I couldn’t do both. Whether I ever write another play again remains to be seen, but music has always been my first passion. I remember sneaking into Hollywood when I was a kid taking the bus to Tower Records, Aron’s Records and Rene’s All Ears from Burbank. I still have many of the records I bought back then and have actually interviewed a good amount of those bands. The cover of this 30th Anniversary Issue represents the life and times of Highwire Daze magazine. Steve Kilbey of The Church was interviewed in our very 1st issue for his side project HEX, and his music has meant so much to me since I first heard them in 1980 - and we covered the band throughout the 90’s in our early issues. The second decade of the magazine is represented by Shane Told and the amazing Silverstein, who have always found time to do interviews with us and continue to release impassioned post-hardcore albums such as their new one A Beautiful Place To Drown.
making this very crucial class challenging, enlightening and ultimately life changing.
Thank you to Yannick d’Assignies for his wonderful cover art and for saving (and recreating) the Highwire Daze website on many occasions – he and the staff at Smartworks Intl are absolutely amazing! I would like to thank our Managing Editor Danny Pasley for the encouragement and friendship throughout the years. A big thank you goes out to Diane Adams of Diane & The Deductibles whose friendship, wisdom and advice is very much appreciated and valued! I would also like to thank Thomas Sandgaard Foundation a million times over for his ongoing support of Highwire Daze – and I would also like to say GO CHARLTON!!! Thank you to all the bands, publicists and advertisers who make this all happen! So many people to thank in this 30 year journey! You all know exactly who you are, and your support means the world to me. And thank you, the reader for picking up this magazine and/or visiting us online. And now, onwards and upwards to the next decade or so... “In These Highwire Daze…”
Y 30th P P HA
HIGHWIRE DAZE
And Butcher Babies represent the ongoing Jack Lue era of Highwire Daze. It remains a tremendous honor to have the legendary photographer Jack Lue on our team at Highwire Daze. Believe in dreams and do what you can to make them happen. I was laid off in an industry I had been in since 1986 (motion pictures / TV) on three separate occasions. On the third and final layoff, I was offered courses in Graphic Design, and in the back of my mind, I had this wild idea to bring Highwire Daze back into print after years of being just online. I would especially like to thank Lisa Paruch, instructor of the In Design 101 class at Studios Arts, for 8
velvet blue music
velvetbluemusic.com
November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
Product Review by
James Grover MXR EVH Phase 90
On October 6th 2020 we lost an iconic musician Eddie Van Halen. In this review I would like to pay tribute to Edward Van Halen and take a look at his signature series MXR Phase 90 guitar pedal. In 1972 Edward Van Halen along with his brother Alex Van Halen formed the band Van Halen in Southern California, at a time when surf music from The Beach Boys and the British invasion of the Beatles was still fresh in the media. Edward Van Halen was able to capture a unique sound with his guitar sound and tone that has made an impact on all guitar enthusiasts including myself and others around the world. Edward Van Halen was a very creative songwriter and the innovator of guitar tapping. In 1977 the iconic Van Halen 1 album was released and the guitar work on that album was spectacular like no one had heard before. The sound that Eddie Van Halen achieved with his guitar was produced by the MXR Phase 90 “script” guitar pedal which was in early development in the mid 70’s. Later on in the early 80’s MXR introduced the “EVH Block” signature series in which Edward closely designed. The MXR EVH Phase 90 is probably one of the world’s iconic guitar pedal specially sought after by Van Halen fans who play guitar. Eddie Van Halen was also known as a guitar “hacker” he created his iconic “Frankenstein” guitar by pulling apart a Gibson Les Paul and a Fender Stratocaster where he installed the humbucker pickup in the bridge position on the Strat to create a “fatter” sounding guitar and then used Schwinn bicycle paint to create his iconic striped guitar. The sound of Edward’s guitar was so distinctive. This is where the MXR Phase 90 comes alive. In order to create the sounds of Van Halen from 1977 to the last album you would need the MXR EVH Phase 90, the sound is so distinctive from any other Phase pedal on the market. Since this pedal speaks for itself you would have to plug it in to see the endless possibilities of the sounds you can create from a scratch sound to an outer space phase which is very unique.
Likes:
This pedal is easy to use with one knob operation and very clean with minimal noise.
Dislikes:
There’s nothing that I dislike about this pedal.
R.I.P. Eddie Van Halen. Reach James Grover at: https://www.facebook.com/james.grover.311 10
November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
every Friday night at 7pm PT
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In Musical Orbit by Jupiter Jupiter at Highwire Daze Online Crew East Coast Editor Hey everyone, it’s Jupiter Lee - East Coast Editor. Happy 30th Anniversary to Highwire Daze!Check out my record reviews here and be sure to add me on Facebook! Link is at the end of my column...
Whoosh! Deep Purple earMusic / Edel Did you really think a new decade would begin without a contribution from this supergroup? It’s here. WHOOSH! by DEEP PURPLE! Their 21st album. Let me start by saying IAN GILLAN’s voice still has that soulful edge. I like that the keyboards are hot in the mix which I always remember helped to make them stand out. IAN PAICE exhibits his trademark of tasteful drumming on the entire album while complimenting the articulate , rockin’ riffs from STEVE MORSE. Glad to hear his guitar is nicely presented in the mix. Bassist ROGER GLOVER firmly laying it down. They all seem to have a hand in the songwriting, including producer BOB EZRIN. Track 04, NOTHING AT ALL has keyboardist DON AIREY and guitarist STEVE MORSE trading off solos. Very cool! Track 05 , NO NEED TO SHOUT contains the awesome gritty growl of the Hammond organ we’ve all grown to love about them. The album reminded me a bit of FIREBALL. For the latest information about the band, you can click on the link below. www.deeppurple-whoosh.com
Both Sides of Midnight East Temple Avenue AOR Heaven Hard rock with an adventurous commercial side is my first impression of the debut album by EAST TEMPLE AVENUE BOTH SIDES OF MIDNIGHT. With superb lead vocals and harmonies as well as a tight, killin’ rhythm section, this band works as one. I suppose there could be a slight reference to WHITESNAKE. Ten tunes make up the album. I had heard the musicians never were in the studio together . Having not been in the same room, they each worked and recorded their parts separately in their own studios in the USA, Sweden, and 12
Australia. Remarkable! Overall, a big rich full sound by DAN SKEED. The band is comprised of guitarist, songwriter, producer DARREN PHILLIPS, vocalist ROBBIE LEBLANC (BLANC FACES), Bassist DENNIS BUTABI BORG, Lead guitarist PHILIP LINDSTRAND, and drummer HERMAN FURIN. Songs like DON’T MAKE BELIEVE, FOOL FOR LOVE, FLY HIGH, and WHEN I’M WITH YOU represent more of the commercial side of the album. It will be available November 27 2020. www.facebook.com/easttempleavenue
Alive Lazarus Dream Pride & Joy Music Combining just the right amount of hard rock, goth and programming is the slamming new release ALIVE from new German band LAZARUS DREAM. Founded by frontman / vocalist CARSTEN LIZARD SCHULTZ (EVIDENCE ONE) and master guitarist MARKUS PFEFFER (SCARLETT), throughout the album it takes you on an intense, hard driving experience. Two videos have already surfaced. WINGS OF AN EAGLE and HOUSE OF CARDS. One tune that really got me excited is track 06, FLESHBURN, a super quick driving number with awesome drummer MARKUS KULLMAN (SINNER, GLENN HUGHES) at the helm. Other musicians onboard include flautist SHARON ROTH, percussionist THOMAS RIEDER and on keyboards and synthesizers THOMAS NITSCHKE. You might hear a slight influence from the great band QUEENSRYCHE. The album ALIVE contains thirteen tracks . Check them out for yourself! You can look for it November 13 2020! www.facebook.com/lazarusdream www.facebook.com/prideandjoymusic
Visit JUPITER on Facebook:
www.facebook.com/Jupiter-Lee-173082899386911
Check out my interview with
Leslie Mandoki of Mandoki Soulmates on Page 52!
Have a Happy Holiday! See you in 2021! September/October 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
Steve Kilbey of The Church Photo by Jack Lue
STEVE KILBEY OF THE CHURCH: 2020 AD
Interview by Ken Morton
In 2020, the year of the great pandemic and so much social unrest all across the world, musicians such as Steve Kilbey continued to enchant us all with their exhibition of imagination and innovative. Now celebrating the 40th Anniversary of his band The Church, a year without touring has found Steve Kilbey entertaining his fans via live Instagram concerts which would ultimately result in a brand new solo album entitled Eleven Women! It is an honor for us here at Highwire Daze, as we celebrate our own 30th Anniversary, to include Steve Kilbey in this issue. I interviewed Steve in 1990 for a project called HEX that he was doing with Donnette Thayer of the L.A. based Game Theory - and they were on the cover of our very first issue! In this article, we discuss the making of the wonderful Eleven Women, his work with Donnette and HEX back at the dawning of Highwire Daze, a chance encounter with Eartha Kitt, and other topics of intrigue. Read on... For this first part of the interview, I’d like to talk about your new solo album Eleven Women. How did the concept for Eleven Women come about – and when you were writing these songs, did you already have that concept in mind that you were going to write about Eleven Women? Yes – a long, long time ago – I can’t remember when – I had a stoned idea that I should have an album where every song was about a woman – and that the album should be called 10, 11, or 12 Women – however many songs I had. You know when you have these great ideas at 3:00 in the morning and you go “Oh what a great idea!” And then you wake up the next day and go “Ahhh! “and then you sort of file it away. So I filed that idea away in my head. And then I was doing these gigs on Instagram and I was going back and learning old albums – and I find learning and rehearsing a really tedious process – I’d much rather create than go back and figure out an old song. One day I just said without really thinking about it, “Next week I’m going to have a brand new album! I’m going to write a whole album in a week!” So when I realized I had challenged myself and my audience to think that I could do that, the idea of Ten Women came back. So I wrote ten songs – and I wrote the 11th song too late to be in that first performance. So it was an old idea that playing on Instagram kind of made me do it. After I said I was going to do it, it happened. It was sort of a good umbrella for a record to do that. So before we go on with the interview, I just want to say Good Morning! I think it’s like 8:00 AM over there in Australia, isn’t it? It’s 8:00AM. Ah, Ken, you got me out of bed! I’m so tired! I’m half asleep! I don’t know what I’m saying! Am I dreaming? (Much laughter) No, don’t feel bad about it. I’m HIGHWIRE DAZE
November/December 2020
normally up by this time of day – I should be anyway. It’s alright. It’s good to have an early start. That’s for sure… Yeah it is! You know, when you get up at 6:00 in the morning, you get more bang for your buck out of the day. You know what I mean? When hours and hours go by and you look up and it’s only 10:00, it’s great! As opposed to getting up at 2:00 in the afternoon and suddenly you have a cup of coffee and night’s coming down. You know they say “Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.” That’s not just a saying. They’ve actually found out that going to bed at the same time that the sun goes down and then getting up when the sun comes up is actually much better for you. And staying up all night and sleeping through the day 15
is actually bad for you – it sort of releases bad chemicals into your system. When I was a young rocker, nothing appealed to me more than sleeping in until 3 in the afternoon, but these days I like to get up reasonable early and get a bit of a head start. Back to Eleven Women. Let’s meet some of the women on your album. First of all, let’s talk about Sheba Chiba, why see left L.A., and what is her story? Well, all of these women are composite / part real / part imaginary / part sing / part truth – you know what I mean? None of them are really total definitive people. By writing a song about them – and ironically when you write that song and people sing it – some people might get to really like it – sort of becomes real for them. In fact, she may become realer than maybe even real people. So she’s just an archetype. I see her she’s a dark girl – she’s really hip – she’s forever beautiful. The guy who made the video set her in the 1990’s – Sheba Chiba – there she is with her dark hair, a few tattoos, some piercings, and she’s running around having this glamourous groovy fantastic life. But she’s breaking the heart of our poor hero – probably who’s me. All he has left of her is a photograph – some memories. I like that idea. And of course Sheba – the Queen of Sheba – one of the most famous women in history – and Chiba is very naughtily the Mexican word for heroin. When I went through my tired and emotional phase, I was using heroin. And I had a dealer who was a Mexican guy and he said “Ask for Chiba.” So I don’t know – the name Sheba Chiba just popped into my head – this incredibly glamorous, beautiful but elusive girl who lived in L.A. I don’t know where she’s gone to now. She’s probably moved to Idaho and has got a family and she gotten fat. But for one brief moment she had everything. And I guess that’s it. That’s the marvelous thing about songs – with a little sketchy information the listener builds up an image of who this person is in their mind and could sort of see all the stories happening. Doris McAllister reminds me of the scary Danielle you introduced us to on your 1990 solo album Remindlessness. Tell us about the life of Doris McAllister… Well, Danielle was a lot more unfortunate – she was a victim – she was addicted to stuff and she was fading away. Doris McAllister isn’t a bad person – but a young man has insulted her and is beginning to rue his actions. He’s beginning to regret that he’s someone insulted and underestimated her and he realizes now that he has made her angry and how powerful she actually is. It’s strange – one of my dedicated fans lives in Northern Ireland, and he said to me “I’ve got a Doris McAllister in my family,” and so now I forever see her living outside Belfast in a forest where she would normally dispense sort of harmless cures – but if a person was to insult her or threaten her – like this careless, arrogant young man in the song, she could be a formidable enemy – and she does have sort of magical powers. But I like the fact that Doris McAllister has this seemingly ordinary – almost clumsy name – and yet she’s a really powerful old lady. And I imagine this superficial young man has somehow dissed her and insulted her and perhaps threatened her – and now he’s ruing the fact that he did that. So that’s what the song is about. The last song on the album is called Think Of You – for Jessie Bellette. Who is Jessie Bellette? 16
Jessie Bellette is my paternal grandmother who I never met. I did a very strange interview the other morning with a lady in America who speaks to the spirits - and she told me that my father, who passed away a long time ago – she said my father got me to write that song – and when I wrote it, he took it to my grandmother. And my grandmother apparently doted over me, but she died when I was about one, and I never really got to know her. My dad was always telling me – if he was really pleased with me, I remember one night he said “You’ve got your grandmother’s eyes. You look like your grandmother and you can see everything.” Like when he lost something on the carpet, I could find it. And whenever he was giving me a compliment, he would say “You really remind me of my own mother.” And that was a lovely thing to hear. And I felt like it was time she was addressed. So I thought if I immortalized her on this record, in some way her name would live on. Because it’s a somber and sad reflection cuz when we die – almost within a month, almost all traces of us have disappeared. Our clothes are given away. Our books are given away. Our belongings – if we had a car – someone inherits our house – money is all distributed. Eventually there’s almost nothing of us left except perhaps a photo on a wall. I only even have one photo of Jessie Bellette. She looks like a really tough, no nonsense lady. I believe she could play the piano back in the days when they didn’t have radios and TV’s. The entertainment was one person in each family – it fell upon them to play the piano – so everyone in England would gather around the piano and have a “Knees-Up.” You know (sings) “Knees up Mother Brown…” Like the whole family would gather around, and each person in the group would take the chance to sing one of the verses perhaps. So Jessie Bellette was a piano player – as was my dad – and she had a brother called Uncle Joe – and he was apparently a very amazing boogie woogie pianist that could really play. So I wrote this sad song feeling sorry for myself – and then at the end I realized I should dedicate it to her - to tell her wherever she is that I do think of her – and that she didn’t completely disappear from everybody’s thoughts. What has it been like to create new music in the middle of a November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
pandemic and so much social unrest in the world? Well, there’s many answers to that – one of them was I was working at a studio about an hour out of Sydney – and one of the great things was that there was no traffic. Sydney’s not as big as L.A. but it’s still a big city - it’s like 5 ½ million – and it’s very hard to get in and out of because they really didn’t plan for it. Unlike L.A., we don’t really have these huge super highway clover leaf systems with off ramps and on ramps and like 8 lanes of traffic. We’ve just got – despite this huge city – when you drive out to the North – no one’s ever done proper underpasses and overpasses, so you gotta actually drive out. So that was really easy because there was nobody on the road – so from that point of view it was really good. I would have never said this in the beginning, but I feel it’s a musician’s job to – now as ever – to cheer people up. And as COVID started to develop, I noticed a lot of people were starting to discover how important music and film and art and reading is – suddenly these things became a lot more important to them than they’d ever thought – and people stuck at home were starting to rediscover their record collections. There’s only so much you can watch on Netflix and then you’ve seen everything – and there’s only so much time you could spend on Facebook. When I was a boy, music was everything to me – and it always has been because obviously it became my career. But a lot of people more than ever were telling me how important music was to them – for some people how important my music was – and I felt like I was doing something for them by creating a record. And I also felt it behooved me not to make a sad doomy dark complex sort of thing, but to make something that was kind of a bit of light in the dark days. Our magazine Highwire Daze is celebrating our 30th Anniversary next month. You were interviewed in the very first issue – you and Donnette Thayer for your project HEX. Yeah, I know! That’s amazing! Looking on back on the HEX project, what do you think of it now in retrospect and do you still keep in touch with Donnette? I do hear from her occasionally. When I met her, she had a degree in chemistry and she was working in Davis. She had a job studying the water at a waterworks – she was monitoring and she was a chemist. So sort of had a Jewel thing going – half chemist / half rock star. I think the (first) record is ahead of its time. I still think it’s a beautiful record. It was a minimalist sort of labor of love. I guess we were really in love and the music was sort of a recorded version of a sort of romance we were going through. I haven’t listened to it all the way through lately, but every now and then I see someone sort of write something very nice about it. Someone said it was the first “trip-hop” records – one of the very first records in the genre – and obviously I didn’t know I was going to create “trip-hop.” But I think it was really well ahead of its time. Maybe someday someone out there will rediscover it and be influenced by it. But I’m very proud of it. I think considering the circumstances it was done under – it was done after midnight in a studio where a guy was sneaking us in. There was a guy in New York – Bryce – and he had a job in a studio – and he was allowed to bring his own people in to practice on – but after midnight. So we were going in there and we were making this record. We would sleep all day in New York – and then we would go in at midnight and begin recording. It was really magical beautiful days – I guess I should get it out HIGHWIRE DAZE
November/December 2020
again and have a listen. But I’m kind of proud of it. I think it was a good record. There were actually two HEX albums – the Self-Titled one you are talking about here and the follow-up Vast Halos… Right! I don’t think Vast Halos was as good. I think the first record was much better. I think there were some good tracks on Vast Halos – but I think the first record had an incredible aura of fragility and romance. I don’t know – for a while I thought the record was going to be huge – I thought this record was going to explode and everybody was going to love it. But it wasn’t to be, and the love affair didn’t go on and Donnette met someone else and that was the end of it. But you know, for about six months of my life, that record totally consumed me. I was playing with The Church – and I soon as I was finished playing with The Church, I’d go back to my room and I had this synthesizer you could sort of program – I would write all the music – and then I would call Donnette up and play it to her over the phone during her lunch break. I could only ring her up between 12:30 and 1:30 and I said say, “Hey, I wrote another song last night.” And hold the phone to the synthesizer and play the song – and we’d talk about it. Really amazing days to be sort of a young-ish man having some success and really being in love with someone. It makes me misty. They were enchanted days - and a real honor to be in your magazine. That was probably the first and last front cover we ever had. I remember that. It was at the Hollywood Roosevelt that we did the interview, wasn’t it? Yup it was! Absolutely. You remember! I was at the Hollywood Roosevelt one night and Eartha Kitt was doing a gig. She came on and sat on my lap for one line and wriggled her bum around in my lap. She must have been about 70 then – and I thought see was the sexiest woman I’d even seen!
thetimebeing.com www.instagram.com/stevekilbey 17
Twenty Years of Silverstein
Interview by Ken Morton - Live Photo by Jack Lue In the wild and crazy year of 2020, Silverstein is not only celebrating their 20th Anniversary as a band, but they have also unveiled A Beautiful Place To Drown - their latest and perhaps greatest album via UNFD Records. It’s been quite a journey for the much revered post hardcore / screamo collective - and Highwire Daze - in the midst of our 30th Anniversary - has been covering Silverstein pretty much every step of the way. Since these are the days of the great pandemic, Highwire Daze caught up with Silverstein front man Shane Told via the magic of Skype to discuss our mutual milestones, how to release your best work of artistry at the very worst of times, looking back to the past with eyes set on the future, and a whole lot more! Read on... Hey Shane, how are you doing? Hey man, it’s good to hear your voice! It’s good to hear your voice too! I don’t think we’ve done an interview in like 5 years – at least! I think it’s been a while. It’s funny, cuz I think with you guys celebrating 30 years over there with Highwire Daze. I think when you interviewed me for the first time, it was really one of the first interviews I’d ever done for like a real publication. It wasn’t just someone’s little punk zine or whatever – or little 18
website – so it’s kind of cool now to hear – Congratulations on your milestone! For Silverstein it’s been 20 years now, so it’s kind of cool to see that we’re both here. Congratulations on your milestone as well! Who does a band and keeps it so alive and fresh for 20 years in this day and age? Okay let’s get some questions going. First of all, you have a new album out called A Beautiful Place To Drown. Album Number 10! Is there any overall story or concept behind that title? Actually there is. First of all, thanks for bringing it up. It came out on March 6th, which was about a week before the entire world went crazy. And it was probably – you could argue – the worst time in history – to put out an album. Literally at the time, everybody was already talking about Coronavirus – but then once the record had been out for a few days, everyone was watching the news and reading about Coronavirus – and nobody was paying attention to like a new album coming out – not to mention that we had to pack it up and go home in the middle of our tour. The album I think in a lot of ways got lost in the shuffle a little bit – which is too bad because I think it’s a really strong album. A lot of people were calling it our “best album,” which is pretty cool to be putting out what a lot of people call “your best music” 20 years into a band – it doesn’t happen all that often. November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
But to answer your question about the concept – the title – we were trying to find something to tie the concept of this album together. In the lyrics, there were kind of a lot of songs that referenced water and drowning and the idea of that – and Paul Marc was doing a little bit of Goggling for some inspo and he found a picture of this sign – and I believe it’s in Virginia Beach, Virginia – it’s a sign on a beach and on it there’s a warning which says “A Beautiful Place To Drown” – and it has a picture of the Grim Reaper and a list of all the names of the people that died in the waters there – like a warning. And we were like, “Damn! That’s like a dark sign for someone to make!” So we thought that was kind of a cool thing to take inspiration from, and it worked for the lyrics. And also – it might as well be 100 years ago for how it feels – at the time before COVID and all of the protests and all the social movements that have happened, there was a lot of talk about mental health – and a lot of talk about the idea of getting help and the idea of people being addicted to their phones or social media or whatever – and that becoming a problem for people. The idea of the title being that the world is really in some ways more amazing and more beautiful than it’s ever been – there’s so many conveniences that we have – things are easier now to do things than they’ve ever been – yet people are still struggling so hard mentally even with these conveniences. So that was kind of the statement the album title was trying to make. You’ve had some pretty impressive guest stars on your new albums. We’ll chat about two of them because of space and time. What was it like working with Pierre from Simple Plan? He’s probably like one of your heroes… You know, he kind of is one of my heroes. It’s interesting – he was in a Montreal punk band called Reset – he was the singer of that band and he played bass for a while – and I loved Reset. Their one of my favorite bands – in high school they were maybe my favorite band. Pierre’s only like a year or two older than me – I was like 17 and he was like 19 at the time – and they would come down to Toronto from Montreal and play shows. I was just a huge fan of Reset and they broke up and they got a new singer and then I didn’t know what happened to the band – because back then there was no social media – you didn’t know anything that was going on and to find out about bands was difficult sometimes. And then Simple Plan kind of popped up and it was kind of this new thing – obviously it’s didn’t have this visceral punk fast thing that I loved about Reset – but of course I knew that Pierre was a talented guy. To watch his career soar was really cool. We did a bunch of shows with Simple Plan – they took us on our first major European Tour back in 2006. And Pierre and I have been great friends ever since. So when we had this song Take What You Give, we had this bridge part and we didn’t know what to do – and we were kind of thinking “Who’s voice would work? Who’s kind of vibe would be best in this part?” And literally like right away, Paul Marc and I thought that Pierre would kill it! I literally texted him and he got back to me in like 30 seconds and said “I’m in! I’m so excited to sing on a Silverstein record!” And I was like, that is so cool to hear that somebody that you looked up to so much when you were a kid – he was kid too – but to see somebody like him be excited to be on your record – that was pretty special! Tell me about the song Madness and how did Princess Nokia wind up on the song? That was a little bit different for us, and that song – I rememHIGHWIRE DAZE
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ber when Paul Marc sent me the demo of it. It was actually the first song written for the record – like the music was. And I was really like, I don’t know if this is way out there or if this could be a single – and obviously it became a single. But we knew we could get away with doing something pretty weird in the bridge – and once the lyrics came together and it was kind of this relationship song, we really thought that having a female perspective would be a great way to tell a story. So we weren’t sure who to get, and then with Princess Nokia – she’s a really big fan of our band and she came out to our show in New York a couple of years back and she was so excited to be there. And we were like “that’s crazy!” That’s not the kind of person you’d expect to be a huge fan of our band – and she talked about how much we inspired her music. When she sent that verse that she “spat” out, I was like “Oh, this is perfect! This is exactly the thing we wanted to set the song apart” – but lyrically and everything, it was right on where we wanted it to be. It was a really cool feature and something very different that we didn’t expect. Silverstein recently did a recent Drive-In show. How nervous were you about performing under those circumstances? I wasn’t nervous at all. The only thing I was nervous about was my voice and shaking the rust off because we’ve basically been sitting around for six months not performing – which for Silverstein not to play for six months is kind of a very 19
long time. That was the only thing I was nervous about. I knew that the show was going to be well attended, and I knew that the people who were putting it on would be really vigilante with the rules – like social distancing and everything. I think what was really surprising, for me, about doing that and that experience was how normal is felt. Like we got there and we loaded up the stage and we set up and we had sound check and we had lunch and we hung out. And it felt like, “Oh, this is what this feeling is again!” And then we go onstage. The only thing that got a little different was when we looked out – and instead of a sea of kids it was a sea of cars. People were doing really fun things like people had rented U-Haul trucks and they were moshing in the back of U-Haul trucks and standing up in their sun roofs – and circle pits in the back of a pickup truck. So it was cool to see that – it wasn’t just I have to look through a windshield to see if anyone is bobbing their head up and down. It was pretty obvious to look out and see that people were super engaged. All of us just felt so good about this show and the experience. When it was done I was like, “Okay, so tomorrow? Can we do it again?” I wish we were doing 10 of them instead of just the one-off, because it really was great.
far as it ever went. And it’s funny – even with Discovering The Waterfront, we thought that when the record came out – I never looked at what I/we did as having a career. I never looked at it like a real artist that you can compare to the band’s that I grew up listening to or anything. I just looked at it like “Okay, yeah we’re like a little punk band / hardcore band – we’ll put out two records and break up – just like all those other little punk and hardcore bands.” I never looked at it as more than that. And I think part of that innocence – part of that made us who we are and maybe continues to – even though now obviously I’ve come to terms with it that this is kind of my life’s work.
You have another Anniversary coming up – the 15 year Anniversary of your album Discovering The Waterfront. What do you think of that album in retrospect and the fact that you’ve been playing some of the songs ever since it came out at every single show? Yeah man, I really wouldn’t change a note. Honestly, the record was made at a special time in a special way – and I think we had a certain amount of ignorance and inexperience that shines through on the record, but it made it really pure and real – and I think that was something that resonated with people – and still does up to a point. Obviously I listen back and I think these recordings and these vocal performances could be a little bit better, which is why we have done the Redux series where we’ve put out some re-records where we do it literally from the ground up. We re-record everything keeping the original magic intact. So we’ve done that and we have another one of those coming out very soon. But the record itself – there’s a reason that it’s become a classic and people constantly talk about it when they talk about our band. And 15 years later – for people to still care about the album so much and want to hear those songs and everything – I think that’s very special and exciting. Not every artist gets to put that classic stamp on an album, so the fact we did that is something we’re proud of.
Here’s an example – Silverstein – we never had a hit, right? We never had a radio song. We never had radio play or anything. Our big songs like My Heroine – songs like that – were popular because of word of mouth. People originally put them on their Myspace profiles and they were sharing songs back then, however you shared music back when it came out – and it kept going. It was never a mainstream thing. It was never something that was embraced by any mainstream outlet – other like maybe a couple of videos in the middle of the night on MTV. And I think that’s been really pivotal to our success. I think that band’s that ended up having this lightning in a bottle for a year – I think ultimately that was their downfall – because they picked up a lot of casual fans that maybe went to see them and said “Okay, I’ll wait to hear that one song. Oh here it is! Okay, I’ll beat the rush and get back to my car during the encore.” You know, that mentality with fans – we never had that. We had a real organic fan base that really cared about our music. And we still do. And I think that’s important. I could go back and I could tell myself “Here’s everything that you could do and don’t do!” And guess what? Maybe we would have sold more records or done some bigger shows or whatever. But would we still be here? Would we still have the same fan base that we have in 2020? I don’t know – maybe – maybe not. So I don’t have regrets about the career really at all. So I don’t think I would tell myself anything or do anything differently.
And now of course you’re celebrating the 20 year anniversary of Silverstein. Shane, did you ever dream that you’d be in a band for 20 years? Oh no! Especially Silverstein – you know, we started the band and it was a side project – it was something I thought we would do for a couple months before we went to university. I didn’t even know we’d play a show, let along record anything. There was this new kind of music that no one in our area was really playing – call it emo or screamo or post hardcore or whatever. Nobody was really doing that in our neck of the woods in the way that we wanted to do, so we did it. And we did it for fun. And then we got a little better and we said “Hey, we’ll play a show. Oh okay, people came out. We’ll make a demo. Okay people liked the demo. Maybe we’ll make an EP. Maybe we’ll send it to a label...” And then Victory Records called and here we are. I will say this – every step of the way I thought that this would be as 20
If the Shane Told of 2020 and could go back in time and tell the Shane Told of 2000 anything at the start of Silverstein, what would you say? Ken, that is a tough question! And I’m going to say that I wouldn’t tell myself anything. I think that the ignorance and the youth exuberance and excitement and inexperience – and the experience I had to gain – I think that that did more for me and put me on the right path then if I had the foresight to do it all over again.
And here we are in 2020. Silverstein’s 20th Anniversary and Highwire Daze’s 30th Anniversary. We live in such a strange world. Who would have thought we’d be living in these pandemic days right now? Oh dude, I’m just waiting for the aliens to land, man. That’s the next thing. Anything can happen and this year has proven it… And as we wait for the aliens to arrive, thank you so much for the interview! Yeah Ken. All the best. Really great to talk to you!
silversteinmusic.com November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
Patrick Kennison and
Nikki Stringfield of
Heaven Below Photo by Jack Lue
Arrivals and Departures with
Heaven Below
Interview by Ken Morton - Photos by Jack Lue After the success of their previous magnum opus Good Morning Apocalypse, Heaven Below decided to go all out and record an album of cover material entitled Rest In Pieces: A Tribute To The Departed. With plenty of time to be creative in the middle of a worldwide pandemic and touring coming to virtual halt, Heaven Below recorded the classic songs from artists who have left us, breathing a massive amount of imagination and intrigue into the proceedings. Highwire Daze caught up with Heaven Below band mates and couple Patrick Kennison and Nikki Stringfield to find out more about the world of Heaven Below and the arrival of their vibrantly ambitiously Rest In Pieces: A Tribute To The Departed endeavor. Read on... Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Heaven Below, and how long the band has been together. Patrick: I’m Patrick Kennison, I sing, play guitar, and tell bad jokes. I put the band together right around 2009. HIGHWIRE DAZE
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Nikki: I’m Nikki Stringfield, and I play guitar and sing backing vocals. How did the concept of Rest In Pieces: A Tribute To The Departed come about and what made you decide to do an album of covers. Patrick: We had great success with our covers of Pat Benatar’s Heartbreaker as well as Peter Schilling’s Major Tom, so we came up with the idea of doing an all covers album. But once our favorite legendary artists starting passing away, we realized the ultimate tribute would be an album of artists/ legends that have passed. The cover art for Rest In Pieces is wonderful. Whose idea was it for the cover art and who was the photographer? Patrick: Adam Hendershott was the photographer. That cover was actually the second idea.. the original idea was to have a depiction of the “Last Supper” with Lemmy as Jesus and all the deceased artists around him as the apostles. We had an artist begin making that, but we quickly realized we’d run into legal problems with all the artists likeness on the cov23
er. So, we sidestepped the idea and I came up with the biblical shoot at the last second. My real motivation was to see Shad (our drummer) in a loin cloth haha.
relationship. We both get to see each other stalkers and creeps online haha. The truth is Nikki and I saw eye to eye before our relationship so it wasn’t a stretch.
We Will Rock You is one of the very amazing covers on the new album. Has anyone in Queen heard or commented on your unique arrangement of the song? Nikki: Not that we know of, but hopefully one day!
Nikki: We were actually working on music together before we got together. Patrick helped produce and record my EP and we’ve always gotten along and worked well together. It actually makes things way easier. We’d play the same festivals with the Maidens and Lita and we’d always hanging out together as friends anyways so it’s just natural! No downs about it really. I guess since I got stuck on the album cover I’m an official member now haha.
What has it been like to record new music in the middle of a pandemic and so much social unrest in the world? Nikki: With the pandemic, we’ve had so much time at home to actually focus on music and be productive. We’re usually both out on tour and it’s hard to work around both of our schedules. Music helps take us away from the reality/craziness of what’s going on in the world right now and helps keep us sane! With whatever new music we make we hope to bring that to other people as well. What was it like playing the Monsters Of Rock livestream and how long had it been since for previous show for Heaven Below? Patrick: Playing the livestream was killer because the staff set up an amazing stage with huge video screens at 3rd Encore in Hollywood which is a famous facility that all the huge bands rehearse at. We mostly joked around amongst ourselves since there was no physical audience. We have special drink holders on our mic stands to help keep the drinks flowing. Heaven Below hadn’t played since NAMM in January.
What do you hope 2021 brings for Heaven Below? Nikki: Hopefully live shows! Patrick: We hope to expand our fan base even further and we have plenty of original music in the works so stay tuned. Any final words of wisdom? Patrick: Believe in yourself first, not the government or anyone else’s opinions surrounding it. Nikki: Thanks to everyone for all their support, and keep your head up during these crazy times. It’s got to get better and see you on the road soon hopefully.
www.heavenbelow.com
Nikki: I usually play MORC with The Maidens and Patrick usually plays it with Lita Ford, so it was great to be a part of their livestream with Heaven Below too and play some music people may not have heard before. Nikki, you’ve actually done a few live shows with The Iron Maidens during the pandemic. What was that experience like and were you nervous doing these shows at all? Nikki: We played the Monsters of Rock live stream as well as a live streamed performance in Long Beach, which was an interesting experience. We played inside onstage while the show was broadcast outside to the audience while they had dinner at their tables. It’s very odd playing to an empty room haha. We feed off of the audience’s energy so it was great to finally play a real show in Pennsylvania in October! That’s the only show we’ve traveled/played during the pandemic. It actually went well and I personally wasn’t too nervous since everyone was socially distanced and everything. It felt great to have a bit of normalcy on stage for a few hours! Patrick, are you still working with Lita Ford? Music fans all over the world see Lita Ford as a metal legend and rock and roll royalty. How do you see Lita Ford as? Patrick: Yes, I’m still with Lita. She’s currently working on her new album. We have some acoustic shows coming up in December and will be hitting the road all next year in 2021. Lita is a true professional.. I’ve seen her not feel well before a show and get onstage and give 100% without fail. She has a cool punk rock side of her that keeps her from being the cliche diva that we’ve seen in other artists from her time. What has it been like to work with your boyfriend / girlfriend in the same band? Any ups and downs about it? Is Nikki now a permanent member of Heaven Below? Patrick: Nikki and I were friends first and had a professional 24
November/December 2020
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Held Hostage: Going Epic and Beyond
Interview by Ken Morton Full Band Photo Credit: photo credit RCN Photography Tom Collier live photo by Jack Lue Held Hostage is a long running rock and metal band from the East Coast whose career in music is the stuff that legends are made of. Their current album EPIC features the likes of Tim Ripper Owens on lead vocals and has been up for the pretigious Grammy Awards consideration in mulitple catagories. A new EP entitled Lost Tracks will feature members of Manowar, exploring the vast and glorious history of Held Hostage. Highwire Daze recently interviewed founding member Tom Collier to go EPIC and beyond as we discuss the absolutely amazing legacy of Held Hostage. Read on... Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Held Hostage, and how long the band has been together. Hi, Ken and congratulations on your Thirtieth Anniversary Edition for Highwire Daze Magazine. That is a huge milestone. I am Tom Collier from the band Held Hostage. I am the founder/lead guitarist/lead singer/backup vocalist. I founded the band along with Paris Hanson back on 1983 and we were playing live by 1984. You can say we are one of the few bands who truly stood, the test of time. Since the inception of Held Hostage there has been many lineup changes. I have had to make some hard decisions, but, every decision I made was for the betterment of the band. I have had to fire lifelong friends and some great players due to various reasons but I can say I have remained friends with all the former members. They all understood the reasons, why I did what I did. 26
How did your recent show with Tim Ripper Owens go and what were some of the highlights? I understand you performed Epic in it’s entirely. It was a sold out concert August 8, 2020 - outdoors Syracuse NY. Many magazines (Bravewords,Metal Kaoz News, etc.) called it a historical night of rock. The first time in Rock History that former/current members of Judas Priest, Manowar, Let Us Prey and Held Hostage all shared the stage at the same time. Doing the Held Hostage EPIC album in its entirety. The crowd went wild from the first song to the last. I started off the first 3 songs singing then Marc Lopes (Ross The Boss, Let Us Prey) took over for the next 5 songs and on the fifth song the great Ross The Boss came on stage and rocked with Held Hostage. Then it was time for Tim Ripper Owens to sing with us. He absolutely knocked it out of the park. He is an amazing singer. The night ended with everyone on stage playing our hit song Rockin the Nite Away. At the end of the song Ross The Boss and I went into dueling guitars trading licks back and forth for about 10 minutes and at the end the crowd gave us all a standing ovation. You have a new EP coming out early next year. Do you have a working title, and if so, what was the title inspired by? Held Hostage “The Lost Tracks” The title is because the tracks were truly lost for years. They were recorded on two inch tape in the 90’s . I found the two inch master tapes and sent them off to be burned/converted to digital tracks. The company said they weren’t sure if it would work and we had one shot to do this. Amazingly, they all came out great and November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
were able to convert to digital tracks. If that had not happened these tracks would have been lost forever. These tracks with Scott Columbus (Manowar drummer) have never been commercially released. It is very exciting to be able to bring these songs to the public. Let’s talk about some of the musicians on the upcoming EP. Scott Columbus is apparently on the new EP, and he passed away in 2011. What is Scott’s contribution to the EP and what was it like working with him? Scott Columbus had a long history with Held Hostage. He was our drummer and I was the one who gave his contact information to Manowar when they were looking for a drummer. Scott had no idea I got him the audition with them. I felt he was ready to do big things and it was a great opportunity for him to be in a big time band. He was with Manowar during their most successful time in the music business. He drummed on all the tracks and it was such a pleasure for him to come back and do this project after touring the world many times. When he was not touring with Manowar he was playing live shows with Held Hostage. When did you first meet Ross The Boss and what was it like working with him on the upcoming EP? Ross the Boss and I met in the 80’s when he was in Manowar. He would come to my house, hangout and spend the night. He is such a class act and one of the best guitarists in the world. Held Hostage jumped on the Manowar World’s Loudest Band USA Tour in Syracuse NY and did a direct support for them. A quick story I always tell about Ross the Boss. When my wife was pregnant. Scott Columbus, Ross the Boss and Myself were going to a recording studio in Buffalo NY. We got to Scott’s house and I had strange feeling, so I called home and asked my wife if everything was alright. She said no I am in labor. We all rushed to my house and I was taking her to the hospital. Ross drove my mom to the hospital with him. We get there and the nurses seemed more interested in the fact Rockstars were in the hospital than my wife having a baby. It was funny at the time. Ross and Scott were both there for the birth of my son. Then we celebrated for a few days. Working with Ross is an amazing experience. He was such a phenomenal player. His tracks are incredible. I have never seen a guitarist so at home with whatever he is playing. He is a true gentleman in every way possible. And of course Marc Lopes of Ross The Boss and Let Us Prey is on the EP. How did Marc become involved and what was it like working with him? Let me start off by saying Marc Lopes is an incredible talent. I first met Marc in NYC 2016 when we were doing a concert with Ross the Boss band and Marc actually came on stage and sang with a different band and Ross ended up hiring him. Then in 2018, Held Hostage was direct support act for Ross the Boss on a USA tour and I got to really know Marc while we were on tour together. He is a really cool fun guy to hang with. Marc is true professional and to work with him was another great experience. When I recovered the Columbus tracks and Ross agreed it would be great to play in the tracks. At that point we had 50% of Manowar’s biggest lineup ever. Our Manager AEM John Pettigrass - he manages both Ross and Myself, suggested we bring in Marc to sing and that is how it came about. Select two songs from the upcoming EP and what inspired the lyrics. HIGHWIRE DAZE
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The two songs with the most meaning - the first one would be Rescue Me. That is a very special song I wrote that song for the famous hostage in Beirut, Terry Anderson. His sister Peggy Saye had contacted me and said I hear you are the kind of band that is not afraid to take a stance for what you feel is right. I said absolutely and wrote Rescue Me. It is about how he suffered while in captivity but every day was a new day. One of the lines in the song is “As I look upon the new day. Hope seems near. I try to struggle with all these frustrations it seems so clear.” The second song Take A Look Around. That is a song Paris Hanson and I wrote about friendship and true friends. How easy it is for a friend to just turn his back on you and not realize he is even doing it. The line in that song that stands out is “When a longtime friend doesn’t seem important to you. Will you remember the good times and what it meant to you.” Both of these songs are very memorable and heartfelt. How has the pandemic affected shows and tours as well as the recording of the upcoming EP? The pandemic has done two things for us. It did slow down our live concerts (which we are still doing). We had a USA tour all set and we were also talking to European festivals just prior to the shutdown. Our record sales are going very well. We got picked up by Walmart.com, Target.com, Barnesandnobles.com and many record stores. The other thing it 27
did for us, was allow us the time to record and write more music. I have the next complete Held Hostage record already written. I cannot remember having so much down time to dedicate to music and I made the most of it. What has it been like to have songs considered for the Grammy Awards? It is such an exciting time for this band. In August 2020, I received an email asking for verification, copyrights and links to Held Hostage EPIC album and specific songs. It was from the Grammys. They said our new record was up for a Grammy in 13 different submission categories. EPIC was up for Rock Album Of The Year. Lighting was in two categories, Best Metal Song Of The Year and Best Rock Record Of The Year. I’m All Over You Best Rock Performance Of The Year. Tonight’s The Nite (dedicated to Bon Scott) was up for Best Rock Performance Of The Year and Best Rock Record Of The Year. Turn the Light On Best Metal Performance Of The Year and We’ll Rock For You Best Rock Performance Of The Year. It is such an honor to even be considered for a Grammy but having almost 50% of the songs on EPIC including the EPIC album itself up for a Grammy is beyond belief. We say win lose or draw, we are in it.. What’s up next for Held Hostage? That is a great question. Where do I start.lol We have multiple projects going and also live concert November 22 2020 at
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Collocas Event Center in Fair Haven NY on Lake Ontario. Do to Covid-19 restrictions, we have to limit it to 300 people but we are excited to play live again. We have multiple bands opening the show and it will be a great time. We have the EP with the Lost Tracks with members from Manowar. We have a new acoustic version of our hit song Show Me The Way Back Home with Joe Lynn Turner (Deep Purple, Rainbow) singing and Mike Lepond of Symphony X on bass. We also have a brand new complete record coming out and you will hear the title here first called “Great American Rock!” Any final words of wisdom? Ken, I would like to say to you, “Thank You” for all you have done for the music industry. You are such a great guy and I was happy I got meet you when we were in California. I want people to know Held Hostage has great new lineup of fantastic players. It’s Tom Collier (lead guitar/vocals/backup vocals), Scott Gregg (rhythm guitar/backup vocals), Dave Carroll (bass guitar/backup vocals), Jeff Murray (drums) and Jon Gorman (lead vocals). This combination of players is a must for everyone to see. Thank you and KEEP ROCKING!
www.heldhostageband.com www.facebook.com/HeldHostageBand
November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
Brian Ray: The man behind
Etta James & Paul McCartney Interview by Kim Crain Photos by Keri Butcher
Part Two - Paul McCartney Welcome to Part Two of the Brian Ray interview. In this issue, we cover Brian Ray and his Career with Paul McCartney. Brian Ray started out his music career as guitar player and music director for Etta James (Part #1 - Issue #132 ). When Brian is not playing Bass, he is playing Guitar with the one and only Sir Paul McCartney for the last 19 years. Brian, what guitar has been with you from the very beginning (LOL) Thats news to me, I play Bass and guitar for Paul McCartney? (Sarcasm). That’s amazing! (LOL). “That’s so cool!” Anyway, I talked about this gold top Les Paul that I brought to Etta James’ first rehearsal when I was 19. So, in those early years as a musician there were some years that were very thin. I was paying $482.00 a month for rent and having a hard time making ends meet at a certain point in my life. At one point I almost sold that guitar, it was a valuable 1957 Les Paul, and they were going up in value a lot, and it was my little baby. It was my first real vintage Gibson and I had bought it for $850.00, which was an outrageous high price in 1973 when you’re 18. I almost sold it. Thank God I didn’t. Something happened, and then I said that scary prayer...God, higher power, whoever you are out there, if I am not meant to do this, please make it really clear to me, cause I’m a dope, and if it’s not what you want me to do, show me what you would have me do to be at service to my fellows, and to you, and I’ll do that. Just make it really clear! Then the next day I got a check in the mail that I was not expecting for $4,000.00. So I was like oh, my God, I’m so glad I did not sell the guitar. That guitar has been with me all this time and I just used it the other day on my new single, and I used that guitar for years with Paul as well! But at a certain point it felt a little bit dangerous to have this old war horse on the road. As much as it did not look like a new guitar, or that collectible of a guitar, but it was, and it was an emotional attachment. Thankfully that has been the one guitar thats been with me my whole professional career. How did you end up working with Sir Paul McCartney? In between Etta James and Paul McCartney there were a 30
few decades. I started to turn my attention to songwriting, and I had a fairly big hit song with Smokey Robinson called, “One Heartbeat” which was #1 on the R&B chart. It was a big hit for him and for me.! After 12 years on the road with Etta & others I was ready to try some other things. I had that hit song, never to be repeated, I thought, I’m going to be a big hit songwriter, but that was my big hit! That’s enough! it’s Smokey Robinson! I was so honored to be lucky enough to write a song for him, and we are friends ‘till this day! At that time, I got sober and then decided I wanted to get back into touring, and then I got a job with Rita Coolidge. Then I got super lucky to work with Mylène Farmer, and then that led to Johnny Hallyday, I was able to score those auditions too!.I was playing all over Europe with these two French artists. The drummer on both of those tours was none other than Abe Laboriel Jr. Well, he and I became fast friends, we knew it from the very first day of rehearsal that we were gonna be buds! Every day off we would goof off, go shopping, go see a movie, eat junk food, and have some fun! So years later after 6 years of being on those French tours, Abe got a phone call to go and play drums on a new album by some young upstart by the name of Paul McCartney. The album was called, Driving Rain. It was produced by a great producer by the name of David Kahne who assembled that band. It was Abe, Rusty Anderson, and a guy named Gabriel on keyboards. Soon after it was time to put together a live show I guess? It all coincided when I had a birthday! Abe came to my birthday party, and I said to Abe; “I gotta November/December 2020
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shake your hand because you shook Paul McCartney’s hand, you have washed it right? He said yes!!!” So then I asked him if he was gonna be touring with Paul. Did he have any kind of plans going on? Oh yea, we do plan to tour. Well, then I said; “who’s gonna play bass when he plays piano and then switch to guitar when he plays bass?” And Abe said well we’re looking for a guitar player who plays bass. And I shot my right hand up in the air and said; “well, I would love a shot at that!” And as if he did not even consider it, he said; “well thats a cool idea!” To be honest with you Kim, my first impulse with stuff like that is, Abe knows me. He knows where to find me... but you know, don’t be a dope, put your hands up and be pro active about this and state your case, and I did! Because, trust me, there are millions of guys that are qualified who would die for that job and I know that. And I knew that then!
early February and I’m meeting some of the inner circle of Paul’s community, his travel director Michael, his stage director Keith. This was going to be my first time meeting Paul! I was very nervous and I thought if I walk around New Orleans maybe I can burn off some of my nerves. Actually it did not work, I was kind of out of my body, and understandably! We are then coming down to a private dinner in the Windsor Hotel. I got downstairs and its sort of old English looking . There’s long red curtains and carpet, and there’s 20 or so of us gathered together and we are just there chattering away, Paul isn’t there yet, and I’m very nervous. All of a sudden I could feel the energy in the room shift. It was feeling kind of quiet and I realized Paul and his wife had just walked in, so I slowly wheeled around and here he comes. He’s slowly greeting a couple of people, and then he walks up to me and says; “You must be Brian? Hi, I’m Paul!” I said; “I know!” (LOL) I didn’t say that! (just kidding)
Well what I didn’t know is the very next day he put my name forward to David Kahne, who was putting a band together for Paul, after doing the album. The very next day David Kahne calls me and said; “hey Abe gave me your number. I was wondering if you would be interested in coming talk to me with the possibility of being considered for a Paul McCartney event? He’s going to be playing one song for the (2002) Super Bowl the pre-game show.”
I said; “What a pleasure to meet you. Thanks for having me along!” We just had a little bit of small talk and a cocktail, then it was time to have dinner. Yeah man, it was like the next day, there was sort of rehearsal, on the field for the Super Bowl. We played a song called “Freedom’” off of the Driving Rain album. (the 1st album with David Kahne). You know, I thought, that was it! I got to meet Paul McCartney and play a song with him. Wow! That’s for all time!
He says; “can you be here in 1/2 hour?” I said no, but I can be there in one hour! And I got in my car, I got ready. I looked in the mirror, gathered myself, might have smacked myself!!! Got in my car to go down there, it was just David and I! I came into his comfortable studio. He handed me a Hofner bass and I sat down and it wasn’t even plugged in.
And everyone’s messaging me, because I have not told anyone I was doing it! All of a sudden people were going like; “Was that you on the Super Bowl? Paul McCartney?” I got a flood of emails. And I was tickled, very happy...but...anyway!
But, you can hear it. Then he’s watching my hands, watching my technique and looking at my approach. Then he asks me about my taste in music and what my thing is; my past is. See, he didn’t really know me yet! And then we’re just chattering away. And then he handed me a telecaster and I started playing guitar for him. And as you know, guitar is my main instrument, and that was it! I shook his hand. He said its out of my hands now, I know they are considering other guitar players, but good luck, I have a good feeling about this! I said; “why thank you very much!” I got a phone call the next day asking me if I could be on a plane tomorrow to fly to New Orleans to play one song with Paul McCartney for the Pre-Game show at the Super Bowl! And I was like, of course. Yes, of course!!! I flew in. I was very nervous. I came down to the lobby of the hotel when I got there. There was a fire place going, we are in HIGHWIRE DAZE
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So, we’re watching the game now right after our performance. We’re watching it in a sky box, and we are greeting friends and fans of Paul’s. As they come in and out of the sky box, and the game is on, we are on the third quarter. So there was only a few minutes left of the game, so I thought I would go and thank him. I said this has been such a privilege, again thank you for having me along! It’s been really fun and an honor and a privilege to meet you! And he said “Thank you Brian its been great!! Thank you so much!” And I could tell that he had his eyes on me, watching the game. He was sitting in a little seat outside the skybox, above me. And every time I looked around, he was kind of looking back and smiling! But I didn’t know! So when he came back to the hotel to say goodbye, someone said come down to the bar, we’re gonna have a drink! And I said ok, great! And I come in. Their’s Paul McCartney playing piano for everyone at the bar, playing “Lady Madonna,” goofing off and hamming it up! And we all sat around a circle, about 12 of us joking and talking as Paul told us some stories. 31
He was very jovial, he was very happy. Then he got up to go and he said goodnight everybody, thank you so much! He started going around giving everyone a hug. And then Paul comes up to me, he goes; “okay Brian, stick with Abe and Rusty and they’ll show you the ropes, and I will see you in March for rehearsals.” Oh that’s cool Brian! And he just left, And I said OMG! I turned to Abe and I said; “Did he just say what I think he said?” And he said; “Ya dude!!!” Thats pretty much how we talk. Then I ran home, and the next day I just started woodshedding. I got a guitar and a bass and a twelve string, an electric and a acoustic, a mic stand and a big stack of CD’s, cause thats what we did then! Then I started learning Paul McCartney stuff! I didn’t have a song list or a set list or anything! I just started kind of woodshedding and just listening to everything I could get my hands on, learning the vocal parts. I didn’t know how much I would be singing and playing at the same time. And I thought; oh my god! This is too much. I don’t know if I can cut it. I’m scared, and after one week I was I was like, that’s better! And after week two I had called Abe to come over and give a listen, and he said; “Thats cool, don’t worry if you hit a bad note, keep going.” I went ok!!! And by the end of week three I was like ok its getting better, but I still don’t know. Week five I was like my beard had grown out, I had not been outside in 5 weeks! Seriously woodshedding...and at the end of five weeks..I was like I’m going to go get this! I’m gonna do everything I can! I went to Culver City, CA for rehearsals. We set up and played for five days as a band before Paul got there, which really helped! By the last week we had 44 songs that he was going to focus on, so I kind of burrowed in on those and left the other ones behind for a while. Paul came in on the 6th day. Our first song we played together was “Hello, Goodbye!” and then we played through about 20 more songs. In fact I think the first day we might have played thirty songs! At the end of the day he turned around and said; “Ok guys, sounds great, I’ll see you tomorrow!” At this point I hadn’t told anybody I had been playing with Paul McCartney, I just thought it was going to be one day for the Super Bowl, that was it. If it didn’t work out I didn’t want to get these big expectations out and have to explain it to people. So I just left it. When he said I will see you tomorrow, that was the first time I allowed myself to feel joy and excitement! I’m going on tour with Paul McCartney! I mean you know, if it wasn’t me, you would see some people scrambling around for day two. We only had six more days to rehearse. Ah man, I was just overjoyed. I felt oh God! The Luck!!! Insane! That began the 19 years I have been with him! I owe so much to Paul McCartney. He’s been just a godsend of a boss, and its been kinda like a great apprenticeship. I get to play bass a lot. He’s made me a much better guitar player, and obviously background vocals. Just to learn day after day. I get to get right on the mic and give it everything! Not six inches 32
away, on the mic all night! It’s been a great, great learning experience. So much joy, so many great experiences to kind of cherish and hold forever! Memories to pass on to my son James, to friends, whoever who will listen to me. (LOL) It’s just been great. What can I say ? In 2003 Paul McCartney made history by being the first Beatle to set foot and perform in Russia. What was it like to be part of that history? Well, it was exciting. It would be the first apparently “Rock N Roll” Band to play ‘Red Square.” The first time to eighty thousand people lining the streets. It was a free show. All the dignitaries where there: Vlad (Vladimir) Putin walked in of course. Fashionably late. (He’s a drama Queen. He wanted all the attention!) What can I say? He wanted to try and show up a Beatle. Good Luck! LOL! That was a magnificent time! It was really special. Thank God for Paul’s film crew getting all of this documented. Thank you Brian Ray for your interview with me today. You have had an extraordinary career! All this fortune and success has happened to you because you are an accomplished, magical, enlightened person. You have your own style and charm, which is a cut above the rest! It was a pleasure and an honor to interview you. Check out Brian Ray’s new single at : http://www.brianray.com http//www.facebook.com/brian.ray2 (Wicked Cool Records) called , I gotta new thing! with Abe Laboriel Jr. and Scot Shriner from Weezer. Listen for them on SiriusXm / Little Steven -underground garage channel 21. Reach Kim Crain at: kimcrain.com https//www.facebook.com/kim.crain.9231 https//www.instagram.com/kimcrainmusic November/December 2020
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The Sonic Adventures of
Rob Moratti
Interview by Ken Morton
Rob Moratti is best known for his amazing lead vocal performance on the Saga album The Human Condition as well as for his time spent within the ranks of Final Frontier. He has also maintained an epic solo career - and with the recent unveiling of his latest album Paragon via AOR Heaven, Moratti presents timeless melodic rock in it’s finest hour. On his solo projects, Rob has worked with the likes of Joel Hoekstra of Whitesnake, Torben Endevolsen of Acacia Avenue, and even with former Saga bandmate Ian Crichton. Highwire Daze caught up with Rob Moratti via Skype to discuss his many sonic adventures through the world of melodic rock and beyond... You have a new album coming out called Paragon. First of all, is there any overall story or concept behind the title Paragon? I guess you could say over the last few solo releases, I’ve found myself keeping a consistency of powerful melodic rock songs. And at my age – people are always questioning that kind of thing for me. So you know what? I go it makes sense to me to give it a title that makes sense – it still has me in a positive energy where the music is still on top – at in its genre, I still think it’s one of its best releases to today. And also, Paragon was a good title. Select any two songs from Paragon and what inspired the lyrics to you? Oh man, you know it’s funny, because everything comes from some kind of musical background – so when you’re listening to the music, sometimes you get inspired by whatever you’re writing about. But again, when you’re listening to the type of songs being the melodic AOR – it’s always going to be based on the relationship types that we can deal with and understand. And I want to keep most of it happy, because nowadays I find that everything’s going real dark and political. I 34
think it’s safe to say there’s a bit of a personal thing in almost every track. And the lyrics – I’m Falling is basically saying I keep coming back to the same place with that person. Always based on relationships and love, where most everyone could really comprehend and we could all get from there. That’s about it – unless you can get into it and talk about some of the ballads. What Have We Become is a “breaking your heart” sort of ballad – “What have we become after all this? We’ve come so far and it’s taken us back again.” And I basically poured out my soul into it.
You and Torben Endevolsen of Acacia Avenue and many other bands has been on quite a few of your albums including this brand new Paragon. What do you think makes you and Torben work so well together? You know, I guess it’s just maybe the experience over the years that he and I put in together. And he seems to understand what I like as a guitar player, as a writer. I got him on board mixing as well, cuz he knows and he understand how we could get just enough grit and just enough heaviness without going over the top and overbearing. And it seems to work really well. You know, there’s a lot of great players, but he’s a special guy and an all-around very talented dude. And I’m grateful for it all. That’s brought us here today and here we are still doing it. What was the first project you worked on with Torben and how did you meet him? I would go back a few years now. I think he approached me when I was writing my first or second solo album – around that time. So you’re looking at around the early 2000’s. And we started on one track on for my solo album, and we took it from there. I went back and worked on a couple of tracks for his (albusms) – and that grew. We went forward with it from one song to the next. We did Renaissance together where we wrote a lot of songs – and it’s been great! It’s been a great ride. Even now, I’m working with a lot of different artists as well and songwriters – and everyone’s been really professionNovember/December 2020
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produced The Human Condition together. It says a lot – you know? If he didn’t step back, it would have never happened. So he came out of retirement. And it’s the reality of life, my friend – at the end of the day, everyone gets filled with something – and there’s great artists - and you can find anyone anywhere now. So it was nice that he came back and they’re doing their thing. And I’ve continued on. My solo CD’s have taken off and they’ve put me on the map with many new Saga fans and have continued on with all the old Final Frontier fans. I’m trying to keep it together – that’s all we can do. Are you still working with Final Frontier and what was it like working with Mladen of Von Groove? He’s amazing! He’s great! We’re old buddies. We met as kids. It’s funny, because we go back a long way, so working together was easy. We spoke just about a month ago – he calls me out of the blue – it was nice to hear from him. The thing is, people get busy with life and he’s busy – I’ve gotten busy – and we just move on. Have we ever said no to a new Final Frontier record? Probably not. Is there going to be another one? Probably not. But never say never, because there was such a magic and the chemistry was so powerful. We came out with those records and we listen today – and even when he called out of the blue – we’re old buddies – we chat – he’s a good guy. al. From the beginning steps of the writing to the ending, it’s been quite a ride and really good. So another artist you worked with was Joel Hoekstra from Whitesnake. What was it like working with him, and did he have any Cher stories that he shared with you? (Laughs) You know what? I never really asked. I’m sure there’s so many. I don’t want to get to personal with the guys – maybe eventually I’ll ask just to break him. (Laughs). Nah, he’s a great guy – he’s like the rest of us – we chat, we talk – – and I can’t tell you how grateful I am. You know, I approached him thinking “where’s it gonna go?” And he loved my stuff and he said, “Yeah, man, I’ll play your stuff.” And then we took it from there. And we’re actually still working together so it’s been quite a ride. We’re going to go back to the past for a few questions. What was it like performing lead vocals on the Saga album The Human Condition – and what do you think of that album now in retrospect? Honestly, I still listen to it and it still blows my mind. It’s a great album. I’ve been very fortunate to have been a part of this band. Saga is Saga – they’re legendary. It’s funny how that all worked out – you know – they’re a great band – we toured extensively – we recorded a crazy album. The chemistry was unreal – at any other time I’m sure it would have been huge. If you ask Ian himself, he’ll still tell you that it’s one of his favorites as well. And you still work with Ian Crichton today on other things? Yeah, we still talk – we’re friends. They’re all good guys. And I get it – Michael’s the original and he came back – and it’s all about the money. But Ian’s great – we talk all the time – we chat – we laugh – and I had him play. I asked him “Do you want to play on this record?” And he goes, “Sure.” How did you feel when Michael Sadler decided to return? You know, I’m okay with that. I always look at the reality of that. I was there – I did it and we toured – we wrote and we HIGHWIRE DAZE
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So with this record Paragon, what has it been like to record and release new music in the middle of a pandemic and so much social unrest in the world? You know – honestly for me it’s been great, because I’m working from home anyways. My studio’s here and I’ve got all my songwriters – the guys that I work with – they’re all over the place from Europe to the States. And everyone playing on it – again they’re all over the place – from L.A. to Sweden – and Torben – he’s in Denmark. So it’s been an experience. For me, with all of this stuff going on, I managed to pull it off. And the thing is – it’s not so hard on me at this time, because I’m able to work. And it’s easier actually, because I was able to get some of the guys that are really busy. Like Joel was great – I got him right away – I was like “Hey man, are you available?” and he’s “Damn right I am!” And I’m like “Thanks buddy!” Are you kidding, because right now if everything went back to normal, it would have been a hard ticket for me. I would of asked him and the guy probably would have been on tour and it wouldn’t have been the same. But it worked out great and now we made the connection. It changes all the rules. I’ve already got him playing on the next record that I’ve already written. I’m keeping busy. This is our time. We’ve got to do it now. What do you hope 2021 brings for you? Would you like to tour? Absolutely! You know like everyone else – we’d like to get out there and perform and share it with the world – our new music – and keep going. But we can’t stop – that’s the thing – because people forget right away – especially nowadays.
robmoratti.net www.facebook.com/rob.moratti www.aorheaven.com 35
SLUMBER PARTY TIME with
Butcher Babies
Interview by Ken Morton - Photos by Jack Lue Butchers Babies have been placing the pedal to the metal for a decade - and even in spite of the worldwide pandemic - they have remained as busy as ever. On the verge of releasing new music, Highwire Daze caught up with Carla Harvey and Heidi Shepherd of the Butcher Babies to discuss the current happenings of the band, their photo shoot with legendary photographer Jack Lue (see poster in the center of this issue), radio airwaves, artshows. death doolahs. and a whole lot more! Introduce yourself and tell me what you do in Butcher Babies. Heidi: Hi, I’m Heidi Shepherd and I am one of the vocalists in Butcher Babies. Carla: Hey, I’m Carla Harvey and I am also one of the vocalists in Butcher Babies. First of all, your recent album Lilith came out in 2017. 36
How close are you to recording and releasing brand new album? Heidi: We have a brand new single coming out October 30th, so we’re really excited about that. And then a couple of singles after that up to an EP that will be out May 7th. Carla: It’s kind of a crazy time because we’re obviously in the middle of a pandemic, so releasing music is kind of a difficult thing in these times. You don’t know if you should release it or if you should wait and hold on. But we figured that by releasing a song a month for six months that we could give a little something to the fans that have been waiting so long. How has the pandemic affected you tour wise? I’m sure you’ve had tours that have been cancelled… Carla: Oh yeah, it’s affected us in a huge way. We were supposed to be at Aftershock now. We had a big tour planned as the pandemic hit. We had a tour planned in April – and we November/December 2020
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though there’s no way that we were all going to be shut down for this long. There’s no way! We’ll still go on the tour! And weeks went by, and we realized that we weren’t going to go on that tour or any other tours this year. Heidi: Yeah, we were supposed to be in Europe for a couple of weeks. We were booked on some really fun festivals, so hopefully those will go off without a hitch in 2021, because we are rescheduled for all those in 2021. All in all, we’re trying to keep a positive head. We did push back from releasing music for six months – we were supposed to release a song in April. And I’m glad that we waited because it seems like that right now its good timing for us. You recently did the European Festival Alliance? How did that show go? Heidi: It was an old show that was streamed – it was a show that we played in 2018 and it was streamed for the European fan base. Carla: But we did get to put together some pandemic quarantine videos where we did all our old songs remotely from our homes. We had Charlie Benante from Anthrax play drums on one of our songs. And it was kind of fun to make music together from a distance. It definitely was different! Well now we’re doing a photo shoot today with Jack Lue. How long has it been since you both have seen each other? Carla: Actually this is crazy! We haven’t seen each other in six months, because at the beginning of the pandemic, I had been planning a move to Illinois – and then I had to speed up the process because of what happened. So we couldn’t travel and see each other. And she moved to Vegas – so it’s honestly really strange to go from seeing your best friend on the road every day with you - and even at home we’d go to Yoga together almost every day. We were always doing something – we always had plans. But not to see each other at all for six months – it was quite a life change. Plus we moved to new cities, so that’s a complete life change in of itself. Just crazy! Carla, you went to a Mortuary School. What was that experience like? Carla: It’s what you’d expect it to be like. (Much laughter) No, no, it was awesome. I really enjoyed it! It changed my life. I always say going to mortuary school made me a completely different person. I was working entertainment before – and I quit working entertainment because I was over it. I didn’t want to be a singer anymore. I didn’t want to be a model or a TV actress or anything anymore. I was over it. I was over Hollywood. So I was going to go to school for something that I’ve always loved. I was always fascinated with the embalming process and I loved it. I volunteered for hospice the same time I was going to school, and it was just a life changing experience. So embalming college is extremely difficult – it’s all anatomy, physiology, chemistry – and embalming classes of course. It was very difficult but very enriching – and having to focus on something so much kind of changed my attitude. I was kind of a party girl before I went and I came out inspired. And after all was said and done, I went back to music. I don’t think I would have gone back to music if I hadn’t gone to mortuary school and had that breath of fresh air to know that I could do something else that was bigger than myself and help people. And I needed that before I went back into entertainment. HIGHWIRE DAZE
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Heidi, you were recently on Amaranthe’s new album Manifest and did a song called BOOM! How did that come about? Heidi: (Laughs) It’s definitely not a normal kind of feature – it’s more so just spoken word. It’s not necessarily a feature – but they just called me one day and said, “Hey we need someone who could do a Valley Girl voice. Could you do it for us?” I lived in L.A. for a long time and I could (in a Valley Girl accent) “Totally do a Valley Girl thing!” (Laughs) But they’re awesome! I’m actually in the new video for it. They’re really good friends of ours and we all support each other immensely so it was really cool of them to think of me for that Valley Girl part. So Carla, you have an artwork with Charlie Benante of Anthrax coming up in Chicago? How did that come about? Carla: Yeah, we didn’t think we were going to be able to do it and then at the last minute “We can do it, the rules and changing and we can do it!” Charlie has never shown his artwork. I‘ve shown my many times. But he’s a phenomenal artist, so I’m really excited to show with someone I love obviously. Throughout this whole pandemic, we’ve created art together every single day just sitting across the table from each other drinking a glass of wine and just drawing, so it’s going to be really cool to be able to showcase everything that we’ve been making during this time. Heidi, you have a radio show called WTF Morning. Tell me a little about that. Heidi: So I was a Radio DJ for 7 years before starting Butcher Babies with Carla and I did morning. And it was really fun even though you have to get up at the butt crack of dawn. I would get up and get to that studio at 3:30 in the mornings – sometimes 4 because I like to sleep in a little – and then start the show at 5. And I miss radio show much – I really do. I did XM Radio – I worked for Sirius XM – and so when it came down to keeping myself busy during the pandemic, I wanted to do What The Fuck! Mornings. But it also stands for Wednesday Thursday Fridays - so for me, I would like to do it every day but it is a full time job and I do have to focus my efforts on other things to do with the band as well – so I thought WTF works out just fine. So I’m super excited to do that every Wednesday Thursday Friday morning with Henry Flury our guitar player. We just get up there and we talk shit all morning. We communicate with the fans. We have a really special wakeup call from the Butcher Babies that fans can win – and so it’s really fun for us to communicate with the fan base during this time when we can’t go and see them in person. And it’s gone over really well, so I’m having a good time with it. Carla, you are a Grief Practitioner and Death Positive Advocate. Tell me about that. Death scares everyone… Carla: I think the reason I went into that field is because death scares me tremendously. I was fascinated with it when I was a kid. I was convinced that I could find a way to cure death – but obviously that’s never going to happen so I could at least help people facilitate their grief and educate them on choices regarding death. Even when you realize you could chose things like how you want the end of your life to be – what kind of music you want playing – who you want with you – these kinds of things. There’s no many choices that people don’t think about until it’s too late. And I kind of what to change that, slowly but surely. So I’m a death doolah and a grief counselor and a former mortician. 37
So Heidi, we’re going to go from death positive advocate to the Happy National Dog Day! Tell me about the 99 Bottles song that you guys did. Heidi: So this was a really cool idea that was brought to us by our friend Derek who plays with Phil Anselmo and the Illegals. He approached us about this – and of course Carla and I – actually everyone in the band has a dog – or multiple dogs. And we’re all obsessed with our dogs. My dog goes on tour with us – she’s our mascot pretty much. So when it came to doing a snippet for this, it was a shoo-in. Of course! It was to help senior dogs find new loving homes – because I think a lot of newer dog parents want to get a puppy – and the seniors are forgotten. So this was to help the senior dogs, and I thought it was such a beautiful cause. It was fun to do this among so many great vocalists – and not even just vocalists – there were DJ’s, guitar players, drummers – so it was really fun to hear some of the renditions. I listened to all of them and it was really cool – and I was very happy to be a part of it. Wikipedia says you formed in 2010 so you are now on your 10 year anniversary…. Carla: We actually formed in 2009, but we don’t tell anyone. It’s our 10 year anniversary! (Much laughter) So how does it feel that the Butcher Babies have been around for decade (and then some)? Did you every think you would be a part of anything for 10 years? Heidi: The fact that we even have that question is so crazy to me. It definitely feels like yesterday we formed. We’ve definitely learned a lot and grown up a lot – but it’s gone by so fast. Carla and I were having this conversation on the way over here about how time is moving so fast and “I’m getting old! I have this and this and this to do!” But then I have to sit and remember that we did this, and this, and this, and this in the last ten years – and that was a dream come true – and THAT was a dream come true…
they’ll be there – but being able to do all this together – it’s very important for us. And where do you hope the Butcher Babies go in 2021? Carla and Heidi: On tour!!! Heidi: And we’ll have a new EP out next year on May 7th! And then we’ll quickly turn around with more. We’re really excited to get these songs out to the world. We’re been sitting on these for a long time, so we’re really pumped for YOU to hear them. And since it also is our 10 year anniversary, we’re also releasing with our first single a 10 year anniversary wine. Our Butcher Babies fans and friends and colleagues... Carla: and even those that I don’t like can drink it – how about that? Heidi: yeah, enemies, frenemies, everyone…
butcherbabies.com butcherbabiesmerch.com www.carlaharvey.com
Carla: We’ve lived ten lifetimes in the last ten years. We really have gotten to live the dream that so many people want to try and don’t have the guts to go for all the way or don’t ever make it. We’re very lucky to have lived this life. Heidi: And you know, one thing that has been the coolest is that we’re all just best friends. And so we get to tour the world and make music with our best friends. Carla: I feel like especially during this year – during the pandemic – we’ve all learned to appreciate the little things like that – where you can fight with each other and have a little bit of discord – but at the end of the day, those relationships are the most important thing in the world – and the thing you’ll remember most about the whole experience. Heidi: Very true. All the shows kind of blend together, but the experiences we get to have on the road together – those are pretty epic! Like finding a brunch spot in Newcastle or having her birthday in Switzerland… Carla: You know, it’s just stuff like that… Heidi: Knowing where our favorite coffee is in Glasgow. Who can say they have a favorite coffee shop in Glasgow? Well you know, we can. So you know, it’s fun that we can do those things together. The shows – they’ll come back and 38
November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
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SCARLETT O’HARA LOS GLOBOS LOS ANGELES, CA. NOVEMBER 30, 2019 PHOTO BY JACK LUE
A Chat with Moises Lopez of
The Sight Of Impact and Scarlett O’Hara
Interview by Ken Morton The Sight Of Impact Photo by Andrew Vela
The Sight Of Impact is an up and coming alternative metal band from Texas ready to make a name for themselves above and beyond the vast Lone Star State. Recent singles Venom and My Broken Record are destined to leave an indelible impression on all types of music fanatics. Highwire Daze recently caught up with vocalist Moises Lopez to discuss the crucial lyrics behind their songs, his participation as the new lead vocalist of Scarlett O’Hara, the fact that all members from The Sight Of Impact are big gamers, and other topics of intrigue... Where is The Sight Of Impact based out and what is your local music scene like there? We are in Donna, Texas. The local music scene – it’s actually really good. It’s a really friendly music scene. A lot of people get really involved on Facebook and start talking about things – whether it’s controversial or whether it’s tips or tricks – helping things or trading equipment, etcetera. It’s pretty good. I mean, Scarlett O’Hara – they’re in McAllen which is like 20 minutes from us – so they’re part of the same scene.
conversation with somebody else who may just be using you or not want anything to do with you. But you become stuck in that habit of being that way and it’s kind of getting out of that. The chorus part “Is someone screaming out my name” is kind of like you’re wanting more than what it is. You really want to hear somebody who is willing to say like, “Let’s just hang out. Let’s just go on a normal date. Let’s just do something normal.” Just put the sex all the way in the background and let’s just be normal people hanging out with each other – and get to know each other that way instead.
You just released a new song called Venom. First of all, is there any overall story or concept behind that song – like lyrically? Yeah – the song is pretty much just breaking out of a bad habit – like you’re worth more than just than just your body. Essentially I wrote the song based out of being homosexual myself. A lot of the things – everything is real sexualized and everything has to be that way. Like these younger ones growing up are believing that that’s the way to connect with people – to become “Oh hi, I just met you. Let’s have sex or something. And then I get to know you after that.” And it’s just very toxic in a sense. And you know what the black ooze coming out and everything (in the video); it’s just the toxicity that’s there. Some of them get really wrapped around that – they don’t have to be gay (straight as well), but it’s like the experiences that I’ve seen. And it becomes that you’re swallowed up in believing that that’s how you have to put yourself forward is by sexualizing yourself in order to have a normal
Being single and gay and navigating in the age of Grindr and social media must be pretty crazy. Does that have anything to do with the song at all? Yeah, in a sense. Now Texas has a law where people can’t send you unsolicited dick pics and stuff like that because it’s against the law. It started to come off very predatory almost – like the older people that know the game are kind of preying on the younger ones and kind of being “this is how it is.” I had a friend who was younger and his number was really high – but he didn’t know how to interact normally. And it just kind of felt like it was sad to me – it wasn’t right. I guess as an adult, you shouldn’t be like that. Even though they’re 18 and of age – you shouldn’t be like that to somebody that’s vulnerable – that doesn’t know the sexual world and stuff like that yet. It just felt like something I wanted to talk about in that song – that there’s more to that. Realistically you should be like having normal conversations with people. No slut shaming whatsoever – if that’s your thing and you’re mentally
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November/December 2020
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ready for that and that’s what you want – they hey, go for it! Have fun! But some people that are not and are very vulnerable – it could be very destructive to them. And that’s what I kind of wanted to point out – that there’s more to it than that. And sometimes it messes with the minds of people that are not ready for it. It could become like a habit or an addiction, because they have no idea how to deal with it and how to have a normal conversation. And that could just be something not just with Grindr and social media apps, but with the Internet overall. People have basically forgotten how to have a normal conversation. Yeah, with like how the Internet world is – it’s very fast paced and let’s get from A to Z really quickly. But there are some people that are not completely ready for that. And it just becomes very “come up to my level” and what not – otherwise “you’re not cool” or “you’re wasting my time.” And some people could be pressured by that. Let’s talk about another song that was released this year called My Broken Record. That song came out before the pandemic. Is there any overall story or concept behind that one? Yeah – Aaron the bassist – he came up with the topic to me. I believe we all have those friends sometimes where it’s just like “Dude, let her go, let him go. This is like the fifth time you’ve all broken up – it’s not going to work out anymore.” And they come to you with the whole “Well, I don’t know – they took me out to dinner so they probably changed.” They come up with any little thing they’ll find to say that, and they come again to cry to you again and the chorus is like “Hey, hey, my broken record. Don’t you remember? Don’t you remember?” And it’s kind of like saying “Did you just forget everything this person did wrong to you? And how they made you feel? And you’re just like coming here again with the same story.” So it’s just like a broken record. It keeps replaying the same line. What was it like opening for the wild and crazy guys in Avatar – and did you get to meet them at all? First, they are tall! These guys are tall! We’re like these short Mexicans – like the scene in Happy Feet where the penguins that were the tiniest were the Mexicans ones. That is literally us and they’re super tall! It was cool, because we got to see how it is to not only to be a band but to have an aesthetic. They have this image – they have music – they have the performances. It’s always awesome to be able to play with groups like that because you get to see what it’s like to be a real performer up there – not just playing music. So it’s really awesome. If The Sight Of Impact could open for any band either now or from the past, who would it be and why? Oh man, we’re all pretty huge Breaking Benjamin fans. I have many people I look up to vocally, but Ben is one of them definitely up there. UJ would probably say Avenged Sevenfold – he like worships the ground they walk on. And I would say Bring Me The Horizon also – lately they’ve been getting into the R&B-ish kind of rock side and it’s really awesome. So I would really love to play with those bands – that would be incredible! How did you wind up in Scarlett O’Hara and what is currently going on with the band? Any new music? So I wound up in Scarlett O’Hara because – I believe UJ 46
was liking some of their pictures and following them on Instagram. And Logan from Scarlett O’Hara was like “Who’s this? Let me check them out.” So when he heard me singing on Instagram – I have some raw videos of me just singing there and recordings as well – he was basically like, “That guy! I want to try him out. We want to do something. It’s been forever. It’s time for a change. That guy!” So he called me up and we met – because obviously you have to figure out if you like the person or not – if you click with each other and everything. It’s more than if you have a voice and what not or you’re very good at guitar – come in right away! I feel you need to know people before you can just bring them in. You don’t know what they’re about – you don’t know if they could have toxic behaviors and what not, that could potentially ruin the band and everything. So we hit it off really well – I mean I’m here! And yeah, there is new music coming. Actually we went and recorded with a guy named Eric Ron. He done Godsmack, New Years Day, Slaves, Palisades – you name it – he’s done it. So back in February of this year, we were in L.A. recording there – and we have three new tracks. But that’s kind of all I can say. Would The Sight Of Impact and Scarlett O’Hara ever want to tour and do any shows together? Or has that already happened? That has not happened and I don’t know if I would survive a tour like that. To be doing one band right after the other a night – I would probably be completely vocally dead by the first week or so. That is a lot! I would say it’s highly unlikely on a tour – maybe a show – but definitely most likely not an entire tour. If I had the capability – maybe a bit more time in practicing- then maybe – who knows…? It said in the press release, you guys in The Sight Of Impact are big gamers. What is your favorite game to play and why? Okay right now it’s definitely League Of Legends – my boyfriend and I play that game for hours instead of doing school work for college that we should be doing. But it’s amazing. I consider that the toxic relationship – that game IS the toxic relationship! It makes us so mad at everything and after a while we’re like, “You know what? Maybe I did this wrong” and then we go back to it. It’s just definitely that! I’m a huge Pokémon fan as well – I love all those games – I do know the whole breakdown of it. And UJ – I believe that Call Of Duty is mostly what he’s playing. We did want to do a gamer channel and go with that. In due time we’ll get there. What do you hope 2021 brings for The Sight Of Impact? A lot more fans – definitely. A lot bigger reach. A lot of opportunities to play – bigger stages – maybe a tour – just I guess a lot of good things that maybe most people would want for their bands. I’m really excited and looking forward to that – if there’s going to be more leeway with the pandemic and all that stuff. If it settles down – if maybe a vaccine comes out – who knows? But stay tuned – we have a lot of things ready on both bands…
www.facebook.com/TheSightOfImpact www.facebook.com/ScarlettOharaBand November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
THE UNIVERSAL HEAVY METAL OF THE MIGHTY
BYFIST
Interview by Ken Morton Byfist from San Antonio, Texas, have been active since the mid-80s, and released a 45 single, a couple of EP’s and a compilation album. In The End is the name of their just unleashed first ever full length magnum opus, now available worldwide via Pure Steel Records. It’s been a long time in the making, and through personal tragedy arrives a heavy metal triumph that music fans will find absolutely inspirational. Highwire Daze recently caught up with founding member Nacho Vara to discuss the legacy of the epically underrated Byfist, their brand new album In The End, opening for the likes of Michael Schenker and Yngwie Malmsteen, their David Wayne / Metal Church connection, and a whole lot more! Read on… Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Byfist, and how long the band has been together. Hi! My name is Nacho Vara and I’m one of the original founding members of Byfist. I play rhythm guitar. The late Dave Lee and I were the main songwriters for the songs that are featured on our first full length album In The End, with 48
the exception of Scattered Wits, which is a Reverend song we covered to honor the late legendary vocalist David Wayne. Byfist formed in June 1987 and ended in June 1991 on its first go round. After a 9 year hiatus we reformed in 2000 until October 2010 when Dave Lee passed away. Byfist was off and on for a few years as I grieved and tried to move on with the band. We finally started up again around October 2012 with various members, and finally got this current line up finalized in August 2016. How did you wind up signing with Pure Steel Records? Our bassist, Stony Grantham plays with Shadowkeep from England and they are a Pure Steel Records Artist, so we learned of them through him. However, in the summer of 2017, we met Bob Mitchell when we opened for Savior from Anger in Houston, Texas. At that time, Bob was their vocalist and also the U.S. rep for Pure Steel. We gave him a demo to listen to, and shortly after that, we were in negotiations with Pure Steel Records. Select any two songs from In The End and what inspired the lyrics? November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
In the End – A musician who stole from many of his bandmates! It’s about a Conman who puts on a front. He’s a great friend to all with his wit and charm, but all along is planning to steal from you. He truly is the scum of the earth, gaining your trust, then boom! He has stolen your valuables and flees without a trace, like a thief in the night! But, Karma’s a bitch! Ship of Illusion – A woman who screws with the minds of many men! A man falls in love with a woman, but unbeknownst to him, she is a sociopath who pulls him deep into her spell of believing he is the only one she could ever love. Then all of a sudden, for no reason, she tells him to stay away from her. This maelstrom continues for quite some time, but then he finally sees that it was all an illusion. She has fooled him like many others before, but he now realizes she was so full of lies and deceit, so he lets her go, forever. What has it been like to release new music right in the middle of a pandemic and so much social unrest in the world? It seems to me that it is a good thing that new music is being released in this difficult time. It makes me smile to know that our music is getting airplay and getting great reviews from all around the world. People need a way to relax and get away from the bad things going right now. Listening to music is all that we can do until we are all able to perform again! What was Dave Lee like and how difficult was it to continue on with the band after his passing? Dave Lee, the Tasmanian Devil, was the driving force and led Byfist from the beginning. I have so many good memories of Dave! He had such an intense love for our music and wanted everyone to hear it. He loved to perform on stage. He was also a very good friend to me and was my older brother in metal. He was such a great story teller, so funny, and I learned so much from him. I really miss my friend, and it is still very hard to play without him. However, to add to the pain is the loss of two other Byfist family members. Quick history: as early as 2009, our old vocalist Vikk Real did a show with us which started conversations of his rejoining Byfist with his wife Jeska’s encouragement. We knew her for years and she was a really great friend. Conversations increased in mid2010 and we were making plans to welcome him back into the band when tragically, Jeska passed away from a motorcycle accident. To honor her wish, Vikk did rejoin Byfist and we did a few benefit shows for Jeska. Then, a little over 2 months later, Dave suddenly passed away. We just lost Jeska, now we lost Dave! This was tragic and very heartbreaking for us. After Dave passed away, Vikk and I enlisted help from several friends to honor upcoming shows and did a couple more benefit shows for Jeska and the Lee Family. Vikk and I leaned on each other for a few months, then finally decided to start writing again. Sadly, almost a year after Jeska’s death, we got the heartbreaking news that Vikk was also in a tragic accident and passed away. After losing so many people I loved, I took some time to grieve and reflect on things. In October 2012, I decided to form Byfist again to honor Dave, Vikk, Jeska and David Wayne. So with help from a previous drummer and bassist and new lead guitarist Ernie B., things started looking up. Vocalist Raul “Diablo” Garcia joined in March 2013, bassist, Stony Grantham in January 2016, and then drummer, Scott Palmer in August 2016. These guys are great, and I feel that if Dave, Vikk, Jeska, and David Wayne could speak to us, they’d be proud and honored to call them family. HIGHWIRE DAZE
November/December 2020
What was it like working with David Wayne of Metal Church on your EP Adrenalin? It was great! We actually met David Wayne sometime in late 1988 or early 1989 and we became good friends. D.W. visited with us a few times and would hang out at our rehearsals and stay at Dave Lee’s home. One day, D.W. told us that we needed to pack up and go to the city of Angels and record @ Joe Floyd’s Silvercloud studio in Burbank. So, in August ’89, that’s what we did. We learned a lot and had a great time recording the Adrenaline EP there. It was our first trip to the west coast and we enjoyed it very much. We also met a couple of guys from Fates Warning at the studio and they participated in some gang vocals along with D.W. doing some backing vocals as well. It was a lot of hard work, but it was a great experience. What was it like opening for the legendary Michael Schenker and did you get to meet or hang out with him or any of the band members at all? The first time Byfist opened for Michael Schenker was in January 1988. He is one of my guitar heroes! And to be able to say that it was the first time that Byfist was to open for an international act was incredible. He was kind of a quiet guy but he was so cool with us. To get to see and speak with him was such a great experience! We were able to open for him again in March 2018, wow, 30 years later! But this time we couldn’t get near him or any of his musicians as we had to leave the stage as soon as we were finished with our set. And I must ask the same question regarding Yngwie Malmsteen. What was opening for Yngwie like and did you get to meet him? We got to see the sound check for Yngwie but from a distance. No one was allowed to get closer than 50 feet or so. It was cool to open for another guitar virtuoso but we didn’t get to meet him. And again the venue did not let us up on stage until it was time to perform then leave as soon as we finished our set. Regardless, it was another great experience that we don’t take for granted. And I thought I had a lot of Marshalls! But man, Yngwie’s backline was incredible! Any final words of wisdom? Never stop chasing your dreams, and surround yourself with people who love, support, and encourage you. I had so many obstacles, so many reasons to quit, yet I didn’t. I’m just so happy and grateful to be able to fulfill one of Dave Lee’s goals for Byfist; to release a full length album with worldwide distribution. It’s taken a long time, but who am I to question why? In the words of Ringo & Ozzy: Peace, love, and God bless!
www.byfist.com
Highwire Daze Magazine presents The Friday Night BANG YOUR HEAD Extravaganza 6:00 PM - 12 Midnight (pacific Time) Every Friday Night at Highwire Daze Radio on Live 365 www.highwiredazeradio.net 49
Some Cynical Love with
Interview by Ken Morton Photo by Jamie Kaufman
CONNR is the new solo project of Connor Daniel Weinstein, best known for his pop punk band Next Door To The Moon. On the indie electronic side of the spectrum, CONNR has unveiled his debut single Cynical Love. Produced by Will Pugh from Cartel, Cynical Love is an exciting commencement from a project we will hear a lot more from in 2021 and beyond. Highwire Daze recently caught up with CONNR to find out more about Cynical Love, his very own 137 Productions LLC, working with the one and only Will Pugh, and more!
CONNR
How did your solo project come about and how does the music differ from Next Door To The Moon? I started working on my own music sort of around the same time NDTTM began its hiatus a couple years ago. The origin of the project was an experiment to fuse genres I wasn’t that used to working on; coming from a background of using mostly traditional “rock” style instruments (guitar, bass, drums etc.) to produce out a song, it was really fun to come up with the parts in a more hip hop style fashion, building the songs around more electronic elements such as bass synths and dance style drums. As for the name, I just dropped the second “O” from my name and made it all caps - keeping it simple! CONNR. Tell me about the new song Cynical Love and what inspired the lyrics? Cynical Love was actually written in what was sort of in the last phase of NDTTM; I was anticipating some kind of stylistic change whether that was for the band or a new project and obviously, it wound up being a part of my batch of solo tunes, post-band. Musically, the song is pretty electronic based (heavy drums, bass synth and pad) but layered with guitars and melodic vocals. Lyrically, the song is a glimpse into a toxic relationship I was in - to me, the lyrics are a bit darker themed, which I thought was an interesting contrast to the happier, power pop style musical canvas. What did Will Pugh from Cartel contribute to the overall making of Cynical Love and what was it like working with him? Will has always been a killer producer and engineer, from the Next Door to the Moon stuff through to this solo material, his ability to work with a multitude of styles and bring ideas to life is beyond expectations. Production wise, Cynical Love actually started from a session at my home studio, 137 Productions LLC, and then brought it to him for a more objec50
tive point of view seen to completion. He added lots of great production elements and mixed it down phenomenally well in my opinion. How close are you to writing and recording another solo single or maybe even an EP? I’m always writing and producing music, but the answer is a bit complex; I actually have a multitude of projects I’m currently working on, from all of my production clients and a brand new band (official launch tbd) in addition to my solo material. In other words, there’s no shortage of content being curated on my end, but I would say for the solo material specifically, singles dropping every so often is more likely than a full EP at the moment. The new band I have in the works will likely be my main creative focus beginning this coming year, with solo singles dropping intermittently during down time or if a cool collaboration arises. I’m open to many possibilities as long as it means more music getting out there. November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
Will there be any more Next Door To The Moon songs or is that chapter of your career over? The band and the experiences we had were some of the highlights of my life; we had so much fun virtually every time we worked on music together or just hung out. At this time, all of us are focused on different things. We’re all still really great friends and communicate on a regular basis but I don’t foresee anything happening between us musically in the very near future. Did anyone from The 1975 ever hear or comment on your cover of Girls? And the same questions regarding your cover of Year 3000 by Busted and the Jonas Brothers. I don’t believe any of those bands heard our covers, but I will say we still continue to receive messages and what not for our other 1975 cover which was of their song, “UGH!” We actually had a few people become fans of The 1975 (and us) after hearing that cover which is pretty cool in my opinion. They remain one of my biggest musical influences; I actually released a solo cover of, “Me & You Together Song” which is up on my CONNR YouTube channel - shameless plug! What was the experience like for Next Door To The Moon to open for Eve 6, and did you get to meet or hang out with them at all? That was actually one of our first gigs ever and it was really fun. All the band members of Eve 6 were super cool to us and it was just rad to hang out with a band I grew up listening to. As a side note, the singer (Max Collins) is in a new band called Fitness who has some great tunes.
oriented and work with every artist to ensure that every song or project meets or exceeds their expectations. I offer suggestions and changes when necessary but I always make sure that it fits the artist’s vision. I look at it like, “If I was recording with someone, how would I want my experience to be?” I never shortcut anything and always give all of my artists my most up to date production protocol and the highest quality recordings available. What do you hope 2021 has in store for you and your various projects? I hope 2021 brings me and my projects, in the words of Borat, “Great success!” Any final words of wisdom? Final words of wisdom… This won’t be pertaining to music - but… Science and evidence based research tends to be our greatest asset in terms of expanding our knowledge and deciding what or what not to accept as the truth. I advise anyone to always look for a scientific and/or data driven explanation when attempting to answer many of life’s questions. With that said, thank you for taking the time to interview me!
Tell me about 137 Productions and how did that come about? 137 Productions LLC is my music production business that I started in 2018. I was already doing some producing and session work for other artists prior to this and the demand became significant enough to formally launch my services as a legit business. I’ve been booked with projects ever since launching and I feel really lucky to be making a living doing what I love; making music. Who are the bands you have worked with at 137 Productions so far and how has your own experience transferred over to working with others in that capacity? I work with a multitude of LA area bands of multiple genres including Danger Escape, The Everythings and American Sweetgum amongst many many others. Outside of the LA scene, I produce a number of Santa Barbara based artists including Jack McCain and Sofia Schuster, the latter of which was on American Idol. A highlight for me has been producing my sister’s project, THE ANTIPOP MVMT - she’s an amazing songwriter so it’s really fun to team up to make music. I really treat each and every project with the attention as if it was my own. I’m really detail HIGHWIRE DAZE
November/December 2020
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ALLWAYS FORWARD with
Interview by Ken Morton Photo by Daniel Cueva of 36D Photography
Based out of the legendary Los Angeles music scene, ÆNLY is destined to make an impact with their super intensive metal entreaties. Up In Smoke is the name of ÆNLY’s brand new song, a follow up to their recently issued Allways Forward EP manifesto. Until they can spread the word of ÆNLY via live shows, the band will remain active writing and releasing new music. Highwire Daze recently caught up with the ÆNLY brigade to find out a whole lot more about a band more than ready to strike above and beyond the City Of Angels... Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Ænly, and how long the band has been together. Riggs - guitar, Art - guitar, Manny - bass, Andrew - vocals. Riggs: This part is a little complicated.. I started writing/ developing ÆNLY by myself Sept. 9th 2018. Art introduced me to Andrew January 2019, recruited Manny about 3-4 months after Drew, and Art got solidified January 2020. Mind you though, Art was briefly in it and is also featured as backing vocals on our first song Ignorance, but had obligations with another band that he, Manny, and myself were in at that moment. But I definitely secured him back once that band took a hiatus! What do you think of our local Los Angeles music scene, and how does Ænly fit into the scheme of things? Art: Los Angeles music scene pre-Covid was very vibrant and eclectic. You can pretty much catch any style of music you wanna listen to any night of the week. We are a Progressive metal band with a metalcore vibe. There is a big scene for that music. Radio in LA doesn’t reflect the metal scene out here. So metal fans have to depend on the local shows or bands like us on releasing content. We have yet to play a live show, but we will be ready to break out onto the live scene when the shutdowns are over. How has the worldwide pandemic affected the band and any live shows and recordings? Riggs: Of course the pandemic has hindered live shows for sure, but as far as recording, we’re non stop and have been getting down ideas/full songs for possibly another E.P or Album! Tell me about your new song Up In Smoke and what inspired the lyrics. Andrew: Up In Smoke was a heavy hitter that came out of 52
ÆNLY
a bad time. The lyrics were inspired by the chaos that was going on in our personal lives as well as what is going on in the world today. Tell me about the song LAPD and what inspired the lyrics Andrew: L.A.P.D. (Let All Past Die) came from when I was going through some personal struggles, and I had realized that the only way to get me out was to teach myself how to let go. Your previous EP Allways Forwards was released late last year. Is there any overall story or concept behind that title? Andrew: To me, Allways Forward means to believe in yourself and to never give up. When I joined this band, it was easy for me to adopt that mentality. The time I joined really helped me grow as a person and I have continued to grow throughout our progress. And I have the band to thank for that. Riggs: It’s something I’ve always said since the day I got sober, kind of like a daily affirmation to always keep moving forward with progress. Any and all ways forward, no matter what, keep striving to achieve your goals, let go of everything that ties you down! What could one expect from a live Ænly show? Manny: You could expect intense, high energy shows. We have extreme passion for what we do. Our sound is unique and in your face that is sure to resonate with our fans. Art: I know when we play a live show we’re usually in pain the next day. Each one of us puts everything we got into performing. We have strong music and we have to have a show to match that intensity. We want people walking away from our performance with something, We want people waking up November/December 2020
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the next morning aching too, thinking to themselves, “Man that Ænly Show was intense!” Ænly could open for any band either now or from the past, who would it be and why? Riggs: For me personally, I’d LOVE to open for Meshuggah! They’ve been a major influence on me since I was 14 and really made me think “outside the box”. Their music made perfect sense to me as soon I heard them. Andrew: For me personally, one of the bands I would most like to open up for is Parkway Drive. They’re the first band I got really into when i was growing up and Winston McCall was the first screamer I tried to emulate. Manny: I’ve always thought it would be sick to open for Animals As Leaders, Lamb Of God, Korn, Deftones and Slipknot. These are a few bands that have influenced me though my musical journey and it would be an honor to be able to share the stage with them one day. Art: Would love to open for I Prevail, Beartooth or Architects. I believe we would be a great fit for touring or opening for them. Those are the three top bands on my playlist. Riggs, is your band Revolution Underground still going and if so, what are you and the band up to? If the band is not going, what do you think of your work in that band in retrospect? Riggs: It’s kind of on a hiatus since the singer moved to Texas and the drummer works in Iowa . Art originally asked if I wanted to try out for the band early 2019 while I was still working on the beginning stage of ÆNLY. It was definitely great to jam and have a good time! Made some good friends and was able to recruit an incredible bassist for ÆNLY through it! It was a different style than what I was used to, but nonetheless it was a great experience. Who knows what the future holds for R.U, but whatever it may be I’ll be definitely down for it!
we’ll be gearing towards shows as well! Art: Yeah we’re hoping on the state opening up next year for venues. We’ve been itching to play live, just like the rest of the musicians in the state or around the country. I think our live performance will definitely be something that people will never forget from us. Any final words of wisdom? Riggs: Always keep pushing yourself beyond your limits! Never stop progressing in any and all things you do! Basically, any and all ways forward!
http://www.aenly.com/
HIGHWIRE DAZE MAGAZINE presents METALCORE MADNESS at HIGHWIRE DAZE RADIO on LIVE 365 Monday - Friday 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM PT www.highwiredazeradio.net
For the other members of ÆNLY, what previous bands have you been in and what do you think of your work in those bands in retrospect? Manny: I’ve only been in a few bands with Revolution Underground being the last band I was in before ÆNLY. Though the sound is completely different compared to what we’re doing now all the work I put into RU will always hold a special place in my heart. We”ve played countless amounts of shows, met so many amazing people and I feel like that whole journey has prepared me for what’s to come with ÆNLY. Art: I was in the band 7 Days Away. We did fairly well and released an EP when I was a part of that band. I was also in Fate Destroyed for a moment and played a couple live shows. The band we all have in common is RU. That’s when we knew Manny, Riggs and I had Chemistry in a group together. We’ve always been more into heavy music. So it was just right that we would be in a metal band together. Fun Fact! Manny and I were in our first real band together at the age of 15. So far Manny and I have been in 3 bands together. What’s up in the New Year for Ænly? Riggs: Definitely a lot more music! We’re working real hard to reach new levels within ourselves, so expect to hear some greatness coming through! And also, if things start to clear up, HIGHWIRE DAZE
November/December 2020
53
Heavy Metal Rage with
Dead By Wednesday
Interview by Ken Morton Photo by Anthony Frisketti
Dead By Wednesday has unleashed their latest single titled S.O.S. and it’s definitely the metal anthem for our times! Produced and mastered by Nick Bellmore (Dee Snider, Jasta) at Dexter’s Lab Studios in Milford, CT. S.O.S. is the first recording to feature their new vocalist Steve Alvarez. The long running band has played both Mayhem Fest and the Vans Warped Tour, and plan to devastate stages all over the world when the pandemic comes to an end. Highwire Daze recently reached out to founding member Opus to discuss the absolute heavy metal rage of the one and only Dead By Wednesday. Read on... Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Dead By Wednesday, and how long the band has been together. Hey, my name is Opus, I am the founding member and the drummer of Dead by Wednesday. We’ve been a band since 2006. Where is the band based out of and what it the local music scene like there? The band is based out of New Haven, Connecticut and the music scene around here is amazing! We have some of the biggest names in Metal that there is in the New England area like Hatebreed, Staind, Godsmack, Killswitch Engage, All That Remains, Shadows Fall, Fates Warning, Acacia Strain and so many more! For a while people wanted to move here to start bands… Give me a little background on your new singer Steve Alvarez and how he became involved with Dead By Wednesday. Well when it was apparent that Rob Roy was leaving due to a job opportunity that he couldn’t refuse being very fruitful, we were again at a loss. We started searching and from a good friend of mine suggestion named Gary Sandler who plays in the rock band here in CT called Soldiers Of Solace who has been working with me since the early days of my career helping with graphic arts and some video; he suggested a dude 54
who was the singer of the local CT band Condition Zero, I checked them out and scouted him and give him a call. Come to find out he was already a fan of the band and very interested so it all came together fairly quick and effortlessly. He’s a great all-around dude, talented, very hungry and serious about his work. Tell me about the new song S.O.S. and what inspired the lyrics. Well SOS started as just the chorus talking about the state of the world and our nation. Everyone is so divided and in chaos with the pandemic, politics, and everything else imaginable. We felt like the message needed to be heard through our music. Steve took the chorus and wrote the lyrics around that concept. Here’s a quote from Steve regarding the song...
“ With the current times, and the struggles as not only Americans, but as humans of this world, the message of “S.O.S.” encapsulates the general outcry for help from all people. With both money and media running the world, a message needed to be sent to the people that this is a turning point in our history.... and we are at ground zero!” Who produced the single and what was it like working with them? Our long time producer and friend Nicky Bellmore (who also played for and recorded Dee Snider’s new solo album, as well as worked with Jasta from Hatebreed, Toxic Holocaust to name a few). He’s amazing at recording and makes a good band sound great!! He’s done our last few releases and kicked ass on all of them. He’s experienced and knows what he’s doing and quick with his gear which makes the process enjoyable. He also has no problem telling you his opinion and when things are wrong or not to his liking either, which is what a good producer should do, be the extra ear. How close is Dead By Wednesday to recording a new EP or full length album? We have about a half a dozen new songs recorded... a couple November/December 2020
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mixed & done and a few more written and ready to go, so we are not too far off from having a brand new full length album done already. We should be all set some point in 2021 with everything. Ideas are always flowing! How has the worldwide pandemic affected your shows, touring and recording? Well it has sucked really bad for us! We had one of our busiest years that we’ve worked our asses off for up to this point all cancelled on us. Japan, Europe & our US tours all gone. I get it, but it just sucks when it is out of your control and when you work your entire life to get to this point and have never stopped but then get told that you have to stop working at your passion and be forced to cancel stuff. It’s frustrating when there’s nothing you can do about it because it’s not by choice. We’ve been utilizing our time off being creatively by recording and writing So that’s a positive! What was it like working with Jamey Jasta and Stillborn Records? Jasta has been a great friend and mentor since the inception of the band. I worked for him for a while selling his Hatewear gear at Mayhem Festival after he put out our very first debut album Democracy is Dead on his indie label Stillborn Records in 2006. He’s from our area and was hip to my former band Gargantua Soul who made big waves around here, so when I started DBW, he caught wind of us quick and working with us was a no brainer being that we were already drawing crowds and doing well. He knows the music biz well and has helped us quite a bit. Nothing but love and respect to that dude always! Plus Satisfaction Is The Death Of Desire is my fav hardcore album of all time too!’
What do you think has kept you so passionate about Dead By Wednesday and music for nearly 15 years and counting? What keeps me passionate about the band are the fans. Without people appreciating what we do and supporting us we probably wouldn’t do it. I always say it’s either in your blood or it’s not and that’s how I feel about playing music for a living. It’s not an easy road, but it’s something that either you want to do 100% or not. Shit or get off the pot as they say. There is not tomorrow and there is no in between for me. I live by the expression from Yoda of Star Wars, “Do or do not... there is no try!” And the words of Ozzy in “You Can’t Kill Rock-n-Roll” when I was a kid still rings true... “Cause rock-n-roll is my religion and my law!” What’s up in the New Year for Dead By Wednesday? A lot is happening for us in the New Year (or at least we hope if all goes well and cooperates), touring with Puya, Twiztid, maybe Europe, finish up new album, maybe another video shoot... etc etc Any final words of wisdom? Yes, We actually have a few shows booked in early December in the Midwest, one being a Toys For Tots Christmas Benefit that we’re hoping all stays on because we haven’t played a show since January due to the pandemic. So keep your eyes open for dates for that run, and come out safely of course if you can to check out the shows. For more information about the band you can check us out at these links…
www.deadbywednesday.com
You’ve also worked with Dave Ellefson of Megadeth and EMP Label Group. What has that experience been like? Well we still work with David and his partner Thöm not only with his label Combat Records/EMP Label Group but myself and our guitarist Dave Sharpe are both the US back up band for Ellefson’s solo project. We even wrote and recorded a couple of songs with and for him as well. We’ve toured together and still have a great working relationship. He is like I have a metal Uncle we’ve never had. Great all around dude, very honest and sincere about his music. Their label has been a great catalyst and stepping stone for us to propel into the national metal circuit and has also brought a stamp of legitimacy to our band as well. You recorded a cover of Van Halen’s Unchained. Has any member of Van Halen ever heard it and what does the music of Van Halen and Eddie Van Halen mean to you? Yes a year before Eddie Van Halen passed we recorded a cover of Van Halen song Unchained. We thought about doing it while on tour listening to Van Halen which we would often do being that we all love old-school Van Halen and think they are one of the best live rock bands of all time. We actually model ourselves after them and bands like Pantera being that we only have one guitar, one bass, drums and a vocalist and we do as much as we can with what we have being. That less is more sometimes. No one that I know of from Van Halen has heard it but it has gotten a lot of worldwide attention being that it has gotten played a lot on Sirius (Liquid Metal) on their Corridor of Covers show which also played it during a tribute to Eddie Van Halen after his passing. They’re an incredible band that deserves a lot of recognition for keeping rock music alive through out the years! HIGHWIRE DAZE
November/December 2020
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Sonic Outbreak with Letter Of Marque
Interview by Ken Morton
Letter of Marque is a dynamic metal band from Long Island ready to bust out of New York in an epic way - especially if their current album Outbreak is indicative of greater glories ahead. Intense and persuasive, Letter Of Marque issue a sonic missive sure to captivate all types of music fans looking to discover an amazing new talent. Highwire Daze recently caught up with Letter of Marque to find out more about this exhilarating band and their super intensive compositions. Read on...
Give us a little background on Letter of Marque... The band was formed by Matt (vocals), Vinny (rhythm guitar) and Jeff (lead guitar/ cello) in 2016. We were originally called Out In The Open and cycled through a few names before landing on Letter of Marque. Griffin (drums) joined the band in early 2017. Derek (bass) joined the band in July 2019. Where is the band based out of and what is your local music scene like there? The band is based out of Long Island, NY. The metal scene here, we feel, grows smaller and smaller. It’s tough to watch local live original bands lose popularity, especially in the metal world. However, we’ve been fortunate enough to play dozens of shows on the island! What was the inspiration for the song and new video White Lie? White Lie was written to spread awareness for drug abuse, more specifically heroin use on Long Island. This issue has affected some of us personally in a variety of ways. One bad decision can often last for generations. Who directed the White Lie video and what was it like working with them? The brilliant Tom Flynn directed the film. The process could not have been any easier with him. It was as if he knew what we wanted before even knowing us. Of course White Lie is from your recent album Outbreak. Select two other songs from Outbreak and what inspired the lyrics. Outbreak was originally written with the “virus” being our album and our music. The idea we had was that our album would spread just like an outbreak. The lyrics on the song Outbreak describe this theme. Another song with an interesting lyrical theme is Vulture. The song is literally about a Vulture eating someones face off. We have a music video for this song as well, go check it out! Who produced Outbreak and what was it like working with them? We tracked Outbreak at Westfall Recording Company in Farmingdale, NY. Anthony Lopardo and Ray Marte were the 56
two engineers on the record. The process was super relaxed, easy going, and fun! Who did the cover art for Outbreak and how much input did you have on it? Yuri Chuchmay did all the artwork for our album cover as well as all our single art. We described to him what we wanted and he drew it up just the way we had it in our head. Each song on the album has a spot on the album cover. Can you find all 10? How has the pandemic affected the band? Have you had any shows or tours cancelled because of it? We had a few shows cancelled due to the pandemic and all of our show plans for the remainder of this year were cancelled as well. Being stuck just writing has really made the process move more efficiently. What was the experience like opening for Belphegor and Suffocation? Did you get to meet or hang out with them at all? That was one of our best shows. Unfortunately, the guys in Belphegor and Suffocation kept to themselves. We exchanged nods with some of the guys, nothing crazy. If Letter of Marque could open for any band either now or from the past, who would it be and why? Avenged Sevenfold. We’d do so great on a tour with them. We’ve got a very similar audience to them. What do you hope 2021 brings for Letter of Marque? Growth, prosperity and opportunity, to put it simply. Any final words of wisdom? It’s cringey but it’s true. DO NOT STOP AND DO NOT QUIT ON WHAT YOU LOVE.
www.letterofmarqueband.com November/December 2020
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Into The Ultrasonic Gap with
Leslie Mandoki and Mandoki Soulmates
Interview by Jupiter Lee Hungarian – born musician and songwriter LESLIE MANDOKI and his band MANDOKI SOULMATES have just released their double album ‘LIVING IN THE GAP‘ + ‘HUNGARIAN PICTURES‘ - A Progressive Rock Suite on Cleopatra Records. It features an absolutely amazing all-star lineup including Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull, Bobby Kimball of Toto, David Clayton-Thomas of Blood, Sweat and Tears and more! I recently caught up with the one and only LESLIE MANDOKI for this interview. Enjoy! Congratulations on your new album!! Can you tell us about your musical influences growing up? Actually, I grew up with very unusual musical influences. On the one hand, one of my musical idols was Bela Bartok, on the other hand John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis and later on great British progressive rock bands like Jethro Tull, King Crimson, or Cream, also the back to the future movement with Miles Davis and Return To Forever, with Mahavishnu Orchestra, Brecker Brothers, Steps Ahead, Weather Report. Much later I was touched by the incredible songwriter talents of the Beatles. A true and strong influence was the Hungarian band Syrius. They became famous in 1972 in Australia, when I was a teenager. They published only one record: “Devil’s Masquerade”, then came back home to Hungary and the communists destroyed the band. They were kind of my musical guidance because I used to open the show at their concerts in the clubs with the oppositional student movement as their audience, so I somehow became the voice of the anticommunist student movement with our jazz rock. It was Mikhail Sergejevitch 58
Gorbachev who later explained to me that the communist regime tried to kill prog rock and jazz rock because it was the soundtrack of freedom for the students opposition. Who are the current band members now? Our unique line-up includes Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull, Richard Bona (bass), Cory Henry (keyboards), Al di Meola and Mike Stern (guitar), Randy Brecker (trumpet), Till Brönner (trumpet), John Helliwell of Supertramp (saxophone, clarinet), Klaus Doldinger (saxophone), Bill Evans (saxophone), Nick van Eede of Cutting Crew (vocals and acoustic guitar), Jesse Siebenberg of Supertramp (keyboard, acoustic guitar, vocals), Tony Carey of Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow (Hammond, acoustic guitar and vocals), Chris Thompson of Manfred Mann’s Earth Band (vocals), Bobby Kimball of Toto (vocals), Chaka Khan (vocals), Mike Stern, David Clayton-Thomas of Blood, Sweat and Tears, Steve Lukather, Anthony Jackson, Peter Maffay. Unfortunately, we lost some Soulmates, dear friends like legendary Jack Bruce of Cream, Greg Lake of Emerson, Lake and Palmer, and Jon Lord of Deep Purple, and we truly miss them. How did you come to have so many special guest artists? They are not special guests, they are rather band members. On his deathbed, my father told me that his grandchildren should never read censored papers. I was 16 years old back then and I said, but Dad, we are living behind the Iron Curtain, and he answered, “Boy, that’s not for you. Go, don’t dream your life, live your dreams!” and that’s what I am doing. I escaped from Hungary, and came to a reception center as an asylum seeker. The migration officer asked my November/December 2020
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dear friend Gabor Csupo, who had escaped together with me, and me about our plans in the free West. Gabor answered, he would like go to Hollywood and make his way as a cartoonist (his first moves were then to be the Simpsons and the Rugrats). I answered, I would like to play with Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull, and Jack Bruce of Cream, and Al di Meola. That was back in 1975. That was my dream and I made it come true. Our group shares true friendship and mutual values. Therefore, Al di Meola came up with the idea to name the band ‘Soulmates’. So, that’s how it started and we’ve been playing together for almost three decades now, and we are always having an incredibly joyful time, cooking together, spending time together in the studio and here in my home by the lake nearby Munich. It’s simply wonderful, also the concerts, sharing this enigmatic atmosphere on stage, but also the whiskey and the stories in the dressing room backstage. What kind of drums, percussion gear are you using? I use different kinds of sets, for the album recording mostly DW from 1978, a big set. And I have a smaller set, a combination of Gretsch and Noble and Cooley, that’s my special touring set, including some percussion stuff, a special build up which I love to play. I have a huge selection of cymbals in my studio and I can fill up my drum set with some extra vintage drum and percussion kits. But these are the main instruments I use. Which instrument do you find is the most satisfying to write with? Writing is basically driven by intuition and the most important human features – your mind, your heart and your feelings. Instruments, guitar and piano, are rather helping to control that your mindset gave you the right direction. To put it in shape and for doctoring around, it’s rather the piano than the guitar, but sometimes it’s also the guitar, it largely depends on the song itself. But basically it’s rather my life that makes up the songs, I am just writing them down. I am watching life around me, enjoying it, and my hands are simply taking this all down on music paper. How do you all approach a new Mandoki Soulmates song? I am not really approaching a song, life is giving it to me, it just comes to me. Let’s call it professional work start to figure out who is going to sing what and who is going to play which part and choosing the right key that we have for the different singers and their vocal capacities. Jack Bruce once compared me to Duke Ellington because of my skill to know exactly who is going to be playing what while writing the music. It’ s fun. But I am not really approaching the songs, rather the right inspiration, intuition combined with vivid imagination and focus are doing the job. As for the others, well, let me quote Ian Anderson, who said “He’s the master-chef in the kitchen, the mastermind. We just turn up for work.” Where are you looking forward most to start touring? Well, I’d love to get back on stage again with the gang, the sooner the better. Here you can see some of them on our last shows before we had to stop planning to tour Germany and the US again on account of the pandemic. Mandoki Soulmates – Album & Concerts Trailer 2020: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAxYn-icudM&feature=youtu.be HIGHWIRE DAZE
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Do you have a favourite song or album? Favorite song, quite honestly, this is the best record we have ever made and I have been producing my life away and recorded so many albums for so many great artists, I would say I wrote down the collection of my favorite tunes in my life on this double album, this is just the best. And everything is new and fresh, therefore this double album is my favorite. It is also an artistic legacy. Are there plans to tour the USA in 2021? Of course, we are going to tour, hopefully end of 2021, spring 2022 at the latest, but at the moment we are just trying to fix dates for the end of 2021. What can fans expect at a live show? Well, our live show is literally the longest show I have ever seen, we play all our classics, and those of our legendary band members. There are different generations on stage, each of them full of energy, fantastic soloists, wonderful songs, very clear and precise arrangements, joyful fun, that’s what you can expect. Thank you so much for the interview, Leslie! All the best. www.facebook.com/mandoki.soulmates 59
A Journey to LASTWORLD
Inteview by Ken Morton
Perris Records is always the best source for melodic hard rock, and with the unveiling of Over The Edge by LastWorld, the label has once again presented an incredible album for the ages. The mastermind behind LastWorld is Jim Shepard, who along with co-conspirator David Cagle has presented a rocking collection of epically memorable tunes. Highwire Daze recently interviewed Jim Shepard to take a journey into the vibrantly auditory realm of LastWorld. Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in LASTWORLD, and how long the band has been together. Jim Shepard, I play all the instruments and write the songs and we’re going on our 2nd year. Where is the band based out of and what is your local music scene like there? I live in the Chicagoland area and David lives in Alabama... as everywhere the local music scene has a wide menu to chose from. My immediate area is more about cover bands.... around Chicago and the suburbs there is good support for the original bands How did you wind up signing with Perris Records? There was a few things I wasn’t completely happy with going on with our previous label.... so I sent Perris Records a few tunes to see if they were interested and well, here were are. Is there any overall story or concept behind the Over The Edge album title? Well it’s the title track and it’s about how one person sees things inside a relationship while the other person can’t get over their past and just uses to get what they want and then hits the road. Select any other from Over The Edge and what inspired the lyrics? Well I mentioned the title track already so the other would be Judgment Day, that song is about the darker side of life of a stalker... the ones that say, “if I can’t have you, no one will...” Who did the cover art for Over The Edge and how much input did you have on it? Nello Dell’omo, he came up with the cover concept and David and I made some suggestions for changes, mainly the color. Nello had it blue and we wanted it more red, it looked good blue but past albums that David and I were involved in were based in blue including our debut album TIME. What was it like working with JK Northrup and what did he contribute to the making of Over The Edge? Well, JK mastered my solo album JADED and also recorded an album with Cagle, plus he mastered our debut album too, so why change perfection... JK allowed me to bother him with questions when it came to mixing our debut and his suggestions carried over when it came to mixing Over The Edge.... Side note, I was a fan of JK’s for quite awhile so when his name came up for mastering, well it was an honor to have him involved. 60
How did the partnership with David Cagle for LASTWORLD come about? His name came up when I was getting ready to release my solo album, I used 3 singers for that album and the boss at my former label mentioned David. I wasn’t going to re-record my solo album so I made a deal that if it did well enough where they’d want another album.... I would move forward with David. It seemed to go well and the rest lead me here talking to you. How does Over The Edge compare to the previous album Time? It’s basically just a continuation of songs I write that David helps bring to life... it’s hard for me to compare as I love both albums. What has it been like to release new music right in the middle of a pandemic and so much social unrest in the world? I don’t think it affected the way the album has performed.... people have been buying the album and being on Perris Records now has opened the door to many more people who are now discovering us.... The previous label kind of unlocked the door where Perris has now kicked the door down. November/December 2020
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Has LASTWORLD ever played live or plan to do so once this pandemic come to an end? If the right opportunities come up, I could absolutely see LW doing some live shows.... but they would have to be the RIGHT opportunities. If LASTWORLD could open up for any band either now or from the past, who would it be and why? Triumph, one of the greatest bands ever and Rik Emmett was a big influence in my Guitar playing and songwriting. Are you involved with any other bands or projects outside of LASTWORLD? I have a few solo albums, a band I had Taxi who did a couple albums and was once being looked at by Atlantic and Geffen Records. And David does many things, you can find his music page on Facebook - it’ll have all his projects.... my fave from David outside LW is the album he did with JK, This Is Gonna Leave A Mark. What’s up next for LASTWORLD? LW started as a project, it seemed to go well so we did this new album... I have 8 new songs written and the music recorded with #9 almost done writing.... so if Over The Edge does well and Perris wants another... I can see LastWorld continuing to make records.... Any final words of wisdom? No words of wisdom.... I love making music and I’m happy and grateful people are digging it.... www.facebook.com/LastWorldMusic
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November/December 2020
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Rocking Out in a
Slow Burning Car
Interview by Ken Morton
Slow Burning Car presents true diversity in rock, and their brand new album Projection is sure to captivate all types of music fans looking for a high speed adventure in sound. Founding member Troy Spiropoulos has worked with the likes of Tracii Guns from L.A. Guns and Jesse Damon of Silent Rage. And with the superb lineup found within the ranks of Slow Burning Car 2020, Troy and Company unleash absolutely combustible soundscapes that will set the imagination in flight. Highwire Daze recently interviewed Troy about rocking way out within the realm of a Slow Buening Car. Read on... Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Slow Burning Car, and how long the band has been together. I am Troy Spiropoulos, bassist/ vocalist/songwriter/founder of hard rock band Slow Burning Car. In various incarnations this project has been active in recording and performing for 15 years. Where is the band based out of and what is your local music scene like there? We are based out of Los Angeles, CA and have seen the scene mutate into various subgenres of rock over the last fifteen years, At this time due to Covid few bands have been finding the opportunity to perform live so it has been rather dormant. Before we start talking about the new album, let’s ask a few questions from the past since it’s the Highwire Daze 30th Anniversary Issue. Tell me about your first band Lighter Fluid which Highwire Daze covered way back in the day. Do you still keep in touch with any of the members? Lighter Fluid was founded by the Ferrigno brothers (John and Paul) and their friend Joe DiPino here in Los Angeles when the three friends relocated here from New Haven, CT. I still touch base with them via Facebook/Messenger. I believe you wrote up another band of mine The Quick & The Dead which I did with Mike Zimmerman and Bryan Gage. I am still in touch with them as well. 62
You’ve worked with Jesse Damon of Silent Rage, who Highwire Daze has covered a few times. What was that experience like and how did it come about? Jesse is a fantastic guy, musician, and songwriter! I met him almost 20 years ago in a post office in Redondo Beach, CA of all places…I think his Kiss T-shirt was our conversation starter. On the first Slow Burning Car album Blowback in 2007, you had Tracii Guns from L.A. Guns involved as an honorary member of your band. How did that come about and what was it like working with him? He was rehearsing with his version of L.A. Guns at Nightingale Studios in Burbank, CA, next door to the live room where I was recording. I would poke my head in on occasion to hear them rehearse and we got acquainted…I finally struck up the nerve to ask him to record a lead on the song “King Con” from our debut album Blowback. He came in for 10 minutes and knocked out a terrific solo on the spot. Being a huge L.A. Guns fan growing up you can imagine what a thrill this was for me. Since Slow Burning Car is truly a collaborative effort, introduce us to the rest of the current band members and what are their backgrounds. November/December 2020
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Adam Idell drummed on the last two albums Defection and our latest Projection… he is on hiatus from performing however due to Covid so we are playing with a terrific guy named Zak St.John (who also tracked drums on the song “Public Cynic” from Projection). Tommy Marcel is our rhythm and lead guitarist while Aaron Kusterer is our lead and rhythm guitarist! Rounding out the sound is our sister Krista Turkolou Ray on background and occasionally lead vocal. I handle lead vocals and bass (backing vocals when Krista is on lead). Is there any overall story or concept behind the new album title Projection? No concept, just a fresh batch of tunes. Ladish Man is such a rocking song! Tell me about that song and what inspired the lyrics. The main/chorus riff was an old riff I used to jam on with some old high school friends. I always wanted to turn it into something more…a song but never could really build anything around it. About 4-5 years ago I revisited the riff and added a musical bridge to it that I liked but it still wasn’t ripe yet…so it went on the backburner. Until last year when I came up with a verse portion that I stuck in and it worked musically. As far as the lyrics go I came up with the title which was inspired by a dream I had (as pretentious as that sounds). Krista had a few vocal lines that we started with and then I built out the lyrical concept around that.
Performing Arts Center. We played well to a few hundred people who really enjoyed it and supported us in buying much more merchandise than we are accustomed to selling. We will be doing it again, November 21st at The Montclair Canyon Club in Montclair, CA with Lose Your Illusion (a GNR tribute band). We weren’t nervous just very excited to be given an opportunity to continue doing what we love when many bands can’t right now. What’s up in the New Year for Slow Burning Car? The formal release of Projection on January 21st, 2021 to all digital and retail outlets, a formal CD release show where we can specifically perform all the songs from it, and hopefully some international dates in the UK. Any final words of wisdom? Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life! Much like our good friend Ken Morton who for thirty years has brought us the best in rock by keeping his ear to the ground and discovering/sharing talent he has discovered. To another thirty my friend and thanks for keeping tabs on Slow Burning Car throughout the years…and the other projects I have been involved with which you have supported.
www.facebook.com/SlowBurningCar
Tell me about the single Public Cynic and what inspired the lyrics. Public Cynic is a dissent on current social norms created by the Covid crisis (?) and a defiant response to the weaponization of this crisis by politicians and globalists. Select any other Slow Burning Car song on the new album and what inspired the lyrics. Funnybone is an ode to the Joker (DC Comics)…and an old neighbor I had in my apartment complex in Redondo Beach, CA 15 years ago. Memoirs Of A Gentleman Ghost is a fictional account of a British Noble and his family murdered on his American plantation in the 19th century. The Quantum Mariner, again a fictional character that can travel through space and time. Another great song is Diamond In The Rough written and arranged by Krista about a former love interest. What has it been like to record and release new music in the middle of a worldwide pandemic and so much social unrest in the world? Public Cynic is my only commentary on that lyrically… otherwise it was no different from recording/writing any other time…more Lysol and masks in the studio, but aside from that… What could one expect from a live Slow Burning Car show? High energy, intense musicianship, precise execution. You’ve actually been playing shows during the pandemic. How have they been going and were you nervous about performing at all? Our last show was part of a Cars In Concerts series in Oxnard, CA outside in the parking lot of the Oxnard HIGHWIRE DAZE
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We Are The Black Things Covid-19 Hollywood Blackout PART TWO Transcribed By JNR Highwire Daze Magazine drops by on a hot hot summer night down to the lockdown Hollywood Hard-Rock studio,Tone Raven Music to talk with the guitar player/singer, Tone Raven of the Hollywood Hard- Rock outfit,We Are The Black Things. Once upon this dreary August night in the land of 2020. Live as the sun is setting into twilight, Ken Morton of Highwire Daze Magazine talks live with Tone Raven at his studio in Hollywood California. Upon this dreary August night hangs the American flag behind Tone Raven.We Are The Black Things banner adorns the hall with bats hangin’and red white and blue all the way. Tone Raven is very proud and honored to be an American,and be in an American band,We Are The Black Things,which was established in 2018 at Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood California. Upon this music Tone Raven claims he stands by,an original guitar player/singer approach against the world interjected into his We Are The Black Things band,brand of sound. Tone Raven transplanted from Colorado to Hollywood California in the 90’s. It was Craig Goldy, guitar player from Dio that gave Tone a chance to move to Hollywood to pursue his music. Craig gave Tone his start allowing him to live at his place,and gave Tone guitar and recording lessons on how to create and record his own original music and release his own albums. Also Tone attributes working as guitar tech for Mr. Scary George Lynch of the hard-rock band Lynch Mob as a real eye opener.”Working with Mr. Scary was and honor to learn about his approaches to live and studio playing.Plus the soul of his playing has always been a reference for me in my bands.I’ve always learned so much from how George Lynch creates,” replies Tone! Once again here we are on this August dreary as the silence sweeps across the beginning of the interview in deep respect with Highwire Daze “Head”Ken Morton,as Tone Raven is excited to let out what’s going on with him As the interviews silence has lifted upon this dreary, as the night sets down. HM:What inspired you to form your own band We Are The Black Things? Tone Raven: What inspired me the most about forming We 64
Are The Black Things. It was the sense it was the band name of all band names. Uhh it’s sorta encompassing ,uhm just the overall truth of everything,of all the bands I’ve had in Hollywood. So I just put that into We Are The Black Things as this like revitalized package. Like when George left Dokken to Lynch Mob,that’s kinda what happened with Raven’s Cry to We Are The Black Things. It was a force that like got me outta bed and actually signed the contract with We Are The Black Things,n’ it was like a tide. It took me over.And then the band name was formed that day. HM: Nice,and where are you originally from Tone Raven? Tone Raven: I’m from Colorado, grew up in Colorado,and seen a lot concerts,n’ it was one of those things where the guitar kept me outta the cold. N’ ahh here I am navigated West thanks to Mr.Craig Goldy from Dio. HM; Nice,Nice! Now is your band name We Are The Black Things, dark enough in these crazy times? Tone Raven; Uhm,what’s wonderful about We Are The Black Things is it absolutely reflects everything that’s going on currently,as far as the movement of the understanding, that everything that’s encompassed in everything going on.So there’s this place at working at understanding all these undefinable, indefinable mysteries that are going on in this day and age. Definitely the resetting of the system,the economy. Where people are going to be able to get their next dollar,pay for anything,and keep their independence. And to keep their ability to have freedom of speech,and to get along as a whole,our system,predecessors,and to keep our history is the most important right now. We Are The Black Things is right in there,and the band started March.08.2018,I formed it November/December 2020
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in West Hollywood at Whisky A Go Go! It was the contract for the first night,uhm and the first day that I signed.It’s very telling about what’s going on,we just have to discern all those things. HM: Ok, uhm well we’re talking about the modern day.What is your modern approach to guitar playing? Tone Raven: I would think it’s basically just staying inspired. So just work your rudiments,work your basic patterns,work your stuff, and then what you do in these current times feed of of them. So if you’re writing lyric,be in the moment,and he take all those wonderful nuggets that you’ve been given, and all those inspirations,just sorta spend time with em on your own. And then bring em out,n then capture them in the present definitely with a recording system. Kids you can get a garage days on a mac, for nothing,you can start. Start somewhere, uhm you have to exercise the moment,get em on tape so that you can build on em,because as fast as they come they go, that’s how I stay in the modern times,by chronicling those times. HM: Very good,very good. Now Tone in addition to yourself you’ve got other members in the band, they’re massively talented. Why don’t you tell me a little about these other members? Tone Raven: First and foremost the corner stone of We Are The Black Things, Mr. Frank Garrett on Bass,5-String, Bassist. One of the most fantastic people I could have come across, as far as building this band, because what Frank brought and continues to bring is solidarity, and he has a way musically uhm, lifting the music that you bring. The music that we’re playing, and that’s so wonderful without taking away so as you know he has the quality, and was able to bring his son in on drums, and he’s so gifted his son! Scott Garrett on Drums, basically the John Bonham of our times. Seriously if you ever listen to Scotti! What’s interesting about him it’s this gifted drum playing that’s like beyond. You know, it’s this sense that he’s achieving this stuff as he’s playing,n’ then we got Luthario Mitcho on Turntable. Just bond dedicated, and a Los Angeles Native. He brings the modern thing that we need encapsulating this essence of modern in rock, and brings it to the main stream. He has incredible chops,he has an incredible spirit for the band,and moves the band forward mightily. We couldn’t do it without Lutario Mitcho, and Mr.Rae Owl Starling on Keyboard basically, brought us from a 4 legged Table,to a 5 Pointed Star. It’s basically pretty self explanatory. Keyboards; it’s the thread within our music. It’s the sense of classic. And it keeps that music, lifts it up to the point of the astro plane,because what it is is harmonious. Because all these keys are true,and the way that he plays. He’s from Detroit Rae Owl, and it rounded it out fully musically. It just added that extra member,and what I’m doing is I’m singing and playing guitar. So just constructing all the lyrics and the riffs,and then getting it out in song form.
ing the Whisky, that you’re playing the Roxy, or that you’re up there, that you’re going to get discovered. You’re already discovered, you’ve already discovered you. I’ve discovered me, brother Ken, you’ve discovered you,and so keeping true to your discovery,and not letting somebody or some organization, or movement bring you down. Stay as true as you possibly can to the heart of the heart of your music,and just don’t compromise,ever! HM: Alright we are gonna conclude the interview on a very interesting note. What’s bringing you down lately Tone Raven? Tone Raven: I think what’s bringing me down so much currently is the fact that there this sense of emptiness with the future. We don’t know what it’s going to hold with regard to our privacy,our dreams, our ambitions. It almost feels like there’s this oppressive movement. The system if you will that is restricting the rights that we’ve been given within our constitution. I’m very proud to be an American. I’m proud to be in We Are The Black Things. I’m very proud to be alive,n’ not sick .I’m glad fellow brethren around me as well. I believe that it’s the hearts of my fellow Man, Woman that they are feeling down n’ out. That is what’s bothering me, because I’m doing everything that I can to not be. So that’s what’s been bringing me down to the depths. So that I can bring you up from the depths, and that’s what we are doing in We Are The Black Things.We are here with you,in the struggle, and that’s where we’re at. HM: And that’s spoken from the heart, just like the music from We Are The Black Things. It’s from the heart alright. Well thank you Tone Raven for the interview this is Ken Morton from Highwire Daze Magazine. Full “Live” Interview. We Are The Black Things 8/4/20 -”Covid-19 Hollywood Blackout http://www.youtube.com/toneraventunes
WE ARE THE BLACK THINGS Down In Wuhan Tour-2020-2021 10/30/20 -9:00 Pm. Brick By Brick-N.Hollywood CA 11/8/20-5:20 Pm-”Live Stream” Whisky A Go Go W.Hollywood CA
HM: What advice can you give other fellow musicians and bands out there during these Covid-19 Blackout Times? Tone Raven: Just understanding what it is that you’re working towards,and your goals.And don’t let not playing out in public deter you from keeping your sense of purpose,and heart for what you do. And it’s not based on that you’re playHIGHWIRE DAZE
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The Beach Boys Concerts In Your Car, CBF Productions, Ventura, CA, October 23, 2020
Concert Review and Photo by Erica Vincent Like many people, The Beach Boys is a band I have listened to since I was in diapers! I recall countless road trips with my dad listening to them or being home and having the vinyl on the turntable while I sang and danced to it… Times were easier. Kind of odd to look back over my life and see the progression of everything. Times are super strange and stressful right now; you don’t need me to lay it out for you. No matter who you are, it’s a rough time. This is why this show was so important and why our entertainment industry is so vital! It’s a night to escape the negativity of what the world is currently. Music has always been a mental escape, but it’s needed more than ever right now! The Beach Boys have always had the “fun fun fun” beachy vibes to their songs, so when I heard they were playing in Ventura next to the beach, it was no question, I HAD to go! You’ve no doubt read what I have had to say about the drive-in shows. Are they like shows we have had in the past? No. But they are still so much fun! The crowd pulls in and sets up lawn chairs, tiki bars, pizza parties, unique adult beverages, costumes, custom cars, etc! It’s a tailgate party with a concert! I wandered through the crowd after vehicles had pulled into the venue lot and guests had settled in. There was not a sad or troubled face in the crowd; everyone was energized by one another, and knowing that soon The Beach Boys would take the stage! There were also a lot of Hawaiian shirts, haha. But that’s just a note to set the scene! Mike Love and The Beach Boys took the stage, several additional members to the original line up. The current line up is Mike Love (original lead vocalist and chief lyricist), Bruce Johnston (Vocals and keyboards), Scott Totten (Vocals and lead guitar), Christian Love (Vocals and guitar), Brian Eichenberger (Vocals and guitar), Tim Bonhomme (Keyboards), Keith Hubacher (Bass guitar), John Cowsill (Vocals and drums), and special guests Mark McGrath (Vocals), and John Stamos (Vocals and drums). It’s a lot of members, but I loved watching each person on stage, and they were all well received by the crowd. I have seen this done before, and it sounds so muddled, having so many people on stage. This was not the case with The Beach Boys. Each song sounded like a remaster of an original track! Impressive, to say the least. Mike Love said between songs, “We’ve all been a little rusty. And haven’t been able to do much, being in a pandemic and everything.” Made me chuckle because they all sounded fantastic. I had caught a little bit of soundcheck, and watching the full set was even better! Photographers were only allowed to shoot a few songs, but I didn’t mind so much in this case. Being able to stand back and enjoy classics like Surfer Girl, I Get Around, Wouldn’t It Be Nice, Kokomo, Surfin USA, Fun 66
Fun Fun. The list goes on! Mark McGrath (Vocals of Sugar Ray) made an appearance for a few songs, and the band even did a cover of Sugar Ray’s hit Fly, such a catchy damn song! The show was what you would expect, though. It was over before you knew it. What felt like 10 minutes was actually 20 some songs! The crowd sang along, swaying back and forth, cheering, going crazy seeing John Stamos on guitar and drums, and Mark McGrath created even more excitement and dancing. It was a Beach Boys concert, but Sugar Ray’s hit Fly is what stuck in our heads after the show. For me, it was a combo of Fly and Kokomo, an interesting combo. The tailgate party vibe, I feel, gave this show a completely different vibe. Beach Boys last I saw them was a sit down in an auditorium show. Fun, but lacking something. Auditorium shows usually are. The drive-in completed what was missing. Being able to sit with friends in your bubble, eat and drink what you wanted without paying out the nose, and creating your own scene! Some people did inflatable chairs in the backs of trucks, some people did a tiki bar with Hawaiian shirts and leis, some just cuddled in the open hatch of a car or SUV. The uniqueness of each vehicle’s “set” was astounding! Are The Beach Boys “Rusty”? Not in the least! It’s hard to believe that a band that has been around for 60 years still sounds so great. Traces of The Beach Boys exists in a lot of music still. Just listen, and you’ll hear it. Would Weezer even exist as it does without them? Doubtful. Do their tracks still cause the hairs on your neck to stand on end while you reminisce about less stressful times? Absolutely! They were able to capture bold harmonies with a rock and orchestral infusion. They are, and will always be, icons of rock that paved the way for other artists.
www.concertsinyourcar.com November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
Bonnie Brae ALL STARS The Whisky, West Hollywood, CA, October 18, 2020
Concert Review by Ken Morton Photo by George Contreras
When Led Zeppelin and Heart collide with a killer punk rock aesthetic – one will find the likes of the Bonnie Brae All Stars LIVE at the world famous Whisky A Go Go and beyond. And while we may still be in the midst of a pandemic, Bonnie Brae All Stars are here to rock your world however they can, at whatever venue is available. In person concerts have given way to virtual live streams, and the format works very well for both the Whisky on Sunset and the Bonnie Brae All Stars. In their second virtual event from the venerable night club, this Los Angeles based band presented an exhilarating set of driving rock tunes sprinkled with a few inspired covers. Opening with the slamming one-two punch of Like A Drug and Three Strikes You’re Out, Bonnie Brae All Stars instantly made a connection with a worldwide audience via Whisky A Go Go and Rainbow Bar and Grill Facebook Facebook streams. Throughout the set, songs such as Slut and Dirty Love made an impact. And what a kickass tribute to Lemmy the Bonnie Brae All Stars had in store when they unleashed a raging rendition of Ace Of Spades towards the end of their set. David Coltrane Levin in his Jimi Hendrix shirt was the true master of the axe, presenting absolutely inspired guitar work throughout the entire show. If Ann Wilson channeled her punk rock beast, out would appear the charismatic Gwendolyn Casella, whose kickass vocals and rock and roll heart ruled the Whisky for her entire time onstage. And bringing it all home with a fiery vengeance were rhythm section dynamos Darryn Sutton on bass and Scottie Carneghi on drums. With a live show this explosive, it will certainly be terrific when we are finally able to see Bonnie Brae All Stars work the crowd with their fierce rocking anthems. Be sure to check out the Bonnie Brae All Stars Facebook page to find out their next glorious exhibition of music and mayhem. Stay tuned to party with this band in 2021!!!
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November/December 2020
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www.perrisrecords.com Please pick up any of these CD’s at the following locations: Amoeba Music - Hollywood, Bionic Records - Buena Park, CD Trader - Tarzana, Freakbeat Records - Sherman Oaks, Fingerprintz Music - Long Beach, Toxic Toast Records - Long Beach, Glass House Records - Pomona, Black Hole Records - Fullerton ALSO AVAILABLE:
HELIX “Eat Sleep Rock” PER5832 Barcode 670573058328
SteelCity “Mach II”
For fans of Bon Jovi, Winger & Europe. PER5752 - 670573057529
Frédéric Slama “L.A Rendez-Vous”
For fans of Journey, Foreigner & Toto.
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AOR
LastWorld
“Over The Edge”
For fans of Journey, Bon Jovi & Night Ranger. PER5812 - 670573058120
CDS DISTRIBUTED BY SELECT-O-HITS
“Return To L.A” For fans of Journey, Foreigner & Toto.
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& ALLIANCE
ALBUM REVIEWS Little Miss Hollywood Betty Moon (Evolver Music)
Review by Ken Morton Almost a lifetime ago, Canadian vocalist Betty Moon was on A&M Records, unveiling her Self-Titled Full Length debut in 1991. Proceeding on through other entities such as St Clair and EMI, Betty Moon would soon take matters into her own hands, launching the Evolver Records imprint in 2006. With an output of recordings that are both fascinating and imaginative, Betty Moon is certainly as innovative as contemporary artists such as Madonna and Lady Gaga – just somehow not as well known. And with the release of Little Miss Hollywood, Ms. Moon is at the height of her vivid creative prowess. Little Miss Hollywood is an album that will enrapture both fans of the radio land mainstream and the indie artistic music connoisseurs. If only the worldwide airwaves would venture out to rep something this exciting! “I’m gonna show you what you’re missing, late at night we’re dancing to the blinding lights,” Ms. Moon murmurs sensually at the commencement of the album’s title track Little Miss Hollywood – and the aural adventure has truly begun! Did It For Nothing is seething with passion and drive, with its “we’ve got blood on our hands” denouement. Your Dirty Love is wondrously rapturous – an infectious selection that will spin seductively in your head for ages! How Do You Like Me Now will rock your world with its synthesized guitars and viper fueled vocals. Another standout cut is the pulsating beat action of The Liar – a stunning choice for a single that slinks into the heart of the matter in nothing short of a triumphant fashion. The 10 songs found within Little Miss Hollywood unleash an energy that will tantalize the senses and set the imagination in flight. With Grammy season on the way, it would be amazing and almost revolutionary to include a truly innovative artist like Betty Moon into the mix. She’s been releasing compelling music under the radar for years, where familiar genres such as electronic, indie, funk and dance collide with absolutely captivating results. Whether you are a Grammy tastemaker or a music lover looking to take an auditory odyssey, Little Miss Hollywood by Betty Moon possesses enough star power and fevered emotion to light up the galaxy.
Linkage for artists reviewed on this page: bettymoon.com danielmarkhammusic.com velvetbluemusic.com
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www.highwiredazeradio.net
Burnout Daniel Markham (Self-released album)
Review by Ken Morton “It’s an ugly record for ugly times,” says the press release for the brand new Daniel Markham album. Burnout is the name of Markham’s latest endeavor, and instead of the alt country and power pop mediums, the artist goes for a hard rocking grunge approach – and the results are absolutely epic in scope! One notices right away the vibrant fuzzy guitars and heavy rock inflections on opening track Armadillo – and what an adventure Daniel Markham has in store for the listener! Imagine Nirvana and Pantera as envisioned through the eyes of an indie rock dynamo, and you are only just beginning to envision the thrilling experience Daniel Markham presents within the fiery confines of Burnout! Songs such as Don’t It Feel Good?, Glamourous Like Goddesses and Sun Is Black Again are rapturous and imaginative, with Markham creating tapestries that are certainly an inspiration in these turbulent times. And stick around for the one-two punch conclusion, where the diabolic refrains of Safe Without You and the wickedly poppy Happy Ending definitely leave an indelible impression. In the end, Burnout isn’t so ugly after all. Burnout is actually a scorching indie love letter to hard rock and heavy metal influences, and it will certainly be revered by all types of music fanatics.
Hot Painless City EP Frank Lenz (Velvet Blue Music) Review by Ken Morton Frank Lenz is as prolific as he is inventive – and his latest Hot Painless City EP is a further chapter into the adventures of a brilliant career in music. Best known for his drum skills, most notable in acts like Richard Swift, Starflyer 59, Damien Jurado, and The Lassie Foundation – as well as his notable movie soundtrack work – it’s always a sonic treat when the maestro Lenz releases new material. So welcome to the 70’s – even if it’s just for three absolutely wonderful covers! Suicide Is Painless, the theme song from the legendary MASH is up first, given a sweetly melancholic treatment. Then it’s time for some sleaze rock supreme as Lenz brings it on tenfold with a superb cover of the Nick Gilder hit single Hot Child In The City. Closing out the EP is a lovely rendition of the Judy Collins / Joni Mitchell classic Both Sides Now – still timeless and thought provoking after all these years! Before you know it, this gem of a recording is over! And in the traditional of all successful artists, Frank Lenz definitely leaves the listener wanting a whole lot more of that Hot Painless City! As always, it will be exciting to hear what Frank Lenz presents to the world in 2021 and beyond! Stay tuned... November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
Music Box Mitch Perry Group (Self-released) Review by Ken Morton
Mitch Perry has lived an absolutely brilliant career in music, playing guitar for legends such as McAuley Schenker Group, The Sweet, and even the iconic Cher. Those lucky enough to live anywhere near Hollywoodland would find Mitch Perry generously presenting his massive talents for Ultimate Jam Night at the world famous Whisky A Go Go on the Sunset Strip in pre-pandemic days. The age of COVID-19 has actually been a creative renaissance for many a musician – through tragedy there must only be triumphant – and in the tumultuous year of 2020, let it be known that Mitch Perry has released a brand new album that is as epic and creative as his guitar artistry. With a little help from his many friends in the industry, the Mitch Perry Group has been born, and their collective creation is the vibrantly stunning Music Box. Opening with the rocking rage of Saint Valentine, Music Box kicks into supersonic gear, with Mitch Perry and his amazing band colliding with mesmerizing results. Believe presents the entire Mitch Perry Group unveiling a power ballad with a stunning sense of conviction. In The Morning is definitely a wake-up call that will rock your world with its inspiring bluesy
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reprieves. Passions are seething tenfold on Soul Star, with Tina Turner-style vocals and Mitch Perry’s fiery guitar ripping into the heart of the matter. It’s then time for a visit from the classic Jumping Jack Flash, and the arrangement as presented by the Mitch Perry Group is packed with imagination and intrigue. Part Two of the Music Box experience commences with the impassioned reverberations of Wasted Time, where emotional performances from all members reign supreme. Pack It Up And Go – Remember Me is 8 dazzling minutes of auditory excellence that will stagger the senses of all music connoisseurs. The Pain is heavy blues from the swamp whose rock and roll heart pulsates with ingenuity and spirit. And then closing out the Music Box endeavor is the rapturous I Still Miss You, a blockbuster grand finale leaving the listener craving a whole lot more! In addition to the prodigious guitar work from Mitch Perry, the Mitch Perry Group consists of Keith England, Shelly Bonet, and Kara Turner sharing the lead vocal duties – and dynamic performers they all are! Ed Roth contributes the glorious keyboard interludes while bassist Dan McNay and Tal Bergman deliver a mighty rhythm section event. Every single member of the Mitch Perry Group possesses impressive credits that will tantalize any music aficionado. Music Box by Mitch Perry Group is the gift we all need to be swept away in as Coronavirus and political turmoil linger on! Music is the universal language indeed, and Mitch Perry’s message of sonic love to the world speaks expansive volumes!
https://www.mitchperry.com/
November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE
SQUEALER - INSANITY
10th studio album from the German Heavy/ Thrash Metal veterans! Feat. Bernhard Weiss (Axxis), Zak Stevens (Savatage) and Roland Grapow (Masterplan) as guests on the track „Black Rain“!
OUT: 04.12.
FOREIGN - THE SYMPHONY OF THE WANDERING JEW PART II The Metal Opera highlight of the year!
Feat. Zak Stevens (Savatage), Andy Kuntz (Vanden Plas), Amanda Lehmann (Steve Hackett Band), Tom S. Englund (Evergrey), Leo Margarit (Pain Of Salvation) & Mike LePond (Symphony X)!
OUT: 04.12.
LAZARUS DREAM – ALIVE
L
AVAI
W!
NO ABLE
SHADOW TRIBE – REALITY UNVEILED
!!! X-MAS SALE !!! 10% DISCOUNT ON ALL TITLES FROM NOVEMBER 26TH 2020 UNTIL DECEMBER 20TH, 2020 VIA WWW.PRIDEANDJOY.DE/SHOP All Pr i d e & J o y Mu sic releases are available via www.prideandjoy.de/shop (ships world-wide!) #prideandjoymusic #prideandjoymusic
www.prideandjoy.de
Revolution RVNGE (Self-released single) Review by Ken Morton RVNGE has been unleashed within the legendary Los Angeles music scene, and their stark talent and unbridled rage is sure to gain this band a rapturous following. Revolution is the second single from RVNGE, and it’s an exhilarating manifesto in the grand tradition of System Of A Down and Rage Against The Machine. With its stunning commencement of “We’re all children of a broken generation, misinformation the new fucking sensation,” Revolution slams into supersonic gear, and the lyrical content and explosive musicianship found within are absolutely striking. Vocalist Matty Signh unleashes a staggering amount of passion and conviction, and has a ton of talent and charisma to back it all up. Guitarist Brandon Lee Syme penetrates your senses with his intensive performance, unveiling a mighty atmospheric wall of sound. Drummer Mark De La O brings it all home with an all-out vengeance! The trio of talent is sure to make a lot of noise above and beyond the City Of Angels, especially if Revolution is a sample of even greater glories ahead. “We’ll never let them take us away,” is the mighty call for arms at the end of Revolution, and it’s message will linger on long after the single spins to its earth shattering conclusion. Stay tuned, because we’ll be hearing a whole lot more from the amazing RVNGE in 2021 and beyond!
www.facebook.com/RVNGEmusic
Projection Slow Burning Car (Self-Released)
Review by Ken Morton Slow Burning Car is an explosive indie rock band from Southern California who have been releasing fiery compositions under the radar for years. Projection is their fifth magnum opus, and it’s jam-packed with sonic artistry that will provoke the senses and set the imagination in flight. Fans of bands such as Foo Fighters and Queens Of The Stone Age are absolutely destined to discover a new favorite when encountering the raging refrains of Slow Burning Car’s amazing Projection. Founding member Troy Spiropoulos and company definitely have an all-out prize winner on their hands with the unveiling of Projection. Public Cynic is the opening selection, and it’s captivating melody and timely lyrics are unleashed with a dynamic sense of urgency. There is a good deal of fun to be experienced within the realm of Slow Burning Car as well, with the wickedly infectious Ladish Man and the fuzz pop exuberance of Diamond In The Rough rocking your world featuring Krista Ray on lead vocals. Memories Of A Gentleman Ghost will both rock and haunt the listener with its eerie spoken word meshed with a hyper-infectious soundscape. Gardens In Space is another highlight, 9-plus minutes of pure psychedelic intrigue. Meraki is sung entirely 74
in Greek, and is wondrously mystical in scope. And be sure to stay till the end and board the Transfer Terminal Twelve for a mind-blowing auditory conclusion. The artistry of Slow Burning Car is presented by Troy Spiropoulos on bass and lead vocals, Tommy Marcel on rhythm/lead guitar, Adam Idell on drums, Krista Ray on lead and backing vocals, and Aaron Kusterer on lead/rhythm guitar. Projection by Slow Burning Car will be released at the beginning of 2021, and is required listening as we all hopefully drive into a much better place and time here on Planet Earth!
www.facebook.com/SlowBurningCar
Insanity Squealer (Pride & Joy Music) Review by Ken Morton The mighty Squealer from Germany is certainly the definition of perseverance, experiencing the passing of not one but two lead vocalists in the past. But future is now, and even in this pandemic year of 2020, Squealer has unveiled the appropriately titled Insanity, and the metal anthems found within present a band at the very height of their creative prowess. The thrash attack begins at once with the ferocious refrains of Into Flames, followed immediately by the fist pumping exhilaration of the almighty Salvation. Then it’s time for a twist of Bad Tasting Sin dramatically smashing into the heart of the matter. Low Flying Brains is another mind-blowing highlight, showing just how imaginative and compelling the Squealer experience can be. The heavy metal anthems continue into sonic overdrive, with tunes such as Hunter Of Myself, Power Of Bliss, and the glorious title track raging into your head with fiendish glee. And definitely listen on to the grand and glorious finale of the absorbing Black Rain, featuring all-star guest appearances from Bernhard Weiss (Axxis) and Zak Stevens (Circle II Circle, Savatage, TSO) on vocals, and Roland Grapow (Masterplan, ex-Helloween) on lead guitar. Squealer 2020 features massive performances courtesy of Lars Döring (guitars), Michael Schiel (guitars), Sebastian Werner (vocals), Manuel Roth (bass) and Peter Schäfer on drums. With an album as thrilling as Insanity, it won’t be long until Squealer breaks out the auditory madness all over the world at long last! Available December 4th via Pride & Joy Music!
http://www.squealer.de/
HIGHWIRE DAZE ISSUE #134 Available January 22, 2021
Happy Holidaze from Highwire Daze Visit Highwire Daze Online at www.highwiredaze.com November/December 2020
HIGHWIRE DAZE